The Mariposa

Chapter 25

Maeve

Tears were streaming down my eyes as chaos went on around me. The guards that had escaped were fighting to detain the Veralians. Turning my rage on them, I shot up, sending rapid fire bullets at guards. Kalon joined me but Elyas was lost in the chaos. We stopped enough guards that the rest back down, hightailing to the castle most likely. All that was left was a raging fire and a bunch of desperate people looking us three in the eyes.

A single Veralian stepped forward, set apart from the rest, he was not skin and bones. He had the body of a warrior, if only a little war torn. He stood taller than even Elyas, and his presence was just as regal and intimidating.

When he spoke, his voice boomed:

"What is this and who are you? That was hell, but it was our home and you have left us with nothing."

I clenched my fists, stepping forward. "I am a Veralian by birth. My mother was Veralian, my father unknown. I have come to set you free, and to request your aid in my mission to overthrow Arcelia."

The man scoffed. "We have no interest in Arcelia and if you were Veralian, you wouldn't either."

I tilted my head, unfazed. "You have no interest in Arcelia, yet for a lifetime you've been a slave that the kingdom rides on the back of. Wouldn't you rather take charge of it if that is your only two options?"

He glared at me, along with several others, not too fond of my comeback. "You haven't exactly left us an option, Veralian."

I shrugged. "Of course. I have. You could always wait here like sitting ducks for the guards to come back with reinforcements. I'm sure with your help you'll get that factory rebuilt in no time and be right back to work. The choice is completely yours."

The Veralian finally considered my words, exchanging glances and hushed words with everyone else.

"What do you want, Veralian?" He finally asked, squaring his shoulders.

I crossed my arms, assessing them. They didn't look fit to be warriors. But an assassin's strength never relied solely on their physical prowess. Their apparent weakness would be our tool.

"An army," I said, answering his question.

***

Elyas

I watched Maeve speak with awe and admiration. Her presence rivaled some of those I knew who had been taught their whole life how to speak in front of a crowd. I was wondering if she had any idea how good a leader she'd make and how she picked it up so naturally when suddenly bullets rained from above us.

I jumped away, looking up. The familiar assassins were flying towards us at alarming speeds.

"Time to fight, Veralians!" Maeve shouted, taking off towards the sky without hesitation. I clenched my jaw, following after along with several others.

An assassin caught me by a grapple and I quickly cut the rope with my dagger, before aiming my wrist. My eyes widened as I looked at my wrist gun. There was a bunch of levers and buttons and I only knew for sure what one did.

Shrugging, I flipped a lever. A homing missile came out, materializing like magic, sending me back in the air. The assassin took off in a panic but not quick enough. It caught its target, sending the assassin down.

I gaped in awe when a dagger flew by my face. I narrowly dodged it, looking in the direction it came from. I spun towards the female assassin, darting left and right to dodge the daggers she shot at me. Pressing a button, a grappling shot out from my wrist, grabbing the assassin and pulling me to her. My eyes widened but the assassin swiftly stabbed my stomach.

Arching in pain, I gasped for air. The assassin pulled the dagger to inflict another wound when she was suddenly kicked forcefully away from me.

Kalon shot her own grappling at the woman, then swung her, sending the assassin flying through the clouds. Still in desperate pain, I felt my flight start to suffer to stay up as it got harder to hold my wings. I lowered slowly in the sky and Kalon caught me, pulling me back up.

She looked down at the wound and shook her head. "Shake it off, loser. It's nothing serious, but you need to stay in the air and keep fighting."

I nodded weakly, a little embarrassed. She let me go and went back to fighting and I scanned the clouds. All out battle filled the sky as Mariposa fought Veralians. Veralians were falling left and right, but we weren't without several wins.

The Mariposas would win this battle, but not without a hefty cost.

I flew away from the middle of it all, deciding it was better if I stayed at a range while I learned my weapon. I clicked buttons, flipped levers, until I found the one I was looking for. Aiming, I fired dagger after dagger at the assassins. I moved through the clouds as I did, careful not to give up my location.

I spotted Maeve in an intense hand to hand battle with an assassin. I watched with trepidation, my gun ready if things went awry. The two were ridiculously evenly matched, meeting each other over and over with their attacks. It seemed like they could fight forever, and I knew it was likely the assassin was hoping to tire her out and vice versa.

Maeve was the first one to falter, her movements becoming more sluggish and rushed. My heart lurched when the assassin gashed her head. I sent a dagger through the middle of them, drawing the assassin's attention away, to me.

Maeve immediately took that opportunity to stab the assassin through the heart.

Only when the assassin fell to their death did she look my way. She simply nodded, but I could see a veiled gratefulness in her eyes. We continued to fight into the early morning. Maeve finally yelled to retreat and the Mariposa left, their numbers having taken a hit.

Ours, however, were completely cut in half.