The goddess floated high above, watching the scene of chaos with an unblinking gaze, she was not horrified by the sight of children killing each other.
['This is necessary, their society taught them weakness, but survival requires strength, true nature is revealed only when everything is on the line.']
She was a selector, picking out the souls that had the will to do what was needed, the ones who would not break.
['I need killers, not heroes, the ones who hesitate will die, and that is a mercy, they would not last a day in Sajara.']
Her eyes followed a large boy who had already killed three others, he was fighting with a brutal efficiency that was impressive.
['He has potential, he enjoys the violence.']
She saw another group of students who had banded together, they were defending each other and fighting as a team.
['A foolish strategy, they create bonds that will only make their eventual betrayal more painful, but the strong ones among them might survive it.']
Her attention turned to Luthra, who was now standing over two fresh bodies with Ralia.
['And then there is him, the first kill was an accident of self-preservation, but the ones after were a choice, he has accepted the reality of this test faster than anyone else, he is turning into a predator.']
She was pleased with this one, he was exactly what she was looking for.
['He will be a powerful weapon.']
Down on the white floor, Ralia was backing away from Luthra, her face full of fear, not of the battle, but of him.
"Luthra, what's wrong with you? These are people from our school."
"They stopped being people when she gave us these swords, they are obstacles, Ralia, look around, this isn't a classroom anymore, it's a contest, and the prize is getting to live."
He gestured with his bloody sword toward the fighting, where a boy was screaming as two others cornered him against an invisible wall.
"There is no place to hide, there is no escape, the only thing you can do is kill them before they kill you."
"I can't do it, I can't just murder someone."
she was crying, completely terrified.
"Then you will die, but I won't let that happen, so you have two choices, you learn how to use that sword, or you stay behind me and let me use mine."
'She's a weakness, she's going to get us both killed if she keeps acting like this.'
"I'm not scared of them, I'm scared of you, you're not the Luthra I know, you're like a completely different person."
"The old Luthra would be dead already, this version of me is the one that's going to survive."
While they were talking, a tall, athletic girl from the track team saw an opportunity, Luthra was hurt and his attention was on Ralia. She charged at him, her sword aimed at his chest.
"Luthra, watch out!"
He turned just in time, blocking her attack with his own sword, but the force of the blow made his wounded shoulder hurt a lot, causing him to grunt in pain. The girl was very fast and she wasted no time in attacking again, her movements quick and precise.
Luthra was on the defensive, his injured arm making his blocks slow and clumsy.
'She's better at this than I am, I can't keep her back for long, my arm is giving out.'
The girl saw an opening and kicked him hard in the chest, knocking him to the floor. She stood over him, raising her sword to finish him off.
"It's nothing personal, I just want to live."
'So this is how it ends.' He closed his eyes, waiting for the final blow.
Suddenly, the girl yelled out in pain. Luthra opened his eyes and saw Ralia standing there, she had stabbed the girl in the side. It wasn't a deep wound, but it was enough. The athletic girl stumbled back, her face twisted in rage as she looked at Ralia.
"You're dead, you bitch!"
She ignored Luthra on the floor and ran at Ralia, who was frozen, looking at the blood on her sword with total horror. Luthra pushed through the pain, got to his feet, and charged the athletic girl from behind. He plunged his sword deep into her back, the blade went straight through her body and came out her stomach.
She looked down at the sword sticking out of her, her mouth opened but no sound came out, then she fell face-first onto the floor and lay still.
He pulled his sword out and walked over to Ralia, who had dropped her own sword and was now staring at her bloody hands.
"You saved my life."
"I stabbed her," she whispered, her body shaking uncontrollably. "I killed her, oh god."
She broke down completely, crying loud, ragged sobs of despair. He bent down, picked up the sword she had dropped, and held it out to her.
"Yes, you did, now pick it up, the clock is still ticking, and you've just proven you can do what it takes to survive."
She stared at the sword in his hand, her body still shaking from the kill. She was very scared.
"Pick it up, Ralia."
"Luthra," she looked up at him, her face was covered in tears, "what are we becoming?"
He had no answer for her, he just looked around at the other students fighting and dying on the floor, the screams and the sounds of steel hitting steel filling the air.
"I don't know," he said, "but whatever it is, it has us trapped."
She looked at the sword for a few more seconds, her fear was still there, but a new, hard feeling was starting to grow inside of her. She took the sword from him, her grip much firmer than before.
They moved together through the crowd, Luthra was in front, his eyes scanning for their next target. He was no longer looking for people who were attacking others, he was just looking for anyone who seemed weak or distracted.
He saw two boys who had teamed up, they were back-to-back, trying to defend themselves from everyone around them.
"Them," he pointed with his sword.