by S D Huss
Avria looked to Daniel, her face now more serious. “Why do you allow him to wear the red?” She asked Oros, looking at Daniel’s crimson cloak that he had been awarded for completing the Proistem.
Daniel bit his tongue, holding a snide comment back. Oros must have picked up on this, as he spoke quickly.
“Daniel has completed the Proistem, and has earned the right to wear the crimson of a Dae officer, so… I would say he is above the average squire.” Oros said, putting his hand on Daniel’s shoulder. “He is also a very skilled warrior. Your brother has apparently taught him much over the months.”
“Really,” Avria said, crossing her arms. “I have always been curious to see what you are made of, Daniel. Katrina has told me a bit about your warrior caste in the human world. She says they wouldn’t be worth much here.”
-Shit- Daniel thought. He let out a sigh at the blatant taunt. -Who the hell does she think I am?- He knew she was trying to bait him, most likely into a fight between Katrina and himself. He knew what she was doing but still found his pride prodding him to retaliate.
Daniel looked her in the eye but still said nothing.
“Well?” She asked. “How would you like to test yourself against my student?”
“No, Avria,” Oros said, smiling awkwardly. “I don’t think that is necessary.”
“Why not? There isn’t any harm in a simple test of skill. Katrina would love to do it.” Avria looked at her student.
Katrina hesitated for a moment, looking to Daniel, then to Oros, and back to Avria. “I…” She stuttered. “I would be honored, my lady. If Daniel is willing.”
Oros sighed, glancing over at Daniel. “What do you think?”
Daniel exhaled deeply and shook his head. “I know what you’re trying to do, Avria.”
“Lady Avria, to you.’ She interrupted.
“Whatever.” Daniel continued. “I am not going to fight my friend for your amusement. So the answer is no.”
Avria’s face turned to anger at the barbed comments. “Such indignant and disrespectful words.” She looked to Oros. “So this is how you allow your student to speak? All I did was ask for a friendly sparring match between two pupils. Not to fight to the death. You take yourself far too seriously, human.”
“Daniel,” Katrina said, bringing her weapon up in a fighting stance. “Come on, it might be fun.”
Oros stepped away from the two, giving them space to fight. Avria gave a look of praise to her student and proceeded to do the same.
Daniel cursed to himself, then reluctantly unpinned the clasp for his cloak and folded it in his arms. Two Doulos servants came from behind and took it from him, giving him a small breastplate made of bone, and a training sword. As he took the time to put on the bone plate, he heard the sound of many feet approaching. He turned, and much to his dismay saw a group of Dae nobles entering the little training area. At the head was Boros, brother of Oros and prince of Vul De Rah. Beside him were Illya, his younger sister, and Nasha, a revered and now celebrated warrior due to her successful negotiations with King Yomen, which resulted in a clear turn in the situation with the Rexunii. Trailing behind were Delmos, his friend from the Proistem, several Dae he didn’t recognize, and Telmos Regios, the Lord of house Regios.
-The whole damn party is here.- He thought, cinching the straps down angrily.
“Boros.” His brother Oros said, embracing him. “I can’t imagine what brings you here.”
Boros smiled. “You wouldn’t be a scholar if you did.”
“How did you all get here so quickly?” Avria asked, amusement on her face. “It has only been several minutes since Daniel finally agreed to this little match.”
“Oh, I was in the area meeting with your father and several nobles, when a servant came in and made sure to tell everyone that the two Spirit-Sent were about to engage in a sparring match. We just couldn’t resist.”
Delmos approached the two with his arms outstretched. “Sister! It is so very wonderful to see you.” He embraced her, but she did not seem to return it, just cringed as he squeezed. “Was it your idea to pit these two against each other? It's damn devious; I didn’t know you were into this kind of sport.”
“Delmos…” Avria said, no more words coming to mind. “Just… go over there with father.” She pointed toward the cluster of nobles. Delmos held his hands up defensively and began to walk toward them.
“Spirits, he knows just how to annoy me in public.” She said to Boros, then noticed Nasha approaching Daniel, the odd sight caused her to raise an eyebrow.
◆◆◆
Daniel shook his head, as Katrina chatted with Illya. There had a been a distinct change in behavior toward him, since the party a month ago, from the Dae princess. No longer did she try to speak with him or vie for his affection; that ship had sailed. This was for good reason, and Daniel understood. She had been humiliated by him essentially after he told her he wasn’t interested. He was, of course; her beauty was beyond anything he had seen on earth. Most of the Dae women he had met were stunningly beautiful, even Avria had a primal allure to her.
As his mind wandered, he heard someone approach.
“Well, look how far you’ve come,” Nasha said, her hands on her hips. “Last I saw you, you were just a scared little creature. Now you are getting ready to do battle.” Her mouth curled into a wry smile. “There is something about you humans though, I can’t quite put my finger on it. So… exotic.”
Daniel looked at her with his most convincing ‘get the hell away from me’ look, but only got a loud laugh from her in response.
