CSILLA

West Incendia

Late Rainrise

Chaos descended upon them like a sea storm.

One moment they were in front of Rove and his men, the next they were running through the mist of a cloud. Her ankle throbbed as she ran, making her slower than the rest of the crew, but Flynn stayed with her, never leaving her alone.

The shouts of Rove's men continued to get closer until they started to burst through the mist behind them. Flynn turned and shot his pistol.

"Keep going!" he yelled to her. "I'll hold them off."

Csilla turned around the face the men emerging from the fog one by one. "I won't let you die for me," she said, unsheathing her sword.

Steel clanged as her blade stopped an attack. She pushed his sword away and kicked the side of his knee, making him buckle and crumble to the ground. Another man took his place. The tip of his sword pointed right at Csilla as he ran toward her. She side-stepped his attack and sliced her sword as he passed, cutting him down.

Next to her, Flynn held his pistol in one hand and his half-sword in another. After dodging an attack, he hit the man in the temple with the end of his gun, knocking him out.

Csilla's gaze roamed over the cloud, hoping to see one of her allies, but only more of Rove's men emerged from the fog. There were too many of them. Without the mist to help mask, Csilla and the crew probably would have been dead or captured quickly. She'd only wondered briefly where it came from. Lorelei must have figured out how to use her storm. But she remembered Lorelei's wide panicked eyes that night on the balcony. Her fearful confessions about the dark influence of her magic.

"Looks like you lot need some assistance," Arius said as he slid in next to Flynn.

"It's about time you showed up, mate," Flynn said, aiming his pistol and shooting. "Was beginning to think you'd run off."

"And miss all the action?" He put his pistol in his holster and unsheathed his sword instead. "Absolutely not."

More men barreled through the fog toward them, swords high. Flynn shot the first one down and Arius intercepted the second with a counter-attack. Csilla gripped the hilt of her sword with both hands as a man wielding an oversized axe lunged toward her. He stood taller than all three of them, his arms thick enough to be a weapon on their own. He smirked at Csilla. She glanced over and Flynn and Arius who were both in their own duels.

"You're coming with me," he said.

"I take orders from no one," she replied. She squared up to him them then, pointing her sword at him as she looked up from under her brow.

"The boss said you're needed alive, but perhaps there will be an accident." He smiled full-tooth, exposing one of his missing teeth.

"Then stop talking and swing your axe already."

His smile was quickly replaced by a scowl as he gripped his axe tighter. Csilla was already prepared for his attack having observed him and the way he held his axe while he spoke. The axe swung in hard and heavy from the right. All in one movement, Csilla dropped and rolled to the left—the axe slicing the air above her—and rolled up onto her knee. She swung downward with her sword, slicing the back of his arm.

As he stumbled back and yelled, Csilla quickly rose to her feet and went on the offensive. She swung toward his side, her blow blocked with his axe, she swept low and he dodged, but each attack from Csilla had him falling back.

He stepped forward and reared his axe up above his head. Csilla burst forward, running full speed toward him. Her ankle protested but she grit her teeth and barreled into him before he could swing his axe down. They both fell back and his axe clattered to the ground.

Csilla scrambled up onto her feet while he reached for his axe, but she was closer. Before his fingers could scrape the handle, Csilla stomped on them with the heel of her boot. His pain-ridden face looked up at her, color draining from it when Csilla pointed her sword at him, the sharp tip dangerously close to his wide eyes.

"Careful now," Csilla said softly, watching as the brute held his breath. "We wouldn't want an accident now, would we?"

His gaze trailed up to her, then to his axe beyond his reach. It only took him a moment longer to decide he'd lost. He scrambled back from her and up onto his feet, not sparing a glance in her direction as he retreated back into the fog.

The clanging of others' steel continued on around her. She glanced to see Arius still dueling with the same man. But where was Flynn?

"Csilla!" came Flynn's frantic voice. "Watch out!"

She looked in his direction just a moment before he threw himself in front of her. He jerked to a stop. The clang of steel faded away. The yell from the man on the other side of Flynn muted, like he was under water. Like they were all under water. Csilla only heard the shuttered sound of Flynn's breath.

The man on the other side, pulled his sword back and up into the air, its tip coated in blood. Flynn leaned back into Csilla and she slid her arms under his, hugging him from behind as more of his weight fell into her. She looked over his shoulder at the man, aiming his sword for his next strike at them.

Arius lunged in from the side, cutting the man down before he struck. He quickly turned and looked at Flynn, his face paling as his eyes traveled down to the wound Csilla hadn't seen yet.

Csilla struggled with Flynn's weight as he leaned into her further. Arius woke back up and rushed to Csilla, helping her get Flynn to the ground. She angled Flynn's head on her lap and she brushed his hair out of his face. His skin was already pale, his lips losing their color. Her eyes trailed down his body, stopping on the pool of blood spreading across his abdomen. She pushed her hand against the wound, hoping on the last bit of hope she had that if she applied some pressure, she could buy time. But time for what? Arius stood back up, swinging his sword as he warded off another attacker. He fought him off, screaming as he barreled toward the one who came next.

Flynn's blood seeped through Csilla's fingers.

Time was fickle. Just like a life.

She turned back to him, her hands shaking, tears welling in her eyes.

"Flynn," she said, her voice breaking off into a sob. "It's okay. It's okay." Tears freely streamed down her face. "Everything is going to be okay."

She couldn't lose someone else she loved. Not like this. Not like this. She could fix him. She could save him. If only she could—

Flynn's hand cupped her cheek, his thumb wiping away her tears. Her gaze found his, the sea of his eyes shimmering at her.

"Do you remember—" Flynn coughed; his breath short. "—that night I found you in the rose garden?"

Csilla held his hand against her face, leaning into his touch. She nodded. "Of course I do." She smiled through her tears. "It's one of my favorite memories."

"Then I've won," he said, the fragility of his smile nearly causing Csilla to break even further. "If I've left you with good memories," he paused, taking another breath, "then I've won."

Even in his final moments, he tried to paint Csilla's canvas yellow instead of grey. Every shared moment of theirs swept past her memories. From their nights together to their banter in the jungle on Crossbones. The fire in his eyes when he told her he loved her. She'd never get lost in the sea of his eyes again.

She leaned forward, the realization making her unable to hold herself anymore. She rested her forehead against his. "Don't leave me," she pleaded. "There's still so much I have to say to you."

He nuzzled his face against hers. "Shh." It was a sound she could barely hear. "I'll find you again. Tell me then."

She nodded, biting her lips to keep from sobbing as she held his face with her hands. He closed his eyes then, his breathing shallow. She pressed her lips against his, feeling his last breath leave him.

If only she could go back to that night in the rose garden. If only she could accept his love then and there. She knew more than anyone that just like roses, all things die.

"Don't go," Csilla whimpered, pulling him up into her arms and cradling his head against her chest. "Don't go, don't go, don't go." The words all jumbled together. "I love you."

She looked up,searching for someone, anyone. Arius's gaze found hers. Blood wassplattered across his face and he was breathing heavy, but no more menattacked. The sword fell from his hand as he dropped to his knees, his facetwisting into a sob before he hit the ground. Csilla threw her head back andscreamed, not recognizing the sound that came out of her.