by Ian Gregoire
Kayden stood over Vartan, her own blood streaking the left side of her face, and from a cut to her lower lip. “Now it’s your turn to bleed,” she taunted.
Anger at her words seemed to chase away Vartan’s shock and pain. He struggled back on to his feet to resume hostilities, with a force of will that left Kayden exasperated.
This numbskull just doesn’t know when to call it a day!
She nonchalantly swayed out of the way of a laboured right hook. When it was followed by an equally futile straight left, she caught hold of Vartan’s arm, restraining him in an arm lock. As he struggled feebly against her hold on him, she caught sight of the two remaining male apprentices who had not yet attacked her. They appeared to be slowly inching forward, seemingly trying to coax one another into entering the fray against her. She decided to nix that idea right away. With all the strength she could muster, Kayden twisted the arm in her grip and was instantly rewarded with the satisfying sound of Vartan’s arm dislocating at the shoulder.
The anguished scream of the apprentice vied with the renewed cheers of the raucous crowd. Vartan fell to his knees as soon as Kayden relinquished her hold on him. He settled into a prone position with his forehead pressed to the ground, in obvious agony.
Kayden took a single threatening stride towards her two potential foes. “Come on!” she yelled, her arms outstretched in challenge, daring the hesitant pair to attack.
The two apprentices—both formerly classmates of Kayden—exchanged dubious glances with each other. It didn’t need to be said that they were both slightly smaller than Kayden. Nor could it have escaped their notice she clearly had no fear of them. The only question was whether their hostility towards her was significant enough to risk serious injury. The answer was obviously no, so they both hurriedly exited the circle, forcing their way past spectators trying to keep them within the circle, prompting a chorus of derisory booing from the disdainful crowd.
Kayden quickly glanced around the circle to assess her situation: Gordo was still lying unconscious where he fell; Lazar was sat on the ground with a hand pressed to the right side of his face, the pained look of dismay he was wearing indicated he knew better than to continue the fight; Vartan remained on his knees, injured, nearby, and though his screams had ceased he was in no condition to cause her any further harm. Which left only Little Miss Shorty and Miss Voluptuous Vixen as active adversaries. The two young women were now standing side-by-side having seemingly decided to team up to take her on in a co-ordinated effort.
Standing in her fighting stance, Kayden’s body twitched with anticipation, waiting for one of her opponents to make the first move. Her focus on the pair was so acute it prevented her from noticing Vartan rising to his feet behind her. Nor did she notice as he used his uninjured right arm to unsheathe the dagger at his back, concealed beneath his tabard. As a result, she failed to see him throwing the weapon with intent, aimed squarely between her shoulder blades.
Her first indication that anything was amiss was hearing the loud gasp that issued simultaneously from everyone inside the arena, followed by the low murmuring of dozens of voices. She realised at once that the eyes of all the apprentices in her field of view, including Little Miss Shorty and Miss Voluptuous Vixen, were focussed on something happening behind her. She spun around and was startled to see, right under her nose, a small dagger suspended in mid-air, its sharp blade no more than a couple of inches from her chest.
The dagger flew rapidly away from Kayden, and her gaze followed its path out of the circle towards one of the entrances to the arena, right into the hand of a waiting Sanatsai.
CHAPTER FIVE
The Exception That Proves The Rule
Fay nonchalantly caught the dagger in her left hand. In an instant there was complete silence. The eyes of everyone in the old arena were fixed upon her and the anxious looking apprentice standing at her side.
When Neryssa had sought her out to inform her of an illicit fight involving Kayden, Fay did not expect to enter the scene she was now witnessing. At a guess, there were at least a hundred apprentices present as spectators to a fight that had not only resulted in injuries, but had also, very nearly, ended in tragedy. Had she not been there to intervene, Kayden would now be lying on the floor dead or dying with a dagger protruding from her back.
She marched slowly towards the gathered apprentices, and the group parted to allow both herself and Neryssa to enter the circle. Fay was acutely aware of the awe she inspired within the ranks of the apprentices. She walked with the calm assurance of a woman fully cognisant of her own power; her body language inherently majestic. She glanced briefly at Kayden who was glaring at Neryssa—presumably unhappy with her fellow apprentice for turning informer—then cast her gaze around the circle.
“Those of you who were not active participants in this egregious breach of discipline,” she began, “your lunches are getting cold. I suggest you make your way to the mess hall. Now!”
The apprentices began to disperse, vacating the arena as quickly as they could.
“Not you, Danya!” Fay called out, as she spotted the willowy instigator of proceedings trying to sneak away unnoticed.
“But I wasn’t an active participant in—” Danya began to protest. She was quickly silenced by a look from Fay.
Once the last of the excused apprentices had left the scene, only ten remained behind: five young men and five young women. Fay suppressed a sigh. She had another matter she wanted to attend to. She really didn’t need this unwanted distraction. But this incident had to be addressed, even if it meant delaying her plans for Kayden. She cast her eyes upon the bloodied apprentice once again.
“I know what you’re thinking—” Kayden blurted, pre-emptively.
