Me: I knew I'd get yelled at for the cliffhanger at the end of Chapter 5…

Sheba: Then why'd you do it?

Me: I have to end the chapters somewhere you know!

Ivan: Well, it's about time you updated! We've been waiting forever!

Me: It wasn't that long. You're exaggerating.

Sheba: No we're not. We've been waiting patiently for this chapter and you know it!

Me: It's not my fault! Blame all of my GD homework. Onward to the next era—Chapter 6.

Disclaimer: Why do I even bother putting these things in here? Everyone knows I don't own the freaking game!

*Grief*

The Gaia Blade dropped to the ground, its point landing in the red lake forming in the grass. A deadly silence hung in the air. Isaac couldn't breathe or peel his eyes away from the horrific sight before him. Mia, his pure and beautiful angel, lay slain on the ground by his own sword! It was too awful to be real! He had to be dreaming!

"We need to get her to the town sanctum!" Ivan said after what felt like a long time.

"Right!" said Garet. He stooped and very, very carefully lifted Mia up. "Hang in there, Mia—you'll be all right!" He and Ivan took off towards town, with Sheba deciding to follow after a moment's hesitation. Only Jenna remained, and she couldn't stop looking at Isaac as he stood before her, frozen like a statue. His eyes hadn't moved from the spot where Mia had laid.

"Isaac?" Jenna asked timidly.

Her voice partially brought him out of his stupor. She watched as he slowly brought his arms up and wrapped them around himself. His whole body started to tremble and he slipped down to the grass. Jenna went to his side.

"What happened here, Isaac?" she asked gently. "What happened to Mia?"

The name cut through him like the edge of a razor. An invisible rope was being pulled tighter and tighter around his chest and he could only grab quick, jerky breaths. His whole body shook, and everything inside of him felt like it was breaking apart. What had he done? What had he done?

Jenna gingerly touched him and he recoiled, getting back to his feet. "Isaac?" she asked again. He shook his head vigorously and took off into the woods. "Isaac!" Jenna called. But he was already out of earshot. Jenna stared after him, not knowing what to do. Something more than met the eye had happened here, but she couldn't quite comprehend what.

Isaac ran through the woods as fast as his feet would carry him. Here and there he tripped over tree roots, but always he immediately got back to his feet and kept running. Inside his mind he kept screaming the name of the one he loved, the one who completed him, the one he'd slain. Every part of him was willing it to be untrue; to just let it be another sick, demented nightmare that he'd soon awaken from. He begged with all his might to wake up and let this unthinkable thing go away. She had to be OK, she just had to be!

************

A short while later, Jenna had rejoined the rest of her friends outside of the sanctum in the village. No one could say a word as they were all still too stunned and afraid of what had happened. Picard emerged from the building, softly shutting the huge door behind him.

"How is she, Picard?" Sheba asked.

Picard sighed. "Not good. I healed the wound, but she's already lost a lot of blood." He shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I don't know if she'll survive."

The others looked around at each other sadly. "What can we do?" Ivan asked.

"Nothing," Picard replied. "Now we just wait."

"Great," Garet complained. "Waiting is not my strong point."

"Mine either," Jenna admitted.

"I don't understand," Picard began. "Who would want to do such a thing to Lady Mia?"

"Well…" Sheba began uneasily. "I-I'm not entirely sure, but I think it was Isaac."

"What?!" Picard exclaimed. "But I thought they were…?"

"They are," said Ivan. "But something's been bothering Isaac lately and he hasn't been himself."

"For sure," Garet agreed, remembering what happened yesterday. "I don't blame him for wanting to smack me sometimes, but for him to actually do it is completely abnormal."

"Isaac loves Mia, probably more than any of us will ever understand," said Jenna. "He'd never intentionally hurt her—I'm sure of it."

"Yes," Ivan added. "He wouldn't ever do something like this to her. I'm sure there's some other explanation for how this happened."

General nods of agreement passed around the group. "Where'd he go anyway?" Garet asked. "He should be here."

"He ran off into the woods," Jenna said, looking even more upset. "He seemed quite distraught to say the least."

"Can you blame him?" Sheba implored.

Isaac was around the corner of the sanctum, leaning against the building. He knew his friends were there but was unable to absorb anything they were saying. Their voices sounded garbled and distant. Only one thing could flow through his mind and it blocked out everything else around him. Slowly, he emerged from the shadows and approached the huge double doors to the shrine. He needed to see her. Everything in him demanded it.

"Isaac?" Ivan questioned, spotting him out of the corner of his eye. He moved like some sort of ghost to the doors, seemingly unaware of anything around him. No one tried to stop him, but they all went to peak inside once he'd entered the sanctum.

