She felt GOOD.
Adrenaline pumping, heart thumping, muscles tight and ready for action at a moment's notice. Her brain was going faster than a skimmer with twenty Nitro Crystals pumped into it. Her eyes darted from one side of the playing field to the other.
This was just a game to her. A silly whim that she could manipulate and twist around her little finger. This was real fun.
The Raptor didn't have a chance.
He lunged too fast, misjudged her distance, and dashed right over her head. She wheeled around, shot a blast of blue at him, and watched him fly into the wall, trailing blood as he skidded to the ground. She didn't even have to try.
A spatter of applause from the stands. She looked up to see Dark Ace, smiling appreciatively.
"Nice, very nice. Maybe you should..."
"Wake him up?" She walked over to the Raptor, flipped her staff around, and shot him with the other crystal. His green and scaly eyelids fluttered open, revealing the slitted pupils and yellow eyes. He snarled in a good natured manner, (didn't really have a choice, seeing as she could blast him again,) before turning around and leaving the arena, tail flicking behind him.
"I love it when the Raptors pay us a visit."
"Bogaton is a strong ally," Dark Ace mused. "And yet it's so much fun beating those lizards up."
"Come down, we'll fight. You still haven't sparred with me yet." She was breathless and exhilarated; her cheeks glowed a rosy red. He'd never seen her this thrilled before, not even in her lab. Fighting was a second nature to her. He shook his head no.
"I'm just here to deliver you a message."
"And that would be...?"
"Your father requests your presence in the throne room."
She froze. Her smile was wiped clean and her cheeks turned deathly pale again. He regretted saying it; jumped over the partition and into the ring.
"I'm sure it's nothing," he said, trying to reassure her, but not succeeding. "I'm sure it's just..." He's out of ideas.
"Well, can't hold it off forever." She handed him her staff and trotted out the door. He glanced at the weapon, then dashed after her, feet skidding on the newly waxed floors. He almost crashed into a wall.
"Lark, wait!"
She stopped all of a sudden. In order to avoid colliding with her, he turned and slammed into a light fixture. She laughed, hands placed on her slim hips. He pulled himself up off the ground, dignity torn into shreds. Let loose a small growl, but she didn't back down in the slightest.
"That wasn't funny," he hissed.
"Yes it was." She watched him dust himself off. "What was it you wanted?"
"I'm coming with you. He never said you had to go in there alone. If he tries something-"
"Dark Ace...No."
"I just want to make sure."
"No."
"I don't care if you blast me, I'm going in there if I have to drag myself, piece by piece, through the door." He grabbed her by the shoulders and steered her towards the door. "Now, MARCH." She rolled her eyes but complied. He handed her staff back to her, and she flicked it in his direction several times, but he didn't even flinch. She realized he was actually serious.
"You're suicidal," she remarked.
"Probably."
The black doors slid open. The throne room was silent, silent as death. Dust bunnies made more noise. Ravens made of metal lined the aisle that led to the dark throne. Red, low grade Firebolts provided lighting. Flags that bore the crimson emblem of Cyclonia, a raven twisting itself into striking position, hung from the ceiling in seemingly endless hordes. And sitting on the dais, smack in the middle of the room, was Master Cyclonis himself.
He and Lark bore little resemblance, save the black hair and constantly furrowed brow. He was tall and well built, whereas she was small and light. His eyes glowed like dying embers, changing with the light. Sometimes gold, sometimes red, sometimes a blazing orange. Hers remained dim and dark, emotions hidden behind the cloud of violet. Only when she was angry did the spark inside her ignite, and her eyes would flash red.
He beckoned them both, raised an eyebrow at Dark Ace but didn't dismiss the man. Even though he was getting older and more sickly, Master Cyclonis commanded respect with his presence alone, something Lark had inherited and put to use at a young age.
She curtsied, Dark Ace bowed. Her eyes stayed fixed on the ground. Her father spoke.
"Do you know why I've called you here?"
"No, sir."
He laughed, a hiss that sounded like a snake, readying for the kill. "We all know I won't last much longer."
I hope not, she thought bitterly. Her mouth, however, remained shut. Her father continued.
"When the dreadfully unfortunate event of my death falls upon us, you shall take the throne."
"Yes, sir."
"And when you do, I want you to terminate your friendship with the General."
At this point, Dark Ace snapped his head up and glared with a surprising intensity at his master. You could almost hear his teeth grinding against each other. Lark, however, remained stoic as always, her impeccable sense of self control keeping her emotions locked up.
"Y-yes, Sir."
"Don't think I haven't noticed you two. Childhood is childhood, and I appreciate the times when he's done for you the things I can't."
Yes, you never could find time for your little girl, could you? The disappointment of your life; you don't want a FEMALE on the throne, she thought, mind racing.
"Of course, sir," she muttered.
"But there will come a time when you shall be his master, and he shall become your servant. I'm telling you now so that you won't have to break it off...too suddenly. That's all, really."
Was it sympathy she saw in his eyes? Regret?
"Oh, and Dark Ace..." The Master waggled an eyebrow. "Watch your step, man. You know what I mean, I'm sure. Dismissed, the both of you."
And as they left, a dark chuckle followed them out, a haunting reminder of what just happened.
"We knew this would happen," she muttered to her friend. "We knew, we knew, we knew."
"But not this SOON!" He sighed. "This is stupid."
"The hell it is. It's reasonable. I'd be liable to play favorites, to get connected. And what if you died? You could die, Dark Ace. You're not immortal. I can't let my feelings get in the way of...of..."
"Ruling an empire, I know. You sound like HIM."
She watched something that looked like sorrow inside her friend's eyes, and regretted her words. The truth hurt. You build your walls out of lies and half baked facts. But there will come a time when a brick, a lie, crumbles to dust, and when you replace it with a truth, the foundation is no longer there, and your walls go tumbling down. The walls are Life, and the bricks are all the moments, the laughter, she's ever shared with the only friend she's ever had.
"Dark Ace?"
"Yes, Lark?"
"I'm sorry."