by MJ Schutte
The knob connected with Yadi’s nose.
‘First blood,’ the crowd cheered.
Yadi staggered back, dropped the short blade and held his hand over his nose. The referee reluctantly stepped into the ring but before he could say anything Yadi made some hand gestures and screamed, ‘Not fair. No blade!’
The referee quickly stepped back.
Yadi attacked Brighton once more and again Brighton deflected the blows easily. He pushed the little trigger on the cane upwards, exposing the small blade. As Yadi stepped in for yet another attack, Brighton stepped forward, the cane flashing three times.
Three cuts on Yadi’s forearm started bleeding.
‘First blood,’ the crowd cheered again.
Brighton stepped back, sure that Yadi would accept defeat this time, but as the referee stepped into the ring, the elf launched yet another attack on Brighton.
Brighton’s defences held up once more.
He knocked the sword out of Yadi’s hand and landed two heavy blows on the elf’s already broken nose. Yadi stumbled backward and lost his balance. Brighton pressed the small blade on the end of his cane to the elf’s throat.
‘Yield,’ he commanded.
‘Never,’ the elf spat.
Brighton pressed down on the cane slightly harder.
The razor sharp blade pierced the elf’s skin and blood started trickling from the wound.
‘Yield,’ Brighton commanded again.
The referee stepped closer and declared, ‘Brighton wins!’
Brighton lifted the cane from Yadi’s throat and offered the elf his hand.
‘Let me help you up, friend,’ he said.
Yadi slapped Brighton’s hand away and slowly got up. The crowd booed and screamed insults at the elf. Yadi didn’t bother retrieving his weapons; he left as quickly as he could.
‘Brighton, Brighton, Brighton,’ the crowd started chanting.
Self-consciously Brighton made his way back to his friends. As he walked through the crowd, some people slapped him on the back in congratulations.
‘Well done’ and ‘Good fight’ sounded from the crowd.
‘That was a good fight,’ Brac said as he grabbed Brighton’s hand and pumped it vigorously.
Peter also slapped the young man on the back, a big smile on his face. Even Lilian and Adri smiled a little. They did not like the fighting but were glad that Brighton had won.
‘When do I fight again?’ Brighton asked casually.
‘Probably only tomorrow, but I’ll go find out quickly,’ Peter said and rushed off.
‘Some water, my love’ Lilian offered.
Brighton took the water skin gratefully.
‘Do you want to go home now?’ she asked while Brighton drank.
He wiped his mouth and said, ‘No, I want to watch the other fights. It gives me a chance to study the fighters and their techniques.’
‘Adri and I are going home. We’ll see you later,’ Lilian said.
She gave Brighton a long kiss and started walking, but had to stop and wait. Adri was giving Brac an even longer kiss.
‘Oh please, go find a quiet spot in the woods if you two want to do that,’ Lilian teased.
Adri stepped away from Brac, her cheeks going slightly red. She hooked her arm into Lilian’s and the two women walked down the road, giggling at something.
‘You’re a lucky man, Brac,’ Brighton commented as they watched the women go.
‘I know, and so are you,’ Brac smiled.
Peter returned and informed Brighton that his next fight would only be late in the afternoon.
‘If you win that one, you will only have to fight once a day from tomorrow,’ he said to Brighton.
The three men returned to watching the fights.until it was Brighton’s turn in the ring again. His next fight was against a very inexperienced young fighter called Borich.
He attacked wildly from the start with his short sword. Brighton easily fended off the attacks. On Borich’s fourth attempt to break through, Brighton sidestepped and made a shallow cut on the young man’s upper arm with the tiny blade. Borich immediately stopped fighting, stuck his hand out to Brighton and said, ‘Good match, congratulations Brighton.’
Brighton took Borich’s hand but did not retract his sense. He wanted to be ready in case the young man tried to catch him off guard. Borich did not try anything underhanded, he was sincere in his congratulations.
‘Thank you,’ Brighton said to the young warrior.
He left amidst chants of ‘Brighton, Brighton,’ again.
