Darkness Before the Dawn: A Zoethian Fanfic :Ch 4

"Where are we going, Rythian?" I ask him.
"Somewhere special. Somewhere fun. Believe me. It'll be quick, we'll be home in no time. You just need to see this." He looks a little uneasy, but I'm sure it's just the threat of the Nuke.
"Close your eyes, Zoey. Put on this blindfold."
I do.
"Almost there. Just another minute. Hold on."
I hear an iron door shut, and he says "I'm sorry. I am so sorry. But I couldn't risk it."
I take off the blindfold, and I find that I am in a blast-proof prison. His Red Matter armor is on the floor.
"There wasn't enough time to make a new set, so I'm giving you mine. Put it on. It'll protect you if the blast reaches here."
It seems like he expects the Nuke to explode.
Turning around to look at me one more time, he says "This is what I have to do."
And he adds, " Don't come looking for me."
I try to break the glass, but without any weapons, it is impossible. "Take the Life Stone!" I yell. The one he gave me.
"Rythian!" I scream. "What are you doing? No. NO! COME BACK!
I scream until I lose my voice.
He walks away without a second glance.

And then, the dream switches. To Rythian.
Like a ghost, I watch over him. But he can't see me. It's like he's talking to himself.
"Zoey. I never told you. And I guess you'll never know.
But, I love you. And I would not let you risk yourself for the safety of Blackrock.
I've known from the start, that we couldn't diffuse the Nuke. Someone would die.
I am sacrificing myself for you."

And with that, he cuts the wire. The wrong one.
Those three words echo through my head.
"I love you."

I am in the jail again, where Tee finds me, and frees me.
"We need to find Rythian." I whisper.
He nods.
We hurry back to Blackrock. Or at least where it used to be.
It is too late.

Rythian isn't in the smoking ashes. He didn't take the Life Stone.
He is face-down in the lake.
Dead.

I jolt from my bed, screaming.
"Zoey! What's wrong? Are you OK? Don't worry, I'm here."
Breathing heavily, I tell him," I'm fine. Just a nightmare."
"We don't have to go there. We can always go back to Base Camp."
"No, we would have wasted all that time on nothing. I can handle it."

An hour later, we reach the gaping hole we used to call home.