Amber Eyes
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Disclaimer: I own nothing except for the plot!
Authoress Ramble: The last chapter! Ahh! So sad, my story is ending! Well, actually, there's still the epilogue but ... ahh! Just ahh! I hope you enjoy this final, last chapter of Amber Eyes. In fact, I hope you enjoyed the entire story. Thank you very much for taking the time to read it. ^_^ Extra special love and thanks to the people who reviewed at every chapter- you rock! You inspired me to not only continue but to continue while making sure that I did my best! Thank you again! Remember to read the epilogue too (this chapter leaves too much hanging)! ^_^;
Note: If the s,'s and ,s are not quotes and commas, go to View ------ Character Set in Internet Explorer and change it to Western (Mac)! Or change the character set some other way to fix it, it's possible!
Shouts To People Who Reviewed!: Thank you so much for reviewing! Much love to Azi, Amanda Panda, Eclipse, Little Wolf LOVER, Shorty, Draco, CardCaptorHikariWolfy, Kimi-chan and REALLY LIKE UR FIC (you didn't leave a name for me, cutie pie o.o), DL@;~, Ongaku, SulliMike23, kawaiitenshisakura, Cherry, UrbanCinderella, darkemerald22, Sakura-miaka, Tigerdrake, Mika, WezL, hana no tenshi (Eva), Princess Kinomoto, Blossom190, Kwaii Canadian, SweetyPie, twilight-star, SweetCherryBlossom, diablo, Laura, Raymisha, Blozzomz, ZetaBee, Pink Sakura, Kinomoto, Shima And Tempis, HikariWolfSky, Riconne, Cherry Blossom, Kawaii-CherryWolf (cute name!), Rae-Rae (another cute name!), dangerous-beans, ZetaBee, Cute_Leen, Zara, Ebony Black, Shima And Tempis, Mini Sweety, Bloodlust Night, Meinien, :I, Lady Dez, Kat, *~*princess*~*, Jamie, silverymare, Lil' Fairy, Feathers, CoolCat, Val (great idea!), D, Athar-Luna, Azn-Angel, Dark-Luv3, cherryblossom, Li-kyoko-cp, Mysticalia, AnimeObsessionFantasy, Cute Emerald, Friends4Eva08, Cherry13, LilDragonGurl28, Pink-CherryBlossoms, Flaming Sakura, MimiGhost, S+SObsession!, Kammy, Mel, Kate, Shauna, Asayuni, T-Man, Moonspell, Rosy-Ray-Lover, SweetCherryBlossom, Catrina, Mysticalia, Abc, Alflirtbabe, T-man, Aino Saori, Cherry Li, Ying, Stormy and finally, Kitty Neko (I'm a big fan of yours! =3 I am honoured that you like my story!)! Thank you all again for your support!
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Meiling closed her eyes for a brief moment, swallowing her breath along with her fear. She could feel her heart beating within her, the only part of her that seemed not to be perfectly still. It had become clear to her what she must do. The rage of her heart, a breed of hatred that can be born only by love, had made everything clear. Those she loved were in grave danger, and her love for them fueled her hate, a hate that obliterated fear and replaced it with courage. She would fight.
She tightened her grip on the cold metal handle of her sword, its icy surface numbing the palm of her hand. She began to draw it out, unsheathing it slowly.
Her ruby eyes shot open, and in a flash of metal, her sword was in the air, its blade sharp and ready. Meiling locked her eyes on her goal, her ruby orbs glowing with fury as she stood and began to run toward him.
Eriol had seen the glint of her sword as it was drawn in the corner of his eye, and alarmed, he had turned in its direction. He was shocked, terrified and finally furious to see a ruby-eyed warrior with flowing black tresses running toward him, her sword ahead of her.
He turned to his guard, gesturing madly toward her as she approached him.
Get her, you bastard!, he shouted to him. The guard drew his sword and ran across the balcony so that he was in front of Eriol's chair, protecting him.
Meiling did not slow, having expected this. The guard would be no challenge; she was far better trained than he in the art of swordfighting.
She met him, their swords clashing. She assaulted the guard with a series of lightning-fast slashes, and though he blocked many of them, it was clear that he was on the defense. With a final quick flick of her arm, the guard cried out, a thick line of blood appearing on the underside of his arm, near his wrist.
