Page 148 of Vengeance of the Gods

Vega said nothing, but he could read the look on her face, knew why her lips were pulled to the side in a tiny smile. She was proud of him.

The calculated monster he’d had to become didn’t scare her.

“You all understand that, right?” His gaze grazed over the group of people standing around. “We can’t control fate. We can’t control who we lose.”

Meyer included—Bridger couldn’t ensure he’d live… Meyer knew too, but he was still standing by Bridger, ready to fight against the entire sanctum he’d been taught to defend.

“Understood,” Khort said, not looking happy about it.

Bridger could feel he got it, at the very least.

“We need to act fast. Marlena has probably already thought of the mines at this point. Look how quickly she snatched the shifters up, swooping in to play savior one minute, only to betray them the next.” Vega added.

Marlena could curse another set of people, forcing them to follow against their will. Knowing Vega could take the gods and their powers from Marlena made it hard to argue against using them.

Bridger was more concerned with what holding the gods inside for too long would do to Vega. If it was this bad at two… Bridger couldn’t imagine what was in store as that number grew.

Vega deserved a chance to enjoy the world she fought for.

And Bridger was set on making that happen.

With the piece of knowledge he’d obtained this morning in the bathroom with Vega, he might have an upper hand he hadn’t expected to have.

“Tomorrow. We waste no time. Get our groups ready, strategize, and we move out early morning.” He scanned the circle one last time. “Anyone opposed?” He waited for Khort, because if it was going to be anyone, it’d surely be him.

To Bridger’s surprise, he said nothing, only shook his head. “Good. Now, back to this morning’s agenda. Train… and then we tell Leo.” Bridger let the shield down, and the rattle of weights, echoing voices, and sounds of the facility returned.

“Okay, so who’s next?” Vega asked, raising that scarred brow of hers. She wiggled both at Meyer, always ready to toy with him.

Bridger chuckled, the rumble deep in his throat. “Me.”

Sparring with Vega was like returning to a dance he hadn’t done in years. Sure, they’d battled and spent plenty of time trying to kill each other over the course of the last forty years, but it was different stepping into a ring with someone when the outcome wasn’t the other’s death—when it was to test how well they knew each other’s strengths and weaknesses, Vega and Bridger excelled.

“Hi,” Vega purred, rolling her shoulders as they settled on opposite sides of the mat.

“Hello, Kitten. Are you ready to play?” he responded, cracking his neck with the cock of his head to each side.

The shield locked into place, making the outside world disappear.

It was just Vega and Bridger… and he was ready to see how much she’d paid attention. He extended his hand, and Vega took it, never breaking eye contact.

She let Death come to play, nibbling at his fingers like a playful pet.

Clouds rolled around them, forming like they had with Arlet. The vapor clung to Bridger like a cloak, making him feel wet all over.

“Born ready.” She let go of his hand.

For every strike Bridger threw, Vega blocked. It went blow for blow for a while, both of them taunting the other with a move they’d already seen coming.

What turned the tides for Bridger’s win, though, was his new ability to wield Vega’s electricity as a weapon… to be able to force her lightning into a sword.

Though she’d seen it happen a few times before, Bridger using it against her threw her off, and he was able to land what would have been a killing blow. He swung the electric sword over his wrist and held it out, the tip hovering over Vega’s heart. “You know better than to let a surprise throw you off.” Bridger scolded lightly, letting go of her power. The lightning traveled back down his leg and slithered across the floor until it found Vega, disappearing inside her.

“If you fight every battle with one of those, I think you’ll shock people to death and won’t even need to draw blood.” Vega shook her head with a light chuckle.

The rest of the day flew by.

Bridger had Khort and Arlet pinned next in under three minutes. They’d never been able to read Bridger like Vega had, but the best thing that had come out of today was the bonded learning they could also wield Vega's power.