AYASHA'S POV
The Desert Luna moved like a predator stalking prey. Her red silk dress flowed around her legs with each careful step, and the hidden blade in her hand caught the chandelier light in deadly flashes. The Luna of the high plains—pale and ethereal in her white gown—backed away until she hit one of the marble pillars.
"Please," the High Plains Luna whispered, her silver hair trembling around her shoulders. "We don't have to do this."
"Don't we?" The Desert Luna's voice was honey over steel. "Only one of us walks away from this competition alive. Better to thin the field now while we have the chance."
The other Lunas scattered, creating distance between themselves and the brewing violence. I watched them calculate, weighing whether to intervene or let the slaughter begin. Most chose self-preservation, pressing themselves against the walls like beautiful, terrified birds.
But I couldn't stand there and watch another woman die. Not when we had other options.
"Stop," I called out, stepping forward. My voice echoed off the marble walls, drawing every eye in the room. "This is exactly what they want."
The Desert Luna paused, her blade inches from the High Plains Luna's throat. "What?"
"Violence. Blood. They want us to tear each other apart for their entertainment." I gestured toward the Lamia officials seated around the room's perimeter. Several were leaning forward in their chairs, eyes bright with anticipation. "Look at them. They're waiting for the show to start."
"So?" The Desert Luna's grip tightened on her weapon. "I'd rather give them what they want and live than die with my principles intact."
"What if we don't have to choose?" I took another step closer, my hands visible and empty. "What if we give each other our votes and we all win?"
The Desert Luna laughed, the sound sharp and bitter. "Win? You think this is about winning? Only one of us will get to be the Princess of Lamia at the end of the day. Best we take out the weak ones now."
She turned that predatory gaze on me, and I saw death in her dark eyes. "Like you."
My hand moved to my dagger before I could stop it. The familiar weight of the hilt steadied my nerves, even as my heart hammered against my ribs.
"There is going to be a second round," I said, keeping my voice level. "How do you know your choice to kill people won't come back to bite you later?"
That made her pause. Her blade wavered slightly, uncertainty flickering across her features.
I pressed my advantage. "Think about it. If you start killing now, what makes you think the survivors will trust you later? What happens when the next challenge requires cooperation? Or when someone stronger decides you're too dangerous to live?"
The Desert Luna's eyes narrowed, but she didn't strike. I could see her mind working, calculating new possibilities.
"I'll prove my point," I said, raising my voice so everyone in the room could hear. "I give you all three of my votes."
The words hung in the air like a thunderclap. The Desert Luna's mouth fell open. Around the room, the other Lunas began murmuring, their voices creating a low buzz of shock and confusion.
"You're lying," the Desert Luna said.
"I'm not." I pulled out the three voting tokens they'd given us earlier—small pieces of carved wood with our names etched into them. I held them out toward her. "Take them. All three."
"Ayasha," Pavati's voice cut through the murmurs. "Are you stupid? You cannot trust her."
I looked across the room at Pavati, seeing genuine concern in her dark eyes. "Yes, I can."
The Desert Luna stared at the tokens in my outstretched hand like they might bite her. "What's the catch?"
"No catch." I turned to address all the Lunas, raising my voice. "We do not have to be the monsters they want us to be. Not so fast. Not when we still have options."
The silence stretched taut. I could feel the Lamia officials' disappointment radiating from their seats. They'd expected blood and chaos. Instead, they were getting philosophy and cooperation.
The Desert Luna slowly lowered her blade. "You're serious."
"Completely."
She reached out and took my tokens, her fingers brushing mine. Her hands were shaking slightly. "Why?"
"Because we're stronger together than apart. Because every woman we lose makes the rest of us weaker. Because—" I looked directly at her, letting her see the truth in my eyes. "Because we've all lost enough already."
Something shifted in her expression. The predatory hunger faded, replaced by something more human. More vulnerable.
"My name is Zara," she said quietly. "Zara of the Desert Lands."
"Ayasha of Whitewater."
Zara nodded slowly, then turned to address the room. "I... I give two of my votes to you."
It wasn't everything I'd hoped for, but it was progress. She was keeping one vote for herself, maintaining some control, but she was sharing the others. The inequality was starting to break down.
"I give you one of my votes," Pavati called out from across the room. Her voice carried clearly in the sudden quiet. "That gives you three, Ayasha."
I felt a surge of gratitude toward her. Despite her earlier warnings about trust, she was supporting my gamble.
The other Lunas began moving, no longer pressed against the walls like trapped animals. Elora, the petite blonde from the High Plains stepped forward. Despite her delicate features, there was steel behind her kind eyes.
