Luminous...
The moon always had such a beautiful, luminous light that shone so brightly.
But tonight, the moon was different. It shone much brighter—harsher. Its light sliced through the dark sky, casting sharp shadows and illuminating the two figures in the field below.
A woman lay on the ground, defeated, beaten, and dying. She leaned against a large maple tree, its once-white leaves now turning red, slowly soaking up her blood as the roots twisted into the soil beneath her. The spider lilies around her—once glowing white—had bloomed, their petals stained a deep crimson, spreading outward in a deadly embrace.
The man loomed over her, his expression hard, but there was a faint trace of blood on his own clothes. He was beaten too, but victorious. His hand gripped her heart, still pulsing and warm, as fragile as glass, ready to shatter with the slightest touch.
"Celine, your reign has come to an end," Achlys said, his voice low but steady.
A cruel smile crept up the Queen's face as her blood spread further, staining the nearby spider lilies. They bloomed wider, their petals curling with an unnatural beauty in the moonlight. Her heart, still beating in the hands of her once-loyal servant, dripped blood as her life slipped away.
An ending truly befitting of the tyrannical villainess.
"The mutt now becomes a wolf," Celine chuckled weakly. "How beautiful... your master feels... so proud."
Achlys flinched at her words, his hand tightening around her heart. More blood soaked his fingers, but he didn't flinch. His expression was unreadable.
"You'll come back... you're just as twisted... and lonely," Celine whispered, her voice growing weaker with each word.
Achlys shook his head, his jaw tightening. "Not anymore, with her by my side."
Her lips curled into a pitiful smile. "You think you're free of me? You think you've won?" she whispered, a laugh breaking through her words. It was soft, almost like a final sigh. She gazed at him with the same sweet, adoring look she always had—one that had once lured him into her trap.
But now, it disgusted him.
"Light has only proven to hurt the dark," Celine said, her breath coming in ragged gasps. "I'll be waiting. Once it's over, I'll be there to embrace you once more."
Achlys didn't answer. His hand was firm, and with a final squeeze, he crushed her heart with ease.
The heart turned to red ashes, scattered in the wind. No pain came, only the quiet finality of her death.
Celine's eyes fluttered up toward the moon. She stared at the breathtaking beauty she had adored for so long. Even in her final moments, she was at peace. It made her smile that, at least in death, she could still see the moon.
A blue butterfly landed gently on her shoulder as Achlys looked down at her, his face stone-cold. No happiness, no pride, not a single emotion betrayed his stoic expression.
But there was something in his onyx eyes, something that flickered—a glimmer of something.
Even in death, the villainess remained beautiful. Angelic, but impure.
"Truly sinful," Achlys thought, almost without meaning to.
He kneeled beside her, offering her one final bow.
As her breath left her, her eyes began to close tightly, and the last whisper of her soul seemed to slip away.
"Lo, as the spider lily sways,
Silent beneath the moon's gaze,
Crimson rivers trace her fall,
Whispering secrets, unheard by all.
From the heart's last, fragile breath,
Blooms the dark, a kiss of death."