"No. You will stay here until I return. I will not allow you to engage in battle with an Ichani, especially when you still have not learnt black magic yet." Sonea glared at her Guardian.
"You could always teach me now," she stated.
"No. I do not have the time. I was not expecting an Ichani this week." He simply fixed her with a dangerous stare, his dark eyes drilling straight through her. She felt like throwing a forcestrike at him. Then her anger faded out into resignation, and then into a cunning determination. She didn't want to anger him any further, but he didn't need to know what she was about to do. Akkarin continued to watch her.
"I could always just watch."
"No. And my decision is final. Do you understand?"
She gritted her teeth. "Yes, High Lord." She feigned resignation and went back to her room. Locking her door with magic, she quickly opened her window and levitated out into the gardens then slipped into the forest. The night provided cover for her as she crept along the bushes until she found the hidden entrance she had discovered that led to Akkarin's secret network of passages.
A few moments passed and Sonea watched the tall figure of her Guardian materialize before her and make his way towards the slums through the forest. She took a deep breath and stealthily crept after him, using her childhood skills to move unseen.
Her heart stopped when she saw Akkarin's barrier begin to flicker. The Ichani leered at him, her face a mask of contempt and disregard. A ruby set into a Sachakan necklace sparkled blood red against her skin. Akkarin backed into a wall, and the Ichani swaggered forwards.
"So much for your determination," she sneered. A final, powerful strike broke Akkarin's shield and he collapsed against the wall, breathing heavily. His dark eyes, however, told a different story, returning the Ichani's sneer with a defiant gaze. Sonea watched the Ichani bend down and smiled into Akkarin's face as she drew a knife and pressed it against his throat.
"Shall I kill you, or enslave you? Both are promising options..." the Sachakan woman paused to let off a blood curdling laugh. Her voice dropped. "But I think, I will kill you tonight."
Sonea inhaled sharply, her eyes widening with horror in her cramped hiding place across the ramshackle inn room as the Ichani's words sunk in. Her heart lurched back into motion and she hastily fired a stun strike into the side of the Ichani's left shoulder. The Ichani sensed a her strike a split second before it landed and just managed to throw up a shield. Sonea sprang out from her hiding place, following her initial attack with a flurry of force strikes.
"Sonea!" Akkarin's black eyes bore into her.
"Run!" Sonea cried. She would rather die than have Akkarin die. When exactly her feelings had changed so much, she had no idea. The Ichani spun around and regarded Sonea with disdain.
"Oh... so here we have Akkarin's little pet?" Her eyes glinted maliciously, and Sonea felt her courage drain away. The Ichani leered at Sonea, who was now desperately holding up her shield against the powerful strikes the Ichani sent back. Suddenly, Sonea's shield shattered and the Ichani laughed again - a howl driven by pure vengeance. She picked up Sonea with her magic and prepared to make a cut. At once, Akkarin rose to his feet behind the Ichani, whipped out a jeweled dagger, and drew it across the Ichani's skin. He pressed his hand over the wound and suddenly, the Sachakan woman slumped to the ground. The magic holding Sonea up was no more and she found herself crouching on the floor. It all happened within a second.
Silence reigned the room for a few terrible seconds.
Sonea stared at Akkarin, who, just a minute ago was out of magic and physically drained. Then she turned and bolted.
"Sonea!" Akkarin hissed furiously and tried to grab her before she ran, but he was a split second too late. He cursed quietly, tearing the necklace off the Ichani and crushing the ruby with his boot.