Amazon Chief (92 page)

Senai was the chief at Green Arrow. I didn't know it at the time, but Maya had kept me away from fights with either of the contestants from Green Arrow. The first competitor from Green Arrow was one of the companions who had helped lash me to the whipping post, all those years ago. She'd been a warrior for a long time now. Maya had made sure she fought both her fights against top fighters, her second against Jalad, the fight I hadn't seen. The woman was out of the tournament after only two fights.

Senai
had stayed in longer than I would have expected, but I checked her fight record, and she hadn't been against particularly difficult opponents. That was about to change, but perhaps not this fight.

I wasn't worried about
Senai, although I was happy I wasn't fighting her. I wasn't worried about beating her, I was worried I couldn't help but beat her. Malora wouldn't have been amused.

Omie helped me stay limber, and my companion found me from time to time to offer me little touches, keeping the voices at bay. Maya made sure to help, too, then I realized I had a steady stream of companions stopping by to talk for a few minutes, and each of them stood next to me with a hand on whatever bare skin presented itself.

Finally, when Halla did it, Bea's companion, I gave a questioning look to Omie.

"Finally noticed, did you?" she said with a smile.

"Thank you, Halla, but you can tell everyone I'm fine."

"Orders from the senior companion," Halla said. "You argue with her if you want. Now, you just behave and let me touch you."

I laughed. "Yes, Halla."

Then I noticed that Aren was talking to Haldara. I looked at Omie and raised an eyebrow. Omie grinned.

Malora finally arrived. She made a short speech about the quality of the tournament and asked everyone if she had been having a good week. There were a few warriors who muttered 'no', but it was said with a certain amount of humor. Then she announced the order of the four rounds this morning. Everyone probably knew, but she made sure.

"First up, Jalad and Lilith."

We had moved to the main ring, and there was room for everyone to stand around. It was also a much bigger space, and the whipping post was there in the middle. To the best of my knowledge, Malora had never used it for that purpose, but I knew she used it as an obstacle, and I'd used it myself from time to time. From my travels, I knew that not every Amazon village had a similar obstacle.

For a while, I thought Lilith might win her fight with Jalad. She got the first point, lost a point, then got three more. And in each point, she applied a particularly painful submission hold, all of them the type that can be used to damage a joint if the victim doesn't tap out. Jalad knew to tap out, so she didn't permanently lose the use of a hand or arm. I felt a little badly that I'd wished otherwise, as horrible a thought as it was.

But Jalad got the remaining points, and she was brutal about it. By the end, I think Lilith was sorry she hadn't done any real damage to Jalad. The match ended five-four with Jalad remaining undefeated. Lilith was out of the competition.

I caught her arm as she stepped out of the ring, pulling her close. "I wasn't looking forward to a bout with you, but I wish you had won."

"I worked her over for you," she replied. "And we can always have a friendly match sometime, after the tournament."

I nodded. "Maybe you can come to Lake Juna sometime and teach all of us. You have moves I've never seen."

"I'd like that, Chief Beria. If you'll excuse me now, I need my companion."

"Of course. I'm sorry."

"It was good to talk. Thank you."

My fight was next. Malora gave a short break between fights. I loosened up a little more, then stepped into the ring with a practice staff.

Tenda hadn't seen me; she was busy talking to her village chief, but then she froze and turned around. She saw me holding a staff, and her expression tightened. She spoke to her chief for another moment then stepped into the ring.

We clasped hands. "I'm sorry," I said.

"No, it's fine. I've seen you with a staff. You won't break me." We both knew the implication of that. "We all came to win, right?"

We stepped back. Malora wished us both good luck, and then we fought.

Tenda was demoralized from the start of the fight. She was still very good, but her edge was off. It took a minute, but I got the first point. I pulled it, I really did, but she stepped away, rubbing her chest and turning away.

"Point to Beria," Malora announced. "When you're ready, Tenda."

She waited a moment then she turned back to the fight, but the light was out of her eyes. Malora called fight, and Tenda came after me, but I held her off easy.

I felt like shit.

"Hold," I said. "Wait." I backed away. "Please."

Tenda dropped back.

"Beria, it's usually my right to pause a fight," Malora said.

"Tenda, I know I stepped into this ring with a staff, but would you allow me to switch to two swords?"

She hadn't quite been looking at me, but her eyes snapped to mine, and several expressions flashed across her face.

"Why would you do that?"

"I don't want to win this way. You're better than this. I want a proper match. Do you?"

"Chief Beria, you don't have to switch."

"Will you allow me to change weapons?"

She nodded.

"Queen Malora?"

Malora studied me then said, "Of course."

Omie was waiting for me. "Do you know what you're doing?"

"No," I whispered. "She's good. She's really good. This is the right thing to do, but if I lose, Malora will skin me alive, regardless of what Maya says about it."

"Then don't lose."

Omie took the staff and handed me two swords. I unlimbered with them and then took my place, facing Tenda.

"Thank you, Tenda. My apologies for the delay."

"Thank you, Chief Beria," she replied. She smiled. "This will be a good match."

We split the next two points, so it was three-two, but then Tenda got the next two points as she got into the rhythm of fighting against my two swords. I knew I was outclassed. Oh, it wasn't by a lot. She was marginally better with her one sword than I was with two, but it was by just enough. I was going to lose. Malora was going to have my ass on a platter.

