Manifest War: The Weapons Within

The two misfits had finally finished clearing the supplies room. They stood at the front of the room exhausted, admiring the now spotless and organized space.

“Whew, all in a day’s work!” Mariah said while brushing dirt off of her hands.

Carmen sighed loudly and stretched her back, feeling glad to be done with this punishment. They put the cleaning supplies off to the side and closed the door. Once they exited the building, the two were greeted by a full moon in the dark night sky.

“Geez, I can’t believe it’s already dark out.”

Before Mariah could reply to Carmen, a loud rumble was heard from her stomach. She slightly blushed and laughed as she looked at Carmen with embarrassed eyes.

“Lemme guess, you’re hungry again?” Carmen cautiously asked with slight annoyance. Mariah nodded her head quickly and began to plead.

“Yeah, I’m dying!”

“I guess we could get something to eat.”

Carmen took a few steps down before Mariah grabbed her shoulder and intensely gazed into her eyes.

“Are you paying?” She asked with a hopeful expression.

Carmen gave her a blank stare, not feeling particularly generous or interested in feeding this girl. As Mariah continued to plead with her fairly pathetic expressions, Carmen eventually caved with a heavy sigh.

“I guess…”

Mariah leapt up with great excitement and cheered as though she had just won the jackpot.

“Yes! See, I always knew you were a great person. That whole fight we had earlier? Yeah, totally didn’t mean it! You’re alright in my book! Hehe.”

She smacked Carmen on the back while showing a childlike grin. Carmen rolled her eyes, still contemplating if she made the right decision. While they walked towards the cafeteria area, the duo started having a brief conversation.

“So, what was your name again?” Mariah asked, just now realizing they never bothered to properly introduce themselves after all this time.

“Carmen. Carmen Belouis.”

“Cool, I’m Mariah. Mariah Dale!”

She quickened her pace and stopped in front of Carmen, facing her directly as she continued to introduce herself.

“I’m from South Arista, smack dab in the middle of the Arista Badlands. I like food, fighting, and uhh… Hmm.. Not much else to be honest. Your turn, go!”

Carmen was beyond confused by Mariah’s complete change in tone and attitude.

‘She called me a bitch earlier and now she’s acting like we’re best buds, I don’t get it. Are all people from Arista so wishy washy?’

Carmen couldn’t help but compare Mariah to Sarah, making note of her bipolar tendencies and constant changes in mood.

“Umm, I’m from Ariana City in Volaire. My family rules over the nation. Uhh, I like exploring, I have four sisters, and um… Yeah…” Carmen replied, not having much of an answer to give.

“Ahh, so you’re a princess or something? Explains why you suck ass at cleaning stuff.” Mariah cackled, teasing Carmen’s lack of experience with simple things such as cleaning.

“I don’t suck at cleaning! I just needed to get used to it…”

Carmen’s tone quickly shifted to that of great embarrassment as she tried to justify her lack of skills. Mariah let out another raspy cackle before resuming their walk.

“Whatever you say, princess!”

The two arrived at the cafeteria and got some food just before the building closed for the night. The duo ate and surprisingly enjoyed each other's company, almost completely forgetting their intense fight earlier.

Once they finished their meals and headed back to the girl’s dorm, the two said their goodbyes before Mariah ran off to her room, waving back at Carmen. After returning the gesture, Carmen was in a much better mood as she walked to her room, having made a new friend.

She hummed a gentle tune once she got to the door, feeling eager to turn in for the night after such an eventful day.

The following evening came as Carmen excitedly rummaged through her closet, looking for the perfect outfit to wear. Elise reluctantly looked up from her book and wondered why Carmen was making such a commotion.

“You seem rather chipper.” Elise said with a cold tone, brushing her messy bangs over so she could see more clearly. Carmen turned around and smiled before responding.

“Yeah, aren’t you? Tonight is the welcoming ball for the First year students. I can’t wait to dress up and go!”

“Ohh, I forgot about that. Sounds boring.”

Elise got out of bed and joined Carmen as she looked through her assortment of dresses.

