Chosen: Book 1 in the Ancients of Light series

by Heather Fleener

  Lorcan made short work of the distance between them, his countenance growing darker with each step. His tone was irate when he stopped before her, “What the bloody hell are you wearing?” His hand waved impatiently to indicate her attire, “Not wearing would be a more apt description, Witch."

  Her face was expressionless when she swept her hand downwards over her outfit in response though her eyes were full of merry sparkle, “Merely using all the weapons at my disposal, Lorcan.” She took a protective step backwards as she added saucily, “Consider it my help in preparing your men for battle. They must be able to ignore all distractions, let us see if they are able.”

  He growled ominously at her, “Go change Kaitriana.”

  She retreated another step, “I love you Lorcan and I acknowledge you as my mate and leader of the Realm, but…no.” She shadowed the remaining distance to where the other four Elite were preparing themselves.

  Lorcan growled again when he witnessed their immediate reaction to her appearance. Their inability to keep focused on their tasks was indicative that she had affected them as intended. His murderous thoughts were interrupted when Colm slapped his shoulder and laughed, “Maybe she has a point, Lorcan. It seems she might make quick work of our men tonight.”

  Lorcan strolled to the field to supervise the weaponry practice with Colm keeping him company. He all but snarled, “It does not matter if she takes them all down, her backside will still be bruised after I beat her.” Reaching the edge, the pair stopped to observe.

  Kaitriana and the others had already moved to the center and were warming their muscles with practice swings. Lorcan gloated while observing them, whatever tricks Kat might try to play against his men would fail. They were already focused on the task at hand and no longer seemed preoccupied with the female’s comely display.

  He shouted for them to begin and Marcus stepped forward, apparently having nominated himself as the first to give instruction tonight. Much to Lorcan’s dismay, the male stepped within striking range of the witch and was laughing with apparent ease over some words from the girl. Lorcan noticed then, nearly simultaneous with the startled shout echoing from Marcus, that Kaitriana had not donned any measure to blunt the force of her magic.

  In order to get the girl to integrate her Vampire strength with her Warrior Caste abilities, he had required that she bind her other magic when sparring with his men. This would force her to learn to assimilate the functioning of the two types of strength together. The ornately carved mahogany box lay opened on the ground near the field and the full assortment of magical bands that could bind various Caste powers remained snugly set in place in the velvet folds.

  Obviously, none of the other of his men would be caught unawares by her trickery. They had all seen her knock Marcus on his backside with a bolt of light. Luckily for him it had been just enough to give him a shock and not meant to cause damage. Kaitriana was laughing uproariously as he dusted himself off and gained his feet with a few choice curses. The others in her training group all wore smirks over Marcus’s poor luck in volunteering to engage first with the witch. As with all prior nights since Kat had begun her training, a crowd gathered to watch. Unlike the other times however, his little mate’s magic was unfettered by any bands.

  Lorcan’s voice boomed, filled with displeasure, “Kaitriana, you have forgotten to bind your magic.”

  Shaking her head at him, she wiped away a few tears caused by her riotous laughter, “No, I did not.” At his unrelenting stare, she rushed on, “I did not forget that is. I do not think it fair to bind my powers and let your men pummel me with the full force of their strength, leaving me to defend myself with only Vampire abilities that I am not yet accustomed to wielding.”

  He took a few short strides onto the field and stopped midway as if to answer. Lorcan then turned abruptly to scoop up the box and resumed his position next to Colm. He fingered various bands before selecting an assortment and tossing them in her direction. He reminded her of the reason without too much irritation, “It is necessary to bind the magic to get you accustomed to your Vampire strength, otherwise you will always rely more heavily on your magic and not learn to incorporate your new abilities into your fighting skills.”

  Her failure to retrieve the bands immediately had Lorcan folding his arms over his chest. His look became thunderous when he issued the warning, “Do not disobey me, Kaitriana. When you are on this field you are to follow all orders without hesitation, the same as any warrior under my command.” He tossed in the last as an afterthought just to rankle her, “Apologize to Marcus while you are at it.”

