Firebird Alex (The Sedumen Chronicles Book 1)

by Orren Merton

  I thought of Jake all the time, too. Every time I accomplished something, or performed a drill perfectly, I wished I could text him or call him or see him and let him know. I imagined what Jake might think about all of this. Sometimes I thought about what it might be like to share my bubble bath with him.

  I thought a lot about how the last time I saw him, I’d promised I’d talk to him that evening. Was he going crazy wondering why I didn’t call him back? Did he wonder what happened? Was he mad at me? Did he think I was blowing him off? God, I hoped not. I hoped Rachel talked to him. I hoped he didn’t forget about me.

  Sometimes I even considered leaving Sediin before my training was finished just out of desperation to see them again. But I knew that was a terrible idea, that I would be returning half-trained and with a huge target on my back. And I remembered that even though I’d been in Sediin for months, it wouldn’t be nearly that long on Earth. Of course Jake wouldn’t have forgotten me in just a couple of days. But I really missed him and Rachel.

  As the months rolled on, I became a more confident Seduman, more proud, and more secure in my skin. Finally, after more than three months in Sediin, the day came when Garz informed me there was only one more lesson to go. I was thrilled!

  22

  There was a definite spring in my step the morning of my last lesson. I rinsed my face and hands in my stone water basin and thought about what to wear. I figured that this was going to be a tough lesson, that there was no way he was going to go easy on me on the last day. I knew Garz too well for that. So I had to dress to be as flexible as possible and as cool as possible so I didn’t overheat. I just wore a tight sports bra and leggings, figuring I should probably not wear a shirt at all. I was so right…

  Zaebos picked up on my excitement and was bouncy himself. I ran my hand through his fur and even kissed him, telling him how much I was looking forward to “graduation.” Zaebos told me how proud he was of me, that when he saw me spar now I moved like a real Sedu, that he was proud to serve me and my House. I ran my laps with the biggest smile. And so did Zaebos.

  Zogo greeted us at the door after my run with water and a snack. I thanked him and scarfed down the trail mix he’d brought, figuring that I was in for a real pounding, and a little extra energy boost would help me to be at my absolute best. I was determined to pass any test thrown my way. I wanted to impress my brother. I wanted to impress myself. I wanted to be good enough.

  We arrived early to the workout space, as always. It was empty except for a team of little Ruhin with crab-shaped heads and human-like arms and legs, chatting with each other quietly while maintaining the opposite wall. I stretched my legs and my core muscles. Zaebos leaned into the punching bag to let me get in some kicks and punches. And then they walked in.

  Garz led the way, tipping his head at me approvingly as he saw me practicing some of the most recent punching and kicking combinations that he’d taught me. Behind him was a Mazzik I’d never seen before. He was tall, probably taller than Jake, and boy was he thick; at least as thick as two adult human men, if not thicker. He had the head of a gorilla with brown fur and shorter fangs. His chest filled out his tunic and I could tell from his lizard-like arms and legs that he was incredibly muscular. And the huge claw-like fingernails at the ends of his four-fingered lizard hands looked pretty scary. I figured this guy must be good if he was going to be my final challenge. He looked like he could do some serious damage.

  And behind him, towering above both him and Garz, was my dad. That raised the bar considerably. The last thing I wanted to do was get my ass kicked in front of both my dad and my brother.

  The gorilla Mazzik stood at the opposite corner of the mat from me. My father stood by the entryway. Garz walked over to me.

  “Before our final lesson, a match,” Garz said. “This is Leeik, one of our finest warriors. Fierce and loyal. He will use everything at his disposal to beat you, so spare nothing.”

  I nodded and walked to the opposite corner of the mat. Zaebos dropped to all fours and tipped his muzzle to Leeik, who nodded in return. I took a long look at my opponent the way Garz had taught me, to size him up. I could tell by his stance he favored his left leg ever so slightly. And his left shoulder was dipped a tiny bit lower than his right. I figured he’d lead with his left, maybe try to punch or grab with his right.