His sword fell to the stone floor with an erratic clatter, and before he had time to look to where it had fallen, Meiling raised her fist and punched his face. He fell to the floor unconscious, and she paused a moment, hovering over his body. She then raised her eyes, locking them on Eriol.
He saw this and, his blood boiling with fury, he stood from his chair. He icily drew his own sword, a sharp blade made of pure silver with dark green, blood red and jet black accents. Meiling swallowed her fear and approached him slowly, raising her sword and tightening her grip upon the handle. Her breath froze in the frigid air.
He would not be so easy.
You will pay for this, Meiling, he said, spitting out her name as though it were poison. She stood firmly six feet in front of him, unmoved by this threat.
It is you who will pay, she spat back. It is you who is the murderer, the criminal, the one who must be punished! Because of you, an innocent girl lies dead!
And it will be two in a few minutes, he replied icily. Three when I add my son.
He gestured over the balcony where Meiling knew Syaoran still stood, tied to an execution post, a black blindfold covering his tortured amber eyes, the girl he loved lying dead at his feet in a puddle of blood. She bit her bottom lip, tasting her own blood as she tightened her grip on her sword a final time. This reminder was too much for her.
She rushed forward. She reached out with her sword only to slash through air; Eriol dodged her easily. A second slash was blocked by him, his sword clashing with hers, the sharp sound of metal-against-metal filling the air.
Their swords battled, each one charging forward only to be fought back again, their talents evenly matched. Meiling panted as she began to run out of energy, her ruby eyes locked with his deadly stare. Never for a moment as they fought did she look away from him.
I would have done the same, he hissed suddenly as he blocked a slash of her sword, Challenged me. This is a much more noble way to die than an execution. Much less terrif-
Their swords met again, Eriol defending himself easily.
he continued, appearing confident and smug. I wish my son would have challenged me to a duel of swords. I should have liked to kill him this way, the way I'm about to kill you. Much more fun for me!
At this he lashed out at her, slashing his sword so quickly that Meiling could barely block it. She gritted her teeth, furious at his confidence, his cruelty, his willingness to murder anyone who stood in his way. She was disgusted by the fact that he went so far as to enjoy it.
She would make sure that he enjoyed nothing ever again.
Empowered by the righteousness of her fury, she slashed out at Eriol a final time. Their swords met, but Meiling's blade, the force behind it suddenly much stronger, blew through his guard, pushing his sword aside with hers.
His chest was open and unguarded for an instant, and Meiling took advantage of this, lunging forward. Her sword pierced his flesh with the sickening sound of tearing skin, of warm blood surging out into the icy air in a gush of steam. Eriol cried out, clutching his chest, but it was too late. Blood dripped through his fingers and streamed down the back of his hand.
He stumbled backwards and fell to the ground with a heavy thud. Meiling blinked, staring at his bleeding body and listening as his words turned from cursing to inaudible mumbling and then, finally, to silence.
Her sword, dripping with warm blood, clattered to the stone floor, landing next to his body. She turned away, disgusted.
She turned away so that she faced the execution area, suddenly remembering. Seeing Syaoran still tied to the execution post and his lover still lying at his feet, she turned and ran across the balcony, heading for the stairs.
She ran down past the unconscious guard and finally reached her goal, the stairs, running down them. The ten archers, now without a leader and without their arrows, stared at her, shocked. They had no doubt watched her duel with Eriol, and were now in a state of disbelief. He had been their tyrant for so long that they could not conceive the idea of him being dead.
None of them made any move to stop Meiling. She ran across the dirt area, kneeling when she reached Sakura's body. Trying her best to hold back the tears that were stinging in her eyes, blurring her vision, she swallowed her fears and grabbed the arrow that protruded from her still back. She pulled it out of her as gently as she could, wincing at the fresh blood that began to pour from the open wound.
She torn the bottom of her red silk nightgown into strips as best she could, bandaging her wound tenderly, though clumsily. When she was satisfied that the bleeding had been at least temporarily stopped, she gently turned Sakura's body over so that her closed eyes faced the sky.
Please don't be dead,' Meiling prayed silently. She picked up one of her pale, thin wrists, holding her thumb tightly against its underside. She held her breath as she waited.
A moment later, she let go of her wrist, allowing it to fall to the ground gently. She suddenly stood, closing the space between herself and Syaoran quickly.
