Beginning of the End

The Battle for the Crown

Lana POV

"Bring it on!" Zianna challenges.

I wave my hand and Celisse runs into the arena, weapon readied in her hand. Taking the first move, I strike to Zianna's left, parrying blow after blow until I make one fatal mistake. Missing a parry, Zianna takes advantage and grabs my head, holding me at her level. She puts her blade at the base of my neck and threatens to dig deeper if I do not give up the crown. I look her in the eye and stare her down.

"This is mine by right. I am never going to let you have your dirty little hands all over it!" I  snarl through clenched teeth.

"Okay, you will not let me have it?" She digs the blade deeper into my neck, piercing the first layer of skin. Blood drips onto the floor. "I guess I will have to do this the hard way."

Icy diamonds fly in every direction, knocking Zianna down. For once in my life, I actually have an ally who has come to my aid. I came here looking for help, but instead am welcomed with an angry princess and rowdy arena crowd. Celisse stands beside me, wearing the biggest smirk, her face lit up like the morning sun back home. A diamond of ice wedged in her side, Zianna pries herself off the ground, tears staining her eyes and face. She looks very much like her mother, Zarya. Red locks cover much of her back  and hides her eyes partially from the world. The girl is beautiful in her own way, with her slightly reddish orbs for eyes, radiant skin and cocky smile. Her dress is something else though. Tattered red robes cloak her stunning body, showing off her long legs. It is low in the front, sliding over her shoulders and cascading like a waterfall down her arms and torso.

"Not so fast traitor!" yells Zianna as she steadies herself and readies a weapon. Celisse shoots again, but this time, Zianna is ready for it. She suddenly turns all dark and evil like before and shields herself with a spell. The ice bounces back at my friend, but she easily dodges and takes out her sword. It is a simple, two-handed Scottish claymore with an elegant hilt carved by my mother. Though I am fascinated by her use of my weapon, I happen to take notice of a clear fluid dripping from the tip of the blade. I laugh, even though it hurts my neck. She plans to poison the princess! Only the daughter of Edilya's only two alchemists would think of a devious idea like that.

I watch the battle go on from afar, fairly even so far. Even until Zianna's father, King Maninae comes into the main level and yells something at the two girls.

"Enough! Guards, take them to the dungeons and do not let them out, I repeat, never let them out until the time is right."

Guards grab Celisse and Zianna, yanking their arms behind their backs and binding them with a strong rope. Both weapons drop to the floor and I hang my head and sink to the ground crying. They just separated me from my best friend who has been by my side through it all; good and bad. Now she is gone, in an enemy prison cell. I hear the clink of chains and I look up only to be bound and chained myself and led away by the King and two of his guards. At least they still have the decency to keep Celisse and I together, with none of us sustaining any major injuries during the fight. I look down at my hands and realize that Zianna still has my crown. Either that or the guards have it, in which case it will go to the High Queen, Zarya. Better Zianna than her mother I think. I am dropped in a cell and the door is locked with the key which the guards unfortunately walk away with.

"I am truly sorry Lana. I had no idea the crown meant so much to you." a voice whispers in the dark. I take it to be coming from my left, so looking over that way, I see none other than Zianna. She sounds far too empathetic to be the daughter of a woman as mean as Zarya. The sadness in her voice is evident, seeming genuinely sorry, so I sit up and turn to face her.

"People like you would have no idea of the goings- on outside your walls. It is okay to admit that you did not know. At least you care about people other than yourself, unlike most of the city." I say understandingly.

"Traitor! How could you speak to the enemy when just minutes ago we were fighting." says Celisse out of nowhere. With my head in my hands, I stare into the blackness and wonder why I always seem to become friends with the most intrusive and stubborn people. Sometimes a little conversation is not the end of the world. it was not like I was magically going to side with her parents, agree with the Toran principles or any other crazy tricks. I would not even consider her to be my friend, just somebody to help me pass the time.

"Let your guard sown for once Celisse. All I need is a conversation to keep us all alive down here in this stinkhole." I say, smiling, but I do not know if she sees it in the dark.

"Lana could you possibly explain to me why my body is covered in black veins. I mean, I knew my mother has them, but I thought I am still too young for those." Zianna says quietly, pointing at her veins on her legs.

"You think they appear with age, hah?" Celisse laughs. I know that little girl is up to no good and it will come back to haunt her later I have a feeling. "The veins appear with the increased desire to do evil; which is why your parents got them before you did."

"So somebody must have poisoned my mind into doing evil things. You know it could have been that guard who tortured me before the arena. HE had plenty of opportunities to get me." says Zianna, drawing her conclusions.

Celisse is sitting in a corner of her cell, laughing to herself. She knows very well what she has done. The only thing is, the rest of the arena does not know a thing because it happened when the guards grabbed and bound the two of them. The swords clashed to the ground, but Celisse's hit Zianna's leg on the way down, letting the poison seep into her bloodstream. A good idea, yes, but the wrong poison was used. Now the enemy we want tamed, is getting all the more wild with every second that passes. If Celisse really wanted to do harm, just use a death poison. As the alchemist's daughter, she would have had access to everything from back home. Celisse should be afraid. Even as her parents' opposition, Zianna has been a force to be reckoned with. Now she has become all the more dangerous, a threat to civilization even.