  Garz backed up to stand next to dad. “Begin!” he shouted.

  Leeik ran full bore at me. A huge, hulking mass of lizard-gorilla heading right toward me—for a second my eyes went wide, and I felt like a deer in headlights. But only for a second. I reached down into my Sedu self and pulled out my fire, my thick skin, and my fangs. I sprang to my right before he reached me and punched him in his left side below the ribs. He winced and swung his left arm. I ducked and felt his hand whoosh over my head. I grabbed his arm and twisted it down while kicking him in his armpit.

  His body tried, to lurch back but with his arm still in a hold I sprang the opposite direction. He started to flop forward, but he was good. He stopped his momentum with his right foot and with an upward swing slammed into my right arm and knocked his arm free. His arm then came down on me, but before he could bonk me in the head I flipped backwards out of the way, kicking him in the chin as I spun through the air. He reeled but didn’t fall.

  I’d perfected my flip so that I landed exactly in combat stance, ready for anything. My head was clear, my breathing steady. My arm was throbbing from his hit, but I could work through it.

  He was smart. He knew I was ready. So rather than rush me again, he hung back, waiting to see what I’d do. He found my weakness—I was great at reacting but still not as good at acting first. But nothing was going to stop me.

  I pounced toward him, angling my hips as if I was going to attempt a flying kick. He raised his arms to block a high attack. Instead, I crumpled to the ground and slid into his left leg as hard as I could. I reached up with my fist and pounded him in the crotch before rolling away so if he fell, he didn’t land on top of me. Yes, I felt bad punching him in what I thought might have been his balls, but Garz had taught me to fight to win, no matter what.

  I leapt up after rolling away. I saw him wince but he spun around and quickly regained his composure. And he looked mad. Really mad.

  He dived for my midsection. I swung my body out of the way. His lunge missed. I slammed my elbow down on the back of his neck, hoping I could knock him down and end the match. He hit the ground when I elbowed him, but then he knocked my legs out from under me with a sweep of his right arm, and I fell on my butt.

  I immediately kicked his face as hard as I could and sprang backward. It worked, I got away, but I should never have let him get that close. He was larger than me and I’d never beat him punch for punch.

  He sprang, trying to land on top of me, but I rolled away and jumped on his back. I wrapped my left arm around his neck, and held it with my right. I squeezed as hard as I could.

  “Yield!” I knew that even if I choked him to “death” he’d come back and reform, but I never went that far. I wasn’t a killer.

  He roared at me and instead tucked his head into his neck until he got his chin under my arm. Then he bit into me with his thick, short gorilla fangs.

  “Aaaaahhhhh!” I screamed. I breathed fire on his head to disorient him for a second. When he closed his eyes and looked away my right arm dropped my left and I boxed his right ear with every ounce of strength I had. His jaws sprang open and I dislodged my left arm, immediately boxing both ears again. I launched myself into the air and came down hard on the back of his neck with the momentum of both my muscles and gravity. He winced and spasmed. This time didn’t try to grab me. I rolled away and stood up. He shook his head a few times, clearly disoriented. He tried to prop himself up but was clearly moving slowly.

  I held my bleeding arm. It hurt like hell, but the punctures from his teeth were already closing. Panting hard, I turned to my brother. Garz nodded.

  “The match is over. Congratulations, Lad
y Firebird. Well done, Leeik.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. I turned to Zaebos to see that he was practically beaming. I looked at my dad. He tipped his head, a look of pride on his face. I closed my eyes, concentrating on finding my Sedu center, and calming it. I regulated my breathing, imagined my hair and skin and teeth returning to normal. After a number of seconds, I opened my eyes, and exhaled from the effort. It was still not easy for me to return to normal. But I was getting better.

  I walked over to Leeik, who by now had slowly lifted himself onto one knee. I held out my hand to help him up.

  “Thank you,” I said.

  “For what? You’re not angry I bit you?” he asked, taking my hand.

  “Probably not angrier than you are,” I said with a still-exhausted smile. “Every fight I learn something, I find my weaknesses and get better. Thank you for being my teacher today.”

