Page 6 of The Gods We Defy (All Gods Must Die #2)

CHAPTER 6

D eath … That is the catch. Should I not find this stone by the time the three trials end, I will end with it. Not only that, but I will also need to make it through the three trials.

Anger rips through me as I plod through the snow. My boots manage to keep me from getting wet, and I don’t feel the cold. I only feel the burning rage that consumes me, warming me from the inside.

I knew there would be another caveat to this deal; I knew it. I was so na?ve to think Lord Cain was anything more than he appeared. He revealed from the start what he needed me for.

I was his tool in this game and nothing more.

The snow gets thicker, heavier as I move farther up and into the mountains. I stay on the path and keep moving. Just as Lord Cain said, there is a small path that is nearly covered by snow, but it’s there. By tonight, it will be completely covered.

I move through the path and follow the curve of the mountain. The path opens up to a wide clearing and right across it sits the wide rocky steps. But it’s not the steps that garner my attention. It’s the body in the center of the clearing in a pool of red with a dagger sticking out of its back.

I move toward the form and bend down to check his pulse. Nothing. He’s dead but it hasn’t been long. There is still warmth in his body.

Glancing around, my senses go on high alert trying to spot anyone attempting to conceal themselves.

If I don’t want to end up like this male, I will have to watch my back at every turn.

Keeping my guard up, I move up the steps and through the small mountain passage only to be met by two huge stone gates.

Remembering what Lord Cain said, I make sure my mask is firmly in place before taking out the token he gave me. Finding a small slot on the right side of the gate, I place it in it. It lines up perfectly and immediately the gates start to slowly grind open.

Once they’re open enough, I take the token before heading inside. The gates grind to a stop before moving back to a close.

Flames blare to life on either side of me, revealing a large, empty hallway. I move a few steps forward then I hear movement coming straight toward me, stopping me in my tracks.

A woman with short black hair and wearing a long, deep green dress steps into the hallway.

“Token,” she says as she places her hand out for it, waiting.

I hand it to her hoping I’m not messing this up. She checks it and then looks at me. Staring at me silently, I watch as her eyes begin to glow an eerie white. A soft energy brushes over me, searching. But as soon as I feel it, it disappears, retreating.

“Follow me.” The woman nods but holds onto my token as she turns and walks away.

I follow silently, keeping my eyes watchful for anything that may be hidden in the shadows.

The halls look to be carved from the mountain itself. There are no windows for light, just a small string of flames along the wall.

The farther in we walk, the darker it seems to get. As if the building wants to conceal itself along with the chosen.

A few minutes of silence and more dark hallways and we come to two large, closed doors.

“This is the main hall. It opens dawn, noon, and dusk. Three meals will be served here every day. There are a mixture of fae, human, and other beings that work and live in Túr Rí that also eat here.” She moves past the large double-doors and down the hall. We make a right and a left before coming out to a long open corridor that shows a large courtyard.

“This is the courtyard. You will meet up here before the first trial begins in just under three weeks. Your presence is also requested here tomorrow,” she says without saying why.

A group of chosen are already gathered there, training. Some of their movements are savage. Basic combat rules do not look like they apply at all as I watch a group of them gang up on a few other chosen and take them down, all laughing when one of them does not get back up. It looks like they all see each other as the enemy and nothing more.

“The group this year are a vicious bunch. Far more dangerous than those I’ve seen before. There are some chosen who have already died,” she says, shaking me from my disbelief.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“You’re not fae,” she states, and my stomach drops. I reach up to check my mask and hood are still in place.

Her lips tilt upward, and warmth fills her eyes. “I can sense it. The other chosen will not be aware. I can also sense your intentions. You’re not like most of the chosen here. Stay away from them and you might have a chance at surviving.”

I nod, letting her know I’ll heed her warning. My gaze draws beyond the courtyard to a backyard that sits farther off to right. There are small brick houses and the bustle of people moving about.

“What’s over there?” I ask.

