A/N: This was a hard chapter to write, nonetheless I hope you all enjoy it. Thanks in advance for any reads, comments or votes you leave. Critiques always appreciated. 

Thank you <3

"Elizabeth, let us out!" bellowed Charlie, jostling the doorknob in desperation. She ignored us, approaching Merek slowly, the blade in her hand glinting in the firelight. His arms out in front of him, he attempted to soothe her,

"It's me Elizabeth, it's Merek. Do you remember? You don't want to do this." She responded with a wild swing of the blade, which Merek dodged just in time.

"Move," ordered Charlie, pushing me to the side. He took a few steps back and charged at the door. Its hinges groaned and cracked in protest but they did not budge. He launched himself at the door repeatedly, but still it held against him.

"Stop it, you're just going to hurt yourself," I warned, stepping forward to look through the window once more. Elizabeth was still charging at Merek, who was ducking and weaving to the best of his ability in the small room. We were running out of time. I rummaged in the chest once more and managed to pull my sapphire-hilted dagger from its scabbard, holding it in my bound hands so Charlie could saw through rope around his hands. Once he was free, he cut me free and tossed the rope aside. I yanked my leather belt out of the chest and tightened it around my waist, finding relief in its familiar weight. Banging and crashing came from the main room, where Merek had begun to tip the furniture over.

"I don't know how much longer I can keep this up," he panted, "She won't listen to me!"

"We're coming!" shouted Charlie. I stared at the door in panic. How do we get out? The room was windowless, our only point of escape the thick door in front of us. Merek let out a grunt of surprise as Elizabeth's overhead swing missed him and cut through the wooden beam behind him like it was butter, knocking a large sliver to the ground. Fumbling with it, he managed to pick it up wielding it like a blade. A blade, that was it!

My hands flew to my waist and I unsheathed my smaller dagger and attempted to jimmy the lock. After a few moments of manoeuvring it around I accepted it was the wrong shape. I would have to use my other dagger, my favourite. A drew it unwillingly, before jamming it in the lock. Charlie's gaze was fixed on the other room, his eyes filled with panic as he watched. The lock finally gave way with a loud click, followed by the sound of my blade shattering into three uneven pieces. I scooped up the pieces and tucked them into my jacket, before we charged through the door.

Elizabeth and Merek were on the far side of the room, the wooden splinter in Merek's hand reduced to a stump as he blocked her relentless attacks. In a single motion, she knocked the sliver from his hand and aimed a downward cut at his face. He raised his handless arm instinctually, the same move that had cost him his hand, and she froze. She stared at him, tears welling in her blank gaze as she clutched the sides of her head in pain. Her bloodcurdling screams and wails resumed, staggering as she struggled to stay on her feet.

"I won't do it!" she shrieked in a demonic voice, her head tipped back at an inhuman angle. Her eyes rolled in their sockets to reveal the whites of her eyes, none of us daring to take a step toward her. Dark energy was rolling off of her in waves as she battled within her own mind for control. "No!" came her final cry and her head returned to its normal position, her eyes refocusing, her pupils no longer dilated.

"You did it!" came Merek's cry of relief, taking a step toward her. She stepped lightly out of his reach and shook her head.

"No," she murmured sadly, "I only bought myself a few moments, so listen." She turned to Charlie and I, a smile on her face, before she continued, "Thank you, both of you, for being the first friends I ever had. Thank you for bringing me with you on this journey and teaching me what true family is." My stomach churned with grief at her words, she wouldn't be in this position if we had left her behind. Without waiting for a reply, she faced Merek once more, her gaze filled with longing. "Thank you, for loving me, and letting me love you in return. I hope you'll find happiness after I am gone." Merek shook his head in disbelief,

"What are you talking about?" he demanded, tears springing to his eyes as he spoke, "You're coming with us! You're okay now!" She bore an expression of wisdom beyond her years as she listened to his pleas.

"You know that isn't true," she said gently, "I'm out of time. Just know that I love you, all of you and I will always be grateful." With those words, she raised the blade and plunged it into her heart, falling to her knees as the light left her eyes.

"No!" wailed Merek, darting forward to catch her as she fell. Blood soaked his hands and clothes as he attempted to stem the flow of blood oozing out from beneath the blade. My mind was numb as I tried to process what had happened, the scene playing in my head on a loop. Charlie fell to his knees, his expression one of blank devastation. Merek cradled Elizabeth's body in his arms, willing her back to life. He eased the blade out of her chest and discarded it, looking up at me with anger,

"What are you waiting for?! Use the dragon tears!" he urged. I swallowed the lump rising in my throat and shook my head.

