She was sick. Something chronic. I couldn’t tell what it was— it was unique. I’d never smelled anything like it before. All I could derive was that it was permanent, and it was serious enough that it had changed her life forever.
A cold wave of devastation flowed through me. How could my mate be sick? I didn’t want her to suffer. This couldn’t be real. It wasn’t happening. And yet, it was. My mate was a girl who didn’t know anything about the Arcanea, a mate who was going to struggle to keep up not only because she was behind, but because her body would challenge her in every way it could.
I felt like crying for her, but that would only freak her out. Gods, my emotions were overwhelming right now. People had told me how the bonding experience was intense and hard to endure, but I’d never believed them. I held it in as best I could and tried to focus on her movements again.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Emma had caught my stricken expression. Did she even know?
I wiped the heartbreak off my face and said, “Nothing. Just… don’t thrust like that. The stab is weak. Your hand is too loose. You’ll never break through flesh in that way.”
She smiled weakly. “I’ve never been told my thrusts are weak before.”
The joke broke through some of the sadness, and I laughed lowly. “Bet you haven’t.”
Lucien had stopped teaching the group now and was breaking off to give individual pointers to students. I turned toward Emma and gave her more instructions. “Use your environment to your advantage. Don’t let the sun hit you in the eyes— there, you see? You can’t attack if you’re blinded. Slashing is always better than stabbing, most of the time— only jab the blade forward if you’ve got an opening. You’re getting better.”
I turned to her and held up my sword. “Here. Try and attack me.” We’d get in trouble with Lucien if he caught us, as we weren’t supposed to start on sparring yet, but he looked pretty busy with a freshman boy who was handling his sword like a flopping fish.
“Attack you? With an actual sword? I’ll cut you open,” she objected. “We should do this with sticks or something first.”
I laughed. “You aren’t going to hurt me. Just try.”
She seemed wary about it, but shrugged. “Okay, you asked for it.”
Emma charged forward, sword over her head. I was easily able to kick her away and said, “Don’t raise your sword so high. It leaves you open to attack and defenseless. Being aggressive is always the better way, but there’s a smart way to do it.”
She came at me again. This time, I countered her strikes, and we fell into a rhythm. “Try to use body leverage against me. The key is to counter my attacks and be strategic about where you’re placing your blade. Don’t just bludgeon me with it.”
I was impressed that she was able to keep up, but judging by her athletic figure, she had to work out or play sports. That probably helped to keep the illness at bay. “Good!” I said as she was able to effectively feint away a hit. She was getting better.
“Why are we learning this? Are all Arcanea good for is monster hunting?” Emma questioned aloud as we broke apart. She needed a break.
“No,” I told her. “In fact, most of the Arcanea have other jobs. But every one of us needs to learn how to hunt monsters, to protect the country.”
“What do you mean?” She’d stabbed her sword into the ground and bent over her knees to take a breather.
I leaned back. “Malovia is one country, but our borders are very important,” I told her. “Around it are magical walls that the Marked have put in place to keep the monsters in. They’re strong, but if too many monsters attack the border walls, they become vulnerable. That’s why it becomes important to keep them contained, and slay them if they try to get over the border. We Arcanea are the only thing standing in the way of monsters escaping into the world and slaughtering millions of people.”
“Can’t the other magical races handle it?” Emma asked.
I laughed. “I wouldn’t trust them with it. We’re the best butchers. There are a few races who might try to make them pets.”
Her expression was thoughtful. “But where do all these monsters come from? Do they just pop out of the ground?”
“Kind of, actually,” I admitted. “Monsters come from a portal in Malovia— a passageway that leads to the underworld.”
“The underworld is real?” Her eyes widened. “But if that’s true… why don’t the Arcanea just seal it up, so no more monsters get through?”
I shook my head. “Many sorceresses have tried and failed. But you cannot seal off a portal that’s been made by a god, especially a dark god of black magic. No one has that kind of power.”
“Gods?” She raised an eyebrow.
I sighed, “Ah,onawilke, you’ve got a lot to learn.”
She gave me a resentful look. “I know I’m behind. I’m just trying to keep up.”
“Give it a few weeks. You’ve got Arcanea in your blood. Soon it’ll be second nature.” I squared her shoulders so we could spar again. She wrenched her sword out of the ground and raised it, but before we could practice once more, there was a scream on the other side of the practice area. We spun around to witness something slink down from the trees above.
A giant snake, forty feet in length, slithered around the training arena. It was dark green, with a black diamond pattern on its back and a rattler that it shook as it weaved around the trees. It’s fangs dripped purple venom, and its glittering eyes scanned the students as if choosing which one to have for a snack.
