Chapter 7: Chapter 7 : I want to end it all

Jillian quickly untied star and helped Guinevere get on the horse.

“Go, I’ll catch up with you.” Jillian told the girl.

“Don’t tell me you’re planning on fighting them off alone?!” The redhead questioned the boy. “Let me come with you, I can help, I can-”

Jillian squeezed her hand and looked into her eyes. “I won’t be able to forgive myself if anything happens to you.”

“But Jillian I-”

“I’ll go help our family, and after we escape I’ll catch up with you, I promise.” The boy kissed Guinevere’s hand. “Now go!”

Guinevere kicked her horse and galloped away into the darkness, she could hear the distant screams of people as she disappeared into the night. How had such a colorful festive night turned so dark.

.....

[What am I doing? I can’t just leave Jillian, I can’t just leave my parents. I know I can help them, I must help them]

The blue eyed girl brought her horse to a stop and turned around.

[If I lose my family, if I lose Jillian, I would have lost everything. Then, what would be the point of this life. I need to save them]

Guinevere kicked the horse and rode swiftly back to the banquet hall, when she arrived she quickly jumped off her horse and ran into the hall.

She shuddered at the gruesome site in front of her, there were bodies, entrails and severed limbs of people who had been guests of the banquet.

Guinevere’s mind then went to a dark place, her parents! Had they survived?!

The girl made her way through the pile of bodies and rubble to where her parents had been sitting and talking to the Foreman’s earlier that night.

Guinevere had to hold back her gagging when she saw Mrs Foreman’s once sweet radiant face covered in bruises and blood. Next to her was her husband, Mr Foreman who had been stubbed several times in the chest.

Guinevere’s breath hitched when she saw who was laying dead next to Mr Foreman. Richard Strongbow was laying on top of his wife with a sword plunged into his back, the sword had protruded through his chest and stabbed Gezelle in the chest, leading to both their deaths.

“Mother! Father!” Guinevere dropped to her knees and sobbed bitterly as she looked at her parents.

It looked like her father had died trying to protect his wife, trying to protect the woman he loved.

Guinevere threw herself over her parent’s bodies and sobbed uncontrollably, even though she had promised herself not to get attached to them, Guinevere had grown to love Mr and Mrs Strongbow. They loved her and raised her, they where her parents regardless of the circumstances and she loved them.

“Oh father.” Guinevere sobbed. “I always did tell you you were hopelessly in love with mother. And even in death you still hold her close to you.”

The girl was devastated, how could this have happened?

Suddenly, Guinevere’s mind went to work again, where was Jillian?

The girl stood up and searched the entire hall in a panic but she couldn’t see Jillian anywhere, had he escaped? Had he tried to follow her? Was he even still alive?

So many questions we’re running through her mind but her thoughts were interrupted when she heard the sounds of colliding swords coming from outside the hall.

The redhead ran towards the exit and peeked into the darkness, a few yards away from her were two men in a fierce sword fight and Guinevere identified one of them immediately.

“Jillian!”

The dark haired boy managed to overpower the bandit and plunged the sword in his torso. He then kicked the man hard in the stomach sending him tumbling to the ground next to the other dead bandits that Jillian had fought off.

Jillian looked over at who was calling out to him and turned to see Guinevere running towards him.

“Guine?! What are you doing back here?!”

Guinevere jumped into Jillian’s arms and weeped.

[oh thank the gods he’s alive]

“They’re dead Jillian.” Guinevere sobbed. “My parents, your parents they’re all dead.”

historical

Jillian dropped his sword to the ground and hugged the girl. “I know.” He responded blankly.

Guinevere could smell the blood on his clothes but she didn’t mind, in that moment, all she wanted to do was to be in his arms. He was the only person she had left in this world.

Jillian gently stroked the girl’s hair, doing his best to hold back his own tears. His parents, his brothers, they were all gone. All he had left, was Guinevere. And he would protect her with his life.

And just then, like a jinx, Jillian saw the man he had been fighting before pull out a bow and an arrow and launched the arrow towards Guinevere.

Instinctively, the boy turned Guinevere away and sheltered her with his body.

Startled, the redhead looked up at Jillian in confusion.

“What happened?!”

Jillian coughed and blood spewed from his mouth. Guinevere screamed as she felt his body become limp in her arms.

“Jillian noooooo!” The blue eyed girl screamed when she noticed the arrow plunged in his back.

[No! This can’t be happening]

The girl lowered Jillian to the ground and embraced him, her wails echoing into the night.

“Guine...”

Guinevere looked up at Jillian’s face, it broke her heart to see those deep brown eyes loosing color, that handsome face becoming more and more pale with each passing second.

“Jillian..”

The boy grazed the redhead’s cheek with his fingers and smiled weakly. “I’m glad that I got to spend the rest of my life with you.”

His voice was now nothing but a whisper.

“No don’t talk like that!” Guinevere cried. “Please don’t leave me Jillian, please!”

“I love you Guinevere Strongbow, and I always will.” The boy spoke weakly.

Jillian’s body went completely limp, his smile faded and his beautiful deep brown eyes closed.

Guinevere grabbed Jillian’s hand as it slipped off her face. “No Jillian! Don’t leave me!”

The girl lay her head on his chest, her tears drenching his shirt. “Please...” the girl stammered, “...I love you.”

Guinevere spent a good two minutes holding on to Jillian crying her eyes out, first her family, and now the man she loved. Why did the gods hate her so much? Why was she going through so much suffering?

Then, Guinevere suddenly stopped crying, she lifted her face and wiped the tears from her eyes. The girl took out a dagger from Jillian’s belt, stood up and walked towards the bandit who had shot the arrow.

The man tried to drag himself away as he saw the girl approach him but he was too weak. He too had lost a lot of blood from the wound Jillian had inflicted on him earlier with his sword.

“Please.. spare me.” The man begged

Guinevere crouched down and placed the dagger on the man’s neck. Her eyes were as cold as ice and her expression blank.

“Please....”

SLASH!!

The man’s body fell to the ground with a thud. Guinevere wiped the blood on the blade with the man’s shirt and walked back to where Jillian’s body lay.

She got down to her knees and moved the hair from his forehead, oh how handsome he was.

The girl leaned down and gave him a soft kiss. “Goodbye Jillian.”

She then brought the knife to her own throat. “This life isn’t worth living without you, I have lost everything and everyone I care about. It’s all pointless now.”

SLASH!!

With the last of her strength, Guinevere lay her body on Jillian’s and hugged him. She felt darkness encase her mind as her life force drifted away. She silently prayed that wherever it was death was taking her, it would be where Jillian was.

*

A maid rushed through the doors and curtsied at the man sitting on a well decorated chair.

“My lord.” The woman spoke. “My lady has had a successful delivery, it’s a girl.”