Dani sat through the night while Amber recharged. There was an unspoken agreement not to talk about the 'incident' and Dani had stopped trying to push her to speak. There were no words to say.
"You know, if you keep getting into fights," Amber said, the only thing that had even reference last night. "Then you should let me help you fight. I'm a really good instructor."
"Amber, you just flipped out on me because I was fighting you." Dani reminded her.
"That was different." Dani didn't see how it was different, and she'd just almost broken his ribs.
"I'll teach you how to use battle magic." That made Dani change his mind. Dra had referenced battle magic once, while they watching anime, and it had intrigued Dani.
"Okay. Then sure. I would be really happy for a sparring partner. I've needed on for a while."
"Lucky for you, I am an expert sparring partner. I always win."
"How is that helpful in the least?" Dani deadpanned, raising an eyebrow.
"Because you learn what not to do. Easy." Amber said, which was the most unhelpful thing she'd said to date.
"Why am I not surprised? You are more unhelpful that Dra in a mood."
"I am being very helpful, I don't know what you're talking about." Amber sniffed. "Everyone says so."
"Like who?"
"I don't need to tell you. I am justified in my own way."
"Who told you that? You mommy?" Dani snickered, finding that something Marble would have told him as a child.
"My most recent girlfriend, actually. And before her, my lovely boy." Amber smirked at him. Dani almost choked.
"Selkies are-"
"Lawless? To quote your mother. She means biromantic. Yeah. Not all of us, but most." Amber finished, and saw the look on Dani's face. "Oh, honestly Dani, it's not an uncommon thing. And it's longer than four letters, so there's really nothing wrong with it."
"If you're into that kinda stuff..."
"Really? 'That kinda stuff'? You make it sound like a bad thing." Amber snapped, sounding annoyed. "You forget your mother had a husband before you were born."
"Yeah, but she wasn't with my father before that!" Dani defended. "I'm just not used to that being an... acceptable thing. Currently."
"In the Silver Worlds, you can love whoever you want. For once, I think we're ahead of the humans in terms of accepting orientation." Amber muttered, her orange eyes darker.
There was an uncomfortable grumbling sound as Dani blushed and looked away. "Sorry."
"No need to apologize. After all, you know literally nothing about the Silver World." Amber said breezily, but it was dismissive as well.
"That was a back handed compliment if I've ever heard one." Dani muttered.
"And there's that lovely attitude that I hate." Amber fired back. "Tomorrow, you and I will start training."
***
"You'll have good strategy from your father, and even better battle strategy from Zammi, but you aren't going to be the physically strongest Mage out there." Amber informed him as they circled each other, her body low and balanced. Dani tried copying her stance, but stumbled almost immediately.
"Don't laugh at me." Dani warned her, as she started to smile. "I'm the one who can actually buy clothes." He gestured to her black leggings and peach shirt. It looked good on her, unintentionally complimenting her orange eyes.
"And you got them too small. Unlike the tiny snatched waists of regular girls, I don't have curves." Amber complained, her brogue voice just background noise now.
"Why do you find this moment to bring this up?" Dani asked her, watching her movements carefully. Amber had a tell, a small movement that gave her away. When she wanted to leap, she tensed her muscles. He'd noticed it the first few time's they'd sparred together.
"It was you started it." Amber replied.
"Are you gonna insult me, or help me, Amber? Because I could end this right now." Dani challenged, not taking his eyes off her.
"I don't know yet." Amber contemplated, smirking at him.
The moment she sprang at Dani, he knew she was coming for him. He saw how she crouched a little lower and tensed her thighs. She didn't stop moving, the motion almost hiding her tell, but he saw it. Dani moved, sliding to the right just before she hit him, and let her fall.
However, the Selkie landed on the tips of her feet, and spun around, slamming her heels back into the ground for balance, as Dani instinctively moving right in front of her, too close for her to gain any kind of momentum behind her punches.
"That was dumb." Amber growled, and slammed the flat of her hand into Dani's stomach. Power rippled in Dani's system, making him dizzy and sick. "We don't need to have ultra-powerful punches," She slapped his thigh, almost teasingly, but Dani felt his muscles go weak. "Even with not as much potential as you, weak Mages can debilitate you if they flood your internal organs with their own power."
"Wouldn't that just make me stronger?" Dani argued, panting.
"No." Amber hooked a heel around his ankle, and pulled his good leg out from under him. Dani slammed to the ground, and Amber, in all her suave glory, slid into a sitting position on his chest, smirking. "Magic is just like blood, except that there are no two of the same type. By mixing the magic, you can really screw things up. That's why weak Mages don't rely on their magic, they rely on their ability to get rid of it."
