A Pawn and the Queen on a Losing Game

I heard they had no plans to let her eat. And I think they didn't really feed her.

We were again in the room, looking at our weak traitor on the center. She is not wearing the same shirt. She is currently sporting a black oversized shirt and she is cautiously looking at the faces surrounding her. She was already not in a good state because of yesterday so I am concerned about how she will face her second day.

Since she cannot use her right hand properly because of her shoulder, it took her a lot of time to unproperly tie her hair using her left hand. As soon as she was done, she confidently lifted her chin up to the quadruplets who toyed with her yesterday. I saw her smile mockingly at them and I can sense how that irritated the four.

That was not a good attitude for someone who has no one to call out now. I can't even see any of her friends here.

I heard a loud sound from the room's speaker, signaling for the punishment to start again. I then placed the glass of wine Darius gave me earlier beside me. He is up on a chill drinking session for a 9 am time. I did a little sip on it but after that, I am done.

I can't get drunk in a serious situation. Especially because the last time I did, something unnecessary happened.

Nicky, the youngest of the quadruplets immediately entered the center but she still didn't move to attack. I also noticed someone lazily walking in too, Landon. Because of his slow pace in walking, another woman neared Beatriz first.

Nicky was best together with her sisters but she is also strong alone. Due to her temper, she tends to act abruptly than her three sisters because she is easily bored with long tortures.

Landon is a fast combat killer. His name in the mafia grows popular when he twisted the neck of a notorious personality on the mafia's list after a minute of interacting with him. He is three years older than me and I remember him as one of those who confessed attraction to me the moment I step into the mansion after a long while of being gone.

Carrie mastered her knife and other weapons related to stabbing in her early years. And she was known for being brutal on every mission assigned to her. I can even see her set of sharp knives hanging on her waist from here. It is so bright that it cannot be hidden and I feel like she is intentionally flexing them.

This is what I am concerned about.

She can't face calibrated assassins all at once. She'll end up closing those expressive eyes.

Luther is authoritatively standing in the middle of the cemented stairs, with Rene on his side. They are on the adjacent side of where I am. He is seriously watching at the center and as usual, I do not have any idea what is on his mind. Rene found my eyes and he threw me inquisitive eyes which I responded with an expressionless facade.

I tore my eyes from them when I noticed a fast movement in the center. Nicky said something on her before trying to throw a punch on Beatriz's stomach but the blonde did a fast defense, moving away from it, kicking her hard on the stomach.

I guess the early mocking fueled her air.

Landon is still on his way towards her so it was Carrie who attacked her next. She tripped Beatriz, making Nicky see another opportunity to strike again. She awarded Beatriz a hard pull on the hair while Carrie pulled out a knife to stab her in the stomach.

Blood.

She is painting the ground with her blood.

Despite the stab, I saw how Beatriz used Carrie's closeness to her to also pull a knife on Carrie's waist, intensely digging it on Nicky's right shoulder.

Nicky freed her hair and moved away from her because of that. The blonde is also swift to put a force on her left hand despite her bleeding stomach, to punch Carrie on the chest hard, making her step back too. She is again to hit her but Landon was fast to capture her hand, making her drop the knife. He abruptly pushed her hard on the floor making her shoulder ache more, add up the new pain in her back and the bleeding stomach.

Carrie strided fast to stab the aching blonde on the floor but the blonde rolled fast even if it caused more discomfort on her body. Irritated, I saw Carrie pull another knife, and for the second time, she successfully stabbed it on Beatriz's aching shoulder. My eyes shaded dark when Beatriz shouted on the ground, curling in pain.

Now she got a stab on her stomach and her yesterday's wounded shoulder.

And no one wanted to side with her.

My eyes moved to Landon and I saw him getting bored immediately. He walked a bit far from the women, sitting on the ground. I glanced at Luther and saw him very engaged at the show.

