A Game of Cards

Chapter X: Briana Trinity

The first thought that ran through my head when Onyx left was, what had I done? The second thought was, how dare she say I am undeserving of my title? My father had come from the poor farming villages in Diamonds, and had got his current title through sweat and blood. To have someone like her – the so-called grand commanding general of Spades – come in a criticize this was infuriatingly ironic, considering that she had only inherited the role from her mother, and her mother from murder and massacre. That girl wasn't half as powerful as she thought herself to be. I rivaled her in all academics, far surpassed her in the arts, and could have bested her in a sword fight had she not used her sister to cheat the other day during the games. Onyx wasn't as good with a sword as people had said she was. I've seen the way she fought, and I can tell anyone that she had the most idiotic fighting style I had ever seen. Even though her stabs were clean and blithe, she always aimed for the limbs during a fight, which was fine in practice, but realistically, it was not only difficult to actually hit target, but it would do little to actually subdue the opponent. Her style was more of fancy footwork than actual effectiveness. Perhaps she had thought being an Impersonation had made her superior somehow, yet the Masked Maiden was rumored to be the weakest of all the Impersonations, her power based of sorrow, a mentally draining emotion by itself. Plus, it wasn't as if she was the only Impersonation in the world. The Impersonated spirit that I hold, the Tulip Mistress, far surpassed the Masked Maiden in both physical and spiritual power.

Mace caught his breath beside me, apparently finding humor in this situation. My cheeks tinted pink at the sound of his melodious laughter, and from the embarrassment of having humiliated myself in front of two very attractive princes.

Tamar shook his head, and the girl next to him sighed. My attention snapped to her. Rodina, wasn't it? Strawberry curls and emerald eyes, stood out from the crowd for the sole reason that she was the only student of no particular status in all of Magislight.

"Rodina! I haven't noticed you!" I greeted, "Hello!"

"Oh, uh, h-hi," Rodina sputtered, the easy look on her face turning stiff like a crack on a mask. "You have, um, really pretty eyes," her teasing expression returned, as if her slip had not occurred at all, her voice once again confident and sure. "You know that, right?"

"Looks aren't everything," I snapped, offended. The first thing everyone seemed to notice about me was always my looks, and I hated it. It wasn't even as if I spent all day in the mirror putting on makeup like all the other girls from Diamonds, yet even when I try my best to play down on my appearance, it was still the only thing people could see. I glared at her and her green eyes widened, taken aback. Then she lowered her head in shame.

Mace cleared his throat, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"How about we head separate ways to find sources?" Tamar suggested, sensing his friend's discomfort. "Rodina, it would be best for us to team up since we are in the same group for the project. Briana...you mind going with Mace?"

"N-no, of course not." I stammered, flushing a shade of wine red at the thought of spending time alone with the prince.

"Great. Then we shall get going."

Mace led me gently by the arm towards one side of the room while the two other students headed towards the other.

"What is it like back in Diamonds?" he asked when we were out of earshot, fumbling through the rows of books to look for something useful.

"Huh?"

Mace picked a book from the shelf, The Ancient Study of Shadow Puppets, and started to scan through the pages as he lay the book down on a table.

After a while of staring silently at his book, he leaned on his palm and stared at me intently in a way that made me feel like the only person in the universe. "What's it like there? Are the buildings really lined with gold?"

"It-I-I mean—" I let out a meager chuckle, desperately trying to conceal how nervous he made me feel, flushing a deeper shade of red, if that was possible. "Why do you ask?"

"I've been to all the kingdoms, but I've never been to Diamonds before. I'm curious, what do the buildings look like? How are the people there? Diamonds being the Land of Merchandise...rich, I presume?"

"Th-the architecture is really beautiful there," I stammered, "The pe-people are nice."

He turned to me, cerulean eyes teasing and amused. "Cat got your tongue? You're awfully quiet now. Strange," he mused, "With all your staring and blushing back there, I had been sure you wanted to have a conversation."

Blood rushed to my face and my insides turned to mush. I opened my mouth, trying to search for a good comeback, but nothing came out.

"You were there besting the general Onyx Ying seconds ago and now you can't form a coherent sentence at the sight of my beautiful face," he drawled, peering deep into my multi-colored eyes, "How intriguing."

Stop it, Briana, I mentally chastised myself, this boy has a reputation, he probably talks to all girls like this. Plus, you can't date him, Father would never let you, and you JUST MET HIM, for heaven's sake!

My cheeks, tinted pink, and my heart, roaring like a caged animal in my ribcage, told a different story.

The prince definitely noticed, because he grinned like the devil himself at my flustered appearance. "Oh, you don't have to answer that. I just find your boldness...fascinating."