“Eyes on your opponent, queenie,” Peri yelled at the same time a blade appeared in Lilly’s hand. It was good to have friends in high places. Pun intended.
At the same moment Lysander stepped forward, his blade raised, Lilly saw a fae stone appear behind him on the ground. Another appeared to her left. He must have noticed them, too, because he quickly glanced around. Lilly looked and saw that the stones had formed a circle around them both. Hmm, wonder what the sneaky little stones are up to?
She decided she didn’t care at the moment because her foe was distracted. Lilly struck. She brought her sword down in an arc, but Lysander must have seen it out of the corner of his eye. He lifted his blade at the same time and blocked it, their blades clanging as they met. At the same time, he lifted his other hand, but Lilly had anticipated he’d try to use his magic with his free hand. She’d already sent out a bolt of lightning, and it hit him right in his palm before he could even form a ball of light. The smell of burnt flesh permeated the air.
Lilly’s eyes lit up as their swords separated, and they both danced back. They began to circle one another. Lysander’s hand had a nice, clean hole burned straight through it. Damn, that had to hurt. Lilly shot some bolts at his feet, hoping to damage one of those appendages. If he couldn’t stand, it would be seriously hard for him to fight back. But he dodged, all the while keeping her sword hand engaged with his own. He turned, bringing his sword around, and Lilly had to shift her feet quickly to the right to catch his blade before it made contact with her shoulder. She shoved forward, pushing him back. He took a step away and his foot slipped past the circle of the fae stones. Suddenly, his foot caught on fire. The stone he’d slid past was red: the fire stone.
Lysander leaped back into the center of the circle, yowling and slamming his damaged hand wildly at the flames on his foot, attempting to put them out. Lilly didn’t bother to wait to see if he would accomplish his goal. She fried his other foot and watched him drop to the ground. She kicked out and knocked the blade from his hand. In the next second she had him on his back, her knee on his chest and the tip of her sword directly against his throat. She used her free hand to send a bolt of lightning into his sword-free hand and fried it as well. Now, he couldn’t attack her with either hand. He was still screaming in pain from his flaming foot.
“I yield, I yield,” he wailed as he stared up at her. Hate gleamed in his eyes.
Lilly pressed her blade even harder until she saw the tip break through his skin and a trickle of blood bubble up.
“I said, I yield!” he screamed, his voice rising several octaves. He was desperate, but the hate was still there. He had no respect for her, regardless of the fact that she’d beaten him.
Lilly kept her blade at his throat, pressing into him, reminding him she held his life in her hands. She looked up at his clan, meeting their eyes, shifting her own from face to face. “For crimes against our people, treason, breaking the laws of challenge to a reigning monarch, and for breaking the terms of a challenge by attempting to use another being’s magical assistance to kill me, I sentence Lysander, of Clan Lowthorne, to death.” She waited to see if any would challenge her or stand up for their leader. They each dropped their eyes.
Lilly looked back down at him. His mouth had dropped open, and his yellow eyes no longer glowed. He’d finally realized she wasn’t going to spare him. He would not have another chance to betray them. “You made your choice,” Lilly said to him. “And you will die because of it.” She didn’t hesitate for a second as she slid her blade smoothly into his throat. Blood spewed from his carotid artery, covering her hands and torso.
There was no satisfaction in taking his life. Lilly found no gratification, although he’d been a traitor and would have killed her in an instant. She only felt sadness. This man had betrayed his people. He’d turned his back on them when they needed him to be strong and stand beside them. There was no victory in his death.
When there was no breath left in his body, Lilly stood and stepped back. She lowered her head and sent up a prayer to the Great Luna, asking for wisdom. She’d proven herself, but now she had to actually lead them.
Lilly lifted her head and looked around at her warriors, her own clan, and at Clan Lowthorne. The other clan leaders were not present. No doubt, Lysander had kept his challenge a secret from them. He knew their loyalties would have lain with Cypher and his appointed one. She took a deep breath and then turned in a slow circle so she could look at everyone present.
“I do not know what the future holds for our people,” she said, the knife in her hands dripping dark blood upon the ground. “What I do know is that I will do everything I can to fight for us, for what is right, what is good, and for the Great Luna. I will put the truth before lies, your needs before my own, and always seek the will of our Creator. This is what I can offer you as your queen. But it is ultimately your decision as the warlock race if you wish me to lead you. So what say you?” She continued to turn in a slow circle, waiting, watching.
