The dorm was quiet — too quiet. Only the faint rustle of pages broke the stillness, and even that stopped after a while.
Ruby glanced at Harley, who sat by the lamp, pretending to read. The candlelight traced shadows across her face, but her eyes… they hadn't moved from the same paragraph in nearly ten minutes.
Ruby spoke softly.
"You've been on that page too long."
Harley blinked, startled. Her eyes were heavy — distant — as though her mind had wandered far from the room.
"What's wrong?" Ruby asked.
Harley hesitated, fingers tightening around the book's spine.
"There's… a duel tomorrow." Her voice trembled. "And I'm the target."
Ruby's eyes narrowed.
Harley looked down, her words tumbling out in a rush.
"They said I'd be the example — a guinea pig. If I don't show up, they'll call it cowardice. If I do, I'll probably die." She tried to laugh, but the sound cracked halfway. "I didn't tell the others. If they tried to help, they'd be dragged down with me. I don't want their blood on my hands."
Ruby's chest tightened.
"Who set it up?"
"Jessica."
Of course.
"No one turns her down," Harley whispered. "You know that."
Ruby's voice stayed calm, but her eyes darkened.
"Can someone duel in another's place?"
Harley nodded weakly.
"Yes, though it's foolish. The moment someone takes the fall, the intended prey and her family are spared."
Ruby understood instantly.
"Then you'll live."
"What? No—Ruby, you can't! You're not even—"
Before Harley could finish, Ruby pressed a pressure point at the base of her neck. Harley gasped once before falling unconscious, her body relaxing into the sheets.
Ruby brushed a strand of hair from her face.
"You'll hate me for this," she murmured. "But at least you'll be alive to do it."
---
She changed quietly — pulling on a black singlet and shorts, tying her hair into a loose ponytail. Her body ached with every movement, muscles screaming from the dance the night before. She was drained — truly human now. Weak. Vulnerable.
But that weakness would keep others safe.
Before she left, Ruby glanced once more at Harley sleeping peacefully, then slipped out into the hall.
---
The courtyard was cloaked in mist, lit only by the dying moon. The air smelled of stone and rain — sharp, cold, unforgiving.
Jessica was already there, arms folded, flanked by two silent girls. Her lips curved into a smile the moment Ruby appeared.
"Well, well. I was expecting a lamb, but they sent me a doll instead."
Ruby stopped a few paces away, hand brushing at the dirt.
"I'm here for Harley."
Jessica tilted her head.
"How generous. Too bad you won't walk away."
No words. The whistle blew.
Jessica struck first — fast, precise, a jab to Ruby's side that stole her breath. Ruby stumbled, coughing, but rolled to the side, forcing Jessica to overextend. She gasped for air, muscles trembling, yet rose again, using a slight shove to throw Jessica off balance.
Another strike — to the ribs. Ruby bent, absorbing as much as she could with her forearm, then twisted behind a patch of shadow.
Tiny victories — a shove here, a roll there — were all Ruby could manage. Her body felt like stone, heavy and unresponsive, but her mind remained sharp.
If I can last just a little longer… if I can bait her into overextending…
She rolled again, narrowly avoiding a fist aimed for her ribs, and pushed Jessica backward with a desperate shove. A fleeting smirk crossed Ruby's lips. Even powerless, I'm not nothing.
Ruby's eyes flicked to the crowd. The other girls whispered, cheering silently for Jessica's expected victory. They didn't know the duel had been set, didn't know Harley's life was on the line — and that made it all more dangerous.
Her gaze found the shadow at the courtyard's edge. Alex. His dark eyes studied her, cold and unreadable.
He's here… but will he even care?
They exchanged blows, Jessica striking and Ruby dodging or deflecting as best she could. Every movement cost her. Every dodge left her aching. Her balance faltered. Her arms screamed. But she endured — strategic, calculating, surviving.
Jessica grew frustrated. Her strikes became sharper, faster, but Ruby's mind worked faster than her weak body. She rolled, ducked, and even caught a glimpse of her own reflection in the wet stones — her black ponytail whipping behind her, crimson blood staining her singlet.
The girls in the shadows whispered in awe. Ruby might lose, but she was lasting far longer than anyone expected.
Ruby's vision faltered as her thoughts went to the dead girl again
*"Damn it, was this how powerless she felt when she was being bullied? It feels so suffocating, like I want to live but I want the pain to end"* she said in thought clenching her fists in pain
*"So this is what it feels like to be...weak"* Ruby muttered
then came the decisive strike. Jessica's fist jabbed low, aimed for the ribs, and Ruby stumbled — too slow, too weak. Pain exploded through her body. She coughed, collapsed sideways, her chest heaving with blood-filled gasps.
The crowd froze. Even Jessica stepped back, chest rising and falling, realizing Ruby had fought longer than she deserved — and survived more than anyone thought possible.
Alex in the Shadows
From the mist at the edge of the courtyard, Alex didn't step forward. He didn't intervene.
But his hand twitched at his side, a faint curl of fingers that went unnoticed by everyone else. The frost of his aura brushed against the stones, almost imperceptibly.
The crowd shivered. Even Jessica hesitated — her smile faltering for the tiniest moment.
Ruby tried to move — to speak — but the world tilted. Her vision blurred, the ache in her chest spreading.
Sage burst into the courtyard, drawn by instinct she couldn't explain. Her breath caught at the sight before her.
"RUBY!" She called out fear evident in her voice for the first time catching everyone off guard
Without hesitation, she dropped to her knees, checking Ruby's pulse. The faint hum beneath Ruby's skin, buried deep, made Sage's fingers tremble.
