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The air picks up, getting stronger and stronger as Karona’s fury unleashes. She doesn't spare anyone. Even her tribunal’s getting a piece of it. I'm even surprised at the threat of her destruction.
Karona, in a towering rage, focuses her wrath solely on me. The hatred emitting from her all-seeing eyes sends shivers down my spine. She holds out her hand, condemning my existence with just one gesture.
“Carus Ishiraya, you are a harbinger of chaos,” she denounces, her voice echoing like thunder throughout the temple.
Without warning, a flash of light blinds us all. Karona’s power is unleashed in a tempest of divine energy that sends more scared objects hurling towards me.
I shield Shana from her wrath, receiving every blow. I can feel my skin getting pierced as they hit and shatter against me. I nearly collapse when one ends up getting my head. But my resolve to protect Shana and our baby is stronger than any fury this twisted Ruler unleashes on me.
Blood falls from my nose, and I squint my eyes from the blinding light. Her power’s as unforgiving as the ocean’s currents. Each tide is stronger than the last, and it’s slowly depleting my energy.
I grit my teeth, trying to keep my stance against her wrath. But the pride I take as an Ishiraya is no match for her divinity.
Fuck! Get it together, Carus! Shana needs you!
I shield my face from the incoming objects. I’m starting to feel dizzy from the constant head trauma. My determination, however, angers Karona even further. A corrupt man like me has no room to face her, in her viewpoint.
She holds out her other hand. In the next moment, a surge of excruciating pain travels throughout my body. I let out a guttural roar as I’m suddenly brought down to my knees.
Shana gasps and tries to help me up. With all the strength I can muster, I push her away. She tries to protest, but I shake my head, biting my lower lip.
“Don’t,” I groan.
“But Carus –”
“Please, Shana.”
My strength wanes against the force of her fury. Seeing my face in a bloody mess, Shana weeps in horror. Tears stream down her grief stricken face. She clasps her palms together and lowers her head to the being she once revered.
“Your Majesty, please, I beg your forgiveness! Please have mercy on him!”
She repeats the words like a sacred mantra, hoping to get through to her. Her hands shake as she continues to plead for mercy. Alas, her cries are drowned out by the clamor of the escalating storm.
Instead of asking Karona to take pity on her, she asks for mine. Despite the situation we’re in, I can’t help but feel happy about it. I didn’t realize how desperate I was for her acceptance.
Realizing that her cries don’t reach Karona, Shana suddenly embraces me. She locks her arms around my neck and her back faces the wrath. The defiance from Shana is enough to deter Karona, even for a little.
But just as before, her rage doesn’t cease.
“Priestess of Painting, Shana, you dare to betray me like this?” Karona roars.
An object flies at Shana, hitting her right on her back. She yells out in pain but still holds me tight. I try to push her off, but she grips me tighter.
Another object. Another hit. Right on the back of her head.
“Shana, you traitor, you will face your sins in the cruelest and fairest way!”
The temple starts to crumble all around us. Pieces of the ceiling break off and fall. The floor shakes with a terrible tremor.
Shana looks over her shoulder, directly at Karona.
“I will face death alongside Carus! I belong to no one else but him!”
My heart swells at her words, even at death’s door. Her right hand cups my cheek. Tears well up in my eyes, knowing that these are the last seconds I get to spend with her. Her words are a testament to our unbreakable connection even as destruction looms over us.
But it’s not the last of her declarations. She turns back to me, her face stained with tears, and a sad smile spreads across her lovely face. My focus is completely on her, wanting to burn this last sight in my memory before being consumed by darkness.
She holds my face and kisses me for what might be the last time. Her tears get in the mix, salty on my lips, and it’s what drives me to action.
