The Crown's Entrapment

Bella couldn't help but grit her teeth as she found herself pacing alongside Clara as they did their best to avoid getting slowly surrounded by their enemies. Behind them, Lady Benet and Lady Evelyn were quick to follow their lead as they followed in their tracks, their gait spaced just enough to make sure that they'd have enough maneuvering room just in case Pinra decided to lunge at them.

It should've been simple. The plan had always been for the four of them to get into the final four and concede to Xenia just to get things over with. Well, that was for her and Clara, at least. Then again, their current companions in the form of Ladies Benet and Evelyn were fair fighters anyway. If they wanted to fight the Princess fair and square, then they wouldn't really fault them for it. But for now, they were all allies of convenience against a common foe.

And right now, their odds weren't looking up for them.

"This is bad," Bella mumbled to Clara, her friend's bow already nocked and loaded in preparation. "We can't stop them from overwhelming us."

"We can always just play dirty," Clara scoffed, her nerves doing little to affect her aim. "If they're going to try and gang up on us, then we're more than justified to defend ourselves."

"And risk our own reputations as a result?" Bella jokingly scoffed. "Not a chance. At least, not yet."

Bella didn't like their situation one bit. Their earlier clash had shown that while they could match them all for strength and skill, their numbers and underhanded tactics would make it too unpredictable for them to safely engage. Who knew what Pinra had under her sleeve? For all they knew, she had something that could turn the tide of battle with just one flick of her wrist.

Still, she at least had one trump card up her own sleeve this time.

"If you're that worried, then go ahead and get yourself killed then," Clara scoffed. "I've got an axe to grind with Pinra, and I don't care how I'll do it. I'll get that b1tch myself."

Bella shook her head at her friend's bloodlust. Such anger would get her killed, but she at least had the role of keeping Clara's head out of her own rage.

Keeping a keen eye on her surroundings, Bella took in the current state of the battlefield. They were all still circling around one another, the fight had turned into a battle of positioning as they all made sure they wouldn't be caught overextending.

With her and Clara in front, they'd be the first in line for Pinra's claws should the woman go ahead and poke at them. Likewise, her minions were just waiting to pounce on their leader's first target, their strategy seemingly only to act as Pinra's weapons as the woman herself directed them all.

Their feet shifted, and positional dance continued on. It was stressful and tedious, and everyone participating in the arena knew that one wrong misstep meant a resumption of hostilities. The air around them felt tense, and Bella could almost hear Clara's fingers straining against the string of her taut bow. All the while, Pinra seemed content to sweat them out, a sly grin adorning her face as she waited for them to slip up.

"This is taking forever," Lady Benet whined behind them. "We should press the attack."

"Absolutely not," Bella growled. "We can't afford to go on the offensive right now."

"She's right," Lady Evelyn grumbled. "We're outnumbered, and we'll lose the defensive advantage if we attack a numerically superior force."

That was just the crux of the problems. But while they were outnumbered, she knew that they'd be able to take them if they just bided their time. Beside her, Clara had begun letting out poking shots, hoping that her arrows would give them an opening to use to break this long stalemate.

"What's wrong?!" Pinra shouted at them. "Scared?!"

"We're angry, not stupid!" Clara barked out with yet another arrow aimed at the woman. "We know you're planning something!"

"Well, isn't that just obvious?!" Pinra sarcastically laughed. "Still, you're all wasting everyone's time fighting like this!"

Bella winced as Pinra's words seemed to reach some of the audience up above. Slowly, whispers of cowardice started to echo, their supposedly lame tactics making for poor entertainment as jeers began flying out.

"Come on! Where's the action?!"

"She's right! Just fight already!"

Clara growled beside her, and Bella already knew what was going to happen.

"Clara, calm down-"

"That absolute bastard of a woman…" Clara grumbled, her anger starting to reach a fever pitch. "We can't let her poison anybody's minds more than she already had."

"I know, but this is exactly what she wants," Bella insisted. "Just stick to being defensive, and we'll be-"

"Finally!"

Bella's eyes widened. Since when had Pinra gotten this close?! "What the-"

*SLASH!*

"NGHH!!"

Bella hissed through her teeth as she felt her forearms get slashed by Pinra's claws. Skidding backward, she didn't even get to breathe before two of Pinra's minions began pushing their luck. With her arms bleeding, she fought through the pain as she quickly paid the minions back for their sloppy handiwork.

"Get off me!"

*THUD! THUD!*

Two kicks to the head. Two bodies fell to the floor. One replaced them, but she was ready for it this time.

The crowd went wild as the arena erupted into a cacophony of violence. Each hit got accompanied by a cheer, each block being hollered at as Bella could only try and reassess their situation.

The battlefield had drastically changed. As if a bubble had popped, all of the earlier tension began pouring out as individual battles began taking place. Thankfully, nobody on their side had dropped dead yet, but it was only a matter of time before one of them slipped up.

Bella inwardly cursed. She had been careless, and now they were forced to fight a battle on uneven footing. Even as she managed to overpower some of Pinra's minions, the risk they were taking was just too much.

She had no choice. She had to use Osman's gift for her now before the situation devolved even further.