Sassy Saturday: Spider in the brush

Welcome to another week of Sassy Saturday at Trickster Eric Novels.  Every week will be an excerpt from one of my novels showcasing a kick-butt heroine. If you want read about the original blog hop the link is here.

The previous Sassy Saturday post can be read here: Don't Underestimate Elf Tech

The context for this post: As part of the build up to the Mana Mutation Summit, Kasile hired Dragon's Lair Team Four to advertise her agenda under the guise of guarding supplies that she ordered for the Summit. Tiza is the only one truly guarding.

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Tiza stayed out of sight and unremarkable next to the laborers and hired guards. An outside observer would have no idea she was with the mercenaries at all. Internally, she grumbled about the lack of limelight while her humble teammate bathed in it; he didn't want it! Externally, she swept the area with Third Eye to check for threats.

What her teammates didn't know was that she wasn't lazing about in her hospital bed at the ICDMM; she was practicing. She examined everything around her and Retina provided her with exercises to push her limits. After a week of use and experimentation, she was confident that nothing could hide from her. She spotted a number of people who thought they were hidden and she could have laughed at them.

Part of Sathel's training involved hiding in plain sight. She didn't pay attention at first because she thought it was useless. Then Sathel said that failure would result in extra rope escape and poison immunity lessons. Now she realized its importance. No one else noticed the subtle draw of a dagger.

Like a spider in the brush, she scurried through the crowd as they chambered the weapon. Without taking her eyes off her target, she pinpointed theirs. Adrenaline rushed her system, but she was too late to stop them from throwing it. The dagger soared silently through the air and clanged off her shield.

"You're going to wish you didn't do that."

The attacker threw back their hood. "I don't think so, my Little Cocoon."

"Spider Daylra?! I'm working!"

"I know and I'm proud of the way you handled yourself on the job."

"Was it necessary to have Daylra's Dear sneak up on me?"

Retina paused just outside of sword's reach.

"Yes," Sathel replied.

"Finally, I appreciate Butterfly's help, but I don't need her here. Tell her to go away."

She turned on her heel and returned to the parade. No one noticed she was gone. Suddenly, Sathel choked up and rubbed her eyes. Her husband put an arm around her and she leaned into him.

"She would have done wonderfully in Squad Four."

"Yes, she would have."
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Mana Mutation Menace, and the rest of the Journey to Chaos series, is available for purchase at Amazon.
If you prefer something solid, this book can be found in paperback on CreateSpace or Amazon. A Mage's Power is there too.

To learn more about the heroines of Journey to Chaos, visit the Tvtropes character sheet. 

The next excerpt is Annala schools Lunas at the Mana Mutation Summit

Brian Wilkerson is a freelance book reviewer, writing advice blogger and independent novelist. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).