The Trinity War (Book 3 of the Trinity series)

Chapter 22

Aghbad was hot. Like, really, really hot. 

I had been outside in the training arena for about ten minutes and my back was already soaked in sweat. I was waiting for the Sultan, Firaaz, to bring me my trainer. I had no idea who it would be exactly, but I had a feeling that it was going to be Anokhan. It was six in the morning; early by my standards. But the heat was still sweltering hot. 

"What if they changed their mind?" Gerrard asked.

"Why would they do that? I'm an open target. I'm sure Firaaz's men would love a chance to have a go at me," I responded. Gerrard gave me a dark look and I simply shrugged. 

The arena was an interesting place. On five corners, there were five tall, wooden posts. At the tops of these posts were black wrought iron sculptures in the shape of a candle flame. The five posts created the five points of a star. I wondered if during battle, they lit the wrought iron flames so that there was an actual fire burning within them. I guessed I would find out, because at that moment, I heard the sound of footsteps coming up behind us.

I turned to see Firaaz and some of his guards. Next to him, as expected, was Anokhan.

"I knew it," Gerrard mumbled under his breath.

"It'll be fine," I said, more for my own peace of mind than his.

"Caley! My apologies for keeping you waiting. I had to go over some things with my men," Firaaz said to me as he and his guards approached us.

"It's ok. I was a little early, anyway," I replied.  

"Better than being late, I suppose," he said, smiling. "I have instructed Anokhan to do what he needs to do in order to train you as you wish. Thus, he will train you as he sees fit. I did not think it necessary to tell him exact instructions, do you agree?" he asked me. 

I glanced at Anokhan and I was reminded briefly of the time when I was six years old and playing outside of the apartment that my mother and I lived in when a gigantic dog without a leash came rushing towards me baring its teeth. I likened Anokhan's appearance at that moment to that vicious beast, with a black chiseled beard, flashing amber-red eyes and a snarl fit for a monster. 

"One question," I said, shifting nervously on my feet.

"Proceed," Firaaz said.

"Did you tell him he can't kill me?" I asked, unable to take my eyes off the brutal fire-master. Firaaz laughed. 

"You are one of us. At least partially. He cannot kill you. It is punishable by law," he replied.

"By law?" Gerrard asked.

"We do not kill our own kind unless they have done something against the rules maintained by our governing body. Usually, the most severe punishments we give out are exiling the perpetrator or sentencing the criminal to a life time in jail," Meekhail, one of Anokhan's guards that we had met previously, replied.

 "Wow. That suprisingly...fair," I remarked.

"Yes, well. There isn't really any point in spilling magical blood, especially if it is our own blood that is being spilled. After all, we wouldn't want to be wiped out like your people were," Firaaz said. I frowned. 

"Of course not," I said.

"Well, I will leave you all to your business. I wish you luck, Caley. You will need it," Firaaz told me. I swallowed the lump that had risen in my throat. I didn't realize it until now, but my hands were tremblind in fear. Although Anokhan wasn't allowed to kill me, he had no restrictions on how much he could torture me during my training. And I had a feeling that he had a lot of pent up anger towards me that he was just waiting to let loose.