Read Online Guardians of Magessa (The Birthright Chronicles Book 1) by Peter Last - Free Book Online
Authors: Peter Last
Ads: Link
he
maintained enough of his wits to turn the uncontrolled fall into a roll.
Senndra watched as he got to his feet,
unwilling to strike while he was down. His stance was unsteady and it was clear
that the blow had rattled him. Senndra made sure he saw her advancing and then
attacked with vigor. At first, the other cadet fell back from her blows, using
his sword only to block. However, as time
passed, he began to counter her attacks. The pair delivered and blocked strike
and jabs for no more than a few minutes, but to Senndra it seemed like an
eternity. Both combatants moved constantly as they circled each other, trying
to gain the advantage in the fight. Finally, when Senndra thought it would
never end, her opponent pulled a move she never suspected. As she made a move
that had most of her body weight behind it, the other cadet moved as if to
block the blow, but stepped out of the way at the
last second, allowing Senndra's momentum to carry her forward. With all of her
weight forward, she hit the ground hard, rolling over just in time to evade a
strike . She rolled to her right to avoid the next attack and came to her
feet, instantly assuming a defensive position.
Senndra expected that her opponent would
be thrown off by her evasive maneuver, but she immediately found herself being
pressed by him. As she began to gain control of the attack and return blows,
she tried to think about some way to beat him. His defense was almost too good
to penetrate, and he was too fast to surprise. He landed a jab to her shoulder,
and it gouged into her armor, though it didn’t penetrate to her skin. She
brought the hilt of her sword up toward his face, but found her wrist trapped
in a vise-like grip. Her opponent jerked his sword from
her armor and, with a twist of his wrist, sent her flying to the side.
She rolled several times before coming to a stop face down and unconscious.
Senndra felt herself jerked back to
consciousness by the prick of a sword tip on her throat and knew that it was
all over. The sword tip was removed and she rolled over. As she prepared to make her way back to the contestant box
in defeat, she saw something that surprised her. Her opponent had
withdrawn his sword and was now holding it over his shoulder. She scrambled to
her feet and grabbed her sword from where it lay on the ground. Holding it in a
defensive position, she waited for an attack. It didn’t come; the other cadet
advanced with his hand, not his sword, extended.
“The name is Timothy,” he said. His voice
was muffled by the helmet, and yet Senndra heard something in it that made her believe Timothy wouldn’t attack. She extended
her hand as well, and the two leather gloves clasped in
a handshake.
“I just wanted you to know,” Timothy said,
“that no matter who wins this match, I’m glad I have had the honor of battling
you. Though you are at a disadvantage in size, you still fight better than
anyone I know . In addition, the fact that you
did not take the easy way out and attack when I was down shows that you have
honor in your heart. Therefore, even if I do fall to your superior skill, I
will be honored to do so.” Timothy backed away to his previous position and
raised his sword in salute.
Senndra’s mind began to race as she considered what had just happened.
She had come to this contest to win and had defeated all of her opponents. Part
of what had enabled her to do that was hating them enough to beat them. Her
hatred for her current adversary had grown throughout the fight, giving her
strength. Now, the simple action of telling her that he would be willing to
accept defeat had dissipated it. Senndra wondered how she would be able to go
on fighting someone such as this. Granted, she didn’t hate Lemin and was still
proficient against him, but that seemed different somehow. She didn’t think she
could return this attitude, but when she looked and saw that his sword was
still raised in salute, she realized how self-centered she had
maintained enough of his wits to turn the uncontrolled fall into a roll.
Senndra watched as he got to his feet,
unwilling to strike while he was down. His stance was unsteady and it was clear
that the blow had rattled him. Senndra made sure he saw her advancing and then
attacked with vigor. At first, the other cadet fell back from her blows, using
his sword only to block. However, as time
passed, he began to counter her attacks. The pair delivered and blocked strike
and jabs for no more than a few minutes, but to Senndra it seemed like an
eternity. Both combatants moved constantly as they circled each other, trying
to gain the advantage in the fight. Finally, when Senndra thought it would
never end, her opponent pulled a move she never suspected. As she made a move
that had most of her body weight behind it, the other cadet moved as if to
block the blow, but stepped out of the way at the
last second, allowing Senndra's momentum to carry her forward. With all of her
weight forward, she hit the ground hard, rolling over just in time to evade a
strike . She rolled to her right to avoid the next attack and came to her
feet, instantly assuming a defensive position.
Senndra expected that her opponent would
be thrown off by her evasive maneuver, but she immediately found herself being
pressed by him. As she began to gain control of the attack and return blows,
she tried to think about some way to beat him. His defense was almost too good
to penetrate, and he was too fast to surprise. He landed a jab to her shoulder,
and it gouged into her armor, though it didn’t penetrate to her skin. She
brought the hilt of her sword up toward his face, but found her wrist trapped
in a vise-like grip. Her opponent jerked his sword from
her armor and, with a twist of his wrist, sent her flying to the side.
She rolled several times before coming to a stop face down and unconscious.
Senndra felt herself jerked back to
consciousness by the prick of a sword tip on her throat and knew that it was
all over. The sword tip was removed and she rolled over. As she prepared to make her way back to the contestant box
in defeat, she saw something that surprised her. Her opponent had
withdrawn his sword and was now holding it over his shoulder. She scrambled to
her feet and grabbed her sword from where it lay on the ground. Holding it in a
defensive position, she waited for an attack. It didn’t come; the other cadet
advanced with his hand, not his sword, extended.
“The name is Timothy,” he said. His voice
was muffled by the helmet, and yet Senndra heard something in it that made her believe Timothy wouldn’t attack. She extended
her hand as well, and the two leather gloves clasped in
a handshake.
“I just wanted you to know,” Timothy said,
“that no matter who wins this match, I’m glad I have had the honor of battling
you. Though you are at a disadvantage in size, you still fight better than
anyone I know . In addition, the fact that you
did not take the easy way out and attack when I was down shows that you have
honor in your heart. Therefore, even if I do fall to your superior skill, I
will be honored to do so.” Timothy backed away to his previous position and
raised his sword in salute.
Senndra’s mind began to race as she considered what had just happened.
She had come to this contest to win and had defeated all of her opponents. Part
of what had enabled her to do that was hating them enough to beat them. Her
hatred for her current adversary had grown throughout the fight, giving her
strength. Now, the simple action of telling her that he would be willing to
accept defeat had dissipated it. Senndra wondered how she would be able to go
on fighting someone such as this. Granted, she didn’t hate Lemin and was still
proficient against him, but that seemed different somehow. She didn’t think she
could return this attitude, but when she looked and saw that his sword was
still raised in salute, she realized how self-centered she had
Similar Books