Fay raised a hand to cut the apprentice off.
“I very much doubt that.” She looked to Neryssa at her side. “Neryssa, please take Kayden back to the dormitory. Help her get cleaned up, then wait for my arrival. I will be joining you just as soon as I have dealt with this.” She could tell Kayden wanted to object but was prevented from doing so. Neryssa quickly grabbed hold of her arm and, eventually, managed to pull her away—once she had retrieved her cloak from Danya.
Fay waited silently for the two young women to exit the arena before returning her full attention to the remaining apprentices. She noticed that Gordo—still laid out on the ground—was beginning to stir.
“Zorin! Rayshio!” she said, addressing the two male apprentices who had backed out of fighting Kayden. “Could you rouse Gordo and help him to his feet.”
They rushed to obey.
“Danya! This is not the first time you have instigated a fight between apprentices.” She spoke in a very matter-of-fact manner; there was no anger or harshness in her voice. “However, it is the last time. If not, you will find that being the daughter of a nobleman will not shield you from the consequences.”
Adopting the most shamefaced expression she could pull off, the apprentice stared down at her feet.
“Yes, Master,” she uttered, in convincingly contrite fashion.
“And for the record, how is it you came to set seven people against Kayden? I was led to believe she would be facing just two.”
Danya looked up. It was difficult for Fay to determine if it was embarrassment on the apprentice’s face or something else.
“It was supposed to be just Lazar and Vartan beating her up,” she said awkwardly. “But things kind of got out of hand after I invited a small group of friends to come watch the fight. Word got out. Suddenly, not only were there dozens of apprentices wanting to attend, some wanted to participate in putting the boot in.” She tried, but failed, to suppress a smile. “I guess Kayden isn’t the most popular person on campus.”
Fay was confident that Danya’s observation was a major understatement, but she kept the thought to herself. She gazed at the seven apprentices who had faced Kayden.
“So, seven of you were insufficient to get the better of Kayden?”
I
t was a rhetorical question, requiring no response. Even if it hadn’t been, none of the seven were prepared to offer up an answer.
She noticed that Gordo was looking unsteady on his feet, even with the assistance of Zorin and Rayshio on either side of him. He also appeared to have suffered a broken jaw during the fight.
“Zorin and Rayshio,” she called. “As the two of you, wisely it seems, refrained from attacking Kayden, I will not be taking further action against either of you. So, if you would kindly escort Gordo to the infirmary, you are free to leave.”
The two apprentices took their cue to leave, helping their injured cohort towards the exit.
“And Gordo,” Fay called out without looking back, “I’ll be having words with you once your injury has been treated.” Returning her attention back to Danya, she added, “Danya, you may leave also. But remember what I said.”
Grateful for the reprieve, the apprentice smiled a silent thank you then rushed for the exit as quickly as she could.
Fay turned to face the two female apprentices who had fought Kayden; both women appeared nervous. “Janessa! What were you thinking?” she asked the shorter of the two women. “I cannot begin to tell you how disappointed I am to find you involved in this. Both you and Ella, get yourselves to the administration building. You are to wait outside my office until I arrive.”
“But what about Kayden?” blurted the curvaceous apprentice, Ella. “She gets to go back to her dorm room while we get sent to your office?”
Fay glowered at the apprentice. “Ella, maybe if you worried less about Kayden, and more about your own conduct you would not be here. Now, do not make me repeat myself.” Her tone made it abundantly clear that further protestation would be ill-advised.
The two young women silently trudged away towards the exit.
Fay stared at both Lazar and Vartan until the two female apprentices had vacated the arena. Vartan stood with his left arm hanging limply at his side as he held a bloody rag to his nose with his right hand. Lazar was considerably better off than his colleague, though he was obviously in some discomfort on account of the fractured cheekbone he had suffered.
“What is the matter with you both?” barked Fay. “I do not doubt for one moment that you each have reason to be holding a grudge against Kayden. But this?” She held up the dagger thrown by Vartan. “What were you planning on doing if you killed her? Did you imagine you could just bury her somewhere then hope no one would notice or care that she was missing?”
“Master Fay,” pleaded Lazar. “I had no intention of killing Kayden. I… I just wanted to bring her down a notch, to wipe that condescending smirk from her stupid, smug face.”
“I have no interest in petty justifications.” She noted Vartan didn’t try to offer any defence for his own actions. “My only concern, now, is what happens next. But first, you are both injured. Get yourselves to the infirmary and have those injuries seen to. The moment you are both patched up come to my office. I will be waiting for you.”
“Master. What’s going to happen to us?” asked Vartan nervously.
“Lazar’s punishment I’ve not yet determined,” she said. “As for what happens to you: do you really need to ask? Now get going, both of you! I have other, more pressing matters I would rather be taking care of.”
The two marched dutifully towards the exit.
As Fay observed them departing, it hadn’t escaped her notice that while Lazar had seemed genuinely contrite about his involvement in the fight, Vartan, on the other hand, had looked altogether unrepentant. Not that it would have changed anything if he had expressed any regret; his fate was sealed.
