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“You would fight me tooth and claw like an animal?” the captain jeered.
Horas said nothing; he remained poised and alert.
“Sarus?” Evangeline whispered, peering between two of Rosie’s articulated metal legs.
Without turning his head, he replied to her unspoken question and worry, “Horas did not become leader of the crown prince’s personal guard by being a poor fighter. The captain does not realize it, but Horas insults him by engaging with no weapons.”
“Just how good is he?” she asked, needing reassurance and fearing that the older male’s desire to uphold his honor had overcome common sense.
Sarus looked at her. “I am among the most ferocious warriors of my breed. There are perhaps a dozen warriors among all Ahn’hudin who could dare stand against me and prevail. The general superior and Horas are two of them.”
“So, you don’t fear that the captain will kill Horas?”
As the captain twirled his blades in showy display, Sarus bared his pointed teeth and said, “The captain will surely die this morning.”
The two males in the center of the arena clashed. Grunts and growls punctuated the fight as they unleashed a level of ferocity that frightened Evangeline. She gasped when the nasty barb protruding from the toe of the captain’s boot caught Horas in the thigh, a kick that left a bloody tear in his leather battle kilt. Horas endured the injury as that allowed him the opportunity to swipe his claws along his opponent’s forearms, leaving bloody gouges in the captain’s flesh. Heavy bleeding filled the captain’s palms, making the hilts of his knives slippery. Horas struck again, a sweep of his claws knocking the blades free. Gleaming metal caught the sunlight as each blade flew through the air and landed in the sand.
The captain howled and screamed as Horas, having disarmed his opponent, methodically and efficiently disabled him with punishing blows, calculated gouges, and crushing bites. Evangeline looked away, unable to watch the gruesome spectacle as the crowd roared its excitement. She looked up when she heard a singular voice ululate in triumph.
Horas kneeled, one knee digging into the captain’s chest and the other on the sand. Blood dripped from his mouth and down his neck. The captain’s body twitched in its death throes.
“Oh, my God,” Evangeline gasped, for she’d never seen either of her mates look so bestial.
Horas flung his arms wide, droplets of blood spraying from his unsheathed claws to spatter on the sand. With deceptive ease, he rose from his kill and roared. A plume of fire spewed from his mouth.
A flicker of movement caught Evangeline’s eye. Instinct had her dropping to the ground as a blade sliced through the air where she had stood.
“Sarus!” she cried out as the knife buried itself in his upper arm.
With a fierce hiss that revealed a mouthful of sharp fangs, Sarus pulled the blade from his arm, sniffed the hilt, and flung it to the ground. He growled, “Defend!”
Rosie’s articulated legs bent, and the robotic spider squatted over its charge. Sarus tasted the air, scenting his prey. He darted around Rosie, chasing whoever had been so cowardly as to throw the dagger. The rasp of Evangeline’s panting breath sounded in her ears but did not cover the shriek of death as Sarus caught and killed whoever had hurled the blade.
A mighty cacophony of noise rumbled around the arena as the captain’s sycophants rushed down to the sand to avenge their fallen leader. Rosie squatted lower over Evangeline. Weapons bristled from the spider’s metal carapace and a ring of pale blue light slammed down from the robot’s underside in a column, circling the robot’s mistress. Protecting her.
Fearing what the column of light might be, Evangeline did not reach out to touch it.She was glad she’d exercised discretion when some projectiles, whether hurled or shot, vaporized when they hit the blue light circling her.Sometimes curiosity does kill the cat.
The guns protruding from the robot took aim and shot with uncanny accuracy whenever someone ventured too close. After the first six people died, others either fleeing the brawl or going after Sarus and Horas gave the robot wide berth.
Evangeline huddled beneath the robot, feeling useless and horrified by the slaughter.Where is Masey? Is she all right?
The blue flicker of the column of light gave her the impression of being surrounded by a projection screen. Although the violence raging around her might have seemed unreal to the eye, the smells and sounds told her otherwise. Unable to do anything beyond wait, she sat on the ground, closed her eyes, leaned her forehead against her knees, and wrapped her arms around her head to muffle the dreadful noise as much as she could. The violence drowned the sound of her thundering heartbeat and the acrid smell of her own terror.
“Poppet!” Horas shouted from a safe distance.
His voice snapped Evangeline from her fear and she looked up, noticing that the arena had emptied of all but the elder of her two mates, herself, and a lot of dead bodies.
“Horas?” she whispered, almost afraid she was hallucinating.
He approached, eyeing the robot as its articulated legs straightened and the column of blue light vanished. Evangeline stretched her hand forward between two of the spider’s legs. Nothing happened. She squeezed through the two legs and rushed toward Horas. He grunted as she slammed into him and wrapped her arms around him, heedless of the dirt and his bleeding wounds.
“You’re alive!” she wept.
He stroked her hair, careful not to get his broken, jagged claws tangled in the floating strands. “I am Colonel Horas mek Ul’Sinha, formerly of the Golssiar 81st Regiment and leader of Prince Gudren’s personal guard. It takes more than a company of half-trained recruits to defeat me.”
Evangeline sniffled, then let loose with a watery chuckle. “You big dummy, I was worried for you!” She pressed kisses to his chest, too short to reach any higher.
“Come, little flame, let’s find Sarus,” he said, reluctant to end her display of affection but compelled to do what was necessary. He looked at the robot and said, “Report.”
