(PS: Please support me on patreon there 135+ chapters there and there also my new GoT: The True Dragon Fanfiction of Game of Thrones
https://patreon.com/BX_XDS)
The wind suddenly shifted, carrying a sharp, coppery scent of dust and tension. Kassandra tightened her grip on her sword, the remaining piece of the broken spear—now effectively a dagger—glinting wickedly in her other hand. The air around Talos felt heavier, as if the very coastline knew a decisive clash was imminent.
Kassandra took a firm step forward, closing the space that separated them.
"You two stay out of this," she commanded, her voice low and utterly resolute. "This is between the him and me."
Alexios blinked, astonished. "What? Absolutely not! He's huge! I want to hit him!"
Lukas crossed his massive arms, a shadow of disappointment on his face. "Yeah, Kassandra. This guy looks like he knows how to take a hit. He looks fun."
Kassandra shot them a sharp, freezing glare—one that promised immediate, personal, and painful retribution if they dared interfere.
Alexios opened his mouth to argue again… then slowly, reluctantly, closed it as Kassandra's stare intensified. He deflated.
"…fine," he grumbled, kicking a stone.
Lukas gave a quiet sigh of defeat, then flopped down heavily onto the ground with a massive thud, resting his hammer, The Jason, across his lap. "I'll just watch, then. Like a free show." He smirked to himself. She's stubborn… not as stubbornly mature as Atlas, but close. Just without the patience.
Alexios reluctantly plopped down beside him, crossing his arms over his chest.
"You better win," he whispered fiercely toward his sister. "Otherwise I'm definitely jumping in."
Kassandra ignored him. She turned her full, deadly attention to Talos and lifted her weapons into a prepared stance.
"Talos!" she shouted, her voice ringing with challenge. "Let's get this pointless dance over with!"
The hulking bounty hunter cracked his thick neck, a loud, bone-jarring sound, and smiled cruelly, revealing the gaps in his teeth.
"With pleasure, Eagle Bearer."
Kassandra inhaled sharply, locking her focus, and charged.
Her feet pounded against the dry dirt, sending small clouds of fine dust billowing behind her. She lowered her body like a hunting lynx, her sword held low on the left, her broken spear angled forward on the right like a second, desperate horn.
Talos braced himself, planting his huge feet wide and low—
—but she reached him a heartbeat faster than he expected.
With a sharp thrust, Kassandra jabbed the splintered end of the broken spear directly into the vulnerable seam of his side armor.
"Grr—!" Talos grunted, stumbling half a step sideways, but he did not fall. His body was simply too solid, too thick, unmovable—like hitting a stone pillar covered in bronze.
Then he roared and swung his huge sword in a heavy, sweeping, decapitating arc.
WHOOSH—!
Kassandra threw herself backward just in time, sand spraying under her sandals. The sword sliced violently through the air exactly where her head had been mere milliseconds before.
She didn't let him recover his balance.
In the same heartbeat she landed, she sprang forward again and delivered a powerful, accurate kick straight into his stomach, right beneath the breastplate.
"OOF—!"
Talos staggered backward three full steps, the plates of his armor clanking loudly, the blow momentarily stealing his breath. His expression twisted—annoyed, surprised, and intensely excited all at once.
Before he could properly lift his guard, Kassandra was already back on him, attacking with the relentless intensity of a sudden thunderstorm.
Her sword cut down in sharp, clean strikes—her broken spear darted in quick, stabbing motions—left, right, high, low, relentlessly probing for gaps—
Talos blocked some of the blows with his massive bronze bracers, the metal ringing loudly. He dodged a few more, the blade whistling past his ear. But others scraped through his armor and skin, drawing small, crimson cuts across his arms, ribs, and shoulders.
He growled, his cruel grin widening. "Good… very good," he rasped, the exertion heavy in his voice. "You're worth every drachma of the bounty on your head, misthios."
Kassandra didn't slow down.
She spun, putting all her rotation into a wide swing of her sword aimed directly at his neck—
—and that was where she overcommitted.
