S.U.R.V.I.V.E. by Rhaella Valysar

Beta Reader: Avatarfan445 :D!

Chapter 9: Paradise (What about us?)

Cherry's eyes were piercing Nick's since she opened the door of the carriage, as if she was trying to find some kind of wound. Some hint to compensate her actions. Actions that, after all, she had made with fuzzy eyes.

The girl looked at the crowd, motionless faces splashed with incredulity. With an air of superiority, she walked out of the carriage. The men that had been holding down the doors, as flabbergasted as everyone else, took steps back to allow her to walk through.

"We've been right behind you all along." Now, almost facing Nick, the redhead's sneer sliced the silence in half as he got down from his horse.

Then the total solid silence returned after she spoke - there were no words to describe what they wanted to say, not even a reason to attack the girl, yet. The Resistance stood still waiting for the next event to happen, it wasn't until the armored traitor whistled that they realized she wasn't joking.

In mere seconds the silence was devoured by loads of clanking metals and running hooves. Their horses neighed and kicked in distress as they sensed the enemy getting near.

Nick sighed, closed his eyes and hung his head when he saw that the white line between the green had arrived. Wearing armor similar to Cherry's, the men said nothing as they surrounded the group. It was then that he knew that Cherry was in charge of this army. She had finally lost it.

His men began to murmur, some cursed and others stood quiet and serene. Yet there were others that –even though they saw they had an extremely small chance of winning – took out their weapon and prepared to fight. This was going to be uglier than he had thought; he had to save as many people as he could. He rapidly looked behind his shoulder, hoping to send Erika away. She understood that faster, he thought, for the girl was not near him anymore. His guts twisted a bit, but he did his best to keep focused in the matter at hand.

"Cherry… You betrayed us." He said as if he had just figured that out.

The girl rolled her brown eyes, "You replaced me. So I offered my services to someone who would appreciate them more."

Nick shook his head, eager to maintain the ember of her conscience alive and hoping to strike a nerve in her. "We're your friends." He pointed out.

For a moment her smirk died, her shoulders slumped and her eyebrows warped, but in mere seconds they regained their hard and stern form. Salt sent straight to the fresh wound. "Friends don't punish each other."

Then, it was Julian who tried to interfere – for he felt he was the one who caused what made her feel that way. "You tried to harm someone very dear to me."

Anger made her hands curl into fists, her pale cheeks turned red. "This has nothing to do with her!" Taking several steps even closer, she pointed her index finger at him. "If you were my friend you would have supported me, even a little, you wouldn't have supplanted me."

James, who had been watching in horror as one of his best friends signed their death certificates with the enemy, also tried to give his opinion. After all, he was the one who had taken her place. He walked to her, and mindlessly grabbed Cherry's shoulder. But the hissing chorus of swords being pulled out from their cases made him retreat.

The white army's expressions never changed, but their hands now held thick swords that were nearly mirrors.

Everyone shifted and complained.

Nick was next to take out his sword, just in case. "This is between you and us, tell these men to stay out of this."

The girl shook her head, the answer Nick dreaded. "It feels good to have people that support you, doesn't it?" Her arm rose up in the air to point at her army. "They are part of this." Her face stony and unsympathetic, it reminded Nick of his mother when she was lecturing him. "We came to stop you all. And you have two options; surrender and pledge loyalty to King Preminger or fight for your freedom and die trying."

With that final threat, Nick turned away from the girl; facing Julian and the rest of his crew. Their gazes reflected nothing but confusion and glimmered with traces of panic.

He was the leader, he had brought them here. It was clear since the day they got together that death was a possible result. But optimism had blinded them since then.

They communicated through their eyes, noiseless. It hit them like a wave of pride to realize what the decision was. Life belongs to the clever and wise people, not to the intelligent and strong ones. Clever people master life; the wise illuminate it and create fresh solutions.

The plan had been simple, it had been nearly shattered to pieces just moments ago, but now it had been glued back together by the ones who had broken it.

The girl with the bow insisted to have a response from her former boss. "I think the answer is pretty obvious." She tried to joke.

And Nick didn't hesitate to let her know his decision, "We came here to fight, not to be defeated."

The reply stabbed Cherry's conscience; she even flinched and lowered her eyes. "I wish you'd think again about this," She said, she had been hoping to plant fear and dread since she arrived. So she could call off the men she brought with her and by that gain some respect from her friends – who would still be alive. She then remembered how much they all wanted this, not even a million men would have stopped them from continuing. "Until the end," she recalled one of them saying. Her chin high once again, her eyelids halfway closed. "But if this is your choice—" Her own sword now stood up in the air. "So be it!"

"Take me back!"