  As she stooped to grab the bands, he could see her grumbling under her breath so he added, “I am letting you keep your light magic tonight Kaitriana. Continue with your pout and I will make you bind that as well.” The movement of her lips ceased and he was almost pleased, but she ruined her moment of compliance when Marcus handed her the last band that had fallen near his feet. Her apology was to poke her tongue out at him after grabbing the band and adding it to the others on her forearm. Lorcan hissed through his teeth, “I am most certainly going to beat that witch.”

  Marcus was laughing again though. When she turned away, his boot left a dustprint on her backside as he delivered a light kicking shove. Though it had not been more than a nudge, Kaitriana grimaced and gave him a scathing look before she resumed her starting place opposite him. Waiting for Lorcan’s signal to begin, she drew the short sword from her side and let the blue light pass from her hand down into the strength of the metal weapon. It glowed from the light and she waggled it menacingly at Marcus.

  Lorcan’s voice interrupted once more, “Does the word ‘throttle’ hold any meaning for you, Witch?” Heaving a sigh, Kat pulled the sword back and let it dangle in her fingertips while she cast her eyes heavenward.

  Lorcan gave the signal and watched for the next five minutes as the two began testing one another for weakness. The reminder of her power had been good for Marcus; he was more wary since Lorcan had allowed her to keep an additional weapon at her disposal. It was always beneficial for his Elite to face new challenges and he knew few had witnessed the strength of a Witch with the powers of a Queen.

  There were no Witch currently in the Realm that had been gifted with the strength required to earn the exalted title save for Kaitriana; Queens had been lacking in the Castes for centuries. Certain males had risen with great magic, but the Queen for each Caste had historically exhibited exceptional abilities. None within the Witch population had yet to achieve powers near the level of the Ancient Queens and sadly the Castes also currently lacked any prodigy that appeared extraordinarily gifted. The fact that his Chosen possessed magic from each Caste did not alleviate the need for that strength of individual leadership within each group. At least with Kaitriana the Witch had a glimmer of the strength that had been absent since the last Queen had been destroyed.

  Growing weary of watching the two dance around one another, Lorcan caught Sayer’s attention and jerked his head toward the pair as a signal for him to engage. Until this night, Lorcan had allowed Kaitriana to fight the soldiers separately, but since he had given her the boon of magic he believed she should be pushed harder. At the rate she and Marcus were progressing, they would all be burned up in the sunrise before either made injury to the other.

  Sayer stepped slowly forward, his kind way of letting Kaitriana know that he was about to enter the fray. When she acknowledged him, he gave a nod and shadowed. She knew him well enough to understand that he would not be overly aggressive with her and took advantage. Tossing a ball of light at Marcus to get him off balance, she dove and rolled to the side anticipating that Sayer would either arrive in the space immediately in front or behind where she had stood.

  Her assessment was proven correct when Sayer reappeared. Kaitriana smiled brightly up at him in greeting, “You look so very much like your brother. Tis a shame for you that I am mightily irked with him.” Before he could react she sent a steam of light at him str
ong enough to knock him off the field of battle.

  From her position on her knees, Kaitriana struck out with a vicious kick to the legs of the other that had just appeared behind her. As Marcus fell to the compacted dirt, she spun and followed with a hard blow against the side of his face. Her blade, lit with magical force, was at his throat when he looked up.

  Sayer was still resting on his butt when Lorcan stopped next to him to give a hand up, “She is determined tonight brother. You were a fool to go easy on her.”

  The younger flipped him off before dusting himself clean and nodding his agreement, “Her father was a strong witch of the Warrior Caste and he trained her well. We all tend to forget that since she is a young vampire. When she gains the full use her Vampire abilities and couples that with her Warrior magic, I doubt there will be any that can take her down.” Lorcan was in the midst of agreeing with a proud smile until Sayer added, “Even you.”

  Lorcan gave Sayer a hard shove to show his lack of appreciation for that opinion and grumbled, “Colm, Broderick, Lucas…perhaps you can maintain your focus long enough to take the Witch down.”

