Lihvan huffed out a deep laugh.
“I am Cruxan,” the new ambassador said, his eyes twinkling.What a flirt, she thought.“And behind me is Vikan.We have not yet been introduced,lavrix’an, but Vaxa’an has boasted of you often and it is an honor to finally speak with you.”
She managed a smile and murmured a polite reply, although she hardly remembered what she said.Her eyes kept straying back to the arena in front of her, checking to see if her mate had appeared, or if any of his challengers had appeared.While the drums had not been brought into the mountain, she could still hear their steady beat from somewhere and it provided an ominous atmosphere for the buzzing amphitheater.
Keriva was nowhere in sight, although Kate knew that she would be present.The crowd was just too large that it was almost impossible to make out just one single face and distinguish it from the rest.She was slightly disappointed that she wouldn’t have the moral support of her friend, but Bidan—and Vaxa’s ambassadors—were there and that was more than she could ever ask for.She couldn’t imagine facing this alone.
There was a bench running alongside the dais and Kate sat.Privanax had not wanted her to attend the Trials.He thought that it would be too much stress for her pregnancy, but there was no way that she wouldn’t be there.Shehadto be, even though pure terror chilled her spine at what she could possibly witness.
With a sudden, hissing hush, the drums stopped.
On the edge of the circular arena, she saw a path being made for five men.Five warriors.Once they reached the arena, they spread out, side-by-side, facing the dais, completely still, their faces vacant of expression.
Vaxa’s challengers, no doubt.Her eyes ran over them.Just as she feared, they were all huge, strong, just like all the warriors she’d seen on this planet.Scars lined their bodies, tales of battles and fights won, which meant they were experienced.She wondered if Vaxa knew any of them personally, if he felt a sense of betrayal from their challenge.
Then she saw her mate.Her heart beat ferociously in her chest as he appeared from behind the dais she was seated on, from a tunnel that wound further into the mountain.He was dressed in exactly the same garb from when he’d taken her from the Pit.Golden bands gleaming in the blue light, bare-chested, his hair raked back from his face, his horns following the curve of his skull.
His eyes scanned over his opponents, his features unreadable, although he looked fierce.His gaze was sharp and alert and he walked to the center of the arena with an easy gait, his stride long and sure.
For a brief moment, he glanced back at the dais and his eyes met hers.Her chin tilted up and her spine straightened.Vaxa must’ve been comforted by what he saw, because his lips curved up, just slightly, before he swung his head back around to face his challengers.
Her fingernails picked at the skin around her cuticles, a nervous habit she’d never quite broken, as her mate began speaking in Luxirian.
Bidan, who was sitting next to her, murmured, “He is leveling the claims brought against him and reciting the ancient rules of the Trials.”
Rules she already knew: during each challenge, one lived and one died.Vaxa would either kill five of his fellow warriors this day or he would be killed himself.The rules were simple.
Kate didn’t say anything.She didn’t even think her voice could function at this point.She picked at her skin harder when she felt the baby move, as if sensing her distress.
Vaxa’s voice, the voice that had caressed her with its sensuality and thrilled her with its husky darkness, ended to a sharp cheer in the crowd and the drums began once more.
“It is beginning,” Bidan said, although she’d already guessed that for herself.
The first challenger stepped forward, a warrior who was not as tall or as broad as the others, but one who would still intimidate the shit out of Kate if she came upon him.He met her mate in the center of the arena and before she could even draw a steadying breath, the warrior lashed out with a swipe of his claws that nearly caught Vaxa across the chest, had he not dodged quicker than her eyes could track.
If Kate wasn’t so on edge and afraid of the outcome, she might have been thoroughly impressed by both men’s skills.She’d known that Vaxa was a good warrior.She’d seen him fight during training sessions.He was quick, calculated, and ruthless.
Vaxa fighting in these Trials was no different.He seemed to hold back at first, letting the younger warrior attack on the offensive, blocking blows and dodging kicks that probably would’ve broken all of Kate’s ribs had she been in the ring and not Vaxa.
He’s learning, Kate realized, watching her mate with bated breath.He was deliberately fighting on the defensive to learn about his opponent, so that when it came time to strike—which he eventually did when the warrior left an opening for him—he did so with fierce efficiency…and with devastating results.
All it took was one carefully, well-timed strike and Vaxa had the warrior on his back.Quicker than Kate could process, Vaxa delivered a bone-crunching punch to his opponent’s chest, making the warrior wheeze and gasp for breath, and while he was taken off guard, Vaxa slit his throat with his claws, cleanly and swiftly.
The arena cheered, although the tension in the amphitheater became even more palpable.Vaxa’s face was grim as he pushed off the still warrior, kneeling at his side.
Tears sprung into her eyes as Vaxa seemed to murmur something over the body, his shoulders hunched.
He didn’t want to do this, she realized.Of course, he didn’t want to do this.He had to kill these men, these warriors.They were his people, people he had sworn to protect, warriors that had faced the same challenges, the same training, the same battles as him.
As her mate climbed to his feet to deafening cheers and several Luxirian men rushed into the ring to retrieve the dead body, Vaxa met her eyes once more.There was not one mark marring his skin and despite what she had just witnessed, she felt a prick of relief.
Then he turned from her.The second Luxirian had just stepped into the ring and was ready for his fight.
ELEVEN
As the Trials drew on, it didn’t get any easier to watch.It got harder.
It was obvious to Kate that the five challengers had a strategy.Vaxa’s first challenger had posed little threat, but as the fights wore on, each challenger was significantly more skilled than the last, which made Kate worry about the furthest Luxirian warrior standing along the arena’s edge.
