The Centurion's Woman

Chapter 20

        The younger man was finally smart enough to stay down and stay quiet. Alex looked around at the shocked expressions of the small crowd that had gathered, dismissed them with a shrug and stepped over to the table as Verus – grinning – advised everyone to mind the loose paving stones so they didn't also stumble and fall so badly. There was nothing at the table that could be fairly traded for the value of the jian she was holding. Honestly, everything on the table together couldn't be traded for the value of the jian she was holding. The old man and young woman were now watching her with the same wary look they'd had for the younger man. The vertigo threatened as Alex tried to come up with a way to return the sword that didn't make her nauseous.

        "Why are you looking for this?" Alex wiped the smear of blood on the hilt onto her tunic.

        "I made that," the old man said, not moving from the safety offered by the young woman's arm across his shoulders as he described the mechanism perfectly for how to unlock the blade.

        "I made a trade with a king in Germania Inferior. A man and woman from the east had the jian with them," Alex gripped the scabbard after setting the sword on the table, pressing down to eliminate any threats of having the sword stolen. "He killed them, he stole this, and I made a fair trade to him," she shrugged.

        "What did you trade for?" the woman asked, surprised that Alex would have anything of equal value.

        "His sons' lives," Alex replied bluntly. The old man still stared at the jian.

        "What of the man you traded to?" the old man asked.

        "He died badly shortly after the trade," Alex said, carefully planting the start of the legend the jian would carry for the next two thousand years.

        "My son stole this as well," the old man looked across the table with watery eyes, his fingers resting on the jeweled scabbard beside Alex's. "You say he also died badly?" Alex nodded, and the young woman looked away and sighed, cursing quietly.

        "We have no item to trade fairly," the woman stated, locking eyes with Alex, and suddenly the vertigo disappeared as a new idea started.

        "What are you doing?" Ixillius quietly asked Alex as she chewed her bottom lip.

        "If he can't afford the sword, then there is no sale," Verus encouraged quietly.

        "This is the Emperor's jian," the woman snapped. "A gift for his wedding that was stolen by his General six years ago along with his bride. We are exiled because our father..."

        Her voice choked off. Alex looked over at the younger man and saw his attitude in a new light. She couldn't go so far as to forgive his behavior toward his grandfather and his sister, but she could at least understand. Nearby where the younger man was leaning she could see sparring equipment.

        "A wager," Alex finally said, passing the jian to Verus and pulling off her cloak. "To spar," she added. The younger man stood up. "Not you," Alex scoffed at him. "Her," she nodded to the young woman. "I win, I keep the jian. You win, the old father keeps the jian and trades for three items from your booth that I choose. The winner will make three fatal touches. That is fair?"

        Verus and Ixillius both shrugged and nodded, clearly amused that Alex was trying to return the jian, even though they didn't – and couldn't – understand why she would. The old man kissed the young woman's fingers, beaming a smile at her, and Alex saw the scars on her knuckles and the cords of muscle running up her forearms into her sleeves. People shoved into a rough ring, vying to see what would happen next as the younger man pulled out the bamboo swords from the cart.

        The young woman bowed formally, and Alex surprised her by returning the gesture. Alex tuned out the noise of the crowd and focused on her opponent. The woman's lips twitched into a grin, and Alex felt a smile start on her own face, as they cautiously traded the first blows and blocks. The look of honest surprise on the woman's face caused a few cheers and laughs in the crowd as Alex scored the first point. The early victory was short-lived, though, as the woman stopped holding back and scored the next two. Alex went low under her defenses and kicked out the woman's legs, scoring a second point for herself while the woman was prone. Alex backed off so she could stand up.

        "What three items do you want?" the woman asked as they circled again.

        "Two very good blades," Alex blocked the expected attack as she was talking, locking the training swords together and leaning forward to stand face to face with the woman. "And you," she whispered.

        The woman processed the information quickly, and her attack redoubled. Alex blocked and returned the blows as best she could within the small space, but the young woman – with the advantage of her shorter reach in the confined area – scored the final point. Without saying a word, Alex took the puzzle-box jian from Verus and handed the prize of the wager to the young woman as applause broke out for the demonstration. The young woman bowed deeply before walking over to kneel in front of the old man and pass the sword to him. Tears streamed down his face as he unlocked the scabbard and saw the blade was only slightly nicked in a few places that he could easily restore.

        Alex threw the bamboo sword she'd used at the feet of the young man and took her cloak back from her husband. The young woman stood and kissed the old man's forehead, saying a few quiet words. He nodded, his look full of pride when she pulled two swords in their scabbards from where they were hidden in the cart. Without a backward glance, she walked over and stood beside Alex, as docile as a well-trained dog.

        "What are you doing?" the younger man demanded of his sister, his speech slurred around his newly missing teeth.

        "I made the wager to trade for three items," Alex took one of the swords, instantly pleased with the balance. "One, two, three," she pointed each of the swords and then the young woman as she counted. "As agreed," she pushed a cold smile onto her face. The old man nodded, cradling the best of his life's work close to his chest, openly crying.

        "But... that..." the younger man sputtered.

        "Goodbye, brother," the woman held out the second jian to Alex.

        "No, that one is for you," Alex stated, leaving the jian in the hands of the young woman she'd just enslaved as she turned to her husband. "Are we in the two hours?"

        He shook his head and laughed at her, Verus doing the same after a moment. The young woman hung the second sword from her own fraying belt, her movements suddenly clumsy with the shock that she would remain armed.

        "We are," Ixillius confirmed. "And we're not stopping to look at anything else."