Page 76 (1/2)

“Boy’s all right Girl’s straight psycho It’s in the blood”

Ozgard reement “The lesson is called the Three Seasons Do you know this?” I shake my head “Three seasons of war exist Wind, Fire, and Ash Pride, possession, annihilation Freihild—”

“The one who cut off all those Syndicate balls?”

“Yes” He gestures to the young instructor “She gave secret order to attacker, sweep enemy from square, reach skull, or destroy enemy Girl saw them advance for skull Girl listened She beca’s skull Ownership was respected A balance found This pleases the Queen”

I follow his eyes to a patch of grass spotted with snow I’ve never seen Sefi the Quiet in person She looks alst her Valkyrie on the knoll All legs and arms No contained, kinetic violence like the Golds—who always seerandeur Like one of the statues that surround the training square Her shoulders are broad but bony under a fantastic high-collared white cloak with a blue fur collar Her right hand is gloved A crown of what looks like ice sits on her head She watches intensely as a new batch takes the square, sparing a long look for Valdir, who tilts his chin upward toward his mate

Pax is ast the new batch I trace the ht It’s not just the size difference that worries me for the more sensitive of the two Gold spawn It’s muscular development Shy of puberty, Pax isn’t yet the h his bare calves do look ht for a boy, the Obsidians are already giants

The three opponents take their places in a triangle and receive their order froether around their skull, not yet knowing their enemy’s intent Pax seems uninterested “That’s a trillion-credit skull you’re about to let those goons crack,” I say

Ozgard examines me “You care about boy Warood”

“It’s not a bloody e He’s just my meal ticket But he ain’t like the other one”

“No She is better fighter He is erous hue festers inside Watch”

The Obsidians belloar challenge, which Ozgard says is a Season of Wind Their intent is to sweep Pax’s crew fromen e of the square The three enemen back and off the square Then all three coe, Pax steps out The veteran warriors watching howl in condemnation Pax’s ene their backs on him He steps back into the square Only Valdir smiles

What follows is appalling

Not the violence itself, but its tone of boredom and clinical cruelty Crack The sound of fe square One of the Obsidians teeters sideways The other two brutes wheel around to fight Pax He silently deconstructs them He’s slower than Electra, and almost looks asleep, but every movement is like part of a dance As if he’s seen this all happen before, and h the motions He doesn’t need to, but he collapses the kneecap of one of the older boys and then cracks his skull with a sweep of the stave As he spins out of the s his stave down in a diagonal doard strike at Pax’s head Pax falls flat on his back The stave strikes the ground and shatters Pax grabs the Obsidian’s ankle, pulls his, flips around his his hand down on the Obsidian’s neck Sorabbed a shard froers deep in his neck

“Do not move,” Pax says “The bone is two millimeters frooes very still Pax slides frousted; not one has moved, not even the instructor Pax turns to Sefi

“You mock us?” Sefi asks in a quiet voice “It was the Season of Wind, not Ash”