Chapter Twenty-Four
Myrina had begun to move among the crowd before the palace portico, thanking her Askarra Guards and greeting the common Askari folk who had gathered in the aftermath of the titan’s attack.
While Etara had isolated herself in the palace, Myrina had a way with the people—Lorath could give her that much—and she obviously understood the value of theatrics.
He also knew that she wouldn’t have forgotten about the Horadrim or their vault and would soon turn her attention toward them; this time, there would be no higher authority to stop her.
Whatever they planned to do, they had to do it quickly.
With Adreona’s injury, she was in no condition to fight, but that didn’t stop her from pushing her way through the crowd, a look of such intense hatred on her face that Lorath feared she might skip the honor duel and simply execute her opponent on the spot.
“Are you certain about this?” Lorath asked as he jostled his way to her side.
“I am,” she said.
“But your leg—”
“I can still kill her.”
“What if you name me your champion?” he said. “Let me fight her for you.” But even as he said it, he knew what an absurd suggestion it was. The Amazon sense of honor would never allow a mainlander like him to do such a thing. “What about Tavie? Can she fight in your place?”
“I guess you still don’t know when to quit,” she said. “It must be me, Lorath. This is the only way.”
The throng thickened the nearer they got to Myrina. Everyone wanted to get closer to the woman who had defeated the beast. Few had directly witnessed the event, which meant the story had already begun to spread, and the people would believe it. At last, Adreona lost her patience.
“ Captain Myrina!” she shouted, emphasizing her opponent’s rank.
The ferocity in her voice parted the crowd before her, opening an avenue to the would-be queen.
A hush fell over the square as Myrina turned toward Adreona, and Lorath watched her quickly consider her response, weighing the relative risks of the options before her.
He knew she couldn’t arrest or kill Adreona then and there, even though she probably wanted to.
That would cause shock and confusion, undermining her moment of triumph, and her rival remained too trusted and popular.
Myrina’s mouth broke into a forced smile. “Captain Adreona! I am pleased to see you are unharmed.”
“Are you?” Adreona limped toward her, the heel of her spear clicking against the paving stones. “Captain Myrina, in the name of life, in the name of courage, and in the name of wisdom, I declare you unfit to rule, and I challenge you by ancient right to single combat for the crown!”
She had raised her voice so that all in the square could hear her.
Again, Lorath watched Myrina quickly work through her possible courses of action.
She held herself high, her demeanor regal as her eyes flicked across the crowd, perhaps trying to assess the mood of the people.
Then she seemed to appraise Adreona, and her gaze locked on to her enemy’s limp.
“I seek no quarrel with you, Captain,” she said, sounding both confident and calm. “I see no reason to engage in a petty fight. I have proven myself worthy of the crown—”
“How worthy can you be if you defy our laws and traditions?” Adreona demanded.
A murmur swept through the crowd, which Myrina seemed to notice, and her expression hardened.
“I have no intention of defying tradition. If you are committed to this course, I cannot ignore your challenge, and I will abide by the ancient laws of our people. I only ask that we settle the matter now to avoid prolonging this conflict. Our people need certainty and peace.”
Lorath had hoped Adreona might have some time to recover before the actual duel, but Myrina had shrewdly cut off that possibly.
“I agree,” Adreona said. “And I accept. Let us finish this.”
The Amazons and Askarra Guards then cleared a path for both women to make their way toward the basilica.
Lorath fell in behind them with Tyrael, Donan, Alenia, and Tavie, and together they moved with the tide of warriors through the shattered gates and into the palace.
Adreona and Myrina marched to the center of the vast floor and stood facing each other within the borders of a circular mosaic.
The other Amazons all seemed to know exactly what must happen to satisfy the traditional demands of the ritual.
They enclosed the combat space in a ring, holding up their shields to form a wall.
Outside that enclosure, some of the common folk had followed the procession into the basilica and now stood among the columns gape-mouthed, staring up at the monumental reliefs and the vaulted ceiling.
Others stood on the portico outside the open gates, peering in.
Lorath assumed that under normal circumstances, they might not have been allowed to witness the fight about to take place, but the titan had broken open the basilica to their view.