"But they won't get sick by giving magic away?"
"It's not an equilibrium or a concentration gradient, Dani. They aren't taking anything back from you." Amber rolled her eyes, looking down at him.
"Can you get off? That hurts." Dani asked her.
"I'd rather sit here." She smirked, making him annoyed. "It's much more comfortable."
Dani could hear her r's rolling off her tongue. "For you. Not for me." Dani gasped, as it was getting hard to breath now. Her tailbone dug into his ribs.
"Moral of the story, sweet cheeks? Don't let the desperate touch you."
"Sounds like your life motto. And don't call me sweet cheeks." Dani told her.
"I will call you whatever I want to call you, sweet cheeks." She smirked, revealing her large fangs. Dani was pretty sure she didn't get to do that at all, but he wasn't going to say anything about it now.
"Can you get off of me?" Dani panting, his vision becoming blurry. There was a shifting on his chest as Amber leaded forward, taking the pressure off his lungs, but not moving at all.
"Give me one good reason." Amber asked, looking down at him.
"Because you need me alive." Dani panted. Amber rolled her eyes.
"You have not defensive training at all, do you?" She mused, looking up at the sea. Her eyes were a million miles away.
"You're the one teaching me, so what does that say about you?" Dani questioned, his breaths coming easier now.
"If you want to escape a Silver Mages grasp," Amber told him, looking back at him, her orange eyes expressionless as her voice, "You're the best bet is to transform into a full shift. Most can hold onto you there. However, there are some exceptions." She rolled off of him, getting to her feet, and holding out a hand for him to take.
"Thank god." Dani panted, grabbing her hand.
"Don't act like it was such a huge deal." Amber abolished as she yanked him up. "I'm not that heavy."
"How long has it been since you've been on a scale?"
"First of all, rude. Second of all, I believe that last scale I touched was yours." Amber make a 'ick' sound, and Dani rolled his eyes.
"Oh, I'm sorry they don't tell you you've gained sixty pounds." Dani replied. "And with a name like 'Amber' I would have though you liked red."
"For your information, amber is an orange-ocher colored stone that is solidified tree resin." Amber retorted. "It's not red."
"Moving on. What other things can you tell me about magic?" Dani asked.
"Don't let other mages get close to your pressure points." Amber said. At Dani's quizzical look, she added; "Pressure points are the easiest place for a mage to send their magic into yours blocking your systems."
"So, like acupuncture gone wrong." Dani replied. Amber looked startled, but then laughed.
"That's one way to put it." She looked back at the small campsite they'd made. "Now, come on. I've got some more moves to teach you."
***
Seth didn't regret anything. Sure, he was mad. Falk, though that wasn't the zhenniao's real name, had undermined him by bringing in a Piasa Bird to hunt the Silver Heir.
Former Silver Heir, he reminded himself. Amber Pearl was no longer the Heir, not while Seth held the throne. The throne. It took so long, too long, for the damn coatl to crown him. Hours and hours, he'd left her with the Ichneumon, but he'd gotten results.
It wasn't what he had to do for her to crown him that bothered him. No, Seth tortured and killed daily. Yet, the absence of assistance Zammi Coatl sent for her daughter plagued his mind. Seth wasn't a father, not yet, but if anyone had even touched his child, much less taken his child, he would have hunted them to the ends of the earth.
Yet, Zammi had not. Then again, Seth reasoned, Zammi Coatl also abandoned her six-year-old son on an island far from his home. There was no telling what she could do. What she would abandon to win.
A loud scream jolted Seth out of his thoughts, and he looked up to see a large creature, one he'd never seen before, jet across the sky. It looked like flying lion, but with a long, thick, scaly tail. It soared away from Seth, beating it's feathered wings hard.
The Piasa Bird, Talutah, Seth reasoned, flying to the south to hunt the mighty warrior.
"To become the hunted beast," Seth chuckled under his breath. "What a fall from grace."
Hey lovelies!
No? Hmm.
I'm trying to figure out what to call my readers... The Jade Army? Or something else?
QOTD: What should I call y'all who read my stories? Leave suggestions in the comments!
Don't be a Silent Reader!! Remember to vote, comment and share this story! I really want to try and win Watty's!(Unrealistic, but I'm shooting for the stars!)
So, just another thing, I messed up with my scheduling; I'm not going on vacation this week, but the week after. I will still be here until about the 18th. Then I'm off! I'm very sorry about the confusion.
Love y'all!
C.J out!!