Page 84 of Marked By the Dark Lord
In a flash, I was on my feet, just in time to greet Kraw’ok with a bear hug as he came at me. Holding tight, his feet off the floor, Iroared in anger yet again. My arms squeezed, and one of his ribs gave way.
His head smashed into mine, causing me to stagger back as blood poured from my nose.
“MINE!” I shouted, lunging for him, ignoring the pain. “She is mine!”
We went down in a heap, the combat wholly uncivilized. I didn’t care.
“Too bad you didn’t fight like this the first time,” Kraw’ok taunted as we grappled on the floor of the Mirgave throne room. “You might have stood a chance. Might not have lost.”
I snorted, then spat blood. “You just don’t get it, little brother. And you never will because nobody loves you. They just fear you, and for that, I pity you.”
His knee came up and caught me in the groin. I rolled away with a loud groan of pain, narrowly missing Mila, who scampered out of the way.
I planted my fingers in the blue velvet carpet and used it as a foothold to spin myself wildly to the side. My foot lashed out, spilling my brother. Then I was on my feet and onto his back. Snaking my arm around his neck, I tried to squeeze, but he threw his head back fast enough to catch me in the jaw.
Momentarily stunned, I lost my grip, allowing him to escape. Kraw’ok got to his feet at the same time I did. Both of us stared at each other, eyes full of rage and hatred.
“You’re as pathetic as the rest of them,” he snarled.
I laughed. “Because everyone thinks you actually defeated father and our brothers in combat and not with a blade to the back when they couldn’t defend themselves.”
The flash of incensed scarlet in his eyes told me the barb had gone home.
“Coward,” I added, shaking my head.
“You’re going to end up like the rest of them,” Kraw’ok said. “The throne is mine!”
“I’ve been gone for ages, you imbecile. What makes you think Iwantit? You’re a sniveling coward, and someone will usurp you before long, too. But it won’t be me. I quite literally want nothing to do with you.”
“Then why are you back?” he barked, circling me while I matched him, step for step.
“For her!” I snarled, pointing at Mila. “And only for her.”
“You care about the half-breed?” Kraw’ok chuckled. “You’re more pathetic than I thought.”
I couldn’t help it. His comment got the better of me. I flung myself at him, and we went down again, each struggling for the upper hand, neither quite succeeding. Despite my comment about him stabbing our brothers in the back, it was clear he’d trained a lot while I was gone. Fighting had never been something he was particularly good at, but that had changed.
“She’s going to make a fine trophy,” he cackled as I struggled to move his arms to the side to deliver a blow to his smug face. “I’ll treat her well. You know I will.”
Red magic formed in my hand, and I slapped him across the face with it, tearing a gash from his temple to his chin.
“Enough!”a female voice barked over the din of combat and the blood roaring in my ears.
Kraw’ok bellowed in anger as feet clattered down the carpet from the door toward us. He renewed his attack, blood leaking down the side of his face. I smashed my forehead into his again and then again, drawing more blood.
“I’ll make sure she knows the true touch of a man!” my brother coughed through blood just as hands grabbed my arms and hauled me free from him.
Furious beyond reasoning, magic exploded from my body, tossing the hands free as I lunged for Kraw’ok’s throat.
There was a flash of blue, and the next thing I knew, I was sailing through the air uncontrollably, bouncing off the carpet and slamming my head into one of the bronze doors, leaving a tiny dent in the metal and a huge bruise on the side of my skull.
“I saidenough,” the Dark Lady of Mirgave hissed into the silence that followed.
My vision, as wonky as it was after the blow, was still able to spot her as she hovered in the air halfway down the steps of her throne, azure magic held ready in both hands, one pointed at each of us.
At her feet, standing by my brother, were a handful of her soldiers, including Aurr’av, who looked slightly disheveled.
I calmed instantly, realizing my error as it sank in whose hands had tried to grab me.
