Chapter 6: A Clash of Wills!!! Part V

Chapter 6: A Clash of Wills!!! Part V

1

Moments before the Hill was contested.

Lissandra ran through the forest, taking another route to Tuvira, one that would have been easily spotted by Squad T’s Scout had Alexis not let loose. It was fairly easy for Lissandra to predict that her best friend would lose control without her there. And maybe it was Ash’s recklessness talking or the fact that their teamwork was abysmal, but Lissandra believed that the only way they could win against Tuvira was to let her Squad’s desires run free.

“You’ve come here alone?” Tuvira asked, sat atop her hill, staring down at Lissandra with eyes of garnet. There was no playfulness in her tone nor a sign of light in her eyes, just the chills of the depths she came from. The real Tuvira that Lissandra had come to know throughout her years. The one that rejected her hand no matter how many times she reached out.

“Yeah, it’s just me and you.” Lissandra put up her fists as her hair blazed to life, turning crimson. “Or did you expect I’d bring someone else for our rematch?”

Tuvira didn’t move from her spot, yet a slight grin formed on her face, and her presence changed, revealing her long blue tail. “Heh. I assume no pact weapons like last time?”

“Of course, not like you’d let me summon Ignis,” Lissandra muttered, getting ready for Tuvira’s assault which, like a hurricane, was unrelenting. Except, this time, Tuvira didn’t move from her spot, opting to continue to sit down with an unmoving gaze.

Something’s off. Why isn’t she attacking? Lissandra thought as the timer was paused, so Tuvira had no reason to play the waiting game, not to mention she wasn’t big on patience to begin with. Not when the Princess of the Kingdom she despised was right in front of her.

“Are you waiting for an invitation?” Tuvira yawned, losing her smile to boredom.

“Excuse me?”

“Did you forget this isn’t a duel? It’s Queen of the Hill. And I’m the Queen, so either you’re coming to dethrone me, or I’ll sit here waiting, watching you with disapproval just like the Queen Mother who didn’t even bother to attend your maiden battle—”

Lissandra’s fist collided with Tuvira’s tail. They both might as well have been made of iron with how just the contact of the two forces sent a shockwave through the hill. Yet neither had any injuries as both princesses had steeled their resolves hearing Dr. Windchaser declare their fight to the arena:

“Hill Contested!”

Tuvira—still sitting down—stared up at Lissandra, whose face contorted in anger as she was stopped by just her tail. But before she could get any ideas, Tuvira’s tail softened, letting Lissandra’s drained momentum carry her forward until she met a tail slap to the face sending her flying to the other side of the hill.

“Is that it?” Tuvira didn’t even bother to turn around as Lissandra stood up with a red mark on her cheek. “Stings, doesn’t it? Except I’m sure, Queen Mother has slapped you harder before—”

This time Lissandra came at Tuvira, slashing with her sharpened nails, which were not like Tekka’s claws as she hadn’t awakened real Dragon claws, but without Ignis, she needed a weapon. Yet not even that helped the Princess of Fire as the Princess of Water was ahead of her in both mind and body, so instead of meeting her “claws” head on Tuvira’s tail wrapped around Lissandra’s arm, slamming her into the dirt.

“Heh, now that’s a good look for you,” Tuvira said, finally standing up only because she wanted to see her handiwork. A Princess of Fire eating the dirt at her feet. Who would have thought that day would come? If only the monitors were on so that the entire student body could see their roles reversed. And that’s when a monstrous idea popped into Tuvira’s mind as she removed her tail from Lissandra, whose eyes still burned with fury while she struggled to stand.

“You know what I just realized. There’s a reason the Queen Mother chose not to attend. She probably didn’t want to see me embarrass you. Because Today I’ll not only get Ash, but I’ll show the entire Academy that the Royal family is nothing but a joke—”

Lissandra sent a kick aimed to knock Tuvira down for her insolence, yet that too was blocked by her tail that wrapped around Lissandra’s leg. Like being able to breathe fire, a dragon’s tail was their primary source of power used to obliterate cities, crush cars, and sweep through tanks. It helped keep the dragon balanced, but it also worked as a surprise attack with its versatility.

Therefore, Tuvira being blessed with its power proved that as Prukis’s descendant, she was a prodigy that learned how to connect the constellation within herself. That she had matured enough to bond with the silent Prukis who never answered their descendant’s call. All while Delakai refused to speak to Lissandra. Where every time she tried to connect another one of her inner stars, she felt Delakai’s disapproval. As if to say she wasn’t ready.

But Lissandra was ready as she gripped Tuvira’s tail with her leg, using the fact that no matter what, they were Human before they were Dragons. Where a dragon’s tail was strong, it could never compete with something that carried the weight of an entire body all day long.

And with that came the satisfying sound of Tuvira getting the taste of her own medicine as Lissandra hoisted her up then kicked her into the ground. The crunch of bone sang a chorus alongside the crater that formed under her as Lissandra finally smiled once Tuvira’s tail went limp, allowing her to be freed from its grasp.

“Hear me and hear me well. I will never ever, under no circumstances, allow you or even myself to tarnish the Starlight name. You got that Tuvira Moonstar!”

