Behind the Walls. NOVEL By Claire Darcy.

65. r o u n d ~ t h r e e : The Finale.

ACE.

I walked slowly out into the Arena, and the buzz of the crowd met my eager ears. I could hear them cheering my name; spurring me on. Any past trepidation had melted away, now I felt nothing but the call of the fight.

"Are. You. Ready!?" called a voice from the speakers. It was the same voice that did the countdowns. I didn't know who it belonged to, but the audience cheered in thunderous response. I felt their energy becoming my own.
I saw Rowan entering the rink from the opposite side. I couldn't look him in the eyes. All I had to do was beat him.

"The finale is here at last; the time of the tournaments you have all been waiting for! Get ready for...
Ace. Versus. Rowan!"

I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, taking measured steps toward the centre of the rink. I had to do this.

For my brother. For Rosemary and the baby.

I felt the energy rising inside me, dulled only slightly by the medicine from before. My hands were tingling, the pulsing in my veins getting harsher already.
The countdown began. I braced myself. Rowan stood in front of me, barely more than a meter away.

"5..."

"Ace," he said quietly, "I can't do this."
I locked my jaw and clenched my fists.

"4..."

"No forfeits," I barked harshly, my eyes darting to the audience.
The charge in my body only grew stronger by the second.

"3..."

Rowan stared at the floor. "I promised I wouldn't fight you again."
"I didn't!"

"2..."

"I won't hurt you, Ace," he whispered. Rowan's arms fell to his sides, his hands open and unthreatening.

"1..."

My eyes fell on Commander Kronin. His stare was cold as ice, and I knew what it meant. Raw Brutality. I had to win.
"Your mistake," I hissed.

The air horn sounded, followed by the crack of Rowan's glass-cut jaw as I hit him with a spinning hook kick.

He dropped. It felt so perfectly executed; he didn't move, didn't dodge, hardly even flinched. For a moment, I wondered if he'd just faked it and fallen over.

The crowd's excited cheers went silent. Everything was deathly still.

I waited for a moment, just catching my breath and staring at him.

And when Rowan didn't move, I realised I'd done it.

I'd knocked him unconscious and won the Tournaments with a single hit.

The fight was over.

I had won.

...

President X stood in her office and smiled.
Far below, in the Arena, Ace was being paraded around by her fellow students. She was the Alpha, and now the Champion. Ace had won the people and the Tournaments. There was no longer a question as to whether or not Amelia Earnest was the heir to the Stargate throne. Ace and Athalia Stargate were one.
The Princess of Upper City was the missing piece to the President's puzzle. And now here she was, within reach at last.
War waited eagerly for President X to give the signal.

...

ACE.

It was late in the evening by the time everyone left me alone.