Seeta's body slammed onto the searing ground below. Her body was riddled with many fiery arrows… She couldn't even stand now… Her body… it was falling apart…
She looked at the one standing before them… Vera… and the fiery arrows emerging from his body… piercing their weakened bodies with every step they tried to take…
Seeta mumbled, "We can't win… We can't win, Mika…"
Mika stood, swaying, bleeding from all over his body… He looked at the injuries on Vera's body, which had healed… Whenever their weapons reached him, his body would heal as though nothing had happened.
"Ah… that thing… can't even be killed…"
Vera suddenly stopped, clutching his heart. His eyes widened with horror as he muttered, "Valwa…" Vera cried out, "Turath!! How did he kill him… My brother Valwa… How?? And he had Exlazira!!"
Vera's eyes widened… It seemed the voice inside him said something… He stood with trembling legs, saying, "okay! Let's finish this now…"
No one remained but these two… only them… everyone else had fallen… They didn't know who would wake again… and who never would… but they did know… they couldn't go on any longer.
Mika said, "It looks like I'll die before marrying you, Seeta…"
Seeta's teary eyes welled up, "I wouldn't have married you anyway…"
Mika smiled and said, "Alright then… Ayk… if you're somehow alive, mourn my death a lot, you bastard… cry like a baby…" He looked at her and said, "Seeta!"
He continued smiling while tears slipped from his eyes, "We're going to die anyway… but let's give this bastard a taste of our rage before we do…"
Seeta nodded, tears in her eyes, "Yes!!"
Both of them ran at him at full speed… Vera stood there… as they both came closer and closer… until they reached him… They drove their weapons into his body…
Vera stood there… as he remembered what the voice inside of him said, "Exlazira is gone… I'll be leaving too…" Vera screamed, "Turath… Why?!" The voice said, "Something has appeared… even we can't stop it…" Vera shouted, "No… Don't leave!! I order you!!" The voice from within replied, "I'm sorry… It's over…"
Mika and Seeta stood, catching their breath after they pierced Vera with their weapon. Seeta fell to her knees. She had pushed her body to the limit in that final strike. She and Mika gazed at Vera's body… and at the wounds… waiting for it to heal… They watched… and watched… until they saw… blood… His blood fell for the first time… Vera collapsed to the ground, saying softly, "I'm sorry, Valwa… I couldn't finish what we started…"
Seeta spoke anxiously, as though afraid of the answer, "Is… Is it over?"
The long red-haired woman fell to the ground, with Noel and the townspeople behind her. Tears spilled onto the earth as she said, "My brother, Valwa… May you rest in paradise."
Noel said, "What's the matter, Eita?"
Eita stood up, tears pouring from her eyes, yet smiling as she said, "Someone got there before us… to paradise…"
Noel gave a worried smile, and the others behind her listened. Eita continued, "There's no time… We must begin now…"
Eita turned around, arms spread wide, laughing through her tears as she called, "Everyone… Are you ready to go to paradise!"
Eita had led the remaining townsfolk, who gathered around her. She raised her hand high and said, "By the mercy of the god Vihara… The Garden of Forgiveness…"
This was what Noel truly wanted. She didn't need to join the army… Nor to see those descendants of the Lights… She just… wanted rest… eternal paradise… where everyone she loved would be, so she could spend her life with them… She wanted to leave this cruel world…
Noel closed her eyes and pressed her hands to her heart… But… she didn't expect paradise to be that hot, to devour her body and burn it… to be full of screams and pain…
Noel opened her eyes to see flames surrounding them… and everyone around her screaming in terror… The fire licked at their trembling bodies…
Noel started breathing heavily in horror and said, "Wait… Wait… What's happening?"
She looked at Eita and screamed in agony, "Eita!! You never told us about this?!"
Eita responded, still smiling, "How else could you enjoy the god's paradise if you don't atone for your sins in this world… Your bodies must burn until your souls are cleansed of their transgressions…"
Noel screamed, "I don't want this! I don't want this… I want to go back home…"
Eita moved away from her, spreading her hands on either side of the path. Flames spread beneath her hands, igniting everything Eita passed. Eita said, "But… you will return home, where we all belong…"
The fire grew stronger, spreading through the alleys of Bial, consuming everyone in its path…
Inside a bakery, Skeki was busy baking bread. She muttered, "Oh my God, those wretches outside… what's all the commotion… I hate this day every year…" She was drenched in sweat and said, "What's this… did the oven's heat increase?" She peered through the small window and saw the tidal wave of flames heading toward her, devouring everything in its path…
Eita walked through Bial, burning what remained of it… Before a voice inside her said, "Exlazira and Turath are gone…" Eita shouted, "What… Why??" The voice answered, "I don't know… but I can't feel their presence…" Eita said in terror, "Are you leaving too, Lazith?" The voice cried out, "No! I don't want to leave you, Eita… I'll stay by your side… I'll never leave you…" Eita clutched her heart, saying, "Thank you, Lazith…"
The squad heard a nearby scream, and Bern came running toward Vera's body, saying, "Brother Vera… Don't die…" She was crying hysterically while they all looked at her… Mika, exhausted, said, "What's wrong with this girl…" Bern turned to him with teary eyes and said, "You monsters… All my brothers wanted was for our souls to return to paradise… And you killed him… You killed… Vera…" She placed her head on Vera's chest and said, "Don't die before I tell you… I didn't even have time to say goodbye… I left them all… Because I wanted to say goodbye to you…" She screamed, "Why did I leave them, then, if you're also going to die without me saying goodbye…"
Mika drew closer, Nieth eyes still wrapped around his head, and said, "Hey, girl… His soul is still there… Just faint…" The girl's face twisted, and she cried harder, gripping Vera's clothes, saying, "Thank God!"
