by Billy Wong
"Perhaps I think love will find a way." But he really didn't believe she made her decision based on such sentimental nonsense, as she probably thought it. "I've wanted to see for myself what this mystery woman can do since hearing about her. So now, I suppose I will."
"Your arrogance oozes from your pores," Isolde said, "Princess of Spears."
"I like your fire. What makes you so invested in the prince's love life, though?"
Isolde struggled to form a response. "I, I... it's none of your concern!" She advanced on Claire, holding her sword forward at shoulder level like against Manuiel. Since she hadn't taken such a stance against anybody else Theo had seen, he assumed she reserved it for the greatest of threats. Claire tested her defense with long pokes and huge arching swings of her spear, the range of her attacks belying the fact she was the smaller fighter. Isolde deflected them using only small, flicking motions of her blade, and Claire's lips curled upward with interest. She switched to quicker strikes with less wasted movement, forcing Isolde to shift her weapon faster and faster. Isolde's sword dipped to ward a blow at her lower body, but she seemed to have fallen for a feint as Claire's spear flashed high. The point ripped a gash over her shoulder while she leaned away. But rather than bulging in panic, her eyes were filled with unwavering focus.
Her sword swept up at the same time she swayed backward, too smoothly to not have been planned. Claire jumped back, but too slow as the tip tore her garment and the flesh under it. Her heels tapped along the floor while she backpedaled, blood staining her dress where the blade had cut into her midriff. Isolde pressed her now with flicking jabs of her forward-pointing sword. Theo heard her breath quicken, saw her parries become less tight, and grew worried. Isolde pulled her blade back from a jab, and with dazzling speed transitioned into a lunging chop. Oh no, Claire!
She caught the hilt on her crossguard before the blow could gain much momentum, stopping it in its tracks. She wrenched the sword aside, sliced Isolde before she could bring it back around across the chest. The bigger woman growled and retaliated with a big slash she hopped away from. Isolde quickly recovered her composure and fell back into her cautious stance. Claire grinned. "It's interesting. Your style has hints of the inland sea's fencing and the highlanders' single-strike technique, but your weapon's shape is reminiscent of the blades used by the black men south of the dark forests. But I've seen all those and more, though it's a surprise to find them combined in one package."
"Don't think you can intimidate me," Isolde said. "You can't."
"I'm not trying to intimidate you, just making an observation. The fact it's on your mind might say something, though."
Isolde's mouth moved to speak, then she thought better of it and came forward again. Claire guarded a few of her pokes, dodged a chop and grazed her thigh with her return thrust. Isolde launched a horizontal cut at her waist. She blocked, but the impact pushed her back a few feet. Isolde's sword whooshed down, seemingly too far away—yet Claire seemed to realize something was wrong as her eyes widened. She sidestepped while a howl like that of wind sounded, and a slice appeared in the back of the throne behind where she had just stood.
King Darius mumbled, "My throne..."
"What the hell was that?" Theo whispered to Gunther. "She has magic?"
"It's not magic, not in the typical sense. It's said in the east they have techniques to push the force of a strike farther using one's life energy, like so. If your friend wasn't admirably alert, she could have been cut in half."
Claire's lips pressed together into a thin line. "So you can do that too. I wonder who trained you to know all this."
Isolde hesitated, then said, "My teacher was thought where he came from to be the finest warrior in the world."
"Better than the Gold General, better than the Hierarch? Better than me?"
"You didn't exist back in his time, and I don't know the others you mention. But probably."
She took on a serene look. "How much of his skills have you inherited?"
"All of them. He said I had caught up to him at the end."
"So you're saying you're the best warrior in the world? A little arrogant of you, don't you think. But then, we'll see today if he was better than me." She dashed forward. Isolde threw another ranged slash. She blocked it with her outthrust spear, the wave of force dissipating after it struck the head though she grimaced from the impact. "It's not really wise of you to overuse that technique. I can tell it drains your energy faster than normal swings." She hammered away at Isolde, whose frantic defense made it look like she danced in place. "You've shown your trump card. It isn't enough."
