THE ELEMENTAL CHRONICLE

Forty Two |

Forty Two |

            That is the whole point.

            Her words dug into my heart. I know I hadn't been kind to her as of late, but I had not done anything to warrant death. I swallowed the lump in my throat, stumbling back, my back slamming into the door as I stared at her.

            "Explain," I breathed slowly.

            She shook her head, "I don't have to. You'll be dead anyways and I can become Princess' Eliza's friend again! She'll be a queen one day and I will be at her side!"

            "You're delusional," I laughed bitterly, "Absolutely delusional."

            "Says you," she snarled, "An outside who came out of no where but mere months ago. You haven't been here even a full sun cycle and yet you have the princess' completely bewitched. The queen has—"

            "You've spoken to the queen?" I whispered fearfully.

            Her eyes widened, as if she knew she spoke words she should not had.

            "You will let me leave this room or I will call for the guards."

            I laughed again, an ice covering my heart, "And tell them what? You whom is to be in the kitchen is in Princess' Eliza's tower. Not only that but entering a noble's room without permission. How do you think this will turn out?"

            "The queen will protect me!

            I shook my head. She was young, and so ignorant.

"You are her spy and you've been outed. She'll have her killed for this."

Her face paled, tears dripping down her face. She was fearful, and realizing her fate had been sealed. A look of defeat flashed in her eyes before it was taken over by pure anger. She let out a scream, before throwing the vial at me. I let out a gasp, the potion drenching my face.

"I-I'll kill you now then!" she sobbed.

As I turned my head towards her, she lifted something shiny into the air and slammed it into my temple. Thunk. The object was hard and cold. I stumbled forward, my knees giving out. Pain throbbed in my head, and I could feel the warmth of blood trickle onto the floor. I moaned softly, my power felt fuzzy. I couldn't get a proper grasp of it, it was as if the potion had scrambled my control over the abilities under my skin. Fear filled me. I would be elemental-less for my next match, if I was not killed here. I rolled onto my back, lifting my hands to protect myself. She cried as she rose what I now saw to be my candle holder.  

"Stop," I moaned in pain, "I said stop!"

I kicked both my feet forward, slamming it into her stomach. She let out an oof, dropping the brass candle holder and falling backwards. The back of her head knocked off my stone window still and she stilled. I panted hard, my vision wavering as I rolled back onto my stomach, struggling to push myself up before she attacked again.

"I don't understand why," I cried, looking towards her, "We were friends!"

She didn't move, her body leaning against the stone wall, her eyes stuck open. Confusion filled me until I saw the blood staining the stone sill. She was dead. I fell onto my ass, not feeling any pain in my body. I could only stare at my former friend who attempted to take my life.

"We were friends," I said slowly, numbly,  "Until you tried to kill me."

She said nothing back.

"I have the queen's spy in my room dead," I mumbled to myself.

A burst of laughter fell from my lips, and I laughed to myself for a long while. I continued to laugh until at some point it had turned into an endless wail. My vision was blurry as an endless wave of tears fell freely from my face. My throat burned, my voice failing me and slowly, the pain in my head returned. I didn't know what to do now, I did not know how I could survive this situation.

"It is over," I whispered, "If they do not find her body, Emmett will kill me."

Her body.

"Loli is dead," I cried, my throat hurting so terribly, "I've killed Loli."

I could not look at her any longer. I have never taken someone's life and I could not imagine doing so. It was an accident, I did not mean to kill her. I did not want to kill her and yet in any of those cases she is dead.

"I could have saved us," I whispered.

I could have become her friend again. Eliza said the task of the kitchen was simply to remind her of her duty. She was only fourteen sun cycles old and now she'd never see the sun rise again. Instead, it would set over her lifeless body.

"I-I don't know what to do."

Something shifted in the corner of my eye. I dragged my gaze back to Loli's body where something had begun to happen. Her body began to cover in mold—it started at the window sill before climbing down her body. She was being eaten, it was eating her body.

"No, no!" I cried, crawling forward to grab her lifeless arm, "Stop! You can't take her!"

The mold climbed down her arm and I dropped the flesh. Self preservation unconsciously pulsed through my body and I reared away from the scene, bile rising in my throat. I slapped my hand over my mouth as I watched her body decay rapidly to the mold before she was nothing but a pile of bones and then, nothing but a stain of blood on my sill. The vomit surged from my mouth as I splurged it's contents onto my floor. How had her body decay so quickly? It was gone within a minutes time. I moved my hand to my head, finding the blood already dried, the cut painful but not bleeding. My mind went numb and began to move on it's own as I stood. My eyes vacant as I fixed myself in the mirror, I wiped the blood away and placed the candle holder back on my table. It would be time for Ayden's match soon, I'd do my best to support my friend.

I did not look back to the stain as I left the tower.

"Ciara."

I blinked, looking over at Bram. I was sitting within the cavea, Bram sat on one side of me. My brows furrowed as my head ached dully. I hadn't the memory as to how I got here—how did I return to the arena and when had Bram taken to my side with Benjamin? I forced a smile onto my lips.

"Pardon me, what did you say?"

He gave me a strange look, "I said your friend Ayden will be fighting now."

Oh. Yes.

"That's good," I said slowly, "I'm excited for her."

"Is she a good warrior?"

I didn't respond. I wished for her sake she was, but I had never seen her fight so I could not answer. I imagined so, and yet she was soft of heart so I could not be sure. We did not have to wait long however before she entered the battle pit. She walked in as confident as one could be and it surprised me. 

"Will Benjamin be alright?" I asked instead.

It was Bram's turn to get quiet. The air filled will all the answers we didn't know, and all the silent truths we were too scared to admit. I swallowed the lump in my throat, willing myself not to cry. My eyes flickered over to Queen Yarrow and I held back my coiling anger. She was the reason my room was stained with blood, she was the reason the court continues to be stained, and I vowed that one day I'd get my revenge on her smug, stupid smirk.