Serving the Amazons Ch. 07

She'd met her goals for Anteros, for as good a warrior as she was; she was even a better teacher. She personally instructed him in archery. After the day of torment, the beating and subsequent demonstration she'd given him, he was an extremely attentive student. No further beatings were necessary. All it took now was harsh word from her to put Anteros in his place.

She'd had exceptional students before and knew that teaching them humility was a necessity. She'd seen too many arrogant warriors killed by their overconfidence. She'd even seen one of her classmates deliberately disobey a direct order from a superior and end up being banished from her own home. She didn't want that to happen to any of her charges. Some of them would die, but she was determined that they wouldn't die because she failed as a teacher.

That is where Xan helped her. There was no one else that could dominate Anteros physically like Xan could. Her task would be much more difficult if she didn't have Xan to pummel Anteros. Anteros could beat Xan with a sword because he learned to rely on his speed and stamina. Xan was so immensely powerful that he could simply overpower many warriors with a single blow. Anteros was strong enough to parry Xan's blows and still quick enough to counterattack.

When Xan needed to remind Anteros who was stronger, he simply insisted that they battle without weapons. There was no doubt that Anteros had spirit because no matter how many times Xan knocked him down or threw him to the ground, Anteros would get up and try again.

Diana noticed that it was getting more difficult for Xan to put Anteros on the ground. Anteros was getting stronger and more experienced. He was developing even faster mentally than he was physically.

Anteros was as well prepared for battle as any student she'd ever taught. All that was left to do was test his mettle when his life was on the line. Would he kill without hesitation? The Amazon's enemies would surely kill him if he didn't. Would he panic when he saw the blood of his comrades?

There was no way she could predict this. People sometimes surprised her in the heat of their first battle. Some ran. Some froze. Others fought fiercely. There was not way to know until they were actually there. All she could do is give them the skills to survive. How well they used them in a tense situation was something that couldn't be taught.

She had Anteros work out regularly with his melee weapons too. The purpose was to keep him sharp and to provide a dominating opponent for the students and other instructors. She thought that Anteros might be a good teacher someday, once he got a few years of practical experience under his belt. He couldn't teach someone how to be a true warrior unless he'd been in the heat of battle himself.

"Anteros, Lorissa, come here," she shouted.

Xan released Anteros from the stranglehold he had him in. Lorissa nodded at the instructor that was working with her and stepped over to Diana.

"I have an errand for you. Go to see the arrow smith. She has several bundles of arrows for me. Leave your belongings here. You'll need both your arms to carry the bundles. If you follow that path through the forest instead of following the road, it will shorten the distance. Don't dawdle," she instructed.

"Yes, Mistress," they answered in unison.

Anteros was happy to have the opportunity to spend some time alone with Lorissa. They'd had little opportunity to speak in the last few weeks. They trotted quickly through the forest toward the arrow smith's workshop, making small talk as they ran. They were both fit enough that they were able to talk effortlessly at the easy pace they were running.

They picked up Diana's arrows and started back. They were no more than two hundred paces into the woods when a large man stepped in front of Anteros.

"Where are you going, Boy?" he asked with a sneer.

The man was obviously an Amazon male from his dress and the fact that no outsider would ever succeed in getting this far into their territory. His attitude was definitely not that of a man raised by Amazons. Since Anteros had been an infant, he'd never met a male outsider. Amazon men weren't surly towards each other. This stranger's manner puzzled him.

The man was dressed and armed as a warrior. He was at least a dozen years older than Anteros. This meant Anteros was obliged to treat him with respect that one should show to a superior.

"I'm delivering these arrows to Mistress Diana, Sir," he answered.

"Step aside, we have business to attend to," said Lorissa. Lorissa, being an adult female, outranked this man and was in a position to make demands.

"I didn't ask you, Girl. I asked the boy," he snapped.

