The Destroyer Book 3 (46 page)

“I would like more food,” I changed the subject and pointed at my empty plate.

“Whatever you eat now will just end up decorating the ground outside after Yillomar squeezes it out of your stomach,” Fehalda sighed.

“Ah, I hadn’t thought of that.” I smiled at her and leaned back into my pillow. “I just assumed I’d beat him easily.” The Elvens and O’Baarni in the room laughed at my comment. It was apparent that they thought Yillomar was quite adept at combat. Maybe I should be more worried. But then again, they believed I was some skinny idiot who was named after Kaiyer. They didn’t realize that beating the shit out of Elvens was one of my sharpest skills.

Alatorict and Isslata did not laugh. The general and his fierce commander seemed a little upset with the direction the events had taken. They noticed me direct my eyes to them and the silver-haired man turned his attention to Telaxthe.

“He should prepare for the game. As we have observed, this man is unfamiliar with some of our customs. Isslata will mentor him.”

“We shall adjourn to the north clearing in a few moments.” The empress had been glancing between Kannath, his lap dogs, and Dissonti. She paused for a moment as if she was waiting for the jade-haired general to say something. When a few empty seconds passed without an answer she leaned a bit forward, directing her voice to Alatorict’s commander.

“Take him outside and prepare him.”

Isslata nodded and stood with the grace of a dancer. Her boots echoed sharply across the wood of the tent floor and before I could stand her hand had wrapped around my bicep. Her sharpened nails pierced my skin and she yanked me to my feet.

“Move!” she commanded. I was surprised at the anger in her voice and debated resisting, but then I thought better of it. My plans had been ruined by circumstances that I could have foreseen. I should have realized that Jessmei might be discovered and Nadea could have decided to return to Nia. Taking out my frustration on Isslata wouldn't do me any good.

What I really needed was more time to wiggle out of this camp, grab a horse, a weapon, and return to Nadea. But that would doom Jessmei and Beltor. There needed to be three of me. One to stay here and spar with the empress over the location of the Radicle, one to warn the duchess about coming back to Nia, and one to save Jessmei and her uncle from wherever Kannath had her.

“Your poor decisions have finally caught up to you, O’Baarni.” I’d seen Isslata mad before, but her words came out as molten fire and her eyes glowed with golden anger. “You should have complied with the empress’s requests earlier.” We had walked out of Telaxthe's tent and turned northward. It was night now, but the clouds had left and the stars shone down in countless showers of diamonds. I saw two dozen Elvens lighting torches and setting up a complicated wooden deck and table a hundred and fifty yards to the north of the empress’s large pavilion.

“You could be correct. Or I could have told the empress what she wanted and I would be dead right now.” I shrugged. “I don’t trust any of you.” The same group of female guards that had accompanied me from my tent to the pavilion flanked Isslata. They stood a few feet behind her with scowls on their angular faces. Isslata turned to face them and barked an order.

“Leave us!”

“We have been ordered to follow--“ one of them began to say before Isslata interrupted.

“I will fucking gut all four of you.” Her hand left my arm and grabbed the hilt of her sword. “I am not in the mood to debate the instructions Vernine gave you.” The guardswomen looked to each other and walked away quickly to stand at the far edges of the clearing around the campsite.

“Your ridiculous hatred for our kind has just caused your death.” She pulled me closer to her body and led me away from the guards, toward what I assumed would be the spot where Yillomar and I would fight.

“What do you mean?”

“She would rather kill you than give you to Kannath. Don’t you grasp the situation you have put us in?” She yanked me to a stop about seventy yards from the build side of the deck. Her words dropped to a whisper. “We’ll eventually find the Radicle, but we cannot let Kannath take you back to the clans. You’ll speak of what we are doing here and they will send more of your people. Why did you delay so long? You should have agreed to tell her what she wanted.” Her voice had changed. I looked into her eyes and the usual look of anger was replaced by sadness.

