"There is no good and evil. There is only power and those too weak to seek it."

"You're too late." Gillian's voice echoed through her head once she let the arrow fly. Elena wanted to close her eyes, wanted to forget everything and everyone just to not see what was happening.

Gillian's body fell down to the ground in a lifeless mess. This time he was gone for good. The arrow had hit him right in the head and shut off the only part that had still been alive before.

"Elena?!" Damon sprinted through the doors of the castle and took a few seconds to take everything in. Everyone needed the time.

And everyone didn't need to say anything. Gillian's lifeless body lying on the ground and Jon and Robb laying on the ground on the other side of the courtyard said enough. Robb checked for his brother's heartbeat and discovered that Jon had blacked out after he hit his head on the wall.

Damon looked at the knife Gillian had thrown. It was stuck in a door with a letter pinned on it. It's a trap. Damon read when he saw the letter there. He frowned, walked towards it and examined it.

"Elena?" Robb slowly managed to stand up straight. He shifted his weight onto his not-injured leg as he walked towards her.

"It's over." Robb whispered and lifted her head so she looked at him. He softly laid both his hands on either side of her face.

"You're safe, we're safe." Robb continued when she continued to stare at nothing in particular. Her eyes were dead, empty. She hadn't moved or made any sound. She just stood there, standing still.

"Elena, please say something." Robb begged. He slightly shook her shoulders to awaken her from the trance she was in but it didn't help. So instead he carefully wringed her weapons out of her grasp.

"We'll have to burn his body, just to be sure." Damon said as he tore the letter apart and took the knife. He turned to lock his eyes with Robb's.

"And we need to take you to Ella. You look like hell." Damon frowned when he saw the several cuts covering Robb's body. He only nodded and then looked back at Elena for a long moment.

"Elena? Hey!" Robb said loudly while taking her cold hands in his, frowning when he felt the ice covering her skin.

"Just look at me, Elena!" He grew frustrated. He had thought that she would've been angry or devastated or just broken but this, this lifeless and emotionless reaction he hadn't seen coming. It was even worse than everything he had suspected.

"Your Grace, Damon!" Aidan sprinted through the main gate and into the courtyard with Ella holding his hand tightly. Aidan took a few seconds to catch his breath and look around.

Damon was surprised to find that Aidan didn't look the slightest bit shocked by the situation here since he was already shocked by something else, which was undoubtedly even more dreadful, if that was even possible.

"There's an army coming, Lannisters. They've already surrounded the whole castle. There are around 10 000 men if not more, 6 000 mounted." Aidan rushed out while keeping his crying daughter close to him. "The Dark One is with him together with some other guardians I do not know."

Robb directed his attention towards Damon, his eyes widened in fear and surprise. "Any word from Steven?!" He turned back towards Aidan after glancing at Elena.

"Nothing." Aidan answered with worry on his face. "Your Grace, we don't have the stomach or the numbers to withstand this attack."

"We, I-" Robb began to breathe heavily, his hands pulling on the roots of his hair as he started to pace.

"So this is what he calls fun." Damon muttered to himself and then threw the knife in frustration, yelling loudly as he clenched his fists into balls.

"UMBER!!!" Robb yelled when the bells started to ring, the sign that the guards on the walls had seen the army too.

"Your grace?" Within seconds all the bannermen were on the courtyard with all the soldiers running around in a daze to collect their armour and weapons after hearing the alarm.

"Take all your men and position yourselves on the walls. Shoot as many as you possibly can. When they come close, you set them on fire, understood?" Robb completely forgot about Elena and Gillian, too focused on the battle that was to come.

"Understood." The Umber left to call all his men in a hurry.

"Hornwood!" Robb called another one of his bannermen. "Barricade the south gate and make sure no one comes in or out. Blackwood, same for you but you take the northern gate."

"Where in the seven hells is Stannis?!" Robb shouted when he didn't see neither Stannis or Melisandre or sir Davos. He did see his men though, running around with their shields that had the fiery heart on it.

"He is readying the horses, your grace. I think he is planning to attack outside the castle." One of Robb's men answered when he ran by.

"Without discussing anything with me." Robb muttered to himself angrily. "Fine. Let him. We'll stay here, make sure nobody has this castle except us."

"Listen to him." Ethan told Elena mentally. "A born warrior. He enjoys it, you know?"

Elena remained silent and unmoving even though she knew Ethan was near. He knew what was happening inside her head, he knew she was at the brink of letting go. He knew that with just a tiny push she would fall, loose herself.

"Look at him." Ethan chuckled in her head. Elena directed her gaze at Gillian. "He's been killed twice now. Tell me, how does it feel to kill your own friend? How does it feel to fail at the one thing you were made to do? You know, in his last moment before you shot him with your arrow, he did come back. All he could think about though is how you betrayed him."

Elena fell to her knees as the chaos around her continued. Nobody as much as spared a glance at her, nobody noticed the light disappearing from her eyes or her hands that were covered in ice.

"Let me show you something."

