Pushing magic into my steps, I glided closer to the only exit in the room, hoping to get a better idea of the odds against me. Four women, including Ang’ali, searched the room in silence, their graceful movements showing their readiness to fight. Carrying swords, hammers, and maces, they toed past other doors in silence, heading toward my abandoned shower.
“We’ll get her first; then we go after her Trio. This ends tonight,” Ang’ali said, and I stilled at her words.
If she attacked me and I killed her in self-defense, there would be no punishment, but should she attack my Trio, and they lift a finger to save themselves, they would likely forfeit their lives.
“Her clothes are here,” another voice whispered back so softly that had I been in the shower, I wouldn’t have heard it.
Their backs rounded the corner, and I heard the shower drape rip down. Using the clatter as cover, I sprinted out the door and down the halls leading to my men.
Footsteps behind me did not slow my pace.
“Teagan!” Pameline cried out as I raced through the training gym to the halls beyond.
Pouring magic into my legs, I raced down the halls, unsure where to go first. There were four of them and one of me. Should they split up, they could take the men I didn’t reach first.
We had not planned for this. We had not prepared for so many things. Had we a contingency plan, I would have known where to go first. I reached out with my magic, searching for them. Maybe I could warn them somehow. They needed to run, and I had no way to tell them. It was my fault. I left them unprotected. Bile rose in my throat at the thought of Ang’ali and her friends getting to my Trio.
The Goddess said I could do anything with my magic, yet I had not taken the time to learn my limits before I shook the hornet’s nest. Feet pounded harder behind me, and I knew they were hot on my tail.
“Stop her!” Ang bellowed, and I felt metal collide with my legs, tripping me.
As I fell, I saw the scythe skitter by. Blood ran down the wound it caused. I jumped to my feet, ignoring the pain, and backed against the wall so they could not encircle me.
“Four Ang? You can’t beat me in a fair fight, so you bring friends? Don’t think it will ensure your victory,” I said, bringing my sword up.
“I’m tired of you, Teagan. You flaunt yourself and think no one will challenge you. I will challenge you,” Ang’ali answered, her sword tip up and ready.
“You’re tired of me? Yet you bring others to help you do your dirty work?” I tsked at her, watching her face go red. “You should be embarrassed. Four on one? That’s not a challenge. That’s an assassination,” I said, shaking my head at her.
The women around her cast their eyes in Ang’ali’s direction.
“It’s not honorable, that’s all I’m saying. Seems like behavior unbecoming of a Warrior to me,” I taunted, wanting her to strike first. “It kind of makes. You are a coward,” I finished.
Before the last syllable of the word was out, she lunged. I grinned and felt the smile light my face. The other warriors stepped back, and I knew I looked insane. Wild curls flew around my face, and my teeth bared with pleasure from wading into the fight.
The sounds of swords clashing echoed down the stone halls.
“Engage her!” Ang’ali shouted when the others hung back.
“Leave now, and I will let you live,” I growled, never taking my eyes off the giant woman in front of me. “Don’t be the coward she is,” I said, countering each clumsy strike Ang’ali made. “Not you, Ang. You’re right; this ends tonight,” I yawned against my free hand, and she screamed her fury at me, putting more force into her swings.
Ang’ali might outweigh me by double. She might have more muscle mass and strength, but she had little skill with a sword. Should she have picked the war hammer, I may have struggled, but she chose my weapon to use against me, and it was a fight she would not win.
Her friends saw that, and one of them dropped her mace and ran. The other two jumped in, and it became a new game. I quirked an eyebrow as they engaged me, and the smile that had formed on Ang’ali’s face fell.
“You’re a crazy bitch,” she laughed or tried to. It came out as a wheeze. “You can’t win. It’s three against one; lay down your sword, and I’ll take you to the Queen,” she said, sweat already dripping from her prehistoric brow.
