A Race of Trials

  “Sentries, welcome,” he announced. “Today we commence the second trial for kingship—a trial that will test the mettle of our esteemed and hopeful champions. Our second trial relies on unity—unity because we know that a king is only as good and strong as his people, and the right leader of Hellswan will know both when to lead and when to follow.” There was a round of applause, and more cheering from the servants for Ash.

  “The rules!” the minister announced. “The winners of this trial will be the two champions who reach the golden chains of solidarity first.” He gestured to two gold chains at the far end of the lake, hanging suspended in the air and glinting in the sunlight. “They will each be awarded twenty points, with those who follow being awarded only ten. Those who fail to reach the other side of the lake will be instantly disqualified. So too will anyone caught using mind manipulation on living creatures… you will have a chance to demonstrate those skills in the trials to come. And finally, remember that waters hold hidden depths, and creatures that should never be seen… Let the trials begin!”

  With a theatrical flourish, the minister ended his speech, standing back from the water’s edge.

  Tejus motioned for me to stay put, and moved forward with the rest of the champions. I looked at the still, calm waters of the lake. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought that this trial was a piece of cake, but I dreaded to think what was waiting beneath the placidly rippling surface. Ruby came to stand by my side, and together we watched the champions approach the water.

  They held their weapons aloft and moved at a measured pace, but I could tell the suspense was getting to them. A few at the front clearly wanted to dive straight into the lake and swim across to grab the chains, but they were hesitant.

  An impatient cry sounded from within the crowd, and eventually one of the champions took a running leap into the water, sword at the ready. He was followed by two more, and they each disappeared below the surface.

  “ARGH!” They popped up, one by one, screaming bloodcurdling cries as large white and blue-gray tentacles, almost translucent in their milky hue, wrapped around their faces and limbs. As they thrashed about in the water, I could see the spidery veins of the creatures starting to turn red—they were sucking blood from their victims.

  The crowd cried out in horror, and the red-robed watchers dragged the victims out, removing the creatures by throwing what looked like buckets of salt over them till they withered up and fell to the ground. Their victims audibly groaned, and I heaved a sigh of relief that they were still alive.

  The rest of the sentries looked about them in confusion. I searched for the familiar figure of Tejus, and found him away from all the commotion, standing further along the bank, looking out over the water.

  As I watched, Ash approached him and leaned forward, whispering something in his ear and gesturing over at the chains. Tejus gave him a brief nod, and they both started to make their way back to where Ruby and I stood waiting.

  “Ash has come up with a plan,” Tejus announced in a hushed voice, “I need you now, Hazel. Are you ready?” His gaze was penetrating and I gulped. I was ready. Without thinking I dug my hand into the pocket of my robe, and felt for the cool, reassuring presence of the sword stone.

  Tejus glanced at Ash, who was briefing Ruby in a far warmer manner. Ash nodded back at him and they both made their way, side by side, to the water’s edge. Ruby and I followed.

  I felt the feathery strokes brush against the insides of my temples, a sign that Tejus was beginning to siphon off my energy. I felt the slight tug as the connection was made, and the dull throbbing as he borrowed from me—slowly sucking away at my mind.

  I clasped the stone when it started to feel uncomfortable, and felt a release of exhilaration traveling through my body. At the same time, I could sort of feel Tejus expending energy and power, but when I looked over at them, he and Ash appeared to be doing nothing—just standing motionless by the lake.

  Looking over at Ruby, I searched her expression to see if she was any the wiser, but she looked just as baffled as I felt.

  As I watched, Tejus took a step forward. I was about to cry out, to run after him and haul him back, but his foot didn’t come into contact with the water—it hovered a few inches above it. He took another step, and Ash did the same.

  Oh, smart.

  I suddenly realized what they had done. Together they had created a barrier over the water—the same type of invisible barrier the ministers had put up around Hellswan that was holding us back from leaving the kingdom, or anyone getting in. I hadn’t realized that all sentries had that ability.

