by Serena Nova
“Are you done looking around?” the chief yelled from his spot.
I looked at the woman next to me before I realized he was talking to me. “Rookie,” Someone muttered under a fake cough. Not caring, I focused on the Chief in front of us and gave him my biggest smile.
“Stop smiling!” he yelled again. Already wondering if he had an off switch for the yelling, I kept the smile on my face. “Rookie, quit smiling. It seems that you are new here, so try to keep up!” he yelled, a little lower than he had at first. I nodded at him and waited for his instructions.
Lars whispered to me from my side, “Don’t provoke him if you want to keep walking at the end of the training. He always makes the new guys work harder. This isn’t Protector school anymore, this is real.” I arched my eyebrow at him. What did he think, that I was just a newbie, fresh from school? Did he already forget that he had driven me to Nox’s house?
Before I could answer, the chief yelled again. “Keep it up!”
“You are now named Loud Mouth. LM for short,” I mumbled at him, and I heard a chuckle from my left.
LM took a basic position and yelled over his shoulder, “Rookie, we will start slow for you.” That earned a few more chuckles from the others. I didn’t answer, why would I? It would be easy.
I mimicked his stance, feet apart, one to the front the other in the back, knees bent a little and arms in front of my face. Upper body a little turned, so I became a smaller target.
He started with punching, right, left. Then he kicked out, right, stepped to the front and kicked with his left. I followed the movements without thinking. Those were basics, I could do them with a blindfold on after the first two years of school. We moved through all the basics, each of them getting faster and faster after he noticed that I was keeping up.
I could see him working hard to make me falter. Still I kept up, sweat starting to form on my back. I followed his movements, I jumped when he jumped, I kicked out when he kicked. He jumped in the air and kicked out, landing in crouch, I did the same and added another kick to it before I landed.
The other Protectors were starting to breathe hard, and one of them wobbled when he almost landed wrong.
“Drink some water!” LM yelled at us. I got up and walked over to my swords. My tank-top was sticking a little to my back. I pulled it off and placed it next to my swords. I hadn't taken any water with me, so I looked around. A bottle of water appeared in front of me, I looked to the person holding it, it was Lars. I smiled at him and thanked him, then took a few sips. Before I could drink more we were called back again by the Loud Mouth.
The woman who had stood next to me still wore her tank-top, she looked me up and down again and gave me a smile. I winked back at her and walked over to the chief.
“We are going to fight one on one. Form a circle!” he yelled. Why did he yell so much? We could all hear him. I rolled my eyes at that thought. Still, I moved with the rest when they moved into a circle.
“Rookie!” He yelled at me. I looked at him as I waited for his instructions. “You first.”
I moved forward into the ring. Someone whistled, and I swayed my hips a little and smiled sweetly towards the whistler. I pulled my hair band out and braided my hair quickly. So much easier than a ponytail.
“Are you done doing your hair?” LM asked me, his arms folded over his chest.
“No, give me a second.” I answered and braided the last part, placed the elastic back and flipped it over my shoulder to my back. “Now I’m done.” I gave him a smile and waited for further instructions.
“You will be fighting me. I want to see what you can do, Rookie!” LM shouted. Even though I stood in front of him.
“Are you sure?” I answered. I heard some of the others sucking in a breath, while others chuckled. The chief didn’t react to it and said. “Take your position, a fight until I end it.” He bent his knees and positioned himself in the basic stance. I loosened my shoulders.
“Take your position,” LM said again.
“I have.” I answered back, my hands loose next to my body, my knees a little bent, and still balancing on the balls of my feet. He smirked at me, thinking that it would be an easy fight.
“Are you sure, Rookie?” he asked again, mocking me, and the Protectors chuckled again.
“Yeah,” was all I answered. He came at me, fast. Like all the Protectors, we were trained to be the best, fastest, and the strongest. We had been pushed to reach past our limits, and, obviously, so had he. He swung with his right, I turned my body. His fist flew along the side of my face, the wind of it kissed my skin. I grabbed hold of his upper arm and used his momentum to place my shoulder against his chest and swing him over my shoulder. He came down with an oomph. I turned around, and he got up fast. He took a new position as I relaxed back into my own stance. He started circling me. He kept his knees bent, ready for an attack. I waited. He kept circling, wanting to make me feel like his prey. Didn't he know that wouldn’t work with me?
“What is it, Rookie, not wanting to start the fight? Are you too scared to do something?” he taunted. Or tried to, anyway.
“Why would I? This costs you more energy than me.” I shrugged at him, it was true. That walking around me, it cost him energy, while I was preserving mine and still focused on him without moving around. He stopped moving, I could almost hear him thinking.
How had that guy made it to third chief? I looked at him, strong muscles, short brown hair and light-brown eyes. He looked smart, and he definitely looked like Protector material. There must have been something that made him third chief, or the standards had dropped terribly from what they had taught us in school. He cocked his head. “Why are you here?”
Ah, there were the brains. He then said, “Show me why you were selected to become a Protector to the Kings.”
