The council of heroes (and Athalia)

Angelica sat down on the sands of the beach. She softly played with the grains under her, sifting them back and forth with her fingers. Christina was standing in front of the large castle entrance, waiting for Athalia to exit. Perhaps she didn't want to sit by Angelica after what had happened that morning. Angelica sighed, remembering their childhood and how they had always sat together. Even during their quest they were seldom apart. And all it took was one day in this crazy show for things to become awkward between them. Instead it was Tyra who was sitting down with her, although she wasn't saying much.

Soon, Angelica turned to see Athalia walking out of the gates with a sour look on her face. As soon as her feet touched the sands outside the palace entrance, she eyed the girls waiting for her and it was clear that they were waiting on her. She grumbled to herself, ready for whatever lecture they had prepared. After everything, she didn't have the mental fortitude to just walk away.

At the same time, Angelica turned and saw Lila running back towards them. She was noticeably missing Daelana, the one person she was tasked to get. Lila stopped to catch her breath as Angelica approached her.

"Lila?" asked Angelica, "Where's Daelana?"

"Oh! Uh..." said Lila, "She can't come! Sorry!"

"Lila, I specifically asked for you to get her," said Angelica.

"She... she... she really doesn't want to come out after..." said Lila.

Angelica stopped herself from saying anything else. Although she would've preferred for Daelana to be there, she could understand why she wouldn't want to talk to anyone given what happened last night. She sighed and put her hand on Lila's shoulder.

"Okay," said Angelica, "Come over here. And you too Athalia! We need to have a meeting!"

Athalia rolled her eyes and came to the other girls. Angelica sat down on the sand, urging Lila to sit next to her. All the girls present sat down in a circle except for Athalia who stood with her arms crossed, seemingly content with coming off a little contrarian. Angelica ignored her and began addressing the group.

"I know that this has been tough for us," said Angelica, "We all expected our troubles to be over when we defeated... him. None of us could have seen this coming. But when have the odds not been stacked against us? When have we not faced a threat so large that it seemed hopeless? We need to start working together again. It's the only way we will get out of this."

"And what makes you think we can get out of this?" asked Tyra.

"I... I don't know but we have to think of something!" said Angelica, "We're a team and we've never faced a challenge we couldn't overcome!"

"There's just one problem," said Athalia, "Fate was on your side then. It isn't now."

"Of course it is!" said Angelica, "The prophecy didn't change! I'm still destined to defeat the dark lord!"

"You already... we already did," said Christina, "The prophecy has been fulfilled. What if... what if all this is fated too?"

"It can't be!" said Angelica.

"It's not here," said Lila quietly.

The group turned to Lila, surprised that she talked up at all. Sensing the eyes on her, Lila looked up and tried her best to maintain composure.

"What I mean is... I can't cast magic except those spells they gave me," said Lila, "I tried, and I can't. I can't feel the flow of magic, the elements, or even fate here. In our world it all existed in the air around us. Invisible strings the gods plucked at to control destiny. But I don't feel them here. It's like there's no fate."

The group went silent at this. They stared at Lila and then at each other, contemplating her words.

"No fate, except for what that Helga and her game masters demand," said Athalia, "They're the ones plucking the strings. The gods of our world may have loved you, Angelica, but the gods of this world love Malgor. He's their chosen one."

"But the gods are all powerful, aren't they?" said Christina, "Can they not reach out to us here? Save us from these false idols?"

"We aren't getting any help!" said Tyra, "Angelica, if you're serious about us working together you need to stop acting like there's a way out of this. We need to work together to do the one thing that might actually help us: win the game."

"Tyra?" said Christina, "You really want us to play along with their sick game?"

"Let me make something clear: if there was a way out I'd be the first one running for it," said Tyra, "But if there isn't, I'm not gonna sit here trying to wish it into existence. So, let's do the most with what we've got. Appease these bastards so they don't have an excuse to do whatever it is they do to people who upset them."

While the girls all started thinking on this, they all heard Athalia's laughter rising from the silence. They turned to her.

"Oh, you poor fools," said Athalia, "You really think you can work together to win this game? Do you not see the hypocrisy? A game is only a game because someone loses. You think you're all on a team? No. You're all competition to each other."

"That's not necessarily true!" said Christina, "If I understand correctly, you win when you get over 100 and only lose when you go under 0 or time runs out. And people win points on their own merit. Maybe we could all get over 100?"

"Do you really think that's how it's going to go?" said Athalia, "This game is a spectacle for these laughing gods. They want entertainment. Do you think it will appease them to simply let us all win? People will lose. Some of you will not leave this place the same. I wonder which ones this will happen to? Which ones will have their minds torn from their bodies, **** to endure a lifetime in slavery to him. Daelana is only a few steps away from such a fate herself. And mark my words: she won't be the only one!"

Angelica, already shaking with fury, got to her feet to face Athalia.

"Do you nothing else to say?" said Angelica, "I know you never truly cared for our goals and only joined us in service to yourself, but surely you see that if there's even the slightest chance I can save everyone here I have to take it? Surely the way of good will benefit us all more than the selfish path?"

"Speak for yourself," said Athalia, "But no one ever had my back and I've done just fine. This meeting was pointless. If you all continue on thinking you can all win, don't be surprised when you find yourselves collectively lapping at my heel when I come out on top."

Athalia turned and started walking away back to her quarters. Angelica's fist shook. She tried to storm after her but Tyra got up and stopped her, placing a rough hand on her shoulder.

"Don't mind her," said Tyra, "She was a dark lord's whore before! Of course she wouldn't mind being one again!"

Tyra said this loudly to make sure Athalia heard. And indeed she heard it and it stopped her in her tracks for but a moment as she silently seethed at the insult. But she nonetheless continued to walk away. Angelica regained her cool, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves. She and Tyra then sat back down with the others.

"So what do we do?" said Christina.

"I guess... we prepare for this feast," said Angelica, "I'm guessing it's like a royal ball of sorts. I mean, we've attended them before when our party was first assembled by the king, remember?"

"So dress nice, practice dancing, and show due reverence to... him?" said Christina.

"That's the best we can do," said Tyra.

"That's it then?" said Christina, "Angelica, tonight it's my turn with him! We all saw what happened with Daelana! I..."

"Christina, I'm still trying to figure out a plan and that will take time," said Angelica, "I'm sorry."

Angelica hung her head, ashamed she couldn't come up with a proper answer to their problems, before getting up and walking away without a word. Tyra and Lila also got up and left, not wishing to prolong this awkward conversation. Christina stayed sitting on the beach a while longer. She tried her best to be understanding, but nevertheless wondered how Angelica would feel in her shoes, the next one on the chopping block. She couldn't help but feel like a pawn in her best friend's plans, a feeling that she realized was not wholly unfamiliar to her.