Star-Crossed Blades KFP

Alexandria

They collapsed onto a circular platform. Sapphire saw pendulum islands move up and down across a black lake. Tigress ran towards a pile of rocks in the center.

"How are we going to get across?" She pushed herself up from the wet floor. Sapphire turned around to see Tigress pushing stones towards a pole. Symbols plastered on the floor grew pink with each movement.

"If we're lucky, a shortcut will open for us. But knowing this temple," a sudden slap of water was thrown onto them. Sapphire wiped her face and backed away from the lake. Her necklace glowed warmly as her finger wrapped around them.

"What was that?" Her eyes scan the waves that stilled again. Tigress stopped shoving the stones together. Her golden eyes narrowed in on slight movements in the water.

"I apologize. We're out of time and this is a terrible introduction to your answers. But you must dance with me to open the gate," Tigress said reaching out her paw to Sapphire's hands.

"Anything to avoid death!" Sapphire said as the feline gently pulled her to a smaller circle in the middle.

"It's a simple dance that lotus users can do with their amulet. We have both. So follow my lead," Tigress bowed before Sapphire across the circle.

A pink petal rose from the middle. She inclined her head forward. The girl nodded and bowed back.

Tigress rose back up and raised one arm to the sky. A giant shadow erupted from the lake. Sapphire stumbled into the circle. Tigress's eyes turned to gold as she turned around a full circle to face Sapphire's widened irises. 

The girl shook her head and took a deep breath toward the feline. Tigress nodded and gestured towards another turn.

"We can do this," she said as she gestured for the girl to turn. Sapphire traveled through twirls that Tigress would repeat. Each movement carried the petal higher into the air.

A song began to play when their hands met in the dance. Tigress held Sapphire's hands across the opening on the floor, where the petal began to float above as they began to draw closer into a close waltz.

Tigress felt pain in her chest as she completed her turns. The last circle grew to surround them in an orange glow. Their turns slowed.

'Somethings wrong,' Tigress said in her mind. She looked across to see Sapphire wrapped up in green sludge. Both locked eyes.

'I know. Time froze up. That or we're slowly dying," the girl pulled at the tentacles trying to invade her spot.

'No. It's different. I'm stuck here due to my mistake,' the feline said, letting out.

'What do you mean? The tentacle guy is not moving."Sapphire said, pushing away the tentacles like an object in space.

'You can. Not me. Take this. It'll take two lotus users for the coin to open. This is your chance to escape the feline said. Sapphire looked down at the lotus glowing on Tigress's chest. Her hand wrapped around the necklace.

Tigress saw the frozen tentacle that started to drift towards her. 

When a sudden hit knocked her back a few inches away from it.

'You can move. Even if it means pushing you over, I'm getting you out of here. Please try,' Sapphire said through their mind. Her hands grappling with Tigress's vest.

'I can't move. It's due to my transgressions.' she said to the girl pushing from behind.

'That was then, this is now," the girl said, pushing the feline closer to the center.

"I wished that condemned library had collapsed with the mirrors. Leave. You don't have much time left!" She shouted.

'No way! There has to be a solution. What else needed to happen in the ritual?' Sapphire said, looking at the engravings on the floor.

'I had to combine our necklaces with each other's essence into the floor. But that would take us straight to the coin. At most, you'll reach a safer location than here,' Tigress said with a sigh.

'Okay. Then I'll move to get whatever this essence is into action. So tell me what it is?" Sapphire said, facing the feline with exasperation.

'Why are you helping me? I've done terrible things. You'll be in danger if the ritual doesn't work." The tigress was cut off by wet mud slapping her face. Her amber eyes focused on Sapphire with an angry scowl.

'I'm not leaving you to die! We may not know each other well enough. But you're remorseful about whatever you've done. And that show's that you're willing to change. So I ask that you try and help me,' Sapphire pleaded.

'I will," Tigress said with hardened determination.

Sapphire leaned down to see two holes that were in the shape of the lotus. She placed her palm on the floor with the necklace touching the hole. Golden runes rose to the surface as a pedestal with two indentions.

"First, place my paw over the sun, and you place yours into the moon's side. The connection will be made when we exchange blood." Tigress said as her arm and left paw were moved by Sapphire to touch one indention with a sun symbol. 

Sapphire then paused to look up at the feline.

'Wait. You mean a cut," the girl asked Tigress. 

'Yes. I apologize for this situation. I thought we'd have enough time to instead draw blood before this,' Tigress apologetically as Sapphire began moving closer to the feline. 

'Okay.  I have a spare knife here. I can slice myself. But I don't know how far to go in for yours. I don't want to hurt you,"  she said with her voice cracking on the last word. The tentacles begin to move upwards to both of them. 

Sapphire then looked from the floor to the feline's face. 

"I have a fresh scar on my right paw that I haven't set in properly," Tigress said. 

The girl grabbed the feline's paw and widened the wound. Blood trickled onto the symbol. She then slit her own palm and placed it on the moon symbol.

The platform glowed brighter, and the tentacles began to dissolve onto the floor. The platform shook, and an electric current flew up from the necklaces, enveloping them in a pink hue before disappearing into a burst of lotus petals.