Isolde battled back with heavy strokes that Theo feared would break Claire's spear. "I can still beat you. Just because a move failed to catch you one time doesn't mean it always will. Every action can lead to a different result."
"You're right," Claire said as a blow from Isolde put a red line down her gloved arm. It didn't seem to bother her at all, not even interrupting her speech. "That's true. But you feel it, don't you?"
"Feel what?" Getting in close, Isolde threw a kick at her knee, then another at her middle.
Claire raised her leg to check the first kick, took the second on her forearm. She knocked Isolde back with a punch to the solar plexus, putting enough space between them to whip her spear down from overhead. Isolde blocked, the impact causing her to grunt and her knees bend. "You can sense that you're outclassed. Sure you could win, but how often? One time out of ten, less? You know how this will likely end."
Isolde shoved her away. "No, I don't feel that. But even if it was the case, I'll make this the one time that counts."
"You're so big, but you're just a kid," Claire said, dodging her swings.
Theo didn't think Isolde acted childish. It wasn't like she appeared to be getting overly agitated or losing focus from Claire's talk. "Your mind games won't work," she replied simply.
Claire seemed to acknowledge that too, as she stilled her tongue and concentrated on fighting. They continued to trade flurry after flurry of strikes, neither able to hold an advantage for long. Isolde seemed better able to keep up with Claire than Gunther had, though her economy of motion probably had as much to do with it as raw speed. Claire kept trying to break her composure with tactics such as quick weak hits meant more to annoy than hurt, leaving intentional openings, feinting fatigue, and even running away in hopes of making her chase recklessly. But nothing worked, Isolde remaining a disciplined human wall who steadily walked her down.
"I think Claire believes Isolde the stronger," Gunther said, "and therefore tries to outsmart her. If it continues to fail, I feel she'll lose."
Hearing his expert friend's analysis, Theo watched the duel with dread. He didn't want her to leave his life, but thought she would really do it if she lost considering her warrior pride. "You're very good," Claire said, her breaths having grown heavy. By now she and Isolde were both covered in light wounds, but she had slowed more. "No, you're exceptional.
"You're almost as good as the Silver General."
"More empty words." Isolde advanced on her, the blade pointed at her like a grim omen. Claire parried a few blows more sluggishly than before, then a hard slash sent her stumbling. She went to one knee and Isolde pursued, still cautious with her sword ready to defend. It didn't look like she was faking, though. She blocked Isolde's next big cut, but it knocked her to her back. "This is over."
"No..." Claire closed her eyes as in denial. Theo couldn't believe it. That a clash between such great warriors would end without any brilliant, decisive exchange of strokes seemed so anticlimactic. And for him and Claire's story to finish like this...
Claire got up. "No, it isn't over."
Isolde sighed. "You're exhausted. In this state I can finish you easily."
"Then do it."
"What?"
She spread her arms. "Do it. Kill me if you think you can."
"Claire, no!" Theo said. "Isolde, don't do it!"
"You test my conviction
? Fine." Isolde brought her sword down, throwing out a wave of force.
Incredibly fast, Claire leaped over it and flew twisting through the air. Isolde's eyes flitted about in their sockets while they tried to track her movement. Her ever-turning spear seemed to be everywhere as she descended towards Isolde, impossible to predict where it would aim in the next instant. Isolde raised her blade to guard—but the spearhead went past it and into her breast. Just as it entered her, she swung back. Her blade tore Claire open in midair, hurled her away amid a spray of blood. As Claire came to rest on her back, Isolde groaned and tried to step towards her. But then she toppled forward, her masked face smacking against the floor, and both women lay still.
"So who won?" Rory asked.
Gunther frowned. "Hard to pick a winner when they're both unconscious, or dead."
No, Theo thought, please don't be gone...
Claire sat, then stood with a hand trying to hold closed the great wound in her front. Her face was white, and her knees shook. "You forced me to become the storm. Absolutely impressive." She walked over to Isolde, who Theo realized was attempting to push herself up albeit weakly.
