Quiver and Crown // KateLena

Power Play

Yelena struggled to keep pace with her taller, quicker counterpart as she forged a path bathed in crimson through the ballroom. Visibility was already low from the destroyed chandeliers, and even more so for Yelena as she stayed as closely pressed to Kate's back as she could, but what little she dared to sneak a peak at terrified her. Assailants hooded in black terrorized the gala, armed with broadswords or bows. The princess searched desperately for her mother, surely the target of this attack, but caught no glimpse of the dark haired ruler, or her sister, for that matter.

Never had Yelena felt so helpless. Her kingdom, her palace, her family under attack and all she did was cower. The logical side of her knew there was no other action to take right now, and the best thing for Galon would be to get herself to safety, but the emotional side of her brain wished she could do more. Guilt formed for leaving her mother, sister, and Wanda behind, but realistically, what was she supposed to do? She was no fighter; at least not with her fists. Her battles were fought over treaties and borders; she changed minds with her rhetoric and subtle manipulation every once in awhile. This was not her arena.

The princess's heart also ached for putting Kate so willingly in the line of fire like this, but then again, this was Kate's job, and one she performed readily. The brunette cut an attacker down in front of her with a guttural roar, then cursed loudly. Kate stumbled for a moment before regaining composure and sinking her sword into the neck of another unfortunate assailant.

"I'm hit," Kate managed to relay over the commotion of the still panicking crowd. Knights in silver and gold fought valiantly against the mystery men in black chain mail, protecting their nobles as best they could. Guild knights seemed to be outnumbered three to one, but the knights possessed much greater skill, as evidenced by Kate's warpath.

"What do you mean, hit?" Yelena inquired frantically, nightmare scenarios of Kate dying in her arms flooding her mind. Before Kate had time to respond, Yelena spotted the shaft of an arrow sticking out of Kate's thigh, lodged between plates of armor. The princess sighed in relief. Though a nasty wound, if tended to in time, it would not be a mortal one.

The ballroom doors were within reach now, and Yelena wanted nothing more than to sprint out of them and never return, but who knew what lay on the other side. So, she followed the command of her guard, who some point had drawn one of her sizable daggers, and fought with two blades against seemingly endless black clad figures.

If not for the dire circumstances, Yelena would have been beyond impressed with the display of skill. Kate fought with the ferocity and precision of a seasoned knight, though she was not even officially in the Guild herself. If Kate had not been worthy of knighthood before, she certainly earned it now.

As Kate marched with a slight limp within arm's reach of the door, she resisted the urge to let her adrenaline drop and take a breather. Her ears rang with a mix of excitement and terror since the second she drew her blade, and the only thing keeping her focus so sharp as she faced her first live combat was the warm presence at her back. Yelena was going to survive, Kate promised herself. As the princess's guard, anything that happened to Yelena was on her, and she would not fail the blonde. Not again.

With a string of curses, Kate slayed the last of the assailants in front of the door with a particularly brutal stab wound to the abdomen. Seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, the brunette charged through the massive wooden doors, amped up on adrenaline, and admittedly, bloodlust.

Yelena pressed forward as well, breath knocked out of her as she crashed into Kate's suddenly planted figure. Upon looking up, Yelena saw only one figure left between the pair and freedom. Kate wasted no time, launching into a barrage of hacks and slashes, all of which were parried. This attacker possessed more skill than any other previously had, and Kate was already both winded and wounded, making the fight that much more even.

The duel lasted far longer than Yelena was comfortable with, and when the man's sword came within inches of Kate's exposed neck, the princess thought this may be the end. She thought of bum rushing him, but that would end poorly for all as she was both unarmed and unskilled. Thinking quickly and acting impulsively, Yelena tugged off one of her prized glass shoes and, peaking from behind Kate for a moment, hurled her shoe at the man's head with all of her rage and strength. The projectile connected, and the weight of the shoe caught the man off guard enough for Kate to tackle him herself. The impact knocked his metal helmet off, revealing...

"Pietro?" Yelena gasped with horror, physically stumbling back. "I had my suspicions, but this..."

Pietro was granted no time to respond as Kate threw punch after punch, unleashing all of her bottled up fear and wrath onto the face of the person who betrayed her, betrayed Yelena, betrayed his sister, betrayed all of Galon. Yelena yanked Kate off of Pietro's limp body after the screams from the ballroom grew impossibly louder and the pair smelled smoke. Other party guests were finding the exits by now, and chaos would spill into the halls any second. If the pair wanted a clean escape, they had to go immediately.

Finally taking the lead, Yelena grabbed the bloodied hand of a very dazed Kate and raced for the stables, praying a horse still remained. As much as it pained her to flee, it was the only option. Though the knights fighting so bravely inside may win the day, the risk of losing the palace to enemy hands was too great. At least this way, one heir to Galon's throne would be alive and well.

Kate returned to reality momentarily upon reaching the stables, instincts kicking in once again. Sheathing her scarlet drenched sword, Kate picked out the hardiest looking horse of the bunch and saddled it as quickly as she could before vaulting Yelena onto the horse's back. In one motion she mounted the midnight black horse herself and urged him to run, and run he did.

Under the cover of darkness, the knight and the princess fled the palace, passing by the peaceful homes of sleeping common people. The thought of so many commoners possibly waking up to the terrible news that the palace had been attacked and the princess was missing, maybe even dead, was enough to bring tears to her eyes. The weight of the night crushed Yelena all at once, and she struggled to keep her grip on Kate's waist as sobs wracked her body.

Hearing Yelena so distraught, weeping turning to wailing as the two rode off to uncertain safety only strengthened Kate's resolve. If Pietro had not already perished at her hands, he would someday soon. This is why she chased knighthood so fervently, she thought to herself, to protect those who deserved protection, and to avenge those who did not have the luxury of her care.

"He'll pay, Yelena," Kate said, though unsure if Yelena caught this through the rushing wind as their horse sprinted through the cobblestone streets and into the countryside.

The princess did hear her, but it was of little comfort as she turned to watch the capital city Aram fade into the distance, and with it, everything and everyone she had ever known.