All Soe can do is stare. Horrified.

The Chosen One lays before the Dark Emperor. Body twisted and mangled with the mutilated metal of what used to be his armor.

The Dark Emperor removes his hand from the wreckage.

The last wisps of magic dissipate as the spell releases its hold.

And Soe’s knife feels small and frail and useless in her hands.

The Dark Emperor steps forward in the silence - footfalls sounding impossibly loud, but maybe that was just Soe? - up to the great sword. And he raises it up, over his head, in a horrible mimicry of the Chosen One’s starting pose.

Loud shouts ring out behind Soe and she turns to see the exits swarmed with the Dark Emperor’s guards.

There are civilians cowering near those exits - those smart enough to attempt to run - and unfortunately, ended up being the closest to the danger.

Magical swords and spears point in their direction.

“Under the new rule of the Dark Emperor, “one of the guard says, “you will die or surrender as prisoners.”

That... That entire sentence was pure, unfiltered bullshit.

What? Did this guy think no one had been keeping up with the news? The Dark Emperor didn’t take prisoners, not ones that lived long into their sentence.

Soe narrows her eyes and blindly reaches for Airin’s hand. Her hand squeezes back.

A few Lunaris Knights and some brave few civilians step up to the Dark Emperor’s guards. In the ensuing clash of magic on magic, Soe tightens her hold on Airin’s hand and books it for the nearest, unguarded exit.

Magic whirls and splashes with explosive intensity around them. Soe holds her magic-less, useless knife ahead like a threat. A bluff, more like.

They run, having to let go of each other’s hands to climb over the rows of seats. The stairs - having relatively more stable ground for a battle - attracted most of the fighting and neither Soe nor Airin wanted to get caught up in that.

So they climb.

But all too quickly, the little resistance is slaughtered. And too few of the enemy guards fall.

Soe and Airin slip out an exit while the fight occurred, but--

But there are more of the Dark Emperor’s forces waiting for them.

Their feet skid to a stop and Soe’s throat burns. She stares at the army clad in black.

When had they arrived?

Drying blood stains decorate the hall. A bit coating the place where the attendant had stood. A little more painting the wall, about the same height as the janitor who’d been cleaning out the trash.

Was Lunaris truly so weak as to let an entire army in without a fight?

Soe swallows the lump in her throat and clings to Airin’s hand. She keeps her knife close. Airin’s hand, closer still.

But. What could they do?

“Die or surrender, ”one of them demands. Like there was a choice.

Like Airin wasn’t clinging to Soe’s hand just as tightly.

So they surrender.

--

If Soe was a braver person, maybe they could have gotten away. Maybe Soe would have learned magic as a child and they could have fought their way out and they could have gotten away by the skin of their teeth to hide in a kingdom far, far away--

But.

That’s not who Soe was. And that’s not who she became.

So they surrender.

It’s Soe’s fault, really. Airin could have probably made it out somehow. But that would mean leaving Soe behind.

And that’s not who she was, either.

So they surrender.