Page 47 of Daring the Drakarn Warrior Lord
The Blade Council sat at the head table. Darrokar in the center, flanked by his warriors. Rath on his right, Khorlar on his left. Zarvash glowering at the spot where Vega would sit. Vyne looking oddly pleased despite everything.
I walked into that hall with my head high. Let them see me limping. Let them see the blood and the exhaustion and the evidence of every fight I'd survived. I'd earned this. Earned my place among the warriors who'd completed the trial.
The grumbling I'd expected didn't come. A few warriors shot hostile looks my way, but most were too focused on the feast ahead to care about one human's presence.
I made my way to the head table and took the seat beside Darrokar. He didn't speak immediately, just looked at me with an expression that held too many emotions to name. Fury that I'd risked myself. Relief that I'd survived. Pride that I'd made it this far.
I met his gaze steadily. Waited for the lecture. The recriminations. The anger I knew he had every right to feel.
Instead, he reached under the table and took my hand. His claws were gentle against my scraped palm, his scales warm where they pressed against my skin.
"You're insane," he said quietly.
"I know."
"You could have died."
"I didn't."
"You didn't win."
I felt my mouth curve into something that wasn't quite a smile. Looked at the assembled warriors, at the feast laid out before us, at the city that had tested me and the mate who'd tried to stop me.
"Next year," I said, loud enough for the nearby warriors to hear, "I'm going to win."
Darrokar's hand tightened on mine. His expression shifted from complicated emotions to something simpler. Clearer.
"You're going to be the death of me,luvae," he said.
"Probably."
Around us, the feast began. Warriors filled their plates and raised their cups. Conversations started, arguments broke out, laughter echoed off stone walls. The Skalanth was over, and life in Scalvaris continued.
I sat beside my mate, surrounded by warriors who'd tried to break me, in a city that still wasn't sure I belonged. My body ached. My pride was bruised.
But I'd finished. I'd survived. And I'd set my sights on next year's victory with the same stubborn determination that had carried me this far.
Let them doubt me. Let them whisper that humans didn't belong in Drakarn trials. Let Karyseth and her followers plot and scheme and try to use my failure as ammunition.
I'd be back. Stronger. Faster. Better prepared.
And next time, I wouldn't just reach the sanctum.
I'd win.
13
TERRA
The water was almost toohot.
Steam rose from the surface of the bathing pool in lazy spirals, catching the light and turning everything hazy. I sat on the submerged stone bench, water lapping at my collarbones, and watched Darrokar through the mist.
He hadn't said much since we'd returned to our quarters. Just stripped off his ceremonial armor with methodical precision, checked me over for injuries with hands that were gentle but thorough, and guided me toward the pool with a look that suggested he had thoughts.
Many thoughts. None of them simple.
Now he sat across from me, wings spread slightly to either side. The light painted his obsidian scales in shades of fire, making him look like something carved from volcanic glass and brought to life. The ring I’d given him rested on his index finger, a sign of everything there was between us. He had to be pissed at me, but even now, he wore the ring. His golden eyes tracked my every movement, and I could see emotions in his expression that I couldn't quite separate.
