Hurled into a cell, Celestina groaned as she felt herself crash into her side, scraping her arm a little in the process. Glancing at her captors, she snarls aggressively like a captured feline. Her eyes burned with hatred, but at the same time, the girl felt sick to her stomach with fear as screams of ecstasy filled her ears. Putting her captors aside for her worry, many women before her shuddered in fear. Tears poured from their eyes, and sobs and cries of sorrow escaped their tear-stained lips.

Never have they been more afraid.

Quickly, Celestina scrambles to her feet, and hurried towards the closest one to her, a woman of blond hair. The woman yelped in surprise, but managed to regain her senses. Even when she knew that the gypsy was a fellow woman, there was no one she could actually trust any longer.

"Where am I? Where are we??" she asked in an annoyed tone. "Those bloody bastards just dumped me in here!"

"Didn't you know? We're going to be competing for our lives! All 'attractive women'. That's what they said," sobbed the woman. "Sasori wants a beautiful woman for both a bodyguard and a doxy. ."

"What?? Are you serious?!"

"Do I look like I'm in the mood to jest? We're gonna die for Pete's sake!" she cried, crying even louder.

"It is most unfortunate indeed that such a quiet town have barbaric practices," a melodious voice remarked calmly, making all the ladies turn their heads. "I hear that Lord Sasori's very bodyguards will be joining the competition; this is but a mere slaughter."

Furrowing her eyebrows, Celestina gets up from her knees and approached the bars. Placing her hands on them, she gazes at the other side of the corridor, revealing another cell filled with ladies. But at the very front, she could see an incredibly beautiful woman with fair porcelain skin and wavy locks of ebony. But her face were stained with blood, and her eyes covered with a bloody cloth. It alarmed Celestina when she suspected what their captors had done to her.

"What can we do?!" the girl asked, putting her thoughts aside.

"What can we do? Nothing. We just need to fight for our lives and see if we survive."

Celestina grinned at these words. "I have no problem with that," she announced arrogantly. "They don't call me Black Vixen for nothing!"

She frowned when she saw the stranger grin.

"Hmph. Good luck then. . . Celestina."

The girl's eyes widen at the sound of her name, stunned. But before she could do anything, an ear-deafening ecstatic cry echoed down the corridor. Immediately the women in the cells started moaning and groaning; simultaneously, crying out for their lives. Soon, heavy footsteps came their way, and before any of the woman knew what was happening they were pulled from their cells despite their pleas.

They were forced to change their clothes, placing on leather suits and armor to cover themselves. Weapons were given to them. Surprisingly they were light, but of course, they were designed that way for them—for them women. It irritated Celestina as as picked her own clothes, although she was surprised that the blind woman decided not to change and simply picked her own set of weapons. She seemed so elaborate that one would find it hard to believe that she was even blind.

It puzzled the girl, but she pushes her thoughts aside and went back to her own business.

Forced to leave the changing room, they soon heard the excited screams as light of the sun blinded their eyes for a moment. Fear took ahold of their shoulders when they saw the limp bodies of bloody, decapitated, and limbless women. Blood were spilled everywhere, and a couple of other women remained standing with bloody weapons in their hands. Their bloodlust was evident in their eyes, and the profanity of their will to continue living remained in the scars their skin bore.

Celestina glared at every face she saw as she, along with the rest of the women, were brought into the stadium. She hated the sound of the ecstatic cries of the spectators, and she hated the whimpering sobs of her companions. Only two women remained calm: the blind one, and an athletic black woman. Gritting her teeth, the gypsy began to wonder if they will survive the round. Being arrogant, she knew at the very least that she would survive.

"Ladies and gentlemen! We now present the last batch of women!" a man, apparently the master of the ceremonies, announced proudly. He was donned in green robes, and a devious smile on his lips.

Clearly he was enjoying the scenery of bloodshed.

"And to add in to fun, we've especially brought you the infamous Black Vixen!"—the man points at Celestina—"the black demon of the mine!" he points at the black woman from before.

