The Tribute and the Victor

Chapter 31

I'm going to die. I'm going to die. I'm going to die. Goodbye Mother. Goodbye Father. Goodbye Cinder. Goodbye Ash. Goodbye Caleb...I love you... I close my eyes to await my death. Okay he's going to kill me now. Okay...maybe...now? Now. Okay so he's decided to torture me instead? Why isn't he doing anything? I squinted one eye open to find no one there. Where did he go? I looked up to find no one. Was I hallucinating? Was i already dead? But before I could mentally answer that question, I heard what sounded like swords clashing. I spun round to see...Axe? Axe was fighting Hemlock off? But why? What would be the point in that? Surly he should have let Hemlock kill me before he attacked him...or maybe Axe wanted me to be his kill...The thought was suddenly pushed to the back of my mind when I saw Axe suddenly prise Hemlocks machete from him. Now Axe has his own weapon and Hemlocks machete in his hands. Hemlock took a step back raising his hands slightly as a sign of what looked like surrender, and that's when Axe plunged both weapons into his chest. Boom went the cannon...I stared in disbelief at what I had just witnessed. Suddenly axe pulled the machete from Hemlocks chest and headed towards me. The expression on his face was unreadable. I didn't know what to do. So I just stood there. Unable to move, frozen on the spot. Axe lifted the machete towards me with the blank expression still on his face. I stood there. I didn't want to run. The sooner my death was, the better. Axe then plunged the machete straight into his stomach...wait...his stomach? What? "No!" I screamed as I watched him drop to the floor. Had I seen this right? Axe, the great and powerful Axe. Had just stabbed himself. I dropped to the ground and knelt beside him. A single tear ran down his face. "Why did you do this? You could have won" I squeaked while trying to stop the tears from flowing down my face. "I have nothing to live for, no one to go home to, no family, no friends..you...you have every reason to go back..." He said, his breathing was getting heavy. I knew he couldn't hold on for much longer. "You go back to Caleb, marry him. Have his children. Be a good wife to him...and tell him..." He winced, knowing he didn't have much time left. "Tell him..." I couldn't help myself from crying while I watched him struggle to breath. "Tell him I never liked him..." He let out with a small but painful chuckle. And that's when I watched his eyes roll backwards...and the final boom of the cannon sounded.