River stared out at the group of us, shifting his gaze around until it finally landed on me.
“Sage!”
My stomach clenched as I bit my lip. Aurora reached over, giving me a reassuring squeeze. She’d won her fight against Raine, the latter scattering back across the boundary line only a minute in.
Nodding at her, I forced a weak smile, then moved forward, each step an effort. Entering the ring, I leaned over, picking up the metal sword and heavy shield that lay at my feet, then turned back towards River, waiting for the name of my opponent to be revealed.
He stared down at the paper Flint had just handed to him. His expression was odd. Almost disbelief. What name was he holding?
“Coal!” he called out.
Coal. Who was Coal? I assumed it was one of the males, but which?
The crowd towards the right side of me began to separate. Someone was moving through them. Whoever it was, he must have been big because no one wasted time getting out of his way. The dread inside me continued to grow. Suddenly the crowd parted enough for me to get a glimpse. My heart sank.
It was him. The guy from Fire Society. The one with the cobalt blue eyes. The eyes that were constantly staring at me. The eyes that seemed to pierce right through me.
The eyes belonging to the person who now would be trying to kill me.
Chapter 18
I could see the majority of those from Fire Society trying to hide smirks as Coal stepped into the circle. Muscles bulged as he picked up his weapon, dark hair whipping around his head as he gave the sword a few practice swings. All I could manage to think about was how painful it would be as he sliced it into my flesh.
About the only thing I could hope for at this point was that he would make it quick.
Suddenly remembering what had just happened to Serafina, I quickly tied up my long hair. Not that it really mattered. What difference did it make what my hair looked like if I was already dead?
“Ready yourselves!” River shouted.
My opponent crouched into position, his stance perfect, sword and shield at the ready. I tried to concentrate on positioning myself as well and not think about the lethal weapons clutched in our hands.
Focus. Focus. Use your knowledge. I nearly shook my head at my internal reassurances. What knowledge?
“Begin!”
Coal didn’t move. Just stared at me, probably waiting to see whether I would try to make the first advance. But that wasn’t what I wanted to do. Concentrating on blocking him would probably be the only way to prevent a deathly injury. That was all I was going to focus on for this fight.
He seemed to sense that I wasn’t going to start and took a step towards me, his muscles rippling with each movement. His leather boots hit the ground hard and every step he took meant I was another step closer to the point of his sword.
Five feet away from me now, he raised his arm, eyes still studying me curiously. Just watching. Waiting. A muscle quivered, and I realized at any moment that metal blade was going to come down on me.
And I was just standing there. What was I doing?! I couldn’t just wait and let him attack me. I had to fight. Even if I was going to lose this battle, I wouldn’t make it easy for him.
Just as his blade lowered, I shoved my shield upwards and over my head, hitting his sword and deflecting his shot. Surprise colored his face, but it was gone in an instant. My arm ached from the sheer weight of the shield and the force of his sword, but there was no time to think about it. Not a second later he was back, but his sword bounced harmlessly against my shield once again.
He came at me over and over. But I wouldn’t let up. Eventually I started to try and hit his sword with my own instead of only using the shield to block it. While this at least lessened the ache in my muscles, it did expose me more.
I felt the hot burn of the tip of his sword as it continued to nick me here and there as we fought. Nothing serious however. Not yet, that was.
Suddenly his sword whipped towards me, a different angle this time, and I wasn’t ready with either my blade or shield. I turned my face, jumping back. But I wasn’t quick enough.
I felt an icy burn as his blade touched against the side of my cheek and I dropped my shield, gasping in surprise.
But while the cut stung, something was wrong.
From where I was standing, his blade should have cut deeply into my cheek. But it hadn’t. Instead, the wound was more like a large paper cut. Murmurs rumbled through the group of trainees, the loudest dissent clearly coming from where those from Fire Society stood.
He’d held back. He must have. Coal pulled back his sword at the last moment, sparing my face. And in doing so, spared his opponent. I bit my lip, glancing over at River to see if he’d realized what I just had, and saw a frown form on his face.
That momentary glance was all it took.
I looked back to see Coal lunging towards me with his sword. There wasn’t enough time to move, not enough time to even turn. All I could do was watch in horror as the tip of his blade sliced through my exposed forearm.
✽✽✽
Burning, searing pain scorched across my skin as his sword retreated. I stared down at the wound as blood began to drip out, nausea passing over me as a small red puddle slowly formed on the ground.
“Stop!” River’s voice cut through the shocked gasps.
Coal walked back to his side of the ring, sword held at his side, his eyes unreadable as they continued to watch me.
River moved into the ring, and I had to be mistaken because for a moment I thought I saw a hint of worry creasing his eyes. Reaching out, he closed a hand around my bare lower arm, moving it closer to his face. For a long moment he just stared at the cut, then started to poke and prod the skin around it with his fingertips. I gritted my teeth, wincing as red-hot pain shot through my arm at his continued assessment.
“No major arteries or veins have been hit. It’s somewhat deep, but not life threatening,” he announced. Taking a cloth from his pocket, he began wrapping it over my arm. His large fingers were nimble as they tied the tiny corners of the makeshift bandage, binding it in place. Almost at once, pinpoints of red appeared on the white muslin material.
