Page 43 of Heart of Shadows

Harper reached out, nearly dropping it as Erika let go too soon. She caught it clumsily, almost slicing herself in the process.

“Lesson one. Pommel. Grip. Guard. Blade. Point.” Erika pointed to each part of the blade in turn.

Harper examined it. The handle was made of an ivory-coloured material she did not recognise. Not wood, metal, leather… Bone? she wondered. It was smooth from use, a grain ran vertically up the length of the grip, and strange characters were carved into the side. The pommel was a slightly widened knob on the end of the grip.

The crossguard was simple, made of steel-like metal, leading into a slim blade longer than a dagger but shorter than a sword. Rippling patterns covered the blade, almost like a frozen metal river, and the cutting edge was so sharp, Harper felt she would cut herself by looking at it. Already, the weight of it tugged her arm inexorably toward the ground. How did Erika wield two of them? Harper eyed Brand’s huge, two-handed longsword strapped to his back. She probably couldn’t even lift that.

“Lesson two,” Erika continued. “Take care of your weapons better than you take care of yourself. That way, they’ll last longer and won’t fail you. A badly maintained blade is as good as nothing.”

Harper nodded. “How do I take?—”

“Lesson three.” Erika seemed determined to get through this as quickly as possible. “Don’t get hit. Block your attacker whenever possible. Cut off their attack. Better yet, avoid it altogether. Footwork and balance are key to that. Lesson four. Hit your target.”

Harper stifled a grim chuckle. “I should have seen that one coming.”

Aedon grinned at her, but Erika’s visage did not waver from grim indifference. “If you can’t hit them, you won’t be incapacitating them any time soon.”

Harper squirmed under Erika’s glare. Could she attack someone? The thought was deeply uncomfortable. “But?—”

“But nothing. The middle of a battle is not the time to be shy, not the time for cowardice, not the time to develop concern for your enemy. If they’re trying to kill you, they should be as good as dead in your book. I can already tell that’s going to be a problem.” She sent a shrivelling glare Harper’s way. Harper had no reply to that. Indignation burned her throat closed.

“Lesson five. Always be ready. Threats can be all around you. You have to constantly know what is in front, behind, and to your sides. You have to be able to assess everyone, right down to the sweet old granny who doesn’t look like she can lift a sword. Believe me, when you’re not expecting it, she can stab you in the back just as good as anyone else. And?—”

“All right. I think that’s enough for now. You’ll scare her off!” Aedon protested. He turned to Harper. “Not all grannies are evil cretins, I promise you. I wasn’t anticipating quite that deluge, but, uh… Erika’s tips are good. Think you can remember them?”

“Hmm.” Not a chance. Erika was a terrible teacher—she clearly didn’t want to share a scrap of true knowledge. Anger seethed in Harper that the woman thought so little of her. She’d done nothing to deserve that.

“Perfect. Perhaps you can show her some of that fancy footwork when we break for camp tonight, Erika.”

“Hmph.” Erika looked less than impressed as she held out her hand, raising an eyebrow at Harper. It took a long moment for Harper to realise she wanted her sword back. She passed it hurriedly to Erika, who spun the blade in her hand expertly and sheathed it on her back once more. Without another word, she jogged away and disappeared ahead to scout as Ragnar caught them up.

“That went well,” Harper said bitterly.

“Oh, don’t mind her.” Aedon waved a hand. “That was actually pretty good. Most words I’ve heard her say all month. She must like you.”

Harper snorted.

“All right. Perhaps that is pushing it, but believe me, that’s friendly for Erika.”

“I feel like she hates me, but I don’t know why.”

“Oh pish. She doesn’t hate you. You can see she’s the type who takes a while to warm to people. It’s nothing personal. When she starts to teach you some proper techniques, I’m sure you’ll be the best of buddies in no time.”

Harper laughed. “I won’t hold my breath for that.”

“Probably wise. You can help me with the fire again tonight. See if we can stoke some of your magic whilst we’re at it, hmm?”

The suggestiveness of his tone curled her toes. She tried to push away thoughts of his skin on hers and only focus on the excitement of the magic rushing through her. If she tried really hard, there was a tingle deep down in the pit of her stomach. It was small and weak, but still there. Maybe, just maybe, like Aedon had said, it was starting to well up. Or maybe it was just nerves. Any good feeling she had left ebbed.

“Sounds good,” she said, her voice painstakingly level.

“Good. You ought to learn how I keep our camp safe every night, too.”

“I thought that was Brand and Erika. You know, with all the swords and scariness.”

“Oh, that’s all for show. Magic is far better at protecting us.” He extended a hand to help her over a fallen tree blocking the trail. Those green eyes of his were mesmerising, and she risked losing herself down a dangerously irrational road indulging any of these fickle feelings he elicited. Harper swallowed, and reached for his hand.

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