Page 31 of Red Demon

Ruan groaned, and threw a dagger from the ground, aimed for my exposed flank. Ash had met me low, but I rolled to the side, the tip of Ruan’s training dagger whistling by my head as I took a shot at the back of Asher’s knees.

“Point!” I yelled. “Hamstring.”

Ruan came at me as Ash stepped back.

The morning dew soaked my pants as I came up, my left hand a blur as I snatched a handful of dirt, thinking to fling it into her face. I repressed the instinct rather than blind my friend, and that was all it took for Ruan to prepare a strike I knew I couldn’t block. “Point,” she said, sword to my chest as I pressed my unsharpened blade to her throat.

“And point.” I dug in the steel until she flinched. “Killed you right back, at least!”

She glared, ready to press in, but I ducked back with a disarming strike, sending her sword clattering to the ground.

“Now that we’re all dead, wanna go again?” I said, chest heaving.

Ruan scoffed at me, a mix of frustration and grudging respect in her eyes. She turned, hobbling toward her bag under the tree. “Insatiable bastard.”

I laughed, going for my water bottle as the three of us sat to catch our breath, the silence filling with the chirping of birds awakening the forest.

“I gotta get to work, but good fight.” Asher yawned, standing to stretch.

“Yeah, good fight. I’ll come too,” I said, accepting his hand up.

Ruan stalked away, gathering her daggers. Asher yawned again as he clipped his sword to his belt, and I wondered how late he’d stayed up tinkering with the code sequencer.

Galen strode over from his match at the far side of the clearing. From the satisfaction in his stride, I expected he’d won his match with Meragc. But he squinted at us, circumspect.

“What is it, Taam?” I said.

He wiped his brow with his hand. “The Governor’s daughter sent a message last night on her father’s letterhead, requesting that both of you call on her this afternoon.”

“Both of us?” Asher echoed my thoughts.

I expected she wanted an update on her machine.

Galen shrugged, his own brow furrowed. “Seems I’m just as confused as you two. Regardless, clean up and make a good impression.”

The afternoon sun soaked warmth into the skin of our necks as we made our way toward the governor’s mansion. I wore a silky forest green shirt and some pants I hadn’t stained yet. Asher, for reasons understood only to himself, donned Galen’s formal century robe. I’d helped him tie the last fold off to get the right fit, but I still wasn’t sure I had it right. That silver embroidery and void-black fabric also didn’t pair well with the slightly wrinkled linen pants that peeked out from underneath. He moved with a self-conscious shuffle, the garment whispering against the cobblestone with each step.

“Does Taam know you borrowed that?” It should have been him tying it off.

Asher’s cheeks flushed as he straightened the stiff garment around his shoulders. “I asked if I could borrow a robe. He didn’t ask which one.”

“For all we know, the governor wants us to check up on the new fence.” A chuckle escaped me. The image of Asher, resplendent in Galen’s robe, kneeling in the dirt, was quite the picture.

“It’s also my first meeting with the governor. Why do one thing when you can do two?” Asher said.

“Don’t use my mom’s words against me. Besides, you think the governor is going to introduce us to the queen? You getting married on the way?”

Asher grimaced. “Just giving a governor’s summons the best respect I can, I guess. Technically, he’s nobility,” he trailed off, half stifling a yawn.

“Fine.” My playful smile faltered. The dark circles under his eyes were more pronounced, and he was still leaning over the half-assembled code-sequencer in our shared loft late into the night. He’d taken it out to work on only when Taam wasn’t around. He shifted the weight of the bag on his shoulder, and I peeked in at the little machine. “You got it working?”

He stiffened. “Almost. Just a few tweaks to go.”

“What tweaks?”

He tightened his jaw and shrugged.

There it was again, that wall he’d put up whenever I tried to troubleshoot. I couldn’t understand it. I’d always pulled my weight on any other complex job, but the only part of the burden he let me shoulder here was keeping the secret from Galen.