The Four Horsemen

Chapter 31

She twisted the end of her braid around her finger. Morana bit her lip and tapped her foot. She was full of nervous energy. She waited in from of a set of iron doors. The glanced to her left, staring at the other Horsemen. Their faces were stoic. Morana would have thought none of them were worried if it weren't for their eyes. They too were glancing around. Morana looked back at the doors. Beyond them was the arena, where she would spend the next hours hunting down the other Champions. She would end the Games. She had to.

She lost track of how long they had been standing there for. Morana just wanted to get it done and over with. She wondered what this year's arena would look like. They had to have gone all out this year with it being the 75th Games. It also happened to be the smallest Games, with only four teams of Champions. It should take no time in eliminating the other Champions. She had taken on double the amount before.

"Champions," a disembodied voice rang through the stone chamber, "welcome to the final Challenge. In this last challenge, there is no time limit. If you had the ability to sift, once within the walls of the arena, you will be unable to do so anymore. There are no rules. Champions are allowed to use any means necessary to win. Should a Champion be found receiving outside help in any way, they shall be eliminated." As they spoke, four servants emerged from the doors behind them. Morana and the other Horsemen held out their right hands, knowing all too well what was happening. Each of the servants clamped a silver band around their wrists. In the middle of the band was a dark crystal.

"This band will act as a tracking device. Should another champion break the crystal or remove the band entirely, you are eliminated and will be immediately retrieved from the arena. The last team of Champions or the last remaining Champion will win the War Games. May the best Court win."

With that, the servants quickly left the room as the iron doors in front of the slid open. They all squinted their eyes at the bright light that greeted them. Morana blinked through the light. She stifled a gasp at the sight before them. Tall, thick trees spread out before them. She had never seen a place so green. The grass was tall, growing up to her knees. Morana stepped out of the chamber and looked up. A canopy of leaves hung over them. She took a few more steps, her boots crunching against the foliage. The Horsemen followed her out. Morana glanced behind her. The iron doors were gone, replaced with a wall of dirt and stone. They stood at the bottom of a mountain.

Morana turned around. They needed to get moving. They needed to get to the center of the arena as fast as they could. All the supplies they needed would be there. Morana wanted to get what they needed before someone got their before them. She started forward, not needing to signal to the Horsemen to follow her. They had discussed their plan in the chamber before. They would head to the center, get the weapons and supplies they wanted and then they would leave. They would find fresh water as soon as possible and set up a camp there.

All of the spread out. They walked quickly but quietly. The forest was quite, only the sounds of birds chirping and the buzz of insects rang through the air. The leaves moved slightly, hushing the other sounds. It was incredibly peaceful. Morana glanced up, peering through the leaves. She almost stopped in her tracks. The sky was blue. It was actually blue. She lengthened her strides, wanting to burst into a run. She needed to see it, she needed to see the whole thing.

They emerged from the forest and into a clearing. This time, Morana halted. She body tensed, her breath caught in her throat. It was blue. She saw no sun in the sky, though she didn't mind. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. She wanted to stay and look at it forever. The sound of twigs breaking made her tear her eyes away from the sky. She glanced at the Horsemen and nodded.

They all broke into a sprint, running down the hillside. Morana tried not to make her strides too big; she didn't want to lose her footing. She could see the center of the arena. Some sort of shrine sat in the center, surround by racks of weapons. At the foot of the shrine were multiple leather bags, which Morana hoped were filled with more supplies.

She heard a crash from somewhere off to her left and risked a glance over. Swarog bounded through the brush, but he wasn't running towards the supplies like the rest of his team, which appeared behind him. He was running towards them. Morana gritted her teeth. She willed herself to go faster. If they got caught by him, he would rip their bands off, along with their arms. She smelt smoke and realized Swarog was burning the grass in his wake. Idiot, she scowled. Morana focused on the ground in front of her. They were only a few yards from the shrine.

"Grab only what you need and grab it fast. Keep running straight," she said as the Horsemen started to gather around her. Their feet thudded against the ground as it leveled out. She set her sights on a sword and a belt of knives. She would grab those first, as they were the closest. Her hands flew out, grasping the hilt of the sword. She swung it over her shoulder, its strap falling across her chest. She grabbed the belt of knives, quickly buckling it around her waist. Morana dropped and rolled, grabbing a leather bag on her way down. She had done so just in time, as a ball of fire had flown over her head and set the grass on fire just a few inches from her. She bounced to her feet and kept running. She swung the bag onto her back.

Morana wanted to look behind her. She wanted to make sure the rest of the Horsemen were following her. She just had to trust that they were. Morana heard running footsteps behind her, causing her to run faster. She couldn't trust that it was one of the Horsemen. Her lungs burned. Despite all the running they had done in the Training Hall, no amount of training would have helped her run forever.

She ran towards the tree line. She would be able to hide in the trees. Her boots thudded against the ground, cracking twigs under her feet. Morana noticed a gathering of boulders yards ahead of her. She ran towards them. She ducked behind them. Morana had to cover her mouth to silence her heavy breathing. She pressed her back against the rock and focused on breathing through her nose. She closed her eyes, listening carefully. Her head pounded, she could only hear the rush of blood in her ears.

Morana opened her eyes. She removed her hand from her mouth. She slowly stood and peered over the large boulder. Whoever had been following her was gone. Morana glanced around, examining her surroundings. She crept over to the nearest tree and began climbing. Out of all the Horsemen, she had always excelled at climbing. Hand holds were easy to find.

After she was almost thirty feet above the ground, she began jumping to other trees. She made her way back to the edge of the tree line. She could see the shrine perfectly. The Combined Courts seemed to have claimed the clearing as their camp. There was no sign of the Horsemen. Regardless, she scanned the rest of the clearing. Her eyes traced the rest of the tree line, hoping to spot a flash of something, anything that would let her know they were alright. What if they had been eliminated already? She blinked, snapping herself out of those types of thoughts. They had made it out, she had to believe they had. Morana began leaping through the trees again, moving away from the shrine. She had to find water. She had to hope the rest of the Horsemen remembered their plan, and she would find them there as well.