Finally alone in the arena, Fay remained where she stood for a while, contemplating. In spite of herself, she could not help but be impressed at how Kayden was able to hold her own against seven other apprentices—without the use of Zarantar, no less.
At last, she let out an exasperated sigh then turned on her heels, marching swiftly for the exit. It was time to vacate the old arena and return to her office to discipline some unruly apprentices. Then would come the much greater challenge. Kayden Jayta.
Kayden was sitting, perched on the edge of her bed, with Neryssa seated beside her attempting to tend to her facial injuries. Three of their roommates had also returned to the dorm having finished their lunches, two perched on the adjacent bed, while the third, Yanina—the bed’s usual occupant—stood over Kayden and Neryssa, eager to hear the latest gossip.
Yanina was as tall as Kayden, her swarthy complexion and thick hair, braided into plaited pigtails, highlighted her obvious Yantashan origins.
“Oh, come on!” she urged. “Are you seriously not going to tell us what happened?”
Kayden attempted to swat Neryssa’s hand away as she pressed a clean cloth to the gash above her left eye. “Would you just stop that!” she snapped irritably. “If you can’t stem the bleeding I’ll just have to go to the infirmary.”
“The bleeding has mostly stopped, but you still need to keep this wound clean so it doesn’t get infected,” retorted Neryssa. “And you cannot leave yet, anyway. Master Fay explicitly told us to wait here. Besides, what would you tell the Sisters in the infirmary? That you walked into a door?”
“I don’t think it’s any longer necessary to conceal that I was in a fight,” she said, snatching the cloth from Neryssa’s grasp, “since you already told on me.”
Yanina’s ears pricked up at the retort. “You’ve been fighting?” she exclaimed excitedly. “I just assumed someone jumped you, given the way your face is cut up and bruised like it is.”
Kayden looked up at the standing apprentice. “You should see the state I left the others in.” There was a degree of smug satisfaction in her voice. She had well and truly taught Lazar and Vartan a lesson they would be unwise to forget in a hurry.
“You got into it with more than one person?”
Neryssa explained. “A level eight apprentice roped Kayden into a fight with Lazar and Vartan in the old arena. They were both still angry about some of the things that happened last night, so they wanted to get back at her.” She returned her gaze to Kayden. “But Kayden being Kayden couldn’t be the bigger person and stay out of trouble.”
Kayden scowled at her roommate.
“Why in the world would you want to fight ‘pretty boy’ Lazar?” Yanina asked Kayden, in surprise. “I can think of much more pleasurable physical activities to engage in with him.”
The expression that swept over Kayden’s face in that instant made a verbal response completely redundant. She was clearly repulsed by the mere suggestion. “Don’t be so disgusting,” she replied. “Besides, he’d be far too afraid to be left alone in a room with me for anything like that.” The dubious look from Yanina prompted her to add, “If you don’t believe me, why was he too cowardly to face me with just Vartan for backup? When I arrived at the old arena it wasn’t just the two of them waiting. In total, I had seven apprentices to contend with.”
“Just seven?” The quiet voice came from the other bed.
Kayden glanced at the olive skinned Malorini twins sitting across from her. It was Vida who had spoken, addressing her sister Aida who was sitting beside her. “You’d think there’d be a lot more than that queuing up to give her good a kicking,” she quipped.
The twins began to chuckle to themselves before stopping abruptly upon noticing Kayden’s gaze upon them.
“What?” challenged Aida. “You know she’s right. You’re not exactly popular around here.”
Kayden had no trouble accepting there was truth in the jibes. She would never win a popularity contest on campus. And, in all likelihood, the Malorini twins would also be standing in a queue of apprentices who would happily give her a beating. But she didn’t care; they would all be welcome to try, if they dared.
“Kayden, if you were in a fight with seven other apprentices who had it in for you,” observed Yanina, drawing Kayden’s attention away from the twins, “you’d be in much worse shape than you a
re.”
“I was actually winning until Miss Goody Two Shoes decided to intervene.” She gestured with her head towards Neryssa. “You should have seen it. Only two of them were still standing by the time she walked in, except she’s not alone. She’s accompanied by the administrator. Of all the Sanatsai in the world, she has to bring the only one I cannot stand.”
“You got caught fighting by Master Fay?”
“Unfortunately.” Kayden diverted her gaze away from Yanina to direct her ire at Neryssa. “I still can’t believe you went to that woman; you said you were going to lunch. Did you really think I couldn’t take care of myself?”
“Hey,” barked Neryssa, “that woman, is the reason you aren’t seriously hurt, or worse.” The apprentice’s voice rose in obvious anger. “We could be burying your corpse right now if not for Master Fay; why don’t you show some respect?”
Kayden was vexed by her roommate’s sudden outburst. “If you expect me to idolise her, and revere the ground she walks upon like the rest of you. Don’t hold your breath.”
“Ladies! Ladies!” interrupted Yanina. “Could we just go back a moment, please? First Kayden says she was winning the fight, now you’re saying she could have died. Well, which is it?”