THE BULLY

The Bone Yard didn't have a gym. It had "The Pit."

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‎It was a crude, muddy circle dug into the earth near the perimeter fence, ringed by heavy logs. Every morning, the sound of grunts, cracking wood, and the dull thud of bodies hitting the dirt echoed through the camp.

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‎I usually avoided it. The violence reminded me too much of the ambush.

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‎But today, Olara had sent me to fetch water from the rain barrels near the perimeter. To get there, I had to pass The Pit.

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‎I kept my head down, hugging the heavy wooden bucket to my chest, trying to make myself invisible. My ankle was throbbing, a dull rhythm that synced with the pounding of my heart.

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‎"Well, well. Look who finally crawled out of the kitchen."

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‎The voice was like a whip crack.

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‎I froze. I didn't need to look up to know who it was. The scent of woodsmoke and bitter aggression hit me before she did.

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‎Vexa.

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‎I tightened my grip on the bucket and kept walking. "I'm working, Vexa. Leave me alone."

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‎"Working?" Vexa stepped into my path, blocking me. She was flanked by two other female rogues—sycophants who snickered at her every word. Vexa looked imposing in her leather armor, her arms crossed over her chest, muscles rippling. "You call scrubbing pots work? That’s charity, Princess. Kaelen just gave you something to do so you wouldn't feel useless."

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‎"Move," I said, trying to step around her.

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‎Vexa sidestepped, cutting me off again. She reached out and shoved the bucket.

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‎Water sloshed over the rim, soaking the front of my shirt.

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‎"Oops," Vexa smirked. "Clumsy."

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‎A small crowd began to gather. In the Bone Yard, entertainment was scarce. A confrontation between the Head Enforcer and the "Bloodmoon Pet" was prime viewing.

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‎"What do you want, Vexa?" I asked, setting the bucket down. I wiped the cold water from my shirt, my hands shaking.

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‎"I want to know why you're still here," Vexa spat. She circled me like a shark. "We raid convoys for food. For weapons. But you? You're just a mouth to feed. A weak, human mouth."

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‎"I'm not human," I said through gritted teeth.

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‎"Aren't you?" Vexa stopped in front of me. She leaned down, sniffing the air near my neck. "You smell human. You bleed human. And you cower like a human."

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‎She grabbed my arm hard.

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‎"Let's see if you bounce like a human."

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‎Before I could react, she spun me around and shoved me toward The Pit.

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‎I stumbled, my bad ankle buckling. I flailed, trying to catch my balance, but the mud was slick. I went down hard, sliding into the center of the sparring ring.

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‎The mud was freezing. It coated my hands and knees, seeping through my clothes instantly. Laughter erupted from the onlookers.

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‎I scrambled to my knees, wiping slime from my face.

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‎Vexa vaulted over the log barrier, landing lightly on the balls of her feet. She grinned, rolling her neck.

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‎"Get up," she commanded. "Let's see what they taught you in that palace of yours."

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‎"I don't want to fight you," I said, backing away on my hands and knees.

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‎"You don't have a choice," Vexa said. "This is the Rogue lands. You fight, or you bleed." 

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‎She lunged.

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‎It wasn't a spar. It was an assault.

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‎She grabbed the front of my shirt and hauled me up. I tried to scratch her face, but she caught my wrist effortlessly. She twisted my arm behind my back, forcing a cry of pain from my throat, and slammed me face-first into the mud.

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‎"Pathetic!" Vexa yelled to the crowd. "Is this Magnus's bride? Is this the future Luna? She fights like a rabbit!"

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‎I gasped for air, mud filling my mouth. I spat it out, coughing. Rage, hot and blinding, flared in my chest.

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‎Get up, I told myself. Do not let her win.

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‎I pushed myself up. Vexa was laughing, her back turned to play to the crowd.

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‎I didn't think. I just moved.

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‎I launched myself at her back. I wasn't strong, but I was angry. I wrapped my arms around her waist and drove my shoulder into her kidneys.

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‎The impact surprised her. She stumbled forward a step.

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‎"You little—" Vexa snarled, spinning around.

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‎She backhanded me.

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‎The force of the blow was like being hit with a brick. My head snapped to the side. I tasted copper as my lip split. I fell backward, landing hard in the muck. The world spun.

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‎Vexa stood over me, her chest heaving. She wasn't laughing anymore. She looked murderous.

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‎"You want to play dirty?" she hissed. She drew a wooden training knife from her belt. "Let's see how you look with a few more scars. Maybe then Kaelen won't look at you so softly."

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‎She raised the knife.

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‎I scrambled backward, but my back hit the log wall. I was trapped.

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‎Vexa brought the knife down.

