Page 26 of Aria's Ascension

Goddamnit. I knew this was a fucking trap.

They split both ways, marching in lockstep to the left and right until they formed a line at least fifty feet long. Silent and rigid, they stood shoulder to shoulder. Aria held her fire, hoping, waiting…

At some unheard command, the two in front of the door stepped forward and out, making room for a smug Zhrovni to walk between them.

Anger at herself for selfishly putting her men in danger warred with satisfaction that the Overlord was as predictable as she’d hoped, in this at least.

Cocky bastard. You shouldn’t have come down here.

Chapter 15

The moment Aria realized this was more than likely a setup, she’d come up with a plan B. Zhrovni was arrogant enough to want to confront her face to face to demonstrate his superiority, if the opportunity presented itself. He was also too egotistical to share power, which meant if she could kill him, his guards and lackies would be leaderless.

If she was right, the Godzilla guards were hired muscle, and the ants were just as much slaves as the gladiators. They wouldn’t have any reason to keep fighting if the guy who wrote their checks was dead.

She’d just needed him to take the bait and face her when she wasn’t locked in a tube.

He stared at her silently, a self-satisfied smile wrinkling the skin on either side of his beaked mouth, and leaned forward, anticipation tightening his loathsome features. He was waiting for her to react, so she gave him nothing. Smoothing her expression, she projected calmness, as though unbothered by this turn of events.

Without bothering to lower her voice, she asked, her tone deliberately blasé, “Surrounded?”

“Cannot tell. This side is still in darkness, but I do not believe so,” Tirox responded offhandedly.

Aria had to bite back a proud smile. He caught on to her game quickly, likely from his experience negotiating with other clans back on his homeworld.

“Mm. Interesting.”

Scanning from left to right, she quickly counted the guards. Eighteen. So, six for each of them. Difficult, but not impossible.

Was that his entire security team? He would want a show of force to intimidate her and ensure his safety, so he’d bring as many guards as possible. Fifty would be more impressive, and would’ve actually given her pause, so if he only brought eighteen, maybe that was all he had.

He had to know she and her men had faced worse odds. The idiots didn’t even have their guns drawn. She and Tirox did and, judging the distance between them, she knew Kix could get to them before they could draw, aim, and fire and cut them down with his scythe.

If Zhrovni thought he was safe, that his guards would protect him, he was wrong.

Apparently tired of waiting for her to react, his smugness shifted to impatience.

“Disarm yourselves,” he hissed.

“Ha. Come and get them, zlagek,” she fired back, using one of his own insults against him.

She needed him to get angry, but just angry enough to act rashly and make a mistake without tipping him into off-with-their-headsterritory.

His eyes widened, and he hissed at her, his scaly green skin darkening with rage, but instead of commanding his guards to descend on them and take their weapons by force, as she’d wanted, he whipped out what looked like a datapad from a pocket in his crotchless pants.

Distracting him before he could activate some kind of security measure she hadn’t counted on, Aria put just enough curiosity and uncertainty in her tone to make him want to revel in her ignorance and asked, “Tell me, how did I do it? How did I wake up in the arena? Your fancy tech failing you?”

He did as she’d hoped and paused mid-tap, but instead of appearing arrogant and disdainful, he looked pissed.

“My technology is not the problem! You are! You and your jeleking males! Why is it no matter how many times I wipe you, you find them? It is maddening! This time, only two, since I locked the beast away, but time last, you four almost ruined my arena!”

Tirox grunted softly as if the breath had been knocked out of him, and a feeling of sharp-edged validation washed over her from Kix.

Only two? Locked the beast away…

Aria felt lightheaded. The dragon. She’d known. She’d fuckingknown.

He’dwipedthem?

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