Page 10 of Chaos and Crowns

She slapped him on the shoulder.

“Hard to believe that we keep you around for more than your medical skills, huh?”

Odelle was glad for the casual banter. Drew had become a fixture in her life after dating Nora for years. Odelle hadn’t wanted to admit that she missed him after he and Nora broke up, afraid of being selfish. She was glad he was around again though, always a calm presence in the storm that seemed to surround Nora and the Eteria.

“Then what do you need me for?” Drew asked as he followed her up the stairs.

“Antony and I are investigating some Shadow activity in the city, but he draws way too much attention traipsing around in a toga,” Odelle explained.

“I’m pretty sure he’d take offense to you calling it a toga,” Drew interjected. “I mean, he’s Athenian not Roman.”

“I’ve heard,” Odelle commented dryly. “I was just hoping you could take him shopping. We’ve got to go interview some people, so make sure he looks sharp—maybe a suit.”

Drew shot Odelle a quizzical look as they stopped on her landing.

“You’re avoiding the opportunity to go shopping? It’s not like you to pass up dressing somebody like him. I mean, he does look like he belongs on a runway somewhere with those spidery long legs.”

“I hadn’t noticed,” Odelle said flatly. “Anyway, I have other things to set up. I have to schedule the interview after all, handle the paperwork, build a false identity.”

“Whatever you say.” Drew shrugged. “He could probably use a break from your charms anyway. After two thousand years of isolation, your flirting would knock any man flat on his ass.”

The glare Odelle shot Drew made him look at his shoes as she opened the door to her apartment. Still, as Antony and Drew left, she shook off the feeling that her apartment was a little too quiet now. Her nerves were just fried from being forced to spend so much time with somebody so infuriating.

4

The sword slipped from Antony’s grasp, falling to the packed dirt ground of the training ring with a dull clang. He focused on bending to retrieve the weapon, avoiding the gazes of all the other Eteria trainees. Before his fingers could close around the hilt, a large, meaty hand yanked it away. Antony threw his hands up instinctively in anticipation of the smack with the flat side of the blade. This time, it hit him across his upper back, barely hard enough to sting his bare shoulders, but still causing him to stumble forward, almost losing his balance.

“The discipline is supposed to make you fight back, not turn you into a coward,” huffed Bakhos the training master, shoving the sword back into Antony’s sweaty hands, “Again. And remember that you’re not trying to throw your sword at your opponent.”

A few snickers echoed in the training yard, and Antony’s cheeks burned from more than just the scorching sun on his pale skin. He lifted the sword against his sparring partner, a girl many years his junior, barely even past childhood, who already had more muscles to her name than him. She swung her sword, beginning the drill again. Even as Antony met her strikes with the appropriate parries, he was driven backwards by her superior strength and fierce determination. As he stepped back, narrowly missing the swing of the practice sword that whistled past his ear, his too-large foot caught on a dip in the packed dirt. He tried to arrest his momentum, but it was too late. He tumbled to the ground, the impact raising a cloud of dust that permeated his eyes and mouth, making him blink furiously.

Before he had regained his sight, a strong grip hauled him up by the front of his undyed gray tunic. All the new Eteria trainees wore gray, but many quickly earned the red of Warriors and the navy blue of Defenders. Antony had worn gray far longer than most, watching other trainees come and go and he suffered through endless combat drills. At this rate, he would never earn a colored tunic at all.

“Get out of here,” Bakhos demanded, pushing Antony towards the edge of the training ring. It was all Antony could do to keep his feet as he stumbled away in compliance. “I don’t have any more time to waste on you today.”

Antony hung his head, avoiding eye contact with the other trainees as he slunk back to the shared barracks in the Sanctuary. Just before he made it to the archway, a hand landed on his shoulder.

Glancing up, he met Elias’s gaze. He didn’t say anything, but the gesture made Antony’s heart hurt a little less as he went in search of water to clean up with. Elias may not be as uncoordinated as Antony or have earned the ire of the training master, but he didn’t feel the most confident with a weapon in hand, either. Even though Elias was likely to pass his basic combat training far before Antony, at least he never teased him, or volunteered to be his training partner simply for the pleasure of repetitively knocking him on his ass.

Antony located one of the numerous fountains in the Sanctuary courtyards. He cupped his hands, catching the cool water splashing down from the tip of a marble Warrior’s spear and splashing it over his face. He did the same with his shoulders, wincing as he brushed his hands over his sunburned skin. Everybody else seemed to turn bronze during the long days of outdoor training, but Antony was left with painful blisters and more freckles every day. Just another reason he didn’t belong.

Looking up from splashing his face, Antony sputtered at the sight of the Commander standing just across the fountain from him. He hastily scrubbed his hands on his tunic, making them filthy all over again as he snapped to attention.

“Commander.” Antony bowed his head and placed his fist over his heart. He didn’t know how he hadn’t heard her enter when footsteps tended to echo in the bare marble of the Sanctuary. Looking down, he took in his disheveled appearance and winced.

The dirt-crusted tunic he wore looked even more dingy in comparison to the glowing white peplos worn by the Commander. Still, she didn’t seem to notice his apparel as she tilted her head, taking him in with a pensive expression.

“Bakhos thinks I made a mistake when I brought you into the Eteria,” she said by way of greeting.

Antony opened then shut his mouth. Even though he wanted to defend himself, he was low on ammunition. She didn’t seem to be expecting an answer though, as she continued.

“I know I didn’t though. Do you know why?”

Antony expected her to barrel on. When she didn’t, he hastily shook his head, wincing when the action caused sweat to spray from his curls.

“Because you are the second most intense beacon for Light that I’ve ever encountered.”

Antony blinked, and then snapped his jaw shut when he realized his mouth was hanging open.