War of the Immortals

by Noëlie Frix

  “Twenty minutes,” Thomas announced. “Begin.”

  As the battle progressed, Chaos’ servants paid more and ever closer attention, watching them with incredible disbelief.

  Heka feigned a kick to his head and punched Chaos in the guts. Seth, in return, slammed his hand into her chest and quickly followed that with a kick to the knee. She yelled out in pain and, ignoring the broken cap, brought that same leg crashing into his chin. He spat out some blood. Warrior let out a satisfactory grunt and brought her clasped hands down on the back of his head. Momentarily dazed, Seth walked away from her. Heka was unable to pursue her advantage, however, as her knee needed to heal. The truce barely lasted five seconds—then they were at it again: kicking, punching, jumping, running, tripping, rolling, bleeding, not breathing. Warrior ran toward Seth, at the last moment, she jumped up, somersaulting in the air and hitting him with her outstretched leg on the head where he’d taken the blow earlier. She stumbled a little when she landed, reeling from the pain in her un-mended knee.

  “Time!” Thomas called. Chaos had been driven to his knees, she was still standing.

  “I win,” she let out, offering her hand to Seth who, as she had done before, took it gratefully.

  “Yes,” he gasped. “Well done.” That was all they could manage. Heka limped over to her bench, while he tried not to stagger too much. They gulped down their water, and the servants left the room, chattering excitedly.

  “How’s your knee?” Chaos called from across the room.

  “Hurts like a bitch,” Heka answered honestly. “Your head?”

  “Feels like someone’s pounding a hammer against my temples, but getting better.”

  She nodded, brought her hands to her knee and focused on mending the broken cap. She knew in a couple of minutes it would be good as new, but until then, it still hurt badly—doing acrobatics with a bad knee had been a horrible idea, nonetheless, she had done it and won round two.

  “Impressive, by the way,” Seth told her.

  “Thanks. Not bad yourself.”

  “You ready for the last round?”

  “Depends. How much time do we have left?”

  “I don’t know. Two, three minutes, maybe.”

  “Yeah, I’ll be ready.”

  At that moment, Chaos’s servants walked in, filling up the benches till they were nearly full. News had traveled fast and, while they were his slaves and all feared him, seeing someone stand up to Seth was an incredible sight no one wanted to miss.

  Thomas announced the end of the break and the start of the third and final, fifteen minute round. It was brutal. By the end, both combatants were bloodied and exhausted beyond belief. Seth had a small concussion, a sprained wrist, a broken nose, and cracked ribs. Heka stood at a broken arm, split lip, a small cut above the eye, and a sprained ankle. In addition, both of them had countless bruises and minor cuts. When the end of the fight was called, Chaos had his arm around her throat—he won, but had it lasted another two seconds, she might have regained the upper hand. The energy in the room was overwhelming. On their way out, the men and women who had come, offered her their congratulations and bowed respectfully and fearfully before their master.

  “Nicely done,” Heka said.

  “You too. So what’s the plan now?”

  “I don’t know about you, but I want to go take a long, cool bath, then eat.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Seth grinned.

  “I bathe alone,” Heka clarified.

  “Fine,” he pouted disappointedly. “After lunch, I’d like to show you something, a gift. And then I’ve got a good idea for a second challenge,” Chaos smiled.

  “I thought I was going to have some time alone after lunch.”

  “Fine, does one hour work for you?”

  “Give me three.”

  They stood up painfully, both limping slightly, and hobbled back to their rooms. Heka took a refreshing bath, changed and, her stomach rumbling, headed to the dining room.

  “You’re famous now! Everybody here knows your name,” Seth declared while they ate.

  “Yours too, though you’re more infamous from what I understand,” Heka replied.

  “All leaders follow one of two types of leadership—either one based on love or fear. Everyone has a different theory as to which is best. But as opposed to humans, I do not have to worry about revolts and strikes and such. Everyone here is aware of what happens when I’m upset, so they do all they can to live their life as much as possible while keeping me happy.”

