Until My Last Breath
by SMYGO4EVA

What remained of the battleground before them, the vast green grounds outside of the woodlands, was reduced to smoking cinders. The fields were smoldering, grass stained with blood, littered with corpses of both foes and fallen comrades.

The warrior Souma stood on unsteady legs, even as her body ached and bled all over, brushing off her arms. She looked around, few of her comrades standing far in the same vicinity, but yet she couldn't see her Empress, Amaterasu.

"My lady, my lady, where are you? Please respond!"

Worry caught her chest in a vice, her heart pounding uncontrollably. Souma found herself limping around, looking frantically, the battleground, all the possible outcomes flooding her mind, most of them she didn't want to become reality.

"My lady, Amaterasu, are you there? Where are you? My lady, please!"

Nothing.

A hush had fallen upon them, and no one could breathe.

No…no..

It couldn't be true…

It couldn't be true that…

"Souma! Souma, do not fret, I'm over here!"

Her breath caught in her throat, the warrior spun in the direction of the familiar voice, and she saw who it belonged to.

Amaterasu, even in her bloodstained armor, looked just as regal and as beautiful when they made first met. She pulled off her helmet, shaking out her waist-length hair, blinking slow.

"My lady, you're all right!" Souma cried out as she ran over to Amaterasu, placing her hands upon the Empress's face. Relief washed over her, and she couldn't help the tears that fell down her dirt, blood-streaked face.

"I thought I'd lost you, my lady," Souma spoke as her words threatened to turn into sobs, unsuitable for standing before the Empress, but she couldn't give a damn at that moment.

"It's all right, Souma. You fought valiantly, we all have." Amaterasu replied, her voice wavering, placing a hand on Souma's face. They both looked up towards the sky.

Darkened clouds moved past the blinding sun overhead, a sense of hope blooming in the Empress and the warrior. Their hands twined together tightly, Amaterasu and Souma looked upon each other, weary yet grateful to live another day.

"My lady, my oath to you still stands. I will serve you and I will follow you, all until my last breath."

Amaterasu blinked, but she then held up Souma's hand interlaced with her own, her eyes glimmering with unshed tears. "Souma, my warrior, I am forever grateful for you. I shall do the same; I will protect you and guide you, until my dying hour."

Souma smiled as she and Amaterasu pressed their foreheads together, eyes closed, their vow unbroken. "My lady, I wouldn't have it any other way."