Gorak's blood and the coal dust of the mines washed away under the hot water of the palace bath.
Eray stood at the edge of a marble pool filled with steam. He was naked.His body was marked with fresh wounds from hard labor and beatings, but his muscles looked sharper, tighter.
Velira sat on a cushioned bench beside the pool, sipping from a goblet as she watched him.Her gaze held no sexual desire. It was the look of a collector examining a newly acquired weapon.
"The mine air suits you," Velira said, watching the tension in Eray's back muscles."You look… less fragile."
She stood and walked closer. Eray snapped to attention with military discipline.Velira traced a wet finger over an old shrapnel scar on his chest.
She stepped behind him. Her breath brushed his neck.
"But I don't want you to rust," Velira whispered."You must stay sharp. If you are to be my personal property, you should remember how to use not only your mind, but your teeth."
Eray said nothing. He waited.
"Dress," Velira ordered, pointing to the clothes nearby.They were not slave rags. They were leather hunting garments, flexible and practical."We're going hunting."
_ _ _
The Crimson Forest behind the palace was a private hunting ground of the Imperial family.The trees were massive and dense. The forest was filled with exotic and dangerous creatures brought from distant lands.
Eray and Velira stood at the forest's entrance.No guards. Just the two of them.
Velira drew her thin sword.She tossed Eray a simple dagger with a bone handle.
"Today's prey is a Blood Panther," Velira said."It's fast. Resistant to magic. And it loves human flesh."
Eray caught the dagger mid-air and weighed it in his hand. It was well balanced.
Velira stepped closer, a dangerous smile on her face.
"But with that collar, you can't fight at full strength, can you?"
She reached for his neck. Her fingers touched the lock of the collar, resting over his pulse.Eray could feel her heartbeat. The scent of lavender and metal filled his lungs.
Click.
The collar opened.
Eray drew a deep breath.
It felt like real air entered his lungs for the first time.The pressure vanished. The fog in his mind cleared.The dark well inside him, the Shadow, surged through his veins like a broken dam.
For a brief moment, his pupils turned completely black.
Velira saw it.
She did not fear it.Her eyes shone with excitement, aroused by the pure, lethal aura around him.
A voice screamed inside Eray's head: Now! Cut her throat! Run!
But he didn't.
Not yet.
Running without an army would be suicide. And it would ruin the plan.
He handed the collar back to Velira.
"Only during the hunt," Velira said, attaching it to her belt."If you try to escape, the forest barriers will turn you to ash. Do you understand?"
"I understand… my Lady," Eray replied.But his voice was stronger now.
_ _ _
The Hunt
Tracking prey in the forest was easy for Eray.Raider scouting training had taught him how to hunt in any terrain.
After half an hour, they found the panther's trail.
"There," Eray whispered, pointing to a dark shape on a tree branch.
The creature was massive, black-furred, with glowing red eyes.It had already noticed them.
The panther launched itself like an arrow.
Not at Velira.
At Eray.
Velira didn't move. She crossed her arms and leaned back."Show me," she said.
Eray did not retreat. He called the Shadow.
This time it was controlled.Without the collar, the energy flowed clearly.
He raised his left hand.His shadow formed and hardened around his arm like a shield.The panther's claws struck it, throwing sparks.
With his right hand, Eray struck upward with the dagger.Not only with steel.
He extended the dagger's shadow, doubling its reach.
Stab.
The blade and its shadow pierced the panther's soft belly.
The creature roared in pain.Eray twisted the blade and pulled upward with cold precision.
When the panther collapsed, Eray wasn't even out of breath.He wiped the blood from his hand and turned to Velira.
The deep darkness in his eyes slowly faded.
Velira approached, clapping slowly.She wasn't looking at the dead beast. She was watching Eray.
"Perfect," she said."You're faster than my decorated court mages. And far more savage."
She stopped less than a step away.Eray could feel her body heat.
Velira reached out.Not an invitation. A command.
"Enough fun. We're returning."
For a moment, Eray hesitated.Freedom was within reach. With the Shadow, he could disable her and vanish into the forest.
But then what?
He'd be hunted. Or become prey himself.
He needed time. He needed Vako and the others ready.The greater plan mattered more than a reckless escape.
Eray lowered his head slightly and turned away.
Velira placed the collar back around his neck.
Click.
The familiar, suffocating weight returned.His power locked away. His thoughts dulled.
Velira leaned close to his ear. Her lips almost touched it.
"I felt your power," she whispered."That darkness inside you… delicious.But remember, Eray. That darkness, and you, belong to me."
"Yes, my Lady," Eray said through clenched teeth.
Inside, his mind recorded the data like a military report:
Reflexes restored to 90%. Shadow stabilized.Target Velira shows excessive confidence in control.That confidence will be her end.
As the palace towers appeared on the horizon, Eray was ready for the coming massacre.
He was no longer just a slave.
He was a soldier who knew exactly when to break his chains.