Chapter 15
They didn't get far before the harmonious melody of chanting could be heard throughout the corridor. It had a mystical and sublime feel to it, like a choir singing in religious fervent. Thorn found the mysterious chants soothing and relaxing; it cleared her mind and put her in an almost meditative-like state as she walked along.
She focused on Dusk's words. Accept your mistakes, learn from them and move on. She didn't need a reminder that she made a ton of mistakes over the course of the night. The latest—nearly cracking open Dusk's skull against a wall— fueled her guilt, self-hatred and anxiety. I let those emotions take control of me and it nearly cost me my friend.
She knew she couldn't bottle them up, as that could be disastrous nor could she continue to let them overwhelm her. Instead she asked herself why she felt those emotions. Because I put my friends in danger. Because I'm a threat to them. And because I don't know if I can save them.
She trembled ever so slightly. As she noticed her involuntary movements, she clenched her fists and stopped walking. You're feeling sorry for yourself. Don't. It's what's letting your friends down. She was caught in a vicious feedback loop and she needed to escape it. For Dusk and Luna. For herself.
The chanting grew louder and Thorn could understand some of the words.
"Ah! That day of tears and praising
From the dust of Earth renewing
Mages for the new world prepare them
Choose, Fallen, in mercy choose them
Cosmic, all-defending, Fallen blest
Grant us our desired dreams. We pray"
The chanting came to an end and with it, Thorn's self-reflection.
"Check it out," Dusk whispered as she crouched by the wall. There was a single crack long enough for all three girls to catch a glimpse of the ceremony.
"This must be the Revelation that George mentioned," Luna reasoned.
Thorn knew she had to keep moving, but she felt compelled to stop and watch. She tried to fight this urge, but her curiosity got the best of her and she crouched down next to Dusk and looked through the crack. It was the same room where Matella almost tricked her into sacrificing herself but instead of an empty chamber, the pews were filled with cultists.
Her attention quickly turned to the pedestal area. There were three individuals— Zachariah, Esmeralda and Marcus by the looks of it—standing around the pedestal containing a second key. A fourth cultist dressed in a simple hooded robe, knelt before the large, black crystal. But more importantly, Thorn saw that the wall of red energy was gone. They did the ritual which means…Matella's gone. There was no joy or glee, spite or pity. Despite everything Matella did to Thorn and her friends, she felt nothing, absolutely nothing, knowing that the witch was dead. Thorn simply repositioned herself so she could get a better view of what was happening in the ceremonial room.
"Hear our prayers, O Lord," Zachariah began as he faced the great crystal. "For you the most righteous and just."
There was a brief moment of solemn silence.
"Your memory is kept alive through us, for we recall that you alone of the Great Cosmics stood up for us mere mortals. You fought against the blinding Light for a just universe, a universe made in your own image, one where all were equal. We recall the Broken's betrayal and how He let the Light consume all. You, O Great Defender, were cast unjustly into Confinement and your followers were driven mad. But we know you shall rise again and bring justice against the Light and those who betrayed you."
"May the Fallen rise again," the congregation prayed.
Zachariah turned to the congregation. "We are the instruments of the Fallen, doing his work on the Earth. Like our Lord, we too were betrayed by one of our most wise. Yet our Sister, Matella, so willingly gave her life to break Alexander Levre's spell so our Lord may deliver his Revelation."
Willingly. Thorn rolled her eyes. She wondered what the congregation would think if they knew the truth.
"With his Revelation we will learn what must be done to free our Lord from his imprisonment," the lead cultist turned to the crystal.
"O Mighty Cosmic, take this vessel so that you may walk the Earth again and share with us your insightful wisdom so we may free you." Zachariah paused as she raised his hands in praise. "Fallen One, I invoke your name, rise again and Revelation do proclaim!"
Thorn felt a chill go down her spine as the air became heavy and the light in the room dimmed. The crystal slowly expanded and retracted like a beating heart, pumping a black, inky substance that seeped out of the structure. Black energy radiated from the inky liquid and spiraled around the crystal, though Thorn could've swore she saw flashes of gold and crimson hiding behind the blackness.
I seeee yoouuuu Saaallllyyy.
Thorn froze. The voice—inhuman and powerful, yet full of arrogance—was in her mind, taunting her. She wanted to back away from the crack, she was paralyzed with fear.
