The Choice
"I awoke with no memories from inside the Fold when I was, give or take, 11 years old. And when the First Army soldiers in front of it spotted me going out of the Fold, they then sent me to the Orphanage in Karamzin, where Alina is from." said the girl with the most bewitching green eyes in front of him, her defiant gaze ensnaring him in its depths.
Alexander feels as though the air has left his body, with only the fast beating of his heart as the only sound in his ears. The whole room seemed to suddenly vanish from his view, with the only clear thing being the woman in front of him, Valeria Cherniak.
'Who are you?' He asks himself in sudden awe. 'Have the gods finally blessed me?' He then continues, 'With my equal, at last?'
Looking at the still speechless man in front of her, who has been quiet for a while now. Stuck in a world of his own making inside his head, she decides. While the others of the tent are staring at her in awe and trepidation, for what exactly?
She then hears a gasp and feels the sudden tightening of arms around herself.
'Ah …Alina.'
Turning her back to the still speechless man in front of her, she devotes her whole attention upon the girl she calls her friend. Her first friend in this world.
She hopes she'll not turn from her because of it, or when she finally tells her about herself.
Shaking her head away from the thought, Valeria turns to the matter at hand.
Alina, sweet and gullible Alina.
The one that has caught the predatory gaze of the powerful man behind them both, like a small flightless bird. Open for the taking, and molding her to whatever plans he'll conceive inside that dark labyrinth of a mind of his, or he already constructed those plans from the first moment he heard of her existence.
She knows that gaze all too well, for she herself was in such a position before.
A long time ago.
She almost sneers at that, and blocks the sudden onslaught of memories that are trying to reach the forefront of her mind.
She'll not let her friend be used as a pawn in someone's game.
Just like she was.
"..Ria?" said Alina, while gazing with those imploring eyes of hers into Valeria's in shock and also in helplessness.
Seeing that, Valeria softens her expression for the girl and holds the younger girl's chin in her grasp.
"Alina, I know it's a lot to take in, and you may have a lot of questions that are circling inside your head…but now is not the time." She says, her eyes boring into the girl's in front of her. Still ignoring the general and everyone else inside the tent. Their only focus upon themselves.
Taking a breath, she continues "Do you trust me?" She finally asks.
Alina, who is still silently watching Valeria in shock, nods her head softly.
'Even though she’s still shocked by the sudden revelation of her friend, and because of her having powers, Alina will always trust Valeria. Because she's Ria, the one who always looked over her and Mal, like a big sister. And protected them from any harm that could befall them, may it be physical or emotional. Valeria was always there for them and they know no one else, only them.' Nodding her head again, this time firmly, Alina holds her friend's gaze with a tiny smile that is filled with affection for the older girl in front of her.
"Always."
She's answered by a heartbreakingly, but beautiful smile.
She'll always trust Valeria.
Always.
Amazed but grateful, Valeria still stares into the firm gaze of her friend.
Alina.
'She trusts me. Me.' she thinks in amazement, her heart feeling warm once more.
She then decides then and there to screw it all, just for the girl in front of her. Her injuries be damned. She will do anything for her.
"It's your choice, Alina. Yours alone, and no one else's. What do you want to do?"She finally asks her.
The girl looks bewildered, but then hopeful, still staring into the suddenly impassioned gaze of her friend in awe.
She doesn’t know how, but she feels as though Valeria could do anything at that moment. She always knew she could, but at that moment Alina just knew for certain.
She could even defy the Grisha around them, especially the intimidating General behind them both.
And get away with it.
She then decided, looking into her dearest friend's gaze with her heart stuck in her throat.
"I want to see Mal."
Her friend then smiles, "We'll see Mal then."
But then a sudden voice interupted them both from behind.
"I'm afraid you can't do that, you see, the both of you need to immediately leave for the Little Palace." The General said in a dark tone.
Finally turning to the General behind her, Valeria raises an eyebrow in response.
"Well, I'm not asking you, am I?" She says.
Which made the rest of the room hold their breaths in shock for what's to come, concerning what the General might do to the girl because of her bite and defiance of his authority.
The man only glowers in response, with an almost wild look in his eyes.
"Again. I'm afraid I can't let the both of you leave, Ms Cherniak." he then adds, "It's for your own protection, our enemies might have, or do already know of both of your existences. Especially in your friend's case." With that, he gives her an imploring look, as though she were the foolish one, the bastard "You do not want anything to happen to your dear friend, Ms. Starkov, do you?"
Her eyes narrow at the man.
'Bastard.'
But she then smiles at the man, which startles him.
"I'll take my chances, General. Although, I'm sure you all are a lovely bunch, I don't think you heard me. We're leaving."
The General only gazed at her, at her defiance of him in interest, but then raised his hand.
Which immediately made the Grisha in the tent stand before the entrance, barring them from leaving.
Which only made Valeria smirk in response, and Alina grip her coat in worry.
"Well, well, well. We're doing it the hard way, I see." She scoffed, but then sent them a cold look, especially to the man in front of her."Now look here, I don't do unnecessary killing, so you leave me no choice.." with that she then said to Alina, "Hold me tight, Alina."
This made the whole room, including the General stand straight in wariness.
Alina did what she was told, and gripped Valeria only tighter in response.
"Miss Cherniak.." the general then warned one last time, at which made the girl in question cackle at.
"Until next time, General…or never. Ta taaa."
The man opened his mouth to snarl a command to his Grisha, but before he could do that, the girl, Valeria Cherniak, Sergeant Major of the First Army who is also referred as the Black Knight, did something unexpected.
Her form suddenly changed into a dark mass, which then formed into a whirling form of a dark …Phoenix, with gleaming green eyes, its shadows encompassed the whole room, and when it turned to miss Starkov's direction, finally taking her in its grasp, the both of them escaped, the Phoenix's dark mass flying in a flurry over the General, who only looked on in enrapture of it all, and his shocked Grisha that stood before the entrance of the tent.