Page 57 of Oath of Betrayal
Later that evening, I found a strange package in my room. When I opened it, there were several dresses from my home and a falchion with a nivale flower on the pommel in a beautifully embossed scabbard. When I went to the dining area to ask about my unexpected gift, Ormond was particularly quiet; it was Alaric who spilled the beans.
The commander had commissioned the sword from Bryna before travelling to the capital. On his return, he’d picked it up, as well as clothes that the blacksmith thought I’d appreciate. As I stroked the beautifully patterned scabbard, a wave of homesickness and gratitude washed over me.
I approached him with falchion pressed to my chest, tiptoeing and placing a hand on his shoulder to support myself. ‘Thank you,’ I said, kissing his cheek, ‘It is beautiful. You really know how to make a woman happy.’ His eyes lit with joy before he schooled his expression into his usual stoic features.
‘I wanted to give you something almost as unique as you are.’ He said it so nonchalantly, as if a handcrafted sword was no bigdeal, before pulling my hand off his arm and kissing the palm. ‘I’m glad you like it, Nivale.’
His lips caressed my skin, sending goosebumps along my forearm. I felt warmth spreading in my chest, and only Alaric’s focused gaze stopped me from embracing the massive rider. Orm was playing a dangerous game, and I didn’t know where it was heading.
I noticed the fleeting grimace on Alaric’s face when Orm kissed my hand, but when I turned to him, he shook his head with an all-knowing smile. Unable to make them both happy, I went with my third option and excused myself, rushing to the dragon’s lair to show Vahin my newest possession.
I was lounging on the dragon’s arm, playing with my blade after Vahin had expressed sufficient elation over how beautiful it was when both men joined me. When I refused to move, they took it upon themselves to see who could make me laugh harder with ribald stories of their past adventures. It was a strange contest, but the joy was palpable, and I wished we could stay like that forever.
The next day, I woke up earlier than usual and went to the training grounds with the sword attached to my hip to find the commander shirtless and sparing with his men. When I taunted him for a match, Orm was initially eager and we spared for a good hour before our intricate motions began attracting attention. Then, many soldiers came over, asking to cross blades with me.
Orm didn’t protest when I agreed, but after I defeated several of them and the veterans flocked to ask me to show them my techniques, his expression became more and more thunderous as the number of men surrounding me increased. He didn’t intervene; he just observed my interactions with a grimace I struggled to decipher.
‘Why didn’t you tell me you are going on the patrol tomorrow? I can be ready by dawn. I’ll join the regular soldiers since we get along well,’ I said to him after overhearing a soldier boasting about it. His jaw clenched, and I faced a wall of stubborn refusal. I didn’t care.
‘I said nothing because I scheduled you to train new recruits with Alaric.’
‘Then you can reschedule me.’ The excitement from training still thrummed through my veins, so I grabbed Orm’s hand, pulling him towards the castle. ‘Come Ursus, I can see something is bothering you, and I think you will be more agreeable after a good breakfast. Sated bears are less likely to be obtrusive.’
The moment we entered the castle, Orm’s arms surrounded me, and he buried his face in my hair, inhaling deeply. ‘I’m not obtrusive, I just … I can’t … it’s too dangerous out there,’ he groaned before releasing me and striding away as if a ghoul were biting at his heels.
I stood watching him go. Something was very wrong if the man who had hired me to fight monsters would rather lock me in a tower than let me face a threat whilst surrounded by an army.
Alright, Commander, I’ll let you get away with this one, but if you stop me from going on the next one, I will find out what the hell is going on myself.
The opportunity to leave the fortress walls arrived sooner than I expected.
Two days later, I was training with the soldiers, cursing under my breath and trying to sweat out my frustrations. Orm and Ari had held a meeting with two other commanders, and after the Ihrain incident, both men had decided I should stay out of sight—at least until they knew where we stood with the rest of the dragon riders.
I was going through a complex attack sequence that involved both blade and a fire sigil when a messenger ran in shouting that a supply wagon was under attack on the road to the fortress. The Captain of the Guard was asking for assistance from anyone who could hold a sword or spear. I wasn’t sure what exactly had attacked the wagon, but my muscles were warmed up and we had several men there who’d just finished their own routines as well.
‘Gather your weapons! We are needed,’ I called out, grinning like a madwoman.
‘Under whose command?’ one of them asked, but I only looked at him, raising my eyebrow before he lowered his head, muttering, ‘Yes, Lady Mage, but we should inform the commander.’
‘The commander is in a meeting, and the merchants won’t mind who saves them as long as their skin is intact. I’m going, and you can shift your hairy arses and help me or explain to Ormond why you let me fight alone. Your choice. Whatever you decide, I won’t hold it against you.’
I made for the gates. As I began running, I saw one of the veterans whisper something to the messenger, but I didn’t turn to check as I rushed to the scene. I hadn’t even broken a sweat by the time we made it out of the stronghold, but as we reached the edge of the forest, I saw several guards fighting a pack of werewolves.
‘Vahin, there’s an attack near the gates. I can handle it, but if you could check the perimeter of the fortress, I’d appreciate it. A pack of werewolves coming so close to civilisation is unheard of, and there may be more …’I said through the link we shared, smirking at the surprise in the dragon’s thoughts.
‘Do you need me there, Little Flame?’ he asked. I could sense he was concerned, but he didn’t try spoiling my fun.
‘No, you are close enough if I need to access the aether. I’m more concerned about other travellers and can’t cover that much ground myself,’I answered, wishing Orm and Ari were more like him. A dark chuckle rumbled through my thoughts when I failed to hide my last mental remark.
‘Oh, I can be possessive and overprotective too, Little Flame. I’ve just had millennia to learn that those feelings can ruin even true love. Orm’s barely tasted the dark edges of his soul. No one taught him how to deal with his wild magic; all they did was teach him to cage that part of him. Now it’s rattling the bars, and he doesn’t know how to handle it.’
I was too close to the skirmish for more conversation, especially when I saw one of the guards pushed to the ground as a rabid werewolf locked his jaws on his soft entrails. I grasped a stream of aether and shaped it with a quick incantation, pushing condensed energy into the beast’s head.
A pain-filled screech cut through the noise when the power of my spell threw the beast backwards, but now the attention of the rest of the pack was solely on me.
‘C’mon you sons of bitches, you know you want to,’ I taunted, laughing and feeling the familiar heat of battle rising in my veins.
‘My lady, you can’t fight them all—the commander will have our hides if anything happens to you,’ muttered one of the veterans while the others attempted to form a wall of shields around me.