Another round of congratulatory slaps and handshakes came from Brac and Peter.
‘Shall we go home? I’ve seen enough for one day.’ Brighton suggested.
Lady Jaclyn walked away from the fighting. She entered the town hall and went to the private room at the back. The same young man who took Brighton’s entry into the Warrior trials was waiting there for her.
‘Tomorrow Brighton must fight against Nelath. Tell Nelath to make it hurt, but he must not kill Brighton,’ she said to him.
The young man rushed off.
‘Tell Yadi to come here!’ Lady Jaclyn called after him.
A short while later Yadi entered the room. He placed his hand over his heart and lifted the other towards her, showing her his palm. Jaclyn sat on a comfortable chair eating grapes.
‘I gave you a simple instruction,’ she said softly to the young elf.
He dropped his eyes and covered his face with his hands.
‘Apologies won’t help you now, Yadi,’ she snapped at him.
Yadi grabbed his long hair with both hands and said, ‘Cut.’
‘Oh no, you are not getting off that easily,’ Jaclyn sneered at him.
‘No man will humiliate me and get away with it,’ she said as her white energy link slammed into Yadi’s head.
Yadi slammed his hands to his face repeatedly.
‘I told you already, apologising won’t help,’ she said as she tried to drain his energy.
He dropped to his knees and sobbed, ‘No humiliate Lady.’
Irritably Jaclyn screamed, ‘Not you, you blithering idiot! Brighton!’
Yadi still had his hands over his face so he did not see the knife in Jaclyn’s hand. She took a quick step closer and slammed the blade into his chest. The elf sank to the ground, life fading from his eyes fast.
‘James!’ Jaclyn shouted.
‘Yes, Lady Jaclyn,’ the young man said as he entered the room.
‘Yadi was overcome with shame because he lost to a human. He took his own life. Remove his body from my sight,’ she spat.
‘Yes, Lady Jaclyn’, young James said again and started dragging Yadi’s lifeless body out of the room.
‘Bring more grapes!’ she screamed.
‘Was that really necessary?’ a soft voice came from the corner of the room.
‘Shut up, Robyn. I’m not in the mood for your lectures today,’ Jaclyn snapped.
‘How many times have you tried to kill an elf with your gift?’ Robyn asked softly.
They both knew the answer so Jaclyn did not bother responding.
‘They are protected, you know this,’ Robyn continued.
‘Robyn, I told you to shut up!’ Jaclyn shouted.
‘Child, I am only concerned for your wellbeing. You have been very restless since you met Brighton. Why are you so infatuated with him?’ Robyn asked tenderly.
‘It’s his destiny to be by my side! He is the other angel you foresaw in your prophecy. I am the almighty mother and he is the almighty father. His magic is the same as mine, although not as strong, I have felt it!’ Jaclyn screamed.
‘But he has a wife and children,’ Robyn tried.
‘I will kill them and then he will be free!’ Jaclyn shouted.
‘Please Jaclyn, no more killing. It is so senseless and unnecessary. Just forget about this young man. There are plenty more who would willingly serve you and share your bed.’ Robyn pleaded.
‘I want him!’ Jac
lyn screamed at the old woman.
‘Killing his wife and children will cause grief. Is that what you want? Do you really think he will willingly come to you if he is grieving?’ Robyn argued.
A smile spread across Jaclyn’s face.
‘You’re right, old woman. There is a better way of doing this,’ she said slowly.
Robyn shook her head sadly.
What have I done?
Chapter 5
BRIGHTON SAT ON the porch with Lilian, Brac and the children. He was polishing the beautiful walking stick and making sure that there were no nicks or cracks in the wood. Brac was teaching the twins to sneak sweet berries into their mouths without their mother seeing. Lilian played along and acted as if she did not know what they were doing. This brought fits of laughter from both children.
‘I can’t believe they are almost two years old already,’ Lilian smiled.
‘They grow up very fast,’ Brac commented as he snuck another berry to Clarissa.
