Despite having been dreading the Summons for a long time, Justice was giddy on the inside. She stood beside Riley, Baulder, Ben, Tora and sixteen other fledglings beneath an already warm morning sun. They were in a large grassy courtyard on the eastern side of the barracks. A high stone wall surrounded them, with arches on two sides that led through to more training yards like this one. Through an arch, Justice could see a group similar to theirs awaiting instructions.
It was the first day of preparations for their personal trials, and Justice couldn't believe how much the summons had made her forget that the whole purpose of coming here was to go through Elysium, and unlock her supernatural powers.
She shoved her hands in her pockets in an effort to calm the desire to bounce on her toes. Baulder gave her a sidelong glance and she met his eyes to find there a playful glint. She grinned at him, and with a smile he lent sideways and bumped their shoulders together.
"You look like you're about to burst out of your skin," he said.
"I think I might," she laughed.
"That would be an interesting mess to heal."
She opened her mouth give a witty retort just as there was a loud hand clap from the front.
"Fledglings. Your attention please." A thin elderly woman with dark skin and long grey braid over her shoulder addressed them in a thick South African accent. A hush fell over the teens. "My name is Thalente and I'll be your guide for the next four months. Take a good look at those around you, because this will be who you will study and train with from now until the tournaments."
There was a rustle and everyone took a moment to glance around the courtyard at the other members present. Justice suddenly noticed Delphine, who's short frame had been obstructed from view until now. She smiled and craned her neck to see if Anton was beside her.
Again, he was absent.
She hoped that nothing bad had happened to him but she refrained from making her way over to the girl. She didn't want to offend her a second time by only talking to her to ask about her warden. With a sigh, Justice turned back to Thalente.
"I have here a list, please call 'present', when you hear your name." She looked down a clipboard. "Baulder Anastas?"
"Present."
A murmur rippled through the class and sixteen pairs of eyes turned to stare at their prince. Sometimes Justice forgot how big of a deal he was. As she surveyed those looking in their direction, she was suddenly aware of how many were female. And, of the way some of them looked at him. It was an appraising head-to-toe-and-back-up-again look. She laughed inwardly and turned to gauge his reaction.
It was true that he was handsome. Dark hair swept sideways across his face, often catching in the long lashes over his equally dark eyes. He was tall, lean from his years as a swimmer, and held himself straight with a quiet confidence that she'd always admired. He gave nothing away and simply smiled politely at the onlookers.
She could not imagine him being interested in any of them, and she felt smug for knowing this. It would take a lot for anyone to pique the interest of the ever evenly-tempered and impossible-to-impress prince. In fact, he'd not had any romantic relationship for her to know where this mark lay.
There had been one summer where he'd spent a lot of time with a quiet Japanese girl, whose name Justice couldn't remember. But, whether it has been any more than a friendship, she'd not been able to tell. Baulder never spoke of her and Justice hadn't felt that he'd appreciate her prying. And, there was no way she'd ever make a joke to him about it. In the same way that he never spoke of her many boyfriends, she'd never commented on his summer with that one girl.
Thalente called the next name and eyes returned to the front. But not before the girl directly in front of them, gave Baulder an incredibly flirtatious smile.
Justice laughed out loud and the girl's face fell, eyes flicking to hers and narrowing. She smirked backed and rolled her eyes at the olive-skinned girl.
"Justice Edwards?"
She laughed at the young girl's scowl, and without looking up called out her reply to Thalente. Again, another murmur and the crowd turned to look in their direction. The girl who'd been giving Justice a death stare widened her eyes in shock and quickly whipped her head back around to the front.
Justice hadn't expected to anyone to know who she was and was surprised for the attention.
"You forget that your father's name was on everyone's Summons," said Baulder softly. She looked at him and he rocked back on his heels and flashed her a smug smile. "Get used to it."
If there was one thing Justice was okay with, it was attention. No immortal family shared the same surname, and if being an Edwards was something sensational, she was all for it. She grinned back. "This could be fun."
He groaned then chuckled. "Of course you'd think that."
Thalente continued her way through the list, calling out names and marking them off with a curt nod. Justice found her eyes wandering around the courtyard as she imagined what it was going to be like here for the next fourth months.
As she considered hosting a party one night, movement out the corner of her eye, made Justice turn her head. A smile spread over her face as Anton and the older man he'd been with at her father's office, came into the yard and made their way to the group.
For the first time since she'd ever seen him, he was wearing a tight-fitting singlet. She was so used to seeing him hidden behind loose teeshirts, it was a surprise to see his physique so unashamedly on display. It clung to his well-toned chest and she was sure she could see the outline of his defined stomach muscles as he walked. Loose sparring pants fell from his hips, and he was more than prepared for their first combat training session today.
Her lips soon pursed in confusion as the men took up a place beside the guide at the front of the group. The way they both stood there, with a certain air of authority that she didn't understand. Anton was a confident man, but so far it had always been accompanied by a cheeky flirtatious side. Now, he seemed, all business. Her forehead wrinkled as she tried to make sense of this change in his demeanour. She watched as his azure eyes scanned the group, and finding hers they locked on with a sparkle. His mouth curled into a sly grin and he gave her a knowing wink. Okay, maybe he wasn't all business, she thought. The hairs on the skin of her arms stood up and she felt a warmth rush through her stomach. She gave him a questioning look and he seemed to silently chuckle in response.
The olive-skinned girl followed his line of sight and seeing it on Justice, appeared exasperated.
She felt Baulder turn to look at her briefly and she refused to meet his gaze.
Justice didn't mind everyone noticing the attention Anton gave her. In fact, she liked it. Despite her continued confusion as to why he was standing at the front of the group like he was, she flashed back a glorious smile.
He silently chuckled again and she felt herself do the same.
What is going on here?
