Through Time and Space: A Love Story

Chapter Fifteen: ....Or Is It?

(Author's note: As this fanfiction draws to a close, so too does the love story between Ash and Maeve. Love is bittersweet, and we are reminded of that each and every day.)

   The first year of marriage was the happiest time Maeve had ever had in her life. Following the wedding, she and Ash had spent four months traveling between Jaguar Falls, Serpent Beach, and Frog Isle for their honeymoon. They never left each other's side, always holding hands and doing everything together. They would often watch fireworks on the beach at night and cuddled together. Ash even recreated her Valentine's date that they never got to enjoy before. Each and every day they spent together, Maeve found herself falling in love with Ashley over and over again. Their marriage was a blessing to her, and she couldn't possibly be happier.
   Their marriage wasn't the only blessing to happen, however. Not long after their honeymoon ended, their first child finally came along. Maeve had given birth to a beautiful baby girl that she had decided to name Elizabeth Josephine Rhodes. She had Maeve's turquoise eyes, which she took pride in. Maeve felt like she and Ash did a wonderful job as parents, taking care of her and working as a team. The arrival of their daughter brought them even closer together and the Paladins were smitten with her beautiful daughter. Everyone loved having the first baby to be born into the Magistrate as a Paladin. Elizabeth had been equally keen on the Champions. She loved all the attention she got from them.
   Ash and Maeve were celebrating their first anniversary with the others when Elizabeth finally learned how to crawl. They all cheered for her and Maeve picked her up, kissing her cheeks.
   "Mama's so proud of her big girl," she cooed. Maeve held her up high as she sat on the floor, which made Elizabeth giggle. She sat her back down on the floor and started playing peek-a-boo with her, which everyone found amusing as well. Maeve felt like her life was finally complete, her heart full of love and her wife at her side. Ash watched her play with their daughter with a smile on her face. Elizabeth decided to turn her attention to Ash, who picked her up and started blowing raspberries on her cheeks. This made them both laugh and Maeve's heart fluttered at the sight of her wife and their daughter interacting with each other. Ash's laughter was interrupted by a loud cough. She set Elizabeth back on the floor to cover her face.
   "Are you alright, dear?" Maeve asked, slightly concerned.
   Ash nodded and said "Yeah, I'm fine. I've been feeling a little under the weather the past couple of days, but I'm gonna be okay. Don't worry about me, babe."
   "If you say so," Maeve sighed, a little unsure. She felt uneasy for some reason, but she decided to ignore it. About five minutes later, Ash started coughing again, this time more harshly than the last.
   "Are you sure you're okay?" Maeve asked skeptically, her concern becoming apparent.
   "I'm fine, sweetheart," Ash answered between coughs.
   "It certainly doesn't sound like it," Maeve said. Ash opened her mouth to protest, but she started coughing violently before she could speak. That's when Maeve's fears came to life: blood splattered out from Ash's mouth as she continued to cough. This sent everyone into a panic. Maeve handed off Elizabeth to Imani.
   "Take her to her crib," she instructed. Maeve, Furia, and Seris immediately rushed to Ash's side and held her up. Pip came in with a stretcher immediately and they got Ash onto it, covering her mouth with paper towels to soak up the blood. When the coughing stopped, Pip placed a mask attached to an oxygen tank over her face and they all rushed her to the infirmary. Once inside, they got her onto a bed and Pip went to work straight away, hooking up different medical devices to her. Furia cut off Ash's shirt and placed a translucent green gel onto her stomach. She held up some strange piece of equipment that was used for ultrasounds and they monitored her internal organs for any sign of internal bleeding.
   "I don't get it," Furia said, puzzled. "She looks perfectly normal."
   "Let's get an x-ray, see if we can spot the problem with that," Pip suggested. Maeve waited anxiously as they ran tests and got her x-ray images developed. She was worried about her wife, unsure of what was making her sick. She braced herself for the worst, but also tried to remain hopeful that whatever was wrong could be cured. Furia finally returned, her expression grim.
