Fireborn

36 ¦ Drill Sergeant Ironfist

After Bragda had pulled some strings, the Ministry allowed her to train with Peter, Marcus, Alicia, and me. Marcus refused to come without Alicia, and Peter insisted on staying by my side.

After a month of basic training, we could move on to wielding specialist weapons and perfecting our individual skill sets.

Bragda surpassed all of us in combat training, but her best skill was melee combat with her battle ax. How in Hades could she wield a hundred-pound weapon with pinpoint accuracy?

Even her imprisonment didn't seem to hold her back. The woman was made of cast iron.

As for me, I picked up a battle hammer of equal size and weight, brandished it, and threw it into the air. Every time I aimed at a target, though, I never hit it.

I had my sister's strength, but none of her dexterity or precision.

"Come on, sis! Focus!" she yelled.

"I am focused, damn it!"

When I threw the giant weapon, it smashed clean through the wall even though the target was twenty feet away. Bragda groaned, smacking her forehead with her palm.

Peter chuckled under his breath and sauntered over towards the mound of broken plaster. Chanting in guttural Diabolan, he called on his dark magic to fix my blunder. With a powerful gust of wind, a hazy, black fog swirled over the rubble and repaired the surface.

After his magical touch, there wasn't a scratch.

"Whoa," Alicia muttered under her breath. "I need to study Wizardry."

Bragda crossed her arms. "If that's focused, Liselle, I don't want to see unfocused. What d'ya wanna do? Tear down the entire building? If an enemy charges at you, you have to hit him."

"Surely I could do better than that," Alicia said with a snarl.

"Then do it if you're so clever," I retorted.

When Peter handed Alicia the battle hammer, it fell to the ground with a heavy thud, taking her down with it. Heaving with all her might, Alicia hardly lifted it off the ground with two hands.

"What the fuck?"

It still sounded strange every time she swore. None of us were the same after the Fireborn treatment. Not even perfect Miss Alicia.

Clenching her teeth, she strained to heave it to waist-height before she dropped it with a loud clang, barely missing Marcus' foot in the process.

"Damn it, Alicia!" he growled. "Watch it!"

"How in Hades do we throw this thing?"

I strolled over and lifted the hammer one-handed as though it were a feather. "Are you done?" I asked, giving Alicia a pointed look.

"Bitch."

Bragda stepped out on the raised wooden dais in the middle of the arena. A shrill, high-pitched whistle caught my attention. And everyone else's. We all froze on the spot, grimacing in pain thanks to our sensitive hearing.

"I want all this stupid bickering to stop right now."

Alicia scoffed. Bragda gave her a murderous look that made her slink back.

"You all gotta stop thinking you're perfect just because you're Fireborn." She pointed at each of us. "You all got strengths and weaknesses, just like me."

We all exchanged glances.

"You are all smart as Hades, but you got other problems." Bragda pointed at Alicia. "Take you, Alicia. You're weak as fuck."