#nilesweek

It happened so fast.

Tears stung his cold flesh; something that he hadn't felt in a long, long time. All that mattered to him was you; your smile, your touch, your kindness, your warmth.... you.

He had been tasked with protecting you from them. Protecting you from her. He had been by your side since you had started the raid on the realm of the dead, helping out in your exclusive team of 4; handpicked by you to perform special tasks and attacks. And to protect you.

Now they lay dead. His comrades-at-arms, dead on the black soil.

And he had failed.

"It's not your fault."  You told him. "I love you.”

But he saw the crystal tears that fell to the dry earth. He could hear the fear in your voice.

And for the first time in years, he was scared too.

Hel had you in her grasp. Her hand on your shoulder, holding you still; paralyzed with fear. Her scythe hovered beside your head, threatening your very life. And all he could do was stand there. Hel was doing this to him on purpose; torturing him one last time. Taking one more person from him. Taking the one person he loved the most away from him; the one person he would die for.

"Please! Take me! Just leave her alone!" He cried. Desperate.

"You will pay for your crimes, Niles. You will pay for what you have done; what you will do."

"Niles- it's ok. I love you."

It was hard to see him like this. You had seen him cry before from his nightmares, but this was different. There was hopelessness in his eye; and you could see his heart being ripped in half. And you could do nothing. You had to stand there and watch as he cried for you- the man who had lost everything and had still been strong, crying for you; begging the queen to spare your life and take him instead.

He sobbed. You closed your eyes, not wishing to see the pain on his face anymore.

You felt a rush of air hit you like a train.

The castle was silent that night. Nobody dared to speak. The occasional sob broke the silence; some heroes getting up from their place at the mess hall tables and running off to be alone.

There were heavy losses that night. Excluding the beloved Askran princess and tactician. Many heroes had lost their siblings, friends, or significant others. Others had sustained serious- almost fatal injuries. Niles himself wore a bandage around his head; covering the long lost eye that had once again been reopened by battle.

The outlaw sat across from Alfonse at the table. Their faces downcast and broken.

The sound of footsteps on the cold stone of the castle floor grew closer to the two; and Niles looked up to see a group of healers; staves in their hands.

"Niles... there's something you have to see." Lucius spoke; his voice low, but gentle.

He looked down at his hands.

"Can't it wait?"

Their silence was his answer. And with an intake of breath, he stood up and followed them. The sound of their shoes pounding against the marble was the only thing you could hear; despite the numerous amount of soldiers and heroes littering the floor, tired and broken.

They got to the medical bay, the doors wide open and welcoming any soldier who had been hurt in the battle.

He looked around. Some heroes were crying beside the bodies of their loved ones, others crying from pain themselves. He had been here earlier; his eye being healed and bandaged up.

His deep ocean blue orb looked up from the broken heroes, and towards the door the group of healers had brought him to. They turned around, stopping before they entered the room. An Askran nurse spoke to him.

"It took our best healers and our strongest staves, but.... there's something we want to show you."

He remained quiet, following the nurse into the dark room. The rest of the healers staying behind.

No candles illuminated the room; but instead, the moonlight shone upon a small bed, where a small child slept quietly. A newborn.

The outlaw paused. Why had they brought him here? Why was he being shown this?

The nurse turned to him once more, an indescribable look on her face.

"The summoner... asked us to hide it. She requested that we use our magic so nobody could tell that... she was pregnant."

His heart stopped. This child...

"For the past two hours, we tried our best to save the child. The magic that hid the child... saved her in the end. Her vitals are stable, now. She'll be alright."

"She..." He mumbled to himself, his downcast look brightened by shock. "She's your child, Niles."

His mouth went dry, he couldn't swallow. His chest felt heavy. His child... He walked towards the baby, wrapped in a navy blue blanket. She was beautiful... she looked just like the summoner. Like you.

"The summoner was smart. She wouldn't let me tell anybody else; nor did she herself speak of it to anyone. If Queen Hel had found out about the child... she surely would have taken her too."

"You mean..."

"The summoner knew her life would be taken."

He felt the tears well up in his eye; his vision blurring as he tried to blink it away. But a salty drop escaped his grasp, the blanket of the newborn child soaking it up as it landed.

The smallest miracle had been born that night. The night of the most gruesomest battle he had ever seen. His love had been taken from him, wretched from his grasp... but had not completely left this world. Before him slept the product of their love; the result of her care and the pain of her death.

And at that moment, he swore to not only himself, but the child and her mother, that he would stay with her, and spend every waking moment taking care of her.