Seeta looked on… That man had tried to kill them… And this girl was crying for him… But… Mika still wanted to reassure her…
Mika said as he turned his face, noticing Seeta watching him, "I just wanted to tell her so she'd stop wailing…"
Bern sat sadly on some chair in a garden. Layla approached her and said, "Bern… What's wrong? Are you sad because Vera left?"
Bern leaned on her knees and said, "He left without saying goodbye…" Her face reddened, and she added, "I mean without saying goodbye to all of us…"
The woman standing beside Layla laughed; Bern hadn't noticed her, so her face turned even redder, and she continued, "My sister, Nihara… I didn't mean…" Nihara kept laughing as she picked Layla up and said to Bern, "Come on… Zern is summoning all of us…" She started moving and smilingly said, "You can tell him your feelings in paradise…"
Bern's heart pounded fiercely, "Wait… We're doing it today?" Nihara said, "Yes… We'll leave the rest to our three older siblings… But we…" The woman smiled and continued, "We've lingered too long on this earth already…" Bern mumbled, "Ah…"
Bern stood, following with heavy steps… All the townspeople had gathered inside the temple… Relief and happiness showed on their faces…
Zern stood on the platform before the crowd, saying, "O servants of the god Vihara… Today, we fulfill our god's desire… Humans and angels have defied Him for 300 years… Here we stand… Carrying out His will…" He continued, "Valwa, Vera, and Eita…" Bern's face twisted with displeasure at hearing his name, as Zern continued, "They will deliver sinful human souls from their wrongdoings… And eradicate the dark souls that should never have been born… We have spent the last fifty years gathering knowledge and resources to acquire the weapons of the god Vihara… the Fires.. He has bestowed upon us His power and grace… Our three Children have received the three divine weapons… Our role is now complete… We can free ourselves from this wretched, sinful life… And all ascend to paradise… The god will receive our souls and the souls of those who went before us into paradise if we fulfill His will…"
The crowd exalted, lifting their arms in prayer and supplication to their god… They wept tears of happiness.. Bern thought to herself, clutching at her clothes, "I didn't know it would be today… I never got to say goodbye… I can't… I'll wait for him… I'll wait for Vera and go to paradise with him…"
Zern's red-robed men began distributing a drink to everyone. Zern raised his cup and said, "Give your Children the sacred water… Then you drink as well…" The women began giving cups to their Children to drink from. Bern looked around in panic, then closed her eyes. Nihara, smiling, handed Bern a cup, saying, "Come on, Bern… it's your turn."
Bern looked at Layla, who was drinking from her cup. Tears sprang to Bern's eyes as she took the cup from Nihara. Bern said, "Sister Nihara… I left the doll that Vihara gave me… May I go get it?? I don't want… I want it with me…" Nihara hesitated a moment, then said, "Alright… but drink your cup first…" Bern paused, then raised the cup to her mouth and drank it. Nihara waited until she swallowed, then smiled and said, "Alright, hurry and get it… But don't be late… We want to be together at this moment…"
Bern's heart pounded as she smiled and said, "Alright…"
Bern ran and ran away from the temple.. She stood behind some building, forcing herself to vomit. She threw up so much that she felt exhausted and sat to rest a bit… After a while, Bern stood, wiping her mouth… She walked slowly toward the temple building, but heard no sound inside…
Bern looked inside to find everyone… sitting peacefully in their chairs.. hundreds of women, men, children.. everyone she knows… are dead.
Bern dashed to Layla and Nihara, hugging them and weeping, saying, "I'm sorry… I'm sorry I wasn't with you… But… Vera…" She wept and hugged Layla's lifeless body, holding Nihara's hand to her face… she wept and wept in the silent temple. She recalled how Vera found her on the road after her mother abandoned her, leaving her crying.
Vera knelt in front of little Bern and said, "Why are you crying, beautiful girl…?" Little Bern cried, "I can't find my mother…" Vera smiled and said, "It's okay… we'll help you look for her… When did you lose her?" Bern, choking on her sobs, replied, "Three suns ago…" Vera's and Eita's eyes widened in shock, and Eita said, "How…" Vera picked Bern up in his arms, saying, "It's alright… We'll take care of you… We already have lots of annoying kids… One more won't hurt…" He pulled out a small doll and handed it to Bern, saying, "Don't lose this; Zern gave it to me…" He patted her head as he walked next to her holding her hand and said, "I don't know why Aliron gave me a doll—maybe he thinks I'm a girl…" Eita laughed, "Maybe because of that long hair of yours…" Vera protested, "Valwa's hair is long, too, but I never saw him give Valwa any dolls!!"
Bern spent a while sitting in Nihara's lap and holding Layla… Before she finally stood up, wiping her swollen eyes. "I can't ascend to paradise before I say goodbye to my brother Vera and tell him how I really feel!" Tears streamed down her face as she kissed Layla and Nihara, then began running. She ran for hours until she reached Bial… She arrived just in time to see Vera falling to the ground.