Page 34

WINNOWING

I flopped backward onto the glittering black sand—broken, glossy shards crunching beneath my leathers. To my right, the tributary sloshed past my boots, escaping through various hollows and crannies in the stone wall. Breaths flowed in and out of my damp, parted lips, soothing my aching lungs as I stared above.

An undulating bubble of glassy fluid curved over the arena, thousands of lantern orbs circling its edges and casting a fiery glow over its cyan tint. A giant, turbid image of my exhausted face and the others projected across its surface, our movements broadcasting for the horde’s entertainment.

I sat up, following its boundary as it bowed over the opposite side of the river, separating those in the arena from the audience perched on long steps cut into the obsidian.

The Elders were positioned in a circular partition at the front, frigid silver flashing over Melina’s eyes when they met mine. Her upper lip curled, baring her incisors. I smirked, dragging my eyes over her horridly beautiful face before looking away, snubbing her.

Gavrel, various guards, and Akridais stood along the dome’s edge. The thick slashes of his brows pressed together, his penetrating gaze twisting my guts. Pleading.

My throat bobbed as I swallowed, a stagnant chill pressing into me as I forced my eyes away from his.

I couldn’t find my sister. Part of me wished that meant she wasn’t here, but I knew better. My lips pressed inward, sucked between my teeth as I looked away—reeling in my focus.

Water dripped under the neckline of my tunic, my sodden plait sticking to my nape as I hoisted myself up. Absently, I licked my lips, tasting the salt as I studied the arena, beholding its ovate magnitude. Its oblong borders spanned the entirety of the training field above. My forehead crinkled in wonder, a warm breath slowly dragging over my bottom lip.

Directly across from the spectators, a barrier was carved along the Reverie Weald. It was shrouded in dense, gnarled roots that coiled through dark stone and compacted soil. Its sides wrapped around, the roots dwindling and receding into the solid rock of the cliff.

At the opposite end, a darkened archway cut into the wall, a gilded metal door blockading it. Flickering light danced along the ridges of its centered etching—a pair of spears in an X, crossing in front of a torch flame, its cinder fluttering off to the side.

I blinked; the golden sheen seemed out of place in this glassy pit of dark, chipped stones. Movement caught my eye. Sebille and the male Druik from her team stumbled from the stream. A few others scattered over the coliseum floor, their boots rasping against the splintered gravel.

As my opponents oriented themselves—recalling that only one of us could remain—the slide of metal rang through the space, hands gripping various weapons. Other than Rhaegar and Sebille, three other Draumrs remained.

The male beside Sebille flared in a burst of cobalt haze. Three other Druiks released their auras, one the color of wheatgrass, another buttery yellow, and the last violet. My brow rose at the purple hue swirling around the petite female. I’d never noticed her before. Although uncommon, Melina had mentioned that power could be blended, an inherited anomaly.

The corners of my mouth fell, remembering what Melina had done to me. I wasn’t an abnormality as I once thought. My gifts were rare, stemming from my Perilous Bogs heritage.

My mother had lied.

Kept our past secreted away.

Uprooted my identity before it ever got the chance to sprout.

My hand clenched around Morpheus’ dagger as a kaleidoscope of energy shimmered over me, humming in anticipation. Breena and Kaden positioned themselves on either side of me, their bodies glowing and weapons drawn. Rhaegar’s battle axe balanced in his palm, his rune’s light coating the blade as he stood beside Kaden.

The twelve of us inched toward the center, forming a circle as if we were the warped numbers of a clock. Wary eyes darted around, seeking signs of attack. A metallic creak sliced through the air, and everyone stilled.

Our images fizzled from the dome, its rippling surface no longer transmitting our performance. So everyone can see our annihilation in real time, I thought, teeth grinding.

The gold doors lurched open, scraping against the pebbled grit, hinges groaning. My heart plummeted at the gummy clicks flitting through the darkened passage.

Without warning, a colossal, bulbous mass lunged from the hollowed void, eight segmented legs crouching and then leaping onto the guard closest to the door in a dark blur. The man’s weapon was knocked from his hand as the beast pinned him to the ground, one wickedly pointed leg stabbing him through his thigh.

The crowd beyond the wavering dome audibly sucked in a collective breath. And then cheers and cries of distress became one.

