“If it’s such a prison, let them leave.” A growl was his response, and my stomach flipped in giddiness. What was it about annoying him that sent my heart racing and my blood pumping?
“I can’t.”
I flicked an imaginary piece of dirt off my neckline.
“Why not?”
He hissed back his reply. “You are a pathetic little human who understands nothing.”
I lifted an eyebrow, casting my gaze around as more drakens arrived. “Word about what traveled fast?” He grunted in annoyance.
“Kieran admits things could have gotten out of hand yesterday, and D’Arcy even agrees that you should have a... chaperone present for the future.” He nearly spit the words out, and I lifted my chin in satisfaction. He continued, a mean look in his eyes.
“I don’t see the point; if you die, I could just take another—"
My dagger flashed downwards, striking the stone edge of the armrest where his hand had been only a split second earlier. He slowly turned his head to me, and now he was smiling.
“That was naughty.”
I looked away, covering the flush of my chest. Benedict only seemed to like me when I was angry. And why did my heart race when he looked at me like that?
D’Arcy appeared in the middle of the pit and started speaking, but Benedict was far more interested in more.
“Were you always this much trouble?”
I shifted uncomfortably in my chair. I refused to look over at him, but he felt close enough to be practically touching my arm. Benedict slid one finger down my shoulder, covering my forearm. I bit back a curse, hyper aware of every slight movement he made. He was just trying to distract me, to keep me from listening to D’Arcy!
“Just making sure you don’t go anywhere, siren.”
I snorted.
“And it has nothing to do with how you’ve got your hand on my dagger?”
“Bold words for a breeding cow.”
His words stung, and my hands curled into fists on the edge of my chair. I imagined several creative ways I could murder him; if I had as much power as he claimed, maybe the other drakens would even clap as I did it. Then we could all leave the mountain together and live happily ever after. Benedict turned sullen when I flinched and turned away.
D’Arcy’s voice painted a magnificent tale about an island covered in flowers and fruit, protected from outsiders by jagged cliffs and the powerful voice magicks: the island of Lyoness. I tried to focus, but Benedict’s words affected me more than I wanted to admit. They could call me an honored guest all they wanted, but in the end, I was just a piece of flesh being used, no different than the women at the breeding house.
“Today is round two of the Games!” D’Arcy’s blue eyes shot towards our balcony once before turning back to the crowd.
“Anyone who wishes to spend the evening with the female will first brave the Skolex!”
There was a terrible roar, and out of one of the stone tunnels burst a large, writhing white worm. It roared its defiance at the drakens watching, displaying four rows of massive teeth. It was easily the size of a quarter of the arena, and there were cries of dismay from those watching.
“What the fuck…”
Benedict pushed himself up from his throne, fury emanating from every muscle.
“I take it this challenge is a surprise?” I asked, not expecting an answer. He slid into his draken form, and I ducked as his wings flared in annoyance.
“Where do you even get a... what did he call it?”
“Skolex; deep from the rivers east of here. Carnivorous, chaotic white energy.”
“White energy?”
An irritated growl rumbled in his chest. I stood, unable to take my eyes off the savage monster, which had begun throwing itself against the stone walls to try and reach the drakens in the bleachers. Unsurprisingly, no one had yet volunteered to fight it.
“You can’t claim I’m a stupid human when you won’t help educate me.” Benedict hissed at me, torn between wanting to fling himself at the beast and proving me right.
“All magicks in the universe are either black or white. drakens are one of the few neutral species that practice both in moderation.”
The Skolex roared again, and the stone walls shook.
“Wouldn’t white energy be good, and black bad? That thing looks pretty bad to me!”
Benedict grabbed the edge of the stone balcony, and I noted how it crumpled slightly under his grip. Five drakens stood and flew down to the pit. Benedict cursed.
“White is chaotic; uncontrollable, it reflects everything back out at the world. White power, or magick as humans say, relies on the pain and suffering of others. Black is the absorption of everything. The power comes from the caster’s own pain and suffering. Get it? drakens are grey, this fucking thing is white. Now, if you promise to stay put, I’m going to kill it.”
Before I could say anything to protest, he leapt from the balcony and landed on all fours in the sandy pit. D’Arcy’s eyes flashed in annoyance at the interruption, but I couldn’t help but notice the look of immense relief on the faces of the five drakens in the pit.
“The goal is to replenish our species, not kill more of us off.”
Benedict’s voice rang clearly throughout the arena. D’Arcy stood his ground.
“She is one female, and we have too many males as it is. This ensures only the strongest will take her.” Well, someone apparently didn’t approve of Kieran and Ronan.
Benedict and I snarled at him in unison, and it might have been humorous if we both weren’t so angry. Breeding cow. I shook my head, unwilling to linger on it. Benedict’s eyes glowed in the dimness, his claws and wings flared in a defensive position. The Skolex turned, smelling fresh meat within reach. Benedict addressed the other drakens one last time.
“You’re determined to try?”
One of the five drakens bowed, backing away and going back to his seat. The other three remained, not blanching. Benedict growled.
“Fine.”
He pumped his