  “Maybe you should be the spokesman for dictators around the world,” Warrior said with a humorless smile. “Like a club: the ‘Evil Overlords’ club.”

  “Perhaps I should.”

  A while later, Heka found herself exploring every possible corner of the underground fortress. She searched every nook and cranny, opened countless doors, disturbed a few spiders, and left her prints on dusty floors and furniture. But she found nothing. At one point, she followed a damp, musty-smelling, narrow tunnel for about ten minutes, having to crawl in some places, only to find it was a dead end.

  Chaos found Heka poking her head out from underneath an empty shelf. She dragged her body out, dusted herself off, and asked, “Is it time already?”

  “Yes, it is. Did you find anything?”

  “A bunch of stuff,” she nodded. “Nothing of use, though.”

  “Maybe you’ll have more success next time about…but I doubt it.”

  “We’ll see, won’t we?”

  “I guess so. As of now, though, I have something for you,” Seth led her out to a brightly lit hexagonal room with mirror-lined walls and gilded gold. There was a closet there, its doors also mirrors, which he invited her to open.

  Inside hung the most beautiful dress imaginable, with intricate lace work, a long skirt and tight bodice…and it was white.

  “It’s a wedding gown,” Heka declared, again struggling not to laugh and to keep her composure in face of the hysterical and insane prospect of marriage.

  “Do you like it?”

  “Sure, it’s nice. I hope it will fit your wife, because while it looks my size, I do not intend on wearing it.”

  “Mmmh,” he didn’t look too upset at her lack of enthusiasm. “I thought this might not be what you wanted.” Seth pushed a panel and the backboard rotated, making the dress disappear into the dark recess of the closet. In its stead, an armor appeared. But unlike any she had ever seen. It looked as thin as paper, deep black with a slight shimmer to it, which revealed it to be metal and not cloth. It was a one-piece suit, with assorted gauntlets, boots and helmet, all fragile-looking.

  When she touched the material, the suit grew warm and seemed to tremble beneath her palm.

  “What is this?” she asked incredulous, realizing it was like nothing she had ever seen.

  “It’s called Straani metal. Try it on,” he offered. While she slipped it on, he explained its many properties. “It’s so thin, there really isn’t any significant weight to slow you down, yet it’s as hard as diamond. Also, it’s as supple as cloth, so you can slip it on just like you would a dress or shirt, and it morphs to fit its wearer’s body perfectly. It leaves no area of the body unprotected if you wear the gauntlets and boots—which share the same characteristics. The helmet doesn’t hamper your hearing and it will not narrow your field of vision either. In addition, though it won’t completely change colors, it slightly reflects your surroundings, serving as camouflage too.”

  “It’s amazing,” Heka breathed reverently, admiring herself in the mirror. The armor hugged her body tightly, showing off all her curves, yet it didn’t feel tight, actually, it almost felt as though she was naked. In the light, it did seem as though the dark black became tinted different shades depending on where she stood, and Heka could move around easily. Warrior reached over and grabbed her dagger. She could feel all the details of the grip through the glove. “It’s amazing,” she said again.

  “Thank you. I take it you do like this
. I figured it was the perfect wedding gift.”

  “It’s mine?” she marveled, overlooking the reference to his desired marriage.

  He nodded and grinned widely, showing off his perfect teeth, “While I invite you to test it later, for our next challenge, I would request you wear typical attire.”

  “What’s the challenge you have in mind?”

  “As I told you before, I have many different arenas, if you can call them that. Anyways, one of them is basically a miniature forest, and I thought it’d be interesting to see how we both do when we’re in such a different environment.”

  “Sure. Already looking forward to it.” While changing back into her clothes, she asked, “Will I get to keep the armor even if I make it out of here?”

  “Well, it is a gift, and if you managed that, then you would deserve it. So yes, you have my word,” Heka felt a slight pressure in her hand where the mark was still clearly visible.

