Ronen #2
“Sure will. Right over to your cordistella.”
I swung at him, not even caring if I hit his wings. He jumped out of the sleigh laughing.
“Feel better?” he asked.
“Barely.”
But we both knew that was a lie. It had helped enough that I didn’t feel like puking.
Wouldn’t that be something for Lucille to see? The big, bad general—as she’d called me—puking over the edge of a sleigh, taken out by motion sickness. I’d rather touch a Spinewalker and be absorbed into their tree-like body.
“Beautiful, did you start without us?” Alexei called out as we walked over.
It seemed like they did. Except I wasn’t quite sure what exactly they had started.
The pet sat on the snow-covered ground in a circle of MJ’s fire, his eyes closed and face pinched as if concentrating.
The hellion stood near the fire, her fingers digging into her palms. I eased down the barrier between us, and her frustration hummed faintly beneath the boisterous noise of their guardian bond.
MJ shrank the fire ring an inch, and the invasive energy grew, pushing the hellion’s emotions away in favor of its own desires. She shook as she held herself still near the fire, staring at the pet with desperation.
I positioned myself next to MJ. “Care to explain?”
Alexei went to her other side. “Yeah, what fun are we missing out on?”
MJ kept her eyes on the pet and her fire circle. “We’re testing the guardian bond and Lucille’s restraint.”
“You sure you’re not pushing our beautiful girl too hard? She looks like a frayed bowstring ready to snap.”
MJ edged her fire closer to the pet, unconcerned. Snow hissed, and the fire popped, shooting out an ember that landed on the pet’s face. The hellion’s restraint broke. She luscelered, and I moved in front of MJ, anticipating their bond’s retaliation.
An icicle flew toward my neck and instantly melted upon contact, wetting my undershirt. I grabbed Lucille’s chin, forcing her to meet my gaze. The moment she did, the manipulative force fled, as if unable to contend with the cordistella bond.
“That wasn’t very nice,” I calmly stated.
She jolted awake, her body stiffening as she realized what she had been about to do. Her emotions spiraled into horror, her breathing becoming uneven.
Hmm, I didn’t like that. Swiping my gloved thumb across her lip, I opened one emotion to her—smugness. “If you wanted to fight me, Hellion, you’d have to do a lot better than that.”
Three cute lines wrinkled her forehead as her starry eyes narrowed. My angry little hellion focused on my lips… or, more accurately, my smirk.
Either way, I enjoyed her attention.
Before I knew it, she swiped a knife from my belt and had it pressed to my neck.
I enjoyed that even more, especially when she thought her puny knife could actually do any damage to me.
“Beautiful, I’d quit while you’re… well. Never mind, you’re not even ahead. I’d just quit.”
The rings around her eyes pulsed with light.
Stubborn to a fault. I suppose that was one thing I knew about her.
I raised a brow.
“What are you going to do, Hellion?” I whispered.
She scowled and nicked me. A single drop of blood trailed down my neck. Normally, that wouldn’t be possible. But no one else had the power I did. No one could block our bond as thoroughly.
She tilted her head and smirked back at me, but her emotions hinted at disappointment.
Why? About what? That I didn’t stop her? That it was too easy to cut me?
Now would be the perfect time to prove her wrong and fully open up, as MJ said. My chest tightened at the thought.
Just for a moment. Just so I could prove—to her and myself—that it was possible. That Etan hadn’t completely ruined me.
I gave her three seconds to live in her emotions and inhaled.
Then I tore away every block on the cordistella bond and pressed my neck into her knife.
Immediately, her hand moved away. She attempted to push forward, her hand shaking, her emotions warring against her.
The knife hovered near, but that was as far as it’d go as she fought to stab me.
I caught her wrist and pulled her arm behind her back.
“We’re not able to harm each other, Hellion. Our powers already know this. It’s time you do too,” I murmured into her ear, brushing her skin with my tingling lips.
She relaxed in my arms, and for a moment, I just stood there, feeling all of her.
Not just her emotions. Her very being wove through me, dancing around the empty spaces she was supposed to fill, teasing me with peace from her light, taunting me with acceptance from her darkness.
It was nothing compared to what I’d been experiencing with the little bits that had permeated the shadow block. It was remarkable.
Until I remembered she could feel everything I did. She was in my head.
A cold sweat broke out along my spine. Etan’s face flashed. Without thought, I slammed my blocks back up, forcing her out.
She hissed, her powers lashing out. They hit me like a brush of warm air.
“Is that your strategy to escape me?” I inquired, pushing her away from my pounding chest.
“Is this your strategy to infuriate me with your overpowering smugness?” she countered.
“Is it working?”