“Relax, human, I am not trying to offend you. Just trying to get a laugh or two, but you don’t seem to be in the mood. Mind if I give you a bit of advice?”
Daniel said nothing but shrugged his shoulders as he continued to tighten his armor straps
“If she fights anything like Avria, she is going to focus on Dunamis control. She may be a horrible little creature, but Avria is a very powerful fighter. She will have taught her pupil how to use her blade and Dunamis together. Also, Boros loves to use the stone pillars. I’m sure you remember the bout we had. Be careful of that as well.”
Daniel looked at her with a bit of surprise. “Thanks.”
She smiled and turned to walk back to the group of nobles that were gathering.
“Dan!” Katrina called from a dozen feet away. “Are you ready?”
Daniel looked up at her just in time to see Illya leave. Her eyes met his, and an almost sinister smile took him by surprise.
“Everything you’ve got, Katrina,” Avria yelled from the sideline. “Just remember what I taught you.”
Daniel brought his sword up to signal he was ready to begin. Katrina bowed slightly and dashed toward him leaving a trail of sand behind her. With a whirl she slashed downward, meeting Daniel’s blade, the bone material cracked like wooden sticks and echoed through the small training area. There were cheers from the growing crowd as the two finally began their fight.
Katrina attacked with deadly accuracy against Daniel, but the man held his ground, refusing to give even an inch to her. She was using a style Daniel was familiar with, arcs and long swings; easily recognizable as the gale form. She would be using her Dunamis to attack him from the sides. -I guess Nasha was right- He thought to himself.
Avria looked on with immense pride in her pupil, but equal frustration at the stubborn skill of her opponent. She thought, with fair certainty, that this battle would be over quickly; It needed to be. She had seen the destructive power of Daniel’s Dunamis in the Glade, and though she had confidence in Katrina’s ability, she was human after all. She was not sure how it would play out if they compared raw strength. She knew it would be determined by skill.
“She is amazing,” Boros said out loud. His eyes fixed on the human girl. “You have done very well, Avria.”
“Oh please,” Delmos said, standing beside him. “Dan is just playing with her. She doesn’t stand a damned chance!”
“Shut up, both of you,” Avria said, not taking her eyes from the fight.
Katrina took a broad swing to the side, launching pillars of stone from the sand, a common attack used by Dae-Voh.
“Damn,” Avria said to herself as Daniel easily avoided them.
“Come on Dan, you’re holding back,” Katrina said, clearly frustrated. “Stop being such a bitch and fight back. You know you can’t tire me out, we’ll be here all damn day.”
Daniel let out a laugh but didn’t reply.
“That bastard,” Avria said, causing Boros and Delmos to look at her. She knew he wasn’t taking this seriously, but for him to insult her? “Katrina! He is playing with you! Hold nothing back!” Avria shouted.
Katrina narrowed her eyes toward Daniel and clenched her teeth.
Avria’s fury seethed at the arrogance of this human, Katrina could destroy him if she so wished, she knew the power of the girl was incredible in comparison to the average Dae.
With a shout, several massive boulders broke from the ground and levitated around Katrina. The smooth sand that made the floor of the arena was pouring off the sides, and Daniel’s smile faded slightly.
Many of the spectators cheered and began to clap. Telmos and Oros took a moment to use precautions of their own to prevent any of the gawking nobles from being injured by accident. These were humans, after all, and might lack the proper control.
Katrina pushed her hand forward and the boulders flew through the air at Daniel. The man dodged by ducking under the onslaught. With a spin of her hand, the boulders separated and began to come at him one at a time. Daniel deflected one as it nearly hit him and tried to roll forward to avoid another. As he did, he found his footing disappear as the sand opened into a large hole that he fell into unexpectedly.
“Excellent!” Avria shouted, hearing Daniel yell ‘Shit!’ as he fell.
Katrina slid her foot across the ground, causing the opening to close around him, trapping Daniel underground.
Again, there were cheers and laughs from the crowd.
“What!?” Delmos yelled. “Seriously Dan? Who doesn’t look where they’re rolling when they-- come on! You’re embarrassing me! Get out of that damn hole!”
Katrina raised her hand again, positioning the boulders above where Daniel was buried.
The sand seemed to bubble and glow underneath them, only to explode out, spraying sand everywhere. Katrina clenched her fist, and the boulders slammed down where she thought Daniel was. There was a loud crunch, and for a moment Avria raised her hand, afraid that she had seriously wounded or killed him. But before she could say a word, an immense blast of fire shot from the sand. Katrina had moments before she arched her blade and a sturdy half sphere of stone covered her. The fire flared a bloody crimson color and quickly melted the wall.
The onlookers gasped at the lethality of the attack. Boros took several steps forward, prepared to intervene.
Katrina stepped back, letting her damaged wall sink back into the sand. As it did, she saw Daniel standing before her, his eyes narrowed and his smile gone.
