MONARCH - Discontinued

Chapter 3 - "I already have one!"

Ava inwardly hissed as her leg started to cramp. She has a slight problem in the hip, knee, and ankle. Basically the girl didn't know what happened, but she did something really stupid when she was younger, screwed up her leg, and went a full two months without her family noticing her heavy limping.

She never got it treated, and now she had to pay the consequences. If the girl even stood for a little over half an hour and started walking her knee could buckle. That's why she was limping when the trio had to trudge against crazy terrain, until Sinbad noticed her groaning under her breath.

They stood at the top of a giant drop that they just climbed, and were all panting, and finally Ava's right knee buckled. She hissed in surprise and pain, flailing her arms as she lost balance and landed on her side, the wind knocked out of her.

She sat up, went to stand up only to barely keep in a scream. "Fuck!" Ava winced, Drakon and Sinbad staring at her. "You ok?" Sinbad asked, not moving. "Yeah I just -" Ava threw her head back as is trying to move backwards from something cornering her, clutching knee to her chest and tipping onto her back.

"Ava -" "I'm fine!" Ava hissed at Sinbad glaring at him, her eyes watering painfully as the familiar pang stung her nose, warning her about the tears that were about to follow. Ava's ears were pinned forward instead, the feathers slightly shielding her face and her tail wrapped itself around her injured leg.

         Sinbad stared at her with sympathy, moving forward to kneel next to her while Ava refused to even glance briefly at him, praying he wouldn't see her first tear splatter onto the stone beneath them.

         She jolted in surprise as Sinbad picked her up bridal style and turned to Drakon who stared at the two, Ava with the smallest bit of worry in his eyes. Ava's automatically tail wrapped around Sinbad's leg in surprise.

         "Alright, lets continue," Sinbad exclaimed.

***

         The trio stood at a large doorway of a huge castle, Drakon and Sinbad panting. The purple haired male hadn't let Ava go, even if he had to climb, which Ava felt slightly guilty for.

         Now without having to think about where to place her foot next, Ava couldn't help but wonder about Kerá. She felt guilty, maybe for not dying? He most likely died in Baal, and here Ava was, with two strangers, alive.

         The girl had never been a victim of survivor's guilt, in fact she didn't understand how it worked. Being probably one of the most guilty people in the world, somehow being a survivor didn't strike her as being wrong, even if she had to watch everyone else die or something, it never came to Ava. Nor did it now.

         She didn't feel guilty for living while her brother was dead; it wasn't her fault. And even if there was a strong desire to be with Kerá, it wasn't because she felt obligated to kill herself to join him.

         "You're looking a little pale there," Sinbad teased Drakon, though his voice begged to differ. Drakon glared, "You're the one who's out of breath!" Ava bent her knee slightly, relived that it didn't feel as bad and jumped out of Sinbad's arms out of the blue, the male flinching as she did it.

         Ava landed on her feet, hands on her hips, "Both of you are lookin' pretty up there." Drakon ticked, "Only because you -" Without caring to listen Ava continued, her voice running Drakon's over.

         "Whatever, but I guess you're a little tougher than the spoiled klápse moró you appear to be," Ava grinned, turning to the door as Drakon gawked in anger and confusion, "What -" And Ava opened the doors.