"I'll share mine too," she said. "One to Pavati, one to Imara, one to Nisha."
Imara, tall and dark-skinned, with intricate braids coiled like a crown atop her head, nodded with calm purpose. She smiled at Elora; the first genuine smile I'd seen in this cursed place.
"I give one to Elora," Imara said, "one to Kira, and one to Liana."
The momentum was building. One by one, the Lunas began sharing their votes, creating a complex web of mutual support instead of the bloodbath the officials had expected.
Nisha, older than the rest, her dark hair threaded with silver, stepped into the circle with quiet authority. Her gaze moved over us, thoughtful, unshaken.
"Mine go to Pavati, Elora, and Liana."
Liana, the youngest, still looked like she might bolt at any moment, but her voice held. Her light brown hair clung damply to her forehead, her cheeks stained and blotchy with rouge—but she stood tall.
"I vote for Imara, Nisha, and Kira."
I watched the exchanges carefully, keeping track of who was giving to whom and how many votes each Luna was accumulating. My biggest fear was that Pavati would end up with only two votes making her the loser by default.
That was when Kira, short and powerfully built, her muscles coiled beneath her gown like a fighter's, stepped forward. Her chestnut eyes were still haunted by what had nearly happened, but her voice was clear.
"I give one to Liana, one to Elora, and one to Nisha."
Finally, Zara spoke once more. "My last vote," she said, looking at Pavati, "goes to you."
That made me breathe a sigh of relief. The last few exchanges happened quickly, votes flowing between us like water finding its level.
When the dust settled, I counted the totals in my head. Everyone had exactly three votes.
Perfect equality.
The Lamia official who'd announced the competition rose from his chair, his face dark with frustration. "Time," he called out, though we clearly still had minutes left.
He walked to the center of the room, looking around at all of us with barely concealed disgust. "Present your final vote counts."
One by one, we showed our tokens. Three each. Not a single death, not a drop of blood spilled. The officials looked like they'd been cheated out of their favorite entertainment.
"The first round ends in a tie," the official announced through gritted teeth. "All competitors advance to the second round."
A collective sigh of relief went through the group. We'd done it. We'd beaten their system, at least for now.
But I caught the look that passed between the officials. This wasn't over. They'd make the next challenge harder, more impossible to solve through cooperation.
The official gestured toward the doors, which were being unlocked by guards. "You will be returned to your quarters to rest before the next competition. Do not assume this... unexpected outcome... will repeat itself."
The threat was clear. They wouldn't be caught off guard again.
We filed out of the ballroom in small groups, the tension between us completely different than when we'd entered. Instead of rivals eyeing each other for weaknesses, we moved like people who'd shared something significant.
Zara fell into step beside me in the corridor. "That was either the smartest thing anyone's ever done, or the stupidest."
"Probably both," I admitted.
"Why did you trust me?" she asked. "I had a blade at another woman's throat. I was ready to kill."
I thought about her question. "Because you hesitated when I asked you to think about consequences. Because you gave back two votes instead of keeping all three. Because—" I shrugged. "Because we're not so different, you and I. We're both here because we love our people more than we fear death."
Zara was quiet for a moment. "My little brother is still alive in the Desert lands pack. Nahuel promised not to kill him if I competed."
"My people are depending on me to save them," I replied. "We both have reasons to fight."
"And now we have reasons to trust each other."
I nodded. "For now."
"For now," she agreed.
We reached the guest quarters where the surviving Lunas were housed. Zara squeezed my shoulder before heading to her own room. "Thank you, Ayasha. For showing us another way."
Back in the chamber I shared with Pavati, I finally allowed myself to collapse onto my narrow bed. The elaborate dress felt foreign against my skin, too fine for someone who'd been sleeping on forest floors just days ago.
"That was incredibly risky," Pavati said, settling onto her own bed. "What if Zara had decided to kill you anyway and take your votes?"
"Then I would have died knowing I tried to save lives instead of take them."
Pavati shook her head. "Your honor is going to get us all killed."
"Maybe. But it kept us all alive today."
She couldn't argue with that. Outside our small window, the sun was beginning to set over the Lamia territories. We'd survived the first official challenge, but I had no illusions about what came next.
The officials had been clear. This unexpected outcome wouldn't repeat itself. They'd make sure the next challenge couldn't be solved through cooperation and trust.
But we'd proven something important. We didn't have to be the monsters they wanted us to be. At least not yet.
It was funny because I had been fine with becoming the worst monster under the sun to get what I wanted from the Lamia royal house: revenge. But here I was, trying to save lives. Life had a strange sense of humor.