Courage Comes From Lies

Chapter 53: Yolaris

| The same night, in the Queen's bedroom. The following chapter will be written out in third person |

Yolaris lay asleep in her bed. She kept to the left side, the spot she'd claimed from the moment her late husband became King. She tossed around a bit in her sleep, hugging her pillow tightly.

| The following is a dream of the past. 10 year old Yolaris is standing underneath the Kämpfen Ring with her 17 year old sister, both preparing for the Duel |

Carla stood in front of a full body mirror as she dressed herself in her combat armor along with her elder sister, Jenny. The air was silent between them as they prepped for the battle ahead of them. Carla then glanced at Jenny through the mirror, watching her strap on her arm guards.
"Um... Jenny?"
"Hm?" Jenny glanced at Carla. "What is it?"
Carla glanced away hesitantly. "What.. exactly is this duel gonna be like?"
Jenny tilted her head but went back to what she was doing as she spoke, kneeling to tie down her shin guards. "We'll be fighting to the death. Whoever is left standing will take over the throne and empire."
Carla blinked looking at her sister, unsure that she'd heard her correctly. "W-What??"
Jenny stood up straight sighing out and pulls on her torso's armor. "Mom and Dad didn't tell you? That's the only way for a Yolaris born to ascend to King/Queen status. Once the oldest Yolaris child becomes a certain age, they're to fight with their sibling in the Kämpfen Ring for the crown. That's why the youngest prince/princess is trained so vigorously. To prepare them for the literal fight of their life."
Carla stared at her sister in utter disbelief. She couldn't shake the sense of discomfort she felt as she listened to her sister explain what would be happening once they arise into the stadium above. It was like her sister felt no fear, anxiety or even remorse as to what was going to happen. Almost as if she was willing to sacrifice her little sister's life just to rule an empire. She swallowed a knot in her throat.
"But- what if I don't want to kill you? Can't I just- surrender and you take the crown like that?"
Jenny glanced at Carla. "That would defeat the purpose of tradition wouldn't it? It'll be fine. I'll go easy on you."
Carla was about to respond before they both heard an echoing voice from above them. They stopped and looked up at the ceiling.
"Ladies and gentlemen! You've all gathered in this stadium once again to watch the royal family decide who will get the throne next! Let's bring out the princesses and get this Duel started!"
Jenny looked at Carla after strapping down her boots and walked over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. Carla looked up at her, letting her obvious fear show.
"Don't worry Carla. I promise it'll be over before you know it."
Carla stayed absolutely silent as they stood side by side in the center of the room, and waited as the platform ascended up into the stadium. Carla shielded her eyes a bit when the lights brightly shone down on them. All she could hear was the screaming and cheering of the audience as they made their appearance. She watched as Jenny waved at everyone with a smile. The only thing she could think was: "How can she be so calm during this? One of us is gonna be losing our lives."
"Here they are, folks! The princesses of our beautiful empire, ready to fight for our future!" The announcer continued hyping up the scene, causing the audience to get more rowdy. "Please, Your Highnesses, if you'll make your way into the Ring, and select your weapons. I know your subjects and parents are just itching to see how you both will fair."
Carla silently followed her sister into the Kämpfen Ring, keeping her head down. There, stood three racks. One holding weapons, the second holding defense armor, and the third holding Memory induced tactical gear. Carla watched as Jenny selected a scimitar as her main weapon and a common titanium shield for her defense. She then looked at the first rack, trying to choose her own. She went through her two years of combat training, trying to recall which weapon she worked best with. Her hand hovered over each choice before landing on a six foot long staff made from damascus steel. She picked it up, feeling how light it was in her grip. She then looked over the defense rack before going right to the tacticals. She grabbed two capsules and one marble, not bothering to figure out what exactly they were, before walking to the far end of the stadium and nodding to the announcer.
"Alright, ladies and gentlemen. Both princesses have made their choices and are ready to begin their battle. Before we get things rolling, it is customary to wish a smooth journey to the afterlife for whoever doesn't make it out alive today, and pray to the past Yolaris Kings and Queens for their safe crossing. So if everyone in the room could bow their heads and say a small prayer to the Kings and Queens."
All heads lowered in the room as the air fell silent. Carla copied the actions of everyone else, this moment lasting for five minutes.
