The Blood Rite

Chapter 8

When Aster had come out of the bathroom to an empty house, she was very confused. There was no note, no indication of where they could've gone. Aster was still tired and a little hungover, so reluctantly she made her way out the front door. She was glad for her Illyrian leathers, not only were they practical but they were warm too. Her breath clouded in front of her as she made her way towards the training ring where she could hear the clashing of fighting. Wrapping her arms around herself to fight off the cold, Aster sighed as she took in the scene in front of her.

Cassian and Silas were fighting in the ring, both of them armed with swords. Azriel and Nyx were watching from the sidelines so she made her way over to them.

"You can keep up with him?" Azriel asked her quietly.

She nodded, still a little embarrassed of the events that occurred earlier.

"You must be getting better", Azriel said a hint of pride in his voice.

"He helps me sometimes", she said softly, "he is encouraging me to train more with my wings".

Azriel nodded slowly, "interesting", he said.

None of them took their eyes away from the fight as Cassian and Silas worked hard to try and lay a blow on their opponent. Both of them looked exhausted, but neither were ready to surrender.

A small crowd had began to gather, the High Lord's general and a novice warrior were fighting and they were evenly matched.

"Careful you don't embarrass yourself, Cassian!" Nyx called from the side of the ring.

Cassian grunted something that sounded like 'fuck off', before he continued his assault on Silas. The fight was beginning to feel long now and Aster wondered if this is how it felt to watch her fight with Silas.

"Your dad wants to know how your training is coming along", Azriel said leaning down so only she could hear, "should I tell him it's going well".

"I don't like your tone", Aster said fake glaring at him.

"What tone?" Azriel asked slyly.

"The tones that indicates your insinuating something", she said narrowing her eyes further.

He shrugged, faking nonchalance, "my shadows tell me things".

"What things?" She asked quickly.

"...things", he replied vaguely.

Aster huffed, crossing her arms. You could always trust her Uncle Az to be vague as hell.

"You're not going to tell me are you", she said practically admitting defeat.

"If you don't know then I'm not telling you", he replied smirking.

"Well how would I know if you don't tell me what I should know", she said.

Azriel's gaze shifted back to the fight, but Aster realised he was hinting towards something. Azriel was looking at Silas.

"Oh! No, no, no!" Aster said trying to explain, "you don't understand it's not like that, I'm sure Nyx explained the reason why he's staying with us".

Azriel shrugged, "my shadows don't lie, and he speaks highly of you".

"He does?"

Even after Silas had witnessed her hungover and ragged state, he still spoke highly of her? She shook her head, Azriel is just speculating.

"Just watch the fight, Azriel", she sneered.

He rolled his eyes playfully but obliged. Cassian and Silas were both huffing and puffing as Cassian pushed Silas back with his sword. There was a divide in the crowd as everyone chanted different names. Nyx and Azriel were cheering for Cassian, while a group of female warriors encouraged Silas. In one final push, Cassian disarmed Silas. He smiled brightly, feeling the euphoria of a win. Aster couldn't help but remember her own pre-mature pride. Silas went to swing his wing around and disarm Cassian, the same move he'd pulled on her, but Cassian had seen it coming and ducked out of the way.

"Can't accept a loss?" Cassian tutted.

"I would not bow down to my enemies on a battlefield, I will not bow down in the ring either", Silas said, clearly out of breath.

Cassian raised a brow, but a skilled eye like Asteria's could see the pride that laid behind the gesture.

"A good warrior should know when to back down. Offence is not always the best tactic", Cassian said calmly.

Silas reached down and picked up his sword, his chest still rising and falling at a rapid pace, "again", he commanded.

"No", Cassian said simply.

Frustration simmered behind Silas's eyes, but he obeyed. Cassian walked over to them while Silas left the ring, walking in the opposite direction.

Aster frowned, "I'll be back".

She rushed off after him before the others could say otherwise. Silas had been off all morning. She didn't like seeing him like this, so for the sake of her own sanity she had to find out what was wrong.

She jogged after Silas, the warrior had disappeared into one of the equipment sheds. When Aster had finally caught up, she ducked in behind him, shutting the door.

"Silas", she said breathlessly.

His back was facing her but she saw him tense at the sound of her voice. He was returning his sword and had paused mid-movement.

"You did really well back there", Aster said kindly, "Cassian can be hard to beat. Don't get upset that you didn't win".

"I'm...not upset", he gritted out.

The sword clanged against the side of the shed as he placed it down.

"You've been acting funny all morning. Did something happen?" She asked gently.

He turned around, his eyes locking onto hers.

"I was worried when I heard Nyx return home but not you. I though something had happened to you", he said forcefully, "but when I asked Nyx..."

"Silas, I'm sorry. You shouldn't of waited for me", she said confused.

Why would he care?

"Nyx said you had left with some male. I was even more worried then, I know Windhaven is not Venzor but I could help but worry I-" Silas paused, he swallowed, "I'm sorry. It is not my place to worry for you".

Aster furrowed her brows, "I think it's sweet that you care".

"Sweet", Silas mimicked, venom on his tongue.

She frowned, "Silas, I don't understand what I've done wrong. I want to make it better".

He stepped closer to her and suddenly her back was against the wall, small daggers and pointy shields digging into her back. His breath fanned across her cheek and Aster held her breath.

"Just don't go around fucking other males, okay?", his voice was purely primal.

"Other?" Aster squeaked, "implying that you are the only one I can fuck?"

Aster watched as Silas gripped the wooden shelf behind her tighter than she'd ever seen.

"Exactly".

And then he stepped away. A cold breeze washed over Aster as Silas left the shed door open.