Thorn in his Side

Chapter 18 - Great King

"Lucy!" Mard screamed as he watched he collapse into the floor. The thing that was his "daughter" had changed into a small demon.

It's long black claws out as it smiled at him with too many teeth. Black skin pulled in odd directions against it's mutated bone structure looking like a cross between and inverted human and a centipede. It hissed.

In the language of the infernal, "Great king, you have failed."

"I don't think so." He replied, rushing towards it.

The creature extended its claws taking a swipe at Mard but only hitting his jacket. He gathered his power and with a flick of his hand released the rose petals in a storm upon the creature. It screamed as it impacted his body.

Mard didn't give it a second thought, "Thorns." The vines came up from the ground and wrapped around the creature and with a thought they severed it's head. The beast melted into a puddle of black acid and ate through the flooring.

He held his Rosebud as she bled all over him. Trying to put pressure on her wound, Mard had no idea what to do. She was pale and shaking, blood spewing from her mouth and eyes losing their light.

"No, Rosebud. Please stay with me. Your life is so precious to me." He begged the tears flowing for his eyes. So many moments of their short life together flashed before him.

The dinner she made for him to apologize. How she held him through his first nightmare. Throwing popcorn at each other while watching horrible Godzilla movies. Chasing each other around after he hit her with a water balloon. Relaxing and drinking coffee outside to watch the sun rise together. All of it, each and every moment precious to him.

Her life wasn't supposed to be fragile. She had survived so much, had such strength to her. Rosebud should be with him always. His life here was worthless if he couldn't wake up next to her every day. There would no reason to move forward if she wasn't beside him. Without her, he had no heart.

His conversation with Loke rang through his ears as tears flowed form his eyes.

"You love her, don't you?"

"Hard not to, but yes." He closed his eyes and rested his head back for moment. Mard gave him a second before proceeding.

"How did you know?"

The lion let out a chuckle, took off his glasses and rubbed his hand over his face. "When I couldn't stop thinking of her. When her life meant more than mine. When I knew I'd give her anything and everything even if it hurt. When I almost traded my position in the stars to be with her till the end of our days."

Mard understood it now, her life was precious and beautiful. It meant more to this world and the people in it than his. This should be him dying, not her. He'd give it all up if just to have her live and be beautiful.

Her heartbeat growing fainter, her breathing shallow. "No! You can't do this. You can't leave me. Do you not know what you mean to me? I l-l-l-l-"

He caught his breath and kissed her forehead, "I love you, Rosebud. I know what that means now. You can't leave me, I can't be without you."

"I looooo...." She said as the light went out of her eyes.

"N-n-n-n-n-n-o-o-o-o-o-o!" He roared as he held her.

Something screamed from the basement and he tried to ignore it but the power was too familiar.

"Help me, Great King." It said and Mard tried to ignore it. "Please, I need my family." It begged. Picking up his Rosebud he looked towards the hole in the floor. Large silver eyes looked up at him.