Isolde sucked in a deep breath and spat. "Save your compliments for when the fight's over. Because it isn't." She shoved herself to her feet, sword flashing up. Again blood flew from Claire's frame as a gash opened on her shoulder. In return, Claire buried one end of her crossbar into Isolde's hip.
"Both of you stop this!" Theo cried. He started forward.
Gunther's grip on his arm stopped him. "Don't. Neither of them wants you to interfere."
"But they'll die if they continue!"
"Maybe. Regardless, they understand what they're doing and you should respect their choice."
Theo still wanted to prevent them from hurting one another anymore, but hesitated for fear of making Claire angry. They resumed their battle at a still swift pace, staggering back and forth as they attacked each other. They didn't look quite as amazingly skilled anymore, but somewhat sloppy with their willpower and stubbornness keeping them upright. However, Claire still displayed some technique. When Isolde missed with a powerful chop, she hooked the crossguard with her spear and spun to rip it from her hands. Isolde hissed at the loss of her weapon, grabbed the shaft of Claire's to deny her use of it. Claire left her feet with a jumping knee, but Isolde anticipated it and lashed out simultaneously with a high punch. Both connected with the opponent's jaw with such loud smacks Theo thought they would be knocked out, but neither was. Claire landed with Isolde still holding onto her pole. The bigger woman grabbed her by the neck with the other hand. Claire punched her twice, then threw a high kick.
Crack! went Isolde's ceramic mask. She yelped as the broken edge dug into her cheek. Claire followed up with an uppercut, stunning her enough that she released the spear. She swatted the side of Isolde's head with the shaft. Isolde turned away in pain, spun back around with a huge punch to send Claire sprawling on her side. She followed up with a running kick, launching her adversary through the air so that her back slammed into the throne. Holding her belly with a frightened look, Claire tried to pull herself up by an armrest. She failed and collapsed against the chair.
Having retrieved her sword, Isolde limped towards Claire. Blood ran from the long crack down her mask as she raised her sword. "Don't!" Theo shouted. The blade crashed down.
Claire dropped to her back and rolled out from under the blow, came up swiping high. "How many second winds does she have?" Damon asked. Isolde intercepted the shaft with her forearm, but the impact knocked her arm against the mask. She gasped and clutched her face as sharp ceramic dug deeper into it. She overextended herself with a backhanded slash, allowing Claire to trip her as she ducked and send her stumbling past. Claire dashed after her, landed a flying kick to her spine that dropped her to all fours. Before she could rise, the spear pricked the back of her neck. The long contest was settled at last.
But that wasn't what made Theo gape. As she looked up with shoulders slumped in defeat, the halves of Isolde's broken mask fell away to reveal a familiar visage. "Sophie?!" he said in disbelief.
Chapter 8
"I see," Claire said flatly, withdrawing the spear. "I suppose you have some things to talk about, then. I'll be in my room." She strode away, holding herself up straight and proud despite her wounds.
Though concerned about Claire, the revelation about her rival held Theo's attention at the moment. He turned to Isolde—Sophie. "So it's been you under the mask all this time? How... why..."
"I thought I could take what I wanted," she whispered, "by forcing her to give you up. But I'm not able..."
He noticed anew the blood soaking her clothes, and the nasty gash down her face. Before anything else, he asked, "Are you all right? Your wounds seem bad."
"None of them are life threatening. My pride's hurt worse than anything else."
Claire's stab into her chest had looked pretty deep. Still not completely reassured, he said, "Somebody get a healer!" He helped her up from the floor and into his father's seat, expecting that he wouldn't mind too much in this situation. "Even though you lost, you're incredibly strong. I had no idea—how on earth did you get this way, without letting anyone know?"
