I’dwon.
Not the war. Not the bond.
But a moment.
Still, the trial wasn’t over.
I stepped back to the edge of the ring, wiping my blade, and forced myself to watch as Ferrula stepped into place.
Her opponent was waiting.
And from the look in her eyes, he wouldn’t be standing long.
Ferrula stepped into the ring like a storm given form, her eyes locked on Dermith with a look that could have melted steel. She didn’t wait for him to speak—didn’t need words. This wasn’t a sparring match. It was history clawing its way out of the past for a reckoning.
But just to her right, Jax was stepping into position as well, squaring off against an Iron Fang rider I barely recognized—lean build, middling posture, the kind of fighter who relied too much on brute strength and not enough on thought.
I expected Jax to cut him down like dead weight.
And hedid, almost immediately forcing the man back with measured, crushing blows. The ring cracked beneath the force of his movements, Koddos snarling from the cliffs above with approval.
But my eyes?—
They were onFerrula.
She and Dermith clashed like ancient blades—no finesse, no pretense. Just rage and retribution. Their swords collided with the sound of thunder, her footwork fast and calculated, his heavier, more brutal.
He slammed into her, blade dragging across her shoulder plate, sparks flying. She spun out, retaliating with a downward strike that cracked against his armored forearm, forcing him to stumble, but only for a breath.
They circled.
Struck again.
Blood already shimmered on Ferrula’s knuckles.
Then the tide shifted.
Dermith feinted, caught her blade in a trap against his own, and twisted.
Ferrula grunted as her footing faltered—and I saw it in his eyes.
He wasn’t going for a win.
He was going forblood.
He raised his sword, a death arc that would’ve split her skull?—
And Jax was there.
His blade punchedintoDermith’s thigh with a sickeningcrackof bone and steel.
Dermith howled, staggering—but he didn’t fall.
Instead, he twisted, pulled his sword back, andstabbedJax in the side with a vicious snarl, the steel sinking deep.
“NO!” I screamed as Jax dropped to one knee, blood already pooling beneath him.
“Enough!” Major Ledor’s voice cracked like a whip. He stepped forward, rage burning in his eyes. “Thrall Squad isdisqualified!You’ve forfeited the trial against Iron Fang!”