-What is that accursed red flame? How does this human possess it?- Avria thought to herself. The fire was not normal, it could not be mitigated like the normal flame of the Dunamis. This was wild, it was dangerous.
Daniel moved forward now, and a tinge of fear prodded Avria’s mind. He looked… different to her now, focused. She had seen this look before, but only in those who have seen many battles. She wondered then how much this human had seen.
Katrina brought her weapon to bear, and Daniel dashed forward with a sudden burst of speed. The precipitous movement took her by surprise, and before she could react, Daniel had swept her legs out from under her with the flat of his sword. Katrina fell hard to the sand but slammed her fist into the ground as her body hit. This time, sharp spikes flared from the ground, causing Daniel to jump to avoid them. As he came down, fire burst from his body, blowing the sharp pieces of earth to dust. On her feet now, she attacked, stabbing her training weapon toward his legs. Her bone sword met his in another fierce collision, and the two began swinging at each other, trading slashes and blows. Katrina’s weapon seemed to get closer and closer to finding its mark after every attack, but still, Daniel was able to deflect and counter with surprising strength.
Finally, she spun with a hard swing, using only her left hand. The strike was powerful, but it slid off Daniel’s blade. As she continued to spin, her right hand came down hard, holding a large stone club. This crashed into Daniel’s defenses and his sword fell to the ground.
The crowd gasped, and Avria felt her triumph, but as soon as his weapon fell to the ground Daniel’s fist struck Katrina in the face. Sparks flew from the Dunamis infused attack and she stumbled. Daniel leaned forward, pushing her further off balance and followed up his attack with a strike from his elbow. She flew to the ground, hitting it hard and dropping her own weapon.
There was stunned silence from all the onlookers. They watched laboriously, as Katrina stirred after several taut seconds and sat up slowly, shaking her head; she was clearly dazed.
Anger flared in Avria once she saw her cheek beginning to swell.
Daniel walked up to her, his weapon again in hand and held his blade to her throat.
“Hah!” Delmos yelled, raising his hands in the air. “I knew you had it in you!”
Nasha let out a cheer and clapped as well.
Katrina looked up in absolute shock, the side of her face swelling. “You... fucking… you punched me in the face.” She said, still in disbelief.
“I thought we were fighting as equals here.” He said, pulling his sword back and replacing it with an outstretched hand.
She hesitated, clearly angry, but took it anyway.
◆◆◆
Avria smeared healing cream on Katrina’s face.
“What does this do again, my lady? It smells like shit.” Katrina said, sitting in her master’s personal quarters. It was actually the first time she had ever been there.
“This is called Murudi paste. It will draw your Dunamis out in this area and heal your wound quickly.”
Katrina nodded but said nothing. It had been nearly a half hour since the fight with Daniel, and still, she could not bear to look at her master. She knew it was only a sparring match, but Avria made it seem like something much more. It was a matter of pride, before her father and the nobles, but still, she lost.
“Katrina,” Avria said, her voice soft and caring. “Do not let this stifle your progress and success. There are always people who will defeat you in the arena. It is better to fight them, learn from them, and receive their bruises so you don’t lose your head in a real fight. I should have known better than to let you fight Daniel.”
“I could have beaten him,” Katrina said, pain in her voice.
Avria sighed and she put her hand on Katrina’s shoulder. “Oros tried to tell me, in his cryptic and subtle way.”
“Tell you what?” Katrina asked.
“That Daniel was a seasoned warrior, even before his training in the Proistem. No wonder he let him wear the crimson cloak. It was a sign of mutual respect. I saw it in his eyes, once he changed, once he saw you as an actual threat.” Avria continued to apply the paste. “You were better at the blade though, the savage had to resort to using his fists.”
“Just like when he beat Delmos,” Katrina said slowly.
“Yes,” Avria said angrily. “He is exceptionally skilled without a weapon. I will be sure to keep that in mind.”
“But that fire.” Katrina continued. “I don’t know much about the Dunamis, but from what you told us in the Glade when he first discovered it, it isn’t normal. Why?”
Avria finished applying the paste and dipped her hands into a large bowl of water to rinse. “No one really knows for sure… but it is said that one’s soul is the filter in which the Dunamis flows. There are many instances where corruption of a Dae’s soul will affect the type of Dunamis that a person is able to use… but t
he crimson flame. Like I said before, it has only been referenced in stories of Demons, before even the war of the ascended. And after seeing what it did, only a weak blast of it… I believe those stories.”
“Do you think that I have something similar?” Katrina asked. “That maybe it's a human thing?
Avria chuckled. “Well, I suppose it’s possible. Only time will tell.”
chapter 33
Robert squinted his eyes at the strange sunrise before him. He had been asked by Alektor, his new brother, to accompany Turak and Demessa to meet with Queen Mundiri of the Visgo, a powerful seafaring clan directly to the south of Rexun. There was no hesitation in the man, he knew it would give him more insight into the world he now called home. To make things more appealing, he was treated extremely well.