“No, you won’t,” I said, keeping all three at bay with my sword. If I’d had the one from Talamh na Sithe, it would be glowing now. I believed in this fight. I knew I would win. “Besides, I’ve done nothing wrong, other than making better use of the men none of you could handle. You should hear the sounds they make when they come. Goddess, they are delectable,” I chuckled, slicing through the arm of the Warrior holding the hammer. It went limp at her side as tendons and ligaments separated from bone.
She had been trying to get to my flank, and I wanted to end that distraction. Her deafening howls drowned out the sound of steel on steel. Before the eye could catch the movement, my sword clashed with Ang’ali’s again.
“You have no honor, Ang’ali. Are you challenging me for Second Sword? Yes, let’s pretend you are so that there is a modicum of legitimacy to this fight. Now you,” I said, addressing the other woman. “I have no excuse for you. Stay down when you lose your sword, and I’ll let you keep your head,” I said, stripping her sword from her in one deft move, wiping the cocky look off of her face.
She went for the sword at my feet, and I slashed across her shoulder, causing her to scream. “The next one takes it off. Walk away, and maybe you will live to be dishonorable another day.” She raised her hands in surrender and backed away.
I caught a flash of white fur racing down the hall, and it distracted me, allowing Ang’ali to draw blood. I lost my sword. Enraged that she had managed to disarm me, I somersaulted into her, sweeping her legs and riding her to the ground while I took it up again with a loud battle cry.
I brought it to her throat as she attempted to buck me off with her hips. “You can’t kill me, Teagan. If you kill me, the Queen will come after you with everything she has,” she said, believing it. A sneer spread her face as she tilted her chin in defiance. I stood, twirled once to get the angle right, and took her head.
The warrior backing away from me turned and ran. I leaned against the stones, catching my breath. I hadn’t fought three on one since I was a teenager, and Ari and the others ganged up on me after I stole her favorite knife and hid it under Arlie’s bed. It was all in fun then. Not so much now.
I needed to train harder.
I lifted my head to see the white fox with startlingly blue eyes frozen in mid-step, staring at me.
“Sorry, I got delayed,” I said, straightening up. “It’s best you go to the pens until I clear this up with Kharis,” I finished with a soft kick to the head at my feet. Find the others and let them know.”
He whined softly, watching me with keen eyes.
“I know. I do. This came at a bad time, but there’s nothing to be done for it. Find your brothers and go. I need to know that you are safe. Sneak in if you can, so they think you’ve been there. Don’t make me order you. I might get out of this, but you would not. Please,” I added at his pained expression.
He glanced at the body on the floor, turned, and slipped soundlessly away.
Grabbing hair, I picked up Ang’ali’s head, squared my shoulders, and walked toward the center of the palace.
Chapter Eighteen
Syl’ta
As a fox, I ran. Fear is a great motivator. From shadow to shadow, I sprinted, praying I would be unseen. I rounded the corner and smacked into a large, silver wolf.
He growled at me, and I bit his ear, shaking my head. Using my smaller body, I rammed into him, turning him from his headlong run toward Teagan. He growled, and I yipped back, urging him to follow me instead.
My urgency must have gotten through his thick skull because he changed directions. Together we eased through the darkness, down the stairs and into the backside
of the pens. Using a high wall for cover, I thought about my man form. A shiver ran through me, and I was grateful to rise on two feet, not four.
Lyros stood beside me, his mouth open in question. Raising a finger to my lips, I shook my head, making a gesture to encourage him to stay low. I peered around the wall, surprised to see Kar leaning against the stones on the opposite side. His head was tilted back, face lined with worry. His eyes were closed.
Using columns and stones for cover, we picked our way to him. Settling on either side and adjusting ourselves, so it looked like we’d been there awhile.
“Any word,” Kar whispered, not opening his eyes.
“Teagan got attacked in the halls by Ang’ali and three others. Ang’ali is dead, and the others ran. She fought like a force of nature. I’ve never seen anything like it. After, she simply picked up Ang’ali’s head and stormed toward the main hall with death in her eyes,” I said, my words ending in a sob.