The dark energy spiraled around in the air and formed a massive cloud that descended onto the mortal vessel. The individual jolted and trembled before becoming still.
"Lord…is that you?" Zachariah asked.
With a wet pop, the victim exploded in a shower of blood and flesh, coating Zachariah and the other two cultists in a red paste while members of the congregation screamed. Thorn covered her mouth and looked away, swallowing the rising bile and stopping herself from vomiting.
"W-what is wrong O Lord?" Zachariah questioned. Even from a distance, Thorn could tell how terrified the warlock was.
The black cloud descended and engulfed the lead cultist. He clutched his head and fell to the ground screaming. His two associates watched haplessly as Zachariah writhed in agony on the floor, his cries for help unanswered as his hat and mask fell off.
Like the previous cultist, Zachariah's body went limp and the screams stopped. But unlike last time, the black energy consolidated around the warlock's body, giving him a blackish gleam, while a flicking black beam of energy seemed to tether the body to the crystal.
Thorn flinched as the body was suddenly pulled onto its feet. It stretched its arms and yawned, like it just woke up from a long nap, which for all Thorn knew, it did.
"Ahhhh…it feels soooo nice to be back in this reality, even if I am in a vessel," it exclaimed as its eyes glowed bright gold and crimson. It sounded like Zachariah, but Thorn noticed that the voice off. It was slightly higher pitched and there was this distinct unnaturalness to it that creeped her out.
The being observed the crowd with waning interest before tapping its head in frustration.
"Zachariah," it growled to itself. "First you, let Alexander put up that fucking barrier for twenty years. Then you insult me by offering some nobody for my vessel and now you're annoying me with your pitiful cries; I've lost my patience with you."
Thorn gasped and jumped back upon hearing the sickening snap of the being's neck as its head spun around in a full three-hundred and sixty degree turn. It joyfully smiled.
"And now you're dead," it mocked. "Look at that, I've been here for thirty seconds and I'm already answering prayers. Congratulations, Esmeralda. You're now in charge of this temple, just like you've always wanted." It picked up the miter and tossed the headwear to Esmeralda before turning to the second cultist. "And that means you Marcus get to be second-in-command."
The two bowed down before the entity.
"Thank you O Great Cosmic," they said, though Thorn knew they were terrified.
"Ah, I appreciate the groveling, but there's no need for it; get up and be proud yourselves for your devotion and hard work," the Fallen cheerfully said. The two cultists stood up and were turned by the Fallen to face the crowd. "Come on everyone, give these two a big round of applause."
The congregation clapped and cheered for the two cultists, though Thorn couldn't shake the feeling they were only clapping because the Fallen told them to.
"I'm in such a great mood, I think all my worshipers deserve a reward," the Fallen cheered. Gold and silver coins started raining down from above. The congregation members began grabbing handfuls of coins and stuffing them into their pockets.
"This guy doesn't seem so bad," Dusk whispered.
"You do realize he just killed two of his worshipers?" Luna whispered back.
Thorn just shook her head. The Fallen was certainly nothing like she expected, but the way she felt when it spoke to her was unnerving and unlike with Matella, Thorn was keeping track of all the red flags she saw.
"The fuck is that!" the Fallen angrily shouted, its eyes radiated a gold and crimson light. The coins stopped falling and the entity was scowling at the ceiling. "What in my name are those two doing up there?" It turned to the middle fresco and snarled. "She's the most narcissistic, self-righteous prick that's ever existed. I mean, she gets to hold the keys to my prison and suddenly she's the most important thing in the universe; blah, she's just a glorified keyring who doesn't deserve the recognition." The fresco just disappeared, as if it was never there in the first place.
"And him!" the Fallen bellowed. "That traitorous bastard…" The image of the Broken crumbled into dust. The Fallen looked at the last fresco and simply nodded in approval before turning its attention back to the congregation.
"Alrighty then," the entity happily said while clasping its hands together. "I suppose I should probably deliver my revelation, if I'm going to be truly free." Thorn was taken back by how quickly the Fallen went from seething anger to this happy-go-lucky persona.
Thorn's eyes widened in complete surprise as the Fallen reached into the air and pulled down a giant projector screen from, literally, nowhere. The Fallen stepped aside and the screen lit up; "Revelation: How to Break Me out of My 'Eternal' Prison."
"Is…is this a really slide show?" Thorn muttered to herself in confusion.
The screen changed to a picture of the final fresco on the ceiling.
