I trembled slightly, the silence pressing in on me like the weight of a thousand worlds. I hated the silence.

It had been silent ever since the heroes left. It had been silent ever since we learned they weren't coming back. It had been silent ever since the argument.

I lay in my bed, staring at the pillow. I had cried myself out a long time ago when Twisted first left me alone. I hadn't seen him since, but assumed he had gone to live in one of the abandoned houses that the heroes used to inhabit. I had just been staying in my house, rarely leaving my bed, if that. I hadn't eaten in... how long had it been? Probably just over a week. I wasn't hungry.

I groaned, rolling over onto my back. Twisted and I had had disagreements before... but never like this one. To be honest, I wasn't sure how it started in the first place. I closed my eyes, losing myself in the memory.

"What do you mean 'you couldn't find anything'?" Twisted roared, glaring at me angrily. I glared back at him, almost throwing my quiver off my shoulder as I pulled it off. "We need food, User! Get your game together and do something right for once!"

"I don't need to hunt," I spat. "I can just summon food anyway."

"That's not the point," Twisted huffed, crossing his arms.

"Then what is?" I hissed at him, rage blinding my vision. "There is none! You just can't bear to change from the old ways. Well guess what: it's just us on Mianite now! We don't have to do things like we once did!" Twisted opened his mouth to protest, but I wasn't finished. "We could destroy the land and there would be no one to care. We could raise statues of ourselves and there would be no one to object. We could go completely crazy and it wouldn't matter. And I can summon food for us to eat!" My anger finally got the better of me and I lifted my hand, summoning a piece of raw steak and throwing it as hard as I could at Twisted.

Twisted's jaw dropped as the steak hit his stomach, splattering bits of blood across the white underbelly of his cow hide before falling to the ground with a wet smack. He stood stock still for a few seconds. I was breathing heavily, eyes still narrowed as hatred burned in my veins. He was not my superior. He couldn't tell me what to do.

"Fine then," Twisted snapped. "Then I'm leaving. And I'm not coming back." He shoved past me, smacking his shoulder against mine as he stalked out the door, slamming it behind him.

It didn't fully weigh in on me until his footsteps faded.

My best friend was gone.

I blinked, tears stinging my eyes again. I regretted everything now, but I couldn't summon up enough motivation to get out of bed and apologise. I may as well be dead for all I did now. I had been broken and the silence only further enforced that there was no one there.

I was having nightmares when I slept. It was always being trapped in a grey, dead forest, unable to run as floating patches of darkness drew closer and closer. I always woke up before they reached me, but they kept whispering my name. Over and over, nothing else. It scared me much worse than it should have, but what else could I do? Give up sleep? Yeah, right.

"User?"

I almost flew out of bed when I heard Twisted's voice. I darted to the window, nearly falling on my face. My balance was badly off and I had to lean against the wall as I peered outside. I saw Twisted standing hesitantly in the path, holding something in his hand that I couldn't see from this distance. I pushed the window open, swinging it out on its hinges as I leaned from the upstairs.

"Twisted!" I shouted, almost falling out as I leaned precariously over the windowsill. Twisted glanced up and a strange look passed over his face when he saw me.

"User, I have bad news," My heart practically dropped down to my toes and I shrunk back from the window. "I've just received a message from Lady Ianite. She says that the heroes defeated Dianite and jumped into the Void, hoping to get home. That was last month. She's lost all contact with them."

"So... we're the last Mianitees?" I choked out. The Void... it was deadly. It wasn't a portal.

"Yes," Twisted's face was grim. "Since all the other wizards disappeared with Dec and Champwan, I'm afraid that we are the only ones left to continue on the legacy of the realm of Mianite."

I felt unnaturally dizzy and staggered away from the window, collapsing on my bed. So there was no chance of ever seeing the heroes again. It was just me and Twisted... and Twisted hated me now.

I heard Twisted walk away without a goodbye and that only further drove in the real reason for our argument: we had snapped. We could only tolerate each other for so long without any other human company. Best friends... ha. We were destroyed.

