Elyons blades, p.32
Elyon's Blades,
p.32
Ailith stalked back to her bed, climbed under her covers, and turned towards the wall.
Sábria looked back at Isobel. The surprise she saw in her eyes told her the knight had recognized a spark of the old Ailith, too.
When Isobel realized Sábria was watching her, she raised her brows and gave the Priestess another long, appraising look and then shrugged as if to say that Ailith’s suggestion might not be such a bad idea. She escorted Sábria to the door, leaned in, and whispered, “Another time, perhaps.” As Isobel closed the door behind the Priestess, she didn’t see the raised brows accompanying a slight smile as Sábria walked back to her room and quietly shut the door.
Thirty-Four
Two days later, Isobel, Ailith, Sábria, and Shirin joined Geller’s deadnight shift weapons practice. The Prime had them working on their hand-to-hand fighting skills, something Isobel was renowned for back in Dreyutha. Twenty pairs of warriors were spread out in the practice yard.
“Go!” At Geller’s shouted command, one person in each pair attempted to take their partner to the ground.
It was Ailith’s turn to take Isobel down, but each time she tried, Isobel countered the move. The knight taunted her, slapping her on the head or across the cheek every time Ailith came within range. “Come on, little girl. I have kittens that can fight better than that. What’s the matter? Can’t you bring an old lady down?”
The next time Isobel slapped, Ailith grabbed her hand and twisted. Isobel flipped over, untwisting the hand before scissor-kicking Ailith’s legs out from under her. Ailith landed hard on her back, and by the time she rolled to take advantage of their positions, the knight had already regained her feet.
She continued to taunt her, even going so far as to kick dirt into Ailith’s face while she was down. “You might as well eat some dirt while you’re down there because even the skellies and nints will have you lying in the mud if you try to grab them like a dainty-footed noble.”
Ailith dove for Isobel’s legs, but Isobel danced out of reach. “What was that? Are you some type of dog that you want to hold my legs to piss on them?” Ailith’s face was red, but it was difficult to tell whether it was from anger or exhaustion. She still hadn’t regained her previous stamina, and she often had to stop to catch her breath long before Isobel did.
Isobel had no intention of letting her stop. She taunted and swatted and danced back, never allowing Ailith to grab her arms or legs.
Eventually, the other Blades separated and began watching the contest of wills.
Earlier that evening, Isobel had taken Geller aside and warned that she was going to use that night’s practice to anger Ailith. Jenx was scheduled to begin work later that week, and both Isobel and Sábria hoped to have Ailith restart her training at the same time. In order to do that, they needed to know how Ailith would react if she and Jenx were attacked or simply had a nob fight them when they went in for an arrest.
Ailith swung to the left and immediately pivoted around to her right. She managed to grab Isobel’s leg and lift her over her shoulder, intending to slam the knight into the ground.
Unfortunately for Ailith, Isobel wrapped her other leg around her neck, and if Ailith threw her, it would be she who landed on her face and not the knight. In this instance, prudence won out, and she loosened her hold, intending to try a different tactic.
Isobel twisted in an impossible move and kicked free. She landed on her feet, swept Ailith’s legs out from under her, and threw her down onto her face.
Sábria glanced at Shirin, wondering what would happen next.
Shirin crossed her arms and, using the term Ailith was so fond of, muttered, “Shite. I’d be giving up about now.”
Ailith slowly pushed to her feet and turned to face Isobel. She’d balled her hands into fists and looked ready for a real fight instead of this wrestling match.
Isobel waved Ailith away and turned her back to her. “The mewling infants fight better than you. Why should I waste my—”
Ailith sprang forward and cuffed Isobel on the side of the head. Hard.
Isobel swung around, fists clenched and ready for anything. To her surprise, Ailith danced back, holding her hands at her waist, palms up. She curled and flexed her fingers, telling Isobel to come ahead and try. A mischievous grin slowly spread across her face, and her eyes shone with a glimmer of the playfulness that had been missing for so long.
Tears sprang to Isobel’s eyes. She didn’t try to stop them. Instead, with those tears running down her cheeks, she held her arms out wide.
Ailith looked at the ground and then slowly walked forward and lay her forehead on Isobel’s shoulder. The knight folded her in her arms and said softly, “I knew you’d come back to me, Chele Laghei. I prayed you’d come back, and here you are.”
With tears glistening on her cheeks, Sábria walked forward and enveloped them both in her loving arms. She buried her face in Ailith’s short hair and whispered, “Welcome back, Ailith. Welcome back to Elyon’s Blades.”
Epilogue
Terrowyn strode into briefing and did a quick head count to make sure her fifteen Blades plus one shiv were accounted for. Satisfied, she leaned against the back wall. Crossing her arms, she rested the bottom of one foot on the wall and waited to hear what Geller had to say.
Geller came out of her office with Commander Shirin close behind.
Benches scraped over the wooden floor as all fifty Blades stood and came to attention. Shirin nodded. “At ease. Take your seats.” The racket was repeated as the benches were pulled back to the tables and people sat. “As you know, Mhina is back from medical leave.” She nodded at the dark-skinned, blue-eyed woman who’d been recuperating from a knife wound.
A general round of cheers and welcomes greeted the announcement.
“We’ve transferred shiv Ladin from dawning shift to replace Nox, bringing the number of shivs on deadnight back to three. Mhina will be Ladin’s handler.”
Ailith was sitting between Emlyn and Ladin, and she leaned forward to get a better look at Mhina on the other side of the room.