"Now you're all probably thinking, 'Oh Awesome Cosmic, who is better than the others in every conceivable way, why aren't the Light Ones annihilated and the universe remade if you're free?'" the Fallen said. "The answer is because this is just step one of the jailbreaking process; we still have steps two through ten to deal with."
The next slide showed a stone complex consisting of several circular walls and giant T-shaped megaliths with animal, humanoid and abstract carvings on it. Thorn noticed that the image was titled "Göbekli Tepe."
"Right before I was unjustly imprisoned, one of my spies managed to steal a set of documents containing critical information about my prison from the Light Ones," the Fallen explained. "We managed to make this crystal for communicating with this reality, but unfortunately before we could do anything else, my spy had to hide those documents at this temple to prevent the Light Ones from finding it. This leads to step two…" The image switched to a single line of text reading 'retrieve documents from the temple.'
"This should be simple: just go to the temple, tell the mages there you need the sacred texts, and they'll happily give them to you," the Fallen said. "Any questions before I move on?"
A warlock in the front row raised a trembling hand. "Um…Lord…it's just…uh-"
"Go on spit it out," the Fallen said with an annoyed frown.
The warlock swallowed. "It's just that, uh, that site hasn't been active in nearly twelve-thousand years; it's an archaeological site now."
The Fallen sighed. "Well fuck." The entity briefly looked around the room. "I keep forgetting you monkeys only get like thirty seconds to exist and then poof, you're all gone." The Fallen scratched its head. "Okay, um, why don't you call one of the other temples and have them send people to go dig those documents up."
The warlock nervously looked at the Fallen. "Um, right now Lord?"
Thorn heard the doors to the ceremonial room swing open.
"Uh yeah," the Fallen replied.
Thorn watched as the warlock quickly ran down the aisle and disappeared from view. She heard the door slam shut and Fallen adjusted its sashes.
"With that taken care of, are there any other questions from the congregation?" the Fallen asked.
There was nothing but silence from the cultists.
"Good. How about you girls, you have any questions?"
Thorn jumped back in horror as the being's head abruptly turned to them with a sinister grin on its face. The girls tripped over each other in panicked bid to escape. But as Thorn tried to run farther down the passageway, she found a stone wall blocking them from either side.
"How!?" Thorn gasped.
"Don't hide in the shadows girls."
Thorn turned and saw that the flimsy wall separating the girls from the ceremonial room was simply…gone. In its place, the Fallen stood over them smiling, its eyes glowing a deep gold and crimson before returning to normal.
"Don't be surprised Sally, I did tell you I could see you," the Fallen nonchalantly said.
Thorn's heart was racing. Dusk and Luna were cowering behind her back. They needed her to protect them. With adrenaline and magic pumping through her, Thorn hurled two blasts of blue energy at the Fallen. But to her dismay, it still stood there, unfazed by the explosive magic.
"Capiō!" she cried. The green rings formed around the being, but upon touching its vessel, the rings shattered. But her desire to protect her friends burned and Thorn manifested this desire as a stream of fire she blasted at the Fallen. But the flames caused no visible damage to the entity or even its clothing.
"You done?" it asked, seemingly more annoyed than anything else.
Thorn thrust her arm forward. Dust was picked up by the telekinetic blast, but the Fallen remained firmly in place. She stood there mouth agape, defeated and out of options.
"That's better," it said. It snapped its fingers and the four of them were at the pedestal.
The screen was gone and all eyes were on them; several cultists seemed to recognize them, for what that was worth. Luna was in complete terror and while Dusk looked calmer, Thorn could see the fear behind her eyes. Thorn quickly looked to the doors.
"Ah, you're gonna try to escape," the Fallen said with a smile. "Here, let me lend you a hand with that."
The doors swung open. Without hesitation, Thorn took off down the aisle with Dusk and Luna behind her. None of the cultists stopped them as they reached the door. Thorn went through the doorway, turned right and she gasped as she found herself back at the pedestal.
"What the fuck!?" Dusk cried as she and Luna appeared behind Thorn.
"No, no, no, no," Thorn muttered as she ran down the aisle again. Once she reached the doorway, she tried going in the other direction but she still ended up back at the pedestal.
"Keep on running Sally, maybe you'll get a different result the third time," the Fallen cheered as the doors slammed shut.
Thorn clenched her fists and she spun around. The Fallen was leaning against the pedestal eating popcorn in an almost mockingly fashion.