“This is just to minimize the blood loss, so you don’t become faint,” River offered as explanation. “It will clot soon enough.”
He looked into my eyes and there it was again. I could see something there besides cold detachment. Something that almost resembled concern.
“Are you ready or do you need a moment?” he asked in a low voice.
I gazed down, looking at my wrapped arm. Of course I wasn’t ready. My arm had just been sliced apart and I had countless bruises and cuts covering the rest of my body. I felt like I might pass out at any moment. But to say I wasn’t ready would be to admit defeat.
And I wasn’t going to do that.
“No, I’m ready,” I said, but my voice wavered. I took a deep breath, then said more firmly, “I’m fine, I’m ready.”
He hesitated a moment, studying me. “Very well,” he nodded his head and walked out of the ring.
I picked up my sword again, trying to ignore the searing pain as I did so. Coal had kicked my shield outside of the ring right after I dropped it, so now I only had one item left to defend myself.
Blue eyes stared at me. Coal was still watching. What was going through his mind? Did he regret what he did? Or was he sorry the gash wasn’t deeper, wasn’t ‘life-threatening’ as River put it? I glanced back at my arm, the pinpoints of red now forming a thin line. He would have won if it had been.
River shouted something, but I missed it. I looked back up in time to see Coal moving towards me. The fight had resumed.
I took my stance and gripped the sword with both hands this time and was surprised by how much more control I felt holding it this way. Coal crouched, about to launch himself into another attack on me.
But this time I decided to surprise him.
I lunged, swinging my sword with both hand
s, bringing it down powerfully on his. The deafening clash of metal echoed in my ears. His eyes widened in disbelief as he shoved my blade off his. But I didn’t stop, instead continuing to swing my sword at him. He had no choice but to go on the defense and block my shots.
I wouldn’t be able to disarm him, that much I knew. I also knew he was much too aware of his surroundings to accidently step out of the ring. My only chance to get through this fight would be to last until the five-minute time mark was up.
I continued to bring my sword against his. The muscles in my arms screamed from the weight of it and sweat gathered along my forehead. I was suddenly grateful for the demanding work I’d done in the fields. If not for that, I wouldn’t even be able to continue to lift the sword at this point.
I no longer felt the tiny nicks I knew I kept receiving from the point of his sword. It didn’t matter. If those were the only injuries I continued to get, I could make it through this. It also gave me some satisfaction to see small dots of blood appear on his arms and legs as well. Maybe he wasn’t as invincible as I originally thought.
Maybe I wasn’t as incapable either.
And as I brought my sword down on his again and again, I began to notice a repetition in his movements. He had a pattern he followed and did not seem stray from. He had an Achille’s heel!
And so I watched, studied, continuing to dart and lunge, until I finally saw my chance. As my sword bounced off his shield, he opened slightly, again exposing the left side of his body. I dashed forward, taking my only chance.
Judging from the shocked expression on his face, he realized a moment beforehand what I was about to do, but not soon enough to avoid the sharp edge of my blade. He twisted so the tip only cut shallowly into his skin. It was obvious right away that his wound wasn’t life-threatening. But nevertheless, it was a wound.
Redness faintly colored his cheeks. I didn’t know what hurt more, his injury or his ego. The fact that he was clearly one of the strongest from Fire Society and now a female with no fighting experience whatsoever had managed to injure him had to be a huge blow to his pride. A flash of anger raced through those eyes, the blueness of them growing dark and roiling like a storm-driven sea as he stepped towards me once more.
I gripped my sword tightly with both hands, ignoring how my sweaty palms slid against the hilt, prepared to fight for as long as I was physically able. I took a step forward as well, raising my arms, my breaths quickening...
A whistle pierced through the air.
I stumbled to a stop, looking around in shock. Could it be possible? One look at Aurora’s relieved face and I had my answer.
The fight was over. The five minutes were up. And I’d lasted through each and every one of them.
Suddenly, all the adrenaline that had been rushing through me not a moment before extinguished. My arms became rubber, useless, and I dropped my sword to the ground, unable to hold onto it any longer.
Gasps, as well as cheers, erupted around us. No one could believe the outcome, most of all me. How had I managed to stay in that ring and fight Coal for five full minutes and not lose to him? Sheer willpower was the only answer that came to mind. And maybe a little stubbornness, too.
A moment later Rowan was there, running into the circle and grabbing my shoulders, steadying me. I was so exhausted that the surprise he was here next to me, when we hadn’t spoken to each other in days, didn’t come. Leaning against his firm chest so I wouldn’t tumble over, he led me out of the ring. All around, people kept patting my back, cheering as I walked past them, as if I had won.
Not just remained standing by some miracle.
“That was incredible!” Rowan exclaimed in my ear. “You were amazing. How were you able to do that?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I don’t know,” I managed, my breathing still ragged. “I just did.”
I took a deep breath, steadying myself as I walked next to him. Cradling my now throbbing arm, I said, “You know, you didn’t do too bad yourself. You won your fight. I just managed to stay standing in mine.”
A look of guilt washed the smile right off his face as he gazed down at his feet.
