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Heat rose in her face, and she cleared her throat, recalling how he had pulled her to him to finish putting on the toner. His mismatched eyes had glared at her with an intensity that burned. Her hands had moved along him, liking the smooth touch of his scales.

Her blood throbbed in her ears, and she shook the thought away, telling herself now wasn't the time to daydream about crazy, impossible things. She went to step away from the window when someone blocked her way.

"Ophilia Jones, right?"

Ophilia looked up at the man before her and caught his dark green eyes first before noticing the rest of him, tall, blond, and wearing a black uniform with violet and orange threads and silver cuffs. The symbol of a serpent holding two daggers in its mouth could be seen on the right armband. She grew still, recognizing those house colors and the symbol. The brand of House Capura.

She nodded, forcing a smile on her lips. "That's right."

His smile was genuine, pairing nicely with his handsome face. He offered his hand to her. "Zachary Collett of House Capura."

She'd heard of him but knew little of his training style. Few did. Mainly because House Capura hadn't participated in the games in several years. She hadn't seen Capura's banner in the main gaming hall, but if Zachary was here, it meant they were participating again. And she could only guess who was fighting for them.

She took his hand and shook it without flinching. "It's nice to finally meet you. I didn't know House Capura would be in the games this year. It's been so long."

He squeezed her hand before letting it go. "It was a last-minute decision, actually. They didn't even have time to place the banner."

"It's lucky then that they could get you in."

He shrugged. "Anything is possible for our best champion."

She tried to remain calm or at least indifferent, but deep inside, she was screaming, her blood boiling. "I thought Kaxek retired."

"He's decided to come back this year. Someone needs to put Tazyn down a peg or two." He laughed. "But now with your fighter, Xeda, this will make for one of the most anticipated games in a decade. If not ever." He placed his hands in his pockets as he studied her. "I don't think we've had the pleasure of two vrisha in the arena before."

No, they hadn't. There was a reason Kaxek had remained undefeated. He'd won more games back-to-back than anyone. He—or his house rather—had claimed he had once been a top warrior of his kind, in line to become a predomis, a guardian to a vrisha queen, before he had been captured many years ago. She remembered watching the games, remembered how brutal they had been. All because of Kaxek. He'd put himself in retirement after, when it was clear no one could beat him, and he hadn't been seen since. Knowing now he had returned was a literal game changer. A gut punch to the stomach. He'd kill Xeda the first chance he'd get to prove his dominance. In fact, she was willing to bet that was why he was coming back. He'd gotten wind of Xeda and now he saw what might actually be a challenge.

"It will certainly be a show," she said, trying to keep her voice from shaking.

Zachary glanced around him as if making sure no one was in hearing distance. "I'm sure you also noticed there will be two fyriens participating this year."

She had. She'd noticed from the banners above, her only indication of who they'd be up against. The fyriens were incredible opponents too. But they were not only hard to find, they also never stuck around for long. A few would become mercenaries for a couple of the more established houses but would then eventually disappear. No one knew why for sure. Any who became champions also didn't stay. They were a mysterious race, just as much as the vrisha. They held no loyalties and kept no ties. They were lone fighters, but they were vicious and agile. The only one that ever lost, lost to Kaxek long ago.

"One is representing House Myre if I'm not mistaken," she mentioned, remembering seeing the Myre symbol on top of the banner.

"That's right. A male named Aeriz. And the other is House Lageth, a female named Vyn. Rumor is they are related. But then, most think all fyriens are related somehow since there are so few. Aeriz was one of Myre's mercs, and Vyn was a hired assassin only caught some years ago. Aeriz only works for them to protect her. He went into the games because she did or so I've heard.”

Great. "That means they'll likely be working together," she said aloud.

"That's what I was thinking. And if you know anything about fyriens, they can be strategic and sneaky bastards."

She eyed him curiously, wondering why he was telling her this. Then it dawned on her. "This means others might need to band together too."

He caught her gaze and smirked. "That might be wise. At least in the beginning."

"You think the games will last that long?"

He shrugged. "Probably not. But better to have that edge with a partner. I was thinking our fighters would have no problem taking these two out but only if they did it together. And in the more intense playing fields, it will be good to have an ally, don't you think?"

She couldn't deny it, it was tempting. Better to have Kaxek as an ally in the beginning. If they took out the rest, then Xeda would only have to worry about one fighter instead of a couple dozen. But Kaxek would be a greater challenge than any of them. The chance of Kaxek being taken down early would be non-existent, especially if they took out the fyrien pair first. Zachary must be certain they would target Kaxek alone and wanted to have someone to support him when they attacked.

“I’ll talk it over with Xeda,” she said carefully.

“Excellent.” He scooped up a pair of drinks from a server passing by and handed one to her. He touched his glass to hers. “Let’s make this a game no one will forget.”

CHAPTERTHIRTEEN

Xeda