Fate and Destiny (The Fated Series, #2)

Chapter 23 - Darius - All This Time

Training with the foreigners on the roof of the Mace Tavern and taking on their different fighting styles is kind of fun. Everyone's going one on one with the huge men, Arthur, Garrison, Vlad, and Winston taking on eight of the women while the other two wives are educating the children on the skills, pointing out certain things, and answering their many questions.

I like our new Asturian friends. They're actually quite nice despite their hard and sharp appearances. Fatima is my favorite, mostly because she reminds me of Clarice. She says what she's thinking and rules over her husband despite him being the leader of the group. They say that they don't have a leader of their small clan, but it's not hard to tell that the others easily and happily slip under the authority of Brandr. And I'm both impressed and inspired that the Asturian women are more than willing to jump into a fight.

I'm currently paired with Daisuke, one of the blonds who kept running his mouth from yesterday. He's quick on his feet despite his larger form, and there's no blocking his hits without the impact of them rattling through your arms. They wouldn't have been so alarmingly strong had Arthur not insisted that we go find a gifted healer to heal them. We had to pay her, but I didn't mind. It was our fault after all, though I am starting to wish that the healer left a little soreness to keep his blows from hurting. I know what he's doing by making me dodge and block, and it's annoying. He's trying to tire me out. Makes me thankful that Arthur is a good teacher and that I'm a fast learner.

Ducking beneath his ax, I take his moment of imbalance from his movement and elbow the back of his left knee, causing him to kneel on the ground. Not waiting for him to make another move, I stand up, and then wrap my right leg around his throat, pushing off the ground with my left leg to put it under his arm and across his chest. Then it's a matter of my weight and gravity, and both of our backs are on the ground, his arm extended up my chest, and his neck and sternum beneath my legs.

It's the same armlock Clare used that day of the Ball, dislocating Will's arm. I'm going to be honest, I never thought I'd hear a nicer sound than his scream as she pushed her hips off the ground.

I don't dislocate Daisuke's arm, only barely lift my hips off the ground to let him know what could happen if I lift any further. He's strong and he's smart, but I don't think he's ever been put in an armlock this way before. The other wild men and women must not know the move either because all of them pause in their fighting to glance over. My friends don't hesitate to take advantage of their distraction and go into a set of quick offensive maneuvers, disarming them all in seconds.

Is it bad to say that I feel a rush of smugness flooding through me?

I look down at Daisuke, lifting my hips ever so slightly to get him to yield. He taps twice on my leg and I let go, rolling over my shoulder and standing in case he decides to cheat as Gabe does. Gabe likes to tap out and then instantly attack you when you loosen your hold. It's annoying.

"What kind of Loki shit was that?" Daisuke demands. He rolls out his shoulder, looking at me like I just grew a pair of wings and flew around in nothing but my trousers.

"Loki shit?"

"He's their God of Mischief," Arthur explains. Is there anything he doesn't know? His smirk says no.

I nod, still not sure what his exclamation means, but not wanting a full on history lesson to start. "Oh, well, it was an armlock."

"Yea n' it hurt nearly as much as one of me mum's beatin's."

"Oh don't fuss, love," his wife says, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I'll beat his ass for you."

She eyes me up and down in a way that reminds me uncomfortably of the way Clarice did that first day we met. Like a predator finding the best parts to call lunch. I want to stand taller and meet her challenging gaze, but both Arthur and Clare told us how to win a fight before it began, so I keep my posture small and relaxed. She takes a step toward me and I feel the rush of adrenaline start to pump through my veins when Arthur steps in and blocks her path.