Page 61

The glade felt endless as my boots hit the hard ground, and mud kicked beneath me as I wove between trunks.

The last competition involved simulations, but this time, the Council involved actual creatures that had been stored away for centuries.

They were doing everything possible so that Grace failed.

I caught movement ahead. I slowed, crouching low, my fingers tightening around the spear. As I moved closer, muffled voices reached my ears.

“If you keep stumbling like that, we’re not going to make it past sunrise,” Silas hissed.

“Me?” Brandon shot back. “Maybe if you weren’t fucking whining every five seconds, we’d actually make progress.”

I stepped out of the shadows, glaring at both of them. “Are you two shitheads seriously arguing right now?”

They spun to face me, Brandon clutching a makeshift spear like mine and Silas holding what looked like a broken tree branch.

Rule number one: Never depend on these two for strategy.

“Cain.” Brandon lowered his weapon. “We were just—”

“Getting nowhere,” Silas interrupted.

I shook my head. “Guessing neither of you have found a stone yet.”

They exchanged a sheepish glance, and I sighed.

Of course not.

I shook my head, stepping past them. But before I could get far, I stopped, turning back slightly. “Grace,” I said, “make sure to look out for her.”

Silas blinked. “Grace?”

Brandon tilted his head. “She’s capable, isn’t she? I mean, she did get chosen, so—”

“Just do it,” I said sharply, the edge of my voice cutting off any protest.

I started moving again, but Silas’s voice stopped me.

“Hey,” he said, tipping his chin up at me. “What’s wrong with you tonight?”

My jaw tightened. “Nothing.”

Silas stared at me; his eyes narrowed like he didn’t believe me one bit. I didn’t say anything else and instead focused on the path ahead because I already knew what was wrong. And the last thing I needed was to involve anyone else in my problems.

I decided that I hated any type of running.

Not just physically but mentally, too.

I was tired, craved sleep, and desperately needed to sit down, but all I did was run and run and run. I didn’t know where I was going; I just knew I was heading forward.

The ground was uneven as I slowed down, and my lungs stung with the lack of air. I pressed my hand to a tree trunk to steady myself, my breath shaky and my hair damp from sweat.

I leaned my head against the bark, closing my eyes as I tried to focus on getting my heart rate back to normal.

That’s when I heard a whimper come from nearby, and my heart jumped into my throat.

My eyes snapped open as I scanned the forest. Slowly, I pushed myself off the tree and crept towards the sound.

That’s when I saw it.

A girl—someone from the Guardian Sector.

She was slumped against a tree, her arm bent at an impossible angle that made my stomach churn.

I swallowed hard, stepping closer until her head snapped toward me, eyes narrowing with distrust. I raised my hands and glanced skyward, wondering if the Council were really watching me like this was all a reality TV show for them.

I shook my head at the thought.

“It’s okay. I’m—” My gaze lowered to meet with the girls. “I’m here to help.”

She didn’t move as I approached, though her fingers twitched like she was deciding whether to strike. Kneeling beside her, I reached out towards her arm, but she lunged the second my hand touched her.

I barely had time to react before she knocked me back. I hit the ground hard and watched as she stumbled to her feet, running off in another direction.

“Shit. Grace!” Brandon yelled out as he and Silas burst through the trees. Helping me to my feet, his eyes scanned my face and blew a breath of relief. “What happened?”

I nodded, brushing dirt off my uniform. “I was just trying to help her.”

“Molly doesn’t take any help from anyone.” Silas snorted, then muttered under his breath. “Guardians.”

Right.

“I need to find Marnie,” I said, glancing at the tall trees. “She might be hurt—”

I didn’t finish as a deep, guttural growl sounded behind us.

Brandon’s and Silas’s eyes widened comically as I slowly turned around.

It was another beast, this one larger than the last. Its body rippled with dark energy as its glowing eyes locked onto us.

Silas raised a branch.

Oh, he had to be kidding me.

“Seriously?” I hissed. “You’re one of the best Warriors out there, yet you choose a branch as a weapon?”

Silas’s eyes never left the beast. “Trust me, a branch can be just as effective as a regular weapon.”

The creature growled again, the sound rumbling through the air as it stepped forward, setting every single one of my nerves on fire.

My hand shook as I gripped the blade Hunter had given me earlier.

“Maybe we should run,” Brandon whispered, but before I could scold him, a branch snapped behind us, and I spun around.

Marnie stumbled through the underbrush, her uniform torn as she clutched her side, her hands glowing faintly with healing energy.

Relief and worry crashed into me at once, but she waved me off, wincing. “Got caught by some Messenger earlier, but I’m fine. Where did you get the dagger?”

“Hunter,” I said quickly, glancing back at the monster. Its eyes locked on us as it crouched low, preparing to strike.

“Shit,” Silas whispered before the creature lunged at us, and Brandon shoved me to the side, his spear raised to intercept it.

“Go!” he shouted, and for once, we all agreed.

We scattered, tearing through the forest in different directions, and the creature’s growls faded slightly behind me.

Marnie caught up to me, her breath ragged but steady. “What’s the plan?” she gasped.

“I don’t know,” I admitted shamefully. “Find the sigil stones? Hope we don’t run into more of those shadow creatures?”

“Well,” she panted. “It’s better than nothing.”

I agreed.

We slowed down slightly as the forest opened into a clearing, and moonlight spilt onto the ground in pale patches. In the center of the clearing was a tall, sleek pillar with a sigil stone atop it.

“What the hell is this place?” I whispered, not intending to get an answer out of it, but Marnie had already opened her mouth to explain.

“Different realms, I think. I heard this is the hardest competition we’ve done so far.”

Just my luck to get stuck with the hardest competition of all.

I stared at the stone as it pulsed faintly with golden light. However, the sight of it didn’t give me any hope.

Some stones are cursed.

Nadael’s warning flickered through my mind, and I shuddered. I thought about what we could do and our next move, but someone else had already beaten us there. A tall and broad-shouldered boy from one of the other teams. His hand hovered over the stone as if he were hesitant to touch it.

Marnie grabbed my arm. “Wait,” she whispered.

I nodded, watching closely.

The boy finally reached out, his fingers brushing the surface of the stone. The light changed instantly, shifting from gold to a sickly green.

He froze.

A second later, a bloodcurdling scream tore from his throat. He stumbled back, clutching his head, his body writhing as if invisible hands were pulling him apart from the inside.

I felt vomit rise in my throat, and I did everything not to spill whatever contents I had in my stomach all over the ground.

“It’s a cursed one,” Marnie whispered, her voice shaking.

The boy kept screaming before he ran as if something imaginary was chasing him and disappeared deep into the forest.

Marnie and I stayed frozen for a long moment, neither of us wanting to move or speak.

Then, from somewhere to my left, Silas and Brandon appeared, both breathing hard.

I couldn’t help but search for Hunter, wondering where he was.

Whether he was okay or hurt or fending off one of those monsters alone.

Brandon was the first to spot the sigil stone and started towards it when Marnie pressed a hand to his chest, stopping him from going any further.

“It’s not one of the real stones. It’s a cursed one,” Marnie said, and Silas raised an eyebrow.

“And we’re still standing here because...?”

I ignored him, my eyes locked on the now glowing green stone. “There might be more stones nearby.”

“Then we should move,” Brandon said. “That thing from earlier could still be tracking us.”

I nodded before we stepped forward and headed into the forest, where the trees closed in on us again.