The girl looks in the direction. “Many live here in Túr Rí. They provide food for the chosen and maintain the main building among other things. Others stay because they feel safe. Even among the chosen.”

“But you don’t wear a mask.”

“No one but the chosen do,” she replies, making me frown.

“But doesn’t that mean we could take them off and blend in with you all?”

She sighs. “The masks were once used to help protect the chosen. To remain anonymous and safe. But over the years they have become something else entirely. It’s not guaranteed that they will protect you. Not anymore. But those in charge here still think of it as a requirement.”

“Why? If they’re not going to give us some form of protection, what’s the point in wearing them?”

She shrugs. “Apart from being one of the rules now in place, some of the chosen seem to prefer it. They like to instill fear in those around them with the power they think it holds, or they use it to show off their powerful backing with a more extravagant mask. Many will look down on those that wear plains ones, seeing them as weak.”

I suppose it also makes the game they’re all playing seem just that. A game. And when you’re fighting against someone faceless, there’s less empathy involved.

“Most of us can tell who the chosen are. But the mask also sends a message to everyone else in Túr Rí,” she says, and I turn to her.

“Which is?”

She frowns. “Stay away.”

I guess I won’t be trying to blend in with the people of Túr Rí.

She brings me back into the dark halls and up some stairs before coming to a long corridor with strange doors.

“Your room is down that hallway to the left. But I suggest you find someplace else to stay. Your roommate is… not a kind person.”

Great… “Thank you,” I tell her and mean it. She could have chosen not to tell me, but she did.

“Good luck.” She dips her head to me before turning and walking away.

I glance down at the hallway to where my room must be, but the look in the girl’s eyes flash across my memory, stopping me. She was worried for me. And even though I can take care of myself, I don’t want to have to be on guard every minute of the day.

I turn and start walking in the opposite direction. Maybe there is somewhere away from everyone that I can make my own until the trials are over. Someplace hidden.

But the hallways seem endless. Even more obscure and vast than the palace, not giving me much hope.

I come out onto another open corridor thinking I might have ended up back near the courtyard, but I quickly find out that it leads to a huge bridge with an arching roof. There are small columns along it and a wall that reaches my shoulders.

Walking out onto the middle of it, I set my bag beside me and lean against one of the columns, glancing out at my new home for the next while.

Another cage that I will need to fight to survive in. I wonder when the day will come when I can choose where I want to go. Now that I know there is a whole world out there, I want to see it. The gods may have tainted this place, but there has to be many others like this.

The first thing I’ll do is find my family. My mother. I miss her. My heart aches the moment I think of her. She must be worried.

I swallow hard against the lump in my throat and attempt to rub the tightness from my chest. I hope they’re all safe. They have to be. I couldn’t think of any other option. Not now when I can’t go to them or help.

The sound of footsteps drags me out of my thoughts. I move closer to the column as a group of male fae in armor walk out onto the bridge, all looking ready for battle.

There’s nowhere I can hide from them. Not that I should be hiding. I’m here as a chosen.

They finally come close enough and my entire body freezes when I see who it is.

Kestral.

No longer within the barrier of the kingdom, his fae appearance is fully revealed only making him more devastatingly handsome.

With a vicious look on his face, his silver-gray eyes are full of anger as he moves forward.

How is he here?

Thinking I’m seeing some sort of mirage, I don’t notice when the group has stopped and gone into a defensive stance.

“Reveal yourself,” one of the fae guards shout, shaking me out of my shock.

I step out around the column and the men tense up when they see me. I’m confused for a moment until I realize I’m still wearing my mask and a hood.

A man moves around Kestral, and my eyes widen when I spot Asra. “What are you doing up here? Chosen are not allowed on this bridge,” he grits out.

There were still many things Kestral and I have to discuss, and although trust is not there between us, I doubt he will try to kill me.

I reach up and pull down my hood, taking off my mask just as the guards move forward.

“Stop,” Kestral orders, his eyes quickly losing their cold, vicious look, only to be replaced by shock.

“Seren.”