The Girl With The Crimson Eyes

44: On That Day

Remnya

The glare of dawn blinded Remnya as she squinted into the horizon, trying to recognize her surroundings. An unknown reality spun around her like the roulette of life and death. Glimpsing the trees passing by her side, Remnya realized she was moving.

Heartbeats hammered against her head, echoing in her brain, merging with the panting of someone next to her. Shielding her eyes from the orange glow of the morning, Remnya lifted her head and witnessed Zeo carrying her in his arms.

He strode through the thick forest, his cold gaze locked on the path ahead. Branches and thorns scratched his body, but he advanced like an unstoppable warrior.

An avalanche of questions filled her head, and Remnya tried to remember the recent events, but a terrible headache attacked her brain, making her grimace in pain.

Zeo glanced at her and rushed to a halt next to a tree looming over a rocky field. He kneeled, easing her against the trunk, and ruffled her hair, lifting her bangs from her forehead, which felt like burning.

"I'm glad you're awake, Rem," he murmured, wiping the sweat from her skin with a soft rag.

Remnya stretched her neck and squinted at him, blinking as she took her time to recognize her savior. "Zeo . . . where are we?"

"It seems like your fever has gone down a little," Zeo replied, ignoring her question, and held her face between his hands tightly to stare deep into her eyes. "Try to rest. We'll need to keep moving soon . . . " As the words left his mouth, Zeo dropped onto the leafy soil and let out a deep, exhausted breath. He leaned on a massive rock nearby and closed his eyes.

Remnya dragged herself closer to Zeo, noticing a shotgun hanging from his back. She gulped and grabbed his hand. "How long have you been running with me?"

"Doesn't matter, Rem," he whispered, squeezing her hand. "Just a little more, and we'll make it."

The forest fell still.

From behind a dark row of mountains, sunbeams seeped through a veil of clouds, and the last bit of blue of the night faded. A tender breeze caressed Remnya's hair while the faint scent of distant rains and dust floated in the air.

A myriad of birds woke up amid the canopies above their heads, announcing a new beginning.

Holding Zeo's hand, Remnya stared toward the place they had left behind. An eerie gray mist lingered in the distance like the ashes of a battle. She swallowed through a closed throat and gripped the pendant hanging from her neck.

Protect her, please . . . You're the only one who can do it.

Remnya turned to Zeo and scanned his face and body in search of wounds. His bruises were still there, but there was no fresh blood anymore.

Leaning next to Zeo, Remnya wrapped her arms around him and gently pulled him against her chest. He didn't react and allowed her to hold him tightly next to her heart, hammering with a mixture of indecipherable feelings. Remnya kissed his forehead and squeezed his body, once so thin and fragile, now so sturdy and fierce.

Zeo fell asleep in her arms, and Remnya allowed herself to cherish the silence of the moment. A moment she knew it wouldn't last.

"You need to stay with me," Remnya whispered in his ear, clenching her fingers around his skin. "Stay with me . . . please."

In the prelude of the morning, their souls connected once again, embracing each other, refusing to accept the cruel fate those monsters had chosen for them.

Why can't Zeo be happy? Remnya asked the sky and wondered what a Nephilim could do to change that. The horned witch must have had a reason to be born. Her crimson fire couldn't be just an erratic joke of destiny.