I sprang back out of his reach and waited on the balls of my feet, blade held diagonally across my body. He lunged, and I danced clear, dropping into a crouch to slice at his calves. I kept the wound shallow, but still he screamed and landed hard on his knees. He caught himself on his hands at the expense of his sword, which skittered across the cobblestones.

I had thought he’d surrender, but the little gnat crawled, whimpering, to his fallen weapon.

“Stop,” I ordered, frowning at his blood trail.

He looked up, defeat and fear darkening his eyes with enlarged pupils.

“Forget your weapon. Put pressure on the wounds. I don’t want your life. Do not give it senselessly.”

The boy grumbled, finally surrendering. He ripped the bottoms of his pant legs and tied the cloth around his lacerations to help stop the bleeding.

“Good. Now maybe we can finish this ridiculous…” Jebba jumped onto my back, his forehead laceration dripping on my ear and neck. His forearm pressed against my throat while his legs squeezed my waist.

“Get off of me,” I managed through gasps of air. I turned in circles, trying to shake him or reach a tender part. Thankfully, the pressure on my windpipe hadn’t fuzzed the edges of my vision yet, thanks to my time spent underwater, but it would soon. Beads of sweat fell into my mouth. The taste of salt reminded me of the sea, the larger fight we had in front of us. I had to stop this giant waste of time.

Lou took a spill from the blow of her opponents’ sword. She was ready to die for the honor of a man who rested six feet under. A man whose sins she couldn’t yet fathom. I, on the other hand, was not.

Using my anger, I spun and slammed my unwanted baggage into the stone wall. Jebba grunted but held on tight. I threw myself back again, and his arm loosened at my neck, but I still wasn’t rid of him. I smashed him into the structure a third and fourth time. He slid off, breathing hard.

“I said stop,” I yelled again. “All of you.”

Jebba bobbed his head in submission. But Lou and her adversary ignored me. Their swords clashed in every direction, their feet moving so fast I could barely keep up. A fight to the death.

I had no choice but to use my power. It started slow, and then I let it build. I hummed my mother’s song and focused on the two swordsmen. They fought me, especially Lou. Her right arm quaked with resistance, though her feet had stilled. I hummed louder, Prometheus’ apple tremoring.

Two weapons clanged to the ground. Lou and her opponent stared at each other and then the sky. My abilities muddled the minds of mortals, clouding their thoughts and slowing their reactions.