She ran behind the log and began to untie his bonds with as much speed as she could summon. Syaoran began to struggle, startled.
Aren't you going to kill me?!, he cried out suddenly. Meiling paused for a moment and winced; his voice was desperate and choked with sadness. It was the voice of someone overwhelmed by pain, the voice of someone who was longing for death.
she said quickly. Syaoran. It's me, it's ... it's over.
he said after a moment, his struggling ceasing. What hap-
Eriol is dead, Meiling said quickly. She finished with the knot, the ropes falling away; Syaoran was free. He moved his hands in front of himself again, reaching up and immediately removing the black blindfold, casting it to the dirt.
He opened his eyes, and what he saw before him made him cry out in anguish.
he cried, rushing to her body and kneeling in front of her, looking down at her with pained and terrified eyes. He swallowed hard, his body suddenly feeling stiff and unmoving, as though it were dead and his mind was not.
he said, his tortured eyes glancing in her direction, Is she ..
She's not dead, she replied, her voice rushed but laced with joy and hope. But we need to hurry. The wound is deep, and if she loses too much blood ..
I understand, Syaoran said, releasing his breath. He leaned forward and took Sakura's limp body into his strong arms, cradling it as gently as he could.
We need to find a doctor, Meiling said, her voiced strained and worried. There should be one in the palace, there always is for emergencies ..
Her voice trailed off as the pair began to walk quickly and then run, climbing the stone stairs with speed and desperation. They disappeared into the palace, leaving a crowd of stunned guards and the mangled body of a tyrant behind them.
As they ran for the infirmary, Meiling suddenly spoke.
She'll be alright, she said, turning to Syaoran with hope blazing in her ruby eyes. I know she will. You needn't worry.
This did not ease Syaoran much, who knew that he would be terribly worried until Sakura was awake and talking, her cheeks warm and flushed, her body and soul clearly far from death. He nodded, however, knowing indefinitely in the back of his mind that Meiling was right.
I can't believe this happened, he said. You killed my father. You ... you ended everything.
It had to be done, Meiling replied darkly.
Syaoran nodded in return, the pair still rushing to the infirmary with the unconscious Sakura.
We can change everything now, Meiling said quietly. The throne is yours. We can attain peace ...
Syaoran blinked at this, the full realization of what had just happened dawning on him. They could bring peace to both of their kingdoms. They could end the war, end the suffering and the fear.
He looked down at the unconscious girl in his arms, hope filling his amber eyes. They could be together. No one was left to stop them.
She would live and they would be happy together.
An inconspicuous smile warmed his lips as this thought. It was no longer a dream, a hope, an awaiting miracle. It was reality; it had truly happened. Nothing could stop them from changing everything now; changing everything for the better.
He looked down at Sakura again, still rushing to the doctor with Meiling at his side. As he looked, her pale lips parted, and she whimpered slightly. He blinked, alarmed, then smiled slightly.
he said to her tenderly. You're safe now. Everything is going to be okay.
Sakura whimpered again, struggling to open her eyes.
Syaoran commanded gently. Don't try to speak or open your eyes. Just rest; we're bringing you to a doctor now.
she murmured quietly, ignoring his command. I'm so glad you're alright ..
He smiled slightly at this. I'm glad you're alright too, love. You have no idea how glad I am, no idea.
Sakura murmured something inconceivable in reply, slipping back into unconsciousness. The color was returning to her cheeks as they finally reached the physician's quarters, Meiling calling him out with urgency.
As Syaoran lay her on the cloth stretcher, the physician's assistants and Meiling surrounding it, he kissed her warm forehead gently. Hope began to flood his tired, but full, heart.
Everything truly would be okay. In fact, he mused, it would much better than simply .
Everything was going to be wonderful because, he knew, soon everything would be ... complete. They would attain peace, and they would have love; he would be able to be with Sakura always.
Fate would be fulfilled, their destinies complete, and in this they would find the peace that they had been so long searching for. Peace, peace at having ended the war and found their soulmates, would complete them.
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Ahh, the last chapter! The end! *shyly takes a bow*
If you liked it, or better yet, have ideas, then please leave a review! I love reviews! Reviews = writer faster! =^^= Hehe.
Special thanks to Azi, who helped me with a new summary! =3
I hope you liked this chapter .. and this whole entire story! ^_^;
In the next chapter: The epilogue!
