Page 39 of Xeda

He felt sick.

The sky looked like a deep emerald green from the glass ceiling above him. The glass, knitted together by metal, covered the full length of the garden he now stood in. A garden ripe with all manner of plants and fruit that could be picked off at a whim. Fountains and statues of unknown warriors decorated the space. It was all so clean and prettily made, it made the fighters look even uglier and out of place by comparison.

A cage, even a gilded one, was still a cage.

He hated the beauty of it all, a mockery of those who stood around, hardly admiring a thing. Just beasts who stomped around like they would in a forest. The corax he'd seen before was sitting by one of the pools, catching sea creatures in his claws and then tearing them apart with his teeth, their blood dripping down its jaw. The lygin tore apart a tree to show off his claws, and the grex with four arms, two made of metal, ripped out another, flinging it into one of the nearby ponds. Both laughed as if they played some fledgling's game.

They didn't fight at least. None of them did, knowing they would be banned and severely punished if they did.

He stalked along the path and hardly let his eyes linger on any of them. Most kept to themselves, including the fyriens who hid in an alcove, talking in whispers, and glaring at him when he passed. Their dark armor shined against their purple skin, their white hair cropped short so it didn’t fall across their eyes. Their twin blades at their sides were ready to be wielded. Their orange eyes glowed in the shadows as they slipped off somewhere unseen.

He came to a break in the garden and found the nillium, Tazyn, next, sitting with a long double-bladed weapon on his lap. His skin was more white gold than the bronze Xeda had seen on others, and his eyes were more silver. His dark hair was set in braids across his back, and his horns curved slightly across his skull. He smiled at Xeda, showing off a set of short fangs.

"They said there would be another of you," he said. "This will be interesting."

Xeda stopped a few feet before him, his tail weaving. "What do you mean?"

His smile widened. "You aren't the first vrisha."

Xeda grew still. "There is another?"

"What? Did you think you were the biggest threat in this place? I've seen how your kind fight. Impressive. Though I'll be glad for the challenge. I'll be looking forward to seeing what you can do." He pointed his weapon at him. “But, funny, you're not the one whose blood I want the most on this blade."

Heart beginning to race, Xeda passed by him, leaving him. Somehow, he hadn't wondered if there would be another of his kind here. Truly, he didn't want to believe it. He searched through the garden, anticipation making him grow more tense. He set down one path, passing through the arch of a viney plant with blood-red flowers, and came to the back of the garden where a statue stood of a vrisha warrior. Underneath its shadow, he saw him.

He froze as they locked eyes, and for a clear, horrifying moment, he thought he was staring at a warrior from his past. The very warrior who had betrayed his queen.

"Vrexus," Xeda hissed low. The fury that rushed through him was so powerful, so wild, he began to see red. He was going to fight him here, games be damned. He was going to kill him.

The warrior stood. He was at least a half foot taller, but he had no markings. His eyes were a murky, clay red, his scales a reddish-orange almost like Xeda's. But he was built like Vrexus, the enemy that had gotten away.

Don't do this. Not yet. Wait. Wait until it's time,said a soft voice, sounding like Ophilia's. He saw her pleading before him.Don't do this, Xeda.

He clenched and unclenched his fists, his tail weaving and curling, wanting desperately to strike. He took a deep breath, focusing on her, focusing on her voice. Knowing she was right. He saw her as he had only a few hours ago, and the memory helped calm him. Helped him remember what he was really fighting for.

The male before him tilted his head, eyeing him curiously. "Vrexus. I don't know that name. Was he your brother?"

Xeda took another deep breath. "No. He was my enemy."

The warrior's eyes narrowed. "I see. It is fitting then." He stalked a little closer, and as if on instinct, they began to circle one another. "I have been anticipating your arrival. I knew someday, one of my own would come. Though it's sad to see a vrisha captured by these pathetic lot."

"Were you not also captured yourself?" Xeda growled.

The warrior stopped and so did Xeda. "No. I came here of my own will, fleeing the alliance. They told me if I wanted to stay, I had to play. So I did. I played their little game and won. I liked it so much that I did it several more times and won every single time. They told me I needed to retire to give others a chance."

"You fled the alliance...you allied with Queen Theda?" Xeda hadn't seen him before but then Queen Theda had many of her Blood Guard working from afar and could have easily had new recruits coming before she'd died.

The warrior scoffed. "No. I'd heard of her but hadn't sworn myself to any queen. I command myself and only myself. But that meant fleeing our world to pursue another. I would not ally myself to those lesserkind, those weaker species of the alliance."

He sounded like Xeda had when Queen Theda was alive. And Xeda couldn't deny he'd felt the same. His bitterness had only grown worse since his capture. But that didn't mean he'd trust this warrior. Not yet. Not after Vrexus, his ex-commander whom he had hated more than anyone, had betrayed them all. This warrior wasn't a Blood Guard either. He was a lone rogue which made him more dangerous.

"I need to win this to free myself," Xeda stated. "I don't suppose you'll consider backing down? I'd hate to fight one of my kind over something like this."

"I'm afraid you'll have to," the warrior said. "But if you swear yourself to me, I will reconsider."

Xeda glared at him with stunned outrage. No. He would never swear himself to him. Never another warrior. Or anyone. The only one he would consider was another queen and only if she was worthy. He wanted to kill him for even considering it. "I guess we will have to fight."

The warrior dipped his head. "Too bad. But if you change your mind, Kingsway needs more of our guidance, brother. There is no one here for you, that would ally with you. Want you. You are like me. Only I would accept you at my side. But I'm also willing to put you in your place if I must. And trust me, I will."

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