Chapter 6 Weapons

• “All my life, I have never been touched by a man. I’ve remained clean and chaste” – Ava Goodchild
• ---
• Next day, we were all brought out.
• Led to a huge dining hall, we were made to seat according to our numbers. Since I was at the last, I was positioned at the extreme end.
• Very much unnoticeable.
• P-Piper!
• I hurriedly searched for her among the girls, seated.
• I sighed after seeing her, knowing she survived a night here.
• Her head was directed down though, with her blonde hair covering her face as she chewed softly.
• “Good morning, pawns.”
• Knight Lydia strode inside the room saying.
• Just beside her was a woman, who I guessed to be her assistant due to her presence yesterday.
• “Normally, it’s always a systematic survival challenge, to get food. But to welcome you, we’ve specially prepared this buffet.”
• She surprisingly said.
• “So, eat to your heart’s content, cause today might be the last you enjoy,”
• “Strong, smart, tactful, desirability. The one who breeds a baby for the beast, has to contain in her these virtuous qualities. If lucky, we’ll have a Queen in this batch,”
• “Or wait another 200 years,”
• “Which I doubt any of us will live to that, as humans,”
• Everyone gasped at how frightening that sounded.
• Knowing what happened in that amount of time was indeed fearsome.
• Murmurs suddenly filled the room.
• I sensed the instability of it all, and for a moment, I thought the girls would rebel.
• “Silence!”
• Lydia commanded.
• The dining hall eventually became quiet and still. Everyone, looked up at Lydia and stopped eating.
• Emily still chewed though.
• I, seated directly beside her immediately tapped her.
• She adhered, and I was thankful for that.
• “I’m not finished yet,”
• She added.
• Her hair, a brownish one, neatly woven to her mid back. There were also flowery decorations on her head, like yesterday, which she wore like a crown.
• Her dress was still a purple robe that had a cape at the back, dashed with gold engravings on top.
• This meant her clothes were limited.
• I was starting to doubt that she was the most powerful before the King.
• I held the hems of my gown impatiently, wondering what news she actually had.
• “There would be a party tonight,”
• She said.
• I blinked in confusion, wondering what exactly we were celebrating.
• “A welcome party to woman hood.” she explained. “More like a tradition that has been held for centuries.”
• “Each of you would be dressed beautifully, with hopes of enticing the beast,”
• I felt my heart thud against my chest.
• How was it going to go?
• I knew it’s being really long since I had seen Captain Caspian.
• “Would leave you for now to finish up. Next, we commence the game of survival.”
• I watched as one of the guards, opened the door for her and she walked out.
• Game of survival?
• That really got me thinking.
• ---
• We were all assembled at the venue of the game. I narrowed my eyes, surprised at where it was staged.
• Instead of a perhaps, competitive environment, it was a plain and old looking room.
• “Lovely pawns, welcome,”
• We all watched as Lydia announced to us.
• Directly in front of us were varieties of dresses, jewelries, makeup and ornaments.
• I looked at Emily, as her hands fisted and her nose flared.
• I hoped she didn’t say anything…
• And... Piper…
• “Today’s game would be quite simple. To prepare for the banquet tonight, there are beauty products set in front of you,”
• “There are about 500 of you, in total.” she stated.
• “But it is only limited to a 100. In this level, there are little or no rules. You’re entitled to slay anyone in your path to getting what you want,”
• S-Slay?
• I widened my eyes at her statement.
• Was this why none of the last girls came back?
• “When the bell dings, that’s a signal to go on,”
• “Points would be added to the houses of each of you that survive. These points would determine who would show up in the Great Dance tonight.”
• “Good luck in that,”
• She breathed out, walking out the door with her head up high in dignity.
• Goosebumps formed around my skin.
• The girls all looked at each other fearfully.
• Piper looked at me frightfully, but I gave her a re-assuring look.
• I wanted her to know that I got her back.
• I was nudged. To my surprise, it was Emily.
• “Promise to have each other’s back?”
• She said, extending a hand.
• It was insane that this was even happening.
• But I knew to survive, you had to team up.
• “S-Sure,”
• I muttered.
• I looked around, and sized the room. There were few weapons at the entrance.
• “We’ll have to get that first,”
• I said to Emily and she nodded. I knew some people were going to go for the products in front first.
• The bell dinged.
• And I was right because they ran towards the products.
• “Common!”
• I yelled.
• I immediately went back to the entrance, hastily grabbing the weapons with Emily.
• I was able to get a dagger while Emily got a sickle.
• “Let’s go!”
• She said.
• We immediately directed our movements towards the few beauty products left.
• I grabbed some, searching for Piper.
• I saw her picking some chest with her hair pin.
• Good grief! She was making it alive.
• But then, some girl approached her with an axe, snarling.
• “P-Piper,”
• I tried to call out, but she couldn’t even hear me.
• Hastily, I took a leap of fate and targeted my dagger towards her.
• Surprisingly, it went through her neck.
• And she made gargling sounds, falling on the floor as blood spilled out of her throat.
• “A-Ava, t-thank you,”
• She let out, after noticing what just happened.
• “You got yours?”
• Emily ran to me, asking.
• “Yeah,”
• “Then let’s leave this sick place,”
• She said.
• I grabbed Piper’s hand that minute.
• “Let’s go, Piper,”
• “B-But the c-chest, Ava…”
• She trailed out.
• “You’ll pick it when we’re inside,”
• I answered, dragging her along with us.
• As we ran outside, speedily a hefty girl directly in front of Emily pushed her down.
• “Emily!!”
• I yelled.
• With Piper still in my hands, I ran to help her.
• But I was surprised when she knocked the hefty girl back down, running her sickle through her head.
• Blood splattered all on her.
• I hastily grabbed her hands, with Piper’s, as we ran out.
• ...