"What do you want with us?" Thorn said with as much courage she could muster.
"Who said I wanted anything from you," it responded with a mouthful of popcorn.
"If you didn't want something, we'd be dead already," Thorn replied.
The entity smirked and it tossed the bag of popcorn over its shoulders where it just vanished. It raised its hand to her. Thorn closed her eyes, expecting the end. But instead of oblivion, it patted her on the head like she was a puppy that just performed a trick.
"Well for starters, I wouldn't be able to interact with this reality if weren't to for you three," the Fallen said with a shrug.
"So what, we freed you and you're going to reward us?" Dusk interjected.
The Fallen turned to the blonde. "Freedom!? What kind of freedom requires wearing a meat suit! I'm just an emanation; an infinitesimally small fragment of what I truly am. But with you three, I can become absolutely free."
That didn't make any sense. The Fallen had an entire organization at its beckoning. Thorn had no idea what she and her friends could possibly offer.
The Fallen seemed to sense her confusion and chuckled.
"Oh Sally my dear, you crack me up," the Fallen said with a hearty laugh. "So I'll be blunt: you three have a lot of potential; you've not only taken on powerful enemies but you three escaped your own executions, all without any training and I find that admirable." The Fallen's gaze shifted to Thorn and she felt her body tense up.
"Watching you fight Matella was a sight to behold; the raw power and skill you have is simply amazing. Granted, you're still very rough around the edges and you still have all this emotional baggage, but I can work with that," the Fallen explained with a giant grin. "Which is why I'm offering you, Kim and Jane the opportunity of your lives: submit yourselves to me, serve me and become the instruments of my freedom. Then after I stomp out the Light Ones, I'll give you girls' seats at the top of the new universal order. You'll be able to do whatever your hearts' desire, I mean it."
Thorn backed away from the entity and turned to her friends for guidance. Dusk shrugged; she had no idea what to do. Luna shook her head, though her expression read 'I don't know' rather than 'don't do it.' Thorn bit her lip and looked away from everyone. Someone else had already sold her a nearly identical promise that ended up being empty, and she almost died for it. But this was an actual deity making the offer; there were no cultists or mages to lie or distort the Fallen's word.
Yet, this was still the Fallen, the leader of the Dark Ones, who killed its own worshippers for being an inconvenience. For all Thorn knew, she was making a deal with the devil.
"But you're a Dark One, you're evil," she weakly replied.
"Oh please, that's just propaganda against me cause I lost the war. Hell, 'The Fallen' isn't my actual name, it's just a title that was unceremoniously dumped on me," the entity said, its voice full of indignation. "I'm not a god of darkness and evil, or some Lovecraftian nightmare nor am I that bratty archangel with daddy issues; there is no reason to fear me."
Thorn shook her head, more so in confusion than rejection.
"Hmm. Maybe the 'whatever you want' is a bit too vague," the Fallen said while rubbing its chin. "Perhaps we need to get a little more specific."
The entity smiled and it was suddenly right next to her.
"So what is it that you desire Sally McKnight?" It looked over her; she felt like it was examining her, looking for a weakness.
"How about I stop climate change and eliminate pollution; I can even bring entire species back from extinction." The entity raised a closed hand to Thorn. The Fallen opened its hand and Thorn saw a flash of blue and purple; the tiny wings flapped a few times before the butterfly left the Fallen's hand. Thorn watched in awe as the butterfly gracefully fluttered past her.
"That…That's a Xerces Blue," Thorn stammered.
The Fallen nodded.
The Xerces Blue went extinct in the 1940s, yet Thorn was watching one fly around in the room. It was incredible, a miracle even. But as the butterfly flew farther away, Thorn couldn't shake the feeling of discomfort she felt; it was like there was a tiny voice screaming in the back of her mind to run away.
"Not enough for you?" the Fallen asked. "How about fame? That usually gets people onboard."
The Fallen snapped its fingers. The entity along, with the entire back half of the room were gone. Instead of the black crystal and the pedestal, there was a massive stage lit up with brilliant lights. There was a screen in the background that read "Record of the Year." Yet her attention was brought to the front of the stage where a few people were standing by a microphone. One man picked the mic up; Thorn noticed he was holding an envelope.
"And the Grammy goes to…" the announcer paused as he opened the envelope. He read it and then looked up with a giant smile on his face. "Fallen Glory by the Hex Girls!"