  Kaitriana made a face at Lorcan while Colm frowned in question, “All three of us, Lorcan? Surely you do not want the female to fight us together; she has only been training for a short time.”

  Lorcan gave them the same reminder of her heritage that Sayer had just given him, “She is imbued with the magic of the Warrior Caste; her father was one of the best and trained her from birth. Kaitriana is unaccustomed to her Vampire strength and that makes her awkward now, but it would be fatal to mistake that for weakness. Allowing her to keep some magic tonight has obviously returned her confidence. It would serve you well not to forget the girl’s gifts.” He growled the next, “And to quit eyeing her assets Lucas!”

  Lucas, being the most reserved of the Elite, was mortified by the attention. He only inclined his head stiffly to acknowledge the order and directed his eyes pointedly away from the entire group. Kaitriana’s amusement was only increasing his discomfort and she added in a whisper that was obviously staged loud enough for them all to hear, “If you dare to shadow behind me to make a strike, I bet Lorcan will knock you down before I can.” She had sheathed her sword and was offering Marcus a hand up when she made the jest.

  Marcus grinned as he gained his feet, “You are a sassy brat, Kaitriana. We should have been harder on you this week.”

  Kaitriana shrugged, delight still lighting her face as she turned and walked to Lorcan with a cocky swagger. Leaning up, she cupped his face in one palm and set the other on his shoulder to steady herself. Undeterred by the stern set of his features, she bragged, “I won. You should give me a kiss as a reward.”

  His gaze was reproachful and he answered impassively, “Did you see me kissing any other when they repeatedly knocked you on your butt this past week?”

  Unabashed, she whispered, “Then I guess I shall have to give you a kiss to celebrate my accomplishment.” She softly brushed her lips over his. At his lack of response, she gave his lower lip a hard nip and then drew it in between her own. Her gaze met his as she teased at his flesh and witnessed the flicker of darkness he was unable to hide. Just as his hands settled on her hips, she released him and stepped back. Kat shot him an impertinent grin and shadowed back to the center of the field without another word.

  The other three approached and she feigned boredom as she lazily drew designs in the air with the point of a lit fingertip. Lorcan could only shake his head, more amused than he was willing to admit over her audacious behavior. She was cunning enough to make her reminder to them about the power of her light look like an innocently playful gesture. Her eyes were filled with shards of glistening blue when she made ready her weapon once more, indicating that her power was surging.

  When Lorcan gave the signal this time, Colm faked a lunge forward. He immediately swung round with his weapon, anticipating her attack at his back when she shadowed. Her counters were amazingly predictable as though being new to shadowing also limited her creativity.

  Surprising two of them this time, she changed course. She reappeared next to Lucas, whom too had turned his focus to Colm in anticipation of the blow to be delivered by the leader of the Elite. It was too late for Broderick’s shout of warning when she kicked. The force of it knocked the younger one into the leader. A tangle of limbs and weapons sent both warriors to the ground, with each sporting superficial injuries from the other’s blade. Raising her gaze to Lorcan, but keeping Broderick in her periphery, she pointed to Colm and Lucas as the two attempted to disentangle from one another, “Their wounds were caused by my actions, even though given to one another. They are done for this round, correct?”

  At Lorcan’s grudging nod, she gave her full attention to Broderick along with a dazzling smile, “Just you and me, Vamptastic.” He gave her a dark look, appearing more irritated by her games than anything else. She was unaware of the significance of his actions when his eyes blackened fully and he merely flicked a hand in her direction. Caught off guard, she was knocked back on her rear a solid ten feet. Instead of remaining there with her usual huff of dismay, knowing he would be on her in a blink with steel to her throat, she did not bother regaining her feet before she shadowed to the other side of the field.

  Broderick did reappear in her former spot, with blade drawn and grunted in annoyance when he found her gone. It turned into a loud growl when she delivered a rapid succession of light orbs to his back. When he shadowed free of the line of fire, she shouted at Lorcan, “How in the bloody hell did he do that? He is fully Vampire, there is no Witch power in him.”