I reached for my brother’s hand. “She said she would come for us and that she could get out of this more easily if we were nowhere near. They’re going to kill her. I feel it.” Silent tears fell from my eyes. Never had I seen anything like Teagan and that sword. She fought in the way that lightning strikes-here, there, and everywhere.
She was a storm, brilliant and deadly in her fury. The smell of iron, wildflowers, and magic was so strong that it boiled my blood. Because in her perfect violence, she was also beautiful, covered in the blood of her enemies. If only he had gotten there sooner, maybe the fight could have been avoided.
He felt his brothers stiffen. “It was terrible. It was beautiful. Goddess help her; they will kill her for this.” I said, a silent sob wracking my body.
Kar patted my thigh, bringing his dark gaze to bear on me. “No, they won’t. If Teagan was jumped in the halls, then the fight was dishonorable. Even Kharis can’t punish her for that,” he said, his voice calm and certain.
“It will be her word against theirs,” Lyros whispered. “Syl’ta is right. Ang’ali is Kharis’s pet. She will be furious.”
“She can be furious all she wants to; Teagan did no wrong. Kharis’s own laws will support Teagan,” said Kar, his eyes glancing off a warrior headed their way. He silenced us with a nod.
“Your new mistress tired of you already.” One of the pen’s guards wondered by, kicking Kar’s foot. He looked up, saying nothing.
“I mean, she’s been rutting and moaning in the halls with all of you, yet here you are. Alone. For hours.” The woman’s gray eyes met his as she scanned his face for a reaction.
“Cat got your tongue,” she laughed. “Teagan must be a hell of a warrior to tame you,” she glanced at me, and I lowered my eyes, biting back a retort.
A month ago, I would have mouthed off to her, earning myself or my mistress the lash, but now I lowered my eyes in model submission.
“Never thought I’d see the day; she must be magic after all,” mumbling, she walked away, scanning the line of men waiting in the pens as she went.
“I don’t like this,” I said.
“Neither do I,” Lyros echoed.
Kar leaned his head back, closing his eyes again. “I have faith,” he said.
Around us, the pens settled. Unbound slaves stayed in the lowest level of the giant palace, near the endless heat of the furnaces. Some waited to be chosen as a warrior’s Trio, though that was rare as there were so few females in the land that didn’t already have one. Others waited for assignments to various jobs or to perform services that earned their keep.
There were far more males than females, and many men died in the pens without ever being chosen unless there was something about them that drew a warrior’s eye. A few warriors went through slaves like laundry, killing with impunity for their pleasure. Ang’ali was one of those people. The only reason we survived her was that my sister pulled us before it could happen.
Other groupings seemed happy. Many warriors kept their Trios forever, never forsaking them. I sometimes caught their soft smiles and kind words. Those warriors were not unlike Teagan, I suspected, and saw their men as something more than slaves.
My Trio had been fought over, again and again, passed around to please this warrior or that.
Kharis used us for political currency, and we had spent little time in the pens.
As the warrior receded from view, a Trio of men scooted over to us.
“Is it true what they say?” One of the men said, casting a worried glance at the warrior guards.
“Which thing?” I said, keeping my voice low.
“That your Mistress is magic and that you have magic now too.” He scooted closer, so he did not have to strain to hear my words.
“It’s true,” Kar answered for me. “The magic comes from the Goddess of her People. We are their cousins, light to dark.” He opened one eye, pinning the other man with a glare.
“If we are their cousins, why does this Goddess not give us magic?” he asked, lowering his voice.
“Do you believe you have a Goddess?” Lyros countered.
“No,” the other man answered immediately.
“There you have it,” said Kar, resting his back and closing his eye again.
Though we planned to spend time in the pens, spreading the word about Teagan and her magic, worry frayed our minds, and as we said nothing else, the other man moved away. We had said enough, anyway.
Servants laid out a meager meal of bread, dried meat, and water, and we filled our bellies, trying to calm our nerves.