  Leeik nodded as he rose. He leaned into my hand…geez was he heavy! But he got up successfully, wobbling a bit but quickly steadying himself.

  “My lady,” he bowed low to me.

  I tipped my head.

  As he walked out of the workout area, he turned to Garz and my dad. “My lords,” he bowed low.

  They too nodded.

  He walked out of the workout area.

  I exhaled with a huge grin. I did it. I won my final match. One lesson to go, without a final match afterward. It would be all gravy from here.

  My father walked up to me and put his arm on my shoulder. Almost immediately all my bruises and cuts started to fade twice as fast. “I’m very proud of you, little firebird. I shall be in the spirit chamber for when your lesson has finished.”

  “Thanks Dad,” I said, reaching up and patting his arm. It felt really good to share this victory with a parent. He smiled and left.

  Garz went and spoke to Zogo, who offered a slight bow and left. Then he approached me. “I, too, am proud. I remember eighty-four days ago there was no way you could have defended yourself against a Mazzik attack. Today, you can not only hold your own, but win.”

  Wow, was it really eighty-four days in Sediin? Time flies when you’re too busy training to do anything else, I guess.

  “Thanks Garz,” I smiled.

  “And now,” he said, “your final lesson. I have saved this one for last, because it will be the hardest for you—maybe not physically, but definitely emotionally.”

  I thought I knew what Garz was getting at. “Garz…you know I won’t kill. That’s where I draw the line.”

  “Of course,” Garz agreed. “You have the tools, with your body and blade. You are the one who will determine how you use them. This lesson is not about killing.”

  Okay, I was wrong. But what then?

  23

  “I need you to bring out your Sedu self completely again,” he said.

  I nodded. I reached down as before and pulled out my Sedu flames, skin, and fangs.

  “This lesson will teach you your last resort. A technique for desperation only. But one that you must be comfortable with. It is the least natural, but it can be extremely effective.”

  “What technique?” I asked.

  “You must learn to use your Sedu fangs. To bite.”

  “To bite?” I really didn’t want to bite anything. But I saw his point; Leeik bit my arm, and it worked.

  “Okay,” I sighed. “So are there areas on an arm that are more effective to bite than others?”

  “Yes. You will learn to sink your teeth into an opponent’s arms and legs…and throat and face. You will practice on me.”

  I froze. My brother wanted me to tear chunks out of his throat and face. Just thinking about it made me shiver. I guess that’s what he meant by emotionally difficult.

  “All the combat moves you’ve learned have emphasized keeping your eyes and face away from your opponent,” Garz continued. “When you bite, your face is touching your opponent. Your eyes are vulnerable. Your mouth. Your head. We’re not built for biting like Zaebos is, with his long muzzle that keeps his eyes and head at a distance. But biting may be what saves you—and you must know how to bite every part of your opponent.”

  “But don’t I already know how to bite? I mean, I bite all the time, right? Every time I eat.” I really, really didn’t want to do this.

  Garz shook his head. “There is a huge difference between chewing on dead material that you’ve shoveled into your mouth with a fork and biting into a writhing, living being. The sensation of eating a cooked meal is nothing like biting into raw, living flesh and bone that is actively trying to avoid being bitten. It takes energy and timing and training to use a bite in combat. And it takes training to be able to look a being in the eye and thrust your head closer to it in order to take that bite. I’m afraid you must practice on a living entity who can move and fight back.”

  I knew that Garz wasn’t going to officially declare my training complete unless I finished this lesson—all the way through biting him on the throat and face. To sink my teeth into my brother’s face…I started becoming frustrated, and it was getting difficult to hold it in.

  “I don’t want to hurt you, Garz!” I’d finally gotten comfortable with the idea that I had a Sedu half-brother and learned to like him; the last thing I wanted to do was to take out a chunk of his flesh!

  “I know. But don’t worry about me. Remember, you could bite my head completely off, and I’d be fine. I’ll re-form.”

