Pain. That was all he felt as he slowly trudged his way through the mud, rain pouring down on him mercilessly. Gritting his teeth, his vision blurred as he struggled to stay conscious, gripping his bleeding side.

At last, his knees gave out, his body collapsing onto the soft, wet earth beneath as he gave a cough. His throat ached, his lungs burned as he fought against the tugging urge of utter exhaustion.

His eyelids drooped as he clenched his fists. The rain paid no heed to him as the cool raindrops continued to fall upon him. He continued to lay on the ground like a beached whale, his strength slowly leaving him.

One thought continued to flash through his mind as he attempted to get back up. Blood oozed out of the wound on his side, but he continued to ignore the intense pain. He had to get back up, he had to escape this place.

He had to live.

It didn't matter if he had to lose a limb of two now, all that he wanted was to survive, to breathe, to live. He would be filled with nothing but regret if he were to die now.

Alas, despite his unshaking resolve which remained firm, his body was going against his wishes as it refused to cooperate with him. After what seemed like an eternity of struggling, the man was starting to lose hope. He couldn't possibly die now, right?Dying without being remembered by anyone was something that he feared greatly.

Before he knew it, fresh tears streamed down his face as he began weeping to himself. Desperate as ever, he used whatever energy he had left in him to beg for help. However, his efforts were in vain. No one could hear his cries nor his pleas.

Once again, his vision began blurring, much to his discomfort. His body felt cooler, lighter, although the seething pain in him was what remained. Everything seemed to be getting fuzzier all around him as all of his five senses refused to listen to him anymore.

He felt defeated. And to think that just mere minutes ago he was on the ground struggling to live. How pathetic. The tears continued to stream out of his eyes, his cheeks red and his eyes puffy and swollen from crying. He lets out another choked cry, his stubborn self just hoping that maybe someone...anyone would hear his voice and come to his aid.

He wanted to curse aloud to the skies above for this. How cruel fate was to deem him in this state. However, it didn't matter anymore. Time slowly crept past, and it didn't seem like anyone was coming to his rescue anytime soon.

Again, once again, his eyelids drooped with increasing exhaustion. His whole body felt worn out, and he could no longer move.

Tired. He felt so tired.

Slowly but surely, his eyes began to close, but not before he could hear soft, thumping noises in the distance. Looking up, his mouth couldn't help but open slightly at what he saw.

There before him was a woman with a light-blue cape draped over her. Though her face was mostly concealed by the hood she wore over her head, the man could still make out her mesmerizing aquamarine blue eyes which shone like jewels as long, sky-blue locks of hair cascaded around her face. To him, she looked almost like a fairy than a regular human.

The woman continued to stare at him, silent, before she slowly bent down. He swore he could see her lips open slightly before she muttered softly amidst the pouring rain, "Are you alright?" Her voice sounded angelic to his ears, like some divine being that was speaking to him.

The man stared back at her, no words coming out of his mouth. Everything around him began turning a hue of black as his body felt numb. He felt so tired, and couldn't fight against the tugging urge to close his eyes. So, before he could give a response, he gave into the darkness, a smile on his face.

At least...in his final moments...someone had noticed him.