All of her doubts had seemingly disappeared after the feeling dulled down until it was a throb that was almost gone but still there. She felt the purpose of the Trial embed itself in her brain. The horn signaled her 5-minute warning. She scanned her weapons rack, looking for the right weapon. Her gaze landed on Stilleto, one of her favorites. Surely her weapon couldn't fail her now. As if the dagger could hear her thoughts, the handle warmed in her palm.

Carefully, she grabbed the armor out of the tank, putting it over her head. The personalized armor fitted itself to her shape, tightening just the way she liked it. After smearing on some facial markings, symbolizing who she was, she pulled at the cloth and her hair fell down her back in loose waves. She slipped her headpiece on and felt the metal weigh on her head. She imagined it as a crown, shining gloriously in the sun as she smiled victoriously. Allowing herself that one thought, Cosimia quickly erased it and cleared her head, focusing only on winning.

Her first opponent of two was one of the Marusa triplets. All three of them had been selected and Cosimia was looking forward to putting a dent in their incredibly huge egos. She would be fighting Eda who she had hoped for. Out of the three, Eda had the biggest anger issues. When someone turned angry, they fought recklessly. Cosimia knew it was a dangerous strategy because strength and rage came hand in hand. If Eda was lucky enough to get an advantage over her, Cosimia could get incredibly hurt. But she also knew that the late hours spent dancing would pay off. She was light on her feet, like she was made of air. She would be able to evade Eda's strikes easily. The second fight would either be with Amorita or Carlin. Both worthy opponents. But unlike the other students, the longer she fought the stronger she became. Mother had made her spend hours doing endurance drills, whether it was climbing up the tower and back down 20 times or hanging from a CapsuleCar as it zoomed through the city, making sharp turns in an attempt to throw her off.

By the amplified roar of the audience, she could tell Eda was already outside. She was raising her hands to the crowd, doing tricks with her crossbow, which in Cosimia's opinion was a really bad choice for a weapon. The second horn sounded and everyone quieted down, eager to get a glimpse of the Commandant's daughter. As the barrier disappeared Cosimia slinked out, making her way slowly but confidently towards the center of the arena. Stiletto glinted in the light and she felt a fizzling shock go through her as she pressed a finger to the heated metal of her dagger. She locked eyes with Mother who saw the fire in her eyes and smiled, sitting back in her chair. She turned to Eda, who was already glaring at Cosimia. Cosimia coolly looked right back, not breaking her gaze until Eda conveniently turned to pick at her crossbow. Mother smirked at Cosimia, the pride shining in her eyes. Geneva scowled at her, eyes pinched in confusion. She probably couldn't figure out the reason why Cosimia was so confident. Cosimia had never felt this empowered in all her life. It was an addictive feeling, one she never wanted to let go. 

"Our first two contenders for the position as the Huntress are Eda Marusa and Cosimia Nedias! Please, our of respect, do not make a single noise lest you want to be dragged out of the stadium." Mother spread her arms wide, her voice thundering in the stadium. She closed her eyes and imagined the warm flame of a match, making its way close to the wax. With the slightest touch, the flame of the match had expanded into a roaring fire, heating up her insides until she felt like she was going to explode. She turned to Mother who was watching her with a knowing smile. She whispered something softly but it seemed to echo in Cosimia's ear.

Let it out.

She imagined the fist closing over the fire and released it, letting the fire sweep through her like a burning current in her veins. It was pain, strength, power, and euphoria. Stiletto burned in her palm as if it could sense the fire inside of Cosimia. The drums pounded in her ears and she considered her battle strategies.

Parry, toss, backflip, jump behind in the elbow, double punch to the ribs...

She frowned. None of these would work effectively. As she saw Eda charging at her like an angry bovem who had been denied its mid-morning feeding, she erased all those thoughts from her mind and replaced it with one.

Win. As Eda pointed the sharp end of her crossbow towards Cosimia, she put her hands out and grabbed it, wrenching it from Eda's hands. She was careful to keep the sharp end away from her and threw it at the wall, smiling as it cut through the wind. The weapon buried itself in the wall. Everyone stared at the crossbow in shock before cheering. For her. She had never felt like this before and Cosimia loved it. Eda got over her shock quickly and turned back to Cosimia, face turning redder by the second.

"Not so tough now, are you?" Cosimia taunted, throwing Stiletto in the air and catching it casually, not even looking at the weapon. Eda closed her meaty fingers into a fist and swung haphazardly at Cosimia, who neatly ducked.

"I can't believe you brought a crossbow! What are you, a first-year? Thank the Goddess I'm fighting you first. This will be a good warm-up fight for the real one that's coming next." With a scream, Eda launched herself at Cosimia, who swiftly spun away like a dancer. She knew those extra hours in the dance studio would pay off. As Eda stumbled to the side, heaving, Cosimia darted to where the crossbow was nestled into the wall. With a grunt, she wrenched it out, feeling the weight in her left arm. Eda exhaled forcefully and ran to her, steps thundering. As she pounced, Cosimia backflipped over her, using the weapons in both her hands to ground her as she landed. She punched Eda's upper gut with a double punch, slamming the scabbard of her dagger to Eda's skull. She groaned and her hands flitted to her forehead. Cosimia assumed there was some sort of internal bleeding. Perfect. Internal bleeding would give Eda a massive headache, the type that made her lose focus. Seizing her opportunity, she swept Eda's stout legs from under her, using the crossbow. She almost gently pressed her foot on top of Eda's abdomen, waiting for the 10 seconds before releasing. She pumped her fists in the air, drinking in the awestruck cheers of the audience. She could see Geneva arguing with Mother who made a sharp motion. Geneva stomped out of the arena, shooting her a look of seething, unfiltered hatred before going out of sight. Mathias was cheering the loudest, his claps seeming to echo in her ears compared to the roar of the audience.

"I declare Cosimia Nedias as the champion of this match. Let the second one commence." Mother sat down elegantly, giving Cosimia a nod of approval before turning back to King Sabra and Queen Rhea, who were talking animatedly.

One down, one left.