Nicky picked up the fallen knife and proceeded to stab it on Beatriz's left arm too. I waited for someone to interfere but the man stayed in his position so I have to stride fast to close the distance the quickest I can, snatching a sword on the way.

Today, I am on the second row so it was faster for me to get there. I pushed and elbowed Carrie hard on the stomach to stop her from stabbing the defenseless woman. I grabbed Nicky and positioned myself on her back as I place the long sword on her neck.

This is a fool move to make but whatever now!

I can't just watch someone getting stabbed continuously on the ground! Alone for that matter! With no one to depend on!

Not when I am watching and believing she is innocent even with all the damn bullshit evidences!

Between my breaths, I can feel everybody noting my impulsive behavior. Nicky's sisters turned sinister at me. They are already standing in their respective seats. Ready to meddle too in a snap.

"No one aside from me has the power to kill this traitor." I swore like a lion inside a cage that's full of defenseless humans.

I cannot believe that I am indeed risking my only life for a gut feeling. For this woman who challenged me on my first week at the center. For this woman who only knows to roll her eyes on me.

Carrie and Nicky's fiery glare pierced on me while Landon's bored eyes grew interested at my meddling, but still remained on his seat. I waited for them to move in front of me or even beside me but Luther's authoritative voice echoed on the place.

"Why is the reaper interrupting the show?"

"I said not until I was done with her!"

He eyed me intensely at my shouting. "Shout at me once more and I would order all of them here to bring me your disrespectful tongue."

I smirked at the bitterness his words brought me. I threw my sword away from me to spice up his challenge. "Go on."

I am getting rash. This is suicide.

I saw Rene whispered something to him but he shakes his head to him. He then firmly stated something that could cost my life after.

"Continue the assassination even with the reaper. Let's see if we will be burying two bodies this night,"

There goes my father everyone! He is always offering me death!

Tell me why I shouldn't loathe him.

I freed Nicky on my hold so she could also try attacking me too. It's been long since I had a face-to-face fight like this with assassins. I guess it's time to apply what I learned with Rene.

I am sure I am not the one to die.

Instantly, 6 eyes are focused on me. I walked cautiously to pick up the sword. I renewed my hold on it, analyzing my situation. Instead of looking at their eyes, I guarded myself by monitoring every little movement they are doing through my peripheral view. Reading where and when it would take them to attack me.

I moved the sword again when the two decided to circle me. I kicked a knife away from the blonde's bleeding body on the floor. Making sure no one can afford to stab her again, at least not in my guard.

"That's what you get for siding too much on the traitor," Carrie valiantly remarked.

"Sorry to break the ice but I am just really up for an exciting fight."

"I do not believe you,"

I believe in myself so I do not need anyone to believe in me. I didn't make an effort to explain more of why I am doing it. Who is she in the first place?

Just a cuckoo head passerby on my life.

"Then don't. Shut the reeking mouth."

Pissed at that, she rotated her knife to a sharper side and lunge to attack me on the face. I am supposed to move backward to dodge the knife but Nicky is already at my back with a knife towards me too. So what I did is before they reach me, I moved to reach them. Before they can hurt me, I would hurt them first.

I flipped the sword. I used the sharp blade as my handle and used the actual handle to hit it savagely on her fist, even when I felt the blade draw blood on my palm. I do not want to see a detached hand on the floor right now. I'm not in the mood for cannibal.

I wisely used seconds of my time to turn and smack Nicky's knife on her hold. Because my long sword has a longer reach than her little knife, I attacked her first before she can even attack me.

As soon as it fell, I monitored the moving Carrie on my front. Together with my sword, I bended, seeing the whole of her shiny pointed knife above me. When the momentum got me, I closed my eyes to do a critical kick on her face.

Carrie's hand flew to her face while Nicky soothes her fist by covering it with the other.