“She’ll forgive you, Rowan. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“How can she forgive me for that?” he sighed. “I didn’t mean to do it, you know. It just happened.”
“I know,” I replied, nodding slowly. “Trust me, it will all work out. Who knows? Maybe she will like it better shorter.”
He raised a disbelieving eyebrow towards me and I shrugged. “It’s better this happened than you actually injuring her. Hair grows back. But cuts heal to scars, they don’t go away.” I glanced down at my forearm and at the bandage covering it. And then at the countless other small nicks spreading out across my skin.
Rowan followed my gaze, softly rubbing my shoulder.
“Don’t worry, they’ll disappear. Besides, any scar you’re left with is just a reminder of how incredible you were in that fight. Which is pretty incredible, in case you were wondering,” he said, smiling, clearly still amazed.
I glanced over towards him. This was my friend. The Rowan I missed. “Thanks.”
The crowd surrounding us started to disperse, the last couple of fights having concluded while we’d been talking. Aurora sent me another smile, but moved off with Cirrus and Finn, leaving me to talk with Rowan.
“Do you want to go get some food?” I asked, hoping maybe he would sit with me for once. That maybe we could start over and forget the awkwardness of the past week. But those hopes were quickly dashed as he slowly shook his head.
“No, I think I’m going to try and find Serafina, see how she is doing. I’ll walk back with you, though.”
“Okay…” His face turned away from me, and I could feel the distance already returning, almost palpable, as if it were a solid barrier between us, slowly growing and extending. Why was it like this?
As we headed back across the field, I noticed someone in my peripheral vision. I turned and my eyes landed on Coal. He stood there, staring at me with those deep blue eyes, expression unreadable as usual. Rowan glanced over, following my gaze, his body tensing next to mine as he locked eyes on Coal, then pulled me away.
“Forget him, Sage,” he muttered, a darkness shadowing his face.
“Why does he keep staring at me like that?” I murmured, not really expecting an answer. I glanced over my shoulder to see those eyes still on us.
“I don’t know, but I don’t trust him. Stay away from him.”
“Yeah,” I murmured, then chuckled. “Except, of course, when I’m forced to sword fight with him, right?”
A glimmer of the Rowan I was used to peeked through again and a small smile appeared on his face.
“Yeah, except for those instances, of course,” he smirked.
Chapter 19
I stared at my mirror, trying not to cry.
I wasn’t really succeeding.
The girl in the reflection was unrecognizable. Bruised and bloody, small cuts scattered all over her skin, dried lines of blood trailing down from their edges. I’d already changed and was now wearing a light gray t-shirt and shorts. It just made all the injuries even more visible.
After the fight, I’d gone to the cafeteria to get some food and quickly realized I was the worst off. Of course, everyone had some minor injuries, but not nearly as many as I did. Suddenly not feeling much like talking or eating, I walked out and headed to my room. I lied to Aurora when she asked if I wanted help bandaging the cuts. I told her I could handle it on my own.
Truthfully though, I just wanted to be alone when I ended up breaking down.
The cut across my cheek was incredibly shallow, barely an inch long. Fortunately, it was the only facial wound I received. And most of the other injuries on my body were minor. But I hadn’t unwrapped the cloth bandage on my arm yet, afraid to reveal the mess lying underneath.
Earlier, before going to the cafeteria, I’d tried to go to the small medical ward for my injuries, but
ran into River on the way there, who, when learning of my intended destination, told me brusquely that since none of my injuries were that bad, they wouldn’t do anything for me there.
I really thought ‘that bad’ was a matter of opinion, but apparently it was part of the Training to deal with our injuries ourselves, as one would do after a true battle.
Great. Especially since I had absolutely no experience in treating wounds. Anytime I was injured working in the fields, my mother was there to help take care of it for me. And those injuries were so minor compared to the one on my arm.
A loud knock on the door brought me out of my thoughts.
“Come in,” I called out, thinking it was Aurora, or possibly Rowan. He’d seen me upset before, so I wasn’t really embarrassed to let him see me like this.
The door creaked open and I waited, hoping to hear Rowan’s familiar voice ring out. When it didn’t, I lifted my eyes up. Only I didn’t see his reflection in the mirror.
I saw a pair of cobalt eyes staring back at me.
✽✽✽
Gasping, I spun around, forgetting that I was still sort of crying. Coal stood in the middle of the doorframe, not moving. Something appeared in his eyes as they washed over me. Pain.
And regret.
“Why are you here?” I bit out, my voice quivering as nervous energy flooded me. Somehow he seemed even taller now. He’d removed his leather vest, wearing only a plain black shirt now. It just made his prominent muscles even more visible.
Coal remained silent but took a step towards me. Sucking in a breath, I moved backwards, but banged right into the mirror. He paused. Then shut the door behind him.
“I don’t know what you’re doing here, but I want you to leave,” I said in a loud voice. Despite my best efforts, I couldn’t keep the tremble out of it.
But instead of listening to me, instead of leaving, he just walked slowly over to my desk chair and sat down. The thin wood groaned beneath his weight.
Awakening Earth and Fire: Earth and Fire Trilogy Book 1 Page 15