I didn't mind that I was crying again. I was alone now; wasn't it right to cry? Especially when your friend - your best friend - had left you. What made it worse was the pain from my love for him was overwhelming me. And not just a brotherly love. Real love. True love.

"Twisted," I choked out, digging my fingernails into the palms of my hand. "I'm so sorry. I never meant to hurt you."

I imagined he was right beside me, hugging me and telling me that it was alright, that he wasn't angry at me. And I cried in his arms as he held me tightly, whispering that he would never let go.

But he wasn't there.

I raked my nails over my arms, scarring my skin and leaving behind beads of blood. Why was I so stupid? Why was I so weak?

The silence never answered.

XxX

I knew the spell. I knew what it would do. I knew that I wouldn't survive.

"Fuero ignito," I whispered, staring at the front door. A tiny flame sprung up from nowhere at the bottom of the door and I dully turned around, trudging upstairs as the fire started to grow. I lay down in a corner and faced the wall, starting to cry again as the smoke thickened. Twisted leaving me had destroyed me. I was dead inside already.

"Twisted, I'm so sorry," I said, tears running down my face. My throat was stinging and the fire crackled hungrily downstairs. I was such an idiot. I should never have gotten angry at Twisted. If I truly loved him, I would have never said a word in that argument.

A sudden scream rose up from outside, but my thoughts were getting too foggy for it to register. I coughed, spasming weakly. The heat was making me dizzy and the smoke was rasping in my lungs.

"Twisted," I murmured, smoke staining my lips black. More smoke stung my eyes and I let them slide close, well aware of the roaring flames that were creeping in around me.

My jacket caught fire first, the flames slowly eating away at the cloth and burning their way ever closer. I could feel the pain, small at first, on the skin on my arms. It grew as the fire seared my flesh and I cried out weakly, coughing again. I curled up into a tight ball as the fire enveloped my body, dancing over my skin.

The pain was growing so intense... tears were tracing their way down my face and I sobbed aloud as the flames burned the outside of my throat. I heard a loud shout and the pain was suddenly not quite as bad. My skin was still on fire... did I even still have skin? My right eye stung badly and I briefly wondered if it had been permanently damaged by the smoke.

Either way, I let go of my grip on conscious and fell away from the world of pain.

XxX

Someone was saying my name.

Shut up. I'm not worth your time.

Someone wanted me to wake up.

Why? I was supposed to be dead, wasn't I? Dead people don't wake up.

Someone was... crying?

Ha. Crying over me? Not likely.

"User, please. I never meant to do this to you."

But you didn't. I did this. You didn't start that fire.

"Please wake up. Oh gods, wake up for me. I - I never wanted this."

Who are you?

"User? User, come on. It's me. It's me. Twisted."

T-Twisted?

I moaned, shifting slightly. Instantly, there was an explosion of agony across my body and I cried out, convulsing in on myself. Then, someone's hands were gently holding me still and keeping me from thrashing around. I stilled, trembling as I waited for another wave of biting pain.

But there wasn't any. I felt something cool being dabbed against the places where the pain was worst, and then it subsided. Something damp was lightly brushed over my face and a bit of water trickled into my mouth. I swallowed, coughing violently as my smoke-filled lungs refused to work properly.

"Here. Try to swallow this - it will help," I felt a sticky substance be rubbed on my lips and I licked it off, tasting smooth honey. I swallowed it and and it did indeed soothe my throat. I was given more and I continued to eat it eagerly, my eyes still tightly shut. "I'm going to get you some water. Just try not to move, okay?"

I heard soft footsteps walk away. A minute later, they returned. "Here." Now a cool liquid was at my mouth. Water. I drank it, sighing contentedly as it helped ease the burning sensation in my stomach.

"There. Rest - you'll be okay." The voice was trembling as though its owner was trying not to cry. "You have to be okay."

I... have to?

"For me. We have to help each other now. We're the only ones left."

Don't worry, Twisted. I will. I will always be there to help you.