  He led her to a room that, instead of having a door, had a curtain of vines for its entrance. Right inside was a small clearing, surrounded by tall overgrown trees and other plants. The earth beneath her feet was hard and rocks covered the ground. Falling here would definitely be more painful.

  “So what are the rules this time?” she asked.

  “No powers, but we both get a dagger and another weapon of choice.”

  “Alright.”

  “One round. We’ll start at opposite ends of the ‘forest’ and go from there.”

  “That’s all great, but when are we done? How do we determine who wins?”

  “Whoever manages to immobilize the other first?” the Demon suggested.

  “That brings us back to the same problem we had before,” she argued.

  “Not exactly. The terrain is very different.” Seeing she was about to argue, Seth added, “I’ll have to keep you pinned for thirty seconds, you have to hold me for fifteen, is that fair?”

  “Somewhat.”

  They both wore black tights and light long-sleeved shirts. Heka’s dagger was shorter and thinner than Chaos’s but it seemed just as sharp. She smiled when she saw that Thomas would again be overseeing this challenge. This time, however, he would not be able to see much and there would be no spectators. Seth took a short, broad sword from the weapons rack while she grabbed a bow and quiver. They both walked off into the trees, turning their backs to each other, waiting for Thomas to call the beginning of the fight.

  Heka walked around with ease, stepping over the thick undergrowth, ducking beneath low branches, avoiding holes and stones. She moved quietly through the stillness around her, barely making a sound. Warrior had always loved the forest, loved climbing trees, jumping from branch to branch. Jason had once explained to her that stealth could be your best ally in such a situation. She grabbed a thick branch and quickly climbed the tree, nimble as a squirrel. Then she waited and listened for the sound of Chaos’s footsteps. He was good, almost as quiet as her. In fact, she never heard him walk, but instead saw a faint rustle in the trees far off to her left.

  As soon as Thomas called start, Warrior moved, swiftly jumping into another tree’s branches. Instead of heading directly towards him, she went off to the side; positioning herself in the highest branches of a tall evergreen, she notched an arrow and, breathing in calmly, waited. Waited for him to come in range. She heard a branch crack, much closer than she’d thought he was. Looking down, she saw him nearing her place. Seth still hadn’t noticed her, camouflaged by the surrounding pines. But from where Heka was, she had a clear shot. She took it.

  The arrow went flying straight towards his eye. At the last moment, Seth, having heard the projectile cut through the air, turned his head, avoiding it. But Warrior had not waited. As soon as she had loosed her first arrow, she’d let off four more; so rapidly, even Chaos could not avoid them all. One pinned him to the tree behind him by his shoulder, two others found his shoes, pinning him to the ground. Unfortunately, he was able to deflect the last with his free hand which carried his sword.

  As Heka rushed down to meet him, Chaos furiously pulled the weapons out of the ground and tree. She was on him before he even let the last arrow fall to the ground. She pushed him back against the tree forcefully, took her dagger out and rammed it into his stomach. Seth grunted and pushed her back. He reached for his fallen sword, but as soon as he had it in hand, Heka kicked his wrist, forcing him to let go. Warrior punched him in the exact spot her blade had found. Chaos cried out and furiously slashed at her face with his own dagger. But Heka ignored the superficial cut and pressed her attack, implacable. She’d picked this spot for a reason: the trees pressed closely together, the ground was fairly flat, but several big boulders surrounded them. She stepped lightly onto one of these, jumped off and brought her elbow down upon his shoulder, driving him to the ground.

  Tired of getting beaten, Seth roared and stood up quickly. He attempted to knock Heka’s legs out from under her, but she stepped behind a thick tree, and circling back around, pushed him. His shins hit a rock and he fell to the ground.

  She took out two arrows, pinned his arms down, pressed her knee into the small of his back, and held her dagger to his throat.

  “Move, and I won’t hesitate to slit your throat,” she warned.

