The Unknown Alchemist

Chapter 40 - Let it Rain

Avery started and finished the workout at the deserted guardhouse on her own, enjoying the solitude for a change. She never imagined she would want to be alone again but found that she sometimes couldn't hear herself think with everyone around her. Now, alone in the training ring, she could only hear her breath as she lifted, hauled, pulled, and pushed.

Thunderclouds rolled overhead, rain was in the air. She looked up to the sky anticipating the relief the cool storm would bring to the summer heat. She let her head fall back and rolled her neck, stretching out after the intense workout.

She was in the best shape of her life. Her body was toned, muscles strong and quick to react. Her sword skills were rough, but accurate and effective, only lacking the polish that hundreds of years of practice could bring. She had picked up knife skills quickly and Roedin had made of point of teaching her how to use Leo's dagger properly.

But it hadn't been enough. It hadn't been anything when Ferrik came for her.

As the first drops of rain fell she brushed past the large punching bag and gave it a frustrated shove. The bag swung and knocked her back, causing her to stumble slightly. She straightened and glared at the bag as though it had pushed her on purpose. Reaching back she slammed her fist into it, relishing in the solid impact on her arm.

It was painful, but it felt good too. The leather was warm and rough after repeated beatings and smelled of sweat and effort. Avery analysed the bag, wondering if it would have felt the same had she landed a punch on Ferrik's face. She had swung at him but the blows glanced off his face harmlessly. Had she been too drunk to hit him? Had he been too drugged to notice? She couldn't even remember how he got her to the courtyard. The terror blended everything together.

She landed two more punches on the bag. Again, the bite of the impact on the leather shot up her arms. She embraced it. She punched again then spun and kicked. The bag swung widely then came back at her and she jumped to land another kick. Subconsciously she entered a warrior's trance, the motions blending together in a practiced dance. But as her knuckles and wrists began to ache, the high of the pain took over and she became wild, making impact in any way possible. She no longer cared about technique or style or balance, she just punched, pouring every ounce of anger, blame, guilt, and rage into her swings.

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Roedin landed in front of the Spark after finishing his report to Hayden and Adelyn. He had found the sapien who had tainted the herd's water supply in order to force them to abandon their home range, but he left it to the twins to dole out the consequences. The herd was furious, blaming the alpha primes for not doing enough to protect them, and the poisoner was speciesist prick who made it clear he felt sapiens had a right to every piece of land and water as given to them by the Ancestors. It was attitudes like that that made it difficult for any species to move out of the past. To accept change and build a better future.

Like the changes a human had brought to Corinth. The alpha pack was deeply distressed after what happened at Terraly. Hayden and Adelyn had spent countless hours in meetings and negotiations with other alpha primes, discussing how to proceed. For what happened with Ferrik might set precedent for future dealings with the humans. It could be that one girl changes the course of humanity for generations to come.

That girl had already changed the course of Roedin's life. He had loved before in centuries past, but not like this. Once the novelty of his wings wore off, or the constant whispers and stares got to her, the female would move on. And none of them had been able to crack that darkness in his eyes, the hardness in his tone. He was not a jovial, easy-going male like Arctos. Life as an outsider, a half-breed in a pack of powerful primes, had made him wary of strangers and intensely loyal to his family.