Rhadamanthine

Definition: rigorously strict or just

.

x

.

It was the middle of the night, and all the lights were off. The towering building of Red Fountain was bathed in obscurity, all the people within the school being asleep. All of them, that was, except for one.

In his bedroom, Jared slept soundly, his black hair blending in perfectly with the darkness. He was one of the lucky students who didn't have a roommate, and so when a menacing shape appeared over his slumbering firm, Jared was alone and defenceless.

The bed sheets were ripped off of him without ceremony, but he just mumbled and shifted. It hadn't been enough to wake him up. However, he did wake up when a hand grasped him by the front of his nightshirt and yanked him up.

Choking, Jared opened his eyes and sluggishly tried to fight the tight grip that held him, but while he was slim, with wiry muscles, the intruder was built, with broad shoulders and such overwhelming strength that Jared, still half-asleep, put up a very pitiful fight before he was dragged out of the room.

His abductor was tall, and carried him with one arm, holding him up by his shirt. Jared couldn't touch the ground, and he could hear the stitching of his shirt cracking under the strain. It wasn't made to carry a human being's weight.

Finally, they entered a room Jared recognized as one used for weapons training during the day, and Jared was tossed violently on the floor. Being trained as a specialist, he rolled and managed to land gracefully, unlike how a civilian would've.

In his bedroom, the blinds had been pulled and there'd been close to no light. That wasn't the case in this training room – the windows were large, allowing the moonlight in, and Jared was finally allowed to see who had dragged him here.

A voluminous torso with thick, strong limbs, a spectacular scowl and wine-red hair…

It was unmistakably Riven, a second year student at Red Fountain.

"Why d'you do that?" said Jared, flustered and uncomfortable under the other's gaze.

The silence stretched for a good while longer than necessary before Riven finally spoke.

"Quite often, my friends tease me. Loudly. In public. It's always about Musa."

Jared frowned, beginning to guess what this was about.

"Everyone at school knows, then," continued Riven, "that she is not 'up for grabs'. It's common knowledge, thanks to my friends. And yet, you went and took her on a date anyway, Mister 'it's not a date, I just want to interview you'." Riven's gaze settled on Jared in a fearsome glare. "Tell me, are you stupid, or just that confident that I wouldn't do something about it?"

Riven was between Jared and the door, and Jared really wanted nothing more than to run and never look back.

"But Stella told me that—"

Riven's expression had twisted even further with anger, and Jared found himself unable to summon the courage to say anything more.

"Doesn't matter what that nosy fairy told you, because in case you haven't realized, being only a newbie, a first year, here at Red Fountain, there's this unspoken rule everyone follows. It says that if a student has a girl he likes, the other specialists will stay clear out of respect and let him have a chance to get the girl he likes. First come, first served. Or should I say, first come, first try?"

"Isn't that a bit sexist?" asked Jared weakly. "I mean…"

"We're warriors." The word was practically spat out, a demonstration of how furious Riven was. "We rely on teamwork, and so that rule was established to avoid conflict. We don't want teamwork getting destroyed just because two guys want the same girl. Everyone at Red Fountain gets it, but it seems you like being the exception, huh?"

Jared was beginning to see that things weren't looking good, and Riven obviously wanted revenge for the perceived slight.

"You're not even dating her!" he shouted, angry at being backed into a corner like he was the guilty one. "How was I supposed to know?"

Riven inclined his head to the side, smirking lazily, looking like a great cat that knew its prey couldn't escape.

"Before you met her, you went into my room. Did you think I wouldn't notice? You saw the pictures I have of her on my wall, and you took one of them. That act alone would've been enough to piss me off. I hate dumb little thieves. Those pictures in my room should've been enough of a hint. You don't steal another guy's girl. If you do, you should be prepared for the consequences."

It was only at that moment that Jared noticed the two hilts at Riven's side. Riven noticed and held them up, turning them on. Bright blades, lit from within in red and orange, appeared out of the hilts. The orange sword was thrown at Jared, and he caught it clumsily, his mind still struggling to understand everything after very little sleep.

"You want to fight? In the middle of the night?" asked the young boy, incredulous.

Riven rolled his shoulders, the movement sinuous and predatory in the moon-lit room.

"We're going to settle this the old-fashioned way, with a duel."

"A duel?" scoffed Jared. "You're a second year student, while I'm just a first year. It would be unfair. You'd need a handicap for the duel to be of any worth."

He hadn't thought that Riven was taking it seriously, but the older teen put his non-dominant arm behind his back.

"Well, I'll just fight with one arm, then. Should make it fair."

And with those words, Riven lunged.

Caught by surprise, Jared moved to the left and tried to stab his Riven in the side, where he had no arm to use. Riven had seen that coming and blocked it. Unwilling to allow Riven to have the advantage, Jared kicked Riven's leg.

Riven grunted in pain and bent over. Jared held his sword up, panting and ready to end it, only to discover it had been a trap as Riven crouched low and swept his leg out in an arc, intent on tripping him. Jared jumped, bringing his sword down in an unsteady swing as soon as his feet touched the floor again.

Riven rolled out of the way, and the fight continued.

They tested each other with false attacks and sudden rushes, each of them trying to bring the other down.

It soon became evident that Riven was the strongest fighter, having been at Red Fountain longer and possessing more strength and knowledge in fighting. Even with one arm, he was a formidable warrior, and Jared was having a hard time keeping up.

They danced back and forth, charging and retreating until the time to strike arrived. Jared parried one of Riven's violent lunges, and attacked with a riposte, thrusting his sword forward. Riven bent his whole body to the side and brought out his own sword, hitting Jared's hand with the flat of the blade.

Jared's hand spasmed in pain, and he let go of his sword. It clattered to the ground, the blade disappearing as soon as his body heat no longer registered on the hilt.

In the ensuing silence, Jared's pants where the only sound to be heard. Riven didn't even appear out of breath.

"I was never going to win, was I?" said Jared. "You just wanted to kick my ass, and a handicap wasn't going to change that."

Riven raised an eyebrow. "Next time you want to date someone's girl, try not to get caught, or you won't like the consequences."

And with that, he left Jared alone in the training room. Jared's shirt was soaked in sweat and his breathing was harsh, while Riven had looked like he'd barely lifted a finger during the fight.

Shoulders slumping, Jared sat down on the floor and tried to get his breathing under control.

.

x

.

EDIT: Marking this as complete for now, but might add a second chapter with Musa's reaction.