In front of you is war, and behind is desolation. The swamp and the town have been cut in half, to become a battleground for gods.
Meanwhile, you stand atop the lip of the crater and watch, fighting back the tears that threaten to roll down your cheeks.
Part of you wants to howl in anguish, and you can't quite pin why. Every hack of the axe, every swing of the pick makes you flinch as if struck. A bubbling pain builds within you, and for a second you wonder if this is how the other Guardians feel. Then you blink, because even though it has been some days since, you still can't believe what you have become.
A few more seconds of observation make it clear to you, and you grit your teeth against the newest shock of pain.
From the very first you knew what those growths of crystalline green were. They resonated with a kindred energy, an energy which now suffuses your every movement, and for a short time, it was like he was back with you. Then the first gatherer came, and the hurting began.
Now it feels as if your very soul is being tugged away from you, and you know that's just another part of his blessing. Those crystals are his life force, and you can feel it within yourself. Perhaps you were tied to the Anima Mundi, as well. Who knows what he had gifted you?
You can't stand here much longer. This is killing you, and there's nothing you can do right now. You resisted Saradomin's might before, but you can't go out and attack him now. Besides, you need to stop both Saradomin and Zamorak, and you aren't familiar with the extent of your new abilities. If you try anything, their soldiers will tear you apart.
A particularly harsh pang makes you hiss and clutch at your chest, then without heed for your surroundings you turn and run.
You don't stop until you're away from the ruined town, standing at the entrance to the swamp. Letting your feet guide you, you wander to the familiar tree. You pick up the lantern you have left here and light it, taking some small comfort in its soft blue light.
The trip through the caves offers you a moment of quiet. You know all the secret passageways, the alcoves, the tunnels, and so nothing stops you as you make your way to the end. Soon you emerge into a different cavern system, one far more dear and magical to you.
Your lantern casts the scenery in a glow of sapphire, flattening colours and blurring distances. Every so often, when the beam sweeps over them, a bobbing light creature twitches and flits over to you. They feel like old friends to you now.
Soon enough, you see what you're looking for: your tiny light source bounces off something ahead of you, sending chinks of blue and green flying this way and that. You walk up to Juna and reach out to her, caught in the grip of a sudden silence.
The gigantic swamp snake uncoils herself from her protective knot and lowers herself to the floor, moving in a style that at first you thought clunky, and is now simply hypnotic to you.
Something must be showing on your face, for she loops a coil of her massive bulk around your back and draws you toward herself, settling into a loose tangle around you. Suddenly something breaks and the tears flood forth, even as you grasp at Juna and hide against her smooth, cool scales.
"Hush, child. I feel it too."
Her words hiss in your ear, and though some part of you wants to childishly deny it, that no-one has been hit as hard as you, you know it's true. They must all feel the same way you do. You loved him with all you had, and now he's gone.
You miss him. You miss him so much.