A symphony of clacking spilled from the tunnel before three more cottage-sized creatures skittered out—slightly smaller than the first, which I suspected was their alpha. Metallic streaks shifted over their armored membranes as they passed through the doors. Their copious, rounded bodies had camouflaging abilities, gilded streaks wrapping around the dark hues. As they circled us, muted shades of gray, azure, and umber shifted over burnished black.

Chasm spiders.

“Fuck. I fucking hate spiders,” Kaden grumbled.

I chuffed nervously, my insides churning.

The monster reared, its bulging underbelly reflecting hues from the wood and watery dome as a juicy hiss spewed from its gaping maw. Two long, curving fangs the size of my arms flanked on either side, stretching wide to reveal several needle-like teeth within a cavernous jaw. Putrid strings of slime dripped onto the man’s face, and his skin curdled and steamed at the contact. His blood-curdling scream was cut short as the spider plunged, its fangs clamping around his head, teeth sinking into his face with a crack and a squish.

I covered my mouth with my hand as bile coated my tongue.

As the spider suckled, the man’s body crumbled into dust, sinking into the stony gravel. The creature screeched, its oozing face whipping up.

A flurry of movement exploded as competitors ran away, the smaller chasm spiders chasing and leaping. Sebille’s teammate fell, rolling out of the way when one beta tried to impale him. Sebille swung her sword, slashing through the bottom joint of one tubular leg and then stabbing into the spider’s underbelly as it stumbled. It hissed, snapping its fangs at her as she pulled her blade free before darting away, tugging her peer toward the river by his shoulder armor.

It followed and then stilled as they got into the water, its jaws grasping at the air angrily. Limping, the aggravated beast scampered along the shore, avoiding the liquid along the edge.

The alpha cornered the Druik in yellow and a Draumr near the door at the opposite end. The warrior yelled, jabbing his broadsword as taupe-tinged ember flowed from the male at his side. Forcefully, a mystic gust of air pushed against the creature, its legs vibrating as it skidded back, gravel grinding.

My heart galloped as I backed away, eyes darting toward any movement.

The spider closest to us feasted on a twitching body beneath it—the Druik in green. Before he disintegrated, Rhaegar and Breena took advantage of the beast’s distraction and rushed behind it.

Kaden grabbed my arm, pulling me toward the root-covered wall as I watched a fiery orb spin between my friend’s palms. Breena thrust her hands forward, the ball slicing through four of the spider’s legs along the juncture of its abdomen. The excess energy crashed into the side of the dome above my head, its power smothering the flaming ball with a sparking sizzle. Kaden and I ducked as the sparks rained down.

The spider shrieked, falling to its side, legs thrashing in the air. Rhaegar leaped in an arch, his blazing axe swinging into the monster’s belly. It squealed, legs convulsing as it plopped on its back and stilled.

Rhaegar freed his blade, turning toward the largest spider as it leaped sideways onto the wall to escape the embered wind. Scampering along the wall, it stabbed a leg through the Pneumalian Druik’s belly. The howling male, still skewered on the leg, whipped through the air and hammered into the Draumr, knocking him down. The spider slammed another leg into the guard, impaling him while his sword clattered onto the stones.

“Watch out!” Kaden bellowed, pushing me to the side as a chasm beast landed between our fallen bodies. He jumped to his feet, his sword swinging as Breena rushed toward us.

My aura throbbed, my chest heaving. Dusty puffs of earth fluttered around me as my back pressed into the contorted wood. My vision shrank, shadows creeping around the edges. It was as if I was watching the scenes from far away.

As if I was no longer in my body.

Time slowed. The ticking of the chasm spiders and the chiming of metal stretched and echoed between my ears.

Click.

Bodies exploded into cinder.

Kaden and Breena feinted in opposite directions, slashing and jabbing at the repulsive creature.

Others were being skewered by pointed legs, fangs, and their opponent’s blades. The clang of metal and streaks of ember whooshed throughout the space, the dome glinting with every impact.

Click.

The dome that kept the crowd and Elders safe but trapped us within, ensuring our slaughter.

Click.

My breathing slowed as ember zipped over my spine, branch patterns creeping from my elbows to my wrists. For a moment, I wondered if the roots at my back had burrowed under my skin.

My head tilted, staring blankly at the carnage surrounding me. My hands stopped trembling, and I slid my dagger into its sheath, my vertebrae locking in a column.

Click.

A burning rage enveloped me, blazing through every fiber and tendon of my body.

I’d had enough.

Enough of lies.

Of being afraid.