XxX

I bit my lip as I stared at User, lying still in my bed. I had taken him to Jordan's house, since it was where I was living, and he was currently unconscious, nestled in the bedsheets. He looked so peaceful, even though he was in a lot more pain than it seemed.

The fire had seared away huge chunks of his skin, exposing the bare muscle underneath. I was worried about how the smoke inhalation must have affected his respiratory system and his right eye seemed clouded and dull. And no matter how many bandages I wrapped around him, his burns just kept bleeding.

I held his hand as he slept, tears stinging my eyes. He had been in so much agony when he woke up that I doubted that he would wake up again.

I reached over and grabbed the damp cloth that was sitting in a bowl on a table beside the bed. The water in the bowl was swirling with a light red colour and the cloth was also stained with a paler shade of scarlet. I wiped away some more of the dried blood on User's face, dabbing at it with a clean corner of the cloth before putting it back in the bowl.

I knew I felt something more for my fellow wizard. Not just friends, not just best friends, but more. I made the spontaneous decision and leaned over, gently kissing User's forehead.

User sighed softly in his sleep and I could almost imagine that he was smiling. I sat back, sniffling and wiping my eyes. My love was dying and there was nothing I could do.

"Please survive," I whispered, even though I knew that he couldn't hear me. "I don't want you to die." I squeezed User's hand, my fingers lightly tracing over the burns on his body.

Why wouldn't they stop bleeding?

No matter what, they just kept oozing blood. And they were everywhere.

I felt my tears trickle down my cheeks and I wiped them away. I couldn't stand to cry, but I couldn't help it when User was dying.

And it was my fault. If I hadn't walked out on him... if I had just stayed to talk... if...

'If' didn't change anything though. It just made me wish for what I wanted to happen, but couldn't have. I could care for User, hope that he would get better - but would he really?

No. That much was certain. User would not be getting better. The burns were too severe and there was too much smoke in his lungs. The chance of him surviving more than a few more days was... nonexistent.

I sobbed, sliding from my chair and into the bed, gently curling my arm around User. I was halfway off the side, but at this point, I didn't care. All I cared about was being there for User. I needed him, probably as much as he needed me right now.

We were the only ones left on the island of Mianite. I would die if I lost him. I loved him so much... and I had never told him. I wish I had. Maybe if I had, this wouldn't have happened. He wouldn't be lying here, bleeding to death with smoke in his lungs because he had tried to kill himself.

"User..." I whispered sadly. "What do I have to do to erase this?"

Nothing. There was nothing I could do.

Why?

XxX

He died the next morning.

And I was alone.

We were immortals... for a while, we were immortals. There was nothing that could bring us down. But the sand in the top of the hourglass always drained to the bottom.

He was gone.

I was seeing things. I saw faint images of my friends, walking around the world as if nothing had changed. I saw them talking together, holding the ores and food that they traded with each other.

I had stopped coming out of the house.

Then he came for me.

"Come on, Twisted. Stop moping around. I'm right here." I heard crying. "I'm here. Just come with me. I promise; everything will get better."

"You're dead," I choked out, staring at my pillow. "This isn't real."

"Love isn't real?" he sounded broken. "I love you Twisted. Come with me. Please."

"You're from my past. I can't make that my future."

"Have faith. Please. I know you have it in you."

"You can't heal my wounds."

"Just tell me. Be - be honest. How do you really feel about - about me?"

"I - I try to picture me without you, but I can't. I loved you."

I was crying now too.

"So come with me. We could be immortals."

"We were."

"But not for long. We can change that."

"I - I don't -"

"Live with me forever."

"How?"

"Just take my hand."

He reached out to me, his hand pale in the ghostly glow that his body gave off. Where the burns had been were just scars. His eyes were glistening brightly with tears and his breathing was smooth and unmarred.

I didn't hesitate to reach out and take his hand.

He smiled.

"Immortals," he whispered. It sounded like a promise.

"Immortals," I agreed.

We live forever now.