So that's what she's called, thought the gypsy.

"And most unfortunately, a beautiful pearl with no eyes," the man continued, pointing at Angelica.

The crowds cheered wildly, and many began betting on who might win. In the midst of the crowds, Angelica's companions sat and disguised themselves as noblemen, dressed in rich and gaudy garments. Horror filled their eyes when they all found where Angelica stood. Enzo was the most nervous among them, but he managed to keep a calm face on. Their newest companion, Connor, was the most amused.

"Why is Sasori handling these kinds of tournaments?" Pietro asked worriedly. "Why women?"

"Lord Sasori was never a sexist," said Connor. "Actually, before he became the ruler of this town, tournaments like these were held, but only men were spectated. But since he became the ruler, he decided that women should do it, so he picked all the ones with pretty faces to compete. Brutal and sadistic a man Sasori is."

"But why pretty faces? What is the reward of each woman's survival?" Abelle asked.

"Him. Money, comfort, and luxury. If anyone wins, they will be treated like princesses," replied Connor. "Although, I'm surprised that Angelica is among them. They probably think she doesn't stand a chance at winning without those demon eyes of hers."

At the moment he said those words, he felt a chill go up his spine that forced him to glance at the number of spectators. His eyes immediately fell upon Angelica, and she was smiling—reassuringly. But he wasn't the only one who saw it, the rest did too.

"Can Angelica. . see us?" Connor asked in a shocked tone.

"No. She probably senses our Arcana," replied Azad. "She did mention before using the Arcana to sense the other users."

"What are you doing talking with that adamant woman?" a new voice sounded. "You sound like she's Arianna."

Angelica chuckles. "Arianna died the day her father died. I'm Angelica now."

Jean pouted. "Are you saying—"

"How is Father? There's no use hiding who I am. But who I was before is long gone if you're wondering."

The new man with them interrupts Jean before he could say anything. "Is that really you, Ari? After all these years?"

"All these years already past, Rolf. There's no need to dwell in the past when indulging ourselves with it would bring us nothing but heavy reminders. One of them would be you stealing my home, my name, and the man I called 'father'."

Angelica merely smirked as she averted her gaze from the six men hidden amongst the crowds. She could feel the heavy tension hanging in the air. the reeking, iron smell of blood, and the deafening screams of hundreds of thousands of people. Nothing could disappoint her more. It disgusted her when she suddenly stepped on a severed arm. She couldn't see if after all. Her ears had deafened to the announcer's words, the sudden pain in her eye sockets made her feel woozy, and her mind preoccupied.

Her hands quickly clutched her eyes, and a wet feeling came to her hands' nerves.

Blood.

Clicking her tongue, Angelica felt her blood leak down her cheeks from her eyes. She couldn't believe what was happening. But before she could settle on what to do, a loud cry of a horn rang. And soon, screams and clanging metals were all she could hear.

An aggressive yell escaped a woman's lips as she attacked Angelica. Her hand held a sword, and she clumsily swung it at the fortuneteller. With ease, Angelica dodged it in one slick movement, and quickly jumped and kicked the woman by her bottom. With her feet still on the woman's bottom, Angelica uses it as a platform to jump flip, sending the woman tumbling down in the process. Seeing her skills, more desperate women came flying to her with various number of weapons hurling at her.

Each turn the blind woman managed to dodge each blow, throwing a woman off, using one as a shield, blocking a blade with her daggers. The spectators were awed with her performance, cheering her on. But of course, the fortuneteller found nothing to celebrate with; she was killing other women in the process.

Meanwhile, Celestina also managed to fight on her own. She hurled daggers into her opponents' chest, killing them instantly if it strikes the heart. She was incredibly gymnastic and flexible, avoiding blows and stabs from Sasori's very competing bodyguards. She would par with them one on one, but sometimes, the ladies fighting her partnered up and tried to kill her several more times. Their blades swung at her fiercely, too often did they nearly slash at her abdomen. Fighting several simultaneously brought a devious grin on the gypsy's face, taking them one by one was her specialty. She soon found herself standing alone.