“You seem pretty confident that Yillomar can kill me. Isn’t this supposed to be an ‘unarmed’ match? My kind heal fast.”

“Listen to me, O’Baarni.” Her claws settled at the back of my neck as if she was about to pull me in for a violent kiss. “Besides herself, the empress has three amazing warriors: her sister Fehalda, Yillomar, and me.” I nodded and her nails dug deeper into my skin, drawing pinpricks of blood. “He has killed your kind before in unarmed combat. He has in every one of your precious O’Baarni Games. It is a point the empress seems to flaunt.”

I reached back with my left hand and peeled her grip from the nape of my neck. With my right arm I circled her waist and pulled the Elven woman’s body against mine. She didn’t make any attempt to resist me, but her head tilted sideways and she looked puzzled by the sudden intimacy.

“Would you kill Nadea?” I asked. Her eyes narrowed and she licked her lips before answering.

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“I would be commanded to do so,” she said flatly.

“You’ve broken orders before.” I pulled her tighter against me and felt her perfect breasts against my chest. Her free arm circled my shoulders. It was a familiar position we had been in and I hoped it would give me some sort of leverage.

“Not her orders. Alatorict expects me to challenge him.”

“There is no reason for her to kill Nadea. The duchess can aid her in the political scene in Nia and show her the location of the Radicle where she found me.”

“If the empress wishes your pet dead, then she will be dead, whether by my hand or someone else’s.” She clenched her jaw and rubbed her fingertips across my back. “There are more important matters to speak of. Submit to Yillomar quickly, do not approach this fight with your usual bravado or even attempt to match his strikes. He will kill you.”

“If he kills me, then Nadea will be safe?” I said with sarcasm.

“The empress is using her as leverage. I’m sure you realize that.” She slipped her right hand free of my grip and pushed against my chest. Her face twisted in sudden anger. “This is why I want to kill that bitch. All you care about is her.”

“I didn’t think you were so prone to jealousy,” I lied.

“Most fight their feelings. I embrace them. Emotions can be useful.” She looked at me and her angular expression softened slightly. “Just submit in this fight. The empress will figure out a way to make sure that Kannath doesn’t return with you.”

“If I was a corpse, he wouldn’t return with me,” I growled.

“She is making a quick decision. Alatorict will speak with her tonight and will come up with a better plan.”

“I didn’t think he was that interested in my livelihood either.”

“He is. I’ll beseech him.” She licked her lips and shook her head. I wanted to ask her why she was putting in effort on my behalf but I feared her answer. I didn’t need another complication, especially an Elven woman with an appetite for blood. The servants had finished setting up a wooden sitting area, complete with tables, and were now working on a circular parameter to what I assumed would be the arena where I would fight.

“What do I need to know about this fight?” I asked her with a nod toward the staging area.

“Just submit, fall down as soon as he punches you and make an obvious admission of defeat.” Her voice was calm but her eyes pleaded.

“This is an unarmed contest? No weapons?” She nodded. “Any other ridiculous rules I should know about? Pretend I’ve never seen a game or been in one.”

“It is frowned upon to bite the opponent, but not forbidden,” she said. “You should also decide what boon you want.”

“Boon?” I asked.

“A gift the creator of the game can bestow to the winner.”

“What kind of gift?” A farfetched plan suddenly sprang into my mind.

“Anything within reason.” She shook her head and looked disappointed. “You will not win, but perhaps you could make a gesture of goodwill with your request.”

“What will Yillomar ask for?”

“He will probably ask for a troop allotment, but I can only guess. The expectation is that he will win, so he won’t ask for anything too outrageous or my empress will become angry with him.” She wiggled away from me and I let my arms fall from her.

“If I am expected to lose, could I ask for an outrageous boon?” I smirked but my brain was frantically clutching at a plan.