She cried, for the hundredth time since they arrived. Preminger massaged his temples as he sat in the middle of her room. He'd come there to talk her into following his orders, but she was being plainly unreasonable. The Princess paced around him, as if she was trying to intimidate his little being. With a wave of his hand he caught her attention, "My dear. That is truly impossible."

Anneliese sniffled, covering her face with her hands as it dropped. The older man sighed, rolling his eyes and turning his look to his hands. The girl then took a deep breath; she was tired of his attitude. He wasn't the boss of her. She was Queen too.

Her back suddenly straight, her shoulders tensed and her fists clenched by her sides. "Then I'll be leaving."

The King choked a chuckle, never moving his gaze from the thick golden rings decorating his fingers. "Even when it is the day of our anniversary, I'm afraid that everything you are asking of me I cannot do for you."

Anneliese scoffed, yet she replied with a fine and calmed tone. "Fine."

He expected her to hear the sound of a door shutting close – he expected her to hide in her closet or the bathroom - or receive an order to leave. But all he heard were her new, too clean shoes clicking on the floors as she furiously walked to the entrance door of her room. And just as the desperate jerking on the doorknob began, he stood up.

Preminger fixed the bow on his neck; he straightened his vest and brushed his sleeves. Even took out his mirror and adjusted his powdered wig. He literary got ready for the ball all over again, and the infernal sound never seized. She was stubborn alright; he had to give her some points for that. But she wasn't winning, not at any cost.

"There are guards outside of your door," Said the amber eyed man, making the blonde woman freeze. "At your balcony," His heels clicked across the floor, warning her of his approaching. "Watching the staircase," Her hands glued to the golden doorknobs. "Guarding the front entrance." He stopped walking, "One by nearly every window." A chortle escaped his mouth as he talked. "The ones having a blast must be the ones I sent to the kitchen." But not even that made the girl twitch, "Guards all over the palace, Anneliese. You can't run away." Now that that was clear, he walked to her side. "Now, come on. Our guests are waiting."

"I'll tell them!" She snapped; her eyes still red and glossy; her long blonde hair flowing in the air as she made the abrupt turn to face him. "I'll make everyone know that you are a liar!" One of her long and thin fingers one nearly touching his hooked nose. "That you and my mother forced me to get married," Preminger figured she'd find out about that sooner or later. But no one would believe, not without her late mother's support. And after they saw the condition she was in, her family would think she had finally gone nuts. "That you planned my kidnapping so you could be King," Now, who would believe that? They'd admit her poor grasp on reality, and if she mentioned the persons that spilled those beans on her they'd have to accept she was insane. "And that you tried to kill Julian-"

'Well, the cat's finally out of the bag.' He mentally remarked, 'And I don't like cats.'

"And I shall tell them that I did it in order to save you from him today." He cut her off, raising one of his eyebrows.

The look of horror that conquered her face in less than a second made him feel smug. All the steaming anger driving her presence ran away. "That I had to take drastic measures to make him release you."

The woman's arms dropped, hands morphing into fists once again. Preminger had just proposed to add another line to his web of lies, and she was going to stand there and let him? Through clenched teeth, she managed to answer. "It's a scar, not a wound."

He smiled, the stupid teacher never – ever left her mind. That, he was going to use to control her. "It can become a wound again if I command it." The color on her face drained away, her eyebrows loosened and her eyes grew with concern and disbelief – just like he had expected. "Or even worse…" He added, his fingertips pasted together as he began to walk. "You see dear, those scrapes can have any origin I want."

Anneliese sucked in a sharp breath of air when she realized that her wounded hand was still wrapped in a stained cloth and her arm was slashed by several thin, red lines. She had forgotten about her encounter with the little redheaded savage, and it seemed she was going to have to change her dress. "They won't believe you." She ventured to try a tone of defiance with the reply.

And it definitely worked.

The little man frowned, turned to her and adopted her last angry pose. His index finger hovering in front of her face as he stood on the tip of his heels to face her. "Try me, princess." Preminger hissed. Anneliese's sudden burst of confidence fainted when she saw the glowing anger the man was emanating. "Just do something to ruin this night, and I shall ruin the rest of your and his life."

But the anger was short lived; it was supposed to be a happy night. He cleared his throat, ran his hands on his sleeves to keep them from wrinkling again and he regained his posture. "Now," He looked up at her, offering his arm for her to take, "Let's enjoy this fine event, shall we?"

A storm of swords.

That's how the sound eating the forest could have been described as.

The men dressed in shiny metal armors swung their blades effortlessly. Just taking out the trash, like their King commented when he sent them with the fire-haired girl.

The Resistance, the group that had lodged fear in both kingdoms, nearly crushed. They had their strong fighters; that they had to admit. But they were still no match for them. No match for the men who had proved themselves strong enough to protect the King.