Numerous candles provided a soft, warm light inside the sanctuary. The single room wasn't very large since it only served one purpose, but the high ceiling created an eerie, cathedral-style echo at the slightest sound. A red carpet was the sole interior decoration aside from the golden candelabras neatly aligned against the side and back walls. The flames occasionally danced on their wicks, casting small and playful shadows in the corners of the room. The place felt inviting to any weary soul, but still a bit mysterious too.

On the altar near the back of the room lay what he sought. Picard had removed her cape and robes when he'd healed her, and these lay neatly folded on the floor beside the altar, though they were still stained with blood. A silver blanket elaborately embroidered with blue and gold thread was keeping her warm in place of her marred clothes. The soft candlelight reflected off her face and shiny blue hair so that she seemed to glow slightly. She looked asleep. A sleeping angel.

Isaac cautiously approached where she lay, both transfixed and afraid of what he saw before him. Eventually, he reached the altar and looked down at her. Was she dead? He pulled off his leather gloves and reached to touch her face but stopped just short of her. What right did he have to touch this pure visage with his sullied hands? He shouldn't even be allowed to gaze at her like this after what he'd done. To destroy someone so flawless and innocent as she was an unforgivable sin; a sin that demanded he suffer unspeakable torment for the rest of eternity.

But he was tormented every second he looked at her and remembered what he'd done. Slowly, he brought up his trembling hand again and just barely brushed his fingers against her cheek. It was still warm. She wasn't dead, at least not yet. He moved some of the loose blue strands away from her eyes and rested the palm of his right hand against the side of her head. His left hand he used to grip her right, waiting for some movement or sound to tell him that she was really OK. But there was none. Her breathing was so faint he had to strain to hear it even in the silence of the sanctum. He swallowed the massive blockage in his throat, though he knew the flood of sorrow behind it was mere seconds away from escaping.

"Mia," he whispered, his voice shaky and cracking. "Please, open your eyes! Please, you have to wake up—you just have to!" He could feel the hot rivers running down his face, gradually flowing faster and faster. Every part of his life essence was crumbling to pieces as he looked at her motionless form. This ethereal woman, the shining light in his life, was slipping away from him. How could he have done it? How could he have hurt someone he loved more than life itself? And what would he do without her light to guide him? He needed her like he needed air to breathe, and seeing her like this was slowly suffocating him, killing him from the inside out. The sorrow, the raw ripping pain overtook him and he broke down into helpless sobs, wrapping his arms around her soft form as tightly as he dared.

"I'm so sorry, Mia!" Isaac's voice was all but drowned out by his tears. It didn't matter; the words seemed feeble and meaningless when he'd done something so awful. Still he begged for her to hear him. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" He kissed her forehead very lightly, looking back at her peaceful face. "Please wake up! I don't care if you hate me forever, but please Mia…" The words kept getting stuck. "…Just please don't die!" That was all he could say. The unending despair wouldn't let him speak anymore—only cry beyond any consolation.

The five others peaking in through the door felt their own hearts breaking as they watched and listened to Isaac. "There must be something we can do," Sheba sniffed quietly, rubbing at her eyes.

Jenna started crying too, throwing her arms around Garet. "This is worse than how he was after the storm! I can't watch him go through this again!"

Garet also turned from the door, returning Jenna's embrace. He couldn't stand seeing his best friend like this either, but he didn't know what to do. Isaac seemed totally unreachable now. Just a shell of what he once was.

"Mia can't leave us," Ivan whispered. "She can't leave him."

"I wish I could've done more," said Picard. Why did bad things always happen to good people? It didn't make sense that a tragedy of this magnitude would happen to such a passionate and loving couple.

As he grieved for his love, Isaac felt Mia's life force slipping further away, almost disappearing completely. He panicked as he felt it; the anguish increased so much he thought he'd drop dead right there and then. But even in the midst of all the pain and sorrow that was tearing him apart, he managed to focus just long enough to call upon the final, forbidden power he possessed.

Revive. It was the last, sacred power of the Venus Clan, long forbidden from use by anyone. Forbidden because it could bring people back from death or the brink of death. Whatever higher forces existed in this world hated this power, as it rendered theirs meaningless. That's why Revive came with a heavy price. Anyone foolish enough to try to cast it had to know exactly what he or she was doing. The slightest mistake in its execution would steal the life of the caster. And even if performed correctly, there was still no guarantee it would work. Isaac only barely knew about this power from old stories he'd heard on his travels and in Vale. He knew the risks and he knew that he had no experience with trying to command such a mighty force, but he didn't care. His life was worthless without Mia anyway, so he had to try. Anything would be better than losing her completely.

Slowly, his whole body took on the golden light of Venus as he called up all of his Psynergy to perform what could be his last act. He trembled all over and closed his eyes as he kissed Mia. The light left him and went to her instead. Isaac felt all of his energy rapidly drain away, but somehow he knew he wouldn't die. When he opened his eyes and pulled away from Mia, the light had faded. Still she lay motionless, her breathing faint. It hadn't worked, or if it had, it was only prolonging her suffering. He swallowed hard to keep the sorrow from erupting again. He was so cursed and useless. No matter what he did, all he ever brought to the ones he loved was suffering and death. The sparkling diamond ring on her left hand caught his eye, and he recalled the wonderful memories of their time together. He didn't deserve all the happiness she'd brought to him. All he deserved was the despair and loneliness that consumed him now.