Peter came out of the house and sat down next to Brighton. Clarissa struggled to her feet, came over to her father and said, ‘Pappa, bewee,’ as she held out one of the sweet treats to Brighton.
‘Thank you, my angel,’ Brighton said as he took the berry from her tiny hand.
She quickly looked over her shoulder to see whether her mother saw. Lilian looked away, pretending not to have noticed. This brought another fit of laughter from the little girl. Brighton put the walking stick down, picked Clarissa up and put her on his leg. Thomas noticed this and held out his arms to his father, making little whimpering noises.
‘Come here, Thomas,’ Brighton encouraged but the little boy refused to get up.
‘I wonder why Clarissa has started walking already but not Thomas. She also speaks better than him,’ Brighton frowned.
‘Girls develop faster than boys. Don’t worry, he will catch up,’ Brac replied.
Thomas, realising that his father was not going to come fetch him, decided it was time to follow his sister’s example. He got to his feet, spread his arms wide to keep his balance and then slowly started walking towards Brighton. When he reached his father, he held out his arms and said, ‘Pappa.’
Brighton picked him up and put him on the other leg.
‘Well done, Thomas,’ he congratulated the little boy.
‘Brighton, you and Lilian both have these magical abilities. Does it mean your children have them too?’ Peter asked.
‘Before the twins were born, we discovered that my talent and Lilian’s counteract each other. I have not sensed the talent in either of the children,’ Brighton replied.
Brac leaned forward and, in a serious tone, said, ‘They do have a very special talent. They can sniff out a sweet berry at a hundred paces.’
This brought laughter from everybody.
‘Yes, I think you are correct Brac,’ Lilian commented.
Clarissa wriggled off Brighton’s leg and went back to Brac.
‘Bac, bewee,’ she said as she held out her hand.
‘Please,’ Lilian said to the little girl.
‘Pease,’ Clarissa tried to repeat after her mother.
Brac produced a berry from his pocket and handed it to her.
‘Thank you,’ Lilian said.
‘Tank you,’ Clarissa repeated.
She took the berry from Brac and waddled over to Lilian.
Holding out her hand to her mother she said, ‘Mamma, bewee.’
‘Thank you, my darling,’ Lilian laughed as she took the berry from Clarissa.
Clarissa continued collecting berries from Brac and handing them out to everybody. Even her brother, still sitting on Brighton’s leg, got a few. Eventually, when the berries were finished, she returned to sit on Brighton’s lap. All the excitement and hard work of handing out berries had tired her out. She put her head against Brighton’s chest and was instantly asleep. Thomas again followed his sister’s example, placed his head on Brighton’s chest and closed his eyes.
‘Shall I take them to bed?’ Lilian whispered.
‘No, let them sleep here,’ Brighton whispered back.
Continuing to talk in hushed tones, he said to Peter, ‘Earlier you referred to my and Lilian’s talents as “magical abilities”. What we do is not magic, it’s simply a talent like singing or drawing. Magic does not exist.’
Peter, also keeping his voice low, said, ‘Try to see it from my point of view. You can do something that, as far as we know, only Lady Jaclyn can do. We do not know of anybody that has the same talent as Lilian, except maybe Robyn if your theory is correct. Your ability cannot be heard or seen; and yet we all know what you are capable of. What you did for Nicky was beyond any logical explanation. How you manage to fight like you do, with very little training, is also beyond logical explanation. What I’m saying is that it cannot be explained, therefore, it must be magic.’
‘It is simply sensing and manipulating the energy around me,’ Brighton argued.
‘Call it what you want, from my point of view it’s still magic,’ Peter declared.
Brighton opened his mouth to argue but Peter cut him off.
‘You can sit here and argue until your hair grows as long as Lilian’s, it won’t help. I will always believe that you are a wizard and Lilian is a w…’
He was going to say “witch” but quickly changed his mind and said, ‘Sorceress.’
‘You are exceptionally good with a sword and Brac is second to none with his throwing knives. Is that not magical too?’ Brighton tried one more time.
‘These are skills that Brac and I have developed and honed over a number of years. The explanation behind our skills is simply hard work and hours of practice,’ Peter countered.
