Yorick:
I moved to separate them, but my father’s arm suddenly locked around my neck and dragged backward, trying to pull away from the fight.
I tore myself free and shoved him aside, then lunged forward again just as my mother threw her full weight onto Mariana, forcing her to the ground beneath her.
And then I saw it.
Blood began to seep between their bodies, and in that instant the struggle stopped as both of them froze, staring at each other in stunned silence.
I rushed forward, grabbed my mother, and dragged her off Mariana before flinging her aside so I could check on her.
Mariana was not bleeding.
When I turned, I saw the dagger buried deep in my mother’s chest.
In that brief mont, I rembered my mother and how I had spent my entire life in her shadow.
I did not understand what I was feeling. Watching her lose her life was not easy. She was my mother.
But was she still my mother after everything she had done to us and to others?
It should not have shocked that she died.
Even as she took her last breaths, I saw the anger in her eyes. She was furious that she had failed to kill Mariana.
My father rushed to her side and knelt beside her while she faded. It did not take long.
She was gone within seconds.
I stood beside Mariana without moving. She had risen to her feet and was watching , tears filling her eyes.
"I did not an to do that," she cried. "I do not know how it happened. The dagger was toward her. When she threw herself at , I did not realize."
She kept speaking, trying to explain, but I pressed my finger gently against her lips to stop her.
"This is what we deserve for what we have done to others," I told her.
The mont I said that, she grabbed my hands and shook her head firmly.
"No, you do not deserve that," she replied. "Do you think you are the sa as your parents?"
"Am I not?" I asked, tears slipping down my face.
"You were controlled by them, Yorick," she answered, refusing to let carry the bla. "I have always known you. I have always heard of you. It is not your fault what happened. You lived and survived an abusive household yourself."
She spoke softly, but there was no doubt in her voice.
She cupped my face and kissed my chin, then pulled into her arms. I held her tightly and buried my face against her shoulder as the truth settled in.
My mother was dead.
And I had lost my brother too.
"Fix our mistakes."
The voice ca from my father.
I broke the hug with Mariana and turned toward him. He was breaking down, yet sohow holding himself together. Beside him lay his son’s dead body, and in his arms he cradled his wife, holding her tightly.
"I did everything wrong just to please your mother," he said. "If I had known this would be the outco, I would have acted differently. But I will not make her the villain. I enjoyed it as much as she did."
This was the first ti he spoke without that hollow undertone.
"I am going to tell you sothing," he continued, his voice soft but heavy with guilt. "Listen carefully. There are black seeds in the bag. You need to feed them to the monsters if you want to get rid of them. They will not die imdiately. You must be wise and find a way to make them consu it. It will take days for their bodies to begin decomposing. Once the North is clear, it will be safe again."
Mariana and I stood there, staring at him as we absorbed his words.
"But how will we do that?" I asked, noticing a low humming sound growing louder in the distance.
My father lifted his head and pointed upward.
"The towers," he said. "They are losing power again. There are no tools, and we do not have the equipnt to restore them."
"So how long will it take for the monsters to die?" I pressed, anxiety tightening my chest.
There was that problem.
And then there was another.
How was I supposed to make every monster feed on the poison?
"For that, you will need to do sothing else," my father uttered.
Mariana and I stepped toward him, but he raised his hand and gestured for us to stay back.
I understood.
He was still grieving. He had not looked at Mariana once. Perhaps he blad her for my mother’s death, even though it was clear my mother had attacked first and Mariana had no choice.
At that point, my mother had been unstoppable.
So had my brother.
"If you break down two of the towers completely and bury the stones," my father continued, his voice unsteady, "one in the dark side of the North and one on this side, then the North will disappear from the mainland for a while."
He paused, closing his eyes and tilting his head back as if the words weighed heavily on him.
The mont he finished, I closed my eyes and drew in a slow breath.
"There is no other way," my father finished, and a faint smile touched his lips.
"While the monsters are dying, you must understand that each of them will take a different amount of ti," he continued. "You will need to survive until the end. Once you are certain the North is clear, you can dig up the stones and it will return to the rest of the world."
He lowered his voice as he reached out and brushed his fingers against my mother’s cheek.
I turned to Mariana, and she gave a small nod.
"It seems we can do that," she whispered softly.
I could see the fear in her eyes.
It would not be easy to bury the stone in the dark side of the north. I had seen the hollow man. It would be close to a suicide mission.
And then there was the poison.
We would have to make sure every monster consud it.
That would be difficult.
But we would do it.
As we stood there, holding each other’s gaze, a sharp gasp escaped Mariana.
She shoved aside and pointed toward my father.
He had driven the dagger into his own chest.
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