"I met a hermit who had drifted here from a faraway land, and lived by himself in a cave below the cliffs near my home. He was too old to move well anymore, but had once been thought the greatest swordsman there was. Despite his frailty, his mind remained keen, and after getting to know me he offered to pass down his knowledge. So like I told Claire, he taught me everything he could over five years. By the end, when his body failed him, he told me I was a prodigy and had already reached the level of technique he had in his prime, with experience being all I lacked. After his death, I decided to use my newfound ability to help people by taking down monsters and bandits. It was rather frightening at first, but I thought it would be a waste to possess such astounding skills and not use them for anything worthwhile. I had gotten a couple years of hands on experience by the time I heard Gunther was defeated by your First of Spears. So I figured the kingdom could use an imposing new champion, and you know the rest well enough."
A clean-shaven robed healer arrived and began tending to her injuries. She squirmed on the throne from the pain of his touch, and Theo winced with sympathy. "So you were a vigilante going around in that mask? How did you keep sneaking away from home while keeping it a secret?"
"It wasn't a secret from everyone. Rob knew, and helped me cover it up." She smiled weakly. "I often worried that his tongue would slip around you, but he managed not to disappoint me."
"Also, I never knew you were taller than me."
"We're about the same height. I was always slouching so you thought I was shorter, and I have pretty thick boots."
"I can't believe there was so much I didn't know about you. I never thought you were even serious about sword training, but you're amazing."
"Still not a match for your girl."
He found a part of her arm that wasn't too close to any wounds and patted it. "You were handicapped by your mask. If it hadn't cut into your face, maybe..."
Sophie shook her head. "The mask helped cushion some of her hits. If it hadn't I might have been stunned and finished faster. Even if I'd worn a metal mask instead, there's no guarantee she wouldn't have won, although I might have lasted longer."
Theo admired her humility and the respect she showed Claire. He remembered how she had pushed him out of the way of Manuiel's attack, taking the blade meant for him instead. "Thank you again for saving me in the battle against Ailune. I understand better now why you were so willing to endanger yourself."
"It's hardly a big deal. I would've done that for your brother too."
"I believe you, but the fright in your voice then... knowing now that it was you, I believe more in your feelings for me."
She met his eyes, and he thought he saw a glimmer of tears in hers. "But you still don't return them, do you?"
"I think you
're an incredible woman. I was certainly wrong about you, and I'm sorry for thinking you were boring. But I can't lie. I don't-" He stopped. He had meant to say he didn't have any feelings for her. Yet seeing her revealed as Isolde, she seemed like an entirely different person. He didn't feel a physical attraction at the moment—it would be hard to with her all bloody and hurt—but found her intriguing to a degree he couldn't have imagined before. He wanted to get to know the real her, the one who had hidden behind the dull facade. "I don't know. I do hope we can be open with each other and be friends from now on."
"It's my fault too," she said. "I could have shown you more of myself, and maybe you wouldn't have found me so unappealing. But since I could barely trust my own brother to keep my secret, you know..."
"I understand that. Likely as not I would have blurted it out at some point, and your parents wouldn't have approved of you risking your life as a masked, uh, heroine. Now that it's come out though, I'm sure your family will be proud of you for all you've done."
King Darius nodded. "I am certain they will as well. Even if they are 'surprised' at first, I will make sure they recognize how much you have done for the country fighting our enemies and protecting my sons. Although I must say, it was a bit disappointing you could not defeat the First of Spears."
"She is an absolute monster," Gunther said. "Did you see her rebound multiple times from the brink of defeat? Her will to win is as exceedingly strong as her skills."
Theo noticed Sophie's downcast gaze and held her hand to comfort her. "You're really tough too. You definitely pushed her to the limit."
She shrugged. "She was still walking well after the fight. She might have had a lot more left than me."
"I think you hurt her pretty good. She was probably just putting on a strong front."
"By the way, you said you don't know whether you share my feelings for you? But aren't you in love with her already?"
"I do love her, but I'm a little confused. After learning what I have, I think I've been unfair to you. Perhaps we should take everything slowly for now." And maybe, just maybe, he should give her a proper chance.