But on the next point, Tenda left an opening. Oh, it was small. It was really small. She did it twice, and both times she did it in a fashion that only Malora and I would see it. And I absolutely know she missed a swing that should have connected. When she gave me the opening a third time, I took it.

"Point to Beria."

"One moment. Tenda, something is loose." I stepped forward, pretending to check something on her shoulder, but then I whispered to her, "What are you doing?"

"Jalad has to lose, and it's not going to be me doing it."

"You're better than I am."

"With swords. How many Amazons would have put the staff away? You had this fight. We had a good match, Beria. Now win this so you can go kick that bitch's ass."

I stepped away.

It is easy to become depressed about humanity. It is easy to see the bad things that people do. It is easy to see the men who abuse Jasmine. It is easy to see the Jalad's in the world.

But then there are people like Tenda and Haldara.

I didn't know if she would tell anyone else what she had done. Malora knew. I knew.

She made me work for the last point.
I wanted to win honestly, but when she had bypassed two opportunities to finish the fight, I took her offer.

"Point and match to Beria. Good match, both of you."

Then Malora pulled us both into a hug. "I am so proud of you both."

* * * *

Haldara and Senai both won their rounds, and we were now down to four opponents.

My afternoon opponent was to be
Senai. Jalad and Haldara would be fighting. I hadn't been watching Senai at all, and I pulled Nori aside before lunch, admitting my ignorance.

"I never would have expected her to make it this far. Should I be worried?"

"No." She paused. "I shouldn't tell you this."

"Oh?"

"Maya has been giving Senai easy fights."

"Why?"

"So you could be the one to finish her off."

"
Senai wasn't even there, Nori."

"Maya is an expert at carrying a grudge. She'll forgive almost anything, but she doesn't forgive when someone hurts you or anyone else important to her. You can bet she'll be watching this fight from the very front. And she wants to see
Senai utterly humiliated."

"I don't do that," I said. "
Senai isn't my favorite person, but I'm not going to humiliate her."

"I know."

"What weapon should I use?"

"It won't matter. You'll beat her regardless. I'd go in with two swords, because that's your best combination. The closest she'll have trained against that are two separate opponents."

It wasn't the same. Even if they were both really good, it just wasn't the same.

"You should know, Tenda threw the match with me."

"I'm not surprised. She doesn't want to face either Jalad or Haldara. But you threw it with her when you switched to swords."

"I wasn't sure if I could win. She's flat out better than I am. She is the best swordswoman I have faced since you and Malora."

"She's probably better than my best, and Beria, if she's better than you, then she's probably better than Malora's best. But if it were important, I'd have used staff against her. And I wouldn't have switched today. Malora wasn't amused, but she admitted to me it was a fabulous show of good play."

"I shouldn't have switched."

"No, but it worked out."

"I wanted to know, and at least in one way, it was the right thing to do. The only reason I'm even here is because it's important to Malora for some reason."

She sighed. "It is, and you've now screwed up three times. Are you going to do it any more?"

"No. I'll beat
Senai.  And then I suppose I'll have another fight with either Jalad or Haldara. I can't take either of them casually."

"No, you can't. If you fight Haldara, don't get hurt and make sure you win. If you fight Jalad, be prepared for her to fight dirty. She's going to try to cripple you. She wants payback."

"What a bitch. I gave her a few bruises, and she wants to cripple me? She's a pitiful excuse for an Amazon. Have you been talking to Haldara?"

"No, but I will before her fight. I don't know if I have much to tell her. She knows what she's doing."

* * * *

I beat
Senai easily. She was better than I expected, but as Nori had indicated, she wasn't used to two swords wielded well.

Jalad beat Haldara, although Haldara gave her some good bruises. I talked to Haldara afterwards.

"It's all right. If I'd beaten her, you and I would have had to fight again."

"Yeah, but if you'd beaten her, then I wouldn't have to fight her twice more."

"Make sure it's twice more and not once more," Haldara said.

I nodded.

We got a two-hour break before my match with Jalad. If she won, she was the grand winner of the tournament, undefeated. If I won, we'd have our final fight in the morning.

During our two-
hour break, Maya found me and send me to the kitchen, "To check on Joelle." When I arrived, Vorine and Gaylie were guarding the kitchen. Aren and Joelle were nowhere to be seen, and Malora and Nori were waiting for me.

"So much secrecy," I said. "Are you going to yell at me about Tenda?"

"No," she said. "I wasn't happy about it at the time, but it worked out. Tenda is owed a pretty big favor."

"Jalad would have beaten her to a pulp, and she wouldn't want to fight Haldara, either."

"Beria, I want to be absolutely sure you understand. You will beat that woman. You will beat her five-zero if you can. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Queen Malora."

"What weapon are you going to use?"

"Swords. I kicked the shit out of her in the first fight with swords. I'm not worried."

"Don't you dare go in there complacent. If she cripples you, I will declare her forfeit and then call a council to decide her punishment, but she probably won't take what she's owed for it."

"You won't just decide?"

"I won't be able to make an objective decision. But it won't matter. She'll cripple you if she can, and you must not allow that."

"Right. Five-zero, don't get hurt. Expect her to fight dirty."

"That means she might 'not hear' when I call a halt."

"I understand, Queen Malora."

"Anything else, Nori?"

"She's going to be swinging hard, Beria, and I doubt she'll pull any strikes."