   "Any idea what it is?" Maeve asked nervously. Furia held out an x-ray of Ash's heart and Maeve took it from her. She then pointed to a black spot in the center of her heart.
   "Jenos was able to identify this," Furia said. "It radiates the same kind of energy Aurox had. This is his doing. It's a disease, one that's been imbued with a curse. He must have placed it before he died."
   "But....how? How is that possible? Ash said she never sustained any injuries in the fight," Maeve asked in a shaky voice.
   "It must have hit her when I blocked his attack," Furia said in a guilty tone. "I shattered one of his energy blasts with my blade. One of the fragments found its way into Ash's body, slowly flowing through her bloodstream until it finally reached her heart."
   "She can be cured, can't she?" Maeve asked frantically. "You're the goddess of the Pyre now. You have to be able to cure something like this."
   "I'm afraid not," Furia sighed, her head dropping. "He was stronger than me. I underestimated him and Ash is paying the price for my arrogance. I'm sorry, Maeve." Just then, Jenos entered the room and Maeve ran to him. She fell to the floor, hugging him tightly.
   "Please tell me you can save her," she cried. "You're the most powerful god in the universe. You have to be able to cure a curse like this." Jenos tossed his mask to the floor, tears flowing from his eyes.
   "I tried to cure it," he said frustrated. "I thought I would be able to, but a curse this powerful can't be reversed. It isn't in my power to cure her." Maeve felt as if the ground was yanked from underneath her. She struggled to stand and stumbled.
   "So that's it? She's just gonna die?" Maeve asked. She was in complete despair. She took off running and went to her dorm. She collapsed on the floor of her bathroom and threw up into the toilet. When she couldn't throw up anymore, she fell over and laid on her side, crying. She felt Furia's arms appear around her and she buried her head into her shirt. Furia softly stroked her hair, trying her best to comfort Maeve.
   "I don't wanna lose her, mama," Maeve sobbed. "I can't lose her. I just can't." Her cry of despair caused Furia to start crying as well. They sat on the floor crying for what felt like hours. Eventually, Lian came in with Kinessa and Vivian. They helped them to their feet and together, the five of them returned to the infirmary. Ash was laid out on one of the beds with the oxygen mask still over her face. Maeve separated herself from the group and walked up to Ash. She took her hand and Ash's eyes fluttered open.
   "Kind of a shitty way to go, huh?" she asked in a weak voice.
   "If you have to go, then I'm going with you," Maeve said sternly. She brought out one of her knives and unscrewed the pommel. She pulled out a vial with a magenta colored liquid that had a needle attached to the end of it. She stabbed it into her arm and injected the poison into her bloodstream. Afterwards, she tossed the vial to the floor and unplugged Ash's life support.
   "MAEVE, NO!!!" Furia shouted. She tried to rush in to stop her, but was restrained by Jenos and Seris.
   "It's useless," Seris said. She sounded like she was on the verge of tears herself. "She's already chosen her fate and come to terms with it." Maeve ignored them and climbed into the bed with Ash. She took the mask off from her face and they held each other tightly.
   "I'm so sorry, Maeve," Ash sobbed. "I shouldn't have gone to fight." Maeve placed her finger over Ash's lips to silence her.
   "This isn't your fault," she assured her. "We had no way of knowing this would happen." Maeve turned to look over at Furia. "Take care of Elizabeth for us, will you?" Furia looked like she wanted to scream and cry, but she just simply nodded instead. Maeve turned back to look into Ash's eyes and placed a hand on her cheek. "You've fought many hard battles, my soldier. It's time for you to rest now. 'La vie est un sommeil, l’amour en est le rêve*.'"
   "What does that mean?" Ash inquired.
   "Life is a long sleep, and love is its dream," Maeve answered. She kissed Ash one last time, tears steaming down their faces. They then closed their eyes and the two lovers took their final breaths together.

*Quote by Alfred de Musset