"Okay everyone! Princesses, ready yourselves. Without further ado, let's get this fight started!" The announcer threw his hammer against the huge bell standing beside him, signaling the start of the Duel.
Carla swallowed, watching her sister carefully, the staff held firmly in her tense grip. Jenny slowly circled around her younger sister, as if stalking her prey, keeping her eyes glued on her. Carla's body tensed even more under her sister's gaze. Everything she knew her sister to be had somehow vanished. It was like she was looking at a completely different person. The girl she saw before her looked more like an animal with bloodlust. Someone who would stop at nothing to watch the life leave Carla's eyes.
Then in one quick moment, Jenny had her pinned against the wall by her throat. She clutched the arm that was holding her there, before raising her foot to kick away her sister by the stomach. Carla dropped to her feet breathing heavily as she held her throat. Jenny gave her no time to gather herself and launched herself at Carla again. This time, however, Carla threw herself to the side, managing to dodge her sister's attack. She turned over to look up at Jenny, still attempting to take in the fact that her sister was trying to kill her. There was no part of her that wanted to go through with this. After all, Jenny and her parents were the ones who took her in. They saved her from a life she could only imagine would leave her craving death. How could she murder her big sister?
Jenny again jumped at Carla, bringing down her scimitar with as much force as she could. As quick as she could, Carla held up her staff to block the attack, keeping the sword just above her face. She stared up at Jenny, who was doing her best to force her way past the staff's defense.
"Jenny- please- please don't do this- I don't wanna hurt you- I don't want you to hurt me- I don't want one of us to lose the other- please stop this-" Carla begged her sister to call off the Duel, terrified of the outcome. Jenny merely raised her scimitar and brought it down even harder. The staff chipped lightly at the rough attack. Carla looked at her sister with wide eyes. In this moment, she realized she wouldn't survive this if she didn't fight back. And as much as she hated it, survival meant taking her sister's life. "Fight or die."
With this thought in mind, Carla swept her sister's feet out from under her and pushed herself to her feet. Jenny caught her balance before lunging back at Carla. Her attack was parried with twin batons, a dual choice weapon deriving from two halves of the staff. Carla kept her focus as she countered every attack her older sister threw at her. The audience was going crazy with excitement as they watched the princesses fight. Carla could hear half of the crowd cheering for her, while the other half were yelling for Jenny to finish her off. Understanding just how serious this duel actually was, Carla wasted absolutely no more time. She began to tag team her armed attacks with hand to hand combat. After every hit with the batons, she would follow up with a punch or kick to any weak spots she knew about on her sister's body. She used every ounce of combat knowledge she'd picked up since living with the Yolaris family. She allowed every bit of her strength to flow into each assault, not giving Jenny the opportunity to block or dodge anything. Several powerful strikes later, Jenny was staggering back attempting to stay on her feet. The dirt mound floor became stained in the blood dripping from Jenny's cranial holes. The crowd bursted out into a combination of jeering and anticipation of the death that was soon to come.
"Come on Princess! There's no way you're letting a little girl defeat you like this!" One man screamed down to the Ring. "Put her in her place Carla: in the ground where she belongs!" Another screamed after. Carla glanced around at the audience before back at her sister, who'd fallen to her knees at her feet. She looked down at her silently, watching the scimitar clatter to the floor. She noticed that Jenny had gotten too weak to move. Then, in unison, the crowd began to chant impatiently.
"End it! End it! End it! End it! End it!"
Over and over, they chanted for the demise of the oldest Yolaris princess. Carla looked at the scimitar then at her sister before picking it up and raising it over her sister's head. In a quiet voice, she said, "Long live the Yolaris'.. I'm sorry Jenny", before driving the sword right down into her sister's head.....

| Back in Yolaris' bedroom |

Yolaris shot up in bed breathing heavily. She looked around wildly then, realizing that she was still in her bedroom, let out a heavy sigh and held herself tightly. It'd been years since she thought about her older sister, let alone dreamt about her. She could feel everything that happened in her dream, which left her in tears. From before the duel started to the moment the sword made contact with Jenny's body. Everything was a very vivid feeling for Yolaris. She couldn't get rid of the sensation, leaving her to just cry against her blanket. For the first time in years, she allowed herself to break. And that's how she stayed for an hour before passing back out.