The training yard held its breath.
Dust hung in the air where Tommy's earlier fall had churned the ground. The late sun cut across the stone walls and turned every shadow long and sharp. Snow Team stood in a loose arc around Felicity. Leaf Team faced them from the opposite side of the ring. No one looked relaxed. No one stepped away.
Voss rolled his shoulders once.
Steel formed in his hand.
It did not appear slowly. One second his hand was empty and the next a long blade existed there as if it had been pulled out of thin air and solidified. His amber eyes never left Lucan.
Lucan stood across from him with that same easy posture he had carried since the moment he teleported back into the yard. His shoulders were loose. His weight rested lightly over the balls of his feet. His expression looked almost amused.
The distance between them was ten paces.
Victor spoke first.
"Ring."
It was not a request.
Everyone moved.
