Tests of the Apache

II

A sword arches towards her head, it's deadly edge gleaming with malice. With a small movement, she ducks under the sword's path and extends her arm as she spins away from the weapon, her light brown hair flying. Her movements earn her a small grunt of pain from her opponent as the tip of her sword makes contact with skin. She grins as she turns to face her opponent, her sword poised to deflect the oncoming attack. She easily blocks the attack and counters with one of her own, making another nick in the flesh of the other. She laughs as the sword is thrust at her as an act off annoyance and she easily twists the sword so that it is forced out of her grip.

"I'm to old for this." The woman says as she bends over to pick up the fallen sword. She rights herself with a small grunt pain as her back pops.

"Nonsense, Drena" The youth says, lowering her sword as she steps towards her instructor. "I've just gotten better." She says with teasing smirk.

The older woman chuckles and shakes her head. "Let's get to breakfast. I refuse to fade away because you like to tease me." She says with laughing eyes. The younger girl chuckles and follows her as they walk towards the Great Hall full of the other Apache.

They walk into room that is often dos robed as the jewel of the castle. Her eyes travel up the walls to land on the beauty of the painted ceiling. She stops and looks at the many pictures blended together to create the dome above. Images of angels and goddesses dot the scene of the forest full of mythical creatures that shine with an unearthly glow that makes them appear to be alive. Her eyes flit over the image of galloping horses leaping over logs and running into a clearing with wolves chasing them as a flaming Phoenix flies above them. She follows the path of the herd and a shiver runs down her spine as her eyes land on the glowing eyes of a creature. The blue eyes, full of malice and evil seem to pierce her soul and she quickly adverts her gaze. She quickly shuffles towards the table full of food, trying to ignore the feeling of the creature in the dark still watching her from above.

After filling her plate, she scans the room for the familiar faces of her friends. Spotting the long dark hair of her best friend, she bounces over to the empty place and sits down with a grin on her face. The smooth and gentle voices of her friends greet her and inquire about her training session with the Electrix.

"Alright, alright ladies. Enough small talk." The dark haired beauty says with gleaming eyes and a small smirk. The others nod, falling silent as others move closer to listen to the news. The apparent leader of the group nods to the small blond across from her and the others turn their gazes on the child. "It's alright Kreen. Go ahead and tell us."

The young girl's green eyes widen and she slowly nods, brushing the hair from her face she takes a deep breath and begins.

"As you are all aware, I am an apprentice to the current leader of the Elextri. Last week we went on another trip to try and find a suitable girl that the High Apache would train to become the next queen of Mundi." She pauses, thinking of the words to use to give the most effective report. "Well, we failed to do so and the High Electrix has decided that we shall no longer search beyond the castle walls." She says, her eyes bright. Gasps sound throughout the room and as others receive the news, more bodies press closer to the girl and she begins to shrink away from them. A comforting touch from someone beside her refuels her confidence and she straightens up to continue.

"It has been decided the new queen will come from our current pool of Trainees and will be married to the oldest son of the King instead of the youngest." She informs them and exited whispers erupt in the crowd. "But this is different. The Queen won't be chosen by the Regina or even the King. I'm not sure who it will be chosen by. All I know is that it won't be easy and you won't know when your being tested. Everything you do will be taken in to account and no matter how hard you try, your deepest, darkest secrets will be discovered and brought into the light." She says, ending her report. The hall falls in to a thoughtful silence, each girl imagining being queen. Suddenly a voice rings though the silence.

"Be careful about who you trust, my dears." The smooth voice full of wisdom says to them. "Ambition, greed and spite will turn you again each other. Your secrets will spill from the mouths of your sisters and your deepest fears will come to pass." With those few words the rarely seen Ragina walks out of the room, leaving awestruck girls in her wake. Voices erupt in the hall, trying to figure out the meaning of the Ragina's words. Only one remained silent, watching and listening to the conversations. After a few moments of listening to the senseless chatter, she sighs and walks away with her light brown hair bouncing against her back, completely unaware of the grey eyes watching her receding figure.
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I know it's not very long but I hope you enjoyed it. Enjoying the secret that is our girl's name?

Please share your thoughts a feelings about the story so far. Thanks!!

-K