  Ruby exhaled a sigh of relief next to me, but looked as stunned as I did at what Tejus and Ash could do.

  "Did you know that was even possible for anyone other than the ministers?” she asked me.

  I shook my head, speechless.

  The crowd soon realized what the two champions were doing. They roared and cheered Ash’s name, all rising from their benches in honor.

  I had just let myself relax, seeing the pair of them start to run across the water – a mere few yards from the glinting chains, when my blood ran cold.

  A single tentacle had risen out of the water. It’s translucent skin wavered about in the air, running alongside what I presumed was the barrier that Ash and Tejus had created.

  “Tejus, look out!” I screamed, once, but it was too late. The tentacle came hurtling toward him, long enough to reach over the barrier, and swifter than I could have imagined. Tejus turned, just in time to see the pulsing monstrosity looming over him. I saw him reach for his sword, but as soon as he grasped it, the tentacle knocked it out of his hand and it skidded across the smooth surface of the barrier. Tejus suddenly jerked upward, batting the tentacle back with something in his hand. The blue-grey limb thrashed wildly, almost knocking Ash into the water, who’d come to stand beside Tejus, sword at the ready. Blue-black liquid squirted from a wound in the tentacle, showering Tejus and Ash. Tejus held a dagger aloft, ready for the next strike.

  By this time, using the distraction to their advantage, the other champions began to create their own barriers. Two sentries, who were running across the lake, skidded on the surface of their barrier. One of the sentries screamed out in fear, grabbing wildly at air as he tried to avoid the lake below. The tentacle that had been so intent on bringing Tejus down, now swiftly ducked back down into the water, reappearing seconds later to grab the falling sentry.

  Tejus and Ash quickly regained their bearings and started to run toward the chains. I felt dizzy with relief, and as they landed on the other side of the lake – each grasping their reward and holding it aloft, I took a huge gulp of air, only just realizing that I’d not taken a breath since the tentacle had emerged from the lake.

  They had won the trial.

  Tejus held his chain out to the ministers, Ash held his out to the adoring crowds. Ruby clutched my hand tightly, and we each beamed at each other with a mixture of relief and joy.

  One down!

  Amidst the cheers were more screams of pain and horror as some of the other sentries’ barriers broke. A couple had tried to do it on their own, but were not strong enough to hold the barrier in place as they crossed it. They had fallen into the water, the putrid tentacles rising out of the water once again to claim their victims, as the fallen sentries screamed in agony.

  I counted six champions who would now be out of the running.

  “Bravo!” cried the minister who had announced the trial, stepping forward once again to congratulate the heroes.

  “Tejus and Ashbik win the second round,” he declared, “awarding them twenty points each, which leaves Ashbik still in the lead with forty points in total.” Another ferocious roar went up from the crowd. “Ten points are awarded to each champion who made it across the lake.” Smaller pockets of applause erupted around the crowd. “Those who didn’t, I’m afraid to say, are disqualified.”

  I did a quick mental calculation. That left fourteen champio
ns left in the running—including Ash and Tejus. As the champions made their way along the far end of the lake to rejoin the crowd, I couldn’t help but notice the golden hair of Nikolay—he had made it too.

  Ministers and watchers attended to the groaning sentries lying on the banks of the lake. They might not have been in any mortal danger, but it struck me just how brutal these trials were. It seemed the modus operandi in Nevertide was sink or swim, literally, and I felt a slight unfurling of dread at what was still to come.

  Ruby

  “I realized this afternoon that I haven’t shown you the nicer parts of the castle,” Ash said, leading me off through another narrow corridor. He’d been removed from kitchen duty as soon as the competition had started, and a few hours after we’d returned to the castle, he’d appeared at the door of my room, excitement buzzing beneath the surface of his usual composure.

  “Where are we going?” I asked, taken aback that there were parts of the castle that Ash considered ‘nice’—at times I felt he loathed Hellswan Kingdom more than we did, and it had been his home all his life.