Setting the ground around her ablaze, Lissandra was finally able to produce excess heat outside of the amount she used to nullify Tuvira’s control over the water in her body. And yes, while the entire fight happening on the outside was present, there was also an internal struggle of water versus fire that occurred within Lissandra in order to keep herself moving under Tuvira’s pressure.

“Heh. Heh. Hehe. Hehehehehe. You finally said my name… Lizzie…. You see me as an equal, don’t you?” Tuvira slowly got to her hands and feet, where it should have been a painful experience to move or even talk—

“But you’re wrong. We aren’t equals. Nor am I below you.”

—Tuvira instead placed more strain on them as she flicked off her cloak with her tail. It had become too cumbersome, especially when Typhon wanted to be let out, but rules were rules, so she decided to let some of the terror she held within leak out.

“It is you who is the prey. While I am the predator.” Tuvira gave Lissandra a crazed smile of a monster with garnet eyes that showed she didn’t even need to call upon Typhon to gain some of its beast-like power as she flicked her tail while being on all fours.

“Not a speck of blood. Self-healing really is wyvernshit.” Lissandra spat as Tuvira appeared above her, roaring the word:

“Lizzie!”

2

Lissandra was already on the back foot before, but now what would she even call it as it was just a game of cat and mouse. Tuvira slashed at Lissandra, always pulling back before the last moment as she only wanted to break skin. And each time she was cut, Lissandra would sear the wounds shut, pushing her body forward to try and match Tuvira’s ferocity.

Only to be shown the error in her ways as Tuvira juked around Lissandra, getting close enough for her tail to slither around the Princess of Fire’s neck. There she’d tighten enough to lift her off the ground where the helpless prey could only claw with futility as Tuvira threw her away like garbage. Yet a shark would never let a tasty morsel escape their jaws, and Tuvira wasn’t done playing as she lunged at Lissandra with her jaws chomping down on her leg just to drag her back down.

Lissandra didn’t scream no she was much too prideful to do that, yet Tuvira didn’t need that, for she tasted the terror in her blood as she licked her lips then saw it on her face when another announcement was made:

“Squad S’s Specialist: Alexis Sparkfang has been eliminated and returned to Drakos.”

“The timer has been resumed, and you may continue the game.”

“Squad T’s Specialist: Taniss Sparkclaw has been eliminated and returned to Drakos.”

And with the monitors back on Tuvira stood up, having healed Lissandra’s wounds as she wanted them all to see her lose from peak condition to a mere hostage.

“C’mon Lizzie, you should smile. The Academy is watching.” Tuvira said, giggling to herself as Lissandra, though her wounds were healed, found it hard to stand up. “Please Lizzie. I don’t bite that hard, ya know.”

Seeing Lissandra still stuck in her stupor, Tuvira’s voice became cold. “Or do you want to start groveling now?”

That was enough to jolt Lissandra back to her senses as she slowly got to her feet, taking note of how the crowd awed at the fact that from their viewpoint, Lissandra was standing tall uninjured, while contesting the hill. Meanwhile, Tuvira was covered in dirt and grime from her erratic movements. A poor peasant against the Queen’s daughter was the image that formed in their mind a superior mirage concocted by the Princess of Water, who was tired of waiting for her prince to free her.

“That’s better. Now are you ready to—”

“Purify My Foes, Ignis!” Lissandra screamed at the top of her lungs for her companion to come from her chest, yet nothing happened. Tuvira didn’t even try to stop her as she very well could control her body as the only thing on fire was Lissandra's hair. Which was slowly losing its red hue.

“Purify my foes, Ignis!” Lissandra tried again

Beating her chest, Lissandra tried again, “Purify my foes. Ignis.”

“Ignis, purify my foes… please.” Lissandra dug her nails into the tattoo on her chest. “Ignis, I know you’re there… so why won’t you answer me….”

“Pffft—Bwahahaha! Imagine your own pact weapon deciding they didn’t want to be a part of your humiliation. Oh boy, this is better than I expected—”

“Why…”

“What did you say? Speak up so that everyone can hear you!”

“Why do you hate me so much! What did I ever do to you? I have always tried to be your friend, so why?” Lissandra said as her eyes began to tear up, only to stop.

“Don’t you dare cry,” Tuvira said, finally taking control over Lissandra’s body. “Why do I hate you? Do I need a reason to? When your family took me away from the only home I’ve ever known! Before I could even make a friend, I was whisked away to this hell hole. So of course I’m going to despise you and everything you stand for. Now kneel.”

Lissandra felt her body lower, yet for some reason hearing Tuvira finally say what she already knew was the cause for her hate lit a spark within her that stood atop the ashes. “But that’s not my fault. I didn’t ask for you to be here. I would never have ordered something so cruel—”

“Yes you would! This has been going on for generations. You can’t just break that. And who are you to lecture me! When you hate Ash for being Human!”

“I-I—”

“Zip it! I don’t want to hear any more of your lies, Princess of Fire. Just get on your knees and grovel at my feet—”

“Tuvira!!! Your Prince is here!”

Tuvira looked up, hearing something she didn’t think she’d ever hear in her life. Ash’s voice saying the words that he was her prince. It was enough for her heart to skip a beat as their eyes met. Her ruby to his amethyst, and then the words left her lips before they collided:

“My Prince.”