Chapter 048 – Heart of a Warrior

Chapter 048 – Heart of a Warrior

[290 AC]

It was a few days later, that Phenex found himself easily side-stepping the deadly thrust of Obara's spear. The girl didn't lose her rhythm though and just turned her thrust into a swing, attempting to seemingly cut her godly sparring partner in half.

His whole form in a flowing state, as Phenex seemed impossible to hit no matter how fierce Obara attacked. Most of her strikes were just dodged by him, while others he deflected with his own spear using minimal force and the perfect angles.

Her attacks become more frantic, as Obara's frustration grew. Her style losing finesse, while she swung her weapon with more force than necessary.

Phenex didn't hesitate to use the wooden blade of his spear to exploit the girl's flaws and land several painful blows on her limbs and torso. It was for this reason that he had chosen a training spear, while Obara fought with a real one.

Finally at her limit, not only physically but also mentally, Oberyn's eldest daughter fell to her knees, her teeth gritted as she suppressed a moan of pain.

Twirling around his weapon before settling it down and leaning on the spear, Phenex looked on calmly as Obara's knuckles whitened.

Her face was turned downwards, but his senses still noticed the tears of frustration that fell from her eyes. And he wasn't the only one, as Phenex saw Nymeria approaching from the side.

They were currently in the garden of the courtyard that the girls were living in with Ellaria, their father, and their retinue. Obara had been asking him for a spar regularly, as had her sisters Nymeria and Tyene, even Daenerys did the same.

Obara though was the most martially inclined and incredibly hardworking when it came to improving her skills. It was also for this reason that she was hit the hardest by her constant inability to shorten the gap between her own skill and Phenex'.

Phenex didn't deliberately let anyone win against him in a spar just out of kindness. Not only would his pride not allow it, but he also thought that this would send the wrong message.

Because no matter how skilled Obara or her sisters, and even Oberyn became, some battles simply couldn't be won, especially with him as their opponent. It was a truth all mortal beings had to learn at some point.

Raising a hand, Phenex gestured for Nymeria to stay back. The girl stopping her approach, as she went back to where Tyene, Arianne and Daenerys, including a few others, were.

They had all come to watch and spar against Phenex and each other, while Rhaella and Elia were also there to watch and spend some time together with each other and the children. Oberyn, on the other hand, was currently in the Fighting Pits, enjoying himself otherwise, as Ellaria watched him fight.

Approaching the quietly crying Obara, Phenex kneeled before her, as he placed his hand on her head and addressed her gently: "There is no need to be upset. You have made great progress, little flower."

Obara didn't answer, as her face kept looking down. Shaking her head in denial, she gripped her spear even tighter.

Sighing softly, Phenex moved his hand down to her chin and raised her face, so that Obara would face him. Her brown eyes glittering with tears of anger, directed at herself, she hesitantly looked up at him.

"Isn't it enough that you improve, little flower? Or were you planning to defeat me?", Phenex questioned, before he continued softly, "You know what I am, don't you Obara?"

She didn't answer, but the look in her eyes said it all.

Sighing, Phenex continued: "You will eventually surpass even your father in the way of the spear, I can see that clearly. But you still have a way to go, if you want to become a warrior like him."

"Remember, little flower. It's ok to set your goals as high as the sky itself, but the trait of a true warrior is a heart that can endure failure and truth, not just his prowess in battle.", Phenex ended, as a warm pulse of magic entered Obara's form, healing her bruises and banishing her exhaustion, while drying her tears.

Raising back up, Phenex retreated a few steps, before he twirled around his spear with incredible grace and speed, taking a loose stance.

Understanding his intentions, Obara shook off her depressed state, his words ringing in her ears, as her warrior's heart took a leap forward. The spear laying in her palms with such familiarity, as if she had been born to wield it.

Standing up, she took a sharp stance, her eyes firm and filled with a strength that had nothing to do with her martial prowess.

Smiling lightly, Phenex decided to initiate the battle this time, as the blunt edge of his wooden spear tore through the space between them almost effortlessly.

…

While her daughter Rhaenys curiously looked over at Obara, as she sparred with the god that had revived them, Elia Martell couldn't help but turn towards the Targaryen lady beside her. Rhaella cradling her sleeping grandson Aegon in her arms, while she looked at Phenex in the distance with tenderness in her eyes.

"My brothers were right. He is a good man, isn't he?", Elia asked the former Queen.

Turning towards her daughter-in-law, Rhaella answered with a quiet sigh: "I don't think he would agree to such a statement, but yes he is. I have never met a man that deserved that title more."

"Seeing him like this, it- … It's hard for me to believe the stories about his feats, even our revival just seems so surreal … ", Elia whispered, a wry smile on her face.

It was hard for her to see the man sparring and encouraging her niece as the god-like being everyone told her he was, even with her own and her children's revival as proof. Even the bodily weakness, that had plagued her her whole life due to being born prematurely, had vanished.

Rhaella didn't answer, as she knew that Elia would eventually see for herself the great power Phenex possessed. She herself knew him to be more than a human.

Rhaella felt it with every cell in her body and every drop of her blood humming in joy at his mere presence. And she saw it in the look in Phenex' eyes when his gaze was directed at the horizon, as if he could see things that were beyond any mortal to notice and observe.

…

Arianne felt her cheeks slowly turning rosy, as she looked at the Red God's perfect figure and charming smile. Seeing him easily defend himself against Obara's assault, while picking apart her cousin's defenses with sharp and fluid counters.

She clearly remembered her father telling her that she would learn from him how to rule and that their alliance with the Red Temple was very important, so she should be on her best behavior.

And while Arianne, even at her young age of fourteen, perfectly understood the importance of this task, as she had been lectured about the Red Temple's and Blessed Cities' power over and over, her young and adventurous mind had not been able to stop wandering in another direction.

She had always possessed a vivid imagination, and since two years prior when she had seen her uncle coupling with Ellaria and a palace maid, her thoughts were often clouded by sexual fantasies.

Most often they involved some older men just having their way with her, unleashing their lust on her untouched flesh. And more often than not, these fantasies had even involved her own uncle or the captain of her father's guards Areo Hotah, who was a well-muscled, white-skinned former holy guard of Norvos.

It wasn't even the good looks of these men that made her drown in these lusty fantasies, but their strength. It was with this strength, that she imagined herself being forced to receive their advances. It was the domination behind those acts that made her nubile body quiver in excitement and arousal.

It didn't mean she would be an unwilling participant or that she wanted to be abused.

Arianne just wanted to be taken like a real woman, she didn't want some timid little squire or lordling to ask for a kiss, or a look under her skirt. She wanted a man that simply took hold of her and kissed her, someone that ravished her so deliciously that she wouldn't even want to resist.

She wanted to be desired, so much so that holding back simply wasn't an option for her admirers.

Arianne knew that these fantasies and wishes of hers, had to do with her looks as she had always been a bit pudgy and her womanly curves had been non-existent since a few months ago. She had even prayed to the gods regularly in hopes of them making her more beautiful and buxom.

It was only some time ago, that her breasts had finally started filling in and her hips gained a bit more volume, though that all was still a far cry from the beauty she had always wanted. Especially now that her mind was often occupied with thoughts of the godly man before her, holding her in a passionate embrace.

Phenex had completely enamored the Dornish Princess with his looks and the power he possessed, so much so that she found herself spending a lot of her free time touching herself while crying out his name in the moments of bliss she gifted herself.