  “You’ll see,” he answered vaguely, taking my hand in his to drag me onward. It was lukewarm and calloused, and at its familiar touch I recalled the moment that the same hand had pulled me from the cellar that Jenus had held us captive in—the reassuring strength of it as comforting now as it had been then.

  We came to a small doorway right at the back of one of the castle turrets, an area that I hadn’t previously seen. Ash retrieved a wizened key, and turned the lock. The door creaked open as if it hadn’t done so for centuries, but when he revealed what lay behind it I gasped involuntarily.

  “Beautiful, isn’t it?’ Ash asked, his voice full of reverence. I was too stunned to speak.

  The door had opened onto a small, walled garden. Small stepping stones weaved in and out of lush greenery and bright flowers, roses climbed up the walls and produced large bouquets of sweet-smelling blooms. Every available surface was completely covered in a multitude of bright colors or dark, thick-leaved shrubbery.

  “Who looks after this? It’s incredible,” I whispered.

  Ash smiled. “I actually don’t know. Hellswan has gardeners, but none of them would be up to this… Jenney and I found it years ago, but we never mentioned it to any of the other kitchen staff. Seemed like it was a bit too nice to share.” He shrugged. “But I thought we could have a picnic here or something—celebrate our win.”

  A picnic in this picturesque place sounded a bit too romantic for comfort. A large part of me wanted to say yes, and I didn’t want to read too much into it… I knew Ash and I made a good team, and a bond was steadily growing between us—partly due to our increasingly successful mind melds, and partly due to our shared goal in winning the trials. But I didn’t know if it was wise to get involved in that way.

  There was a lot at stake.

  “Uh, okay,” I replied trying to sound light, but my hesitation had given me away.

  Ash’s expression was unreadable, but when he answered me his tone was gentle. “Why don’t we just have a walk and we can go back to eat with the others? Jenney will only moan if she has to cart our dinner out here anyway.”

  “Okay,” I said again, feeling reassured that I hadn’t hurt his feelings.

  Ash carried on down the pathway, navigating his brawn gracefully over the stones. The garden was a lot larger than I’d first assumed and soon we were so deep in its thicket that I couldn’t see the surrounding walls.

  “What made you think of the barriers?” I asked after a while. “That was quite impressive – I didn’t even know you could do that. I don’t think that Tejus would have arrived at the same conclusion without you.”

  “All sentries have the ability – but it takes more than one of us, and if I’m honest, it’s not really my best skill.” Then Ash chuckled. “There was something about one of the other champions sitting on the bank, looking completely offended and disoriented after the water beasts got him, that reminded me of you—when I saw you on your ass in the dirt after the Nevertide barrier bounced you back.”

  “Glad I was such an inspiration.”

  “Let’s just say that image won’t leave me for a while.” He smirked at me.

  My cheeks heated.

  “I guess it’s just a shame that Hellswan got points too,” Ash continued gloomily, “but I didn’t know any of the others well enough to know if their mind control was up to it.”

  “You did the right thing,” I said, “you’re still twenty points ahead.”

  Ash cast a watchful eye across the garden. “Yeah, I know. But I didn’t want him gaining any. I think the bastard’s got guards watching me.” He lowered his voice. “I’m worried he knows about the Emperor.”

  My stomach lurched queasily. Ash had poisoned the Emperor—just enough to knock him out for a few days and distract Jenus while Ash rescued us from the cellar, but somehow it had gone wrong and the Emperor had died. If Tejus had suspicions that Ash was involved, then it wouldn’t take much for a conviction—a royal’s word against a servant’s.

  “What makes you think that?” I asked quietly.

  “Nothing concrete.” He hesitated. “I just get a feeling—like I’m being watched. I’ll be walking down a hallway or alone in the kitchen and I can feel eyes on me.” He shivered. “It’s making me jumpy.”

  I felt a bit relieved at his account. “Sounds like it might just be your imagination. Or he’s doing it to distract you from the trials. No one’s said anything yet, have they?”