The black woman with them was also fairly fierce in her own way. She was overwhelmed all her opponents like they were annoying chickens. She threw her mace around at everyone, killing everyone in her way. The women with no fighting skills were most pitiful, their skulls were cracked and opened like balloons, their brains spilled out along the way. Their blood stained her skin and clothes, splattering on her face in the process.

She was yelling furiously at everyone who came at her. Yelling like a beast, she took out everyone with regret in her eyes, but she was determined to live on. Beads of sweat rolled down her face as she panted, her arms resting for a moment after carrying the heavy weight after so many minutes. Grunting angrily, her one hand releases the handle for a moment, and wipes her sweaty brow. Her silver eyes glowered at the other women still standing, ready to get at her.

But in the corner of her eye, she saw the fortuneteller fight Celestina's opponent's for some reason. Her eyes widen when Angelica seemed to strike a deal with the gypsy.

Meanwhile, Celestina was as dumbfounded as she watched the blind Angelica fight everyone for her. And all the while, Angelica grinned like she knew what was happening the entire time. It was infuriating the gypsy, but being distracted by Angelica, Celestina nearly got stabbed from behind until Angelica covered her back.

"Girl, do you want to die?" asked Angelica. "You still have a long life ahead of you. In fact, I'm here to take you both: you and Ekundayo."

"What? You've got to be kidding me," scoffed Celestina as she stabbed a woman in the gut. "Why should I follow you? A-A bunch of devilishly handsome men are following you unconditionally! I'm, in fact, quite uncomfortable with it."

Angelica smirked. "Heh. Are you nervous around men? So you're reclusive, that is if you dislike devilishly handsome men."

"Are you making fun of me??"

"I'm saving your life." Angelica takes down another woman.

"Tch. Please, I can take care of myself just fine!"

"Ahaha! You sound like a typical teenager!"

Celestina frowned. "You are making fun of me."

"I believe, you're about the same age among those devilishly handsome men," remarked the fortuneteller. "It would be fortunate of he wasn't the youngest one."

"I don't play games with little boys."

"I play games all the time."

The gypsy furrows her eyebrows at those words. "Are you saying that this is a game?"

"Is it not? Sasori did call it a game. Besides, it's just a phase in this mortal life. We'd get over it," replied Angelica, grinning at the younger girl. "In the meantime, we should just ride the wave, not fight it. Or else we will drown and die."

Putting on a fighting stance, Angelica quickly hurls daggers at the black woman's opponents. But they dodged it and shot the woman a feisty glare.

"Seems like they're more skilled than I thought," remarked the woman.

"You think?!"

Laughing, the fortuneteller grabs a leather cord from one of the corpses and began twirling it around her for demonstration. She was so graceful in handling it, resembling the skill of a ribbon dancer. She then began lashing it aggressively and started to attack the rest of the remaining women standing. But when only some of the bodyguards and the three fighting women were left, arrows were shot at Angelica out of no where. She was hit multiple times: on on her leg, and three on her back. She vomited blood, just as blood began oozing from her eye sockets once again.

The fortuneteller laughed, turning her head towards the highest seat where Sasori, his concubines, her stepbrothers, and the rest of the court stayed. "This was supposed to be my execution wasn't it? I was supposed to die here?" she asked in a confident tone.

"You're blind damn it!" yelled an officer. "It's almost as if you could still see!"

"Heh. Of course, I see you, you have my eyes!"

Sasori chuckled. "How amusing. It would be interesting if you become one of my princesses. I would give you back your eyes then, and I'm sure, that will your power, you could make them functional once more."

For a moment the woman was silent, pondering her options. Her companions with the rest of the spectators were tense, wondering what she was going to do, because they had no much time left. For some reason, there were guards that were slowly approaching them. But of course, the six instantly knew the guards were coming for them.

