"Would you dare to take it?"
Her offer was a challenge, but it also required Thane to believe that the strange woman who had come to him several nights a week for sword lessons was actually capable of threatening the height of power within Lothian March.
"You've never told who you really are, your ladyship," Thane said, relaxing casually with one foot on a low bench while he used a towel to wipe sweat from his neck and broad, muscular chest. "You're quicker than me and surprisingly strong for your size, but it will take more than that to threaten the Lothians. What gives you the confidence to deliver on your promise?"
"It's simple," Nyrielle said, summoning the darkness and shadows of the dimly lit school to wrap around her like a cloak before slowly unfolding her dark, feathered wings. "I've killed one Marquis already," she said with a smile that bore a hint of wickedly pointed fangs. "With you fighting at my side, I have every confidence in killing another."
