18 The Fight

  A couple of months earlier, Sara would have run from the man, but she knew that if David and Draco weren’t in the valley, then this man was a serious threat. This wasn’t an enemy she could run from.

  Sara thought about grabbing her hatchet or the knife, but dismissed them as she was holding a better weapon, the staff.

  The man moved steadily towards her, and Sara moved back. She wasn’t thinking of running away, but seeing the ground that they were on, she knew that this wasn’t the best place to fight. There were too many stones that could cause her to stumble. She was glad that there was over a hundred feet between them, since if the man were faking his injury, it would give her a few extra seconds to get ready.

  “Don’t run away, we could have so much fun together.” The man said with a chuckle as he kept limping towards Sara.

  Sara thought about saying something back to the man, but remembered David telling her that when she fought, she should fight, not talk. Talk only to distract your opponent or to buy you time; anything else is a waste of energy. Sara knew that she would need all her energy.

  The man was at least six inches taller than Sara and fifty or sixty pounds bigger. Sara was going to need to keep this man from getting too close. The man’s limp was going to serve as an advantage, and the fact that the man didn’t look like he had been eating well would also help. Sara just hoped that she could get to better ground before the man closed the distance between them. So far, he hadn’t, but Sara didn’t want to assume anything.

  What concerned Sara was that this man was desperate, and David had taught her that a desperate opponent could do anything because they had nothing to lose. This man looked like he had nothing to lose, and the look in his eyes convinced Sara he couldn’t be reasoned with.

  Sara glanced to the sky as she moved back. She realized the irony that only a few minutes ago, she was glad Draco was gone, but now wished he would come flying in. Sara caught a look in the man’s eyes.

  “I saw the dragon fly off early today. Are you, his pet? He isn’t here to help you, so you can be my pet, now.”

  Sara took a chance and said, “Draco doesn’t like sharing, so if you know what’s good for you, you had better back off.”

  The chuckle coming from the man told Sara that the man wasn’t worried about Draco, and when he kept moving forward, Sara knew that he wasn’t going to quit.

  Sara continued moving, glad that she was almost out of the field of stone. As she retreated from the field of stone, she took position. She had considered throwing the knife or the hatchet, but knew if she missed, she would be giving this man another weapon. She took her staff in both hands and prepared for the man to come within range.

  Sara examined the way the man held the knife and how he moved. She wondered if he had ever been in a real fight. During her first day of training with a knife, David had told her that the way she saw the man holding it would make it easy to lose. The way the man was moving also showed that he didn’t know how to fight or that he didn’t consider her a threat. Sara assumed it was the second. The man’s hands weren’t held in any position to defend but were down by his sides. Sara considered what to do: swing for the head or feet or take the chance at a quick thrust in the chest. Sara guessed either would hurt the man, but once she showed that she was a real threat, she knew any surprise would be gone. She opted for the thrust rather than the swing over her head. She hoped the thrust would hurt him, and with the man still on the stones, it would mean there was a good chance he would misstep, giving her a huge advantage if he tripped.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  The man said some more words as he got in range. Knowing that this fight was for real, Sara ignored the words.

  Sara reminded herself, once you hit the man, you can’t let up. If he falls, keep him down.

  The man got in range, and Sara let her training take command. The man had no armor, and his chest was unprotected. Sara dropped the staff forward, made it parallel with the man’s chest, and thrust with both hands.

  The man wasn’t prepared and didn’t even have time to react. The end of the staff smacked into his chest, knocking him back and causing him to fall back onto the stones. Sara didn’t wait to see if the man would respond and swung the staff around to strike the hand carrying the knife.

  The staff struck the man’s wrist and forearm, and the knife went flying. Sara moved back for a second to get a read on her opponent. The man swore, and his hands closed over his chest. He was down and unarmed, but Sara knew he was still a threat, and maybe now more than before.

  Sara took a deep breath and shoved any guilt over what she was going to do out of her mind. Before she could do anything else, everything changed.

  A loud, “No, Princess,” filled the air, and the shadow of the dragon fell over them. Sara dropped her fighting stance and quickly moved back towards the trees, already knowing what was going to happen.

  By the time she turned around, Draco was on top of the man, and David was jumping off. Draco then took to the sky a wriggling man in his claws.

  Part of Sara wanted to turn away, but the other part, the part that needed to know the threat was over, watched as Draco flew higher then higher still, beyond the edge of the valley and released the man. Sara turned her head as the man began to fall so, she wouldn’t see the last moment, but she wouldn’t have had to, as David stepped in front of her.

  “Are you okay?” The giant asked.

  Sara knew that David wasn’t asking if she was hurt; she clearly wasn’t. He was asking how she was doing on the inside.

  Sara dropped her staff and leaned into the giant, wrapping her arms around his middle. She shook her head, knowing that she had almost killed another person. Yes, the person was bad, but it was still a person. David had warned her that killing someone changed something inside, and Sara could feel something. She just wasn’t sure what it was.

  David pushed her back a little and knelt on the grass, making them nearly eye to eye. He put his massive hands out, and Sara leaned into the massive hug. Sara tried not to cry, but there were a few times she thought she might. David said nothing. The last impressions that David was just her master were gone; she knew that she was being hugged by a friend.

  Sara looked over David’s shoulder and saw Draco drop into the field of stone not thirty feet in front of her. The dragon, to her surprise, just looked at the ground as if he had just done something he was ashamed of.

  For several minutes, no one moved or said anything.

  Finally, David pushed Sara back a little, looking into her eyes with a small smile, said, “Sari, I saw part of the fight. You fought well. You chose not to run. You chose the best ground to fight on, and you didn’t hesitate.”

  “How did you know?”

  “Draco spotted the signs where it looked like someone had climbed down into the valley. We flew around, and when we spotted your fight. We came in.”

  “Thanks, I,” Sara stopped, knowing she would have killed the man, but was also just as grateful she didn’t have to.

  David nodded, and Sara could see he knew what she was thinking. “Well, with any luck, a servant of ours will never have to worry about killing anyone or having to have someone killed. Killing changes you; the key is to make sure it does not change you into something bad.”

  Draco said something in his growling language, which caused both Sara and David to look at the dragon.

  David looked back at Sara and gave a half smile, “Draco is still insistent that we head out, so if you are okay, I need to go.”

  Sara nodded, not sure what to say, and then waved her hand without moving. She watched the giant turn around, walk over, and climb on the dragon’s back.

  Draco made another sound, and David said, “You did what you had to do.” Draco made another sound, and David continued, “The creator calls us to make hard choices sometimes. You did nothing wrong.”

  There were other sounds, and David stared at the dragon. David said one more thing, then Draco stretched his wings, and they were off.

  Sara stared at the back of the duo, completely confused. The final words were something she wasn’t expecting, especially since it seemed that David was translating. She stared intently into the sky. She could barely see the dragon now, but what was clear in her mind were those last words. “Have faith, Princess, everything will be okay.”