Talos was expecting it.
He slammed his own massive blade horizontally against hers, the collision jarring her balance, and before she could recover—
BAM!
His fist, the size of a shield boss, smashed violently into the side of her face.
CRACK!
"Ah—!" Kassandra reeled backward, a blinding explosion of pain erupting across her nose. Warm, sharp-smelling blood immediately spilled, flooding her senses.
Talos stepped forward, towering over her, raising his sword high for the finishing, decisive blow.
But Kassandra was too fast to stay stunned. She rolled sideways just in time, throwing up a cloud of dust.
KRAAASH!
The huge sword crashed deep into the dirt where her body had been, shaking the very ground beneath her.
Kassandra scrambled back to her feet, wiping the hot blood from her nose with her wrist, her eyes blazing with pure, focused fury.
"Okay…" she hissed, her voice tight with pain and rage, tightening her grip on her weapons. "Let's do that again, Stone Fist."
She charged a second time—even faster, even wilder with adrenaline. But Talos had learned his lesson. He sidestepped her headlong rush with surprising, deceptive speed, letting her charge past him.
Kassandra skidded to a stop, turning with a shout of frustration.
"Oh, COME ON!" she yelled.
Talos grinned, lifting his sword again. The duel was far from over, but the advantage of surprise was gone.
Off to the side of the battlefield, Alexios and Lukas sat cross-legged on the ground like two men enjoying the main event at a festival rather than watching a sister duel a killer.
Alexios leaned forward, elbows on his knees, his eyes gleaming. "This is great," he said with a wide grin. "I haven't seen a proper fight like this since we left the mainland."
Lukas nodded with equal enthusiasm. "Agreed. The way she charges in like that, utterly fearless… honestly? It reminds me of Atlas in a frenzy."
Alexios scoffed loudly, dramatically waving a hand. "Reminds you, maybe. But not me, she's not even close to Atlas, Lukas. If she fought him, she'd be down."
Lukas raised an eyebrow, a clear challenge. "You think Atlas would beat her that badly?"
"Badly?" Alexios laughed, leaning back. "If Atlas sparred her, she'd be flat on the ground before she even blinked. He's faster and stronger than her."
Lukas shrugged, accepting the undeniable truth. "No doubt. It's the precision she lacks."
They both returned their attention instantly to the duel.
In front of them, Talos swung his massive sword with the bone-shattering force of a falling tree. Kassandra ducked beneath it smoothly, dirt spraying around her feet.
"That was close," Alexios muttered, impressed by the speed.
Then Kassandra lunged forward, pressing with her sword and spear—only for Talos to block both weapons simultaneously, showing a surprising degree of skill.
CLANG—CLANG!
"Nice block," Lukas admitted. "For a simple thug, the man can fight. He's not stupid, just big."
Steel clashed again and again, the ringing echoes rolling across the coastline. Kassandra spun. Talos parried. Talos charged. Kassandra sidestepped, moving like smoke.
The exchange grew faster, heavier, more intense, pushing both warriors to their limits.
Both Alexios and Lukas leaned forward unconsciously, their full, rapt attention caught by the deadly ballet.
Then—finally—
Kassandra spotted her chance, a millisecond gap she hadn't seen before.
She twisted her body sharply, ducked under Talos's next wide swing, and rammed her broken spear directly into the small, unprotected seam beneath his throat armor.
Talos gagged, a horrible, choking sound, stumbling backward, his hands flying up to his neck.
"Good hit," Lukas murmured, nodding approvingly. "Targeted weakness."
Before the mercenary could recover his breath, Kassandra followed up with a full, sweeping slash of her sword across his unguarded chest—
SHHHK—
Talos's legs buckled heavily beneath him. He dropped to his knees, his momentum failing.
Then, with a final, desperate gasp, he collapsed forward, face-first into the dirt with a heavy, final thud.
The fight was over. Silence rushed back in.
Kassandra stood above him, panting hard, the victor. Sweat coated her forehead, dust clung to her arms and legs, and fresh blood smeared under her nose and across her knuckles.
