Dragons of Marak: Book 1, Wings & Sword

#8

 "Humph," Jack grunted. He stood directly in front of her, his blue eyes were piercing as they met hers.

Ana held Cee in sword form, up against his thick boardra knife, blocking it. The wind blew across the courtyard, and then Jack leaped backward. He let his arms drop to his sides.

"Was that good?" Ana said.

He didn't answer. He seemed to look past her, a pensive look on his face. Ana waited, awkwardly shifting her weight. She wished she knew what he was thinking. It was their first lesson, and he had told her to block the knife blow with her sword. It seemed to be a simple exercise.

"I did it right, didn't I?" Ana said. "The block, I mean. I shifted my weight. I did an uppercut."

"Yes," Jack finally said. "But there's more to it than all that."

"What?"

His eyes met her across the courtyard. She was training in the yard behind her father's factory.

"It takes something special to make the pro leagues," Jack said. "I thought I saw that something in you, before. When you faced off against that girl, back in the tournament."

There was something about him almost calling her special that made her skin tingle.

"But I don't know if you have it after all."

Ana frowned. For a moment, her confidence deflated. But then she got a bit of Cee's energy, his relentless enthusiasm for the fight bled through their bond, and she found some new confidence.

"We've only just started," she said. "This is the first lesson. Surely it's too early to tell."

Jack grunted. "Perhaps."

"Let's go again," Ana said.

Jack obliged her. He leaped forward, swung with his knife. She raised her sword, leaned to the side. Jack's knife clanged off her sword. Then, in an eyeblink, his other hand was up, and his other boardra knife was swinging into her belly.

Ana dropped Cee. He clanged to the ground, and she found herself breathing hard. The blow hadn't cut her, she was wearing the dragonbound sparring dressed, coated with chainmail armor. She felt shocked more than anything. Jack leaped backwards and let his blades drop lackadaisically to his side.

"You didn't warn me you were going to do that!"

Jack snorted. "Did any of your competitors at the tournament warn you what they were going to do?"

"No, but—"

"You know, it takes more than training to make it as a dragonbound in these competitions."

"What?" Ana said.

He was really starting to get on her nerves. She'd thought he was supposed to be training her, not making comments about how unfit she was.

"Pick up your weapon."

Ana did just that.

"You're going to have to learn to think for yourself," Jack said.

"I think for myself," Ana said.

Jack raised his eyebrows, looking skeptical.

"What do you think you should have done just now?"

Ana hesitated.

"Block your knife?" she said.

Jack laughed.

"Is that wrong?"

"Is it wrong to throw stones at the birds?"

Ana was just starting to try and decipher the meaning of that when Jack came at her again. She raised her sword, barely managing to block him. He came at her again, with the other knife. She swung her sword again, shifting her weight. He missed, barely. Then a third strike hit her out of nowhere. Ana tripped backward. Jack hopped away from her. She caught the briefest of grins on his face. Then it was back to being solemn for him.