She forced herself to stay focused; she kept her eyes fixed on her opponent and tried to remember her training, thinking through all the things that might happen next. She tried to slash, and then rolled her wrist to send her sword around the parry. But the combatlord merely grunted as her blade took a nick out of his forearm. His accent was thick, from one of the far corners of the Empire.
He was on her again, forcing her to parry and dodge, and she knew she couldn't risk a head-on clash, not with someone this strong. Ceres felt the ground give way beneath her right foot, a sensation of emptiness there where there should have been firm support.
She glanced down and saw sand pouring down into a pit below. For a moment, her foot hung over empty space, and she thrust out blindly with her sword as she struggled to keep her balance.
The combatlord's parry was almost contemptuous. For an instant, Ceres was sure she was going to die, because there was no way to fully stop the answering stroke.
She felt the jarring impact of the blow against her blade. It only slowed it, though, as it slammed into her armor. Her breastplate pressed back into her flesh with bruising force, while at the spot where it ended, she felt pain flare white hot as the sword cut along her collarbone. She stumbled back and as she did, she saw more pits opening around the floor of the arena, like the mouths of hungry beasts.
And then, desperate, she had an idea: maybe she could use them to her advantage. Captured by the rebels, he must crawl his way back to life, find who tried to assassinate him, and seek his revenge.
Ceres and Thanos, a world apart, have not lost their love for each other; yet the Empire court teems with lies, betrayal and duplicity, and as jealous royals weave intricate lies, they each, in a tragic misunderstanding, are led to believe the other is dead. Will Ceres survive the Stade and become the warrior she was meant to be?
Will Thanos heal and discover the secret being withheld from him? Her only chance lies in drawing on her innermost powers, and making the transition, once and for all, from slave to warrior. Captured by the rebels, he must crawl his way back to life, find who tried to assassinate him, and seek his revenge. Ceres and Thanos, a world apart, have not lost their love for each other; yet the Empire court teems with lies, betrayal and duplicity, and as jealous royals weave intricate lies, they each, in a tragic misunderstanding, are led to believe the other is dead.
Will Ceres survive the Stade and become the warrior she was meant to be?
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