Warrior Queen

Noble's eyes swirled with the thrill of battle.

The amount of time it had taken for everyone to prepare and the meager meal brought out by Lenore had rejuvenated her. 

The monster kept telling her she was useless.

She was determined to prove it wrong.

But pretending to succumb to its invisible grip and actually succumbing was a very fine line. She needed to keep her body relaxed and her mind completely alert.

Both were crucial to Noble's plan.

As her free fall progressed, Noble continued to pick up speed. Seconds ticked by.

As the heat grew and the air was tinged with noxious gas, Noble knew she was getting close.

Her timing had to be perfect.

Come close. Don't you know this is where you belonged all along?

A small smile involuntarily formed on Noble's face. She planned to come. Very close.

Feeling for each of the waterskins, Noble prepared to move them all at once.

A rustling below let her know the vines were moving. Soon, she heard them moving through the darkness around her, like snakes ready to strike.

But she didn't react to their presence, and they left her alone like they had the three that fell into the toothy center of the flower before.

'Getting closer…' The waiting before action was the hardest part.

Her muscles wanted to contract. To fight the lurking danger all around her. To cut down the enemy before it had the chance to strike.

But Noble held still.

'Five…four…three—oh no.'

One of the containers splatted on a vine two seconds too early.

The purple froth from the beetles spilled out somewhere to her left. It was a little more than a raindrop for the massive creature, but it was enough to alert the monster that something was amiss.

It flicked the poison away, crashing its black tendril against the cavern wall. Tiny blisters formed on the inky surface of the vine.

The canyon echoed with a roar.

Treachery!

The word burst on Noble's consciousness like a popped bubble.

She was discovered!

There was nothing she could do but spring into action.

Her body suddenly ceased its fall as the remaining bags floated around her like buoys on the sea.

The entire cavern burst to life as every limb of the flower suddenly had only one goal: apprehending the small floating woman.

A massive arm came close to her head. Ducking, Noble let the vine chase her downwards towards her goal. To her right, she heard another splash and felt her telekinesis lose its hold on one of the water bladders.

Another rumble from below let Noble know the poisonous juice had caused the flower more irritation.

There was no reason to panic. Less packages meant she would have more control over the ones that were left.

And she needed every ounce of clarity and control she could muster.

The noxious fumes increased as the queen dove deeper into the den of the demonic flower.

'Keep going…'

Protecting the precious package tucked under her arm, Noble used Nickel's whip in her other hand to cut through the smaller tendrils that blocked her path. 

She maneuvered masterfully through the vines, aiming for open spaces and predicting the vines' movements, increasing and decreasing her speed to avoid collisions with the tiny spines lacing the tendrils.

When a massive vine flew to block her path, she used the whip to lasso another to pull her out of the way in time.

For now, her luck was holding.

That wasn't to say things were going perfectly. The waterskins were being obliterated at frightening speed.

At this rate, none of them would make it to the monster's mouth.

'Forget this!'

Throwing caution to the wind, Noble cut through two vines threatening to wrap her ankles and sent two of the water skins toward the gaping maw.

They met their goal.

The creature accepted the gifts silently, not even bothering to shut its circular rows of teeth to chew.

'Good.' The Queen told herself.

But a second voice inside her head mocked her.

Don't you know it will take more than a little indigestion to stop a being so powerful? Why not provide yourself as a tasty meal instead?

Noble ignored the blossom.

The whip cracked in the darkness, trimming more branches from the oversized bush. Noble continued her assault.

Now that the plant knew of her plan, it attacked the floating containers as well as the beautiful Awakened.

Noble used that to her advantage. Unlike the flower, she was used to dividing her attention in a battle.

Through her second sight, she memorized the serpentine movement of the flower, mimicking it to keep herself and her cargo safe.

Any other Awakened would have died at least a dozen times while trying to outlast the angry black arms.

Finally, her luck ran out.

There were just too many vines and only one human. When the last of the waterskins broke on the monster's teeth, Noble's time was up.

The vines circled around her in an inescapable cage. Shouldering the whip, Noble gritted her teeth.

Darkness was all around her.

From the void, a tendril wrapped around her torso, squeezing her like a python. Even through her armor, she could feel the needles ready to pierce her soft skin.

Her chest began to burn as her ribs cracked. What little air was left in her lungs was tinged with sulfur and hotter than a fire.

Noble was slowly being pulled downward. The voice of doubt in her head boomed triumphantly.

Are cheap tricks all you have? Why bother? You are as worthless as you've always been. Don't you know you are only good at games like the Dreamscape? It's no wonder you brought balloons like a clown.

Noble squirmed in the suffocating embrace. 

After all of its prodding, the creature had finally pushed her true worry to the front. She had unwillingly given up her greatest doubt to the monster below. 

The realization of her innermost insecurity was horrifying to face. 

Even after all she had been through, Noble still only thought of herself as the winner of a virtual reality game. 

A fake Queen. 

She felt the invisible hook of the monster sink into her. Noble's body tensed.

No! 

Just because she doubted her own value did not make her worthless.

She was a loving mother to four amazing children, a brilliant professor at the Academy, a valued consultant for the government, and a faithful wife to the most wonderful man in existence.

If all of those people could see her worth, why couldn't she?

In the past few months, Noble had helped refugees, helped defeat a gate, survived a Category 2 Nightmare alone for weeks on end, and taken over a kingdom. Whatever had been thrown her way, she had fought tooth and nail to overcome. 

There would always be fears, worries and second guessing. It was what she did with that anxiety that mattered. She would strive to be better and stronger. 

That is who Noble was.

 Her determination had helped bring down not one, but two horrible monsters today alone. 

Noble's eyes swirled.

'About to be three…'

"You accuse me of cheap tricks? Those are for magicians and frauds!" She rasped, no longer wishing to stay silent. If the creature wanted to taunt her, then she would taunt back!

Keeping her hands above her head, Noble tried to measure her breaths to keep conscious.

"I am not a magician or a fraud," she continued. "I am a warrior!"

At that moment, the [Unlikely End] finished manifesting in front of her with the cracks that Ender had placed in the blade not fully healed. 

Using her Aspect, Noble dug the tip into the vine and showered it with essence. A small part of the plant turned to dust.

The branch recoiled, giving its prey enough room to slip from its grasp. Noble grabbed the estoc with her free hand to block another vine before a third caught her across her helmet. The needles flexed through the hole in her visor and scraped her cheek before she could pull away. 

Her face stung horribly, and she stabbed the offending black creeper with prejudice. It took the blade from her hand and she sent another burst of essence into the tip of the [Unlikely End]. She continued to pour power into her cracked weapon.

The cage around her wavered, providing the smallest hole toward freedom. Noble clung to her cargo and pressed through the tiny gap just in time. The spikes scraped against her armor, threatening to rip it from her body.

[Your Memory has been destroyed.]

The earth rumbled with laughter.

Are you sure you are a warrior? What soldier sacrifices their sword?

It was a fair question. Noble shook her head.

A weapon was only as good as the one who wielded it.

And a warrior could fight with more than just a blade!

Another rain of sparks manifested in the air beside her.

At the same time, Noble released the package in her hands.