POV of Romeo:
I don't know how much time had passed. It felt like time had halted and we were in the middle of an eternity. Doubt had clouded my mind. It blocked all of my thoughts and left an empty feeling in my head.
I lifted my head from Mia's stomach at the faintest thump of a heartbeat. Tears crowded my vision. I wiped them and looked down at Mia. Her eyes were closed and her face had an angelic glow. She looked peaceful. Another stream of tears trickled down my eyes.
"I love you," I whispered softly.
Thump!
Slowly, she opened her eyes. I could still see a pureness sparkling in her beautiful green eyes. Her lips began to part as she tried to speak.
"No," I whimpered and shook my head. "Don't speak." I could hear my voice breaking off. I cried loudly. I knew what words she wanted to say, but I couldn't let her speak them. Her lips kept moving. My eyes widened and my tears froze. She wasn't listening.
"Please," I begged. "Please..."
Thump!
I could feel the presence of the golem behind me. It was close, but I could care less. A stronger presence had overcome me. I could feel it. It hovered over the whole town... Death. The reaper was standing next to us, watching.
My heart slowed... I wanted to scream out, but I couldn't. No muscle in my body dared to move. It felt as if the whole world was coming down on me and crushing me. All I could do was watch.
"I..." the word hung off Mia's lips. Her eyes looked drained and her face grew colder. "I love... you too." She spoke. The words struck me like a cold blade slowly piercing my heart. My mouth hung open, vacant of words.
"I-I... I," the vowel tickled my tongue. My heart sped back up. It was racing through a long hallway that knew no end. Faster, faster, faster until it squeezed itself and I found myself choking internally.
"And," she continued, "tell Grandpa and Ares, I love them too."
The tears continued to roll down my face. My mouth still hung open but no words would follow. Clenching my teeth together, I closed my mouth and felt a long sorrow hanging at the back of my throat. My tears began to pour down like a heavy thunderstorm.
"Nooooooo!" I screamed to the heavens. The reaper had left and with him, he took another angel.
Mia's eyes were fully opened. They were gazing off into the heavens where her soul had gone. A handful of memories swept over me.
Thump!
I remember it all! I remembered meeting you. I had come from behind grandpa and clutched onto his leg as I looked down at you in a straw-weaved basket. It was from that moment on, I was excited to watch you grow up. I would smile back and laugh at every joyous moment with you: whenever it was raining and I played with you to distract you, when you first learned how to walk, and ever since you learned how to talk.
"Bubba," I reminisced. "Don't you remember?" I asked. Snot shot from under my nose and mingled with my tears. "That was your second word."
I remembered each of your smiles. I remembered playing around with you. I remembered all of your birthdays. I remembered it all. The memories crowded my mind. Your smile flooded my thoughts.
THUMP!
I felt the rough wind pass over us. I didn't bother to turn around. My feet would not budge from underneath me nor did I want to run. In this moment, the only thing I wished for was to stay with my beloved little sister.
My lips buckled and my tears had finally come to an end. I gently brushed over her eyes with my hand and closed them. I smiled for the first time in this nightmare. I kissed her forehead and whispered, "I love you too, Mia. More than anything in the world."
Don't worry, my mind wandered.
I looked up. The golem was now above me. Its large foot hovered over me like an anchor waiting to drop from the mightiest of ships. Everything had seemed to come to an end. It was inescapable. Death was tolling its victims, and it seemed to have checked me off on its list.
The golem's foot began dropping, and I tightened my grip around Mia. Cres hurled up next to us; even he seemed to accept the fate we were handed today. Then it happened.
I didn't even blink. I couldn't. Ares just appeared out of nowhere. He caught the golem's foot and grimaced. The overwhelming force crushed the ground beneath us into a giant crater and gusts of winds burst out in response.
I looked at Ares. His vibrant purple eyes were barely visible. His face looked serious. Our eyes met, and I could sense a difference within him. His purple eyes held a fiery rage I had never seen before. A dark essence leaked out of him. His muscles flexed hard underneath the golem's foot.
"Go," he said. His tone was stern, urgent. The words commanded me to my feet. I picked up Mia and ran from under the golem's foot.
Now out of harm's way, I looked back to see the golem smash its foot to the ground with Ares underneath. My mind went blank, but before I could react, a burst of dark flames sprouted from underneath the golem's foot.
"Don't think it'll be that easy!" the blond man yelled out. He pointed towards Ares and launched an attack in a narrow pathway.
Ares was still lifting the golem's foot off of himself when he saw the attack. He threw the foot off himself and swayed away from the blow. Before anything else could happen, he jerked up from the ground and launched at the man.
Fist first, he connected with the man. The sharp blow landed across the man's arms as he blocked it. Dragging his foot across the ground, he spun around and kicked Ares. The two then exchanged blows. Their fists hit each other and the man smiled. His smile was unsettling and prideful. He stretched out his hand in front of Ares's face.
"Wind Magic," he spoke. "Gale Force Bang!"
A large explosion of wind burst out of his hand. It knocked Ares back and sent him flying toward the remains of the arena. The man smiled and broke out into a laugh.
"I don't know where all of that power came from, but it won't be enough to defeat me," he cried out laughing. "Know your place, you pathetic bug!"
Something inside of me screamed. Everything came spiraling down, and I found myself standing up on my feet with both of my fists clenched. A sudden pressure built up inside of me and started pouring out of me. I could feel it in my breathing. All of my senses seemed to be in perfect sync. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
A swift calmness comforted me. I opened my eyes and exhaled. My arm was stretched out. My whole body felt soaked in mana. The man shifted his eyes to me; they widened.
"Mercury Magic!" I screamed out. I didn't know where the phrase came from, but it felt natural to say. A weird, silver substance appeared in front of my hand. It had an undefined shape and was constantly moving. "Striking Blade!"
The substance came together and hardened into a long, slender sword. The sword launched from my hand and into the man.