And now it's clear to me
That everything you see
Ain't always what it seems
SAPPHIRE
The day didn't seem like anything but normal. The sun rose from the east. January was as cold as ever. The pack was on its daily schedule. And I might as well die today. It wasn't likely, I had confidence in my abilities ( at least I thought I did) , even if my opponent had more power. But I didn't want to rule out the possibilities. And even if I would never admit it to Lionel, the fight was going to be tough. I knew that.
I had never seen Gloria in action, and the only things I knew about her power came from what Lionel had told me. And I hated not knowing things. Now, that I had been training with Lionel for the past few day... I understood how much physical strength werewolves possessed exactly. Sure he was an Alpha, but Gloria wasn't no Omega either. and just a few hours before the fight, I was getting jitters.
It was about 5 in the evening... I had just two hours left before I would have to show up in the training arena, where the duels took place in front of the whole pack. I wondered if the pack would even want me to win. Would they prefer a Luna who was a werewolf (despite, being slutty as hell), over a witch who had betrayed the pack? Probably yes... I could never be sure. Only, their reaction tonight could reflect that, if I could witness it.
I sighed as I stood at my bedroom window, overlooking the whole pack. Only, yesterday had I been super-confident in my abilities and today, two hours before the fight I was questioning my decesions.
No, I have to win. It wasn't a choice for me... this is place it wasn't my home, but I did care about it and could, no way let it fall in the hands of such a person. Besides, there was Lionel to think about. I didn't know how much he cared about me... sometimes I wondered if he was still uncertain of me, but he needed me, that much I could tell. It was obvious.
****
LIONEL
"You okay?" I asked Sapphire as I poked my head inside her room. My sudden appearance seemed to startle her.
"Yeah, I'm fine." she gave me a tight smile. But I could tell she wasn't, by the way her shoulders stiffened, or how she wouldn't meet my eyes.
"Uh, just another hour left, you should get ready. Seven, remember?"
"Yeah, yeah. Just remind me how her powers work once more, will you?" she looked me in the eyes, and I could tell she was nervous. Her question itself was an indicator of that... she never forgot anything.
"Every time you hit her, she gets stronger. The full moon accelerates her powers. Touch but do not be touched." I explained once more.
"I'll be there soon... you should go." she sighed.
"Just tell me if you need something, okay?" she nodded in response, but her mind was a thousand miles away.
SAPPHIRE
I decided I would rather scout the field rather than do nothing and stare into emptiness. Right now I stood, in the middle of the battle field, looking around at the seats that circled the arena. Half-an-hour away from the fight, the stands were slowly starting to get filled. The people watched me curiously, but I didn't mind; I was used to being stared at. But the way they whispered under their breaths it felt like I had worn a banana-costume to the fight or something. To be honest, my outfit was pretty normal, if you excluded my breast plate... But hey, I wore it almost 24x7 so I guess that's pretty normal for me. I just hoped the fight rules allowed me armour.
I noticed the stands were almost half full. I caught Rosa's eye, and she winked at me. I knew she couldn't express any sign of major support in front of the whole pack, being a prominent figure in the pack's leadership, but that much was enough for me.
That's when I saw Lionel enter, he took his seat, right in the center of the stands. He looked at me but his face remained expresionless... and I knew why, he couldn't show favouritsm up front. I wondered why my opponent still wasn't here. Probably doing her nails... a small part of me hoped she would never show up. But damn my luck, she did come.
Gloria smirked at me, and I was prompted to punch her in that pretty face of hers right there. I gritted my teeth but didn't say anything. The moon was out, its light bathing everything silver, the full moon would have been beautiful, but it seemed to glare at me.
The Beta got up. The whole arena felt silent, in a clear voice he said, "Eclipse Night Pack! Today we are here to witness an event we hope we are never damned to behold again. The duel for the Luna of our pack. The one who remains standing till the end prevails. There is no turning back after the fight starts, it is death or victory. Does either of you wish to surrender?" He looked at both of us, neither surrendered, I hefted my chin up and stood defiantly.
"Then may the moon witness that I have tried. On my Alpha's command." Lionel waved his hand, and someone blew a horn. The fight had started. This was NOT going to end well.
~THIS PART INCLUDES HEAVY VIOLENCE~
Gloria came at me first; she was fast, but without any strategy. I easily dodged it and placed a kick behind her knee. It was an effective move, but she barely stumbled. I elbowed her in the back, again it didn't seem to faze her. She gave me a sly, sickening smile, before going for my face, and I barely had time to duck. Her fighting skills weren't anything extraordinary... but her strength, that was worrying me.
