The Lady of Shadows

The Training Results

The next day went by just fine until after lunch. Then Lilith and Dominic were in full competition mode. They were ready to fight. I watched as they got serious and prepared. It was amusing to see them go from joking and making fun to ready to fight as if they were made for war. I knew a good baseline for their abilities and I also knew several ways they could come at me and ways they stood a chance at beating me. Dominic was a power house, physically. He had weak control on his magic, but that didn't mean he couldn't throw some power at me.

    The real threat was if he pushed himself into berserker mode. He would be like a hungry, well trained tiger hunting down its prey if that happened. Only his prey would be me, a dangerous wolf in comparison. He was the bigger animal, with much more powerful claws, but I had the jaw strength and being smaller would also mean I would be faster.

    The dragon, Lilith, on the other had, had the bite to beat me in dragon form. In human form the only real threats she posed to me was her flames and magic. She could breath fire that was hotter than any hell fire spells. It was lethal, but easily avoidable. However if she took her dragon form she would have the skies to rule, dragon sight to find me even hiding under trees, and a large powerful form that could easily hurt me if she landed on me or snatched me up with those massive talons or teeth. 

    Together the smart play would be for Lilith to use her fire to back me into a corner and send Dominic in to attack while her fire kept me pinned. However they were challenging each other as well. That meant that the chances of them working together was limited. Dominic would likely come at me first while the smarter Lilith would wait for an opening. I smiled. The real question would be if they were strong enough to actually get me to move. 

    We made our way to the back lot, a huge area that was empty of anything but grass and rolling hills. It was perfect for a battle fight, but I'd asked the maids to set up a sort of obstacle course. That way it would be more like a fight that would break out randomly. They had done exactly that, going so far to set up a whole stand in market with dummy dolls to act as the slaves and shop keepers. It was amazing. I was proud of the hard work and result. 

    "My Lady, are you ready for this?" One of the maids asked. I smiled.

    "Yes, also, you did an amazing job. It's perfect." I said. She bowed.

    "You flatter me. I only did as requested." She said.

    "You went above and beyond my request. I am proud and very glad you are in my service." I told her. She seemed to blush at the praise. I went on to find a place to start. The maid would send up a color burst of magic to signal the start. I waited and started to clear my mind and tune into every last sense I had. Sharpening them and focusing them. A bright pink light filled the sky and the feeling of being hunted creeped over me, "It begins." I said looking up. I listened closely for the sound of steps, or even a heartbeat. I couldn't hear it. I smelled Dominic before I heard him. The smell made me turn my head to the north, where I saw his shirt was hanging from a tree. Then the sound of his footstep coming up behind me alerted me to his attack. I ducked as his foot came flying from the south. I laughed out loud at the attempt. It was sneaky and unlike anything I thought Dominic would try.

    "Damn I thought I had that." He muttered.

    "Close, I applaud the attempt. How did you silence your heartbeat?" I asked.

    "Vampire trick my mother taught me." He said, "You could do it too I'm sure. When everything is over I'll show you." He grinned and sung at me with all his might. I dodged out the way quickly and just as I turned to face him Lilith's heartbeat gave her away.

  The smell of smoke was a clear sign of her intent. I moved to avoid the flames as they melted a stone wall. A dangerous power... I blasted a water burst at her and the tree she was hiding behind exploded instantly and fell. Dominic charged again and I barely had time to block the attack. The power in his hand connected with my arm and forced me back several feet. It hurt like no pain I'd felt before. That woke me up to the idea that they had some real power and that I should not let my guard down. I cursed myself for thinking they were weak like everyone else around us. 

    "I scored a hit!" Dominic yelled. 

    "Like hell!" Lilith returned as she jumped into action trying not to be outdone. I had to refocus and try to expect more than I was before. The game of tag went on for hours, I focused on defense mostly and tried to keep them from landing any more hits. I failed at that though because by the time we called it a night I ended up with a fair amount of bruises. 

    "Ouch." I complained as I walked back into the house. Dominic was laughing and advising a long cold shower followed by a hot bath. 

    "So who won for the night?" Lilith asked. 

    "Honestly, Dominic hit me more, but that fire is no joke. I think you gave me a tan a few times." I said. 

    "So a tie. I'll win tomorrow for sure!" Lilith yelled. We ate and chatted before going off to bed. The week went roughly the same way daily. They grew stronger and I got better at dodging them, but things still progressed. I ended up with new bruises every day and by the end of it, with a tie, both of them won two dates separately with me.