Of not fighting back.

Enough.

Dazzling light exploded from my palms, radiating iridescence overtaking my icy eyes. In this moment, my ember and I were one. I felt at peace—confident as I flung its tethers away. My power stretched before knotting its cloying puppet strings around my soul.

A sense of unease bubbled along my nape, but it was too late. My will, sinking deeper within the corners of my mind, was no longer my own. I’d willingly given the leash to the thing inside me.

Fractured rainbows twirled between my outstretched palms and then latched onto Breena’s aura. Cherry hues swirled into the emerging orb, its power thrumming against my palms.

My power drank and drank.

More.

Breena stumbled, her aura dimming as she tried to jerk away from me, daggers still slashing at the spider with determination.

Kaden thrust his blade into the monster’s maw as it lunged toward him. It squealed, collapsing. Kaden pulled his slime-coated weapon free as Breena dropped to her knees.

“Seryn, stop!” he roared, catching Breena as she tipped over, convulsing.

I couldn’t, and the Ancients weren’t responding to my desperate pleas.

My unleashed ember consumed hers, her golden, olive-toned skin turning sickly and ashen as she convulsed in his arms.

More.

It was too late. My arteries ripped from my bleeding heart, tying around it. Strangling it. My mind raged against its chains.

But I couldn’t stop it.

Breena’s eyes fluttered closed, her back arching like a bow.

And then she ruptured into fiery ashes, coating Kaden in gleaming dust.

My heart dissolved along with her. Unshed tears choked me as my body moved against my will.

From somewhere trapped inside my skull, I watched helplessly as Rhaeger fought the alpha spider. It lurched forward as his axe swung behind him, its leg piercing through his heart.

Silent cries ripped through my mind as he jerked, blood spilling from his lips. With a thunk, his lifted axe cut off the monster’s leg. The fiend screeched, jumping back as my friend fell to his knees. Rhaegar tipped forward, his form bursting into cinder as it smashed into the ground in a glittering cloud.

The limping beta spider Sebille had injured earlier scurried toward us, its gait lopsided. My hands pushed forward, flinging energy at it. Slamming into its side, smearing across its body. It spread, seeping into every crevice and wrapping around every limb. Light blazed, contracted, and then exploded—the being crumbling like the gritty sand beneath our feet.

The crowd was hysterical. People jumping and yelling. Whooping and laughing.

Piles of dust and steaming gore scattered over the black sand.

The ashes of my soul sank into the earth with Rhaegar’s.

With Breena’s.

I slipped deeper into the dark void I was imprisoned in. Adding my own shackles and nestling within my ember’s chains.

Even if they survived the Stygian Murk and escaped to Midst Fall, the vileness of my true nature was already exposed. I was a vicious monster. Brutal, aching pain seared through me as the images of my friends’ destruction replayed in my eyes.

I did that—I destroyed them.

My aura shimmered, petting my skin. I recoiled deeper within myself.

Something was broken inside me, and now my gift would also devour me.

And I deserved it.

Movement caught my eye. Gavrel’s fists pounded against the watery dome, his yells muffled. A smoky haze slithered around Melina, her brows pinching.

Numbly, I looked around the arena.

Everyone was consumed or slain.

Everyone but Kaden and me. And the female Druik, who was sloshing through the river, water up to her knees, as she avoided the last chasm spider.

Violet mist swept over her as the limping alpha stalked her along the shore, her dark-blond hair whipping around her indigo leather tunic.

“Bloody void.” Kaden pushed his shoulders back and raced toward the towering predator.

My body sauntered after him, aura blazing.

Kaden whipped toward me, hearing the crunch of gravel. His face crumpled, a look of disdain coating his features. “Get back.”

My head tilted, but my body stilled in the center of the ring, light pulsing through the patterns on my arms and hands.

As he turned around, a zap of shining purplish light zoomed toward him. My mind screamed, wrenching against my tethers. My aura flared.

The lines of time slackened, and everything around me moved sluggishly.

Something cracked within me, and a glint cut through the looming shadows inside my skull. I reached out, digging my nails into the fissure, tearing at it until my will breached the vibrating prison walls.

In the next moment, my thumb—under my control once more—swept over the tingling stone of my ring. It hummed against my skin, and the melodic words of the little girl from the Weald twirled around my head.

Heed your terminus .

My eyes locked onto Kaden as my fingers closed into a fist, the tourmaline branding my forefinger.