Lorissa and Anteros were both taken aback by his disrespectful tone. This simply wasn't done in Amazon society. Lorissa would report his behavior and he'd be punished.

"Perhaps you'd like to apologize before I report you, Warrior. What is your name?" she demanded.

"I'll tell you what I want you to know. Now shut up. I'm talking to the boy."

Lorissa's cheeks flushed in anger. She'd never been spoken to like this by anyone, much less a man.

"Come, Anteros. The guards will deal with him later. I pity you for what they will do to you, Stranger."

Anteros attempted to walk around the man but the man threw a shoulder into him and knocked the arrows to the ground. Anteros hesitated, looked at the grinning man's face, and then bent at the waist to pick them up. The man hit him hard across the face with the back of his hand.

The blow was painful to Anteros' face, but even more so to his pride. He was being humiliated for no apparent reason in front of the woman he cared most about. Now Anteros' face was flushed with anger also.

"Leave them, said the man. Go back to your mistress and tell her you were too cowardly to complete her errand," said the man.

Anteros considered his options. The man looked strong and he was large, but was not as large as Anteros. Anteros knew he could throw this man to the ground if he had to. He knew that he shouldn't fight the man. Amazon law forbade that. Amazons did not fight Amazons. Anteros believed the best thing he could do is go with Lorissa to report the incident to the authorities.

"As you wish, Sir," he said with pain of humiliation in his heart.

Anteros tried to step around the man again. Again the man struck him in the face. Anteros could feel blood running from the corner of his mouth.

"Coward! You run to your mistress and leave her merchandise on the ground. You aren't fit to be called a warrior or even a man!"

Anteros seethed in anger. He sized the man up again. He surmised that it should take no more than a few seconds to beat him senseless; however, the man was wearing a sword and Anteros was unarmed. Was he insane enough to use it on Anteros? Anteros feared that he was. His behavior was so bizarre by Amazon standards, he believed the man to be afflicted with some mental illness. Anteros struggled to find a non-violent solution to the problem before him when he saw movement from the corner of his eye.

"Run back to your mistress, Coward," snarled the big man. "The girl is staying with us."

Two more armed men appeared. Each grabbed Lorissa by an arm. Her bundles of arrows fell to the ground. Lorissa angrily demanded that they release her but they paid her no heed. She struggled mightily and the three of them fell to the ground. She fought bravely but was no match for her two assailants.

That was all Anteros could stand. This was like a nightmare but he instinctively knew what he had to do. He drove his left fist into the face of the man before him so quickly that the man had no time to react. As the man fell back, Anteros grabbed the hilt of his sword, pulling it from the scabbard. Anteros was already moving towards Lorissa and the other two men as the big man crashed hard to the ground.

The men both let go of Lorissa and rolled away while reaching for their weapons. Anteros was poised to strike one of them. The man wasn't ready to parry. Anteros would kill him with the first blow and then he'd only have two left to deal with and one of them had no sword. He knew that if he could only survive the battle with the other two for a few seconds, Lorissa would have the dead man's sword and the two of them would surely kill their attackers.

He heard rapid footsteps, the sound of bodies crashing through the shrubbery and a female voice shout "HALT!"

Anteros stopped just as his arm started forward to strike the fatal blow. He saw the face of the man beneath him and it had gone white. The man believed his last second on Earth was before him.

Anteros looked up to see who had shouted. It was Rosella. With her were several Amazon warrior women, including his former teacher, Ninsala.

"Don't kill him, Anteros," shouted Rosella. "He was doing what I ordered him to do."

Anteros tried to relax his arm but the muscles remained tense. He had a great deal of adrenaline running through his veins and it would be several minutes before he'd start to relax. He did drop the sword to his side but he still gripped it tightly.

"You did well, Anteros, but you need not kill anyone today. I'm proud of you," said Ninsala.

"I don't understand, Mistress," said Anteros.

