They told us to execute. The instructions come from above, we are expected to move forward one step at a time. We are always the first into battle. The commander cannot risk other pieces, they must be moved carefully and strike hard, but only when the time comes. That is what they taught us since we were kids.
The battle is raging. I am in enemy territory. All around me I see the champions of the white team. I know they can wipe me out in one sweep movement. Some of my fellow pawns are already lost. Our knight is following me. He moves really fast. He can come and go in no time; our strategy is based on his ability. All our other champions are still waiting, ready to engage at any moment.
Suddenly I must move. Wait, no. There must be a mistake. One step ahead they told me. Right into the white's queen rage. That is not what I fight for. It cannot be, all these steps just to be sacrificed? I start to move, I cannot stop myself. Why is that happening? Am I only a puppet? Slowly I reach my new spot. I am doomed. The white's fury will erase me with one sweep. No one seems to bother around me. They are all waiting for their next move. They know I am just part of our strategy, another piece to leave for the greater good. I await my fate.
The enemy movement comes right after I stop. And it is not their queen. Right behind me, their horse advances. I am still in the game. But wait, it does not make sense. They had the chance to strike. How could that be? I look around me, still dizzy, and confused. The battle keeps raging. Pieces keep moving. I am in the reach of their fury. I am still alive.
Move after move, I keep my spot while other pieces strike left and right. More of my fellow pawns are taken down around me. I begin to move again only after the battlefield has become a wasteland. Now I am nearly on the verge of the enemy's territory. No pawn has ever reached this far in the land. When we were kids, they told us of this far place. The legend tells of a magical power that can change the equilibrium of the forces. No pawn has ever come back from here.
I am the only black's pawn alive around me. I cannot see what is happening on our side of the board. Our knight is the only piece that keeps coming back and forth near me. The white's fury is not around me anymore. She sprinted forward, and now she must be raging in our territory. The only piece I see is the black's tower. He is blocking my advancement into oblivion. Just two steps before the verge.
Suddenly, the tower moves. He sprints forward and fades await in the distance toward our side of the board. The next thing that I know is that I am moving forward with another step. Moving toward the verge. I start to hear voices behind me. Screams and rage. I am alone, no enemy, no friend around me. Our turn comes again. The commander issues the order. Straight into the verge. I start moving. Time slows down. I reach the verge. Nothing seems different. The spot is just like any other. But it is not the spot to be different. I can see clearly now. I became a queen.
The legend is real. The reward for every pawn's bravery and relentlessness is majesty. From my new perspective, I can see the board. The war is tight. Their fury is deep in our territory. No more pawns. Their king is far on my left. Our fury is around him. The next round his mine. I move like a tower to reach the other end of the board. Their king is on my range, now no one can stop me.
The king escapes with one slow step on the right. He is mine, he cannot run. I move like a knight, now the white's king is two steps behind me. He can only move one step, he cannot have me. He is doomed. He is mine.
I look around me. Their fury is coming at me. No, I am the queen. I cannot falter, I cannot be defeated. She did not strike me when I was a pawn. The rules are different now, she lost her chance. This cannot be. With full force, she comes at me. One moment is all it takes. I see myself flying away from the board. The last thing that I hear is the voice of our commander. Just a feeble sound that says: "Checkmate".