Suddenly everything disappeared before Elena's eyes. She was in a different room, a hall she soon discovered. It was the great hall of The Twins.

"If you hadn't come that day, if you had died," Ethan spoke. Elena looked at Robb with Talisa who were holding each other, laughing. "At least he would've died quick. The only thing you're doing is delaying his death. Making it harder for everyone."

Now also Bran, Rickon, Eddard, Catelyn, Sansa, Arya and Jon were sitting around the table in the great hall. Laughing, smiling, chattering. Until suddenly the candles blew out and it grew dark.

"Starks, Targaryens, Lannisters. They're all born to die. Parasites, that's what they are."

Everyone was lying dead on the floor. Literally everyone Elena knew, the Starks, the guardians, even the children from the orphanage. All their faces were contorted in fear. The whole floor was covered with a layer of deep dark red blood.

"They were all destined to die, you're only delaying it. You're too weak to change their fate. But if you join me, give in, I could help you gain power to finally be able to."

Elena slowly walked through the hall, her boots splashing in the pools of blood, her heart beating loudly and quickly.

She arrived at the spot where Robb laid. The three arrows were in his chest and there was another flesh wound. She caressed his cheek and slightly lifted him into her arms, looking at his blue eyes that were staring at nothing, lifeless.

"Imagine it, you could have everything. Could do anything you want to do, never failing. You'll be their queen and maybe Robb will be your king."

Suddenly Robb's body changed into something else. A baby. It was laughing and reaching its tiny hand out to Elena's face. His bright green eyes were looking at her own, just a few auburn curls laying on his forehead.

"No worries, no nothing. You could have everything you wanted. Any place, any time."

Elena looked up when the voice didn't seem to be in her head anymore. She discovered that she was in the great hall of Winterfell during a feast. All of the Starks were there, laughing and eating. Even Catelyn and Eddard were present.

Elena saw Robb walking towards her with a child holding his hand, a girl with blue eyes and white wavy hair. Elena saw him say something but didn't hear the words. Robb was wearing his crown and one of the brightest smiles ever when he softly stroked the baby's cheek and looked back up at Elena with a proud smile.

"You could have a family."

Elena looked to her side and saw Ethan standing next to her, looking at the baby with a small smile playing on his lips.

"A happy family to say the least, like we always wanted." Elena turned her head and saw Damon standing there also. He nodded at her proudly like they had accomplished everything they wanted.

Suddenly though everything vanished, Elena was back in the Twins.

"Unless..." Ethan appeared and walked over the endless bodies. "You refuse to aid me, refuse to give up the light in you. Well, light. It's not exactly "light". It's the thing that makes people do stupid things."

Elena looked at him, looked at how easy he seemed to carry his weight, looked at how careless he seemed to walk. She wanted that, that freedom.

"If you ask me, light is just a boundary. It keeps you from doing the things you want to do because it's not right. But who decides what's right and what isn't? Why can't you decide that for yourself?"

Ethan paused for a moment, looking into Elena's dark green eyes to let his words sink in. He extended his hand towards her for her to take. "Join me, sweet sister. And we'll decide what's wrong and what's right for ourselves."

Elena looked at where he stood, saw the feast in Winterfell behind him. When she looked behind herself though she saw the hall in the Twins. She looked back at Ethan and now saw Gillian standing behind him. He was smiling faintly and nodded at her in encouragement.

"Don't ever give up, Elena." His words echoed in her head when she closed her eyes.

"I think I already have." Elena looked up at her brother's eyes, slowly walking towards him till she almost touched his hand. He smiled, knowing he had succeeded.

Elena narrowed her eyes at him. "Go and fuck yourself, asshole." And she drove Gillian's knife in his belly.

~

"Elena?" Damon directed his attention from Robb's war plan to his sister who had suddenly collapsed onto the ground.

"Elena!" Damon yelled and ran to her side, picking her body up and looking at her wide open eyes that were staring at something in front of her.

"What's happening?" Robb knelt down on the other side of her body, looking at the way her eyes were moving quickly and her body was shaking violently. "Damon, what's happening to her?!"

"I, I-..." Damon stuttered when the shaking became worse and whimpers started to fall off her lips. "I don't know, I... I-I, I've never seen this before."

"I have." Aidan sighed and looked down at Elena's squirming body. He knelt down on one knee and looked at Robb. "Ethan is destroying her mind from the inside out, showing her everything she dreads until her heart gives up. Or until she succumbs to the pain."

"How do we stop it?!" Robb began to panic as he held Elena's body tightly in his arms.

Aidan looked at Damon's worried and panicked eyes as he sighed deeply and shook his head no. "I'm sorry." Aidan whispered. "There's nothing we can do."

"What, wha-what do you mean?" Robb stuttered with silent tears falling down his face. "There has to be something, anything we can do. He can't just kill her like that, we-I..."

"I'm sorry." Aidan repeated when Elena's yells became louder and more tormented, her face contorted in fear and pain.

"No, no, no, no, no." Robb shook his head and held onto her body even tighter. "I won't give up, I won't."