Carrie harshly wiped her bleeding nose, determined to take revenge. My breathing tensed, because instead of attacking me, she suddenly ran fast to Beatriz's position, stabbing another one on her stomach. Seeing my expression, Nicky blocked my way to them but I am already seeing red so I reacted faster to grab her by the neck.

You dare withstand me?

My hand tightened on it as I carried her up. The angst to finish her flooded my vision with darkness. You are just one worthless meddling bitch. During it, craning my neck, a wicked smile is what I directed at Carrie... and the blood on her hands. I suddenly wanted to shed more of her blood than the blood she made Beatriz lose. I am livid and no one can stop me now.

Carrie should perish.

"Aesha Roxinne Flinn." a low and dark voice silenced the closed room.

That is when I was slightly pulled back to the reality my darkness covered me from. That is when I saw Nicky's three sisters agitatedly running towards me. Everyone, including Carrie, stopped, but my shaking yet firm hand on Nicky's neck is insatiable. It would only tighten more.

I roamed my eyes to find the man owning the voice and I saw him in between Vienne and Rex, intensely and violently looking at me.

A shadow moves on my side and Landon is suddenly beside me, grabbing my hand with extreme force, off the dying woman. I let go, seeing a better subject to play with. She didn't fall hard on the ground though because her sisters is already there to catch her.

Unsated and mischievous it only took me seconds to escape my captor's hand and do an almost grope on Carrie's neck, not until someone's body clashed with mine.

"Why don't you stare deeper into my eyes," a vitriolic sound escaped me, and hearing it made my leer wider.

"Cause it is where my demons hide,"

My chest heaved up and down when I realized my darkness has taken a toll on me again. My hand is already down but it is still shaking on Landon's hold. My eyes flew to Carrie and I saw her lips part as she stared at me.

"You gotta have a reason for this," he said, holding me firmly as I rebel on his hold.

Carrie should fucking die. I do not need a reason for it.

I diverted my fierce eyes to Landon to charge at him but before I could even fully do it, I am pulled savagely on another person's chest.

The moment his scent filled my nose is exactly the same time he wrapped his arms around mine, possessing it and taming it up.

"What are you doing?"

His intent voice startled all the darkness caving inside me. I inhaled and exhaled on his hold, eyes wandering on the audience's disturbed expressions. My eyes flew to the pale Nicky on the ground and that is when it all sink to me.

I am again uncontrollable…

Where is German? Who brought me back?

I lifted my eyes on Luther and saw his considerate eyes laid on me. No… it's not him. Even after all these years, it is my first time seeing those orbs reflect emotions while looking at me…it is not him.

Rene's ready-to-attend stance brushed my soul, but not him…not them.

The arms around me tighten and that is when I lifted up my eyes to the person who has calmed my demon aside from German. He is savagely beaming on every part.

"What happened?" his eyes intently trailed the palm I used to choke the woman, the same one who gripped on the blade's handle.

Nervous, I withdrew my hand on his hold, locking it on the side of my legs.

"Remus." Luther's dark voice boomed. "Take your hands off the reaper,"

Remus's jaw clenched at the command, and I can sense extreme resistance to it.

Not waiting for him to loosen his hold on me, I bumped his chest and forcedly removed his arms on me, leaving a trace of my blood on them. I proceeded to walk near the blonde. Once again, I wander my eyes to find Deither, but he is really just watching everything happen.

She is fucking dying.

I clenched my jaw and used all of my strength to carry her. I fixed my hold on her and carried her the proper way, with her wounded body on comfort. I continued walking away leaving all of them. Few more walk and I came face to face with Jonas and Trey who are standing on the sides of the door. I undisturbedly passed through them with Beatriz on my hold.

"Where are you taking her?" Trey's cautious voice halted my steps for a while.

I threw him a jarring glance when I realized he also do not have the balls to interfere for this woman earlier.

"Shut up."

Women do not need men to live.

We can survive on our own.

The door opened and I continued walking on the silent dungeon, casting darkness on the way.