Bo

I stood with Lauren, Kenzi, and Dyson in the abandoned factory, the same room I'd been held in before the trial started. It would be a lie to say it wasn't awkward being in the same room with Dyson, who had yet to say a word to me.

"How long till this shindig starts, D-man?" Kenzi leaned against the wall and sighed. She sent a look my way, obviously sensing the tension.

"The Morrigan and the Ash are meeting right now," Dyson said, "Hale will tell us when it's time."

"Maybe we should go see if Trick's here yet," Kenzi suggested and I knew it was an excuse to get Dyson out of the room.

He looked to Lauren and then me with an unreadable expression before heading towards the door without a word. Kenzi gave me another glance and I nodded my thanks as she followed Dyson out.

"That was... odd," Lauren finally said. "Are you okay?"

I shook my head and smiled, "Don't worry about me, I'm fine." I walked closer to her, "When you get out there, they let you choose your weapons. I recommend the daggers..."

She nodded, staring down at the floor, but looked up again when the door opened.

"Well, well... Can't say I'm surprised you're here," Evony said dryly as she entered the room with two of her guards. She turned her attention to Lauren, "I'm just going to cut to the chase. I already know that if you survive, it's between the Light and... her," she crossed her arms over her chest and set me with a glare. "But I thought I'd give you fair warning. Vex, as most Fae know, is... was a favorite of the Dark elders. You can imagine that the loss of his abilities has angered them. If you choose the Light, you'll have their protection, no doubt. However, that's only a setback. And, if you choose not to join a side, that will make you fair game." Evony smiled at me as she said the last part. "But, if you come to your senses and join us, there will be no problems. I know you're a smart girl, Dr. Lewis. I encourage you to really think about this before making your decision." She turned and left before Lauren or I could say anything.

"Well that was cheerful," I joked and looked over at Lauren, who had paled significantly from the time the Morrigan had entered. "Hey," I reached out and put a hand on her upper arm, "You're gonna get through this. She's just trying to mess with you before you go out there."

"She's right, though. Even if I survive this, they'll keep coming."

"First of all, it's 'when' you survive this, and second... they've tried to come after me and believe me, it's nothing we can't handle."

The door opened once more, but this time it was Hale. "It's time, Doc."

"Give us a sec, Hale?" I asked.

"I'll be outside. Make it quick," he said before closing the door.

I turned back to Lauren, "Okay, so this is another one of those times you're going to have to trust me. I hope this works." I reached up and put my hand against her cheek. "Close your eyes," I whispered, leaning in to kiss her. I focused on trying to push my chi into her. It took a few seconds, but I was surprised when I felt it start to leave my body. I felt Lauren's hands come up to rest on my waist and her grip tightened, pulling me closer to her. As the kiss became more heated, I grew weaker. I pulled away after almost a minute, gasping for breath.

"What did you just do," Lauren asked, her eyes wide.

"I gave you some of my chi. It'll help you... I think.." I felt lightheaded as I tried to stay standing. Lauren put her hands on my shoulders.

"Bo, you shouldn't have done that. You need that chi to stay alive. Where did you even learn to do that?"

"I'll be fine in a few minutes and we'll talk about this later. Right now, you have to go out there and kick some under Fae ass, okay?"

She nodded, "Okay."

We walked out into the opening with Hale. The Fae were on the rafters above us, the Ash and the Morrigan in the center. I spotted Trick, Kenzi and Dyson standing at the other side of the room.

"I'll be over there with the others," I told Lauren and then added, "Good luck."

She gave me a small smile and I walked over to stand between Trick and Kenzi.

"Dr. Lewis," the Ash said and the rest of the Fae went silent. "You have been brought here to be tested. If you pass, you will be given the opportunity to choose your allegiance. You will face two opponents in a fight to the death."

As he spoke, I watched Hale point Lauren to the weapon rack. She picked up the two daggers and looked over at me. I nodded to answer her silent question. Then I turned my head to where the under Fae was being led out.

"What the hell is that?" I observed the scaly lizard-man looking creature. It had long, sharp claws which it licked with its snake-like tongue.

I looked down at Trick, who gave me a troubled look as he answered, "It's a Deriloch." He shook his head, "I thought they were extinct."

"What does it do?"

"Begin," I heard the Ash say and looked over to see the creature disappear into thin air and seconds later, Lauren cried out as three deep gashes appeared on the side of her face.

"That," Trick said, finally answering my question. "They lick their claws because their saliva is poisonous. It's almost instant paralysis and death for humans. With Fae, it slows them down, weakens them, and if enough gets into the bloodstream..." he trailed off meaningfully as we watched Lauren dodge an invisible attack.

"Are you fucking serious," Kenzi asked. "Why are these things alive?" She reached out and grabbed my hand, "I don't think I want to see this."

Lauren slashed her dagger through the air and it came away bloody. The Deriloch reappeared for a few seconds, but as Lauren went to wound it again, three more gashes spread down her back nearly causing her to drop the daggers.

"There's two of them," I whispered, feeling my whole body tense. I made to walk out to help, I had to do something, but Dyson grabbed my arm tight.

"Bo, you cannot interfere," he said, sharply.

"They're making her fight two at the same time!"

He just shook his head and kept his grip on me.

I could see the blood on the floor from the wounded Deriloch, mapping out where the creature was. I knew Lauren saw it, too. She ducked it's attack then spun around, driving one of the daggers upwards. The blade vanished to the hilt before the second Deriloch appeared, the dagger buried in its chest. She twisted the blade and pulled it out before swinging it to the right. A large claw fell to the floor next to the now dead Deriloch.

I held my breath as blood coated the floor and the creature appeared on its knees, growling in pain at the loss of its appendage.

"Holy shit!" I heard Kenzi exclaim behind me. "Since when was the Doc a friggin' ninja!?"

Lauren kept her distance as the weakening Deriloch flailed its good claw towards her. She threw down the daggers and extended her arm, taking control of the Deriloch's arm and made it slash its own throat. The creature fell to the ground, dead, and the Fae started to cheer.

I hugged Kenzi, relief flooding through my whole body.

"Congratulations, Lauren. You have passed," the Ash's voice boomed over the crowd and the cheering abated. I caught Lauren's eye and she smiled, breathing heavily. "You may now choose a side."

She looked up at the Ash and the Morrigan, "Neither." She started walking towards me.

"So be it," the Ash said in a solemn tone.

I ran up and threw my arms around her, "That was amazing," I whispered then pulled away.

"Bo," she said, her eyes starting to close. "The poison... I'm gonna pass

.." she slumped into my arms and I tried to keep her standing.

"Dyson!" I called and he came over and gathered Lauren's unconscious body into his arms. "Is she gonna be okay?"

"We have to get her to the Dal, now," Trick said, heading towards to the door and Dyson followed.