The King's Assassin

Chapter 2: Selene

Still in his trance, the man launched himself off of his horse. His dagger was already drawn. I did not brace myself as he tackled me to the ground. Movement caught the corner of my eye. Both of his friends dismounted from their horses. The men hesitantly approached us, unsure if they should break up the fight or join in.

The moment my hood fell back and my silver-grey hair was exposed to the light, their hesitancy vanished. The other men rushed forward - weapons drawn.

The man on top of me, no longer held in a trance, pressed the blade of his dagger to my throat. The slightly glazed look in his eyes had disappeared completely. Only confusion and anger remained. I gave him a sneering smile that made his face go pale. As if for the first time he was noticing my hair and eyes. Or maybe it was the lack of fear in my eyes that had him terrified. I knew I looked like a mad woman. My life was in danger and yet my eyes were filled with excitement and maddening glee. 

"It is not polite to attack a woman," I chuckled as I grabbed his wrist and squeezed hard. I could feel it crushing under my grip. The man yelled in pain as I grabbed the knife from his broken hand and used it to slit his throat.

Blood sprayed on my face and neck, like warpaint. I could taste the metallic tang of it in my mouth. With both legs, I gave the dead man's body a hard kick. It flew off of me, going farther than I had expected it to.

There was something about the forest that gave me strength that I did not have in the city. I was still abnormally strong in the palace, but I was strongest here, amongst the trees.

I turned to face the two other men, both frozen with fear. The green-eyed man growled. It was almost animalistic in sound.

"I am not sure you count as a woman," His friend sneered, gripping the hilt of his dagger tighter. I supposed that was true. I cocked my head to the side as I looked at them. Not many women foud joy in killing human men, not as I did.

The man with green eyes bared his teeth at me. "Traitor," his words sounded like a curse. There was an odd shift in the air like one would feel right before a summer storm blew in. The man stretched his hands out towards me. A burst of magic erupted from him, hurling towards me too quickly for me to react. The magic slammed into me. Throwing me backward into the ground. The force of it knocked the air from my lungs, leaving me gasping for breath.

I squeezed my eyes shut and could not keep the groan from escaping my lips. Slowly, I did a mental check of my body. Nothing seemed to be broken, just sore.

I could feel his presence above me without opening my eyes. As I looked up at the man standing above me, I was struck with a feeling of familiarity. His face was different, no longer human. His perfectly golden skin seemed to glitter in the sunlight. His brown hair was gone, replaced by brilliant coppery red hair that fell to his shoulders. His features had sharpened and his ears now came to two sharp points. Fae.

Something inside of me stirred to life as I stared up at the male. It was that something inside of me that spoke, "Kill me," It begged and I did not argue.

The male let out a deep growl. One that I felt in my chest.

"Why do you serve the human King?" His voice sounded like many voices all speaking at once. I glanced around and his other friend was gone. I looked back at him and did not answer. I was not sure how to answer that. The male growled again, pointing his long sword at my throat.

"Answer the question, traitor," he commanded. Anger stirred in me, anger and hurt. I felt pain in my heart that I could not describe.

"I am not a traitor," I growled back, my own growl matching his own in ferocity. The honestly in my words caused him to pause. The magic swirling at his fingertips calmed.