He looked at Ninsala, Rosella and then Lorissa. He saw Lorissa's other assailant standing next to her as he sheathed his sword. He was bleeding from a cut under his eye. Lorissa had apparently struck him hard enough to draw blood at some point during their struggle.

"You did well also, Lorissa. You fought bravely with your bare hands against two armed men! You will be a formidable warrior! Please forgive me for doing this to both of you but it was necessary to test your courage," said Rosella. "These men are members of the queen's personal guard. They were chosen because you wouldn't know them. They were ordered to force you into a position where you would have to fight against seemingly impossible odds. We sent you unarmed to avoid getting anyone killed and to make your situation seem hopeless. What we all failed to anticipate is how well you'd fight."

Anteros looked behind him. It had been at least a minute since he'd punched the man in the face and he was still down. Now that Anteros knew what was really going on, he hoped that he hadn't killed him. Two of the women went to him and he spoke to them. He was alive, but his legs were simply too weak for him to get up. He'd be all right in a day or two.

"Yes, you showed that you are brave, Anteros, but don't be too impressed with yourself," said another voice.

Before he turned he knew it was Diana. Xan was with her. Xan looked at the face of the man down and chuckled. The prone man made a rude gesture towards, Xan. This only made Xan laugh louder.

"These men weren't sent to kill you. If they had been, you would be dead. You did well, but I don't want you to think that you are good enough to defeat three of the queen's guards by yourself. That kind of overconfidence could get you killed," said Diana.

Anteros heard Xan speaking to the injured man. "I told you he was as quick as a snake. This will teach you to listen to me."

The injured man moved to stand and Xan helped him to his feet. The man's nose was bleeding and bent to one side. The physician would straighten it for him, and he would recover, but the treatment was going to be more painful than the injury.

Now knowing that the man was only doing his duty, Anteros felt pity and wished that he hadn't connected so solidly with his punch.

Xan walked over to Anteros, slapped him on the shoulder, and then took the sword from his hand. Xan's smile told everyone that he was proud of his student.

Lorissa moved near Anteros. They were experiencing similar feelings and she just felt better being close to him.

Rosella stepped in front of them and said, "Hold out your hands."

The both complied.

"One hand each will do," she said as she turned Lorissa's right hand palm up and placed two silver coins in her hand. She then placed an equal number of coins in Anteros' hand.

This puzzled both of them and they looked quizzically at each other then at Rosella. It was Lorissa who asked, "Why did you give us theses coins, Mistress?"

"I'll explain in a moment. First I need to tell you not to discuss what happened here today with your fellow students. Every young warrior will go through a test of courage and it must be a complete surprise. Some other students will be tested very soon. Do you understand?"

Lorissa and Anteros answered, "Yes, Mistress," in unison.

"Now pick up the arrows and deliver them to Diana's school," said Rosella.

"But the coins, Mistress?" inquired Lorissa.

"This month is half over so that is your pay, Lorissa. You will receive four silver coins at the beginning of every month. You are professional soldiers now," said Rosella, making no effort to conceal her smile.

Anteros and Lorissa beamed. All their young lives they'd trained to be soldiers and now they finally were! They were scarcely able to contain their excitement.

Rosella remembered when she was first told that she was a soldier. It was a marvelous feeling. Even better than sex, she thought. Sex was pleasurable but there was nothing like working for years toward a goal and finally reaching it.

"You are dismissed," said Rosella.

Lorissa squealed with excitement as she jumped towards Anteros and hugged him with all her strength. Anteros squeezed her with his powerful arms but was a bit more gentle. Several people offered back slaps, hugs and congratulations, even the warrior with the broken nose.

They were so full of joy that when the congratulating was done they started to walk back to Diana's school without thinking.

"My arrows?" Diana inquired with a raised voice.

Anteros and Lorissa hurriedly picked up the bundles.

"That's better. Tomorrow you report to your new commanders but today you still belong to me!" Diana snapped with mock anger.