I gave him a smile, he thought I was there for the Kings. This would be fun.
“Okay,” I answered. He charged me again, but I crouched low and kicked out my feet, sweeping his feet from under him; he dropped. He rolled with it and got up, close enough for him to start punching. He came close, but still missed my head. I gave him a punch in the stomach and one to his liver before moving out of the way, by dancing back. He moved with me, kicked out to my head. I blocked, grabbed his leg, and pulled him closer, then kicked out with my right and hit him on his jaw. He managed to block a part of it, still he would have had a ringing ear from that one. I dropped his leg, so I could punch his stomach and liver again and moved back. He moved with me. He faked a punch to the right to kick out with his right foot, it hit my shoulder. It wasn’t as hard as what the Ilunias had hit me with, still I would feel it later. I moved with it and kicked out my leg, catching his. His other leg hadn’t reached the floor yet, and he dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes. I jumped on him, pinning him down with my feet pressed over his crotch and my arms holding his. If he moved, I would have squashed his balls, and he knew it.
“You need to learn to relax when you fight. You gave everything away, and you are more focused on making me angry than watching what I do.”
“I still hit you,” he said.
“Lucky shot,” I answered, because it had been that, a lucky shot.
“Who are you?” he asked through laboured breathing, this time not yelling. So, I got up and stood next to him, offering him my hand to help him get up.
“I’m Isadora, chief,” I answered, giving him some respect by adding his title.
“And she is part of the Selection,” I heard Flynn from my right. I rolled my eyes and turned around. All the protectors bowed a little, it was more a bow with their head then an actual bow. Still it had showed a lot of respect for the King that was in front of them.
When I looked at him, his eyes bore into mine. He looked like he wanted to punch something, and honestly, I hoped it wasn’t me. Before I could say anything more, to make the situation worse than it already was, I clenched my mouth shut. Because if they knew I was part of the selection, they knew
I was a Witch. Only Witches could be in the Selection.
“And she is off limits!” he boomed out and looked around the room. His eyes landed on the third chief next to me. That had me speechless, and I knew my mouth was hanging open.
“Yes, Your Highness,” they all said. Oh, hell no, he had not just ordered them all away from me.
“How am I going to train now?” I asked him while I walked over to where he stood.
His eyes roamed over my body, stopping on my pink sports bra and probably the breasts trapped in it. His gaze had made my breath hitch for a moment, and more things heated up. His gaze darkened, and he moved his eyes to my face. I needed a distraction, so I moved to gather my swords.
“Let’s go,” he said, his fingers ticked a rhythm out on his upper leg, distracting me. “Now, Isadora!” he added, his voice booming through the room. I cringed a little.
“I’m not some child,” I said to him. I could hear people sucking in their breaths. Oh, purple canaries and more.
“‘I’m not some child,’ Your Highness.” That had someone chuckling behind me. Flynn’s head whipped to the person, and his gaze darkened more. This time not from the idea of sex, no, from the idea of murdering someone. I looked over my shoulder, one male was really pale. The third chief. It was my turn to chuckle a little then. Still, I didn’t want to make things worse. I walked away with my swords and top in hand. I heard Flynn following me. When we reached the hallway, he grabbed my shoulder and turned me around.
It happened so quickly I stumbled a little, but he held me upright. His powerful hands were warm on my shoulders, the heat seeping further into my body, sinking low. Resting in the one spot I really wanted his hands. I blushed at the thought and looked at my shoes. I couldn't let him see what he was doing to me, I didn’t want to see what he was doing to me.
“Isa.” His voice was soft and low, the rumbling vibrated through me, and it did nothing to help the state I was already in. “Isa,” he said again, his voice a little stronger; it made me look at him. His dark eyes looked black in the darkened hallway, an endless pool I had wanted to disappear in and not get out of, ever.
“It’s good, that you are this good. However, you can’t beat the third chief into the ground in a few seconds,” he started.
“Why not? If he can’t fight me, then he doesn’t deserve to be a third chief.”
“You are right and also not. A chief, no matter which one of them, isn’t someone who fights the best, he or she also needs to carry the responsibility to keep the people under him safe. To know strategy and make the hard decisions.” His voice was still soft, and his hands were softly kneading my shoulders, which had me almost moaning. I leaned a little towards him, his hands stilled for a moment before he continued.
“We chose him because he is good, he is smart and has insights that are needed.” I looked up at Flynn, what he had said was vague.
Before I could ask why they were needed, he interrupted me. “No, I won’t tell. You are still a Selection member, not a Queen,” he said. His eyes moved to my mouth, and I lost all the thoughts I had. Just one came back up, Kiss him.
Before I could lean towards him, he had moved away.
“Give the chief the respect he needs, and remember, maybe he was toying with you today. He isn’t bad or weak. You,” he looked me over again before continuing, “have a unique style of fighting.” He turned around and left. The lingering smell of burned wood stayed with me. Fire, that was his preferred element. The emptiness in front of me filled with cold, and I shuddered. I definitely needed a good shower and an amazing shower head.
