Map of Ember and Moonlight

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"Good. Again," Sir Balian huffed out as Lyv brushed the sweat from her brow.

The most skilled and dangerous guardsman in front of her didn't even give her the chance to think before he was at her once more, his sword coming down in a wide arc. Lyv easily danced out of the way, pulling her dagger from its sheath on her thigh as it came at her again. Unlike before, she tried something different, grasping her blade in her hand and stopping the blow from Sir Balian's sword with the clang of steel against steel.

Lyv felt the dagger's blade slice into her palm and cut deep. Blood ran down her forearm, but Balian didn't even dare stop his advance as her boots dug into the dirt of the training grounds beneath them. It took a good year before he wouldn't stop his advances, especially when the blood was drawn.

Magic thrummed in her veins, her strength increasing tenfold. One step forward and it was the guardsman who was stepping back against her advance.

The move had the others who had been watching murmur their surprise, but Lyv didn't stop. She pushed him back as her magic danced on the ends of her fingers. With a final battle cry and surge of strength, Lyv pushed with all her might, sending Balian flying backward in the surrounding bales of hay.

Breathing heavy, she sheathed her dagger, balling her gashed hand to her side as the blood dripped between her fingers. Balian looked at her wide-eyed, still sprawled in the hay and his sword on the ground beside him. The other guardsmen had gone silent, their murmurs stuck in their throats at the sight of the princess.

"Where the hell did that come from?" Balian demanded as he pushed himself up.

"Don't know," she shrugged, unclenching and clenching her fist again. The skin of her palm stitched together without even a second thought. "These past few days...well, I've just had a lot of frustration to let out lately. Sorry it was directed at you."

"Is the queen still giving you hell for the other day?" he asked, walking toward her. He reached for her hand to see how bad it was, but she pulled away. What would he think if he saw her palm had already healed?

"Let's just say being out here with you today is something she doesn't know about. I've been basically locked in my rooms for the past three days."

Balian gave her a half-smile, his brown eyes and golden hair catching the light of the midday sun. Lyv knew her mother and father had talked about marriage between the two of them, especially since he had land and a knighthood and was perfectly acceptable match for a princess fourth in line for the throne. But Balian was her friend, eight years her senior, and nothing more. At least, not anymore.

"I think that's enough for today," she sighed. "However, do you want to come with me to see Jules? You know how much she loves to see you."

"Is that supposed to be funny?" he asked, raising a brow. "She's poured a few tankards of ale on my head when she's overheard me flirting with you after drinking too much."

Lyv grinned. "Well, come along as my guardsman then, not my friend, and stand guard by the door if you must."

She started toward the archway leading toward the courtyard, the other guardsmen giving her a wide berth as she passed as she wiped the blood from her hands and arm on a cloth she pulled from her pocket.

"You can't mean you're going out like that," Balian called, picking up his sword and sheathing it on his side. "What would people think when they see their princess splattered with blood?"