Seraphina
The next morning, Kieran was waiting for me outside the dining hall.
"Private training," he said without greeting. "Now."
"But breakfast.."
"Now, Seth."
His tone left no room for argument. I followed him through corridors I'd never seen before, down stone steps that led to older parts of the Academy. The walls here were thick and windowless, designed to muffle sound.
We emerged into a small training yard surrounded by high walls. Practice weapons hung from racks, and straw targets dotted the far end. It was completely isolated, perfect for secrets.
"Take your sword," Kieran commanded, already drawing his own practice blade.
I selected a weapon that felt right in my hands. "What kind of training is this?"
"The kind where you stop pretending." His pale eyes were hard as winter ice. "I want to see who you really are when you're not holding back."
My heart hammered against my ribs. "I don't know what you mean."
"Guard up."
He attacked without warning, not the careful, measured strikes of Academy training, but the lightning-fast assault of someone who'd fought for his life. I barely got my sword up in time to block. The impact sent shockwaves up my arms. This wasn't practice. This was real.
"Better," he said, pressing forward with a combination that would have overwhelmed any normal cadet. "But you're still hiding."
I gave ground, deflecting what I could, dodging the rest. Elena's training kicked, forget fair play, forget honor, just survive.
"There," Kieran said, his attacks growing fiercer. "That's not village training. That's not Academy form. What is it?"
I ducked under a high cut and rolled away, coming up behind him. For a split second, I had an opening, a chance to end the match. My blade started toward his unprotected back.
Then I caught myself. In a real fight, I would have struck without hesitation. But this was Kieran, and something in me recoiled from hurting him. That hesitation cost me. He spun around, his sword stopping inches from my throat.
"Interesting," he said, breathing hard. "You had me. Why didn't you take the shot?"
"It didn't seem... sporting."
"Sporting." He lowered his weapon but didn't step back. We were close enough that I could see the pulse beating in his throat. "Village boys don't worry about sporting, Seth. They fight to win, or they don't eat."
"Maybe I'm different."
"Yes," he said quietly. "You are different. The question is how different."
From the shadows near the entrance, I caught a glimpse of movement. My blood chilled as I recognized the golden hair and perfect features watching from the darkness.
Talon.
How long had he been there? What had he seen?
Kieran noticed my distraction and turned, but Talon had already melted back into the corridors like smoke.
"We should go," I said quickly. "People will wonder where we are."
"Let them wonder." Kieran stepped closer, close enough that I had to tilt my head back to meet his eyes. "We're going to talk, Seth. And this time, you're going to tell me the truth."
"I don't.."
"Don't lie to me." His voice was soft, almost intimate, but there was steel underneath. "I've seen you move. I've watched you think. I know training when I see it, and yours didn't come from any village blacksmith."
My mouth went dry. "Kieran..."
"Your hands are soft but scarred in the right places. Your balance is perfect. Your reactions are too quick for someone who learned to fight as a hobby." His pale eyes searched my face. "Someone trained you seriously. Professionally. Why?"
The walls felt like they were closing in. This was exactly what I'd feared, someone smart enough and skilled enough to see through my disguise.
"My cousin," I said finally. "She taught me."
"Your cousin." His eyebrows rose. "Must be quite a woman. Where did she learn?"
I scrambled for a believable lie. "Her husband was a soldier. He taught her, she taught me."
"What regiment?"
"I... I don't remember."
"You don't remember your own cousin's husband's military service?" Kieran stepped even closer. I could smell leather and steel on him, could see the pale stubble along his jaw. "Try again."
"Why does it matter?" Desperation crept into my voice. "I'm here. I'm training. What difference does it make where I learned?"
"Because you're scared," he said simply. "And not of failing here, or washing out, or any of the things that terrify normal cadets. You're scared of being discovered. Which means you have something worth hiding."
My heart pounded so hard I was sure he could hear it. "Everyone has secrets."
"Not like yours." His hand came up, fingers almost touching my cheek. "I've been watching you, Seth. The way you move, the way you think, the way you..." He trailed off, his eyes dropping to my lips for just a moment.
The air between us crackled with tension. I wanted to step back, put distance between us, but I also wanted...
No. I couldn't want anything from Kieran Stormbane. That way led to disaster.
"I should go," I whispered.
"Should you?" His voice was rough. "Or are you running again?"
"I'm not running from anything."
"Aren't you?"
We stared at each other in the morning light, and I felt something shift between us, something dangerous and electric that had nothing to do with swords or secrets.
Then footsteps echoed in the corridor outside. Kieran stepped back quickly, the spell broken.
"Think about what I said," he told me as Elias appeared in the doorway.
"There you are!" Elias called out cheerfully. "Everyone's looking for you two. Word is there were strange riders near the Academy walls last night."
My blood turned to ice water. "What kind of riders?"
"Scouts, probably. Master Aldwin has doubled the watch." Elias grinned. "Exciting, isn't it? Maybe we'll finally see some real action."
Real action. If only he knew how real things were about to become.
The rest of the day passed in a blur of training and lectures, but I couldn't concentrate. Every shadow might hide Talon, watching and noting my reactions. Every instructor's glance felt like an accusation. When evening finally came, I retreated to my room while Kieran attended some strategy meeting with the senior cadets. I needed time to think, to plan, to figure out what to do next.
The Academy felt different after dark. Quieter, but also more dangerous. I sat by the window, staring out at the training yards below, when movement caught my eye. Riders. Three of them, moving along the outer wall like hunting wolves. Even in the darkness, I could see the black leather and silver wolf heads of Magnus's colors.
They were here. They'd found me.
As I watched in growing terror, one of the riders stopped directly below my window. He was too far away to make out clearly, but something about his posture suggested he was looking up.
Looking right at me. For a heartbeat that felt like eternity, we stared at each other across the darkness. Then he raised his hand, not in greeting, but in acknowledgment. He knew where I was.
The scout wheeled his horse around and disappeared into the night with his companions, but the message was clear. They would be back..