  Chaos’ breath caught in his throat, anger flooded through him; with dirt in his eyes and mouth, and his stomach, shoulder, and back burning with pain, it took all his willpower not to use his powers to fling her off.

  “I believe that’s time,” Heka said, lifting herself off, pushing her dagger back into its scabbard and putting the arrows into the quiver.

  Seth stood up brusquely and shoved her back against a tree, holding her by the throat, lifting her off the ground. He watched her struggle for a while, then reluctantly released her. Heka fell to the ground, gasping. Faster than the eye could follow, she loosed an arrow that would have impaled itself deep into his brain; but, as he had done with the improvised silver dagger, Seth stopped it with a slight flick of the wrist.

  “You cheated!” Warrior yelled, still on guard, furious.

  Chaos too was furious because of his humiliating defeat. He eyed her warily then brought his closed fists down to his sides, “Sorry,” he mumbled.

  “Yeah, you better be,” Heka said and turned around. Before he could follow, she had disappeared among the trees.

  “Idiot,” Seth rubbed his temples, frustrated. He attempted to follow her but realized that it was wiser to let her cool off alone. “Where did she go?” he nevertheless asked Thomas when he reached the clearing.

  “I have not seen lady Heka since the beginning of the fight,” he apologized.

  “Leave,” he ordered. Thomas obeyed, surprised to see his master follow him out.

  From the tree she was standing in, Heka observed the two men go. She waited a few more minutes, but no one came. Then she beamed. That single victory brought her back onto equal ground with Chaos. She spent about an hour more in the forest, looking for a way out. There was none, but just being by herself, among the quiet calm of the plants, had helped clear her head, helped her think. Nature’s starting to rub off on me, she thought with a small chuckle.

  She met up with Chaos for dinner.

  “You know, I just realized, I forgot to congratulate you on your victory,” he said once she sat down.

  “Yeah, thanks.”

  “It was quite remarkable.”

  “Indeed. For once, I completely agree with you,” she taunted. But he did not rise to the bait.

  “Can I make it up to you later? Another fight tomorrow?” he suggested.

  “I’m game, so long as you follow the rules. Unless, of course, you just want to go at it without any kind of guidelines.”

  “Eventually, perhaps we could do so. But not just yet. Believe it or not, for the moment, I have no desire to kill you.”

  “It didn’t seem that way when you were strangling me.”

  “And again, I apologize.”

  Heka didn’t contes
t the fact that he could kill her—for the first time, she felt strangely mortal.

  They ate their meal, at first in silence, but eventually Seth got a conversation going, even managing to make her laugh a couple times.

  The next day was spent much like the first. She devoted a bit more time looking for an exit, but her fruitless efforts only bore frustration. Luckily, that disappointment was tempered by the constant battling with Chaos. He won more often than she did, and never again did her victory come as smoothly as it had the night before, but she did win sometimes. That second day came and went quickly. Seth tried hard to seduce her, but anytime she felt he might be gaining she thought of Jason and talked to Sembor who remained her only weak connection to the outside world.

  “Well, this is it,” Seth declared the next morning. “Either our last day together, or the beginning of a new life for us.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “You’ve found an exit, then?”

  “I still have a whole day, remember?” she bit irritably.

  “Of course. But first, I do have some interesting events planned for today.”

  “I’ll devote my entire morning to your ‘events’ if you give me the afternoon to search.”

  “Deal.”

  They fought for hours on end. The only constant was the fact that neither used their powers. Otherwise, each encounter was different in most other aspects: the terrain they used, the weapons or lack thereof, the criteria for one’s victory or defeat, whether they relied on offensive or defensive styles and techniques. The better she did, the more confident she became about the war she was hell-bent on rejoining. Heka knew fighting her uncle would be different. Neither would hold back, they would use all their abilities, both would affect and be affected by the other raging combats. But she was learning from Chaos and was growing stronger. Plus, she would wear the best armor she had ever owned.