Afterward, with nothing left to do, we settled against the wall and waited to hear what fate befell us.
Chapter Nineteen
Teagan
“I was attacked, without challenge by her,” I said, pointing out one of my attackers. “Her, her, and her,” I pointed at my other two attackers and shook Ang’ali’s head in angry defiance. “I challenge the three survivors to an honorable fight. Three on one are acceptable odds.” I chucked the head to the side, raising my sword as I waited for the three warriors to respond.
The room stilled, and Kharis turned from a food-laden table with odd slowness. Her eyes widened when she saw my gruesome souvenir, turning the full weight of her angry gaze on me.
My bold entrance was a gamble. By calling the three other women out publicly, I was hoping to avoid a situation where they banded together and made up another story. I stood, sword at the ready, waiting for their response.
“We didn’t know she planned to attack you!” the first coward said, backing away from me.
“You were carrying a mace, a hammer, and a sword, respectively. You tripped me with a scythe. How could you not know?” I growled a low warning, letting my blood-stained biceps flex, my body naked but for the single swath of cloth, I escaped with.
The other women had cleaned up and hidden their wounds. I wanted mine to show.
“Fight me now, in the way of a Warrior, and not as a coward,” I challenged.
“Is this true?” Kharis said, turning her dark glare on the three women in question.
“I can explain, my Queen,” one of the women stepped forward, and I leveled my sword at her throat.
“Did Teagan attack you?” Kharis asked, her eyes cold and voice so low the clamoring women around us silenced to hear her.
“No,” the first woman to run said. “She offered us an honorable way out. Ang’ali stalked her in the showers and attacked her in the passage as she went to pick up her Trio.” Her eyes widened with fear, and I saw how young she was. If she were twenty, It would come as a surprise.
“And you ran at the first clash of swords, Ro’ya,” the woman who’s arm I slashed rounded on the younger girl, curling her fists. “Had you stayed, the outcome would’ve been different,” she sneered, slapping the girl in the face.
“The outcome would’ve been four dead warriors, not one. Anytime you want to fight me honorably, make the call,” I yelled, my voice carrying across the marble floors to bounce off the sleek, stone walls. Roars sou
nded from the crowd, and bodies pushed our way.
“Enough!” Kharis boomed, her voice silencing the uproar from the warriors around us.
“These women attacked you alone, Teagan? Where is your Trio, they are no stranger to a fight,” she asked, her face flat but her eyes calculating.
“I was delayed from picking them up, my Queen,” I snarled, carefully aiming my anger at my remaining attackers. “I do not know where they are,” I finished.
“They are in the pens, Kharis. I escorted one myself and saw the others there as well,” an old woman stepped from the crowd, and I recognized her as the butcher. I also saw the twinkle of the lie in her eyes.
“And when did you escort him, Zaya?” Kharis asked, her wary gaze turning to the lady.
“The sun had not yet begun to set,” she answered, and that was the end of that as the blood on my arms had not dried, nor my wounds healed.
Had the men been involved, their death would have been swift, or slow, depending on Kharis’s mood. But they would have died.
“I escorted the forge slave known as Thalakar,” another woman said, stepping forward. “It was not yet late, and I believe, as well, that the others were already there,” she finished, casting an approving glance my way.
“What do you say to this challenge, Warriors,” Kharis turned her icy eyes on the three women.
“I have no challenge, your majesty,” the young girl who was the first to run said with a deep bow. She would grow and learn from this.
“I accept that,” I answered, nodding her way.
Relieved, she backed up to stand by an older warrior who smacked her on the back of her head.
“I have no challenge, my Queen,” The next started, “She beat us fairly in an unfair fight. We did not act honorably, yet she did. I offer my apology.” She bowed her head, waiting.
“I accept,” I said through gritted teeth.
“She killed Ang’ali, and you’re just standing here and ignoring your sister’s head. Her literal head. Fight her, attack her, take her down!” the final woman screamed as she advanced on me.
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