New Place to Begin

The claim

It had been a regular practice, around noon, when it happened.

"On your right, Yunjin!" Yeji coached from outside the ring. Yunjin grunted, leaping out of the way of Kazuha's sword.

"Yeah, on your right," Kazuha mocked, a teasing smile on her face.

Yunjin grinned, shaking her head and withdrawing one of her knives from its sheath. "On your right, Zuha,"

She launched herself forward, feinting right before slamming her elbow into Kazuha's side. As the girl stumbled back, Yunjin kept her forward momentum, twirling her knife and sending it flying towards Kazuha.

Kazuha barely managed to throw herself to the ground to avoid the blade, landing on the sand with a groan.

And before she could even think of picking herself back up, Yunjin was crouched next to her, one knife held against Kazuha's throat and another pressed against her side.

"And Yunjin wins!" Yeji announced to the ring. Mild claps punctuated her victory, but Yunjin didn't let the underwhelming response bother her. With a smile, she sheathed her knives and held out a hand for Kazuha.

Kazuha knocked her hand away playfully, hitting her on the arm. "Man, those knives shouldn't be allowed," she complained, dusting the sand off her armor. "Feels like cheating."

Yunjin snorted. "You're just saying that cuz you just got destroyed," she teased. "Maybe next time."

As they left the ring, Yeji called for the next fighters.

It was a group practice, meaning multiple cabins were practicing sparring in the ring for a couple hours. Right now, Hermes was training with Apollo and Aphrodite, under the watchful eye of the Ares counselor, Yeji.

"Sakura and Chaewon!" Nayeon called out. "You two are up next."

Yunjin tried not to turn her head too fast when she heard the pairing, but Kazuha still audibly snickered at the speed in which Yunjin whipped her head around. "Whipped," she muttered, and Yunjin just slapped her shoulder, her eyes still intently focused on the ring.

Chaewon made her way onto the sand, a big smile on her face as she came to a stop in front of Sakura. She twirled her sword, giving Sakura a small nod. The counselor returned it, raising her own sword, a longer, two-handed blade. Heavier than she would've expected for how gentle Sakura seemed, but she was skilled with the blade.

"Begin!" Yeji yelled, waving for the two campers to start.

The two launched into action immediately, and Yunjin was fascinated by the clash of swords, the blur of movement. The two of them were the most skilled in the Aphrodite cabin, and it was obvious to anyone with eyes.

While their sparring was intense, and the two traded blows with ferocity and determination, there was an air of familiarity in the way they fought, as though they'd known each other for years.

Sakura stumbled on her feet, taken off guard by a particularly strong blow from Chaewon. Chaewon pushed forward, not letting up. Their battle was pushed towards the edge of the ring, where Sakura was now trapped between the boundary and the sharp end of Chaewon's sword.

It was a freak accident, something no one saw coming.

Because, as Sakura desperately pushed back against Chaewon's blade, fighting to eke out a victory, both of them were too distracted to see the stray arrow headed right for the pair of them. It came from the shooting range, probably just a shot gone wrong, a mistake.

A mistake on track to strike Chaewon directly in the neck.

By the time the alarmed screams of the campers around them finally caught their attention, it was too late for either of them to do anything but watch.