He was up on his feet in an instant, fists raised, ready to fight. It wouldn’t be the first time that someone tried to kill him in what they assumed was a vulnerable moment post-fight. But J’tll didn’t have vulnerable moments, and this person was just going to be the next example left in a grotesque pile of broken meat and bones on the streets for the desperate to scavenge like beasts.
But the shadowy figure with burning red eyes standing in the doorway didn’t approach. The light from outside cast his face in darkness, but highlighted the crown of sharp spikes on his head. Long, wicked quills even sharper than J’tll’s short horns.
J’tll’s heart skipped, for just a moment, in fear before his jaw tightened and he readied himself for the fight he knew would be coming. Because he knew this shadow. Though he had never seen him before, everyone knew of this monster. The Bleeding Shadow. The monster in the darkness that killed with impunity and was never caught or harmed. A mere figure in the darkness that left only bloodied footsteps and horrified whispered.
J’tll had no quarrel with him, but he wasn’t surprised he was there. Probably after the water spout, if he had to guess.
“Well?” He asked, his voice a rough grunt. “What are you waiting for? Let’s do this.”
The shadowy figure didn’t move. Didn’t raise their fists. Their voice, when they spoke, was calm and even. “I have no desire to fight you.”
“Then, what do you want?”
“I want to recruit you.”
J’tll scoffed. “You aren’t the first. And I’ll tell you what I told everyone else: I don’t fight for others. I’m not a trained beast for you to control.”
“I don’t need your fists. I need your mechanical skills.” The Bleeding Shadow held up his hand, palm up, like he was holding something. “And in return, I’m offering you an escape.”
“I’m not a prisoner. I fight in the cages because it benefits me. No one controls me.”
“I don’t mean escape from the cages. I mean escape from Rik-Vane.”
J’tll, stunned, stared at this madmale for a long minute before snarling. “You’re mocking me now? Get out!”
He charged, fists raised. He was going to break this short male and leave him a bloody mess. The Bleeding Shadow would be no more.
J’tll didn’t see the blow that struck his chest, but he felt it. Like getting struck by a battering ram, it drove the breath from his lungs, threw him back, and cracked a rib. Pain was familiar. He forced it down, getting his feet back under him and charged again.
The second blow was no different than the first.
The Brute was strong and ruthless.
The Bleeding Shadow wasbetter.
It was over in moments. J’tll was gasping, blood on his tongue, trickling down his mouth, as he slumped in the corner. He looked up at the Shadow as he approached, and he was…
Relieved.
Glad it was over.
He grinned at the male that stood over him, not a scratch on his gray body.
“Kill me then,” he said. “You win.”
The Shadow cocked his head back, red eyes gleaming. “I told you, I don’t want to fight you. I want to offer you a deal.”
J’tll blinked, confused.
But he listened…
***
The gentle stroking of soft fingers on Vytln’s horns made his eyes snap open. The delicate touch pulled him out of his memories with a sharp jolt. Haven had reached her arm out and was petting him. Caressing him so sweetly.
And he should hate it, but he didn’t.
That fight with Tanin was one of his most vivid memories. It was easy to get lost in it. Not only because it had been so painful, but because it was probably the worst loss Vytln had ever suffered. Even Kyldn hadn’t been able to put him down that quickly or easily.
