The Beginning of Lexa

5

The afternoon sun glared down upon the circle. The crowd shifted uneasily as they stared at the last two officiates. Blue eyes met green. Their muscles were tense, ready to react any second. Their blades were held up in their usual stance, reflecting the glare of the sun. 

Lexa stared into Monto's eyes, her face blank of any emotions. Her mind was clear and focused on the boy in front of her. The black goo on her face helped to reduce the glare of the sun significantly while the other boy had to squint slightly just to look at her. 

"ARRRRRGH!" Lexa yelled and charge forward. Her feet flew forward, closing the gap between her and the boy in a matter of seconds. Her blade connected with his with a sharp PING and slid down the smooth blade monto held. In a flash, Monto moved from defensive to aggressive. Holding their swords with their dominant hands, they attacked. Lexa moved one foot in front of the other as she attacked Monto with a series of combinations that Anya made her mastered when she first became her second. 

With a spin, the brunette flicked her sword towards the sky, trying to hit the boy in below the chin. The boy swiftly dodged the stroke and brought his blade down onto Lexa whom met the blade with her own. Grooves at the base of their swords stopped their blades from skidding. It is a matter of strength now.

Lexa scrunched up her face in an effort to meet the boy's push. However, the fact still remains that the boy was simply stronger than her. Adding on to the height difference and age gap, the odds were not in her favour. Her boots skidded slightly on the small rocks that littered the ground they stood upon and Monto leaned above her, pushing her down with all his might.

The crowd gasps as they gazed upon what they assumed was the end of the conclave. However, the stubborn section of Lexa's head refused to give up. She reached up her free hand and grabbed hold of the blade pushing her down. The metal cut into her skin, so deep that it met bone. Fueled by adrenaline, Lexa barely felt a sting. Blood dripped from the large gash in her palm but she ignored it. With a growl, she pushed the boy away and straightened. Monto recovered quickly and swung his sword at Lexa who ducked beneath it, however she was not fast enough to dodge the next few attacks.

Monto grabbed hold of her hand as she straightened and used his sword to knock her to the ground. On all fours now, Lexa tried to hit the boy back with her sword. The boy merely grabbed hold of her hand and neck, forced her sword arm down and kicked the blade away, out of her reach. Left defenceless, Lexa could feel her heart thumping in her throat and survival instinct kicked in. She folded her arm together and spun. Using the momentum, she drove her elbows forcefully into the boy's knee and when he bent over trying to recover his balance, she kicked up with her knee against his jaw. She felt blood spray against the front of her armour as he bit the tip of his tongue off.

 The boy fell back onto the ground and watched helplessly as Lexa grabbed both his and her sword off the floor and casually spun it in her hand. He scrambled to his feet, desperately putting some distance between her and the girl, his eyes flitting desperately around the ground for another weapon. His eyes connected with the spear a nearby guard held and he snatched it out of the guard's hands. Just then, Lexa charged forward bringing both blades into a series of vicious combination that Monto could barely block effectively. He stumbled backwards as he met the blades with the stick of his spear. When the onslaught paused for a second, he took the chance and swung his spear up, hitting the girl's palms one by one, effectively disarming her. 

With a swift kick to the girl's chest, he knocked the girl onto the ground. Lexa laid splayed on the floor, her eyes connecting with the boy's as she awaited her death. She watched the boy approach her with the sharp end of the spear aimed at her chest. She watched as the boy hesitated, unable to kill her for that one second. She watched as he raise the spear and drove it towards her head. 

At the last possible second, Lexa ducked out of the way and kicked the boy at the back of the leg causing him to fall to the ground once again. She did a quick cartwheel to get out of the way as the boy jumped to his feet and tried to attack her with the spear again. Barely ducking the next few attacks, Lexa waited for her chance and grabbed the spear out of the boy's hands and smashed her other fist across his face. 

The boy now laid in the position she found herself in barely 5 seconds ago. She confidently place one foot in front of the other and looked upon the boy while flipping the spear in her hand. 

"Yu gonplei stei odon.I swear I will be the best Heda I can. for the sake of all of us." She whispered to the boy and watched him nod his head with a smile. Then she drove the spear home. Right through his chest. Into the centre of his heart. Blood covered the ground of the circle. Each of the 9 officiates, with the exception of Luna, had their own stain on the concrete floor. 

Lexa retracts the spear from the boy's chest and dropped it to the floor. She turned to Titus who looked upon her proudly.

"Lexa kombucha trikru has won the conclave. She has defeated 7 of the officiates, emerging victorious. By the end of tonight, we will have a new Heda." Titus announced and raised Lexa's hand in his to show the people in the market that she won the conclave. 

"Go bak to your room, we will prepare you for the Ascension ceremony in a few moment." Titus commanded her and she nodded. She picked up her sword from the ground and walked away, not giving Monto's body a second glance. No she would not be able to survive that. A healer followed behind her as she entered her room. 

The brunette settled on the small sofa at the foot of her bed and nodded her head when the healer asked for permission to take care of her hand. She simply stared into space as the older woman cleaned her hand. She barely winced as a heated knife was pressed against her flesh to seal the gash together, stopping the bleeding. She waited patiently as her hand was bandaged in a white cloth and thanked the woman for her help when she finally left. 

Lexa dropped her head into her hands. She was no longer able to hold back the dam, and a waterfall of tears just ran down her face. Her family was gone. She had never felt this lonely. There now lay and emptiness in her heart where her family once occupied. Her brothers and sisters, all of whom, she had a hand in killing. She felt the regret clawing at her inside out. She had won. So why does it feel like she lost everything?

Tears dripped onto the fur that lay as a carpet beneath her as Lexa let go completely. The battle had ended, and now she was able to mourn for the death of her comrades. Her family. Memories of them training together flitted through her mind. Of them chasing one another though the thick forest, trying to outrun the other. Competing to see who is able to climb the tallest tree the fastest. Their squeals echoed through her mind as they first held their swords. Their screams of excitement as Lexa finally managed to knock down the late Heda.

So caught up in her grieving, Lexa did not hear the door to her room open as a woman of a darker skin tone entered cautiously.

"Leksa, I am here to prepare you for the Ascension Cere-" The musical voice stopped whatever she was trying to say as brown eyes focused on the sobbing mess on the sofa. 

The girl closed the door behind her as she headed to the warrior who had won the conclave. Her fingers wrapped around Lexa' s hand as she coaxed them away from the warrior's face. The black goo completely smudged.

"It is going toe okay Leksa." The girl smiled softly. 

"How do you know that?" Lexa sniffed slightly, too tired to be embarrassed at the mess she is.

"Costia knows."  was all the girl responded as she used a towel to wipe the tears off of the warrior's face.

Lexa frowned slightly at the girl. She had bright brown eyes that seemed to shine brightly, complementary to her skin tone. Her hair was black and sleek, flowing in soft waves down her back. The way the girl looked at her softly, as though she was a fragile piece of vase and not a warrior who had killed 7 of her family members directly and indirectly, made Lexa feel a warmth beneath her skin.

"Costia is your name?" Lexa asked. 

"Sha. And Lexa is yours." The girl smiled kindly as she stood up.