"Idiot, you could have told us...". Sage muttered as she gathered Ruby carefully into her arms, the blood soaking into her uniform. Her eyes swept to Alex at the edge of the mist. He didn't approach — he watched, silent, unreadable.
"Don't you dare die," Sage turned back to Ruby whispering, with her voice breaking.
And with that, she carried Ruby away, the frost from Alex's aura lingering faintly across the courtyard stones.
When Harley woke, sunlight was cutting through the curtains, too bright for the ache that clawed through her chest.
Ruby's side of the bed was empty. The pillow still held her scent.
Her heart dropped. She found the small note Ruby had left on the nightstand — the ink smudged, the handwriting shaky.
Stay asleep. Live.
Harley's throat tightened.
"You idiot," she whispered, tears welling up. "You think I could live knowing you're out there bleeding for me?"
Her hands trembled as she folded the note and pressed it to her chest. Outside, the assembly bell rang — cold, distant, mocking.
But Harley stood anyway. Her legs shook, her eyes still red, yet her voice was steady when she whispered,
"You wanted me to live, Ruby. Fine. But I'm not staying out of this."
And as she walked out of the room, the morning light caught the glint of something fierce in her eyes — not fear.
Resolve.
The corridors hummed with anticipation, a storm waiting to break.
Alex's gaze lingered on the fading mist of the courtyard. Ruby's blood-stained figure haunted the edges of his mind, stirring a cold warning he couldn't ignore.
And somewhere deep inside, he knew: the game had only just begun.
Sage was guiding Ruby toward the infirmary when the world blurred. A shadow detached itself from the darkness—an assassin, clad in black from head to toe, face hidden. A sharp strike slammed into the back of Sage's neck, pain exploding in waves. She hit the ground, barely able to breathe, as Ruby was ripped from her arms.
Time slowed. The assassin didn't sprint; she glided with lethal grace through the dense forest. Leaves and branches clawed at her, snapping underfoot, but she barely slowed. Sage could only watch, chest tightening, as Ruby's bloodied hand swung helplessly in the air.
They reached the cliff. The assassin stopped suddenly, toes inches from the edge. She scanned the forest, feeling every nearby heartbeat—the weak thrum of Sage's, the rustle of distant wildlife, even the tremble of the wind. When she was certain they hadn't been followed, she lifted Ruby's hand toward her own.
Ruby's bloodied fingers slammed against an invisible barrier. Golden light flared, then twisted red, burning like molten glass. The barrier groaned, then tore open with a sound like shattering crystal.
The assassin stepped through, carrying Ruby as if she weighed nothing, cloak billowing in the wind. The barrier snapped shut behind them, golden light fading into nothingness, leaving the forest silent again.
Inside a hidden realm, the crystal castle shimmered like a heartbeat. Relief washed over her in a wave so strong it nearly stole her breath. She laid Ruby on the cold floor, brushing her pale hair away from her face. Her pulse was faint, almost gone.
"So it's true," she whispered, voice shaking. "When I felt your power fading… I thought I was imagining it. But now… I feel nothing. What have you endured to seal it all away?"
Determined, she rose, forming an intricate hand sign. Red particles of light shot toward Ruby—but they twisted violently in the air and slammed back into her like shards of glass. She fell, coughing blood, metallic taste sharp on her tongue.
A searing seal appeared on her neck—and another on Ruby's. Anger and frustration burned in her eyes, but she didn't falter.
She looked down at Ruby, fragile and barely holding on. Taking a deep breath, she cleaned the blood, fed her water, and finally administered a pill. Golden light spiraled through Ruby's veins, converging on her heart.
"I know you said we shouldn't interfere," she muttered, voice low but fierce, "but I can't just watch you die."
After sealing the barrier with layers of wards, she vanished into the shadows. Ruby's fingers twitched—the pill was working.
---
Back at Heliera, Sage woke with a sharp ache at her neck. Her vision swam, then cleared. Ruby… was gone.
Miccah and Luna came running, panic etched across their faces.
"What's wrong, Sage? Why are you here?" Miccah asked, eyes wide. Luna's gaze darted around nervously.
"Where's Ruby?" Sage demanded, fists tightening.
"Someone took her," she said, anger and dread coiling in her voice.
"What do you mean 'someone took her'? Weren't you here to stop the fight?" Luna's voice cracked with shock.
"It was too late. She was beaten… and Alexander just watched," Sage said, jaw tight. "I tried to bring her to the infirmary, but I was struck down first."
Miccah's voice trembled. "Will she… be killed?"
"Not likely," Sage said firmly. "The person who took her made sure I was safe. An enemy wouldn't have done that."
"Maybe they didn't want anyone to find you," Luna suggested.
Sage shook her head. "If their goal was killing her, it would have been easy during the fight."
Miccah exhaled, relief softening his expression. "Then Ruby is safe."
Sage winced as pain shot through her chest.
"You're hurt?" Luna asked, concern etched on her face.
"Took a strong hit" Sage replied. Luna sighed and supported her as they headed back to the hostel, hearts heavy with worry for Ruby—but a glimmer of hope remained.
---
Meanwhile, in the crystal castle, Ruby's eyes fluttered open. Her vision was blurred, but she could see the faint golden glow of the pill still coursing through her veins. She tried to move—but something cold and heavy pressed against her chest.
A voice, dangerous yet had a bit of softeness hidden whispered from the shadows:
"Welcome back… but you are far from safe."
Ruby's heart suddenly seized painfully before starting again
"Look at your state Red crescent, you can't even protect yourself"
"I decide what I can protect and what I can't" Ruby replied as the pain came again like thunder strikes
"So stubborn"
Ruby smiled through the pain and blood flowing out of her as she noticed the room was beautiful, serene but too bad she wasn't in control.
Her gaze tightened as she realized: she had dragged this long enough.