Cal

Some lights were never meant to burn for long

Song: Reversed Curse

The sickness that engulfs the throne room is twisted with a warm glow from my flame. Iris looks like she would like nothing more than to extinguish it, or maybe just me, as she glares at it. I hear Kilorn's ragged breath next to me. I look back at him now, eyes ringed with red.

I never liked Cameron, but I respected her talent for strategy. I don't think she could have planned for this. None of us could. But she was targeted, not just chosen by Evangeline to receive the metal in her back. Cameron was lethal. Mare knew that. Mare knew Cameron could take everyone down in a single glance. Maybe she didn't target Cameron, but she needed the playing field leveled. Now, with Evangeline at our back its more than fair. We lose ground with every flying, twisted iron sheet. Flushing us forward towards the throne. We stick our backs together, forming a circle to cover all angles.

"Stop," Mare calls. Evangeline's metal halts midair, shuddering before falling to the floor. It slinks back to her across the floor, crawling back up her body to enforce her armor. She rounds us, smiling gleefully, nearly daring us to move against her. I can hear Farley cursing at her under her breath, but she doesn't raise her gun. Not even her voice. We both know we're outnumbered. Four powerful abilities against two and some Reds. We follow Evangeline with our eyes, the only weapon we can use now. Until she brings us to Mare. "You can lower your weapons now." Farley and Kilorn don't even move. Mare laughs before setting her gaze on me, "All of them." The flame in my hand only grows.

"Mare stop this," Farley says, stepping out of our circle. Mare smirks down at her, walking down the steps to meet her. I would yank Farley back if I could, but she stands out of reach. Farley stands stiff as a tree, keeping her gun raised as Mare nears her.

"The General Farley," Mare sneers, "What an honor it is to meet you at last."

"No need to be clever with me, Mare. I'm just a rebel." Mare looks to the gun pointed at her, and walks up to it. Planting the mouth of the weapon in the middle of her chest.

"If you're here to kill me, get on with it then." Farley keeps the gun raised, staring back at her. No, we had a deal you can't. Mare will be healed. I've never seen Farley pull back from an enemy, but she does now. Lowering the gun so it points to the floor. I thank my colors for it.

Farley looks back up to Mare, "Maven really did a number to you didn't he?"

Mare leans closer towards her face, snarling, "Whose fault was that?" She pulls away from Farley, walking back up the steps to her throne.

"Mare." Gisa steps out now too, standing next to Farley. Mare turns around, face paling at the sight of her sister. Her lips curve into a frown, eyes darkening as the sparks in her hands die. Even despite everything I see the discord rumbling through her. I had a brother once too. I'm no fool to that look. She doesn't want to hurt her sister, but war doesn't let us play on our wants. Mare turns away from us again, climbing to stand by Iris. The two queens make a terrifying sight as the lightning returns to the sky.

"No more dramatics," Iris says, "surrender and you may just live past the dawn."

"You would let your puppet speak for you, Mare?" Farley nods over to Iris with a chuckle. Iris reels back at Farley.

"Iris is the Queen of the Lakelands," Mare looks to Iris, "She wields herself."

"A twist no one expected," Farley rattles on, "The spare becoming Queen of it all. How convenient that was for you, Mare. You have much to thank us for." Water spills out of the edges of the large metal containers from next to the throne as Iris bristles at Farley's words.

"And you'll pay dearly for that gift, Red." Arms of water shoot out towards us from the containers. We roll apart, dodging them. Evangeline brings her metal flying towards us with the water as she descends from the throne. Gisa and I stand on one side of the throne room, separated from the others by water and bullets.

Gisa throws a sling of dagger at Evangeline. Evangeline spins fast, bringing her hand to her cheek. A trickle of gleaming silver blood drips from the wound. Gisa nicked her. Evangeline lunges at us as she sends Gisa's daggers flying back towards us and we deflect again.

I stand up, bouncing on my feet expecting another wave of metal. I've lost Evangeline's attention. She's over Gisa now, metal fighting metal. An inferno grows in my hands as I imagine it searing through the air at her, but then the flame is swallowed whole by a bullet of water.

Iris steps between me and Evangeline. I see Farley, Kilorn, and Julian to my right. Brawling with Wren and Mare. There's no one to help me against the Lakelander's tides. As soon as my flame forms, she slaps it away with water. Blow after blow. Every second we waste, is another moment Gisa could fail and let one of Evangeline's weapons find her heart. I invite her in towards me, hoping to bring her close enough to grab her, but she strikes me down. She stands over me, grinning. I kick out her legs, shooting back up as she falls. I send a fireball at her, hopefully buying time to get to Gisa on time. Maybe it will ever burn that annoying ass smirk away.

The Magnetron has her pinned against the corner. Gisa looks defeated as Evangeline turns every one of her weapons against her. Daggers shoot towards her face and chest, and gisa dodges in time. She can't keep the dance much longer. I watch Evangeline raise her hands to bring down the final throw. I run faster, nearly there. As the metal flies down towards Gisa, Wren steps in front of her. Wren falls to her knee, blood forming in sick knots where the metal protrudes out of her. She saved Gisa.

"Traitor!" Evangeline spits at Wren. Wren looks past her, to me. For Julian, she mouths. She slumps over, dead eyes meeting my own.

Wren I knew before this, before we even knew the Scarlet Guard existed. At the balls I was dragged to as heir to the throne, she would dance with me the longest. Not because she was drooling over my titles, but because her and I made a pact when we were still just children. We would help one another. If that meant keeping me from annoying little girls dressed in egos too big for them, then I was grateful to oblige. But those dances have turned to distant memories now. Dead as Wren.

Sparks hiss past me, turning me away from her. Mare stands there, sweat streaking down her face. Her eyes find mine, turning my insides over. I shake my head, "This isn't you, Mare."

"I could say the same about you." Lightning cackles towards me, meeting my flame and fizzling out. When my flame falls, her lightning rises and so on. We move towards the throne in our lethal dance. "You always were a soldier, but you weren't born a rebel."

"Stop this Mare. Come back." Her lightning pushes against my fire, as if responding to my words. "Come back to me."

"Enough!" She yells, thrusting her hands up to the sky. Sparks from behind me, trip me forward. Where I stood moments before, a solid wall of purple lightning stands. It separates us from anyone else, blinding me when as it glints. It hisses with power as lightning fights lightning.

She staggers away from the wall of her creation. The skies outside have darkened as her storm rumbles on. Through the windows I see her bolts streaking across the sky in bursts of purple. Mare stands still, head bent low. The throne sits above her on its podium of marble, shimmering in the light of her storm.

Slowly, she turns. I've never seen her eyes so dark.