CHAPTER 3: DISPOSABLE DECLARED
1346 Words
CHAPTER 3: DISPOSABLE DECLARED
POV: Mira Vale
"Bring her to me."
The words hit the water like a knife, clean and sharp, sending ripples all over the place.
My opponent stops moving, but his hand is still around my throat. The pressure lets up just enough for me to breathe. I drag in raw, burning air, and the sound makes me feel bad. I don't like that they can hear it.
The crowd starts to move. Whispers break out like sparks.
Finally, the guard steps forward and puts his hand on my opponent's arm. "Let her go."
He does it, but not happily. I trip and my knees give out. The guard stops me before I hit the stone again. His grip is strong but careful. It's the first gentle touch I've felt all day.
As I'm pulled up, my vision swims. My whole body hurts. My ribs hurt. My throat hurts where fingers pressed too hard. Blood drips down my chin and makes a dark splash on the floor.
I still raise my head.
Kael is now standing at the railing and looking down at me. Not with worry. Not with cruelty. With space.
"Escort her," he says.
Not help her.
Escort.
The guard nods and starts to pull me toward the edge of the ring.
"That won't be needed."
The voice comes from the council bench. It is smooth, older, and practiced. The head councilor stands up slowly, with his hands in front of him like he's about to teach a lesson, not give a sentence.
Kael stays still.
The guard thinks for a second.
The council member looks at Kael, then back at me. His eyes move over my blood, my shaking legs, and my ripped uniform.
He says, "The trial is over." His voice carries well and fills the whole arena. "Result: The subject who was not ranked shows endurance but not strength."
People in the crowd stop talking.
"Conclusion," he goes on, "is weak."
The word hits harder than any blow.
A low murmur spreads through the crowd. Weak. It's not just an insult here. It's a type. A label that stays on.
I feel it settle on me like a scar on my skin.
Kael's jaw gets tight. Just a little bit.
The councilor raises his hand again. "Because of this, she does not qualify for Academy protection."
My heart skips a beat.
Without thinking, the guard's grip on my arm gets tighter, as if he already knows what that means.
The councilor says calmly, "Protection is withdrawn."
The words ring out.
Withdrawn.
A ripple goes through the crowd. This time, it's not surprise, but excitement. Interest turned into hunger.
I know the rules. Everyone does.
Students who aren't protected don't get escorts. Don't book rooms close to the center. Don't hire guards to walk around after dark.
They get corners.
They get dark spots.
People hunt them.
Kael moves forward. "She made it through the trial."
The councilor agrees with a smile, "So she did." "Just staying alive doesn't make you safe."
Kael looks over at me. We look at each other again. For a heartbeat, something that can't be read crosses his face.
Then it's all gone.
He looks back at the council.
"He says, "Then she's done here. Let her go."
The councilor grins. "No, not at all. Her presence has done what it was meant to do.
That doesn't sound good to me.
The guard lets go, not sure what to do. He can't touch me anymore without protection.
I sway and can barely stand up.
The councilor reads my name from a slate like it's a footnote: "Unranked Mira Vale." "You are now dismissed from the ring."
Dismissed.
Not healed. Not escorted. Not spared.
Dismissed into the open.
Someone in the stands lets out a sharp laugh.
My opponent steps back and rolls his shoulder, bored with me already. He has finished his work.
Again, I look at the balcony.
Rian's face is tense, and his eyes are sharp. Luca's hands are white on the railing. Silas looks at me like I'm a loose thread that he hasn't decided to pull yet.
Kael's face stays the same.
The guard moves away from me.
The absence is immediate.
Very cold.
I walk slowly to the door by myself. Every step sends pain through my side. The tunnel that goes out of the arena seems longer than it used to. More dark.
I hear whispers following me.
"Did you see her?"
"She didn't break."
"Doesn't matter."
"Unprotected."
That last word is like a curse that follows me.
I get three steps away from the ring before my knees give out.
I catch myself on the wall, breathing quickly and shallowly. The stone feels rough in my hand. My vision gets smaller again.
I won't fall here.
I won't.
A shadow comes over me.
I flinch, thinking another hit is coming.
But it's Luca.
He moved quickly, down from the balcony and across the floor, not caring what people thought. He stops too close, and his presence is loud and scary.
"Easy," he says softly as he reaches out.
A sharp voice cuts in before he can touch me.
"Don't."
Rian steps in between us, calm but firm. His hand grabs Luca's wrist in the air.
Rian says softly, "You touch her now, and you mark her."
Luca's jaw gets tight. "She's already marked."
"Not like that."
I slid down the wall and ended up sitting on the stone. I don't care what it looks like anymore. My head is spinning. The pain is too bad.
Silas is the last person to show up, and he is quiet as usual. He crouches in front of me, his eyes wide open, taking it all in.
He says quietly, "Your survival window just closed," so only I can hear.
I feel a chill.
"What?" I say it softly.
He looks at the council, then back at me. "They won't kill you in public now."
That doesn't make me feel better.
"They'll wait."
Rian stands up straight. "This isn't the right place."
Silas agrees, "No." "It's worse."
Luca growls under his breath. "Say the word, Kael."
We all look up.
Kael is standing a short distance away, watching us like pieces on a game board. The arena is quiet again, and everyone can feel that something is about to change.
For a second, I think—stupidly—that he might help. That he could change this.
He talks to the council instead.
"She leaves," Kael says. "Now."
The councilor tilts his head. "As you wish. She is free to go.”.
Free.
The word doesn't sound right.
Kael looks at me one last time. There is something hard there. Something was fixed.
"Clear the floor," he says.
Guards come in, but not toward me. They go toward the crowd and push them back, making room. Not for my own good.
To control the spectacle.
Rian gets closer and lowers his voice. "Mira. They'll follow you if you leave alone.
"I know," I say.
Luca curses. "Then don't go out by yourself."
Silas's eyes get sharper. "Be careful."
I push myself up. Every part of me tells me to hold on to something or someone.
I don't.
I stand up straight, wipe the blood from my mouth with the back of my hand, and look at Kael.
“You’re letting them,” I say. My voice is hoarse but steady.
He doesn’t deny it.
He says, "You survived." "That's more than most."
It's not an apology.
It isn't a promise.
It's a line that has been drawn.
I give a nod.
After that, I look at the tunnel.
The councilor's voice is loud and clear behind me, so everyone can hear it.
He says, "Let it be known that Mira Vale is unprotected at Crescent Academy."
The words hit the space hard.
A beat.
Then someone in the crowd laughs and says, "It's clear as a threat,"
"Looks like she won't be able to make it in the morning.”
- Writer
