Fix You

The dense forest was covered in a thick, cold swirl of mist. No sound was heard except for the ragged breathing of Aspen as he ran through the forest. He was tall. Taller than any human child his age. His dark hair framed his unnaturally pale blue eyes as he raced through the forest in search of the one thing that mattered. He stopped abruptly at a small clearing, peering through the growth, trying to spot any hint of life. His pale skin appeared to glow from the pale blue light given off by the moon flowers. This was a piece of paradise untouched by man, but not for long.

Where is she? he thought. He closed his eyes, and focused on his sense of sound. He heard the sound of soft crying coming from a few yards to his right. He shot through the trees and various plants, stopping only when he found what he was looking for.
The girl was doll like in appearance, seemingly harmless at first glance. Her long, dark hair fell in curls past her shoulders. Unnaturally bright hazel eyes looked up as he approached, glowing along with her pale skin. They stared at each other for endless minutes.

“It’s my fault,” she said, her voice sounding like a gentle breeze. Aspen knelt down beside her, gently placing his hand on her shoulder as a sign of comfort.

“I wished such awful things to befall them,” she continued, not meeting Aspen’s eyes. He shook his head.

“You tried your best to save them Rain,” he said quietly. She looked at him sharply, anger written all over her face.

“I didn’t succeed though. I got what I wanted, but was it what I needed? And now we are the only two left. The humans will destroy what is left, killing us like they did our family,” she said bitterly. Silence fell over the forest once again.

“I’m so tired Aspen. So very tired. I can’t remember the last time I slept,” she said thoughtfully, tears still streaming down her face.

“It’s been a long time,” he said.

“Once we’re gone, our kind will cease to exist, and then the world will slowly die, leaving the humans with nothing,” she recited, no hint of emotion in her voice or on her face.

“That is the price for killing the nature spirits,” he finished.

Long ago, this same disaster occurred, nearly leaving the Earth for dead. Nature spirits were being killed off by a new force placed in their world. They called them humans, which means “dark ones” in their native language. The humans came, taking everything for themselves, and leaving nothing in return for Mother Nature, eventually forcing the spirits into another realm where they watched over the place they once called home. Now, the humans were back, even more thirsty with greed than they were before. They left nothing in their wake, and destroyed anything they could touch. The spirits precious mother was the first to perish, leaving her children to fend for themselves. There were, in a rarity, a few humans who restored what they and their brethren destroyed. Nothing, though, could save these two from their inevitable fate which would soon come.

A soft glow appeared, and the two nature spirits looked up to see the fireflies swirling, as if beckoning to them.

“We should follow,” said Rain quietly. Aspen nodded in agreement, and stood up along with his partner. They followed the little creatures through the very depths of there home until they came upon the vacant village they once called home. It had long since been deserted. Only the faint memory of their loved ones kept it from looking dead. Homes could be seen high above in the branches, and down below in the ravine. The silent, vain hope that there loved ones would walk out of one of the huts, brought tears to both of their eyes.

“I’m so lonely,” whispered Rain. Aspen took her hand in his, and gently squeezed it, not letting it go after.

“I love you,” he told her. She looked at him, a faint smile settled on her lips.

“I love you too,” she said, “I’ve learned from my mistakes. I’m broken, but I will fight until my last breath to see this world live.”

“And in the meantime, I will try and fix you. Until my last breath,” he told her, never looking away. The fireflies glow faded as one by one, they each drifted off into oblivion. No one knew what was on the other side of death for spirits, but one would like to hope that it was peaceful. A breeze floated by the last two spirits, delivering a whispered warning to them.

“They are coming,” breathed Rain, letting out a shaky breath. Aspen brought her over, holding her in his arms.

“Then we will meet them together,” he said, putting on his bravest face. The last two nature spirits in existence turned to meet the earthly glow of human fire.