The war was brutal. The word "mercy" never crossed anyone's mind. Many bodies were charred and animals were drowned in giant balls of water. Some burned alive in boiling lava, and some were suffocated in their own blood, however, it was clear to everyone that the Koleists were losing. Edward was killed by Nafario, and now everything was going haywire.
Rune was up against Lark, who underestimated his power. Lark surrounded Rune in water, but with a unknown force of sheer power, Rune broke free and attacked Lark, snapping at his neck. Lark knocked him off and was about to attack, but Florence bumped Lark out of the way. With a crazed howl, Florence used his plant power to grab Lark in midair and throw him across the battlefield.
Rune said, "Thanks Florence!" The hyperactive fox got even more excited, and he ran off and started throwing enemies left and right. Suddenly, there was a loud roar, and the Claudians started retreating. There were already cheers of victory, but most of them knew it wasn't done. Then they saw a large wooden cart with a large male fox chained in it.
Rune shouted, "Be prepared to fight!" Then there was a shout that ended it all. "Sundim! Your child is dead!" The fox screeched, and then there was a huge explosion. Nothing was visible anymore. It was just dust, flames, and the cries of the ones who are burning. Rune was one of the lucky few who were just blown away, but he still got burned.
Rune shouted, "Florence! Florence! Where are you!? Say something!" He then heard a distant howl coming from his left. He ran that direction, and stumbled upon a burnt fox. Though, he recognized his friend with no trouble at all. "Oh no... Florence..." The fox opened his eyes and said, "You survived... that's good..."
Rune grabbed Florence's scruff and headed toward the wooden tower. He entered the base and put Florence down saying, "I'll get help! Please stay alive!" Florence said, "I think I'm dying. Though, you only ever feel it once anyway." Rune poured some water into Florence's mouth, and Florence said, "Please stop..."
Rune shouted, "Someone! Help!" In an instant, Bella and Diane came up from a bunker that no one knew about. Bella gasped and Diane screamed. Bella said, "This... is terrible..." Diane ran to Florence and said, "No no no! This can't be happening!" Florence said, "Hey guys... r-" Diane said, "There is no time for jokes! Bella, can't you do something!?"
Bella sighed and said, "There is. But I need a sacrifice from someone who cares about Florence." Rune said, "I'll do it. There's nothing to live for anyway." Bella nodded and walked up to Rune, but Diane said, "No. I'll do it." Rune said, "You actually have a reason to live Diane. It's so obvious to everyone that you love Florence!"
Diane looked away and said, "Yeah. At this point, I'd do anything for him. You and Florence are the only ones that opened my eyes away from war. Consider this as thanks!" Bella flicked her ears and Diane passed out. What came out of her mouth was a blue ball. Rune said, "Wait... are you a Soul Snatcher!?" Bella said, "Calm down."
In an instant, she forced Diane's soul to heal Florence with her life force. Alas, but as expected, Diane's soul disappeared. Florence stood up and said, "Thank you Diane. I'm sorry that it had to be you though. It should've been someone still on the battlefield." Rune tilted his head, and Florence said, "I would've been sad if it was you as well. Our team is like a family after all."
It started raining, and the dust finally started to clear. Florence said, "It was like... I was the father, Diane the mother, you the cranky uncle, Bella the aunt, Truffle our pet, and the new addition. The fox cub as our son." Rune smiled and said, "It did kind of feel like that when you were around." West wandered into the room they were in and gasped.
He squeaked, "What happened to Diane!?" Bella picked up her body and said, "She died fighting for us." She carried Diane's body out, and Florence said, "Hey, I never actually caught your name." "My name is West! It's really nice to meet you!" West said. Florence pulled him closer and said, "You're my kid now." West didn't know how to react, so he just sat there with a wide smile on his face.
Bella rushed back with Truffles on her back and shouted, "Run! Claudians are here!" Florence picked up West and bolted, and Rune and Bella were trying to run as fast as he was going. They safely escaped, and West got a good long look at the battlefield. Corpses scattered on the still burning ground. There was no life on that battlefield. Not even a single plant lingered.
This was was truly a great enough travesty for even children to understand as West sobbed when he saw it.