  “No.” He scratched his head. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe I’m just imagining it—guilty conscience and all that.”

  I nodded. That sounded more likely. I couldn’t imagine that Tejus would wait around—if he had evidence he’d act fast, and try his best to get Ash kicked out of the trials and disqualified. I didn’t believe that Tejus truly cared for his father—what I believed he cared about was his rise to power.

  “You just need to focus on the trials, Ash,” I reminded him. “Forget the Emperor. Hellswan—and all of Nevertide—needs you.”

  He nodded slowly, the tension draining from him.

  “Is there anything I can do?” I added. “To help?”

  He was about to shake his head in a ‘no’, but then he stopped.

  “You know, perhaps if we mind-meld again… that might help. I seem to feel stronger after we do that—as long as you’re up for it?” he added, looking at me with an open expression.

  “Okay.”

  A few yards ahead of us was what looked like a small sycamore tree, surrounded by a grassy verge. I gestured over to it, and Ash led the way. We sat beneath the tree, each on either side of its trunk, our backs against the smooth bark.

  I relaxed, and concentrated on ‘throwing’ my mind out to Ash. I felt our energy meet, winding around the trunk of the tree, and a blissful calm settling over me. Against the black of my closed eyes, I could see bright colors forming—brilliant turquoises, blues and ambers, all dancing and flitting between each other and intertwining to create new, vivid colors. It was like having our own private fireworks show, and I passed the thought along to Ash. I felt him chuckle in response, and a very small, quick image flashed up in my conscience. It was of two people who looked very much like Ash and me sitting in the garden eating a picnic as the sun set. In an instant the picture was gone, and replaced by more dancing colors.

  Oh.

  I felt him try to leave the mind meld, pulling away from me. I tried to resist and hold on to the energy, wanting to show him I was sorry that I’d said no to a picnic, but he didn’t let me. Then the connection broke abruptly.

  Ash stood up, and came over, offering me his hand.

  “Come on, shortie… I’m just hungry.”

  “Okay,” I muttered, annoyed that our connection had come to an end so quickly.

  As we walked back down the path we’d entered, the garden stopped feeling so lovely and the big leaves and thickets that tugged at my clothes bec
ame irritating—I was glad when we finally saw the door to the castle up ahead.

  I couldn’t help but think that we should have continued the mind meld. It did make our connection stronger, and made it easier for Ash to siphon off me, which was important for the trials.

  I guessed this was exactly why I didn’t want anything more getting in the way—one request for a picnic from Ash and already we were in awkward territory, trials momentarily forgotten.

  It came as a firm warning to me that we had to keep things businesslike between us… as much as we actually could.

  Benedict

  Julian and I were playing Snap when the guards entered. I was glad they came when they did, because Julian had won every single hand and was starting to boast about his quick reflexes. I just didn’t have the energy. Every movement I made felt like I was wading through mud, and my thought process was so slow I could barely string a sentence together. I would have found it frustrating, but I found I didn’t even really care that much—all I wanted to do was go to sleep.

  “Ministers here to see you,” announced the guard.

  “Ruby isn’t here. Neither’s Hazel,” Julian called back to him, barely looking up from the table.

  “Ministers are here to see you two,” he barked back.

  We rose to our feet, both wondering what the ministers could possibly want with us. They swept into the room, looking like a group of ghosts on account of their black robes and pale, menacing faces.

  “Julian and Benedict?” one of the ministers enquired. He was a tall, emaciated-looking man, wearing large, round glasses that made his eyes appear too large for his face.

  “What do you want?” Julian asked.

  I nudged Julian—his tone was too abrupt, and I felt that we should at least pretend to be polite to the ministers. I didn’t fancy being sent back down to the servants’ quarters to sleep on Ash’s lumpy bed again.

  “We have a small issue we were hoping the two of you could assist us with,” the man replied, ignoring Julian’s lack of manners.