[url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/246624086/0/0]Table of Contents[/url] The air split as a violent barrage of bullets was unleashed all at once, hitting Natalia’s gunmen like a violent wave. Alexander gasped as metal tore through his armor and his flesh. He felt each impact, every shot of excruciating pain. His shoulder, his stomach, his leg, his stomach again, his arm. He lost all control of his body as he fell forward. He crashed down into the snow, mere feet from the line of invaders, sending up a spray of crystalline dust. The snow seeped between the openings in his armor to chill his skin, but he didn’t notice. Pain burned through him, eating away at his soul. His body thrashed weakly, recoiling from the shock of the bullets. He tried to roll onto his side, but his limbs refused to obey. After a moment he grew still. Such agony… Control slowly came back to him and he gritted his teeth, biting through his tongue and filling his mouth with the metallic taste of blood. The red liquid quickly began to leak between his lips, and he choked it out, staining the snow. A sudden clarity washed over Alexander, allowing him to think. His body was still aching horribly, and he could see nothing with his face pressed in the snow. He remembered the enemy was right in front of him. He needed his gun. The fire in his arms grew hotter as he shifted them in front of him. Doing his best to ignore it, he tried pushing himself up. “AAAGH!” He screamed as the wrath of the wounds in his shoulder and stomach doubled. He quickly abandoned his attempts to move. Someone else cried out, too, but Alexander couldn’t see anything through the white powder in his eyes. Then another began sobbing loudly. Seemingly encouraged by the sounds, another hollered, “HELP! HEL-!” A single gunshot silenced the man. Fear ran down Alexander’s spine as the field grew quiet. He didn’t dare to move. “Hamin, with me!” A man barked. Alexander could hear well enough to know it came from the enemy line. Whoever had spoken wasn’t far. Questioning voices rose up, but the man shushed them aggressively. A boot crunched in the snow, then another. They were coming. Alexander wanted to howl, feeling like a rabid dog about to be put down. He was helpless. How had this happened? Natalia had been so sure! They couldn’t have lost. She must have had a plan. Alexander cursed himself. If he’d known Natalia’s plan, they could have won. The pain in his stomach cut through him like a serrated blade, but he resisted the urge to move. His silent agony was unbearable. Why had Natalia fainted then?! Why couldn’t she have led them to victory?! Why had he been so stupid?! Life was cruel like that. The footsteps were on either side of Alexander. Not too close, but close enough. The retort of a rifle from one side. Then from the other. Then another. They were shooting the bodies. Alexander had doomed himself. A man cried out, desperately pleading to the enemy, “NO NO! I surrender! Don’t-“ The next gunshot silenced him. Realization pierced through Alexander’s mind. No, he thought to himself. He hadn’t doomed himself. It was Natalia’s plan. He nearly burst into another coughing fit as he sucked in a sharp breath. THIS [i]WAS[/i] NATALIA’S PLAN. Only that idiot Hayden had seen through it. It was suicide, he had said. It was suicide! Suicide! That was her plan! That [i]must[/i] have been it! Alexander’s fingers twitched and curled. In his mind there was no doubt that he was right. He had discovered his queen’s true nature. She had betrayed him, just like every other person in this wretched world. He was an idiot! Natalia had killed him! This was the plan! This was her victory! Had she even fainted? Was it all an act to get rid of Alexander? Natalia and Hayden had put on that big show to deceive him! A new fire burned in Alexander’s body, nearly drowning out the pain of his wounds. Hate mixed with despair and bitterness. She had betrayed him. In a fit of rage, Alexander snapped his good arm out. The footsteps paused, “That one!” In the back of his mind, Alexander knew he only had a few seconds. But he didn’t care. The red of his fury had blinded him more than the white of the snow. Life had done it again. It had lifted him up then sent him crashing back down. And this would be the last time. Snow crunched as one of the gunmen moved closer, then stopped to carefully take aim. Alexander made one last attempt to move, fighting the terrible pain. He turned his head to get his face out of the white powder, and opened his mouth wide. Natalia had led him to his death. And he’d been so stupid that he’d followed her to it. So he would die screaming one last battle cry for her. “VICTORY!” He roared, “FOR QUEEN NA-“