Nigro

Seth

 Just like the night Seth had arrived, almost a month ago, the fire was heating the camp. But that wasn't the only thing that warmed him up that night.

Since his arrival, the young man had been getting closer and closer to Nigro. He still remembered how far he had seen him in the enclave. How distant he seemed. He had always known that he was not indifferent to him, that despite their differences they could even become friends. But that was all.

And then suddenly, one night he disappeared. His father, the village headman, simply failed to mention it. No one said anything, as if he never existed. Seth knew this was how one should react to renegades, but he had never experienced anything like it. And on top of that, it had to be with him.

And in those days of continuous flight, of fears and dreads, in those days he had finally managed to get close to him. Since he had first appeared attracted by the heat of the fire that night, not knowing that it was him, under the penetrating gaze of Andromeda, Seth had felt more complete than ever.

Despite her, that his dream was never going to be fulfilled, the young man had discovered that he didn't care, as long as he was there, although not in the way he wanted.

And, despite his fears, it was Nigro's arms that gave him that extra warmth. It was his chest that moved to the rhythm of his breath under his head, and it was his breath that he gently heard above him.

As he thought of this, almost white eyes watched him from across the camp. Andromeda, who was on guard, kept her eye on him when a noise broke the silence.

The sound of voices could be heard very close to them. Many voices. Without making a sound, the guard rose and stood still, listening. Another noise, closer than the previous one, made him react.

"Nigro!" he exclaimed. "They're here!"

He jumped up, almost knocking young Seth over. He kicked a pile of earth that was beside the fire above him, extinguishing it.

"Let's go!" he shouted as he picked up the ragged backpack in which they had their meager baggage and their weapon, leaning against a tree beside it.

"Where to?" asked the girl curiously. "They are on us. We cannot hide in the forest."

"No. Not in the woods," agreed Nigro. "but in the city. It is our only chance," he added when he saw his companion's terrified face.

After almost two hours running through the woods in total darkness, the three of them came out into a very wide space, without a single tree in front of them. Without anyone saying anything, they headed for the first building they saw with a door.

It was an old library abandoned after the tide. Stuck against the walls was a row of shelves with books that had been destroyed by the passage of time. A small walkway ran in an L-shape upstairs, and they climbed up without hesitation.

To their surprise, they were not the only ones who seemed to have had the idea of taking refuge in that old library. In one corner, covered with a thick layer of dust, where the remains of what appeared to have been a camp.

"Okay guys," said Andromeda then. "I'm going down to keep watch."

"It's very dangerous," argued Seth, speaking for the first time all night.

She gave him a bone-white smile and jumped onto the library floor.

And just as he fell to the ground the door opened wide and four figures appeared on the threshold. The first of them came forward to a point in the room illuminated by moonlight, which passed through one of the old windows of the building. It was a man in his thirties, with thick black hair and a beard, and rolling down his waist a belt with several hunting knives hanging from it.

"Jordan, son of Ultimax!" exclaimed the newcomer. "I've been looking for you for a long time. Do you know how much your father has offered for your head?" Without waiting for anyone to respond, he continued. A lot.

"Stay here," Nigro ordered in a whisper before jumping with his companion. "They call me Nigro now, Raphael, and you are not hunting me. Not like the others."

That said, both he and Andromeda charged at them, and Seth saw Andromeda cross her sais with the sword of one of the men behind Raphael, and Nigro engaged in battle with the other two, while Raphael stood aside to watch.

Desperate, Seth looked around for something to help his friends. And among the remains of the camp, by the wall, he found a worn-out bow and a quiver with a few arrows in it. He rushed at it and, after several attempts, managed to put an arrow in the rope.

He had never used a bow on anyone, never really used a bow, but something clicked in his mind and he shot the arrow as if he had been doing it all his life. He watched the silver tip of the arrow sink into the side of one of Nigro's attackers, and he fell to the ground.

With a single stroke, Nigro disposed of the other and turned in his direction in surprise. Despite the distance, Seth was able to see him smiling.

As he turned, Raphael was lunging at him, sword in hand, and Nigro was too slow to stop the blow. But a body got in the way of his attacker. Andromeda had disposed of her rival and jumped in front of Nigro, driving one of her sais into Raphael's chest.

Nigro saw how, as his partner's weapon sank into his enemy's heart, his enemy's sword pierced it from side to side.

"No!" he shouted as he pounced on his partner's body. "Why did you do that?" she reproached him.

"We're allies, that's what we do," she answered as the blood spurted from her mouth. We defend each other.

"No," Nigro contradicted her in tears. "We are not allies. We are friends. We are almost family. Tell me what I can do for you!"

In response, she smiled. A smile filled with blood, but also with happiness.

"You've already done," she said in a whisper. "Now do yourself a favor..."

As his forces slipped away, Andromeda managed to turn her head to point at Seth.

"Do it for me."

And with his friend's body in his arms, Nigro understood. He understood the sacrifice she had made. Why she had done it.

For them. For their happiness.