The Shadow Kingdom

Chapter 9i

Aleksand unleashes a fearsome war cry that causes the ground to shake. Diana is totally unfazed, not even bothering to assume a fighting stance yet. The two saunter around the perimeter of the pit, each looking for the other's weaknesses. Aleksand pounds on his chest like a gorilla, hoping to intimidate Diana, but it only amuses her. She finally raises her arms and stands fast against her opponent, and Aleksand takes that as an invitation. He charges like a berserker against Diana, and it quickly becomes the last mistake he'll make.

Diana's shockwave covers the ground with a thin coat of ice, enough to make Aleksand lose his footing as he charges. Before he can even fall backwards though, Diana slides around him and grabs him around the neck, forcing him to hit the ground headfirst. With her hand on his forehead, he screams in anguish as ice crystals start to form inside his eyes. Needless to say, he yields before the fight goes any further.

Diana rises from the pit without a scratch on her, having defeated the brute as if he were a twelve-year-old. The spectators shout her name like a champion gladiator, but she walks by as if the whole contest was beneath her. I happily collect our winnings and was about to hand it to her when she said, "No. You keep it."

Diana finds us a booth, and we sit down. She orders us some drinks, and for the first time since we've met, she actually looks happy. "What is this place?" I shout over the loud music playing.

"This is where spellbinders go to unwind. Let loose! Enjoy the fact that you're still alive!" A waitress delivers us a drink and some shot glasses. "You have to try this; it's called Ambrosia. It's one of House Hassan's finest exports. It's like magical vodka; a few shots of this, and you'll feel as though you're in heaven!"

I do as she says despite how uncomfortable I feel in this environment. I am a science nerd after all. My idea of merriment and diversion is playing video games with Alex on a Friday night.

The stuff feels like acid as it flows down my throat. I want to vomit at first, but after a few minutes, I start to feel as if I don't care about anything. I don't care about the people trying to kill me, I don't care if Adrian and I have a future together, and I don't even care that I just committed a felony-murder an hour ago. I feel as though everything is right in the world!

"I get the feeling you and your dad don't really get along." I am suddenly very talkative. "You and Adrian though, the two of you seem pretty close."

"Adrian saved my life." Diana replies. "When I was five, both my parents were murdered. A minor house called Song assassinated them and kidnapped me; no one ever told me why. House Song, they were human traffickers. They were going to ship a container full of girls from Hong Kong to the US when Adrian intervened.

"Someone reported House Song to the overseers. They were all executed, and the police took in the other girls. Adrian though, he realized that I was a spellbinder, so he brought me to his father. When his father realized I was a prodigy, he decided to adopt me. I was just one more prized steed in his stables. Adrian was the one who raised me; he is more of a father figure to me than anyone else."

For once, I actually feel pity for Diana. She and I really do have a lot in common. Adrian is to her what Alex was to me – what Alex is to me. "Do you remember your real parents?"

"A little. They weren't exactly good people either, but they were my parents. What about you? Your mother, I mean."

I take another shot before answering. "Yeah, I knew her." I wait for the Ambrosia to take effect while trying to find the right words to describe that woman. "She was a prostitute. She was nineteen when she got pregnant with me. When I was born, she left me at the hospital and never looked back. Alex and I tracked her down when I was fifteen back in Pittsburgh. Visiting her was the worst mistake of my life.