The Next Sovereign

Chapter 1: Practice

April 13, 2030. Two days remain until Mizuki's seventeenth birthday. 

A sixteen-year-old Mizuki stood tall in front of her now-deceased father's former throne, looking up at the commemorative picture of him that suspended directly above it. She looked at his dignified headshot speechlessly. He had ash blonde wavy hair, faded green eyes, and quite an attractive face. As she stared at the portrait, she recalled that day; that day when her dear mother Caieta formally declared the competition for the crown. That day changed everything. Mizuki consolidated her grip on her bow as she shifted her gaze to his throne. 

"I'm going to satisfy you, Father." the princess uttered. "You were wrongfully killed at the hands of those.. felons. And the only thing I could do.. is to become a great monarch just like you." After another brief moment of silence, she eventually turned around and departed from the throne room. 

A few minutes later, she had arrived at the garden; that same rose garden where her life altered greatly. Beside her was her opposer, Valeriya, and in front of the two sisters were their statuesque mother Caieta. "It's a lovely day out, isn't it?" Caieta looked up at the clement sky. "Yes, mother." The two nodded. "It's a perfect day for you two to refine yourselves. Now, get in your stances."

The two sisters distanced from each other and performed a curtsy of respect before preparing. Mizuki grabbed an arrow from the quiver on her back and readied her bow, pulling the string alongside the arrow. Her knees were bent at a 30 degree angle, and her glare at Valeriya was rather menacing. Meanwhile Valeriya, who stood ten feet apart from her sister, revolved her sword and got in a stance - her right hand's grip tight on the sword's handle a few centimeters above the pommel. She pointed the sword at Mizuki's chest. She looked fed up with having to do this.

"Ready, set, begin." Mizuki lets go of the string of her bow and the arrow aimed for Valeriya, who swung her sword and prevented the arrow from hitting her. She then proceeded to dash at her sister. She swung her sword once more, attempting a diagonal overhead swing to Mizuki. Mizuki quickly bended down and kicked Valeriya in the face vigorously, causing her to fall to the ground. Mizuki stood up and dusted her shirt. "Too easy..." The blonde-haired princess then began to stomp on her brunette sister's chest multiple times and the latter let go of the sword, screaming in pain. "Suffer my wrath, you weakling! You will never be crowned queen!" "Enough!" Caieta pulled Mizuki away from Valeriya, then helped the last-mentioned rise up to her feet again. Valeriya whimpered in pain as she put her hand on her chest. "You truly are a violent warrior, Zumi. Those ways of combat are practical, but in the end, they're just.. brutal." Mizuki crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. "Brutal? Don't enemies deserve 'brutal' treatment, Mother?" She chuckles, but her smirk fades when Caieta speaks. "Brutal isn't always the way to go." A moment of silence ensued, until the grey-haired queen spoke once more. "Carry on with your training now." she slowly treaded through the pathway. "I'll go get a cup of tea. No stomping on each other, however." The two performed as told and continued to battle each other under the radiant sun. When Caieta had returned, she observed carefully and gave them advice in between rounds. 

This was their life everyday ever since that announcement... they no longer played together, but rather, clashed against each other.