Trenton closed in on her, pounding at her defense with blows that had the force of a mountain behind them.
“Where is your fire?” Trenton asked, every word punctuated with another blow.
Shea kept silent and concentrated on getting out of the encounter with no internal bleeding. With the way he was hammering at her guard, he’d cause an injury if a blow landed.
“Is this the woman who convinced her men to follow her on a fool’s errand?”
Shea didn’t respond.
“Where is the spirit that drove you off a cliff onto a shadow beetle?”
He was very talkative as he drove her across the small practice ring. She envied him the ability.
“You’re weak.”
Now he was onto insults.
“You don’t belong here.”
Yeah, yeah, yeah. She’d heard that one before.
He closed with her, bearing down with his blade until her arms were shaking with the strain. His face was close to hers as their match became a test of strength. “Your stupidity is going to get everyone killed.”
Abruptly, Shea released the blade with one hand, sidestepped and launched a punch straight into his ear. His head rocked to the side and Shea, taking advantage of his distraction, grabbed his arm and hooked her leg around his before pushing with all her might.
He toppled backwards, landing hard on the ground for the first time that day. Shea didn’t wait for him to recover and kicked him in the ribs. He rolled into her legs as she prepared to do it again, bringing her to the ground with him.
She kicked, punched and wiggled her way back to standing and quickly backed up as he rose to his feet.
He didn’t look happy. Shea backed up even further.
The dark expression on his face was a bit scary. Guess she shouldn’t have kicked him when he was down. The biting probably didn’t help either. Trying to dig her fingers into his eyes had been a low blow. Even she could admit that. This was practice. Some things were just off limits.
He started for her, not even bothering to pick up his practice sword. Shea prepared to run. New energy coursed through her as she felt genuine danger rolling off Trenton.
“Test complete,” the old man crowed.
“What?” Shea asked in disbelief.
“You passed.”
“That’s it?”
The test had been difficult but not impossible. She’d been expecting impossible given the hesitation the old man showed in testing her.
“Mostly.”
That’s what she thought.
“So the little outsider managed to pass the first phase.” Snake Clan’s leader sauntered into the training ring. “Honey, that’s the easy part. It’s what happens next that most don’t survive.”
“What business do you have here, Snake Clan?” The cantankerous bastard who had so joyfully tortured Shea over the last few weeks was gone and a remote stranger had taken his place.
The dark haired woman shrugged slim, tan shoulders that were bare from a dark green, sleeveless top. The top had a high collar and a cut out over her chest showing a hint of cleavage. Heavy bands of metal adorned each wrist. Her hair fell in a thick, straight sheet to her waist.
“I just wanted to see the outsider everybody’s talking about.”
Meynard looked like he had bitten into something sour.
“So far I’m less than impressed,” the woman said, examining Shea with arms crossed over her chest.
Well, Shea wasn’t overly impressed with the woman either. She hadn’t met many from Snake Clan. They didn’t usually serve on the front lines.
“You’re really considering making this your Tolroi?” she asked Fallon.
Shea didn’t know if she liked being referred to as a ‘this’. She had a name and a title. Shea folded her arms over her chest and gave the woman her best non-expression. It was the one she had perfected during the long winded lectures the elders of Birdon Leaf had subjected Shea to when they disagreed with something she’d done.
“Look at her. She doesn’t even have the spirit to defend herself when someone insults her.” The woman turned her head towards the crowd as if it was them she was trying to convince rather than Fallon.
“Our leader needs someone who has the fire to stand up for her people, not some gutless Lowlander.”
“Watch your mouth, woman,” the old man cautioned. His voice was low and dangerous, making a person forget the frail body that went with it.
“Indeed, Indra,” a man moved into view. “You’ve always been one to speak thoughts that have no wisdom behind them.”
If she remembered right, he was the Horse Clan leader. Henry, she thought she remembered. He had been with Darius when they had investigated the beast board. Shea hadn’t really gotten a look at him then, being more concerned over the danger of imminent discovery, so she took the time now.
He had white hair that was well kept and brushed sharply away from his face, leaving his softly lined features on proud display. He walked with a straight back, placing each foot carefully. You could tell he was once a warrior, and a good one too, simply from the way he kept his balance evenly distributed at all times and the absolute awareness he had of his surroundings.
A limp became evident after a closer look. It didn’t hold him back as he moved fluidly towards them, so it wasn’t a result of age. If Shea had to guess, she’d say it was an old wound from when he was a child or one he was born with. Age would have made his gate jerky and stiff. The way he moved said he had found ways to turn a potential weakness into a strength.
“She couldn’t even successfully defend against Trenton.”
“I’d warrant you wouldn’t be able to either,” Henry said. “None of Fallon’s guard could when they first sought his esteem. That’s not what Meynard is testing for.”
“This Lowlander has no right to be tested at all,” a male voice said from the edge of the training arena.
This clan leader Shea knew. She wasn’t a fan. The Lion Clan’s leader, Van, joined the other two leaders.
“She isn’t Trateri. The position of the Hawkvale’s guard is one of honor. It’s never been held by an outsider.” Van’s slightly too small eyes were scornful as they ran over Shea, noting every bruise and the hole in her pants from when she had dove out of the way of Trenton’s blade.
Shea didn’t let his disregard bother her. Better men than him had found fault with her.
“Her actions have earned her the right to be tested,” Henry stated.
“Ha,” Indra scoffed. “She’s nothing better than a scout. Any idiot could do that job. Her squad must have been full of fools to need the help of a Lowlander.”
Shea scowled. She didn’t mind them running her down. All they were doing was helping her. If they managed to convince the group she shouldn’t be here, Fallon might give up on this strange obsession. She drew the line at insults aimed at the men she considered her friends.
They’d gone through a lot together. She’d come to respect them. That was the kind of thing that deserved to be defended. Some oversexed woman and an inept Lion Clan leader wasn’t going to malign them while Shea stood by and took it.
“So who deserves to be tested?” Shea asked. “You?”
“It’s certainly not some gutless Lowlander.”