  Lorcan only laughed over her confusion, “Aye, but he is an Ancient, with abilities evolved beyond merely strength and speed. Since you have your magic, Broderick is within his rights to use those against you.”

  Broderick did not bother to acknowledge their discussion, but kept his dark gaze on Kaitriana while planning his next strike. She waited to see the movement of his free hand and was prepared this time. Heaving her sword skyward, she shadowed as it arced high into the air. The moment’s distraction her flying weapon caused was enough. Broderick hesitated a second before turning; guessing she would be at his back or side, he kept an eye on both locations.

  Kaitriana instead reappeared in the spot he had previously been facing, both daggers drawn and pressed at his back. Her sword clattered to the ground at his side and she inquired, “How’d you do that, Vamp?” Broderick turned slowly to face her, leaning down as though to offer an answer about his additional talents.

  A wicked grin split his lips just as he dealt a hard blow to her hands, knocking both weapons away from him before he shadowed. It was his turn to laugh, “Lorcan did not call an end, Witch. You should pay more attention before you let your guard down.”

  Kaitriana stomped her foot in her irritation and looked furiously at Lorcan, “I had that round and you both know it.”

  Her mate waved off her complaint, “Not until I say so, lass.”

  Spinning on her heel, she tossed her daggers to the ground with the flick of a wrist and began tugging the bands from her arm. Those met the ground with as much care as she strode from the field. Not sparing a glance for any of them she yelled, “Piss off. You were all beat.” She sent the last band skittering towards Lorcan’s feet.

  His voice was exceedingly calm when he ordered, “Hold.”

  With glittering eyes, she responded with a single finger, “Hold this Lorcan. I have been taking their beatings all week and never issued an objection. I bested them tonight and you know it. The conceit on this field is nauseating and I am removing myself from it.”

  His anger over her defiance had been stoked by the rumblings of agreement he had heard from the observers. The Vampire in his Coven had quickly developed loyalty to the witch and held a good amount of affection for her. Lorcan shadowed directly into her path, his eyes smoldering with fury, “I said hold, Kaitriana! In training, I am the authority.”

  Sidestepping
she shot back, “And when you use your authority fairly, I’ll respect it Lorcan. Until then, I will train with the Warrior Witch rather than you arrogant jackasses.”

  His hand shot out, snaking around her upper arm to prevent her further steps. He tugged her roughly back against him and leaned down with an enraged whisper, “And if you had given me a moment instead of allowing your temper to dictate your reaction and raise immediate defiance in you – that is a major flaw for a warrior – you would have heard me tell Broderick to stand down and declare the victory yours. You must learn to control all of your emotions in battle Kaitriana. That is as important a lesson as any I can teach you with weapons. Now you have ruined your success with your behavior.” Lorcan’s final words were laced with dangerous authority and no longer whispered for her ears alone, “Get back on the practice field…now!”

  Her face was sullen when she looked up at him, though Lorcan could not truly tell if she were more upset with herself or him. Her knee-jerk responses when under the influence of her emotions needed to be brought under control else she would place herself in reckless peril in a real engagement. He knew this well and would need to combat the issue before he would allow her to enter into a battle again.

  In truth he was mightily impressed with her display of cunning tonight. Lorcan constantly had to remind himself that his little one was still very young in her immortality and her experience. Cognizant of it now, he softened the blow a bit, “Go on. You have bested the Elite tonight and I am proud of you. Sass your way back out there and give them hell.”

  Kaitriana gazed up at him with her downtrodden expression a moment more before sharing a contrite smile. She realized he had just given her a boon she did not deserve in light of her conduct. The warmth coming from the Warrior’s eyes confirmed that she had in fact pleased him and she could not resist leaning up to give him a kiss on the cheek. Tugging her arm free and heading back in the direction of the field, she sassed him playfully, “You really should not allow your warriors to cheat. It is unseemly and they should conduct themselves with honor.” She was surprised that his booming laughter was immediately behind her; he had fallen into step and was following her to the field.