Page 8 of Enchanted Shadows (The Enchanted Kingdom #6)

“ Y ou could act like you even halfway want to be here!” Jessina’s voice was far louder than usual.

She had run with Aletta today, trying to motivate her to move a little faster.

Elsie was making the runs at least half of the time, but Aletta still wasn’t.

After half walking, half running with her, Jessina was fed up.

“I don’t want to be!” Aletta finally snapped, taking a huge step in closer, gesturing wildly with her arms. “I don’t want to be here. There. You happy now?”

Jessina hesitated.

I stayed back but paid close attention, trying to see if they could handle it on their own.

“My family forced me into this,” Aletta gritted. “They went down in society when the dead king died. They want my placement in this group to be the thing that gets them back.”

I wasn’t expecting that. “So you’re intentionally holding yourself back? Hoping to get kicked out?”

“Yes and no,” Aletta sighed as her voice came back down in volume. “I hate running. Loathe it. I would rather walk it than jog. I hurt my knee a few years ago and the motion makes it reverberate up my body. It hurts.”

How’d she make it past the physicals then? Or had she lied about any previous injuries?

“Does your family know?” Jessina asked. “That you’re hurt?”

“Yes. They sent me anyway.”

“That’s horrible,” Molly provided from where she was grabbing her knees for breath.

Aletta looked to them all. “So stop doing this thing where you try to befriend me and make me like this. I don’t want to like it. I don’t want it.”

I walked over. “The way I see it, Aletta, you have two options. You can take the real trial test in a few days and intentionally fail it. Then you’ll be out. Or you can actually run it, pain be damned, and stay.”

Her eyes flooded with tears. “I don’t want to stay. This isn’t for me.”

Oh damn. I hated tears. With a passion.

“Then go.” I put a hand in the direction of the barracks. “Go.”

“I can’t,” she whispered around the tears.

“You can. I hereby kick you out. And I can write a nasty letter to your family about making their daughter train when they knew she had a medical injury.”

“Don’t do that,” she said quietly. “It’ll only make things worse.”

I cocked my head. “Are you sure you want out? Because once you’re out, the rest of us cannot help you.”

“I’m sure. I was engaged to be married anyway. They just didn’t like him.”

No wonder she always seemed angry. “Well. If you really don’t want to be here, then go get your man. I’d get married on the way home, if I were you. Get away from your family.”

Aletta took a deep breath. “Thank you, General Raikes.”

“Take care of yourself,” I told her with a dip of my chin .

When I spun back to the rather quiet group, Jessina was glaring at me, her eyes trying to leave her head. “You’re just going to let her walk out? And leave? Like that?”

“You can’t save them all, Jessina,” I told her gently.

“But—”

“No buts. She didn’t want to be here. Forcing her to keep up with your training was physically painful for her. I am not going to force someone to be here who doesn’t want to be. And contrary to popular belief, I do not enjoy other’s pain.”

Jessina moved to go after her, but I stepped into her way and stopped her. “Jessina,” I warned.

“I just wanted to help,” she gasped out, her eyes now swimming with tears.

“I know you did. In this case, we have to trust that Aletta will help herself. She knows what she wants, and it isn’t being a part of this team.”

She forcefully swatted at a tear.

“Leave it be,” I said more gently.

She nodded, swallowing hard.

The rest of them moved to get set to do their abdominal circuit, but while we were all in our feelings, there was one more thing that needed to be discussed. “Hold up.”

Jessina and Remy were off. Both were from Rallis. Did they have some sort of bad history? I pointed to each of them. “You two haven’t so much as looked at each other for two days. I was trying to wait it out and see if it’d blow over, but it’s not. So what happened?”

“Nothing,” Remy said quickly. Far too quickly.

Jessina was still fighting down tears but said nothing.

“We are going to stand here all day until one of you explains,” Vivian told them.

“She’s not wrong,” I agreed .

Remy let out a sigh. “I snapped at Jessina. Told her she’s trying too hard.”

I looked to Jessina. “That’s what happened? The reason for not speaking for a few days ?”

“It was the way in which she said it, more so than the words themselves.” Jessina jerked a hand toward the barracks where Aletta was gathering her things. “But obviously she’s right, I am trying too hard.”

“Hey,” I snapped. “You care about the team. Never apologize for that. You just have to learn which personalities like the push and which don’t, all right?”

Jessina turned to Remy. “Sorry I pushed too hard.”

“Sorry I snapped at you, it was a long day, but you didn’t deserve that.” Remy shifted on her feet. “And Aletta leaving isn’t your fault.”

And then they hugged. They actually hugged. Just like my mother used to force us to do for sibling squabbles. I was used to altercations with the men, which lasted far shorter and often times ended in blows, but at least they were efficient?

“All right, that’s it,” I said on a sigh. “Grab your stuff. We will do our circuit in a different location. Follow me.”

They all looked to one another confused, but I didn’t answer any more questions, I began walking without turning to look to make sure they all followed. I could hear them scrambling around for their water jugs, though.

“Where are we going?” Magnolia asked.

“A change of scenery sometimes helps,” was all I explained.

As soon as we hit The Dead Lake, I felt better. The Dead Lake, which was now clear, and teeming with green grass, sunlight, and chirping birds. It didn’t even feel like the same place.