He kissed her again, a few of his hot tears running onto her face. "I love you, Mia," he whispered. Then he straightened himself and left the sanctum, staggering out of weakness from the physical and emotional strain. He pushed his way past the others.

"Isaac…" Sheba began.

"Just stay away from me," Isaac said miserably. "You're all in danger from me."

"That's not true!" said Ivan.

"We're your friends, Isaac!" Jenna said. "We know you'd never harm us!"

"Mia said the same thing," Isaac whispered. His voice was wavering again. "Please, just stay away! I don't want to hurt anyone ever again!" He took off back towards the woods.

"Isaac!" Garet called. He made a move to follow, but Picard halted him.

"Let him be," he said. "I don't think anyone can save him from his grief."

Garet shook him off. "Maybe, but someone needs to at least keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

"Follow him, Garet," Ivan said. "But keep your distance. You might upset him more if he sees you."

Isaac didn't stop running until he made it back to the spot where…it had happened. His sword was still there on the ground, the blade still mostly red. The pool that had been there was basically gone, having sunken into the ground, though much of the dead grass remained discolored from it. He stared at this maroon grass, remembering the massacre that had been there only a short time before. The image destroyed all that was left of him. He dropped to the ground, brushing his hands over the grass so that the red came off onto them. Cursed, bloodstained hands. In one single moment of insanity he'd destroyed the thing he valued above all others, the shining soulmate he needed to survive. It was all gone. She was gone. All the emptiness and sorrow he felt culminated in two little words that sat on the edge of his mind: it hurts.

The tears came back with a vengeance as he lay there in the grass. He truly didn't have the strength or the will to live, but he knew he didn't deserve the calm peacefulness of death either. So he remained there in a state of limbo, unable to fight all of the pain that wracked him as he cried. Under his breath he faintly called to the one he needed, even though each mention of her name felt like another dagger being thrust into his flesh. He wanted to hear the name; it was the only part of her he still had. It seemed like he'd been there for days before finally, exhaustion overwhelmed him and he fell asleep.

Garet had watched helplessly while his friend was brutally tortured from within. He was relieved to see Isaac succumb to his fatigue, thinking that the rest would grant him a temporary solace from all of that pain. Garet approached him slowly, willing himself not to be overtaken by the massive waves of despair emanating off of the figure before him. He crouched beside his friend.

"Ah, Isaac," he said quietly. "It truly is a cruel world that would allow something like this to happen to someone like you." With no idea of what else he could do, he carefully picked Isaac up and carried him back to town.

************

"At last I've finally broken you," the hissing, mocking voice stated proudly.

Isaac looked at the shadow demon through faded, tear-filled eyes. The raw agony tore at him even now while he slept. Or was he awake? He didn't know nor care. All that mattered was that Mia was gone forever.

"I had a feeling this would finally defeat you," the figure continued. "How does it feel, hero? Does it hurt?"

"More than anyone could ever imagine," Isaac replied softly. He didn't have the strength to stand defiant before this creature. He was broken in every sense of the word. "But why Mia? Why her?"

"Isn't it obvious?" the shadow implored. "No matter what I did to you, you kept clinging onto the belief that this 'angel' of yours was enough to keep you going. Every attempt I made at breaking your spirit was negated by that girl's foolish devotion to you and your equally foolish devotion to her. Long story short, in order to get what I wanted, I had to eliminate the final source of hope you were holding onto."

So that was the plot, and now whatever the beast wanted lay before it for the taking. Isaac knew this thing was evil and that he should try to fight it, but he just didn't have the willpower for such an act. He'd already lost too much.

"What do you want?" he asked. "Why have you done all of this?"

The shadow smirked. "I'm surprised a wise hero like yourself hasn't figured that out as well. No matter—I believe you're sufficiently weak enough now for me to destroy you even if you do resist."

"I've already lost this fight," said Isaac. "I know when I'm beaten, so do what you will. I surrender."

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Me: It's hard to critique your own writing! I can't tell if this chapter was agonizingly sad or just plain pathetic. Any opinions?

Sheba: You ended it with another evil cliffhanger!

Ivan: You're enjoying this aren't you?

Me: …Don't you two have someplace you need to be?

Ivan: Do we, Sheba?

Sheba: Not that I recall. I think we'll just stay here and make sure you keep going.

Me: Ack! Someone please make these uninvited guests go away! I hate to say it, but Chapter 7 may not get here very quickly because I have a particularly evil midterm coming up.

Ivan: No excuses!

Me: ^^;; Please don't kill me…it's my professor's fault!