Silly, rebellious and hormone-fueled youngsters were the order of the day. Most of them were young enough to stir pity in some of the soldiers. Boys with thick skulls.

Yet, when the white army wasn't facing a group of acne-ridden fighters, they were facing buff, rough and ruthless men. Unlike them, The Resistance had an awful balance when it came to strength. To be in the staff of the royal bodyguards, one had to possess certain traits. But the bastard group that constantly attacked the castles didn't have any rules; if you wanted in, you were in.

Knowing all of that, Preminger's guards fought with clear confidence. Not even bothering to kill anyone, since they knew it would be wasting the sharpness of their sword in debris. Unlike they had thought, the rebels were actually being taken down with total ease.

Even when a lot fought with their thin and cheap swords, a lot also surrendered instantly when they felt the brush of the enemy's weapon near any part of their bodies.

Weird, yes. Convenient, very.

Yet, it wasn't odd to see one of the founders of the group fighting against several guards at the time. The people who didn't know the blond man would never guess that a year ago he had been a peaceful, harmless teacher who worked at the castle.

Julian wasn't really looking to bring any of the guards down; he was actually keeping an eye on those who were too dangerous for his group to fight with. He had learned from the best, but he was aware of the huge disadvantage they had against the enemy. Dominick was doing somehow the same, but Julian could notice the glimmer of anger in his eyes as he danced around them with his sword.

As the blond man ran to help a group of his men fighting against another bunch or royal guards, he also noticed Cherry nearby. One of his eyebrows rose, she'd made them think she'd be fighting against them. But there she was, riding her horse, watching while everyone fought.

He noticed the sudden lack of color on her cheeks and lips, and the strong grip she had on the horse's collar. However, as much as this intrigued him, Julian's thoughts were interrupted by a sudden whimper.

A scrawny boy, whose eyes had been swallowed by his face, just lying on the ground as a man nearly the double of his size kicked his bones out.

Julian frowned, and he ran towards them. Without thinking it twice, he grabbed the man's shoulder and made him turn. Next thing the armored giant saw were the man's knuckles against his eyes.

He blinked in surprise, little white stars danced in front of his sight for less than a second, and a dangerous smirk bloomed on his face when he looked down. With a single push he sent the blond man down, Julian gasped.

For a moment he regretted his last move, but when he saw the boy behind them running off, he sighed with relief. The guard, on the other hand, had other ideas, and while Julian tried to get back on his feet he heard a slashing sound – a shiny blade hovered too close to Julian's face.

His own fear reflected on that crystal clear piece of metal, and for a minute he regretted this whole ordeal he had agreed to create. He was about to lose it all, everything that he'd worked for in the last year – gone, thanks to an act of bravery.

The husk and tall man chuckled, "You've got guts, kid." His gloved hand drew the sword all the way down to Julian's stomach, "Too bad I'm going to have to take them out."

His blue eyes shut close; he had even forgotten he had a sword of his own. Fear had conquered every single cell on his body and all he was able to do in response was take away the sight from his own brain. He hadn't planned anyone to respond like this. All of the other soldiers were just making sure they surrendered. And sure, it was wrong of him to just punch the guy – but that didn't give him the right to paint the forest with his blood.

And just when his brain was able to put together an answer that might distract the giant, he heard a female voice shout, followed by a running horse.

"Ugh," The guard murmured as he withdrew his weapon.

Julian saw their lady captain approaching, a frown upon her face. He couldn't explain the relief that overtook his being when she rushed her horse and jumped off it. That sigh he gave away was the most relieving thing he had ever done.

He stayed still until Cherry was between him and the giant. She frowned at the man, who was half of her in height and weight, her hands now shaking fists. "Your King said beaten, not dead."

And although Julian recalled that that went against the threat she'd made before, it was somehow good to know the little buffoon wanted them alive – even if that could bring greater pain than death itself.

While she watched the guard go, Julian went back to his feet. Shaking off the dirt stuck to his garments, ready to thank the girl.

But before he could look or talk to her, she dug a claw on his shoulder and she made him turn back. Brusquely grabbed his hands and swiftly tied them together.

Julian was then dragged along by the rope binding his hands, and he was taken aback by the small woman's strength.

He knew her; she really was a joy to be around – when she wasn't gushing all over him or being annoying – she was funny, cheerful and an unstoppable chatterer. So he knew better than to try to get her to talk when she hadn't said a word to him.

Reason why Julian glued his own lips. And he just followed the person who took him prisoner, the same person who had been part of his alliance, who had been willing to jump off a cliff if he asked her too, the same person who had tried to kill for him a few hours ago.

Dominick wished he could have been a little boy right now. That way no one would have blamed him for crying at the moment.

He felt a tremendous pressure on his chest, a pounding ache inside his skull. Today was one of the most important days of his life; he had planned every single detail during the last months. And there he stood, watching how everything went down in flames.