Aletta and Jessina had gotten into it today, but there had been some minor drama all week long. The looming trial test was getting to them .

I had them spread out on the grass around the lake, my eyes going to that very purple hydrangea tree which bloomed year-round and held the sword which had ended Theon.

I loved the lake and coming here. It was beautiful, but it also reminded me of how far we’d come. Why we were still fighting for it today. Because the world we had busted our asses for was not only better, but worth it.

“Get your circuit done in fifteen and we can stay for a few extra minutes.”

Without another word, they got to work, and so did I.

Training the women all day didn’t give me much time for my own training, so I did the moves with them, just like I did when I trained teams of men.

I hated teachers who only barked orders and never understood the pain of it.

That was Theon Valanova’s entire mode of operation.

We finished and I heard a few of them whispering before Wren’s voice said, “You ask him.”

“Ask me what, Wren?”

Wren groaned. “Sometimes they want me to ask you things. Thinking that you are easier on me.”

“Not true,” I responded back. Wren and I definitely looked like siblings, same brown hair, same green eyes. “You piss me off all the time. Rather regularly.”

“See?” Wren said to the others as she gestured both hands at me.

“You’re my sister, but that doesn’t mean I give you special privileges,” I added.

“He does yell at her often when we run,” Zara admitted. “He might even be harder on her.”

“Thanks,” Wren told her, as if grateful someone had her back.

“So what did you want to ask me?” I swore if they asked if they could skinny dip in this lake I was going to need a headache tonic. Today had already been unnecessarily difficult .

“We want a team name,” Sam blurted out. “Something catchy.”

“Okay.” I shrugged. “Like what?”

We all sat in a semicircle, and I joined them near the stones, absentmindedly throwing a few rocks into the water.

“Womb-bats?” Molly offered.

“Boobie Brigade?” Sam suggested.

A smile twisted at the corner of my mouth while Molly cackled. I was definitely not offering up options for this. I was terrible at naming things.

“Maneaters?” Vivian laughed.

“Savage Sisters?” Sam tried again.

“Thunder sisters,” Molly amended. “Because Owen’s goal in life is to make sure we all have thunder thighs.”

I ignored the fact that she had slipped up and used my first name. “You need powerful legs; big thighs are not a bad thing.”

“Slay Sisters?” Sam asked.

A blanket hushed the rest of them. I kept throwing stones.

There was movement to my right. Zara grabbed a stone, throwing a rock that skipped twice on her first try.

Challenge accepted.

“We will think on it and circle back,” Sam finally told me.

“I’m not going to call you the Boobie Brigade, but if you want to call yourselves a team name, I have no issue with it.

Just know that after you graduate all three rounds of training, teams are given a number attached.

Team One being the best of the best, and the largest number is usually the new ones.

More often than not, a training group is split between the other teams, though King Krewan and I believe keeping you all together is best. As the first all women team, I am sure you will start out as Team Nine or something of the like, should you all make it that far. ”

“What team were you on?” Fern asked.

“Started on Team Eight just like everyone else, eventually got promoted up to Team One.” I tried another rock.

“While Theon was still king.” I paused and said to Jessina, “We didn’t have the option to not train back then.

Once we finished school, if you were Enchanted, you trained.

That’s part of the reason why I wouldn’t force Aletta to stay today. ”

“And what team are you on now?” Fern asked. “Sorry, I’m not used to your customs.”

“This one,” I said with a grin. “Slay Sisters.”

Wren elaborated, “He’s a general. One of four. Next to the king and queen, he’s one of the four most powerful people in Wylan. And has served as proxy to the king before.”

I glared at her. That was entirely not needed.

“And you’re stuck with us?” Fern asked with an incredulous stare.

I threw another rock. Only one skip. Dammit. “No. I trained the queen, so I was the person she trusted most for this.”

“Is it true you are kin bonded but can speak telepathically?” Jessina asked quietly.

I nodded and tried another rock. Two skips. “It is. She’s like another sister to me.”

Zara threw a rock and it skipped three times. She looked me in the eyes as if to say take that.

I heard a movement to the west of us and turned to see some fur between a few trees.

Black fur. I headed that direction. I liked Rafe, but Shadow was my favorite wolf.

Never the alpha but always loyal and willing to do the dirty work.

Dependable and tough. Jorah had told me we were similar, and I had loved him ever since. Even if he had a few scars.

I crouched down, talking low to him. The women stayed back.

“How’ve you been, boy?” I asked.

He sniffed at me, and I noted how healthy his coat looked.

“I saw a group of turkeys the other day,” I told him. “Bet you’re loving that. ”

He let me pet him twice and then went on his way. Which was about as lovey as he got.

“See you next time,” I told him.

I stretched my back and headed over to the girls, “Back to the Princess Academy we go, Slay Sisters.”

A few steps in, Sam asked me, “Can we come back here? On our evenings off? The barracks get a little stuffy sometimes.”

I could relate. “Given what happened the other day, I only ask that you do not go alone. Go in threes. Deal?”

“Deal.”

By the time we got back, they were content to chat amongst themselves.

A change of scenery had been what we needed, what I needed.

We were only down two women to eighteen, but I knew more would be going home eventually.

I only hoped that by the end of the ninety days, we would have enough to form a cohesive team.

The Slay Sisters had their work cut out for them.