"What is this place?"
The center of the domed ceiling overhead was made of glass, letting in a fat ray of light into the odd, round room. The curved walls held row upon row of blades, guns, bows, and armor behind glass, each one entirely unique. The rest of the room was eerily empty, and every step, every creak of the door was crisp and clear through the otherwise silent atmosphere.
Jack made a beeline to the largest case, which was positioned straight ahead of the door. Within the glass case was a gleaming longsword long enough to be almost my height. The flawless blade met a fragile-looking golden guard and a thin grip wrapped in a sort of black leather and blood-red silk. Set in the gold pommel was a glassy red gem the size of a walnut reminiscent of a diamond.
Jack unlatched the glass door to the case and reached inside, the hilt sliding familiarly into his delicate hand. He lifted the sword from its stand and removed it from the glass, then performed a smooth flourish.
"A repository for my collection, of sorts," He finally replied. "It doubles as a dueling room. Friendly, not fatal ones."
"This longsword I am holding was made for me, long ago. Steel sharp enough to cut through bone." The Elf marveled at the weapon with great adoration.
"Does it have a name? Like Excalibur?" I inquired.
"Incubi's Wrath, a bit tongue-in-cheek. The swordsmith was not a fan of my lasciviousness. I personally don't use the name." Jack shifted his gaze to me expectantly. "Well? Choose a sword."
"I don't get why we're doing this. I stand no chance against you," I muttered as I surveyed the cases closest to the ground. A shorter, thicker blade caught my eye, its design simplistic and in black and white. I moved towards it and carefully pulled at the glass door, then wrapped my fingers around the hilt.
"A short sword? Interesting choice." He twirled the longsword again. "I shall limit my strength to that of a human, thus it's not impossible for you."
"I have never picked up a sword before." The scimitar was rather heavy for me, so I gripped it with both hands, the tip pointing to the ground.
"Left leg in front, knee slightly bent," Jack instructed, assuming the stance naturally. He added his left hand onto the grip and held the sword close to him at his right side. "You have to start somewhere, eh?"
"May I ask an unrelated question first?"
"You may."
"Is your strange emotional process an Elven thing?"
His eyes narrowed. "Syndra, if you're referring to my supposed 'instability', you've got it all wrong. I'm still infuriated at Eshon, that hasn't gone away. After long enough, you learn to simply hide it."
Just as he finished his sentence, I lunged at him, jabbing the point at his throat. Jack immediately deflected, sliding the guard against my blade and pushing it away while simultaneously sliding the tip of his longsword under my chin.
"You're dead," He stepped back, lowering the blade. "Next time--"
I didn't give him a chance to finish his sentence before I lunged at him again. He was prepared and our blades clanged together, but the swing of my sword was only a distraction. I lifted my leg and side kicked him as hard as I could in the stomach, sending him staggering backward as he doubled over. Jack grunted and spat, a string of saliva falling from his lips.
"How's that?" I placed my hands on my hips triumphantly.
"Fighting dirty, eh?" He growled, then gently lay his sword on the ground. "Would you prefer we do that?"
"I'd beat your ass, Elven King." I gave him a half-smile as I threw mine to the floor, and he let out a deep chuckle.
"Look who's confident now," Jack raised a bold eyebrow.
I tried to aim a hook at his jaw and he dodged by a hair, light on his feet. I switched to an uppercut with my left fist and caught his chin before he could back away again, to his dismay.
He grabbed my forearm and jerked me towards him, causing me to stumble into his chest. I could feel his heartbeat on my cheek as he pulled me closer at the waist to his hips. I hesitated to pull away because he smelled so nice and felt so nice…
The cold edge of steel against my throat shocked me back into reality, and my eyes shot to the dagger Jack held tightly to my throat. He grinned down at me cheekily, elongated canines even sharper up close.
"You're dead again!" He cried.
"Hey! That's not fair!" I wailed back and broke free from his grasp.
"I thought you wanted to play dirty."
"I didn't expect you to have another weapon!"
"You should be expecting everything and anything from your opponent."
"I didn't expect you to get all touchy."
"And I didn't expect you to enjoy it."
"I did not!"
"Don't lie to me Syndra. You've been pining for me since the moment you saw me."
The awkward tension that hung in the air was thick enough to be cut with a knife. Don't blush, don't blush, don't blush…
"I understand. I have that effect on every woman, and some men too. I am The Tempter, after all." Jack slid the dagger back into his boot and picked up his longsword.
"What kind of stupid title is that?" I muttered in contempt.
"Don't ask me. It was given to me by your kind." Jack placed the sword back on its stand in the glass case before latching the door. "The same kind that is so adamant on depicting me with horns and hooves. And facial hair! The absolute horror."
He spun on his heels to face me again. "Am I not more of an angel, Syndra?"
"Maybe superficially," I narrowed my eyes. "Although I know close to nothing about angels. Perhaps that is because ownership of a Bible is punishable by death, alongside being caught practicing any sort of religion."
"Oh, dear Syndra, Senkyo is an autocracy. It would be unwise to let such ideas fueled by hatred of my being to circulate in a land where rebellion is a constant threat."
"Who will be at the Concord Gala and the Summit?" I suddenly let out, having the urge to change the subject from the topic of His Highness.
Jack glanced at me, taken aback. "Changing the subject? If you say so." He cleared his throat, the crease between his eyebrows deepening again. "King Sperling of Eshon, of course, Tsarina Ivazova of Verivatia, Empress Funai of Nagara, and myself."
"How come every other ruler is addressed by their names except for you? I only just learned your name, and I don't think Kingesley knows it either, even though he's Fae."
"Again, not really up to me. I do suppose 'Jack' is disappointingly anticlimactic, though."
I snorted in laughter as I reached down to pick up the shortsword I had dropped. "King Jack does sound pretty lame."
"I could go by my middle name," He tapped his foot impatiently, thumbs in his pockets, as I fumbled to latch the door of the case once I had returned the weapon. "Asmodeus."
"King Asmodeus of Senkyo?" I rose and stepped to his side, rubbing my throat where the ghost of the dagger still touched. "Jack Pyre is much less intimidating."
"You are distinctly less afraid of me than you were just two days ago." He circled around me. "Have I changed in your eyes?"
"Well, I realized you're not a god, Jack. You're just one Elf."
"You don't know me very well." His gaze became distant, the light-hearted smile suddenly gone from his pale face. "I pray that you never will."