Chuckling, Angelica places her hands on her hips as she replied. "That would be interesting, no doubt. But I'm sorry, I have no interest in joining your whores."

"Too bad." Sasori snaps his fingers. "Kill her."

In a moment's time, arrows were shot upwards into the air, later came raining down at her. Putting her arm upwards towards the sky, a shield of energy formed before her and all the arrows were stopped. Several more times this occurred, and the spectators were all more than amazed to see her powers. And at the same time, the six men were currently fighting for their lives. It was a little easy for them, since they were taught by Angelica after all, but the rushing numbers were starting to overwhelm them.

The woman sensed their distresses, and shot an energy bolt at her teammates. It formed a shield around them, and they were too shocked to say anything. A smile formed on her lips, remaining reassuring as ever. It was as if she was asking them to trust her. They did, but they were more than worried for her.

Blood were dripping from her wounds, the arrows still stuck on her back like she was some bull. And it weekend her, evident from the pants that escaped from her mouth. She was sweating more than she should, and they felt cold to the touch. Pain was surging through her entire body, especially her eye sockets. Gritting her teeth, her hand reaches out to the arrows on her back and jerked them out. She yelped as she did this, and she continued to groan in pain as she pulled out each one. A symbol then appeared on each wound, which acted as a bandage to stop the bleeding.

"Time's up," she muttered. Her head shot up and turned to the gypsy and the black woman. "Come, we have to go now."

"What are you talking about?" asked the black woman. "Where are you taking us?"

"I'm taking you with me, silly woman," Angelica chuckled as she vomited out some blood.

The woman before her widened her eyes at the reply. It stilled her, but she came back to her senses when a pistol as shot. The loud bang came from among the officers, and the one who sank to their knees from it was no one but the fortuneteller herself. The two other women darted their eyes to the direction of where the sound came from. They soon realized that a man, whom Celestina recognized as one the fortuneteller's companions from before. Regret were in his eyes; the heavy black bags under his eyes were more than enough to speak his thoughts.

"Well done, Alfieri," chuckled Sasori, clapping his hands. "This will do more than enough to gain the trust of Lady Adelline."—he turns to the guards with him—"Finish her off, men."

Having heard those orders, soldiers came at the weakened woman with their guns and swords at hand. And then without thinking, the black woman rushed to Angelica's side while dragging Celestina with her.

"Please. I would do anything to get out of this hell hole," cried the black woman. "I need to go to my family at the sugar plantation not far from here. Will you take them with you as well?"

Angelica smiles as she lay on the dirt. "It would be no problem, Ekundayo."

Before either of the two could say anything, Angelica grabbed both of their hands and got up. The moment she stood on her feet, she grabbed a packet by her hip and dipped her hand inside it. And whatever was inside, she threw it hard on the ground, creating a cracking noise with purple smoke that enveloped around them. Azad was quick to see this, and he did the same, taking his companions to somewhere safe.

Please be fine, Angelica! Don't die on us!

* * * * * * * *

They all reappeared at their safe house, and surprisingly, the three other women were there too. Now seeing Angelica up close, they were sickened to their stomachs to see her eyes truly gone; Celestina had removed the bloody cloth. Her clothes very bloody; the bed where she lay on was already red from all her blood. She was more than pale already, her pulse was weak, and she could barely breathe.

The young prince immediately ran to her side, grabbing her hands with teary eyes. He began to sob softly as guilt weighed on his heart. Then a soft touch caressed his head, making him jerk his head up. Immediately he saw Angelica's empty sockets. It was instant for him to avert his eyes, and Angelica sensed it.

"I look haggard don't I? Forgive me, but it can't be helped, Jahan," Angelica chuckled, amused.

"No, no! I didn't mean—"

Angelica's laughter interrupts him, making her pat his head. "It's fine, it's fine. Too bad I could only imagine myself."