“No,” she snapped, twisting to face me. “But using the bond as your own personal tool against me is. Don’t you think I’ve already had enough of that?”
“That wasn’t my intention.”
She huffed a laugh. “Which part, General? You didn’t intend to throw the force of the bond at me so I wouldn’t stab you?
Or you didn’t intend to take down your walls and realize your mistake too late?
” The hellion stepped closer. “I know cordistellas can’t physically harm each other.
It wasn’t a lesson I needed to learn. But I was curious to see if your block changed things. ” She lifted her chin. “It does.”
There was so much meaning behind those two words that I considered lightening my block to understand what she was feeling. But I couldn’t. I just fucking couldn’t.
MJ stepped between me and the hellion’s heated glare. “Let’s focus on one bond at a time.” She ushered the hellion over to where the pet stood awkwardly.
Alexei groaned. “I should have a say in what we drill next. This was my date.”
“Aww, poor Bowel babe not getting what he wants?” MJ mocked. “I’m sure one of your countless females would be happy to stroke your ego and provide your binky back at the castle.”
Lightning slammed between her feet, forcing her to jerk back.
“Careful, MJ. Wouldn’t want you to lose your ability to stomp on kittens.”
Challenge and excitement glinted across MJ’s face. “As much as I’d love to slow-roast you, you’ve already injured one appendage. It’d only be cruel of me to injure another.”
The clouds darkened from a glum white to a tumultuous gray, thunder rumbling overhead.
“Alexei,” I warned. “I’m not in the mood to get rained on.”
“So hide under a tree.”
Sighing, I kicked his knees and shoved him. He crashed onto his stomach with an oomph, the hard-packed snow barely cushioning him. Then Rune sat on him for good measure.
MJ and the hellion snickered while I held back a smile.
Alexei worked his jaw, half-heartedly glaring between Rune and me. “Rude.”
“They enjoyed it.”
“Traitors,” he mumbled, trying to push Rune off him.
I snapped my fingers, and she finally moved, but not before lining his face in slobber.
Alexei’s expression was more than sour when he stood. He aggressively swiped at his face. “Fine. Explain the purpose of this training.”
MJ raised a brow. “Isn’t it obvious? We have limited knowledge about the guardian bond. We need to see how it works with them, and how they’ll behave in certain situations.”
“Well, it seems the guardian bond has the same murderous praesidium trigger as the cordistella bond.”
“Seems so.” I stared at the pet, who watched the hellion with a defeated expression.
Lucille shook her head. “Except I never went through with hurting you, Alexei. But if Ronen hadn’t been here…”
Guilt weighed down her trailing words. She would’ve tried to kill MJ.
The pet bowed his head. The sight pleased me. He had a lot to feel guilty for, and I hoped it brought him to his knees every night.
“We would’ve had some fun,” MJ said in a playful tone, unbothered. “But we’ll note Ronen helps the—”
“GBPC,” Alexei interrupted. “Guardian bond praesidium craze.”
MJ shook her head. “Sure.”
“How do you want to proceed, MJ?” I asked.
MJ’s gaze flicked between me and the hellion. “We’ll fight—three versus two. You’ll be with Aspen and Lucille. And Rune can play spectator.”
Alexei bounced lightly on the balls of his feet. “Rules?”
“No powers. Whoever is pinned and bleeding first wins,” MJ answered.
“Almost seems unfair.” I smirked.
MJ’s mouth curved slowly as she raised her bow. “We’ll see.”
Her arrow released with a sharp twang, flying toward the hellion. I made to move toward her, but she already dove out of the way. She didn’t need my help. Something flashed in my peripheral and thwacked into my bracer. I lifted my arm. Alexei’s dagger stuck out of the hard leather.
“If you’re going to be distracted, this is going to be over before it starts,” Alexei taunted.
I thickened the blocks on the cordistella bond, then luscelered, tackling Alexei to the ground.
“That’s cheating, bastard,” he growled, slamming an elbow into my nose.
It snapped, and I grunted, feeling warmth spill down my chin.
“First blood.” Alexei’s blue eyes lit with wicked delight.
I threw a punch toward his nose to repay the favor. He dodged at the last second. My fist hit his cheekbone, and his skin split under my grooved glove.
Blood dripped into my teeth as I smiled. “Bleeding and pin—”
Alexei grabbed my wrist and bucked, forcing me off.
We rolled across the snow, throwing fists, elbows, and choking each other, hoping one of us would give.
But it never happened. We fought like brothers, best friends, exhilarated by the challenge of an even playing field.
Our weapons were forgotten. MJ, the hellion, and the pet all faded away.
It was just Alexei and me enjoying beating the shit out of each other.