Come on, Sapphire where are your moves?
This time I aimed for her nose, she wasn't quick enough... as my fist met its mark, I heard something crack. Blood spluttered over her face, and I used her momentarily disorientation to chop my hand into her throat. She wiped the blood off her face and lunged at me again, her eyes burning with hatred. Although, this time, my victory was short-lived, as I felt a punch to my gut. All the air was pushed out of my lungs, as I crumpled to my knees. My front felt like a wrecking ball had driven into me. The pain blurred my vision. It was made worse as I felt another kick on my shoulder, I couldn't help the cry of pain. Panic clenched my insides... A drop of blood trailed down my lips.
"Give up now... I might even leave you alive." Gloria goaded me.
"Never." I said looking up at her face, and head-butted her in the chest. She fell back, giving me enough time to get back on my feet. Again, I had underestimated her, she kneed me in the thigh, the momentum reinforcing her strength. I felt something break. This time my cry of pain was out for real.
Fuck, not the Femur.
She did something I hadn't been expecting in the slightest. Her claws surfaced and she slashed them across my chest. I didn't know if anyone had noticed it... but it seemed, after the duel was on, no one really cared if the rules were followed or not. I felt the blood soak through my shirt, even the armour hadn't saved me. It felt as if the wound was poisoned, my strength drained even faster. She gave me a coy smile, before kicking me such that I was flat on my back. She placed her foot on my neck. I choked under her weight. Great, Sapphire Rosewood dies at the hands of a random chick.
"You know, you can still beg for mercy." I noticed her wounds were already healed... unfair.
So you're gonna give up so easily? I heard a voice in my head... a voice I had heard before. Somehow, it gave me enough motivation, to grab her leg and pull down with all my strength. She was the one on the ground now. I stood up, despite the fractured leg... it hurt as hell, but I managed to stand.
Gloria tried to get up again, but I pushed her back. Something was enforcing my strength, and I was pretty sure it wasn't me. The blood in my veins felt as if it had been injected with high octane fuel. A purplish glow covered my vision... but I guess it was just my woozy brain. Gloria kept trying in vain but I kept my foot planted on her chest. Her eyes betrayed only one emotion: fear. I was done with this bitch.
I grabbed her arm and pulled with all my strength... Gloria screamed like a banshee, but she deserved a painful death, like anyone who had the guts to defy me did. With a sickening plop, her arm plopped out of its socket. But I wasn't done, I kept pulling on it, until I heard the muscles rupture... I was barely aware of my victim screaming in the background, or the crowd in turmoil. All I wanted was to satisfy the thirst for blood. And with another nauseating crunch her arm came clean off.
I could hear someone in the crowd actually throwing up , but most blood curling scream came from Gloria. A sound that pleased my senses. Her wild eyes looked up at me... begging me to let her go. And so I granted her wish.
"Go, and you dare challenge me again." I said grabbing her blood soaked hair. She didn't need to be told twice. The bitch immediately shifted into her now, three-legged wolf and ran straight for the forests... no one made an attempt to stop her.
Utter silence was all I got from the crowd. But at the moment I didn't care... because as soon as Gloria was gone, the rush of strength I had felt faded. For the first time I realized how hurt I was. The blood loss from the wound in my chest was extreme. I fell to my knees as the world faded into darkness. The last thing I heard was someone yelling my name, but I was in no state to respond.
****
A/N
Helloooooooo guys!
Okay, first of all please don't kill me for being gone so long. (Even if I deserve it)
I almost drowned under a mountain of workload ***sorry***
And this chapter was kind of tough to write... all the violence... I almost puked at the arm-ripping scene. Honestly, IDK why I even made this chapter that way. I don't even know if I did a good job writing this. After so long I have lost my touch from this story, I had to read the previous chapters twice to proceed with it.
But, hey Sapphire prevailed and that's what the point is.
To all those who didn't read this chapter due to the warning here is a summary: Sapphire, literally ripped Gloria's arm off, and let her go after that (bad choice if u ask me...) . That's all you need to know to proceed with the story. If you still want detail, you can always read the whole chapter.
Well then, I'll see ya in the next update, in a couple of weeks mostly.
byeeee
QOTD: Whom do you like better so far? Sapphire or Lionel? Honestly, I'm kinda confused, wbu guys?
~Cassandra :)