Page 58 of An Empress of Air & Chaos

“I am not emotionally unavailable,” Emara took a breath in and stared ahead. Cally just pouted and raised her eyebrow, not willing to argue about this one.

Emara realised that her heart felt a little lighter already. Cally had always been the best at providing her with a lightness she couldn’t explain.

She was the light and Emara, the dark. The best friend balance…

“I know we don’t do feelings and stuff because, like, ew! But you really are my rock, Emara.” Cally squeezed her hand into Emara’s.

“And you are mine.” Emara squeezed back.

They said nothing more as they walked behind the Blacksteel Hunters. The moonlight followed them as they made their way through the Huntswood markets and back to the wagon. Emara investigated the sky before getting into the back, but instead of looking at the moon, she turned her attention to the stars that littered the night’s sky.

A star—a new symbol that gave her life meaning.

Removing the hair that had swept across her face with one hand, Emara rolled from the bed. She hadn’t slept much—at the most she’d had two hours—but she was going to train, regardless.

The winter sun had just started to awake in the sky, illuminating the clouds with soft pastel colours of orange, lavender, and yellow. For the first time since she had moved into the tower, she made her bed, running her hand over the blankets to smooth them like she had in her own home. She refreshed herself in the bathing chamber and pulled on her combat gear. She took the stone that had lain underneath her pillow the entire night and cursed. Feeling like the stone was solely to blame for her restless sleep, she whispered a prayer to the ancient Gods to give her a sign, anything that would tell her what it meant. Give her more answers.

Opening her mind, she reached out to hear the ancient voice like she had the night before.

Nothing.

She was alone. In her room in the tower, miles from her home, and truly alone in the world. She had no guidance. No answers. No family.

She hurled the stone and watched as it scattered across the floor, hoping to piss off whatever entity that protected it.

Still nothing!

She couldn’t stand to look at it for another second, wondering what it meant and why she had it now. But even from across the room, it pulled her in. She got up from the bed and grabbed it with a scowl. Taking a different approach, she placed it on the stand next to the door and whispered, “Sorry.”

Still nothing.

With a sigh, she tied her hair into a ponytail and made her way to the east wing to forget all about last night.

As she got there, she entered through the doorway and bowed to the large portrait of Thorin on the wall. Gideon was already halfway through a cardio workout and she wondered how long he had been awake. She watched him as he jumped over a knee-height bench from side to side, never faltering in his pace or agility. Sweat dripped from his brow and his lips pushed shut, concentrating on the circuit.

“You made it,” he said without looking up at her. His jumps slowed and he came to a stop before lifting his gaze. “How’s the head?” He took a towel and wiped his face and neck.

“Messy,” Emara replied without thinking.

He laughed. “I meant do you have a hangover?” He squirted water from his bottle into his mouth.

“Oh.” She took in a breath. “Do you not have to actually sleep to get a hangover?” She walked onto the mats.

“Not always.” He shot her a quick smile. “It’s going to be a rough session today, though. I need to see where your limits are. What your strengths and weaknesses are. I need to see your abilities. Are you ready for it?” He stretched his arm across his chest.

Limits? She had no idea where her limits began and where they ended anymore. But she guessed she was going to find out.

She nodded.

“Okay, we are going to start with obstacles. I have placed out different obstacles around the room.” Gideon gestured to the ropes that were tied to the floor, a massive vault, and large metal ladders that went extremely high, almost touching the ceiling. “I need to see how you overcome them and what your strategies are. Then I can coach you and teach you how to manoeuvre them quickly and efficiently.”

“I thought I was learning how to fight?” Emara popped her hands onto her hips.

“First lesson of the day, not every situation is fightable. A good hunter will try to fight in every situation, but an excellent hunter is an intelligent hunter, and they know when they can’t win. They know when to get out.” He walked around her. She followed him, only turning her head. “You need to learn how to be quick and be creative with that. That could be the difference in your survival. Or your death.” He moved over to the vault, displaying it like some sort of art piece. “The first thing I want you to do is get over this vault only using your hands. No legs or lower body can touch it.”

He took a step back and then sprinted towards the vault with sheer strength, his strides so fast she could only see him take flight into the air and glide over the vault with ease. His hands didn’t even touch the base.

Show off, she thought.

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