There was a giant round of applause. Thorn was in shock. Sure she thought they were good, but Grammy worthy? Not in her wildest dreams.
"Holy shit we did!" Dusk cheered and she gave Thorn a slight nudge for her to walk up to the stage. Thorn was caught off guard by her friend's behavior and stumbled forward where the click of heels hit the floor. What? She was wearing her red heels and her usual red and black dress. She turned around and was shocked to see rows of people in suits and dresses; there were no cultists and she certainly wasn't in the ceremonial room.
"How?" she muttered.
"Come on Thorn," Luna said as she and Dusk were already up the stage.
Thorn shook her head in confusion and disbelief. Not knowing what to do, she caught up with her friends on stage. She was shaking, overwhelmed by everything. When she got on stage, a woman handed her the golden gramophone. She swallowed as she looked at the trophy; she could barely hold it. This isn't real.
"Unbelievable," the announcer said. "This is your fourth Grammy this evening. How does that make you feel?"
"I…" Thorn stuttered before gasping as she saw the announcer's eyes glow gold and crimson.
"Pretty decent work right?" the Fallen said with a smile. "Gotta love reality warping." It snapped its fingers and everything reverted back to normal. Well, almost everything. Thorn was still holding the Grammy.
"Woah, where'd you get that?" Dusk asked.
Thorn raised an eyebrow. She doesn't remember? Before Thorn could answer, the Fallen stepped between the two girls.
"There's plenty more rewards if you pledge yourself to me; whaddya say Sally?" The Fallen cheered.
Thorn starred at the award. The temptation to join the Fallen and have anything she wanted was there, especially after what she and her friends went through over the past few days. But what was the cost? Submission. To serve without question. She'd lose her identity and faith and become whatever the Fallen wanted her to be. An Instrument of its freedom. A tool. Something to be used and manipulated. Just like Matella had done to her. And what if she made a mistake or inconvenienced the Fallen? Would she end up like Zachariah, dead and used as a piece of clothing?
With a heavy sigh, Thorn dropped the trophy and it turned to dust upon hitting the floor.
"I can't," Thorn said, shaking her head. "You're just going to use us."
The Fallen rolled its eyes. "Well no shit I'm gonna use you. That's why I'm offering you whatever the fuck you want in exchange for devoting yourselves to me, denouncing all other deities and Cosmics as false, renouncing any preexisting spiritual, moral and philosophical systems and following my word as holy writ."
"I'm not abandoning my beliefs for someone who uses people as things to toss aside or kill when they annoy you or do something wrong," Thorn affirmed.
"That's stupid," the Fallen grunted.
"I don't care, I have my principles and I've fought so hard to keep them," Thorn confidently replied.
The Fallen grimaced; its eyes glowed a fierce gold and crimson.
"You know every religion and belief system ever conceived by humanity is wrong, every single one. I mean even my own worshippers managed to fuck up my background in their texts," the Fallen explained as it struggled to keep calm. "There's no point to hold onto that garbage."
"It's my life, I get to choose what I want to believe in and what you've done goes against that," Thorn exclaimed. "And I'm not about to let some manipulative bastard dictate it!"
Thorn clenched her fists as the Fallen approached; Dusk and Luna quickly got behind her.
"Oh don't you pretend to have the moral high ground you little fucking hypocrite," the Fallen growled. "You've manipulated plenty of people yourself, just like I have."
"No, I'm nothing like you!" Thorn shouted.
"No you're right, I at least try to give them something beneficial," the Fallen said. "You don't give a shit about the people you use."
"No…t-that's not true," Thorn stuttered. She felt weak. That can't be true. It can't be.
The Fallen smirked. "Let's see, you lie to your manager all the fucking the time so you get away with shit, the most recent of which was lying to him so you could come here, despite the fact he's trying look out for you three. Then how could we forget that you pretty much seduced one of your fans so you could steal his car. Where are your sympathies for them? "
Thorn clutched her head. "No, I…I do care. I shouldn't have done those things." Her legs were wobbling and she found herself struggling to stand. Stop. You made some mistakes, learn from them. Don't let the guilt take over.
"You don't even know what that guy's name was," the Fallen snickered. It took a few steps toward her until it was right in front of her. Thorn steadied herself and glared at the Fallen as it starred back down at her.
