Cain could feel the cold sweat dripping down his back as Jayden stared back at him, tears beginning to form in her jade green eyes.
"Umm....What nice weather we're having...?" Cain winced as he tried to sound casual but even he could tell that was forced.
However, instead of answering him, Jayden trembled in place for a brief moment.
Then it stopped. Only to be replaced by cold icy killing intent as Jayden lunged at him, sword drawn aimed directly for his heart.
'Shit!'
He barely had the time to react, using his blink to barely dodge the blow. Glancing down for a brief moment, he noticed a tear in his clothing, a mark left by her blade.
'I gotta get out of here!' He thought to himself as he scanned his surroundings for an escape route.
His heart sank.
Jayden stood planted in front of the only exit, blade drawn, face unreadable except for the flush on her cheeks and the fire in her eyes.
She wasn't going to let him leave.
She came at him again, closing the gap fast. Each swing was sharper, more precise, her form tighter than before. Cain kept blinking just ahead of her strikes, heart hammering with each narrowly avoided blow.
She wasn't screaming. She didn't speak. But every movement screamed the same message.
You saw something you shouldn't have.
Knowing he had no choice, Cain blinked again, reappearing behind Jayden near the far wall. He bolted for the exit without a second thought, legs pumping, the broken sword hilt still clenched in his hand.
Steel hissed through the air. Jayden spun on instinct, her sword slicing for his ribs. He twisted mid-step, barely deflecting it with the hilt. Sparks scattered as the two collided, the force knocking him off balance and sending him staggering backward.
Jayden didn't let up.
She pressed in with a flurry of strikes, blade flashing with sharp, controlled fury. Cain blocked the first with the hilt, ducked the second, blinked away from the third.
He reappeared near the columns at the edge of the training hall, heart hammering, chest heaving.
"I don't want to fight!" he yelled, stumbling sideways as she closed the gap again.
"Then stop running and take your punishment!" she snapped, voice tight with rage.
Cain blinked again, this time appearing behind a rack of training spears. He didn't grab one. He didn't want to hurt her. He just wanted out.
Jayden didn't hesitate. She leapt straight through the rack, her blade cutting through two of the spears like paper. Cain threw up the hilt to shield himself as the blade came down.
It wasn't elegant. It wasn't smart.
But it worked.
He caught her sword again with the remains of the weapon he had eaten,
the shock of the impact jolting through his arms.
"You're insane!" he gasped, ducking low and rolling to the side. "All this over something I didn't even want to see!"
She turned fast, expression unreadable behind the flush on her face and the glint of fear buried in her eyes.
"You shouldn't have seen it."
Cain blinked again, this time mid-sprint, trying to get closer to the door.
Jayden was already there. Her blade whipped toward his side. He brought up the hilt again, parrying awkwardly, but it sent him stumbling away from the exit once more.
Every time he got close, she was there.
Every time he tried to speak, she cut him off with another swing.
She wasn't trying to kill him.
She was trying to trap him. Wound him. Scare him into silence.
But she was angry. Furious. And her aim was slipping.
Cain blinked toward the door again, his mind aching from the mental strain, a weaknessof his ability. Jayden turned fast, blade arcing upward toward his arm.
She misjudged it.
Instead of his arm, the sword came straight for his head.
His eyes widened.
No time to blink.
He could only bite down.
Steel slammed into his mouth. Pain burst through his jaw as he clenched hard. Then a crack rang out.
Jayden froze.
His teeth had shattered the enchanted steel.
Cain stumbled back, the shock of the impact reverberating through his jaw. Pain flared sharply, but he was still standing.
In his hand was the broken blade. The upper half of Jayden's sword he had just bitten off. It was cold and heavy, humming faintly with leftover magic.
Jayden stood frozen, her eyes wide with disbelief. Only a short jagged piece remained in her grip, useless now. The rest was clenched tightly in Cain's hand.
She hadn't meant to swing so high. She wanted to cut his arm, a warning. But anger had clouded her aim, and now half her sword was gone.
Cain's breaths came fast and shallow. His jaw throbbed, but there was no blood. No wound. Just the dull ache where he had bitten down hard.
"I'm not saying anything," he gasped, voice shaky. "I swear. I won't tell a soul what happened here tonight. As far as either of us should be concerned, nothing happened. Now, I will be leaving...Have a good night..."
Jayden did not move or speak. Her face was unreadable, flushed and tight as she stared at the broken blade in his hand.
Without hesitation, Cain turned and ran.
She made no move to stop him. No voice called after him. No footsteps followed.
He did not stop until he was far from the training hall, crouched behind a stone wall near the back of the dorms, heart pounding.
No shadow chased him. No voice cut through the silence.
He wiped the corner of his mouth and winced at the soreness in his jaw.
He looked down at the broken blade still clenched in his hand and turned it slowly over.
"Still alive," he whispered.
He let out a shaky breath and leaned back against the wall, letting the adrenaline fade.
He was lucky.
Too lucky.
A faint chuckle slipped from his lips as he remembered what he had once heard about Jayden. That her swordsmanship was very wolf-like in the way that she Hunted down their prey with coordinated precision. They had no idea just how right they were.
Though Cain had no idea just how wolf-like Jayden could be.