Tavie brought Adreona a shield to use with her spear, and one of the silks brought Myrina both a shield and a spear to replace the weapon she had thrown at the titan.
No one spoke. No one cheered or jeered, even among the Askarra Guard.
A kind of reverence had taken hold of the assembly, transcending political allegiances, more valuable than the flimsy loyalty Myrina had bought with bribery.
Every step and scrape on the floor echoed loudly as all within the basilica waited for the fight to unfold.
When both combatants stood armed, they saluted each other.
“I fight for the virtues unto my death,” Adreona pronounced.
“I fight for the virtues unto my death,” Myrina repeated. “May fate determine the victor.”
With that, their combat began.
Myrina lunged first, pressing what she obviously believed to be her advantage against an injured adversary.
She leapt high and thrust downward with her spear at Adreona’s right side, but Adreona raised her shield and deflected the blow, forcing her to leap away onto her bad ankle.
She winced and stumbled, and Myrina attacked again and again, spear ringing against shield, driving Adreona backward on her unsteady feet.
Lorath feared she might fall, and if she did, he knew that would mean her death.
He felt his own rage rising, roaring in his ears, tunneling his vision, but he could do nothing to defend her.
But gradually, Adreona seemed to find her footing, adjusting her stance to compensate for her weak side, and she soon began countering with attacks of her own.
The two warriors circled each other, thrusting and ducking, pressing and falling back with lethal grace, as if engaged in a kind of deadly dance.
“Admit it,” Myrina said. “You’ve been wanting to do this for a long time.”
“We’ve had our differences,” Adreona said, breathing hard through her clenched teeth. “But I have never wished you harm, Myrina. I thought Skovos needed you.” She darted forward, but her ankle slowed her attack.
Myrina easily dodged her strike. “Skovos does need me. I am the only one who can—”
Adreona charged again, only this time, Myrina managed to shoulder her attack aside with such force that she knocked Adreona to the ground.
Her spear broke in half beneath her as she fell, and in the next breath, Myrina pounced, aiming her own spearpoint at the middle of her enemy’s chest. Adreona managed to deflect the blow high enough that the blade penetrated her shoulder instead.
She let out a howl of anger and pain. At the sound of her anguish, Lorath almost leapt into the circle, but Tyrael extended an arm across his chest to hold him back.
“You cannot enter that ring,” he said. “There is nothing you can do.”
And that was the source of Lorath’s torment.
That was the fear that hid behind his rage: the feeling of utter powerlessness and helplessness as the people around him suffered and died.
The night of Malthael’s Reaping had broken something in him.
He could do nothing to stop the attack, and the ensuing carnage had left him full of hatred and anger toward those who would hurt the innocent. Toward evil like Myrina.
He felt his body shaking and feared he would not be able to control what he did next. But he thought back to what Keldon had said, and he let himself feel what his rage was guarding. He let in his fear, and he let in his grief, and he let go of his drive to intervene.
Adreona had seized Myrina’s spear with her hands, while Myrina threw aside her shield and leaned on the shaft, driving it downward.
Adreona let out a primal roar, her face contorted in pain, then released the spear shaft.
Its head drove deeper, and she screamed again, but with her freed hand, she felt for the broken point of her spear, grabbed it in her fist, and jabbed it upward into Myrina’s side, through the gap in her armor.
Myrina flinched, released the grip on her own weapon, and leapt back, looking down at herself as if trying to understand what had just happened.
She felt her side and touched the broken spear shaft protruding from her ribs.
She gasped but couldn’t breathe. She coughed, and blood spurted from her lips onto her chin, her eyes widening with the realization of her own death.
She looked around at her Askarra Guards, searching for help that could not and would not come.
She took one step, and then she collapsed.
Lorath could restrain himself no longer. He broke through the shield wall and raced to Adreona’s side. She looked up at him with a grim smile, and she opened her mouth to say something, but before she could, her eyes rolled back and closed.
He leaned over her, cradling her neck. “No, no, stay with me,” he said. “Adreona, stay with me.”
“Lorath,” Alenia said. “Would this help?”