Chapter Text
She was placed in an underground bunker before she even knew what was happening. Her ears rang violently as the sounds of screaming soldiers overtook her senses and all that was left was the taste of ash and dirt as she was thrown into the dark room. Her mother was taken away from her by a palace guard who promised Pearl that he would be back to retrieve her once the battle was over.
The hours passed idly, Pearl still underground, still amongst the dirt walls and the cold benches and she wanted the warm hugs of her mother—but she could not have that, not yet.
The raging of the battle above her that so abruptly invaded her home seems to have quelled. She takes in the silence. There is a lamp on the far wall, lit by a small flame that threatens to die out at any moment’s notice. The cupboard that holds food rations is to her right. A cot to her left. How much longer will she be here? Pearl decides not to think about it too hard. She wants her mother.
Another hour ticks by. The only sounds she can hear above are footsteps and soft voices that she can’t discern the source of, nor can she hear what they say. They walk past, the sounds withering more and more to the rhythm of Pearl’s heartbeat. How cruel a game the universe plays, sometimes. More footsteps.
A knock comes to her wooden hatch.
There is a violent sound as the wood is kicked in from where it held in place. A hand reaches for her, reassuring, and naive that she is, she takes it. She is hoisted above ground only to come face to face with a soldier bearing the crest of Valdis, and she knows she is done for. They tell her not to worry, no harm is to be done. She is walked back to the main palace grounds by the soldier, stopping short when she looks up.
As Pearl takes in her new surroundings, her face twists in disbelief and shock and denial all at once. Her hand comes to cover her mouth stifling a gasp; her knees almost buckle for grief over what she once knew.
Maris has fallen.