“No, but it made me feel like I should punch you.” My eyes narrowed on him. “Did you just try to goad me into using the eather?”
“I did.”
I laughed. “Oh, you’re going to have to do better than that. It takes a lot to anger me.”
“I want you to repeat what you just said and ask yourself if that’s the truth,” he replied.
My lips pursed. “Let me rephrase. It takes a lot to make methatangry. I have way more control than you realize.”
I’d expected some kind of—rightfully—sarcastic response, but there was none. Nyktos eyed me for a few moments. “Let me see your dagger.”
“How do you know I have it?”
“You always have it, Sera. Hand it over.” He paused, extending his hand. “Please.”
“I hate it when you say please,” I grumbled, bending over and reaching inside the shaft of my boot. I slid the dagger out, straightening.
“What a strange thing to hate.”
I placed it, hilt first, onto his palm. “Yeah, you’d think.”
“Thank you.” Nyktos turned sharply, throwing the dagger.
My mouth dropped open as it flew through the air, striking the wall above the table with such force that the handle vibrated. “What the hell?” My head whipped toward him. “Now, you’re just annoying me.”
Nyktos smiled, and that, too, was annoying. “Right now, the essence is tied to extreme emotions. It’ll be different once you Ascend, but before then, it can manifest when you’re very angry or frustrated. Extreme grief. Pain.” He began to circle me as he’d done in the courtyard. “I have a feeling if I best you in fighting, you’ll get pretty frustrated.”
“And that’s why you threw my dagger into a wall?”
“I threw the dagger into the wall because I don’t want to get stabbed again, nor do I want you cutting off more of my hair.”
I opened my mouth.
“And don’t even tell me you wouldn’t stab me,” he said. “You would.”
“You’re such a know-it-all,” I muttered, tracking him.
Nyktos smirked. “If we’re able to draw it out of you again, then we can move on to more controlled uses.”
“So, what are we going to do?” I crept closer to him. “Fight hand-to-hand until I get frustrated and use the embers?”
“I have a feeling we’re just going to tire you out before then, but that’s the plan.”
I lifted my right hand and extended my middle finger even as adrenaline surged through me. He was probably right, but I missed training. Fighting. “In case you don’t know what that means, go fuck yourself.”
Nyktos chuckled. “If you behave, maybe I’ll fuck you instead.”
A wholly inappropriate flush of heat went through me as I saw red. I went at him, swinging my arm—
Into nothing.
I stumbled into the empty space where he’d once stood, catching myself. I looked up.
He was several feet away. “You’re going to need to be quicker than that.”
Blowing out an already aggravated breath, I launched myself at him, kicking, but I hit nothing but air. I started to turn when I felt a faint brush across the center of my back. I spun, jabbing my elbow back. He’d shadowstepped several feet from me again.
“One day, I’m going to shadowstep my fist into your face,” I warned.