"Alfieri," seethed Enzo, quickly changing the subject. "He betrayed us!"

Everyone quieted about this, feeling very, very disappointed and sad at the same time. They couldn't believe wha they saw. The pistol that was on his hand had sent Angelica to her death bed. Thankfully, Ekundayo was there and quick on attempting to fix her up.

"It is alright," Angelica told them reassuringly. "Everyone has a face behind their masks. And you all know that I have one as well."

"What? What are you talking about?" asked Pietro.

"Connor told you a lot about me, did he not?"

"We're sorry! So many things are happening so fast!"

Ekundayo glared at all the men. "I will have to ask you to get out. I will mend her wounds; hopefully she'll live. I have little hope though."

Saying nothing else, the men all left, leaving only Celestina and Ekundayo by their companion's side. They continued to feel guilty, but there was nothing they could do about it. As one by one stepped out, their eyes glanced back at the dying woman; each, hoping for the best.

Remaining by the corridor, they waited for the two ladies to come out with some good news. Hours passed by as they waited, anxiety filled their hearts, hoping that Angelica would be okay. They all acted like husbands waiting for their wife who was in labor. Some were squatting on the ground, some sat on the ground with their legs blocking the way; others only leaned against the walls. They continued to wait patiently, their wait continued to last until sundown.

Outside the safehouse, they could hear angry yells of men ordering people around. They were looking for the fortuneteller no doubt. It made them even more anxious by the minute. Soon enough, they heard a commotion erupt below them.

"They're here," said Abelle, furrowing his eyebrows as he pushed his glasses back.

"What do we do?!" Pietro asked worriedly. "The ladies haven't finished with Miss Ann just yet!"

"Then we might just have to leave in her state," Abelle told him sternly, which surprised everyone. "I know it's harsh, but we might all get caught at this rate. We cannot afford to let her get hurt again."

"Did Alfieri really. . ?" asked Jahan, feeling down.

Enzo patted the boy's shoulder reassuringly. "We will have to ask Angelica those questions. But if she can't, then I'll kill that bastard if that's the last thing I'll do."

"Enzo. ."

Connor scoffs. "Wasn't he the one who was with her the longest among you?" he asked.

"Yes. Miss Angelica told us that he came nearly right after she arrived in a town called Tiburio. It would take account of nearly a year," explained Enzo.

Connor scoffs again. "Then he must've planned this for a long time."

"It's pretty disappointing for him to separate from us just like that. ." said Pietro, hanging his head in the air. "I was pretty sure we were getting close, and Miss Angelica was doing the most part by trying to get to know us all quite genuinely. I don't know about you guys, but I think Miss Angelica loves us all."

His companions stare at him with wide eyes at his words.

"I-I-I mean n-not like romantic! I meant like a friendship-family sort of thing!" the blue-eyed man quickly adds.

"He's funny," Connor remarked as he pointed to Pietro with his thumb.

Pietro frowned. "But I mean it! I mean, she did take care of us, share us stories, gave us food and clothes—"

"Were you all homeless?" Connor interrupts.

"No! I mean we men should be working and providing for the lady—ladies, but she does it. She treats us like family and I never thought that anyone could possibly betray her. She's. . let's just say she's like an angel for the most part."

Connor smirks. "You sound like you're in love."

Before anyone could retort, they heard a loud cry in the room with a bright light illuminating that shone too brightly. Without a second thought the men rushed inside with a loud bang and saw Angelica in mid-air with her eyes shining with the light; her mouth was as well. She was shining, and her hair floated freely. Strange markings were on her; they too were bright with light.

"The enemy is near. It is coming with great power and many shall die. Many shall live. Many shall suffer from the aftermath. And many shall be left broken. Be wary, know the enemy for the enemy is near," a thousand voices from Angelica's mouth told the people in the room. "But fear not, a new generation has come, a new leader shall rise. And new things shall be taught to all of you."

After those words, the light inside Angelica vanished, and her body plopped on the bed.

~~~

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