I careened through the air, arms flailing, body twisting to get a view of where I would fall.

Faster than I expected, the ground rose to meet me. I landed wrong, my shoulder taking the full force of the impact. Cartilage tore with a sickening crunch. Air was knocked out of my body, and then…

I was rolling.

The world turned from light to dark with each rotation. A painful pulse shot through my shoulder with each smack into the earth.

I admit. This wasn't my best idea.

I rolled to a stop at the base of the hill. The sky was a beautiful light blue, made ugly by the men looming over me with their weapons raised. I willed my dagger into my hand and winced. The handle was still hot from Van Lagos' fire.

I dropped my weapon as mercenaries pulled back to swing.

"Hold! We need him alive."

The mercenaries paused and stepped back, giving me time to roll over and get on my knees.

The semicircle of soldiers parted to reveal Rugar. He mirrored my stance, on his knees, wheezing with each laboured breath. Castille's sword was still lodged in his stomach, down to the hilt.

Say what you will about Rugar, he was tough.

The boy who came to serve him food was close to his side, his eyes wide with shock.

I wish I was in shock.

I winced, grabbing my right shoulder. It was dislocated from the fall. I took a deep breath, pressed my palm against the ground, and popped the joint back into its socket. Before I could take another breath, strong hands grabbed my arms and dragged me to my feet.

"Watch it!" I said, still wincing from my sore shoulder.

Van Lagos laughed as he walked down the hill, tapping the blunt side of his steel scimitar against the crook of his neck.

"See, friends and enemies all rolled into one."

"The Dahlgeshi you can kill," Rugar said. "Get him!"

Van Lagos charged forward. Arrows punctured the ground where he stood a moment before. Another fiery spear ignited in his left hand.

I tore my arms free from the mercenaries' grip.

"Get down!"

I fell to my stomach, ducking under the thrown spear. A scream rang out behind me from someone who didn't take my advice.

I jumped to my feet as Van Lagos skidded to a stop at the base of the hill. His lips twisted into a grin. His left hand raised for another blast of fire.

Shit!

I thrust my hands forward as Van Lagos unleashed an inferno. I met his fire with my own, shaping it into a flaming barrier in front of me.

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I ignored the throbbing in my shoulder, the surprised shouts and screams behind me.

There was only the fire, and the moment our flames and wills met.

My body tensed. My arms shook. Every. Muscle. Flexed. I was like one man holding back a river. My boot soles slid across withering grass. I was being pushed back, but the barrier was holding.

An invisible weight pushed against my mind. It was a pressure building in my head, pushing against my eyes until I felt they would pop out of my skull.

And then…

Relief.

The fire burned out. I dropped to one knee, panting and drenched with sweat. I blinked, raising my head to meet the face of my enemy. A scorched patch of earth marked the distance between us.

Van Lagos…

Was smiling?! His red, feline eyes were wide, sparkling with awe.

"What was that?"

"What was what?" I asked, still catching my breath.

"Your fire… It had two wills."

Two wills?

Before I could think, a volley of arrows whistled over my head.

Van Lagos' face flickered with irritation. He swiped his left hand in a dismissive gesture, and a wall of fire, larger than my own, rose in front of him to block the arrows. As soon as the fire appeared, Van Lagos snuffed it out.

To have that much control...

"You're friends are rude, Jacob."

"I told you, they're not my friends!"

"Attack!" Rugar shouted.

The old mercenaries rushed past me, shields held high.

It was going to be a massacre.

Good.

My new plan was the old plan.

Why fight your enemies when they can fight each other?

Van Lagos whipped his left hand to the side, sending a slash of fire in front of him.

The mercenaries skidded to a stop. They drew together in a shield wall as the flames washed over them.

My eyebrows raised.

They weren't burning.

Instead, their shields sizzled, and the smell of venison and rosemary filled the air.

I smiled despite myself.

The mercenaries soaked their shields in their lunchtime stew.

Clever.

I had to remember that these were veterans of the border war. They knew how to fight Dahlgeshi.

"Loose!"

Another volley of arrows whistled over the advancing mercenaries. Van Lagos raised another wall of fire.

More mercenaries ran past me, throwing spears into the firewall. The heavier projectiles pierced through Van Lagos's fiery veil.

Impressive...

It looked like Rugar kept the best soldiers with him.

The wall of fire shivered like a wounded animal and then rolled forward in another wave.

Shit!

I dropped to my stomach. A wave of heat washed over my head, but the mercenaries' formation held.

Over the crackling fire, Rugar's voice boomed.

"Hold the line! Show the Dahlgeshi what we're made of!"

This must have been a dream come true for the old merchant. He had found his war. The boy, who must have been some kind of servant, hoisted Rugar to his feet. His face was pale, one armoured arm wrapped around the boy's shoulders, a growing pool of dark blood at his feet.

I got up in a wary crouch, willing my dagger back into my hand.

Van Lagos' eyes settled on Rugar.

"Do you lead these men?"

Rugar lifted his chin with pride.

"I do."

Van Lagos smirked.

"I pity them. You are unschooled in the ways of war."

"Says the lone Dahlgeshi. You're outnumbered and overpowered. Surrender and we'll give you the King's Piece."

"Piece?!"

Van Lagos spat out the word.

"I am no beastkin to be shuffled off to a reservation and fed crumbs. I am Dahlgeshi. And everyone who fights the Dahlgeshi, knows to never wear metal armour."

A loud hiss filled the air like water pouring into a hot metal pot. The mercenaries' heads turned to the source of the sound.

Rugar's armour shifted in colour from a polished grey to a bright orange. He stood red-faced, his jaw muscles bunching to keep his mouth shut. He was too prideful to scream. That was done by someone else.

The boy holding Rugar up yelped and pulled away. His skin was blistered, with angry burns on his shoulders and the back of his neck.

Rugar dropped to his knees. He let out a grunt and, like a crack in a levee wall, a low, ugly yell poured out of his mouth. The sound of a man being cooked alive in his armour.

The mercenaries broke their formation and charged.

If they could make Van Lagos lose focus, they could save their employer.

Rugar's hands went to his neck, tearing off chunks of metal like the plate mail was made of clay.

I couldn't take my eyes off him. It was horrifying yet hypnotic.

A sudden heat in front of me made me turn my head. Van Lagos created another fiery wall, cutting a line through the mercenaries and coming straight for me!

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