“Well? What’s it going to be? Are you—”

Growling, Vera attacked with a vengeance, refusing to be humiliated any further. Focusing on her anger, she put every ounce of it behind her strikes.

The bitch wanted a real fight? Fine. She’d give her a gods damn fight.

They met again and again in a clash of blades and limbs. But no matter how Vera came at her, Reniya met each of her movements with ease. She didn’t even appear to be breaking a sweat while Vera was red in the face within minutes, her chest heaving as she darted in and out, ducking and lunging.

Her lack of sleep the night before wasn’t doing her any favors, but she was giving it everything she had to avoid what would be a gruesome death if she missed. It didn’t make any sense. Even the most hardened warrior should’ve been showing at least some form of fatigue at that point.

But then she sensed it, the pull she sometimes felt from Jaren when he drew on his abilities during her meditation. It was duller, barely noticeable, but there. Reniya was dipping into her power, healing her muscles and stamina as they sparred. So much for a fair fight.

She glared over her weapon, but Reniya just waggled her brows before coming at her again. The power behind her strikes reverberated down Vera’s sword and up her arms, making her muscles strain and bulge, struggling not to buckle each time steel clashed against steel.

Jaren was incredibly strong, as was Elric, but neither had ever come at her with this kind of single-minded aggression and strength. The kind of unbridled strength that came from someone who was tapping into their fucking abilities to aid them.

She spun again, ducking just in time as Reniya’s blade sliced through the air above her head, missing her by mere inches. Who the fuck aimed for the head during a spar with real swords?

The knowledge that Reniya wasn’t even trying to hide what she was doing filled her with a blinding fury. Elric had held etiquette above all else during a spar, but apparently that didn’t exist on this gods damn island, and Vera was having to concentrate far too hard to attempt tapping into her own power.

Growing angrier by the second, Vera twisted, throwing caution to the wind and aiming for Reniya’s head right back, snarling a warning.

Reniya’s eyes widened, surprise lighting them up as she flung her blade up, ducking out of the way. But Vera was expecting it and already waiting for her. She pivoted, slamming her blade against hers again, just before ramming her foot into Reniya’s stomach.

Reniya heaved, spit flinging from her parted lips as her body bent forward from the blow, and Vera wasted no time following through with a sharp elbow to her face, watching in satisfaction as Reniya’s neck cracked back and blood dripped from her nose.

But rather than re-center herself to defend against another blow like she anticipated, Reniya’s head snapped down, a wide smile on her face as she shot forward and swung her blade.