Two days go by without me seeing Amelia. It worries me, but I do not know why. Winter clouds finally make way for a blue sky, but before I become relieved, I realise that I am now the one with the dark and cold clouds around me. After a while, I rest myself on a bench under the trees, hiding away from the sun, which does not even shine that bright. I can feel her, Amelia, creeping to sit beside me while staring at me. I dare to try to look at her, though.

“I have been trying to process all that I saw and heard,” she say with a shaking voice.

“You did not tell anybody, did you?” I ask, trying to hold my state.

“That does not matter, what was all that about,” she responds. “And tell who? How do you even begin to tell someone something like this? Kellin, you have turned pale, you are less visible during the day, and you have disconnected from everyone more than before.” She then pauses for a minute, and I can still feel her eyes running on my face. “Kellin, I know the anger you have towards being here, we all have it, just be grateful we are taken care of.”

After speaking, she runs her hands on mine. My blood boils when she touches me, so I rapidly remove the hand.

“Grateful? For being locked up in here? I do not think so,” I respond.

“So, is it better for you destroy the world and everyone in it?” she asks.

“Why do you care about what I do?” I respond.

She pauses and looks in the core of my eyes. “I have cared about you for a long time, Kellin, and I will not stop now,” she finally says. “I can understand the pain, but this?”

Her words cut through my heart, and it bleeds regret. After a while, I calmly find the bravery to look at her. “I dearly appreciate that,” I say. “Do you see that I am not destroying anything, you can say I am remodelling the world, you will see,” I add.

“Is being a bad guy a role you want to play in this limited life, huh?” she asks, and as the tears run down her cheeks, I can sense sadness inside of her.

“Sometimes the universe does not need a hero to save it, Amelia. I …” I respond, but she cuts my words short.

“But a monster is better?” she asks.

“I am not a monster,” I respond. “Rather say I am trying alternative ways of doing things.”

“That is the same thing,” she says. “I know you have good intentions, but you are doing this all wrong!”

“So what? What is your best solution, love and forgiveness?” I ask, fuming.

“Look at me Kellin, what do you see?” she responds.

I realise that I cannot respond because what I see is more than I can bear. She then runs her soft hand on my face, and then our lips meet. I cannot display the image of my heart beating faster than a stampede of rhinos to her. My blood rushes so fast in my veins, I cannot hold my structure anymore, so I quickly move away from her.

“This is simple, look into both your head and your heart and see which conquers,” she says, leaving me confused. “And know that I am here to walk this journey with you, and I am not going anywhere.”

While we are talking, a man appears from the shadow of a tree. “Do not let her blind you, Kellin,” he says. “She will lead you astray from your destiny to save this world from misery. I need you to focus.”

**********

All that happened 10 years ago, and I never paid much attention to what Amelia said. The shadows have blinded me, which was all my fault, but she never left my side.

Today, the ‘saving of the world’ is not how I wanted it to be. Death is an everyday process, and humans live only to shed blood amongst each other. Misery covers the birth, livelihood, and death of a soul. Humans have locked peace inside the vaults of the darkest days. The Shadow Walkers released a plague of human discord, and it is now not the remodelling of the world, but the end of the world. We are only living for survival.

The end of all of this can only come from the end of a sacrifice, me, but I am not prepared for that because I now live only to protect my love, Amelia. The plague does not affect me because I have become a Shadow Walker, but at least I have a reason to live, Amelia.

“This has to end, Kellin,” Amelia says, laying on my lap.

While she is speaking, her tears turn my pants soaking wet. I wish I could tell her it will all be okay, and I wish I could tell her that this is all a dream, that I will make it all vanish, but I cannot do it because I am the cause of its existence.

“I really wish I can turn back the hands of time, maybe all this would not have happened,” I finally say, holding my tears back from escaping.

Before responding, she raises her head to look at me and tightens her grip on my hand. “But if you did, I would not be here, in your arms. Our love kept us united, hasn’t it?” she finally responds, smiling.

After so many years, many things have changed, but Amelia never did. Her smile always keeps my adrenaline rushing, and her blue eyes remind me of the sky of bright hope. “You will never give up on the power of love, will you?” I say, holding her tightly and wrapping my arms around her.

“It has gotten us this far,” she respond, laughing.

Tell us: Do you think Amelia will be able to survive the plague?