“This has nothing to do with you, half-breed,” said Jaa’jen, the insult coming out as a snarl.
Lai did not react, barely even moved except to smile a little wider. “Such an original insult. I hear it from your mother at least six times a day.”
Jaa’jen let out roar, and Shi’chen could see him telegraph his punch before he threw it. Lai did too, leaning back just enough so that Jaa’jen swung past him, throwing himself off balance. Lai held out both his hands from his sides. “Come on, let’s not do this.”
Jaa’jen turned to Lai with fire in his yellow eyes. “I’m going to toss you off this ship myself, Ablewood.”
“You’re welcome to try,” Lai replied, dodging back another step as Jaa’jen grabbed for him.
Shi’chen slipped his foot under the mop handle where it lay on the deck and easily kicked it up into his hand. A mop was hardly different than a spear, and he had been handling spears since he had been old enough to stand. He spun it around his back and stuck it out in Jaa’jen’s path. The large goblin tripped over the end and went sprawling with a hollow thud that reverberated off the sails. Laughter met their ears from all around. Lai glanced over at Shi’chen. “I got this.”
“I know you do,” Shi’chen replied as Jaa’jen pushed himself to his feet, turning his murderous stare on Shi’chen.
“You think you’re cute, pretty boy? Won’t be so tough when I shove that stick up your ass.”
Shi’chen gave the mop a spin around his hand. “You’re welcome to try,” he said in the same flippant tone that Lai had used moments ago.
The big goblin looked torn, suddenly realizing that there were two asses he wanted to kick but only one of him. With a growl, he made his decision and lunged at Shi’chen. Shi’chen thrust out with the handle end of the mop to catch the goblin sharply in the chest, right in the soft place between his ribs, sending him back with a grunt of air and a spot that would bruise. Jaa’jen glowered at the smaller goblin. “You think you’re cute with your little stick, puppy? Too scared to face me like a man?”
“I’m not the one who attacked first,” Shi’chen replied, not taking the bait. He wanted so badly to thrash this man within an inch of his pathetic life, but he was already taking a risk of revealing himself with this basic amount of defense already, and while he was not sure of the rules of the sea, fighting amongst his guards was severely punished, especially if there was a serious injury involved.
Jaa’jen feinted right, then lunged left, trying to throw Shi’chen off, but Shi’chen easily pivoted the mop and caught the goblin in the face with the wet rag end. Jaa’jen stumbled backward again, his hands fighting off the dripping pieces that clung to his face. Snarling with rage, he surged forward, lowering his body to try to get under the mop and tackle him, but Shi’chen spun and whacked him across the back with the mop handle, only hard enough to not do more than smart. He caught Lai’s eye a few paces away, where the blond half-elf stood watching the exchange with a curious smile on his face, his hand on his hip cocked to one side. Jaa’jen saw it, too, and lunged at Lai instead. Shi’chen felt a moment of concern for the young man before he saw what Jaa’jen had not.
The hand not on Lai’s hip came up, the gleam of a silver dagger catching the light as Jaa’jen nearly ran his throat into it. The big goblin pulled up short, but not short enough that the tip of the thin blade didn’t sink slightly into the soft area under his chin, drawing an immediate stream of bright red blood that ran down his throat. His hands went up in surrender, and he backed up, yellow eyes wide, as Lai’s stance had suddenly gone from casual to prepped to lunge. He seemed to realize that, while the two young men were both smaller than he, both were now armed. He backed up another step, a few drops of blood falling off his chin to land on the deck. He turned his eyes to Shi’chen, who still stood with the mop handle aimed toward his face. “You can’t run forever, pup. Both you and your half-breed boyfriend better watch your back.”
“Thank you for the warning,” Shi’chen replied, meeting the man’s steely gaze with his own. With a last glance between the two, Jaa’jen backed up another step and then turned and strode away at a pace barely slower than a run.
Only after the big goblin had disappeared inside the stairwell did Shi’chen lower the mop again and turn to Lai. Lai pulled a rag out of his sleeve and wiped the drops of Jaa’jen’s blood off his dagger. “Thank you,” Shi’chen said, watching Lai curiously.
Lai nodded his head, giving him a gracious smile. “I should have guessed that you could handle yourself.”
“I beat men twice his size daily,” Shi’chen replied, rather happy to have the chance to brag to someone that wasn’t his brother about his skills.
“I may have to have you teach me,” Lai replied before kneeling down to slide the dagger into his right boot.
“I can,” Shi’chen said with a bright grin. “Hidden dagger, huh?”
Lai returned an equally bright smile. “That’s just the one you know about. Must be prepared for anything on the ocean.”
Ah, yes, they were still on water. He had forgotten, but now he felt the roll of the waves against the side of the ship, and he leaned on the mop quickly, closing his eyes to push back the wave of dizziness that hit him. “Sorry,” Lai said, quickly reaching into his pocket and extracting the small flask, holding it out to him. “Here. I meant to give you this anyway. It will help with the dizziness.”
Shi’chen took it and swigged a mouthful. The bitter spice burned all the way down, but his stomach almost immediately calmed. “What is it?”
“Just a special blend of herbs,” Lai said. Shi’chen tried to hand him the flask back, but Lai shook his head. “It’s for you.”
“I can’t take it from you,” Shi’chen argued.
Lai held up a hand. “It’s for you, to help. Please keep it.”
Shi’chen gave him a grateful smile and slipped it into the pocket of his pants. “Thank you.”
Lai watched Shi’chen curiously. “Where did you learn fighting? Military?”
Shi’chen quickly shook his head. “No,” he said, the lie thick on his tongue.
Lai raised a brow, and Shi’chen was positive the half-elf did not believe him, but the blond just smiled and shrugged. “If you say so.”
Shi’chen didn’t respond. He was a terrible liar; A’bbni told him that all the time, and he was horrible at coming up with stories on the fly. He was sure his face and ear tips were bright red, giving away his guilt at the denial, so he quickly turned away and ducked his head as he went back to mopping. When he finally looked up again, Lai was gone.
