Arcanum

Chapter 16: Aiyana

A sword slammed down toward my head, and I held up both machetes to protect myself. I hissed as I tried to push the sword away from me, but I was getting tired. The sword was pressing against my machetes, but I took this moment to remove my weapons and roll out of the way before I could be attacked. Kenji grinned from above me,

"You're a tough opponent, Aiyana."

"Don't I have to be?" I said, as I got to my feet and ducked under Kenji's wooden sword. I used my legs to sweep Kenji off his feet, but the guy had noticed and dodged.
"You're not too weak yourself." I admitted, and brushed the blonde hair out of my eyes. Kenji swung his sword down, and I leaped out of the way, and held my machetes to Kenjj's throat.

"You win." He held up his hands in surrender, and I removed my knife.

"Why don't we have a match in our animal forms this time?" I suggested, but Akira suddenly jumped in,

"Would I be able to go against you, Princess?" He asked, and I nodded my head. Akira shapeshifted into his white wolf form, and I transformed into a lioness.

"On one, two, three, go!" Akira shouted, and I pounced through the air toward Akira. The white wolf leaped out of my way, and landed quite a few feet away from me. I ran for him again, claws out, as I soared through the air. Akira and I were slammed into the ground, and I tackled him down and sliced my claws against his face. The wolf growled, and then kicked me in the chest with his back legs. I was thrown off the wolf, and he pinned me down before I could move,

"Don't you know felines always win?" I grinned, and used my paws to shove him off me. Akira leaped backwards, and kept his distance, watching me with a methodical stare.

"This is getting good." I heard Kenji say, but it was only a blur as I ran for Akira. The wolf dodged out of the way, and jumped onto my back. I was thrown into the ground, and Akira climbed off my back,

"Looks like I won that round, my princess." He smirked, and I rolled my eyes,

"That time." I then rose to my feet, and transformed back into my human form. Akira got up beside me, and patted me on the shoulder,

"Good round. We must battle again." He smiled, and I smiled back,

"Sounds great, Akira." I nodded, and then walked into my house. Something wasn't right though. I glanced around, feeling a chilling fear wash over me.

"Hello, Aiyana." A cold voice said, but I didn't even flinch. I looked toward a dark spot in my room, and watched as a boy about my age emerged from it. He was a Catori, like me, but one of the Catori who thought he was better than the humans. To us, he was considered a rebel. I knew exactly who it was, Grim. He was the leader of the Catori rebels, and my first crush. Grim walked behind me, and brushed the hair from my neck. I let out a low growl as the boy placed his lips on my neck,

"Why are you here." I demanded an answer, as Grim skimmed his hand across my back,

"Well sweetheart, I have something to ask of you." Grim said, and I hissed,

"What?!"

"I want you to be our leader." He grinned, and I spun around to face the black haired guy.

"Like I would ever do that." I snapped at him,

"You defiantly are still as fierce as I remember you. However, if you don't join us, he dies." Grim pointed, and I looked to see another rebel holding someone. The person's lack of animal attributes and all too familiar black hair made me instantly recognize them. It was the General.

"Let him go." I snarled, and clenched my fists,

"Oh, I wish it was that easy. Make one move, and he's dead." Grim warned, and I watched as the rebel held a knife closer to Lucas's throat.

"What do you want me to do." I asked Grim, who grinned,

"We want you to lead us into battle. Also, think of all the things we could do together. Just you and me, like the old times." The boy stepped dangerously close to me, and he brushed his hand across my chin, "you've gotten even more beautiful.". I glared heavily at Grim, and then made quick eye contact with Lucas. The General's eyes held sadness and anger. I looked back at Grim,

"I'll do it." I nodded, and Grim had a huge smile,

"Great." The rebel holding Lucas then punched him in the head, and the unconscious General crumpled to the ground. Grim and the rebel walked ahead of me out of the house, and I took this as my advantage. I gave the rebel a swift kick to the head, and watched as the brown haired guy fell to the ground. Grim spun around to face me,

"What are you-" he hissed out, but I had my machete to his throat before he could speak.

"Don't underestimate me, Grim." I said, and called out for the guards. They instantly came in, and they rushed Grim and the rebel to the prisons. I sighed in relief, and brushed my hand across my forehead. Then I remembered Lucas, and I kneeled on the ground beside him. He had blood soaking through his clothes, and so I ran to the bathroom, and went to get towels. When I came back, I placed the towels on my bed, and carefully dragged Lucas overtop of the towels. My hands reached for his shirt, and I ripped it off, and examined the wounds in his chest and stomach. I grabbed a disinfectant, and gently rubbed it on his wounds, and then wiped it off with a wet towel. "That should do it for now." I smiled, and went to go grab some bandages. When I came back, Lucas was sitting up, and looking around the room.

"Hi." I approached him, and sat down on the bed in front of the boy. He looked at me with shock as I covered the wounds with the bandages,

"Why are you doing this?" He shrieked, and I gave him a warm smile,

"You helped me, so this is my way of repaying you." I explained, and he got to his feet,

"I should get out of here. The King will kill me if he finds out." Lucas muttered, and I placed my hand on his arm,

"Be careful on the way back. Are you alone?" I asked with concern,

"No, I've got a group near the border. Now, Princess you shouldn't even be looking after me. You know how many I have killed." he hissed, and I sighed,

"People change." I explained, watching as the black haired guy took off back to his kingdom. He was right though, I knew how many of my kind he had killed, but yet, I still felt this need to care about him.