I really needed to re-evaluate my life choices. Deep down I knew Monty and Ezra were right. I needed to stop denying who and what I was, though that was easier said than done. I didn’t ask to be cursed or thrust into the shadow world of mages, vampires, and gods.
Now, here I stood fighting for my life—again. It was becoming a habit I needed to shake. The problem was I didn’t see a way out. I was in deep and getting deeper every day. Worse, people counted on me.
Even this examination was just another roundabout way of saying, “You’re needed for this task”. It wasn’t the method I would’ve chosen, but I understood the motivation. This Toson character sounded like bad news. My question was, why couldn’t Jen bring him down herself? I decided to ask and test a few theories.
“Why can’t you take care of this Toson yourself?” I asked. “I’m guessing he’s a Red Mountain mage like you.”
“Toson is nothing like me,” Jen answered without turning her head. “The only thing he wants and craves is power and death—specifically mine.”
“Sounds like a great guy,” I said, moving to the right a few steps. She moved the same distance to the left, which meant she was aware of my location without needing to hear my voice. “Maybe your sect needs to work on the recruiting process?”
“We are standing in an extension of my home,” Jen said, taking a step forward. “I am currently undergoing a shift that will make me the First Elder of my sect. If I try to confront Toson in this state, not only will I die, but people close to me will perish as well.”
“Mages and their shifts,” I muttered under my breath. “Why not wait until after the shift, and then take him out?”
“By then, it will be too late,” Jen said, shifting into a fighting position. “He will have summoned the golem and destroyed the Red Mountain, along with thousands of mages and their families. He planned this attack for this moment, knowing my vulnerability.”
“If he’s this powerful,” I asked, “why isn’t he becoming First Elder?”
“He’s only so powerful because he stole an artifact—the Earth’s Breath. As for being First Elder, why do you think he wants me dead?”
“Why me?” I asked, sliding into a matching fighting stance, but keeping my distance. “I have no dog in this fight, unless you piss off Peaches. Then you get more dog than you bargained for.”
“I needed outliers,” she said. “A blacklisted mage not interested in power, a reluctant immortal bonded to a hellhound. There could be no hint of impropriety. This is not a power grab. This is the rightful succession of Elders in my sect. You must not be connected to the Red Mountain in any way.”
“I’d say we’re about as improper as it gets.”
“Exactly,” Jen said. “I personally can’t move against Toson, but you and Tristan can—if you pass this examination.”
“And if I refuse?” I asked. This was the real test. “What happens if I walk away?”
“Several things: First, you need to defeat me in bladed combat to be able to leave this circle. This will be no small feat.”
“You’re that good?”
“Better,” she answered without a hint of arrogance. “If you refuse to accept the mission after somehow achieving this, Toson will form the golem and destroy the Red Mountain sanctuary. Then, emboldened by this act, he will go to your city and attempt to kill you, and anyone important to you, for my seeking your assistance.”
“This Toson really knows how to hold a grudge.”
“You have no idea. With the Earth’s Breath, he can form a golem army of indestructible, obedient soldiers that will follow his every whim. He will be unstoppable.”
“What is it with mages and creating these overpowered artifacts?” I asked, exasperated. “Doesn’t anyone stop to consider the ramifications of someone getting their hands on it and using it for evil?”
“Normals do the same thing. It’s human nature.”
“We don’t create world-ending—never mind,” I said, recalling virtually every invention we had transformed from scientific to military use. “Forget I said that.”
“Forgotten,” she said with a slight smile. “We are not so different from normals. I know our world is strange to you, but mages have fears and aspirations. We have dreams and families. We love and protect.”
“And kill.”
Her expression darkened for a few moments.
“Yes. We kill. When we lose our way or have to protect what is dear to us—just like you.”
“There’s also the small matter of you all being slightly unstable,” I said, taking a step closer. She remained still. “Maybe no one is meant to manipulate that much power?”
“You will find agreement on that in both our worlds,” Jen answered, turning slightly in my direction. “But there is no changing what is so for what we wish. We must deal with the present reality.”
“This present reality…I’m guessing you want us to kill this Toson and get the Earth’s Breath back?”
“Kill Toson? Not if it can be avoided. I only want you to get the Earth’s Breath back.”
“That’s all?” I asked, surprised. “Just get it back to the Red Mountain?”
Jen nodded.
“That’s everything.”
She switched her grip on her blade and closed the distance.
SIXTEEN
Blade fighting is a messy, bloody business.
This situation was made worse by the fact that these blades were kamikira—god-killers. Getting cut by them was bad. Receiving a lethal blow meant death, of the permanent kind.
Despite the general consensus, I’d rather face a gun than a blade. In the hands of a master, blades were deadlier than any gun, and they never ran out of ammunition.
Jen was a master. The numerous cuts on my arms and legs spoke to her skill.
My mastery was in a different discipline—evasion. The numerous cuts on my arms and legs spoke to my lack of skill.
Holding her blade in a reverse grip, Jen slashed horizontally and then reversed direction. I avoided the initial slash and blocked the second, backhand attack with my own blade.
With