"Our first point of order for today is a simple assessment of everyone's skills," continued Thalente.
Justice drew her eyes away from Anton. She didn't want to make things too easy for him. This was new ground. Here wasn't someone she needed to keep herself emotionally detached from. A sudden fear of the unknown rose within her chest. She'd never before cared if a boy genuinely liked her. Or even, if she truly liked them. It was terrifying. All her tricks and games seemed useless here.
As she turned it over in her mind, the uncertainty was laced with a new thrilling element. Is this what it's normally like? Justice felt her heart racing at a million miles an hour and she sneaked a glance back at Anton. She knew he was fun and that, like her, he was always up for anything. But, was that enough? Did they have anything else in common?
She found herself wanting to do everything differently. Though, she had no idea what that would even look like. She wanted to know if he could be more than a fling. Could he be someone that she could be comfortably Eros-bonded to? A true friendship, and a deep mutual understanding and respect for each other.
As the gears in her mind ran into overdrive, Justice almost missed what their guide said. She paused.
The thoughts crashed instantly and she ran back to what she thought she'd heard.
"I would expect that all of you have already been trained in one school of combat or other." She'd said. "Viktor here, and his nephew Anton will be our assessors. They are both shapeshifters and will be assisting our group over the next month prepare for the various things that might arise in your personal trial and in the tournaments.
Justice gagged and a stricken feeling grasped her.
She grabbed her shirt and whipped her gaze back to Anton. She stared at him with an almost accusing stare.
Shapeshifter?!
The young man had no idea what this meant to her and he simply chuckled silently again at her surprise. She growled in exasperation and when she felt Baulder turn to look at her she couldn't stop herself from meeting his gaze with a helpless look.
The warden was quick to piece things together, and understanding flickered across his face which then quickly turned to sympathy.
Justice cursed herself from having revealed too much to Baulder and hastily tried to find somewhere to look that wasn't at either of them. She felt stupid for having let her mind run away so quickly, and she didn't want her warden's sympathy.
But, why?!
Justice felt cursed.
Baulder was out of bounds, and now this cute guy she actually liked, wasn't even her race. He's supposed to be immortal! He had been with that girl Delphine and she was definitely immortal. Justice couldn't figure out what was going on, and for some reason, she felt as though he'd betrayed her. Since seeing him walk out of her father's office yesterday, she'd assumed he was here in Olympus because he was immortal. And after talking with Delphine who was definitely immortal, she'd assumed they were Philia-bonded. Everything pointed to him being immortal. Not a shapeshifter.
Last night, Justice had laid in bed for an hour imagining what it would be like to spend these four months with Anton. Wondering if they might fall in love and if she'd chosen him as her warden like she'd fantasized back in Ibiza.
Her fingernails dug into the palms of her hands.
Really, there was nothing that stopped her from pursuing Anton. But she had spent so long keeping her heart because she hoped that she might be able to love her Eros-warden and experience the bond for what it was originally intended to be.
She sucked in a deep breath and sought to clear her mind and focus on the rest of what their guide was saying.
The thin elderly woman explained how the shapeshifters were to be sparring partners. Their abilities would be used to create scenarios for them to practice against for their personal trials and the tournaments. Whilst they were not invincible, they could take on a variety of forms, well suited for combat training.
"Now it is expected that you all have skill in at least one combat method already," Thalethe continued. "Today I'll assess each one of you to gain an idea of what we're working with. Please form two groups, one warden to my right, the other on my left."
The class quietly formed two groups, Baulder choosing the left, and Justice the other side. The older man with Anton came to the front of their group and addressed them with a gruff voice.
"Okay, who here has a karate background?"
Justice, along with another three students put up their hands. His eyes skimmed over them and landed on Justice. His mouth curled up at the edges. "Ah, Edwards," he said, and gestured her forwards.
A small wash of indignation passed through her and she threw him what she knew to be a confident look. With a careless sashay, she made her way to the front.
The man huffed at her and raised an eyebrow.
"Okay, little Missy, show us your stance."
Justice firmly planted her feet on the ground and hitched her pants up on the sides. She raised her hands in front of her and settled down with a long breath.
Viktor nodded and then swung his head towards his nephew. "Anton, you're up." His leathery features appeared to thinly veil a laugh.
Anton's eyes widened, then a pleased grin widened across his face. "Yes, sir." He stepped forward, bringing his two feet together he rested one closed fist inside the other hand and waited for Justice to copy him.
Her heart had ratcheted up a notch and was beating fast as her eyes met Anton's piercing blue gaze. There was a glint there and though it tugged at something deep within her, it annoyed her. I don't want you, she screamed at him in her head. You cannot be my Eros warden. She brought her feet together and mimicked his position.
They bowed formally and when she looked back up, she found him smirking at her.
"Miss Hero," he whispered low enough for only her to hear.
"Begin," commanded Viktor from the side.
Instantly Anton stepped forward, reached out and grabbed her arm. He turned his body around quickly so that his back was against her chest. One hand was joined by the other and her arm was in a vice-like latch that he reefed on. In an instant she found herself thrown over his shoulder and onto her back. The ground crashed into her, and winded, all the breath rushed out of her. In a swift movement, he followed her down. His knee in-between her breasts and leant over her with his forearms against her throat. Anton's face was inches from hers and he chuckled teasingly at her.
A heat rushed through her, and Justice felt her cheeks burning up as indignation rose. She pushed him with both hands. He complied, rising up and holding out a hand to help her up.
She was seeing red now.
Anton was not who she thought he was and now he was taking advantage of her surprise and showing her up in front of the whole class. With a growl, she smacked his hand out of the way.
"Again," she said firmly and refused his hand. She brushed down her clothes and with an elastic band from her pocket, tied her hair up and out of the way.
"Again," she repeated with venom.