Forged in Fire (Forgotten Series, #2)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

She was upset and panicky. That was all I was getting from her. The upset I could live with, she was upset all the time. I wanted to leave the mountain and help her every time she felt it but the panic made me grit my teeth against the urge to go and help her, to figure out what was causing the panic and fix it. I dodged another brutal punch aimed for my head, my breathing harsh. My head was in two places at once. I needed to focus on the fight but Shey was in the back of my mind, her panic demanding my attention.

I ducked and swung out my leg, toppling one of my opponents. I whirled around, throwing several punches in the other's direction. He grunted as he dodged them. He was a larger shifter, a bit slower to move than me but he hit a lot harder. I dodged the wide swing at my head but as I spun out of his reach I had a rather large fist greet my face. The pain was instant and I was thrown into the mud by the force of it. I winced, my cheek was throbbing and there was a familiar ringing in my ears. I shoved up off of the ground and shook my head as I righted myself, wiping the mud off my face.

"Again." I held up my arms. This was for Shey. This was for her and would always be for her. The two males nodded and got into position. I ignored the pain of my cheek as we started circling. The larger of the two males didn't waste any time in attacking me. I dodged his punches quickly, moving around in the slightly muddy ground. I turned sharply as the second male started his attacks.

I dodged them both before striking out and slamming my fist off of the first one's ribs. He wheezed at the impact and I used it to my advantage to throw several punches at him. Most of them hit their mark and he fell to the mud. I whirled around and staggered slightly as another wave of panic washed over me. The other male took advantage and slammed his fist into my face, sending me sprawling. I lay in the cold mud for a moment before I slowly got to my feet. I wiped the mud from my face and ignored the painful throbbing of my jaw.

"Again." I watched as the other male pulled his partner to his feet. The one I had punched in the ribs shook his head as he held his side where I punched him.

"Broke a rib." He wheezed it out, smiling at me through the dirt caking his face. He was more than likely proud of the injury, mountains shifters prided themselves on strength and not leaving battle without injury.

"Sorry." I nodded at him and he laughed loudly before he coughed, wheezing in pain as the motions more than likely hurt like a bitch.

"It's nothing but I'll sit out this round. Jacks can keep you busy enough." He moved off the training field and I turned to the male named Jacks.

He gave me a wide grin, "You can take a beating, lowlander." He sounded impressed and I nodded, ignoring the dizziness that came with the action. I probably had a bit of a concussion. We circled each other and I narrowed my eyes before I advanced, throwing a kick to his side he had to drop his defence to block. I took the opportunity and threw out my fist. He leaned back, the blow glancing off his chin, he retaliated with a sharp jab to my ribs. I grunted as it hit but threw another punch at him.

The next few minutes were spend ducking, dodging, and trading blows until another wave of panic slammed into me. My heart clenched and once again I had a fist slamming into my face sending me sprawling into the mud. I went up onto my hands and knees, trying to ignore the swirling in my head and sudden nauseous dizziness I was currently feeling. "Again." The words it croaked out as I got back to my feet, trying to shake off the sudden vertigo I felt. Jacks looked at me but shrugged as he put his hands up as if to say it was my call and he wasn't going to argue with it.

Mountain shifters loved a fight and they didn't particularly care where it came from. We met again, slipping in the mud slightly as we traded blows. "Have you been out here all morning?" Azrael's voice was demanding but I ignored him as I blocked another heavy punch. Both of us were starting to get winded.