“Are you going? We can go there together if you want.” Carmen asked with great curiosity.

“No, I think I’ll pass. Probably just going to hang out here in the dorms.”

Elise walked away and entered the bathroom, not showing much interest in such an exciting event. Carmen looked on in disappointment, having hoped that Elise was going to hang out with her.

‘Well shoot… Maybe parties aren’t her thing?’

Carmen shrugged and went back to looking at her dresses, trying to find the perfect one.

After going through a few options, she finally decided on an elegant blue and white dress. The white lace trailed behind the dress as she walked along and her glimmering platinum earrings dangled down near her exposed shoulders. Her princess-like charm and beauty was on full display, showing why the Belouis sisters were so often sought after and admired.

Once she was finished getting dressed, she turned to Elise and smiled.

“How do I look?” Carmen asked, spreading out the bottom half of the dress as she twirled side to side. Elise looked over and shrugged, not having much of an opinion to share.

“Looks fine, I guess...” Elise replied with a blank expression, clearly wanting Carmen to leave already so she could get back to reading.

“Thanks! Well, I’m off then. I’ll see you later.”

Carmen smiled again and swiftly made her exit, feeling beyond excited to go to the LaVeda ballroom.

Loud chatter and laughter could be heard all throughout the room as first year students were mingling with one another. Caleb Ravenfell walked in and the girls that spotted him immediately cooed at his entrance. They all admired his built stature and blue eyes accenting his immaculately styled jet black hair.

Once he made his way around the ballroom, a blonde girl swiftly grabbed his arm. He looked over and saw Bridgette Vandel linked to his arm tightly as she smiled at him. She was wearing a light green dress with thin straps and a fairly plunging neckline, showing her rather voluptuous cleavage. Any man would have been swept by her mature beauty.

Bridgette leaned in closer to him, pressing her chest firmly on his arm while staring deeply into his eyes. It was beyond clear that she was trying to seduce him.

“Hey Caleb, how’ve you been tonight? I was looking for you.” She said with a cute smile.

“Uhh, hey Bridgette. I’ve been alright, just getting used to things around here.”

Caleb nervously laughed, feeling a bit uncomfortable from her bold advances. She proceeded to pull him along by the arm and escorted him to some nearby chairs. They sat and talked for a bit, causing eagle eyed students to look on with great curiosity.

“Oh, are they together now?”, “They look so good with each other!”, “Gah, Caleb is so lucky to be able to talk to Bridgette.” Could be heard from all around as jealousy rose to unsavory levels.

“This really takes me back. I remember when we were kids and our parents had us attend all of their banquets. I swear, the only thing I wanted to do was play, but they just wouldn’t let us be kids.” Bridgette said with a chuckle, reminiscing about the past.

“Yeah, your family visited us in Melspire quite often. How is everyone these days?”

“Everyone is fine, I guess… My father is still being a stubborn asshole while my mother just sits back, being as spineless as ever. Braden has been doing some studying in Siestro and Claudia is.. Well.. You know…”

Bridgette’s tone shifted as she mentioned Claudia, a lump building in her throat.

“Ah right, I heard about what happened to Claudia during the war. I really hope she pulls through.”

“Thanks. But, enough about me, I have a question for you.”

Bridgette sent him an enticing and playful smile, her piercing blue eyes locked in on his. Caleb’s brows raised as he wondered what she was going to ask.

“I saw you hanging with that Belouis girl the other day. What’s that all about? Are you guys close or something?”

She leaned in closer, showing great eagerness to learn more about this unexpected relationship.

“Who, Carmen? Uhh, I wouldn’t say we’re close or anything. We’re just good friends. Why do you ask?”

Caleb was surprised by the question, wondering why Bridgette had a sudden interest in his personal life.

“I see, I see. Well, I don’t think you should get too close to her. You know what they say about the Belouis Family. You can’t trust those red eyed freaks…”

“Huh? What are you saying?”

Upon hearing her statement, Caleb’s entire demeanor started to change. Bridgette was about to tell him her reasonings, but the room began to get rather quiet for a brief moment.