Geller barked, “Eyes forward, ya skut-nosed shiv.”
Turning her attention back to Shirin, who was staring at her, Ailith grinned and lifted her shoulders.
Shirin growled, “Something funny, Ailith?”
Crossing her arms, Ailith looked down to hide the amusement in her eyes. “No, Commander.”
Geller pointed a stiff finger at her, “Ya stand when th’ Commander addresses ya, shiv.”
Schooling her face to military correctness, Ailith stood and brought herself to attention. Looking the Commander in the eyes, she repeated, “No, Commander.”
Shirin nodded, and Ailith wasn’t sure whether she should remain standing or not.
Terrowyn decided for her. “Sit.”
Ailith sat, and Shirin continued. “I’d also like to welcome Blade Jenx back after her long convalescence. Healer Kestrasin released her to full duty.”
Even though most had already welcomed Jenx back, loud cheers and raucous clapping accompanied the announcement.
Ailith stared at the tabletop and felt the blood rise to her face. She wholeheartedly hoped the Commander wouldn’t single her out. She was back but was having a difficult time coming to terms with what had happened to her. Understanding her personality change was proving to be a frustrating process, one she was still working through. If she hadn’t had a brief bout of madness, which is how she thought of the change, she wouldn’t have missed so much training and wouldn’t be so far behind Emlyn and Ladin.
Shirin saw the red rising into Ailith’s cheeks and chose to move on. “Now that deadnight’s numbers are back to full strength, I’m hoping you’ll have a better chance of catching those young nobles molesting and, at times, raping the skellies and nints down in the Codpiece. Ghost led Senior Guardian Terrowyn to a skelli who’d had her throat cut the night before last. I’ll let Prime Geller address that.” With a nod to Geller, Shirin walked to the back of the room and leaned against the wall next to Terrowyn.
As Geller started in on the night’s agenda, Terro leaned over and whispered, “Good call, ignorin’ th’ shiv.”
“As we talked about earlier, I’m going to be out patrolling tonight, but I still want both you and Geller keeping an eye on her. Any sign of trouble, you pull her in, and we’ll see what needs to be done. I think she’ll do fine, though.”
“I thought th’ Lady Knight might be out tonight, too.”
“She and Sábria are taking a much-needed break. They’re both pretty exhausted.”
Back in Sábria’s room, Isobel lay back on the pillow, wiped a sheen of sweat from her brows, and tried to catch her breath. “Goddess. I’ve never—” She closed her eyes and shook her head.
Sábria pillowed her head on Isobel’s shoulder and rested her hand on her breasts. She pulled in a deep, relaxing breath. “I quite enjoyed your wonderfully supple body.”
“I’ve never—” Isobel shook her head again, and there was something close to awe in her voice when she whispered, “That many times. I’ve never…Sábria—”
Sábria put her fingers to Isobel’s lips. “Shhh. Soften your mind and savor the warmth flowing through your body. Let yourself drift into a deep, peaceful sleep.” Her voice softened, and she whispered, “No more talking, just a peaceful—” A satisfied smile spread across the Arch Priestess’ face as she heard the gentle, steady breathing of sleep.
Also by Alison Naomi Holt
Mystery
Credo’s Hope - Alex Wolfe Mysteries Book 1
Credo’s Legacy – Alex Wolfe Mysteries Book 2
Credo’s Fire – Alex Wolfe Mysteries Book 3
Credo’s Bones - Alex Wolfe Mysteries Book 4
Credo’s Betrayal - Alex Wolfe Mysteries Book 5
Credo’s Honor - Alex Wolfe Mysteries Book 6
Credo’s Bandidos - Alex Wolfe Mysteries Book 7
Credo’s Run - Alex Wolfe Mysteries Book 8
Fantasy Fiction
The Seven Realms of Ar’rothi
The Spirit Child–The Seven Realms of Ar’rothi 1
Duchess Rising–The Seven Realms of Ar’rothi 2
Duchess Rampant-The Seven Realms of Ar’rothi 3
Spyder’s Web-The Seven Realms of Ar’rothi 4
Spyder’s Kiss-The Seven Realms of Ar’rothi 5
Aidrafiri: Aevala’s Own - The 7 Realms of Ar’rothi 6
Daughters of Elyon
Elyon’s Blades - Book 1
Elyon’s Ghost - Book 2
Mage of Merigor
Mage of Merigor
Psychological Thriller
The Door at the Top of the Stairs
About the Author
“A good book is an event in my life.” – Stendhal
Alison, who grew up listening to her parents reading her the most wonderful books full of adventure, heroes, ducks, and puppy dogs, promotes reading wherever she goes and believes literacy is the key to changing the world for the better.
In her writing, she follows Heinlein’s Rules, the first rule being You Must Write. To that end, she writes in several genres simply because she enjoys the great variety of characters and settings her over-active fantasy life creates. There’s nothing better for her than when a character looks over their shoulder, crooks a finger for her to follow, and heads off on an adventure. From medieval castles to a horse farm in Virginia to the police beat in Tucson, Arizona, her characters live exciting lives and she’s happy enough to follow them around and report on what she sees.
Alison's previous life as a cop gave her a bizarre sense of humor, a realistic look at life, and an insatiable desire to live life to the fullest. She loves all horses & hounds and some humans…
For more information:
https://alisonholtbooks.com
Acknowledgments
Cover Art by Vicki Adrian
Msvicki’s Creative Cover Book Designs
Alison Naomi Holt, Elyon's Blades
