Five rounds later, the fire still hadn't died in his heart.

Xaven had been born with skills to put most other warriors to shame. The day had finally come when he was prepared to admit that Eleya had been right about him. He had never pushed himself hard enough.

Perhaps that was because he'd never had something to fight for.

Xaven didn't have that uncontrollable drive inside him that characterized the most feared and famous Brion generals, Eleya included. They were born to lead because that was their purpose and like every Brion, they went toward that goal like blades.

For the first time, the same fire burned in his veins. Xaven had spent the entire day vanquishing enemies, making the watching crowds cheer him on before he'd even drawn his spear, louder with each round.

The applause was deafening when he stepped onto the arena for the final duel.

Moroven was already waiting for him. The warrior was so gigantic that even the battle ax in his hands looked like a toy. His cruel dark eyes didn't leave Xaven from the moment he appeared.

The arena was matted with the blood of the fallen. The tourney didn't call for duels to the death, but Moroven had still killed every last one of his opponents. Xaven had listened to the audience gasp in surprise when the first died. Brions had sturdy stomachs and they appreciated bloody fights, but a fighter who slaughtered his opponents without reason wasn't beloved.

Above Moroven's head, Xaven could see Eleya. The High Senator didn't let any emotion mar her perfectly stoic expression, but the captain could see the slight twitch of her mouth when their gazes met.

Looking at his gesha, Xaven realized how much he'd changed in the past few weeks.

Being the High Lord of Briolina's Militia had never been his dream, but now he had to admit that he really did want the position. Not just to prove himself worthy of Eleya, the fiercest female to be born on Briolina in ages. Not just to stop Moroven and rid Eleya of her problem.

For his own sake, too.

The High Lord of the Militia worked very closely with the High Senator. The job was made for him, just like Eleya was.

Moroven roared his battle cry as soon as the signal to begin the duel sounded. The warrior charged him like a tank, but Xaven was prepared, drawing his spear.

There was nothing Moroven could do to him with Eleya's last words to him engraved on his heart, still burning.

Xaven braced himself for the impact that was about to come. Moroven was a bull of a man, heavy and powerful. He had to use all that strength and mass against him, but it didn't come without risks.

The captain pretended to wait for an opportunity to stab his opponent with the spear, but changed his stance at the last second. A gasp went through the crowd when his plan became obvious. There was plenty of reason for that, since Moroven wasn't nearly as dumb as he looked. He saw through the plan, but it was too late to stop or change direction. Warriors who were that big couldn't maneuver as easily as the others.

Moroven settled for preparing for what was to come. They crashed together, Xaven catching the battle ax on the shaft of his spear and throwing his weight behind it, knocking Moroven off balance as he skidded past him.

It would have worked better if the big warrior hadn't seen it coming, but in a Brion duel, everything was fair and expected.

They both recovered fast, blades clashing together in a furious rain of sparks. The audience bellowed its approval as Xaven dueled Moroven, keeping the big warrior on the defensive for a minute without either of them gaining the edge.

That meant he'd already lived longer than any of Moroven's previous opponents.

Only Xaven had no intention of dying. He had to resist looking up at Eleya, knowing that seeing his fated would only divide his attention that he badly needed to be focused on Moroven. She was still there with him, though. Xaven wondered if Eleya had known what kind of a gift she'd given him, but he couldn't underestimate her.

Nothing would keep him from his fated now. The only obstacle that stood in Xaven's way was the warrior in front of him and it made the duel a lot easier than it looked.

The crowd roared when Xaven's spear cut through the air seemingly out of the blue, slashing right through Moroven's right shoulder guard and making the warrior back away.

Xaven appreciated the cries calling for a bloody end. Brions were a fair species. Moroven had killed his way to the final fight and the audience thought he deserved to face the same outcome.

He listened to Eleya's voice, but it wasn't there. Xaven was certain that he would have heard his gesha's voice no matter what, but the High Senator wasn't saying anything. She was merely there, watching, waiting.

Xaven doubled his efforts. He'd planned on tiring Moroven, but it was getting to be too perilous. He'd already taken a hard blow from the battle ax and the pain still ran down his spine every time he moved. It wouldn't kill him, but over time it would become an impairment that Xaven didn't need when Moroven clearly planned to make the last trophy out of him.

The fight became brutal from that point. Both fighters knew now that one of them wouldn't leave the arena alive. Moroven rained blow after blow on him, forcing Xaven to back away, but he had no problem with that. If Moroven wanted to exert himself by putting on a show, that was fine.

It was fine until the point where one of Moroven's blows landed hard on his spear and Xaven toppled, stumbling backwards.

The crowd was bellowing, jumping to their feet and finally, Xaven heard Eleya's voice.

She was calling his name.

His valor squares flared red as Xaven rolled on the ground, away from the battle ax that slammed into the arena's soil. He was up on his feet in a second and rushed to catch Moroven off guard before he could free his ax. The big warrior saw that, roared – and let go of the ax. Instead, Moroven turned his way and caught Xaven's spear, holding on to the shaft that had been about to pierce his neck.

It was impressive. Even Xaven was prepared to admit that. It went against every instinct of a warrior to let go of their weapon, but Moroven had done the only thing that could have saved his life.

Now he was left struggling for the possession of his spear with a man who weighed twice as much as he did.

Xaven's only option was to do something insane as well.

He glanced at the ax buried into the ground. Moroven had loosened it, but it was still a gamble.

Xaven let go.

Gravity came to his aid as Moroven's eyes went wide. The big warrior toppled back, the spear in his hands. He'd been trying to rip it out of Xaven's grip and now it had cost him his stance, which was everything in a Brion duel. The warrior fell heavily, but by that time Xaven had ripped the ax out of the ground.

Understanding dawned in Moroven's dark eyes, but it was too late. An ax wasn't Xaven's weapon of choice, but he could wield it fine when he needed to.

The blade cut through the air, slicing clean through Moroven's neck, without pain or needless suffering. Blood pooled next to the fallen warrior and the crowd cheered him. Both as the new High Lord and the man who'd put an end to Moroven.

When Xaven looked up at the balustrade, he could see Eleya standing, her eyes nailed to him.

Others might not have seen it, but to Xaven it was as clear as day – he'd won. Not just the tourney, but something much more important.