The Arena

A spark of hope

‘Dear child!’, whispered Safina. ‘What on earth did you do to receive dis punishment?!’

‘It doesn’t matter!’

Baruing took his sweet time in the dungeon and his thirst for blood was deeper than she thought. After fifteen minutes, she was sent to the healing ward. Fifteen minutes that she knew of, since she passed out after that. She woke up with Safina next to her, healing her.

Safina did her best to heal as much as possible, but it was barely enough. She felt her back as if thousands of needles were being pressed on every inch of her skin. Whenever Safina would focus on a certain portion or her back, she felt a cooling breeze, but the pain would come back as soon as the troll focused on something else. Alera wished she could pass out again.
‘Such a vicious and terrible man…’, whispered Safina, moving her hands near her shoulder blades.

‘I think it was because I didn’t scream’, Alera said half mockingly. ‘Can you fix it?’

‘Aye, child. It's just gonna be painful for you.’

Time passed and the pain subdued after several hours, until she felt nothing. Safina was exhausted, but she did a good job.

‘They said to use this.’, she said, handing her a new shirt. ‘Your old one was...well…’

Alera took it and changed. It was white. She hated white. It reminded her of many things she didn’t want to think about. She hated her hair for the same reason. When she was little, her long hair was a beautiful blonde, like her mother’s. But in her first weeks at the arena, it started to turn to an unnatural white and stayed that way and, as a commodity, she cut it shorter. Now, it didn’t even reach her shoulders.

It was around midnight, when two guards escorted her back to her cell. She sneaked a peak at the man on her left, as he removed a big rusted key from a keychain that hung carelessly at his belt. Evan without weapons and tired, she could have probably beaten them both and grabbed the key. Her freedom and everyone’s hanged from a mere piece of old iron.

But Asendriel was right. She couldn’t risk it. Not now, at the moment. A loud sound broke the silence as the guard turned the key and removed the lock holding the dungeon doors. They squeaked dreadfully, as if louder than before, welcoming her back.

The guards proceeded to her cell and she followed quietly.  To her surprise, the other two blood elves were still awake. First she saw Asendriel. He sat facing her direction, leaning against the common wall between their cells. He had a worried look on his face, and when she got close enough, she spotted Tellor, standing in a similar manner and with a similar look.

The last sound that plunged the dungeon once again into silence was the one made by the guards locking the giant metal doors behind them. 

‘What did he do?’ came Tellor’s voice, only a little above a whisper, but she heard him as if he was next to her.

‘Nothing I wasn’t expecting him to do.’, came her reply.

‘Did he…?’ the blood elf started, but he stopped halfway. He couldn’t put it in words, rather he didn’t want to, fearing her answer.

‘No’, she said calmly. ‘After I started fighting, he didn’t lay a finger on me. Well...at least, not in that manner’.

‘What happened to your shirt?’

This time, Asendriel asked, and Alera couldn’t read all the emotions mixed in such a simple question. She felt concern and anger, fear and uncertainty. And something else.

‘Nothing...my old one was just dirty. They gave me a new one’.

There was no need for them to learn of Baruing’s treatment and she was adamant on keeping it to herself. For a few seconds, there was no reply from the other cell. Not even a noise. But shortly after, soft rustling sounds made their way to her, as the other two lay down to sleep. She did the same and, sliding her arm between her door bars, she met Asendriel’s hand.

Just a small touch was enough to soothe her. They intertwined their fingers and remained silent. She felt something akin to happiness, a small spark in all this dark hell. She was glad she finally saw his face up close. The face of the man who had been ready to die for her. The face of the man she had been ready to die for.

‘I’m sorry…’, said Asendriel softly.

‘I’m not.’ she responded, smiling slightly and squeezing his hand.

And she wasn’t. At least for saving his life. Looking back, it was a small price to pay. However the battle that awaited them was another different story.

‘Besides, it is not over yet. Baruing wasn't happy with my plan so I had to come up with something else.’

The other two were quiet.

‘There will be a battle royale. Us three versus the other fighters.’

‘Did Baruing agree to this?’, asked Tellor.

‘Not only that, but he seemed to like the idea.’

She squeezed Asendriel’s hand.

‘I'm the one that needs to apologise...I may have doomed us all…’

‘On the contrary...you provided us with a chance to get a key!’.
Whatever plan Asendriel had in his mind left her clueless. She felt her small and shy spark of happiness fading at an alarming speed, being replaced with terrible thoughts of death. Her death and their deaths, at the hands of some unknown prisoner that was struck by luck in a big battle.

‘Think about it! With so many prisoners out, there are bound to be more guards standing watch’, Asendriel said enthusiastically while getting up.

Alera and Tellor remained silent. What Asendriel was suggesting was extremely close to insanity.

‘If we create a big enough comotion, the guards may need to intervene and we can try to steal a key!’

Tellor couldn’t keep quiet anymore and said in high whisper:

‘Are you mad?! Are you suggesting we try to steal a key from a guard under all those eyes?’

He didn’t give Asendriel any chance to reply and continued:

‘Everyone will be there and could realise what we’re doing...the other prisoners or the other guards, all the viewers! Baruing! We don’t stand a chance!’

Alera couldn’t help but to agree with him. It was madness. On the other hand, who would expect this?

‘If you can create a diversion, I think I can steal a key’, she said calmly.

‘No, I will do it. You’re already under his watch after today’s match.’, Asendriel responded in a manner that didn’t leave room for any other debates.

Silence filled the cells once again, but this time Asendriel was the one to break it.

‘We don’t have much time and we will not get a better chance than this. I need you two along on this.’

‘Under one condition’, added Tellor caving in eventually. ‘Do not risk it, if it’s not possible. You need to promise us that, if it’s too dangerous, you will back down.’

If she hadn’t known from before, taking Tellor’s strict tone into consideration and the lack of reaction from Asendriel’s part, it was as if their roles were exchanged. Tellor sounded more like a general than the general himself.

‘Agree’, she said before Asendriel could respond. ‘Remember our talk from after the match.’

Asendriel seemed to laugh softly at her reply, but said in a low whisper.

‘I promise.’

They laid down on the stone floor again, trying to catch at least one or two hours of sleep before the morning came. No one said anything else, but Alera squeezed Asendriel’s hand as hard as she could.