Chapter 40: A Challenge
Few minutes ago...
The banquet hall shimmered under layers of emberlight and wealth. Laughter bubbled from wine soaked lips, conversations hummed like wind through a forge, and beasts rested lazily at the edges of the room, watched by well paid handlers.
Near the far wall, a young man in a crimson trimmed cloak leaned against a carved basalt pillar, swirling a glass of firefruit wine. His green eyes moved lazily across the dance floor until they stopped. His grip stilled.
There she was.
Tall, poised, dressed in clean cut travel formalwear that didn’t try to impress but still did. Her auburn braid shimmered under the chandeliers, and her curves weren’t hidden behind gold or silk like the others. No... she was a warrior. A rough gem. Her voice when she laughed he caught just a flicker of it, it sounded like it could cut glass.
"Who’s that?" Ayan Vaelor murmured, tilting his glass slightly.
A fellow Cinderguard tamer beside him shrugged. "No idea. She’s with the Hollowback kid who won that undercard fight earlier."
"Hollowback?" Ayan scoffed. "That scrawny feeder?"
The other man nodded. "Yeah. The one with the flashy baby beast. Today he became very famous."
Ayan’s lip curled. He followed Fenna’s movements with calculated eyes. The way she moved with confident, alertness. She didn’t smile for everyone. But she smiled for him, the farmer boy. The tamer who had stolen more spotlight than he deserved.
Ayan’s mind turned cold. "That girl... should be on my arm. Not dancing with some nameless ember rat."