"A girl," the midwife exclaimed.
She wrapped the child in cloth and brought it to her exhausted mother. She helped Queen Mandana to sit up and placed the bundle in her arms. The queen didn't say a word, just held the child close and looked into its eyes. The birth had been long and arduous, but her pain was not yet over.
A loud crash sounded against the door, and the midwife looked up with wide eyes. Soldiers began to hammer against the locked doors to the chamber. She looked upon the newborn's tiny face and felt pity for her. What a horrible place to be born, to have so short and tragic a life.
But Mandana did not shed a tear.
"Hide," She commanded.
Not daring to disobey, the midwife dashed away to hide amongst the curtains. She watched through the sheer fabric as Queen Mandana, still holding her daughter, stood up onto shaky legs.
She wore a plain white nightgown stained in sweat and blood, her long black hair flowing wildly around her. She adjusted the infant in the crook of her arm and drew her gilded sword.
With a loud splintering sound, the doors burst inward and soldiers came pouring in. There were five of them, all brandishing weapons. They saw the queen standing with her sword, waiting for them, and hesitated. In the space of that second, she was upon them.
With one swipe of her blade, the closest soldier's throat opened ear to ear, and he fell to the ground, choking on his own blood. The other four charged her. Mandana kicked one in the middle of his chest, sending him flying backwards into another. At the same time, she dispatched a third with a sword through his heart. Drops of blood splattered onto the face of the infant tucked into the queen's arm. She did not cry, but watched the battle around her with wide, innocent eyes.
The queen moved like a dancer, killing the remaining attackers with the utmost grace and beauty.
When it was over, Mandana pitched forward, leaning heavily on her sword. Only then did the baby begin to cry. The queen looked down and slowly rocked her back and forth in her arms, making cooing noises to quiet her.
The midwife rushed to the queen's side.
"Highness." Her voice quavered. "It is all for nothing. More will come. What do we do?"
The queen looked back to the child in her arms. She was quiet again, staring into her mother's eyes. Only now did tears begin to run down the queen's face.
She pushed the child into the midwife's arms and turned away, as if she couldn't bear to look at her anymore.
"Take her," Mandana said. She gasped out in pain suddenly, clutching her stomach. Her hand came away covered in blood. "Please. Take her."
The midwife's eyes widened.
"Your Highness- I couldn't-"
"Go!" Mandana bellowed with a flourish of her sword.
The woman clutched the baby close to her chest. She bowed low once, then turned and fled from her dying queen.
Word count: 500
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Writing Contest Prompts
RandomI figured it would make things easier to keep all of my submissions to writing contests in one book. So here it is!
