Call Out My Name

I Will Still Rise

It hadn't come as a total surprise that they would be forced into a fight any time now; it had come as a surprise that it had been so soon and in the palace of all places. It meant that the Ravkan army has failed to keep the enemy at bay at the borders. It also came as a surprise to Nikolai that the Fjerdans have acquired flyers and attacked them from the skies.

The soldiers were storming the palace, firing their guns, throwing their bombs. Chaos ensued. Nikolai had made a plan to go about, should the case ever occur that they were under siege in their own comfort, but it was not entirely fleshed out.

Thus, they were a bit panicked and disorganized in their formation. The only good thing about it was that Nikolai told them to be in uniform and equipped at all times, which had proven helpful and a smart choice.

As they ran through hallways and rooms, trying to avoid soldiers and Grisha on jurda parem, Alina got to see the real battle and the real ugliness of the reality she was currently living.

In her last battle, she had been kept safe and sound until it was time for her to face the Darkling, but now she was in the middle of it, soldiers, Grisha, everyone against everyone. Of course, Vladim tried to keep close to her to protect her, but she had told him it was better if they didn't stay together. He was too obvious in his actions, and he would have brought more attention to her than she herself had she been dressed in her old kefta.

So much was happening in such short notice it took her a while to separate the enemy from an ally. It was harder when she could only fight in close range and not use her Grisha powers. They really came in handy, but now she was forced to use guns and her bare hands.

She saw one of the Fjeradan behind Genya, and she shot him in the head.

"Run!" She shouted at her.

"But-"

"Run, Genya!" She screamed at her. "I can do more damage with a gun than you can with your Grisha powers," she held up her rifle in indication. "Now, go!" Genya was supposed to heal any injured soldiers as fast as she could and bring them to safety. If their healers were injured or dead, Ravka would lose the war in a second. It was important to keep their healers safe.

She fired a few more shots to clear Genya's path while she was looking for Mal.

She got lucky when a bullet flew directly over her and hit her Ushanka and not her head. The Ushanka flew to the ground, and her braided hair spilled down her shoulders. She had tucked it in as not to get any attention, just in case.

Alina made a sound of surprise and ducked behind one of the still-standing pillars; if Nikolai survived this fight, he was going to start another war just because of the interior damages the palace had suffered.

She heard voices, unfamiliar language, and then suddenly someone pulled her from behind. Her rifle was out of her hands, and she was forced down her knees. Someone was twisting one of her arms behind her back while pulling her hair so that her movements were completely blocked.

As her head was being pulled back, she could see the big Fjerdan soldier above her, who was just about to kill her, when Alina saw the realization in his eyes. Alina didn't understand what he said, but she was sure it was the sort of "This witch is still alive."

She heard Nikolai shout her name, and as she heard more people approaching, the soldier behind her fell down, dead.

Nikolai stopped in his tracks and looked around and then at Alina, who was crouching over herself. He saw her pull a revolver from her jacket.