Kyna rolled her eyes, head following the motion until her gaze landed on the girl angrily approaching her. “You-” she started to say, already bracing to be pushed away from the meek little rogue girl by her party member.
What she was not braced for was a punch to her fucking face. The world flipped on its side and Kyna landed badly on her left wrist. She blinked open her eyes, finding herself staring directly at the rogue’s dirty black boots. Then the axe-wielding girl grabbed Kyna’s breastplate and half-lifted her off the ground. Kyna slowly turned her head to meet the light pink eyes of the stupidly strong girl.
“Kelsi ain’t even involved so if you wanna threaten someone, threaten me.”
Kyna grabbed the girl’s forearm, feeling her muscles through a thin layer of clothing. “Fine then.”
*
Kelsi’s eyes flicked between Kyna and Suzie as they paused for a moment. Suzie had both her hands hooked in Kyna’s breastplate, leaning over her until their faces were mere centimeters apart. Kyna had a hand wrapped tight around her forearm and was slowly getting her other limbs under her. The stillness stretched until the two suddenly snapped into motion.
Kyna headbutted Suzie in the face. At once, Suzie dropped her, stumbling back a few steps, blood gushing from her nose and split lip. She spat a glob of blood out onto the grass and swung on Kyna again. Kyna managed to move her head enough that the blow was just glancing. Kyna threw a punch back, her gauntleted hand solidly connecting with Suzie’s jaw. Suzie stumbled a few steps but managed to keep upright.
The two traded more blows. Without her armor, Suzie was a bit faster. But Kyna was wearing her armor so the only place she consciously had to protect was her head. Meanwhile, she could take all the bodyshots against Suzie she wanted to. After a particularly strong punch to Suzie’s stomach that knocked all the air out of her lungs and forced her to double over.
Kyna looked down her nose at the hunched over Suzie. “Had enough yet? You and your little friends,” her eyes flicked over to where Kelsi was still standing with her back to a wall. Kelsi winced when she knocked her head against the wall trying to back up further, “should leave before I get the rest of the guild to make you-”
Suzie cut her off with a half-frustrated scream, half-growl and reached into her inventory for her ax. She swung it, aiming to hit Kyna with the flat of the ax head but her swing was far too obvious and Kyna easily dodged.
There was the shrill sound of a sword being unsheathed. Then Kyna charged, sword pointed at Suzie. Kelsi screwed her eyes shut. There was a clash of metal against metal, then another and then a sound Kelsi knew far too well. The sound of a blade puncturing soft flesh.
Kelsi forced her eyes to open in time to see Suzie fall to her knees, clutching her stomach. Kyna took a step back, looked down at the blood dripping off the tip of her sword then at Kelsi, with a slightly confused look in her eyes.
Kelsi bolted.
*
“Hiro! Please wake up, Suzie’s hurt!” Any comfort he felt from his dream was completely washed away by those words as he was yanked from sleep. He sat up so fast that his field of view went black and he almost fell right back down onto the pillow.
Kelsi and Alphonse were by the bed. Alphonse had his hand lightly on Hiro’s shoulder. Kelsi leaned over him, fat tears rolling down her cheeks. She grabbed Hiro’s hand over the blankets and tried to pull him out of the bed, “please hurry.”
Hiro let himself be pulled, the blankets coming off the bed with him. Kelsi didn’t even pause to let him put on his boots, forcing him out of Eli’s house barefoot.
The sparse grass on the well worn ‘road’ through the center of the village was dry and sharp underfoot, but just as Hiro opened his mouth to complain, he saw Suzie.
Some of the villagers were around her in a loose circle, seeming afraid to get any closer. She laid on the ground, a pool of blood forming around the abdomen.
Hiro pulled his arm out of Kelsi’s grip and ran for Suzie. He skidded the last foot to her on his knees and laid a glowing hand of healing on her stomach, moving it around until he found the actual wound.
Once he was sure the internal damage was fixed and he didn’t need to pay as much attention he looked up at Kelsi and asked, “what happened?”
Kelsi looked back with reddened eyes, making no moves to wipe away her tears, “it was-” the rest of her words were drowned out by a ringing in his ears.
Adrenaline was no replacement for mana.
The glow on Hiro’s hand fizzled out and his vision went black.
EJ Williams Books 