No Time to Cry (The Dream Guardian Series: An Epic Fantasy Adventure Book 1) by S. E. Henry

Author:S. E. Henry [Henry, S. E.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wood Duck Creative, LLC
Published: 2022-04-25T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 15

Fog in the Field

Trigg pivoted, and the knife clipped his ear instead of impaling his forehead. Blood welled at his wound. He shook his head and planted his feet, facing his opponent and friend, Colmehyuff, the fire sylph.

“Cole!” Trigg yelled. “I thought we agreed no aiming for the head!”

From the sideline, Barnabus yelled, “How do you expect to survive the Arena when you can’t even dodge a simple knife attack? You must be faster! Again.”

Trigg faced Colmehyuff again. The wind blew, and Trigg’s hair flew into his face, blocking his view. It’d grown long in the three months since he’d left Earth and come to Imperious Nox. Every afternoon, in the midday heat, he’d trained with his squad members with Barnabus’s coaching to prepare for the Arena. The nights, they spent searching for sleepers who escaped the fields.

Trigg pushed his hair out of his eyes. He twirled his sword and shifted his weight to his toes. The training routine had helped him ignore his feelings about Terryn and her death. It’d been his fault. He’d unknowingly wove the binding spell that had been broken by the portal. If he’d had control of his abilities—knew how to undo the spell—she would have never died.

“Trigg, stop thinking about her,” Barnabus called across the dirt training arena. The gargoyle leaned on a wooden rail fence. His dark red wings sheltered him from the noontime sun.

“I was not.” Trigg thumbed the beading sweat from his upper lip and crouched.

“Okay. You weren’t,” Barnabus agreed, not pressing the point. “You’re also not relaxed. Or focused. You’ve got to keep calm. When you’re in the Arena, it’s the details you don’t notice that’ll get you killed.”

“How ’bout you get your sister killed and then I’ll listen to what you have to say about needing to focus,” Trigg snapped. Why couldn’t Barnabus leave it well enough alone?

“I know where you’re coming from, boy,” Barnabus said, a warning clear in his tone.

“Doubt that.” Trigg scoffed. Sorrow compressed his chest, making his scoff more like a wheeze. He did not want to have this conversation. Not now. Not ever. He just wanted to fight, to stay numb enough until he could die in the Arena.

In one smooth motion, Barnabus flapped his wings, cleared the wooden fence, and landed face to face with Trigg. Dirt swirled around them. Trigg held his ground and returned Barnabus’s glare even though the compassion he saw in his instructor’s golden cat eyes gave him the urge to squirm.

“It wasn’t just my sister I killed, but my entire clan. Mother, father, brothers, cousins, aunts.” As Barnabus spoke, his voice cracked with old scars, worn down by something else Trigg heard in his voice but didn’t understand. “They died because of my arrogance. So yes, I do know what you’re dealing with.” Placing his clawed paw behind Trigg’s neck, he continued, “And I can show you the way back to where you want to be, but first you must learn to focus.”

Trigg bowed his head. He’d been such an idiot.

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