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‎I threw my hands up to shield my face—

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‎THWACK.

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‎The blow never landed.

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‎A hand, massive and scarred had caught Vexa’s wrist in mid-air.

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‎The air in the pit instantly changed. The temperature dropped. The laughter died in a heartbeat.

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‎Kaelen stood there.

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‎He hadn't been there a second ago. He had moved with that terrifying, supernatural speed of the Butcher.

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‎He wasn't looking at Vexa. He was looking at me, huddled in the mud, bleeding from the lip.

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‎His eyes were a storm of gray and gold. His jaw was clenched so hard I could see the muscle twitching.

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‎"Alpha," Vexa breathed, her anger instantly replaced by fear. "I was just... testing her."

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‎Kaelen slowly turned his gaze to Vexa. He twisted her wrist. Vexa gasped, dropping the wooden knife into the mud.

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‎"Testing her?" Kaelen’s voice was dangerously quiet. "She is scrubbing pots, Vexa. She is not a warrior."

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‎"She attacked me!" Vexa lied, pointing at me. "I was just defending myself."

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‎Kaelen released Vexa with a shove that sent her stumbling back. "Get out of my sight. Before I forget that you are one of my best fighters."

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‎Vexa looked like she wanted to argue, but one look at Kaelen’s glowing eyes silenced her. She glared at me and vaulted out of the pit, disappearing into the crowd.

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‎The crowd dispersed quickly, sensing the Alpha’s mood.

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‎I sat in the mud, shaking. I waited for Kaelen to help me up. I waited for him to offer me a hand, to ask if I was okay, like he had in the ravine.

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‎He didn't.

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‎He stood over me, arms crossed, looking down with an expression that wasn't kind. It was cold. Disappointed.

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‎"Stand up," he said.

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‎I looked at him, wiping blood from my lip. "I... I can't. My ankle..."

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‎"Stand. Up." The Alpha command rolled over me, forcing my muscles to obey despite the pain.

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‎I dragged myself to my feet, swaying. I was covered in filth. I was bleeding. I felt humiliated.

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‎"She would have killed me," I whispered.

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‎"Yes," Kaelen agreed. "She would have."

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‎"And you just watched?"

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‎"I stopped her," Kaelen said. "This time."

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‎He took a step closer, ignoring the mud on my clothes. He gripped my chin, tilting my face up to inspect the split lip. His touch was gentle, but his words were brutal.

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‎"You expect me to be there every time, Celeste?" he asked softly. "You think because you are my prisoner, because... because of the bond... that I will always be able to save you?"

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‎My breath hitched at the mention of the bond. It was the first time he had acknowledged it out loud.

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‎"I can't be your shadow," Kaelen said, dropping his hand. "I have a war to fight. I have a pack to protect. I can't spend every second watching your back because you don't know how to defend it."

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‎"I never learned!" I cried. "Magnus didn't want a warrior. He wanted a lady!"

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‎"Well, you aren't with Magnus anymore," Kaelen snapped. "You are in the Bone Yard. And here, titles don't stop knives. Silk doesn't stop teeth."

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‎He gestured to the muddy pit around us.

‎"If you can't fight, Celeste... you die. It’s that simple. Vexa won't stop. Others won't stop. You are prey in a den of predators."

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‎He turned to walk away.

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‎"Wait!" I called out.

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‎He stopped, looking back over his shoulder.

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‎I wiped the mud from my eyes. I stood up straighter, ignoring the screaming pain in my ankle. I looked at the man who had saved me from a bear but refused to help me out of a mud puddle.

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‎He was right.

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‎I was done being the victim. I was done waiting for a savior.

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‎"Teach me," I said.

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‎Kaelen turned fully around. He raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

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‎"Teach me to fight," I demanded, my voice shaking but loud. "You said I need to defend myself? Fine. Then show me how. Show me how to stop her next time."

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‎Kaelen studied me. He looked at the mud in my hair, the blood on my chin, and the fire in my eyes.

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‎A slow, dark smirk spread across his face. It wasn't mocking. It was dangerous.

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‎"You want me to teach you?" he asked, walking back toward me. "I don't teach 'ladies', Celeste. I train killers. It will hurt. You will bleed. You will hate me more than you already do."

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‎"Good," I spat, spitting a glob of bloody mud onto the ground. "I work better when I'm angry."

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‎Kaelen stared at me for a long moment. Then, he nodded.

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‎"Dawn," he said. "Meet me here. Don't be late."

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‎He walked away, leaving me standing in the pit.

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‎I was bruised. I was dirty. I was terrified.

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‎But as I watched him go, I realized something.

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‎The princess had died in that mud puddle.

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‎And something else was starting to wake up.

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