Raven Part Four

Raven

Part Four

E. M. Areson

I was quickly thrown into prison and my execution was scheduled for the next day. The beating I received that night was the worst I’d ever had. I must have been knocked unconscious at some time because when my Raven came to see me my arm was broken, something I didn’t remember happening. She had opened the cell door and set down beside me. I had noticed she was still in the dress I had given her, but she had taken off the mask.

“I see the Raven has come to tell her Lord of gardens farewell,” I had coughed up some blood after saying that, but I continued. “I’m glad you came, I’ll miss you.”

“Don’t say that,” she had taken my bloodied face in her soft hands. “We can find a way around this. We could run away.”

“Where to? There’s nowhere to run,” I hadn’t meant for her to get covered in my blood, but it had soaked into her dress where it had laid against me. My blood had also run down her arms from where it had pooled in her hands.

“I don’t want you to die,” Her tears had broken my heart.

“It’s the only way to make sure you’ll live. If I die, I can’t hurt you.”

She had taken out a white handkerchief and had then wiped my face tenderly. It had a disgusting red color after that. I had wanted to tell her more, but I had been too weak to do more than keep my eyes open. She had pulled me into her lap, like she would have a child, despite my being chained to the floor. I had rested my head against her shoulder and we stayed like that for what must have been a long time. I was slowly dying, I had known. My had been injuries to great for me to survive the night.

          The Grand Knights didn’t let us stay that way forever. I wished they had just let me die in her arms in peace. They had come in with keys to unlock my chains, to take me to my execution. They had told us I was to be publicly beheaded, just like my Raven had always cheered for. She hadn’t liked the idea after all and struggled with them. She fought for them to let me die in peace.

          I had always hated the Grand Knights. She fought against them and, like the cowards they were, they had pushed her hard against the floor. Blood that was not mine had begun to pool on the floor. Wolves had killed the Raven; the woman I loved was bleeding on the floor of my cell. I had tried to fight the Grand Knights to get to her on the floor; but I had known, even then, that it was pointless. They had begun to beat me as I cried out. The tears had burned my cuts and though they made my body hurt worse, it had no comparison to the pain in my heart.

          The Grand Knights had lost patience, they had begun to beat me savagely. I had fallen to the floor collapsed beside the body of my love. I had coughed up blood and had reached out my hand toward the face of my bloodied Raven. It had barely gotten a few inches away from my body when one of the Grand Knights stomped down hard on my wrist. I had heard the sound of breaking and grinding bones, I had cried out and they laughed thinking they had caused my pain.

          In a way they had. I had saw her face covered in her blood, I had saw her lifeless eyes and knew the fall had killed her. Death had beckoned me and I gladly obliged, I had nothing to live for. The only good thing in this horrible world, the only thing I had loved, my innocent Raven had died. The world had gone black and as I looked back in the spilt second between life and death I had to think.

          There is a time in every person’s life when they make a choice that could kill them. Some don’t even think about it. My choice was different, however. I knew it would kill me; but, I still stand by my choice. After all, the villain can never win, not even when he’s more heroic than the hero; not even when he loves deeper and sacrifices more for those he loves.

I can’t be alive, but I have to be. I’m in too much pain to be dead. He opened his eyes a crack and saw a face he didn’t think could be real. I have to be dead.

“Ty?” The euphonious voice asked. “Oh, you’re alive!”

Tyrannic tried to think of something to say but couldn’t. “H- How? I saw you die…”

She laughed and set on the bed beside him putting her hand on the side of his face, “No. I didn’t, it was all staged Ty. Our whole lives. Just like a play being watched by the people of the world. The Imps, farming magic, not having contact with anyone from the outside world; it was all something call technology.”

“What’s that mean? And where are we if we’re not dead?” He was fully awake now and took her other hand.

“I don’t really understand very well, I’ve only been awake a few hours more than you. We’re in a something called a hospital, when people die on the island they’re really just taken here to get better.”

“So, then what do we do now, Raven?”

“They say we’ll be in rehab, whatever that is, for about two months. Then we get our payment for our time working in entertainment and go live our lives,” she brushed hair out of his face with her hand tenderly, then set it on her lap. “We even get to pick our new names since we were both born on the island.”

“Have any ideas?” Tyrannic sat up, only wincing slightly.

“Are you okay?”

He gave a small laugh, “Yeah.”

“I want to be called Raven. I like it much better than Dorcas. What about you?”

“Maybe Gardner?”

She blushed a little, “Sounds more like a last name to me. We have to have one of those too. How about Ty?”

“I like it. Ty Gardner. Doesn’t sound quite so depressing as Tyrannic. Do you have a last name picked out?” He hoped she didn’t.

“I had a few ideas, but I’m not set on anything,” She seemed to be content to look at the wall and smile slightly mischievously. “Why, did you have something in mind?”

“Maybe.”

She turned to him again and he continued. “I like the sound of Raven Gardner.”

“That’s your last name though.”

“We could share, if you wanted. Though I suppose you’ll want me to ask the proper way,” he said it sounding lighthearted but inside him all his emotions gathered in a nervous lump.

“I would prefer if you did.”

For a second, words failed him, but he soon whispered, “Will you marry me?”

She began to laugh and cry at the same time, she pulls him into a hug and said, “Of course I’ll marry you. You tried to die to save me. I love you.”

She started to pull away, but he held her back he kissed her cheek and put his arms around her waist, “I love you too… But please don’t squeeze me that hard, I think I must be bruised.”

“You think?” She asked sarcastically.

“Yeah, a little.”

Photo by Nine Köpfer