  “Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I want to bite your head off. Or even bite into you. I’m not a vampire!” I tried to calm down, to be less frustrated, but it wasn’t working.

  “I understand. But remember what I’ve always told you. There is no trick, no technique that your enemy will not use against you. If I am to give you a chance, I must teach you to use every tool at your disposal, including your Sedu fangs.”

  I didn’t know what to say. I just huffed. “I don’t want to do this.”

  Garz nodded. Zogo came back with a bucket and returned to his position next to Zaebos.

  “You have trusted me this far. Only one lesson to go,” Garz said. “I have thought about this, and how little you want to do it. Zogo has a bucket in case you need to vomit—”

  “Biting will make me throw up?” I scoffed.

  “It may,” Garz shrugged. “Even though you’re not swallowing, I don’t know how biting into me will taste. It may taste disgusting to you. In spite of that, you must do this. I don’t want you to hesitate when you need to bite your way out of a hold because you fear it might taste bad. I can’t in good conscience let you return without this skill.”

  I sighed heavily, fuming in my frustration. I was so close to being ready to go. And now I was going to have to chomp on my brother. But if I wanted to leave, I had to do this. I didn’t see another way.

  “To start, I’ll turn around so you don’t have to look into my eyes yet. I want you to bite into my arm, right below the shoulder.” Garz turned around and stood about ten feet in front of me, waiting.

  I looked at his muscular upper arm, covered by his red tunic. I pictured my little mouth, with its little fangs, biting into it. I imagined the taste of the red fabric. I thought about the taste of that fabric, of his leathery skin, of his Sedu blood, all on my tongue. The idea of tearing out chunks from all of that…I didn’t even need to take a bite, it already made me sick.

  I knew that when Garz brushed off how much this would hurt him he was just saying that so I wouldn’t feel bad. He was asking me to make puncture wounds of a couple of inches—maybe even to bite off chunks of flesh. Forgetting about the gross factor, even though I knew it would heal, there’s no way that wouldn’t hurt like hell. At the same time I was moved by what he was willing to suffer for me; I just hated to put him through it.

  Garz turned his head to the left so he could glance over his shoulder at me.

  “Alex?”

  I nodded. I had to do this. There was no alternative but to bite him. Repeatedly. Probably for hours. Tearing chunks out o
f my brother. For hours. Wounding my own brother. For hours. I closed my eyes because I was starting to cry. I sighed and nodded. As I opened my eyes, a sob escaped.

  Behind me, I heard the high-pitched squawking of one of the tiny Ruhin talking. And its tone was not complimentary.

  Zaebos immediately turned and growled, but I wanted to take care of this one. Partly to buy myself more time before biting, but also because I was offended.

  Out of the corner of my eye I thought I caught Garz motioning to Zaebos to leave this to me as I turned around.

  “You!” I shouted, angry tears in my flaming eyes. “I will not be mocked! I feel tension. That’s all. There is no weakness in the House of Keroz!”

  The crab-headed little Ruhin that stood listening to its snarky partner nodded fearfully in agreement.

  The other one, the one who had been talking smack and gossiping, smirked and huffed at me.

  Right at me.

  At my face.

  I curled my lips in frustration. Didn’t that little Ruhin realize how difficult this had been for me? I worked hard for months. I trained my body and my mind. I was part of the spirit of this House. The lessons were not easy, physically or emotionally, but I’d met every challenge.

  I’d earned my place. I had earned the right to be Lady Firebird. I’d earned the right to be respected by those in this House. The rest of the Ruhin and Mazzikim offered me that respect willingly, out of regard for me. But this little bastard thought I’d achieved so little that it could taunt me to my face?

  That little shit!

  My hands balled into fists, I roared and charged toward it. Its partner trembled and stumbled away. Seeing my rage, the snarky crab-head started shaking and held its hands out in front of it. But I didn’t care. I grabbed it, lifting it up and slamming it into the wall. Its back pounded into the stones, and the crab-head shut its eyes and grunted with the pain.