But she was smiling, her eyes shining with the fierce satisfaction of a hard-earned victory.
"…That was a great fight," she muttered proudly to herself.
Alexios whistled loudly, jumping to his feet. "Not bad, sister. Not bad at all! Eight out of ten!"
Lukas grinned, rising slowly. "She did good. Still clearly weaker than Atlas, but good."
Alexios nodded, a familiar, wicked glint forming in his eye again.
"Oh, definitely weaker than Atlas," he said, the idea fully formed in his head. "But that… Lukas, this gives me an idea."
Lukas glanced at him suspiciously, a small warning sign going off in his mind. Uh oh. Alexios was definitely scheming again.
As the dust settled around Talos's fallen body, Kassandra straightened up and exhaled, wiping the drying blood from her nose with the back of her hand. Sweat dripped down her temples, bruises were already forming on her face, but she wore the genuine, smug smile of victory.
Footsteps approached. Alexios and Lukas jogged up to her, both looking like excited spectators who had just watched the final round of a great tournament.
Lukas was first to speak, his eyes still wide with respect. "That was truly amazing, Kassandra. Really—your speed, your footwork… even the way you reacted when he countered. You have excellent instincts."
Kassandra smirked, accepting the rare, genuine compliment from the giant. "Thanks, Lukas."
Alexios nodded with exaggerated seriousness. "Yes. Very impressive. Truly."
Kassandra raised an eyebrow, expecting more. "Only 'truly'? That's it?"
Alexios held up a hand like a fastidious critic preparing a review. "I give it… an eight point five out of ten."
Kassandra stared. "…Eight point five?!"
Alexios shrugged calmly. "You lost points for getting punched in the face and allowing him to knock your weapon off-balance. Atlas would never allow that."
Lukas tried—and failed—to hold back a laugh. "Yeah… that punch was pretty solid, Kass."
Kassandra shot them both a glare that promised future pain. "I'd like to see either of you do better against that giant."
Alexios lifted a finger, ready to brag. "Well, I could—"
"Don't answer that," Kassandra cut in, her voice sharp.
Alexios closed his mouth, pretending to zip it shut, his eyes twinkling with suppressed amusement.
But then… That sly, conniving glint appeared. He leaned in a little closer to his sister, lowering his voice dramatically, his whole posture shifting into one of faux confidence.
"You know, Kassandra…" he began slowly, drawing out the tension.
She squinted, wary of the tone. "What is it now?"
"I was thinking…" Alexios tapped his chin thoughtfully, pretending to be deep in strategic contemplation. "After watching that raw power… just maybe…"
He dragged out the pause, milking it for all the tension he could muster.
"…you actually might be able to fight Atlas and force him to use his true strength."
Kassandra blinked at him, suddenly distracted from the pain and anger. "Fight… Atlas?"
Alexios nodded with the most convincing, sincere-sounding fake sincerity he could summon.
"Yes. You might even win. I mean, you did defeat Talos!"
Kassandra snorted, pride instantly overcoming caution. "Of course I could win. If I try, I can beat anyone."
Lukas stared hard at Alexios, recognizing every ounce of calculated mischief and inevitable disaster in that expression. Here we go again…
He looked at Kassandra—completely unaware she was being carefully set up—then back at Alexios, who was already suppressing a grin like a child who had just hidden a very large, aggressive frog in someone's bed.
Lukas sighed internally. He's scheming again… oh well. A good fight is a good fight. So he stayed silent, allowing the trap to close.
Kassandra crossed her arms, supremely confident. "I will beat him. I know I will."
Alexios clapped a hand on her shoulder, his smile soft—dangerously so. "Excellent," he said softly, too softly. "I look forward to that duel, sister."
And Kassandra, wiping one last streak of blood from her bruised nose, had absolutely no idea she had just stepped directly into her little brother's glorious, chaotic trap.
(PS: Please support me on patreon there 135+ chapters there and there also my new GoT: The True Dragon Fanfiction of Game of Thrones
https://patreon.com/BX_XDS)