In a flash, my body splintered and reappeared next to him—time tugging the line taut once more. He yelped as I shoved him out of the way, and the female’s attack splattered against the dome. I sprung up, the energy once again coiling between my outstretched palms.

Melina was standing now, her eyes blazing silver, fists clenching at her sides.

Gavrel was gone.

From the corner of my eye, Kaden’s clover aura flared as the alpha spider skittered in our direction.

My eyes shifted back to the Druik. She squinted, rosy lips pressing together. Hastily, she shifted, leaving the river and lobbing power at the spider. Radiance splashed on its back like lavender-colored water but clung to it and ignited. The creature squealed, a series of angry clicks echoing through the stadium.

Kaden’s ember tugged the roots in the wall, and while they were heeding his call, they were moving too slowly. Too tangled within the soil and stone.

Another flare of purple raced toward me, and I spun, the orbiting sphere in my hands snapping and slurping as it gobbled up her ember before it got the chance to ram into me. She was closer now. My halo latched onto hers, shock painted on her pretty face.

Energy shoved at me from all sides, trying to bury me once more. But I was more concerned about Kaden’s well-being. My power stopped sparring with me once it realized I wasn’t preventing it from draining her. Within moments, she fell—completely depleted—and burst into ash as I turned, her energy weaving through mine.

The urge to touch Kaden was overwhelming. My ring vibrated, heating at my touch and transporting me to his side.

He jolted away, but not far enough as my palm clamped onto his forearm. My ember poured into him. His head flung back, both eyelids fluttering.

As my power waned to a faint shimmer, his expanded, the green of it vibrant and pulsating around him.

His eyes snapped open, irises igniting as he thrust one hand forward, verdant hues spilling into the roots he’d been calling upon. With a reverberating crack, a massive wood spike ripped free of the wall, contorting and bending.

As the last spider leaped at us, Kaden flicked his wrist, and the jagged root skewered the beast.

He turned to me, shoulders slumping. Confusion swept across his face as he gaped at me. He looked down, stretching his fingers wide as they shimmered.

A searing blaze of pain burned through my side, jerking me forward.

“No!” Kaden roared, catching me as I stumbled. The hilt of a dagger stuck in my flank beneath my leather vest, blood seeping.

I’d been wrong. Not everyone had been destroyed. Sebille propped against the wall. Bracing herself on the stone with one hand, her other outstretched arm dropped to her side. Streaks of blood and grit coated her face as she sneered.

Kaden’s hand snapped out, calling upon another root and slashing it over our heads.

Sebille screamed as the jagged wood found its mark in the dead center of her chest.

Her attention whipped to me, her mouth hanging open in disbelief.

Within one blink, she shattered into cinder.

Kaden gently set me down. “This is going to hurt,” he murmured before withdrawing the blade swiftly. It clattered to the stones, and I cried out, biting my bottom lip and trapping the agony behind my teeth. He hovered his glowing palms above me, a wash of green draping over my injury.

The dome above flickered and popped, its liquid vestiges sprinkling over us as if the Ancients wept above.

“Kaden. I’m … I’m so sorry. For everything.” The words were faint—fading away into the darkness lurking at the side of my vision.

“Stop. You’re going to be okay.” The gruff words rumbled from his chest, a boiling well of emotions were finally frothing over. His shining eyes widened, disbelief and desperation sweeping over them, a severe line of concentration creasing between his brows. “The Murk hasn’t taken you yet—it can’t have you.”

I whimpered, aches pricking through my cold limbs.

“We have a victor!” Melina’s voice fluttered over me like a distant echo. The crowd cheered. Kaden growled as he urged the last of his power into my wound, his torso slumping over me as his body drained.

“Come on, don’t you give up on me. Fight, Ser!”

Warmth spread through me, the bite of ice stinging my fingertips as fire scorched through them. Midnight cloaked my eyes, and my eyelids fluttered shut. My mind slipped into the void, the distant sounds of crunching pebbles lulling me into oblivion.

“Well done, brother. Stay here …” My limp body lifted into solid, unflinching arms. Indistinct words were snarled as if I were underwater, my senses ebbing before blinking back on as Gavrel barked, “Enough.” His chest rumbled against my cheek. “Play your part so I can get her out. I’ve got her.”

It was the last thing I heard before my mind drifted away, following all the others—like dust swept into the Winnowing currents.

Not remaining.

Not worthy.