The fires from the houses around her roared above her head lapping at the sky. Ashes continued to rain from the dark clouds and fell softly like snow onto the cobblestone road. Elle could barely make out the setting sun in the distance through the smoke. She fell to her knees, praying that somehow the sun would shine upon her soot ridden face. From her hands her sword fell, clashing against the pavement and ringing in her ears. She looked down at her hands that were covered in blood. Her eyes began to swell with tears.

"It's my fault," she whispered to the man lying before her.

"This is my fault," she shouted back to the sky.

Ben could hear her from across the bridge. But she could not hear him over the sound of destruction. People began pouring into the streets. There were few that had stayed in Bowerstone. There were even fewer that had managed to find shelter. Bodies littered the roads and the lake below. Their blood stained the streets. It poisoned the water. But the shadows were gone. They were finally safe.

But Eleanor… she was on the brink of destruction. The longer she looked down at his body, the more her mind began to slip away from her. Moments ago, he took his last breath and spoke his final words to her. "Teach me to be a hero…" she had said to him. People began to approach her. They gasped and whispered among each other. Ben kept pushing against them trying to get to her.

"Is it over?"

"What has she done?"

"Is she all right?"

She could hear them. And they grew louder and louder. Someone touched her shoulder. She slowly rose to her feet, her eyes unmoving and not blinking. A man came over with a black trench coat. He flipped it outward, shaking off the ashes. The ends of the coat billowed in the wind for a moment then found its place at Walter's feet. Eleanor shook off the hand on her shoulder.

"Elle!" she could hear in the distance. She put her hand over her mouth, trying not scream. A heavy breath managed to escape followed by a wave of tears. She shook her head as the man with the coat covered Walter's face.

"Elle!" she heard again.

Something snapped inside her. Between her heart banging against her chest, her eyes hot with tears, her hands cold with sweat; her body began to malfunction. She wanted to breakdown, to just fall on the ground. To throw her body away and escape. Unrest came over her. Her legs began to tingle with an uncomfortable feeling.

"We need to take the body," a distorted voice said to her.

Her feet gave one final jolt before they pushed her forward. She shoved herself away from the crowd and turned toward the exit. The city and its people became a blur to her. She could feel them reaching out to her. But she fought them off, wave after wave. She pressed through them as they tried to speak. Ben could see her now. The people in front of him had already been moved aside to create a path. The closer he got, the thinner the crowd was. And the faster Elle became. She was at a full sprint now. He tried shouting to her again. But she was gone. She had made it through the gate. Ben wasn't a great runner. But he could recall a time he had no choice but to run for his life. It wasn't his life he was running for, though. It was hers. He knew he had to get to her. So he took a deep breath and began to run.

Rocks flew from under her feet. The wind brushed against her face. She was heavily breathing in the smoke. But she did not falter. And as the dirt road came to a curve, she went crashing through the fields. The tulips were full bloom this time of the year. She felt them nipping at her palms as she ran by. It wouldn't be long before she reached the cliff overlooking the sea. She began to slow down. Ben was close behind her. As he saw her come to halt, he began to slow to a light jog. Her knees began to shake. Black circles began to form across her vision. She shook her head and brought her palms to her face. She pressed hard against her eyes. As her knees began to weaken, Ben caught her from behind.

"It's okay," he said, helping her back on her feet. "Elle, it's okay."

He wrapped his arms around her waist to prevent her from falling. She grabbed him tightly and fell limp, letting him hold her weight. Then the rage came. She closed her eyes tightly, trying to fight the fear inside her. Her nails dug into Ben's forearm but she couldn't hold it back. She let out a blood curdling scream that sent a cold chill running down the back of Ben's neck. It echoed into tulip fields. Ben tightened his grip on her afraid that she might lash out. But she didn't kick. She didn't flail her arms. She just held onto him and leaned forward. She shouted with every breath in her lungs. Her voice began to tear at the back of her throat. Her face turned red. But she continued to yell until all she could do was cry.

When she fell silent and the only thing Ben could hear was a feint sob, he hoisted her back onto her feet. He held her by the shoulders and turned her to face him. There was such a hollow, empty feeling in her eyes. He took her into his grasp once again and held her. The rapid beating of his heart wasn't enough to comfort her. But it was enough for her strength to return. There wouldn't be any peace when she returned to the castle. So she leaned onto Ben and cried until the moon was shining brightly above them.