Everyone in the ballroom looked up at the stairs and saw a silver haired goddess walk down. Everything about Carmen in that moment was an absolute ten on every scale. She made her way down to the bottom floor and felt nervous as all eyes were on her.

‘Why is everyone staring at me?’

She anxiously tried her best to keep her composure, her heart pounding a million miles a minute. Caleb saw Carmen and his breath, as well as attention, was immediately taken away. Bridgette, not even remotely taking notice of Carmen, was in the middle of talking until Caleb cut her off.

“I’ll have to catch you later, sorry.”

Caleb gave a half smile and stood from his seat, quickly making his way towards Carmen.

‘What? Did he really just leave me here?’

Bridgette felt confused and disrespected as he suddenly left the table. She stood and averted her gaze towards the crowd, now seeing Caleb greeting Carmen. He talked to her with way more energy and care than he ever showed Bridgette minutes earlier. This realization caused Bridgette to scowl and grit her teeth in disgust, feeling severely irritated by this situation.

Caleb and Carmen stepped to the side to have a brief chat.

“Carmen, you look absolutely stunning tonight. Truly.” He remarked with great charm, still feeling speechless by her appearance. Carmen blushed from the compliment and smiled.

“Thank you, Caleb. You look handsome as well. But, you always look handsome so nothing too new.” Carmen awkwardly laughed, thinking that her reply was a bit cheesy.

Caleb snickered at the reply and the two shared a brief moment together, staring into each other's eyes. This moment was unfortunately short lived as Mariah came and interrupted them.

“Aww, look at you two love birds! When’s the wedding?” She said with a loud laugh and cheeky grin.

“Mariah! It’s not like that!”

Caleb laughed and asked Carmen to introduce him to her friend. She did so and invited Mariah to join them in conversation.

“I honestly didn’t expect you to wear a dress, Mariah. Didn’t seem like your, uh.. Style.” Carmen retorted with a chuckle, admiring Mariah’s rather striking red dress and shoulder exposure.

“Hey, I may be rough and rowdy, but I’m still a girl. I like to look cute every now and again.”

Mariah swung her hips as she showed off her dress even further. After a few moments, she excused herself to go check out the food, saying that she was starving.

Caleb noticed that people were beginning to dance in the middle of the ballroom and so, he asked Carmen if she would like to dance. Carmen happily accepted and they made their way to the center of the dance floor.

He took her hand and they began to flow elegantly with the rhythm of the music. Not a beat was missed, nor cadence skipped. Just like their many fights together, they moved effortlessly with one another.

The other students took notice and watched in awe of the flawless performance happening in front of them. Soon, Caleb and Carmen were the only ones still dancing, but they didn’t care. They were completely entranced with one another and wanted to see this dance to the end.

The music finally stopped, prompting Caleb to tilt Carmen down while gripping her waist tightly. He then pulled her back up and brought her in closely. The two were breathing heavily as they stared into each other's eyes.

Applause erupted in the ballroom as all the surrounding students cheered and whistled, impressed by the dance they just witnessed. Caleb and Carmen separated and bowed to the crowd, still holding each other’s hand. They made their way off the floor and Carmen excused herself to go to the washroom.

As she walked down the hall, Bridgette exited the washroom. Once their eyes met, Carmen could see that she was clearly annoyed by her presence. Bridgette proceeded to walk past Carmen, but just as their shoulders became parallel, Bridgette stopped.

“At midnight, meet me at the abandoned training facility on the east wing of campus. Don’t you dare be late…” She said with a cold whisper before continuing her exit.

“Huh? Why?”

No response came from Bridgette as she walked further and further away. Carmen shook her nerves aside and entered the washroom, wondering what she should do later.

The welcoming ball continued on and many memories were made that night. Once the festivities winded down and the party ended, Carmen said her goodbyes to Caleb and Mariah. She made her way back to the dorms and changed out of her dress, trying to be as quiet as possible so she didn’t wake Elise. After tightening her long silver hair into a ponytail, Carmen set off into the chilly night.