The night became cruel. The slums, which used to be a quiet place to hide, were now full of noise and fear. You could hear doors being kicked in, soldiers shouting, and the cries of people who were trapped with their child. The air was filled with thick smoke that made it hard to breathe, as if the world were choking on all the violence.
Emma kept running. Every step she took sent a sharp, tearing pain through her body,. She was exhausted from giving birth, and her legs felt like they might give out at any moment. Her clothes were stained with blood and she struggled to catch her breath as her vision started to blur. But she didn't stop. She knew she had to keep going no matter what.
Hazel was gone from her arms. Not holding her baby hurt more than any of her physical injuries.
A few moments ago, though it felt much longer, she had handed her baby to Isolde. She let her fingers touch the child for one last second, trying to remember exactly how she felt.
She forced herself to let go because she knew her daughter had a better chance of surviving if they were apart. "Go," she had whispered, her voice trembling from being so tired and sad. "No matter what happens to me, do not look back."
Every step she took reminded her of the choice she had made.
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Vera, one of the midwives, stayed right next to her and helped her walk whenever she stumbled. They moved through narrow alleys and broken paths. The whole area had become a dangerous maze. Every shadow looked like a threat, and every noise sounded like a warning.
Behind them, the soldiers were getting now closer. Emma could hear their heavy boots on the ground and their loud voices as they gave orders. You could hear their weapons hitting their armor as they moved.
"They're getting closer," Emma whispered, her voice sounding weak, raw and broken.
Vera looked serious, but she kept a firm hold on Emma. "Then we have to keep going." They turned a sharp corner and almost ran into someone stepping out from the shadows.
Emma's breath caught.
"Kael.....?"
Her voice broke the moment the moment she said his name. He looked terrible, like he was already starting to die. A walking corpse looked better than him. She had never seen him look so weak.
The rot that had once been hidden beneath his skin was now visible. Dark veins spread across his body, making his face pale and his movements slow. He could hardly stay on his feet. His breathing was uneven, and he grew weaker with every second that passed.
But his eyes were still the same. He looked for her through all the noise and found her right away. His look showed something stronger than pain: he was relieved.
"Emma…" he whispered.
She ran to him without thinking about her own pain and fell into his arms. For a moment, they forgot about the soldiers and the danger. It felt like they were safe and had more time together.
"You're alive," she said, her voice shaking.
"Barely," he answered with a small, honest smile.
She pulled back to look at him, her weak hands framing his pale face. "Hazel is safe. Isolde and Maria took her away. They're running. She isn't here, Kael."
Kael closed his eyes, looking so relieved that the news seemed to give him the strength to keep standing.
"Good," he said softly.
But the moment ended quickly. The sound of the soldiers got louder and closer, breaking the silence. The reality they had tried to hold back crashed in all at once.
Then, Kael's expression changed.
Emma saw it immediately, and fear rose in her chest.
"No," she said, shaking her head. "Don't look at me like that."
He did not argue to her; instead, he stepped back.
"What are you doing?" she demanded, panic breaking through her voice.
"If they follow you, they might find Hazel," he said quietly.
Her breath caught. "No."
"I will lead them away," he said with a sad smile.
"No!" Her voice broke completely now. "You can't. You don't even have the strength. You're already dying."
Kael gave her a small, peaceful smile. "Then let my death mean something."
The words struck her harder than anything else.
Tears filled her eyes as she shook her head, refusing to accept what he was saying. "No....we were supposed to leave. Together. You promised we would find somewhere safe."
"I know," he said softly, his voice breaking in a way she had never heard before. "I'm sorry."
Vera watched them with tears in her eyes. She knew Kael couldn't survive because he had lost too much blood and the rot has expanded.
Suddenly, she heard the sound of heavy boots which snapped her back to reality. The soldiers were too close. There was no time left for them.
Kael stepped forward one last time and pressed his forehead gently against hers. His hand rose to cup her cheek, his touch warm but fading.
"Listen to me, Emma," he whispered. "Hazel is alive and must live. That is what matters now. Just save her"
Emma shook her head, tears spilling freely down her face. "No, no....... no, Kael we must stay together."
He leaned in and kissed her slowly and deeply.
When he pulled away, he didn't hesitate. He turned back to the road and ran towards the road the soldiers and guards were approaching..
"Kael!!!!!!!........Noooooooo" Emma screamed, her voice tearing through the night, "Come backkkkkkkk!!!." but Kael was gone and he never looked back
Emma did not remember when she started running with Vera supporting her again.
Her body moved on instinct, driven by grief and desperation, her mind barely able to process the sounds behind her. Steel clashed, voices shouted, and somewhere in that chaos, Kael was fighting a battle that he would for sure lose.
Her chest hurt painfully but she forced herself forward and kept going for Hazel.
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The soldiers moved through the slums like a storm.
They broke into homes and buildings, dragged families into the open, and demanded answers with cold, unyielding voices.
"Any child born this year especially this month," one guard barked. "Bring them out. now!!"
When no answer came from those families or if those families gave them responses that didn't fit their demands, violence followed and blood spilled.
Emma and Vera running, heard families crying, begging and shouting until it went quiet.
Emma froze in her steps, the air turning to ice in her lungs, the realization of what was happening hit her like a physical blow, making her knees buckle. "They're killing them," she choked out. "They're actually killing them."
"Yes, Emma, they're hunting blind but they don't know which baby it is. So, Hazel is safe for now," Vera said in a slightly cold voice.
The words hit Emma like a physical blow. My fault. All of them dying, because of me and my child.
Her knees buckled as the weight of the massacre of innocent lives nearly crushed her, but Vera held her up and tightened her grip. "We need to keep moving, Emma. We cannot stop now." She said.
Emma nodded weakly and forced her legs to walk, her mind screaming Hazel's name like a mantra as it was her motivation.
They reached another open stretch of road—and stopped dead in their tracks.
The guards and soldiers were already there. And there trapped in the guards very center, was Kael.
He was covered in blood and open wounds, and looked very weak; the rot and his injuries consumed whatever little strength he had left.
"Kael..." the name barely left her throat.
Kael lifted up his head weakly, his eyes glassy with pain, but as they locked onto hers, his lips pulled into a resolute smile.
"Run," he mouthed to her.
Emma she could not respond to what Kael mouthed as the sight of Kael was a painful sight for her.
Then, one of the soldiers stepped forward, raising his sword.
"Nooooooooo", Emma screamed. But the sword was faster and the strike came down and Kael body went limp.
The world shattered and everything inside her broke.
Emma collapsed to her knees, a broken sound escaping her lips as everything inside her gave way.
The guards and soldiers turned to her and asked "Where is the child?"
Emma stayed silent and said nothing.
Seeing she is not speaking, one of the soldiers struck her stomach with a heavy blow, knocking her to the ground.
Vera, looking at the situation, noticed their sole focus were on Emma slipped away through the chaos and ran for her life.
"Where is the fucking child, bitch?" another of the guards roared. Emma still remained silent and said nothing.
Then, another blow struck her jaw and her chest.
Emma felt blood-warm and metallic- pooling in her mouth. She laughed maniacally and said to the soldiers, "To hell with you all!! Just kill me already because I will never tell you were my child is,"
Then, blows and beatings landed on her on different parts of her body as what she said angered the soldiers and guards.
Amidst the beatings, Emma kept whispering to herself; Hazel is alive. She must live and fulfill her destiny till death took her.
Far away from the everything, Hazel slept. She didn't know how much people had sacrificed for her or that she was going to change the world. The night had tried to take her, but she had survived.