Brighton looked at Brac for help but the hunter shook his head.
‘I agree with Peter. You insist that magic does not exist but you and Lilian are living proof that it does,’ he said.
‘I never knew you felt that way,’ Lilian gasped.
‘I never really thought about it much. Now that Peter has made his argument, I have to agree with him,’ Brac replied.
‘What about Adri? Is she a sorceress too?’ Lilian asked.
‘Yes. Being able to see someone’s feelings or emotions is also a magical ability,’ Brac replied.
‘Brac, we are still the same people,’ Lilian whispered.
‘I know. Please understand that this does not change the way I feel about you. I love you, Brighton and your children like you are my own flesh and blood. My feelings for Adri have not changed either. In fact, I’ve had some time to think about our future and perhaps it’s time to make things a bit more official,’ Brac replied.
‘Are you going to…’ Lilian started but Brac cut her off.
‘Shh, I want it to be a surprise.’
Lilian smiled from ear to ear.
Just then, Adri came out of the house.
She looked at Lilian and said, ‘What has made you so happy?’
‘Oh, nothing. I’m just smiling,’ Lilian tried.
‘You’re hiding something,’ Adri accused.
Lilian’s mouth dropped open.
‘Can you see that with your talent?’ she blurted out.
‘I don’t need my gift to see it. It’s all over your face and now you’ve confirmed my suspicion,’ Adri replied.
Lilian laughed and said, ‘Yes, I suppose I have. Well, I’m not going to say anything more.’
Adri looked at Brac but he refused to look her in the eyes.
‘Something is going on and it involves you,’ Adri said to him.
Brac just smiled and looked at his shoes.
Peter leaned over to Brighton and whispered, ‘Perhaps we should go practice for tomorrow before we get pulled into this conspiracy.’
‘Good idea,’ Brighton replied.
To Adri and Lilian he said, ‘Will you two girls please take the twins inside?’
‘Who are you calling a girl?’ Lilian asked trying to look angry.
‘You’
re my girl,’ Brighton replied sweetly.
‘Yes, I am,’ she laughed as she took Clarissa from him.
The following morning, only the three men went to the Warrior Trials. Lilian and Adri both said they had seen enough the previous day and would prefer to stay at home with Nicky and the children.
‘I’m going to see whether I can find out who your opponent is for today’s round. I’ll meet you at ring three,’ Peter said.
He made his way through the crowd to the registrar’s table. Brighton and Brac strolled leisurely to ring three; there was no hurry. Nelath was standing just outside the ring. When he saw Brighton, he pointed at himself, then at Brighton, pointed to the ground and drew a cross over his heart.
‘I wonder what that is all about,’ Brac said.
‘I’m fighting him today,’ Brighton said casually.
‘How do you know that?’ Brac asked.
‘He told me,’ Brighton replied.
‘How can you understand those hand signals,’ Brac frowned.
‘It’s easy. He pointed to himself and then at me. This means “you and me”. Pointing to the ground means “today” and the cross over his heart means “die”. He obviously didn’t mean he is going to die today so that part is aimed at me,’ Brighton explained.
‘That is bad news,’ Brac said worriedly.
‘Why? He may think that I will die today but I also have a say in the matter,’ Brighton replied.
Peter walked up to them with a worried look on his face.
‘I know already. My opponent is Nelath,’ Brighton told the old man.
‘How did you know?’ Peter frowned.
‘He just told me,’ Brighton answered.
‘Do you want to withdraw?’ Peter asked.
‘We won’t think any less of you,’ Brac assured him.
Brighton shook his head.
‘No, I will fight,’ he replied.
‘He is very brutal and likes to toy with his opponents. Finish the fight quickly. Don’t give him time to study your attack,’ Peter gave some advice.
Brighton smiled at the old man and nodded. He already had exactly the same plan in his head. Peter snuck a quick look at Nelath.
‘That’s strange. After what he did to Bulac yesterday, I expected his hair to be cut short. He continued attacking after his opponent yielded,’ Peter frowned.