"I won't let you make a mockery of this, Ashlynn," Owain said, looking down on her from his position atop the dais. "A fair fight with a woman? Don't make me laugh! What would you have me do? Abandon my armor and half my weapons in the name of fairness?"
Owain's outburst caught Ashlynn completely by surprise, and for a moment, she couldn't do anything beyond stare at him in shock. Not because he had guessed at her intentions, but because that had been exactly the tactic she'd used against Sir Broll when she faced him in a Trial by Combat more than half a year ago.