“O’Baarni, you are expected to die, not merely lose. The empress gambled that Kannath’s desire for Mastkur would cloud his judgment and allow you to fight Yillomar. He knows the Hatchet’s battle prowess.” She led me a few more steps toward the makeshift arena. “Speak no more of this. We can be heard now.”

I nodded and followed her directions to stand on the east side of the construction. The banquet platform had been set up on the south side and was raised enough so that those sitting would be able to see the two contestants within the circle. My mind drifted back to the battle circles where the Elvens forced us to train. I thought about the escape and revolt Thayer and I had planned. There had been an observation platform for the Elvens to watch us then as well.

The Elvens worked with practiced efficiency and the waist high fence was completed in five more minutes. Across the wide grass clearing I saw the empress depart from her grand pavilion and stroll toward the arena. Her generals, guards, and Kannath’s lackeys walked beside her and they all seemed engaged in a discussion about his sister’s activities. To the west of me, Yillomar walked through the thick array of tents with an entourage of a dozen of his red clad warriors. From the ornate nature of their armor, I guessed they must have been his top commanders.

“Remember what we spoke of. Do not do anything foolish and get killed,” Isslata reminded me again.

“I appreciate your concern.” I looked over to her and winked. This rewarded me with an intense glare from the warrior woman.

“Please be seated, honored guests.” Telaxthe motioned to the wooden bench and table. Kannath grunted and moved his muscular frame onto the seat before his two guards joined him. A platter of cheese, bread, and fruit was quickly laid out before them along with a decanter of wine and water.

Telaxthe moved to a spot next to Kannath. They were within arm’s length of each other, but Vernine and another guard stood a few feet behind the gap. The other generals and guards filled out the empty tables, with the generals sitting at the edge of the arena. I noticed that Alatorict had secured a spot to the right of his empress and leaned over to whisper something in her ear. I tried to listen, but was interrupted by Yillomar’s group of soldiers giving a rowdy cheer as their leader easily leapt over the fence and into the center of the arena.

Yillomar was dressed similar to me, with a light pair of pants and tunic tied with a thin leather chord. But while my clothes were green, his were the same shade of red as the flags that decorated the tents of his army. The giant Elven pulled off the shirt and began to move his body in some basic preparation exercises. Elvens could be muscular, but they were normally lithe and lean. Yillomar could have doubled for a human with his bulky muscles and stout frame. He was nearly as big as Kannath was across and only a bit shorter.

“Are the challengers ready?” Telaxthe’s voice cut through the prattle of excited conversation like a feasting bell in a hall of hungry soldiers.

“Yes, my empress. I will battle for your glory,” Yillomar said with a slight nod of his head. Attention turned to me and I glanced at Isslata. She glared and nodded.

“Sure.” I stepped over the wooden fence and set a sandaled foot into the grass circle.

“Take off your tunic, or he’ll grab a hold of it!” Isslata hissed from the sidelines. I pulled the green cloth off of my chest and threw it in her direction.

Then I took a few steps into the torch lit arena and felt my blood quicken with Earth.

Kannath’s two retainers immediately leaned into him, questioning why I had so many scars.

“We can ask him on our journey back,” he whispered.

They weren’t the only ones studying me. I had gained a few pounds of muscle during my brief stay as the empress’s prisoner, but I was still painfully thin and covered in uncountable scars. Vernine, Isslata, and Alatorict had seen them before and questioned me, but I had been elusive in my answers.

“Warriors,” the empress began to address us, “as the host of this game I thank you for providing your strength, endurance, and prowess for our entertainment.” The words sounded rehearsed and I wondered if this was how they normally began their ceremonies. “A small boon will be given to the winner.” She looked to the large Elven. “Yillomar, General of the Red Army. What boon will you choose?”

“If I am victorious, I would ask that the empress bless me with authority to take over command of Nia’s capital.”

“Your boon will be granted should you be victorious,” the empress said easily. Alatorict’s pale skin turned a few shades whiter and his jaw clenched for two seconds.