"What about Ella, can't she heal her or something?!"

"She can only heal physical wounds, not mental ones." Aidan said and laid his hand on Robb's shoulder. "All we can do is make her death quick."

"What?" Robb opened his mouth but no words came out. He looked down at Elena, his palm resting on her cheek that was moist with tears. "No, there has to be something." Robb clenched his jaw and looked back up at Aidan.

"You're guardians, you're supposed to save people! So do it!" Robb yelled.

"She's going to die you idiot!" Damon suddenly yelled and stood up immediately. "Don't you get it?! There's nothing we can do!"

"There has to be something!" Robb yelled back. "I can't just... Let her go."

"You think I can?! You think I don't care about her?!" Damon pointed at Robb as he yelled even louder, his black wings unwrapping from behind his back threatingly as the battle shouts from around the castle started to mingle with his. "She's my sister!"

"Then you know we can't just give up." Robb said, his voice breaking midsentence. He sobbed and looked down at Elena's squirming body.

"You can't give up." Robb whispered and pressed his eyes shut, letting the tears escape from his eyes and fall down on Elena's face. "You promised."

"Elena?" Jon awakened, stood up from the ground and ran towards her, heard her yelling and saw her squirming. Soon also Abigail, Sansa and Arya gathered around her with tears running down their faces. They knew what was happening, what was going to happen.

Damon bit on his lip and then yelled angrily, his head facing the sky as rain started to pour down on them. "Is this what you wanted, asshole?! To kill your own sister?!"

Jon knelt down on the other side of Elena's body, locking his eyes with Robb's. "Brother, we have to end this." Jon's voice broke.

Robb only shook his head no, biting on his lip until it started to bleed. "I can't, I can't."

"COME AND FACE ME THEN!" Damon yelled.

"Dad, please." Abigail sobbed and softly laid her hand on his arm, looking at him with pleading eyes.

"He can't just do this, he can't." Damon muttered. Tears were flowing down his cheeks uncontrollably as he looked at his sister. "This is all my fault." Damon fell to his knees. "I didn't listen, I disobeyed him, I..."

"None of this is your fault, dad." Abigail whispered.

"It is." Damon stopped crying and just looked at the mud while the rain continued to pour down on them. "I didn't protect mother. It's all my fault."

"Robb." Sansa whispered and knelt down next to him, laying her hand on his. "You have to let her go." She cried. "She's suffering."

"I can't." Robb repeated. He stroked a strand of her white hair behind her ear when her breathing slowed and her breathing started to hitch. "I can't give up."

"Here." Sansa whispered and gave him Gillian's dagger. Robb looked down at it and then up, looking at his brother and sisters.

"I can't." Robb repeated over and over.

Jon nodded at him and Arya only stared at Elena, emotionless. Sansa wrapped her hand around Robb's that was around the knife and directed it towards Elena's chest.

"You have to." Sansa whispered.

Robb closed his eyes and tried to shut everything out. All the noise from the siege and battle that was going on, Damon's sobs and Ella's cries, the rumbling of the thunder and the splashing of the rain on the pools.

Robb then focused on Elena's heavy and slow breathing. He knew what he had to do. 'Cause when you love someone truly you always make the choice of what's best for them no matter the consequences that it might bring to you. So he clenched his fingers around the hilt of Gillian's dagger and slowly lifted it above Elena's chest.

Until suddenly she sat up straight and sucked in a deep breath.

"What in the seven hells..." Aidan muttered when he saw her light green eyes opened and alive.

"Elena?!" Robb yelled and pulled her face towards him to examine it.

"I'm okay." She muttered, her eyes widened in shock. Her chest was still heaving up and down rapidly but at least her heart was still beating. "I'm okay." She repeated with a hint of a smile.

"Don't ever do that again, you hear me?!" Robb yelled and then pulled her in, wrapping his arms around her body tightly and buried his face in the crook of her neck where he started laughing in glee.

"I thought I lost you." Robb whispered. Jon, Arya and Sansa all wrapped their arms around the couple, burying their faces in each other's embrance. They cried and laughed at the same time.

Damon only watched with his daughter next to him, his mouth slightly opened. He then started to laugh, knowing Elena had beaten Ethan, knowing she had withstood his most futile attack.

That glee was soon washed off his face though when suddenly Ella collapsed onto the ground while yelling in pain.

Author's note

Sooo... That was intense.

(I really like ending chapters with huge cliffhangers xd)

Did you guys really think I was going to kill either Robb or Jon? Dudes, I basically made this story to avoid the fact that they both died. (Nope, they're alive. I will not accept it.)

Sooo next update may be a bit late since I found a new series that I got really addicted to and that has 10 seasons left to watch. (Guys, really, it's supernatural and it's awesome, nearly finished the whole first season in 3 days.) soo please don't hate me when I spend my time fangirling over Sam Winchester instead of writing this story. ( why did you do this to me. "Cries in a corner.")

That's it for this chapter, see you next one!