AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Are you convinced yet, mother?” I say. “If he wants to bring his own doom down on his head, why shouldn’t we let him? Unless you fear an elf might actually best our warriors in the challenge you set for them.”
My mother blanches. I know I’ve finally hit on the right words. “I fear nothing, least of all an elven imp who thinks he can put such an easy end to our troubles. His death will send a message to the elven fiends that we can never be subdued as long as there is a drop of water in the seas and a drop of blood in our veins.”
“My deathin the challenge, of course.” Keliveth gazes at her resolutely.
“Yes.” My mother snarls the word. “In the challenge.” She whirls on me, but I stand my ground as she hisses in my face. “Since you’re so eager to have this interloper challenge as your mate, make sure he knows the rites well enough to uphold them. Then you can watch him die in the attempt, and you can embrace your own fate with your childish fantasies put to rest. If either of you prove treacherous, I will flay you alive, traditions or no.”
She stalks away and dives into the water in a few swift steps. The onlooking warriors follow her, casting ugly glances at Keliveth before turning away. The last splashes echo across the surface. Then we’re alone among the ruins of the festival hall.
I take in a deep breath, suddenly trembling. My heart hammers against my ribs as if it has just now realized how many times we’ve stood on the brink of death tonight.
“You should leave.” I turn to Keliveth. My voice shakes from pent-up adrenaline. I clench and unclench my fists, trying to calm myself. “Know that I did not mean any of those words. It was the only way I could think of to stop her from killing you.”
“So you don’t think I’m ‘bringing my own doom down on my head’?” He smiles, but it’s strained, as though my words had hurt more than he wants to let on.
“Not if you leave right now.” I grab his arm and steer him toward the edge of the water. “I can get you back to the shore, and from there you can go ... anywhere. Inland, away from her.”
Away from me. My eyes sting with unshed tears at the thought of him walking away into the distance, taking his songs and his hope and never coming back.
He steps in front of me, blocking my path and looking me right in the eye. “That doesn’t sound like a good strategy for winning the challenge.”
My jaw goes slack. For a moment, all I can do is stare past him, out at the tossing waves. Did he not realize everything that just happened was a bluff? “I ... The purpose of all that was to save your life. Give you a chance to escape. You don’t have to ...”
“I don’t have to risk myself for you?” he finishes. I nod and dare to meet his gaze. His gray eyes are dark with hurt and some fierce emotion that almost seems like ... protectiveness? Keliveth gestures to the broken walls behind us. “We’re in a war. At this rate, we’re both going to die soon enough. If we have a chance to establish a peace treaty, why shouldn’t we try it?”
The earnestness in his face cuts me like a blade. For a moment I dare to entertain the idea of letting him try.Helpinghim try by choosing him as my champion and spitting my mother’s schemes back in her face. If there is a single soul in Tandith I could bond with, a single man who could call to my dreams and desires instead of my bloodlust, it’s Keliveth. I blink back tears that are hot with anger, or sorrow, or maybe both.
“You don’t understand. It has nothing to do with what I want. Of course I want you—” I choke the words down, but it’s too late. I see the realization light his face—he knows what my heart wants, just as he always seems to. Guilt flashes through me. My foolish slip of the tongue will only encourage him down this path. “Keliveth, mate challenges are vicious, and they take place in the ocean. Not even land-dwelling tuath dare to take part in them, let alone elves. Many contenders die, even those who can breathe the water and manipulate the currents. You’d be facing five warriors who could drown you before you would even have a chance to draw a weapon. It’s a challenge for the merroc tuath, and only merroc are supposed to survive it.”
“I don’t care what issupposedto happen.” He gently grasps my shoulder—the shoulder he mended with his magic—and pulls me closer. Suddenly I’m all too aware of the strength in his touch, his warm, spicy scent, the way his long, dark purple hair falls around his earnest face. Heat spreads over my cheeks as he keeps speaking. “I’m asking you to let me try. Please, dare to hope things can play out differently, because you and your people deserve that. My path is commanded by the One Who Is, and He sent me here for some purpose. I think this might be it. Besides, why are you so certain I won’t survive?”
It takes everything within me to step away from him, but I make myself do it. Encouraging him is wrong. Why can’t he understand simple facts? If he won’t listen to reason, I’ll have to convince him another way.
I need to show him that he won’t be able to best the warriors of the sea.
With no warning, I dart forward and clip his jaw with my fist.
He falls back against a pile of fallen rubble, catching himself on his forearms. He leaps to his feet, faster than I anticipated, and settles into a fighting stance.
I lunge again, this time aiming a blow at his stomach. He dodges gracefully. His expression is tense with concentration, and his eyes glint as if he’s enjoying the challenge. I bare my teeth, daring him to strike back.
When he does, I’m ready. I intercept him as he charges forward, then hook his leg with mine, throwing him off-balance. A triumphant cry bursts from my throat as he falls to the pavement—only to catch in my throat as he pulls me down along with him. I crash down beside him, palms stinging as I land hard on the stone floor. Quick as lightning, he’s on his feet and standing over me. He pins me down with one hand and raises his other in a mock strike.
I grip his arm and pull myself upright, then leap, catching his torso between my legs and knocking us both to the ground again. Adrenaline burns through me. I reach for my knife and feint a blow at his throat—only to hit steel instead. Keliveth brandishes his own dagger, pulled from the folds of his robes too quickly for me to see. My pulse quickens as we go back and forth, caught up in our lethal dance.
Exhilaration floods over me in spite of my chagrin. “You’re good.”
Goodis an understatement. He’s a match for me, and I can best any warrior in my mother’s ranks.
This isn’t helping to prove my point.
Where did a singing prophet learn to fight so well?
I let out a roar and slam him back against the broken wall. He twists out of my grasp and shoves his weight against my shoulder, sending me staggering into the battered stones.
“Do you believe I can stay alive yet?” he asks breathlessly, his smile bright with triumph.
“No. You’re forgetting something.” I recover just in time to block his next strike and spring forward. He dodges, off balance for a split second. I thrust out one arm, my magic calling to the waves. Water shoots toward us, hitting in a tremendous blast and knocking Keliveth to the ground. I stand over him as he coughs salty water from his lungs. “In the challenge, it won’t matter how you fight on land.”