He had decided to stay low for a while; he was a wanted man, after all. His crimes were far worse than simply organizing a rebellion against a pair of kings. Like that time he single-handedly set fire to the kingdom's whole market street. After he warned and frightened off everyone in it, of course. It wasn't really about him breaking the law, it was about the humiliation he had been bringing to his cousin – the King.

Plus, he needed some time alone to digest this sudden and uncertain change in the plan. Would it work? He kept asking himself, and every single time he repeated the question, another hole was poked into the uncertain result.

He wasn't sure. Perhaps this had been a mistake since the beginning, maybe he really wasn't supposed to be king. Maybe life had some other – more important and interesting – things for him. Maybe that's why he had met Erika today, because, maybe, she was the thing he needed to forget the pain.

But that maybe, was just a maybe.

And he had learned that if he wanted things to be done correctly, he had to do them himself. And he had worked so hard to avenge his father and to recover his rightful place as King that he hadn't doubted any of his last decisions.

All ruined thanks to some love triangle.

And speak of the Devil, there they were. The red of Cherry's hair caught his eye, but what made him instinctively stand up was the sight of his partner. His hands tied, now a prisoner.

He knew that everyone was being captured, but the fact that it was Cherry who took Julian was too maddening for him to handle. How dare she? Nick would have preferred to be held captive by Preminger himself instead of her at the moment.

So, forgetting that maybe the guards wouldn't be so easy on him for being the leader of the rebel group, Nick began to walk out of his hideout. But before he could skip over the last shrubs in his way, a woman's voice hissed his name from behind.

As he looked over his shoulder, his heart skipped a beat.

She hadn't abandoned him like he thought, there she was. The mysterious and wonderful Erika mounted on his horse.

"Come on!" She hissed, waving her hand for him to go to her. "We have to go."

He felt amazing when he saw her; she cared for him, she really did. And the fact that she came back for him was enough to consider tomorrow's walk once again. Even when he had just proven that she was a bit on the crazy side.

But he couldn't go with her, not right now, he had to help his friends.

Nick shook his head, "I can't leave them," He turned to her, walking a bit closer. "I have to save them."

The girl rolled her eyes, sighing. "If you stay they'll imprison you too."

Nick froze for a moment, she was right. They'd take him prisoner as well and who knew if even worse. It was the plan after all, but it had been too sudden. What if the guards decided he wasn't worthy of a second chance? What if instead of locking him up they decided he had to die without questions or answers?

He thought about it some more, deciding that if someone dare to get in his way he would just have to push them away, if they refused, then he'd slice them away. Right now, he had lost everything that mattered; he knew that even if Julian had been taken prisoner no harm was to be done to him. Anneliese wouldn't allow it; Julian was safer inside that hellhole than out here. But he wasn't, and he was willing to show the world that he was tired of being stepped on. "They'll have to kill me first."

Erika gulped, and when she bent to look closer at him, he noticed her reddened eyes. She'd been crying, because, for all he knew, she had also lost everything that mattered to her. And with her teeth slightly clenched, she answered to his last retort. "You can't save them if you're dead."

She took him by the collar with an iron grip; Nick understood and jumped on the horse with her. And as she rode off to the next stage of her improvised plan, she felt a tired smile on her lips. She caused all of this; she had failed to return everything to its rightful place. So even if it killed her, she was going to fix their worlds.

Author's Note:

I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaack!

Hey all you people! After, a year -a half?-!

Sorry that I took so long to update, even if it wasn't such a long chapter or a lot of new stuff for the story itself, but still. I promise that the next one will be filled with juicy action and lots of interesting events ;) This chapter, after all, needed to be here so yeah.

Stick around, though. The Resistance, crazy people, did something crazy! Literary running towards the wolf's mouth! Anneliese is being forced to control herself, and she'll need that mental reminder when a certain teacher arrives as a prisoner... Erika has given up all hopes in saving herself, but she's willing to lose everything to leave everyone happy again. And well, you know the other details waiting to explode ;) Stay tuned! I promise the next update won't take so long :D

I want to thank everyone who kept insisting for an update, you guys are the reason I came back! lmL And also the ones who left a review and all, thank you all! Especially my lovely -and patient- beta-reader Avatarfan445, who even after all this time gave me back the chapter in just one night! :D

Oh, I almost forgot! The title is also a song! Go look it up, I'm not a huge fan, but they're nice!

Paradise (What about us?) by Within Temptation ft. Tarja.

So, I have to go D: No, I still don't have internet at my house -_- Thanks, Mom.

But if you have anything to say - please, have something to say - leave a review!

And even PM me if you want to know what's been goin' on! I love to texting/writing messages and all those sorts of thing ;-; 3