Flynn brought me out of my fantasy of him and the shower head when he said, “Next time, fight with us if you really want a challenge.” And with that he went through the door and left me alone.
15
I walked towards my room, when I entered, I closed the door behind me and stood still against it. Letting my head fall back my eyes closed, I breathed slowly for a moment, willing my mind to rest. It didn’t work at all. I needed a shower. Walking straight towards the bathroom, I pulled off my clothing along the way. Turning on the shower head, I moved under the warm water. After a few moments, my muscles relaxed, but my mind still didn’t.
“What did you do?” I heard from the bedroom.
“Nothing, As. Why?” I asked her. I heard her moving into the bathroom.
“I was talking with Rayan and Cian, about the whole date thing, and Flynn came in all gruff and angry.”
That had me turning around, to face her. “How do you mean angry?” He didn’t seem angry when he’d walked away. Maybe before that, he had looked angry.
“He didn’t say much. It just rolled off of him,” Astra said while she sat down on the chair in the bathroom.
“And why do you think I had something to do with it?” I folded my arms over my chest and looked at her.
“Because he was mumbling about you. He said something like this.” Astra placed her hands by her side and puffed out her chest. It made me giggle. “That bloody woman. She just beat Monroe without breaking a sweat.” Astra’s voice was pitched low, almost like Flynn’s. It made me laugh properly then.
“How? How did you know I was ‘That bloody woman?’” I asked her, still laughing.
“Because you are the only person, I know who can beat someone without breaking a sweat,” she answered.
“Not true, I think there are a few here who could make me sweat,” I told her, my mind wandering towards the muscled bodies of the Kings. I was happy then that the glass shower wall had a wide blurred strip on it. She couldn’t see my nipples harden. I didn’t mind her coming into the bathroom, afterall, we’d lived together for years. However I didn't want her to see my body’s reaction to the Kings. No, that wasn’t something I wanted to share. She needed to become the Queen of one of them. The weird longing, I felt and the attraction I had to them needed to stay secret from her.
She giggled at what I had said. “Yeah.” Was the only thing she could get out. Her mind had probably wandered around like mine had.
“What did the others say?” I asked her, remembering that she had told me that she had been talking with Rayan and Cian.
“They chuckled and told him that he doesn’t need to worry.” Astra pulled her leg up and placed her arm around it, so she could rest her chin on her knee. “What did you think they meant with not worrying about it?”
I held my head back under the warm water to start washing my hair and thought about what she asked. I had unpacked the amazing-smelling shampoo, still Flynn was right, I had undermined the third chief they chose. It could have meant trouble in the hierarchy of the Protectors. We may not have liked Witches that much, but the way they ranked their people was a great system. We used it, too, testing your strength, fighting skills, and level of intelligence to see where you would be placed. Where your strengths would be used to the fullest. Like Flynn had already said, LM was chosen because of his full skill set.
“I think I need to resolve something, I beat the third chief today. To be honest it wasn’t that easy. He got a good punch on me, and that hasn’t happened in a long time.” I moved my hand over the bruise that had started forming on my shoulder. “That aside, I think I also need to apologize for not talking respectfully to the Kings.” I looked at the water that pooled around my feet.
“What did you do now?” Astra asked, her lips thinned out, and she rubbed a hand over her neck.
“I, kind of, sort of, forgot to say ‘Your Highness’ to Flynn,” I told her. I knew I didn’t say it all the time, but I was undermining him and his position in front of the Protectors. She laughed and the frown on her face disappeared.
“That is all?” she asked. “You have never said ‘Your Highness’ to them or bowed to them. I think you are the only one in this whole world who doesn’t say that or doesn’t bow to them and gets away with it.” She placed her foot back on the floor and looked at me seriously.
“Isa, if they don’t mind that you don’
t say it, it is fine. Only, you need to start acting like a Selection member, like a Witch. Because that is what you are, and that is what you will be from now on. And you really need to start using the right words around them.”
I turned off the shower, it suddenly wasn’t that heavenly. When I opened the door, Astra stood there with a towel in her hands. I took it, giving her a small thankful smile.
“I know, As, I know. Only, I don’t know how,” I told her while I wrapped the towel around me. “Like I said to the Kings, I don’t want everyone to know that I’m a Witch. And they agreed on keeping it silent for now. Let me be a Protector for as long as I can be.” I moved towards the bedroom, the towel still around me and still dripping water from the rest of me.
“As, I’m . . .” I started. I wasn't sure what to tell her. That I was in a place I shouldn’t be, that I was in the house where my Great-Grandmother had ruled the world, where my Gran had grown up. Where they had murdered my ancestors.
“You’re what?”
“I never planned on coming here, I never planned on being here.” I waved my hands around. “I planned on going to my home, to stay away from all of this. You know what I am. You know that if the wrong people knew, I would be in trouble.” I had never told her why going here would be such a problem, why it was dangerous for me that people knew I was a Witch. If there was someone out there that knew what my Great-Grandmother, the last Queen, looked like, they would have connected the dots. Gran always said I looked like her, I had reminded her of her mother, in almost every way.