"But it gets better," it said with a malevolent smile. It spun her around, so she was facing Dusk and Luna. Both girls looked worried.
"You used them," it whispered into her ear.
"No. Shut up," Thorn mumbled between short breaths. Her face was reddening and her eyes were watery.
"They never wanted to come here; Kimberly even warned you about the dangers. But you didn't care, you wanted your little answers, but couldn't face the truth alone. So you threatened to run off into the night and leave them behind, knowing full well they wouldn't let you do that." The Fallen paused. "You guilt-tripped Jane and Kimberly into coming here, knowing full well that there was danger, and you didn't care."
Thorn could only tremble as she looked at Dusk and Luna. Her heart was pounding against her chest. She tried to say something to them, but she choked on the words. I did that to them. A single tear fell down her cheek. I don't deserve them.
"Don't listen to that thing," Luna said.
"We went over this, it's not your fault," Dusk added.
"Sally I've seen what's going on inside that pretty little head of yours," The Fallen said as it tapped Thorn's head and stepped between her and her friends. "I know you're filled with guilt and shame and like a festering weed, it will continue to grow until it completely devours you, leaving you as a husk." The Fallen put a hand on Thorn's shoulder. "I can take away the pain. The guilt. The shame. All of it will melt away. You just have to accept my offer and serve me."
Thorn's eyes widened in anger. I'm being guilt-tripped. She swiftly wiped away her tears and grunted. Accept your mistakes, learn from them and move on. She was done with people manipulating her and using her emotions against her. She was done with letting fear, guilt and shame take hold of her. She was done with it all; god or no god, she wasn't going to let anyone dictate her life.
"No," she firmly said and she stepped away from the Fallen.
"What!?" the Fallen said in surprise.
"I said no," she repeated with a raised voice.
"Why? I truly can take away the pain," the Fallen replied.
"I don't care," Thorn grunted. "I know I fucked up and made several mistakes. I know I put those I care about in danger and I will always regret doing so." She glared at the Fallen. "But I also know I can't dwell on the past. I have to accept my mistakes and learn from them; only then can I move on and protect my friends from whatever comes at us." She paused. "And I sure as hell don't need you to do that."
The Fallen growled, its eyes burning gold and crimson.
"When a Cosmic offers you deal, you take it; you're an idiot for rejecting me," the angered entity said.
"No! I'm a Hex Girl and nobody tells the Hex Girls what to do!" Thorn declared.
The Fallen sighed. "Then I'm done with you."
Thorn found herself tied to a large wooden stake in the middle of the main aisle, facing the inhuman entity and the altar. She struggled against the abrasive rope, but she couldn't escape.
"I know it's probably offensive to the many mages who worship me, but I couldn't resist using this classic," the Fallen readdressed the crowd as he walked back to the pedestal.
The ground beneath Thorn combusted and blood-red flames crept up the stake. Thorn writhed against the rope as the intensity of the heat grew. She screamed. The blaze caught her legs, burning away clothing and flesh alike. The stench of her own skin burning made her gag and tears fell down her face as the pain spread across her body in a fiery furry.
"This is what happens when you refuse my deals," the Fallen said. A bottle of liquor appeared in its hand and it turned to Dusk "Now Jane, before you do anything rash…"
In her torment, Thorn hazily saw Dusk plunge her knife into the Fallen's chest. Dusk stepped back after trying to remove the weapon and the knife stuck out of the Fallen. But it rolled its eyes in disappointment as it removed the bloodless blade from its host and tossed the knife into the fire.
"To the pyre you go." The Fallen pointed at Dusk and she was tied next to Thorn, shouting in agony as she burned alongside her.
No, not Jane. She wanted to save her friend from the fire but there was nothing she could do. Sparks of magical energy formed around her hands, but the fire seemed to burn away the magic. With no other options, Thorn did the something she hadn't done in a long time: she prayed.
Please, if there's someone else out there, save Jane and Kim.
"Don't get your hopes up kid," the Fallen laughed. "I heard your prayer; the others don't give a shit about you, your friends or any other mortal. I'm the only one who can save you but you fucked that up."
The fire roared as it climbed farther up her body causing more pain. Her vision blurred. She lost a lot of blood and she knew she was going into shock; death would occur shortly after. Yet she wasn't ready to give up on her friends.
They may not care about me or my friends, but they sure as hell care about you. She tried one last prayer as her body went into shock. To anyone listening, the Fallen is out.