"It's too late Merek! She died almost instantly," I wailed, falling to the ground as I succumbed to the pain in my chest. Merek touched his forehead to Elizabeth's, wiping her hair away from her face, his thumb leaving a trail of blood on her pale cheek. Charlie and I approached her body and the three of us clutched her body, unwilling to believe she was gone. I placed my palm over her eyelids and closed them, my outstretched fingers trembling as I sobbed.

"We need to go," said Charlie in a hoarse whisper, after we had been sitting with her for over an hour.

"I don't want to leave her," replied Merek, still bowed over Elizabeth's body.

"We won't," I promised, placing my hand on his. Charlie got to his feet and tugged Merek's arm gently, pulling him to his feet. It took some coaxing but eventually Merek let go of Elizabeth's body, the grief in his eyes mixed with rage.

"I'm going to kill each and every one of them," he vowed, his amber eyes flashing menacingly.

"They won't get away with this," I growled, picking up the blood encrusted blade beside Merek, before I stood up.

"How are we going to get out of here with her body?" asked Charlie, "They might come back to see if she managed to kill us all."

"Do you hear that?" I replied.

"No? I don't hear anything." Charlie tilted his head, listening in confusion.

"Exactly," I sighed, "They're gone. They've begun the march." I strode over to the door and opened it, a gust of wind yanking it out of my hands to reveal an empty field of dirt and snow, glistening in the dawn light.

"Let's just head back to our camp. Word from Queen Suraya should arrive by this evening," sighed Merek, picking up Elizabeth.

"Do you want me to carry her?" asked Charlie, eyeing Merek's missing hand.

"No. I'll do it."

We trudged through the snow with heavy hearts, I still couldn't believe she was dead. I watched her dark curls swirling in the wind as she hung limp in Merek's arms and a fresh wave of memories washed over me. They had taken my uncle when they left and I wondered why they had even bothered to keep him alive. My thoughts turned bitter as I thought of Lord Marsh and his cold expression as he'd ordered Rihnunir to possess Elizabeth and have her kill her own friends. Both of them will die. The thought echoed through my mind until we reached camp.

Merek laid Elizabeth down on her bedroll gently, brushing tendrils of hair from her face.

"As much as I can't bear to see her like this any longer," began Merek, closing his eyes, "We should bury her in the forest, I know a spot that would be perfect." He hugged his knees to his chest and buried his face between them. Any doubts I had about his affection for Elizabeth had now been wiped away, replaced with a sense of guilt at my mistrust. Merek could kill without hesitation, accept bribes and leave new acquaintances to rot in prison, but something about Elizabeth brought out everything good in him. He was loyal, brave and above all else, a friend.

We passed the day in bitter silence, the howling wind lending its melody to our heartache as it raked over the mountains. I had been staring into space nibbling on a strip of jerky for hours, waiting and watching. We had put Elizabeth inside her bedroll to prevent her body freezing for as long as possible, after which Merek had refused to eat or drink, eventually falling into a restless sleep, crying out every so often. I watched Charlie as he drew random patterns in the snow with a stick and I remembered the shards of dagger in my jacket. Drawing each piece out carefully I placed them in front of him,

"Do you think you can fix it?" I mumbled, my lips numb from the cold.

"When we get home, I can try," he replied flatly, picking up the hilt and examining it closely, "It won't be as strong as before."

"I'm sorry I broke it."

"It's okay, I'm just sad that it was all for nothing." Pain stabbed my heart at his words and I bowed my head.

"It's not your fault," he sighed, stroking my head.

"I should never have let her come. It is my fault."

"No!" he snapped, "It's her father's fault. Him and that murderous excuse for an elf." I looked up from my knees and met his angry stare, the deep blue of his irises prominent against the snowy backdrop.

Merek stirred in his sleep before suddenly sitting up, his head turned to look at small figure dashing through the snow. I squinted at it, seeing nothing but a blur of cream fur. It wasn't until it had almost reached us that I realised it was a rabbit.

"The Queen's messenger?" I asked, feeling a faint glimmer of hope.

"Yes," answered Merek, waiting for the rabbit to reach him, extending a finger to touch its head, before they both closed their eyes. It took a while but Merek eventually opened his eyes and the ivory rabbit curled up in his lap, its pink nose twitching.

"Sorry," he apologised, "Rabbits are hard to understand, they think so quickly I needed him to repeat himself a few times."

"It's okay," I replied impatiently, "what's the news?"

"The Queen can provide 9,000 soldiers, 5,000 are archers, the rest are swordsmen and spearmen. She will put together a small force to rescue the Baron. She also requests our immediate return, the rabbit can guide us down the mountains away from the army, to where the horses are waiting." The small amount of hope I had felt was extinguished as Merek relayed the message.

"That's nowhere near enough soldiers!" I protested, "they have 20,000 not to mention the dragons!"

"I know. But that's every able-bodied soldier we have, so it will have to be enough," replied Merek, his teeth gritted in determination.