Bymonten greets me with a clap on the back. “Well, well, well! Winner or not, you’ll be the one who everybody talks about after tonight.”
I whirl on him with an angry glare. “How could you let them humiliate me like that!”
He shrugs. “I didn’t know what the judges had up their sleeves, but they like to create drama during the finals.” He takes me by the shoulders. “Relax, this is good press for you. Makes you relatable. And your song was amazing!”
I hang my head. “But what if Rinari blames me for trying to mess with her before her turn? She might never speak to me again.”
“Then it’s her loss.” He tips my head up to look at him. “Seriously, you’re a great girl and you’ve got a bright future ahead of you. I should have spoken to you sooner, but I figured this flirtation wouldn’t last after Star Search ended. There will be plenty of others, especially when your career takes off.”
I stare at him. “But they haven’t even finished all the songs yet. Do you think I’ll win?”
“It doesn’t matter.” He drapes his arm around my shoulders and leans close. “I’ve already had offers from a few recording companies. I’ve spent a few years working with amateurs, waiting for someone with real potential to come along. If you sign me as your official manager, I’ll make sure that everything is taken care of.”
I can’t believe it. I could get a recording contract even without winning Star Search? Is this Qachmy’s way of thanking me? But I didn’t know what else the goddess would ask of me.
I pull back. “Um, let me think about it.” I hold up my hands. “No offense. This is all just happening very fast.”
Bymonten glances toward the door, hearing the applause echoing from the stage. “Only one singer left to go.” He nods at me. “Don’t wait too long. You’re a rising star, but your fans will forget about you if you don’t give them more.”
I nod my head absently. “Okay.”
I sit down and watch the door. Rinari doesn’t come back. The last singer finishes and the finalists are called onto the stage for the results.
I don’t know where to look. Rinari is smiling at the crowd and avoiding eye contact with me, while the three boys just stand there. I don’t want to look at the judges. I find a spot at the back of the room.
After Nysa finishes her usual speech to thank the contestants, she hands the microphone over to Osev.
“We have challenged all of you to show the range of your talent,” Osev says. “You already know what we’re looking for. Each of you in the final five could have a successful career, but only one has the star quality we seek. And that person is…”
Breathe. I need to breathe.
“Amena!”
The screaming erupts before he even finishes saying the name, so I have a moment to doubt I heard him. But all three judges are turning toward me with big smiles and a stage hand is pushing me forward. I stumble for the microphone stand.
“Oh my gods,” I gasp into the mic, but my voice can’t be heard above the screaming. I force myself to speak louder. “Thank you!”
The judges praise me for all of my performances and I mumble words of appreciation back, but I’m numb. This was everything I wanted and now I can’t enjoy it.
All I can see is Rinari, standing with the other losers in the back. She’s clapping politely with that fake smile on her face. I’ve won Star Search but I’ve lost her. I can’t say which one is more important.
As the show ends, Bymonten rushes out and hugs me. I push away from him.
“I’ll sign you as my manager,” I blurt before he can protest. “First, I need to talk to Rinari.” I can see she’s already walking off the stage.
He nods with understanding and steps aside. “We can talk about this later. But don’t stay away too long, you don’t want to miss your after party!”
I hike up my long skirts and run after her.
I call out to Rinari. She doesn’t even turn around. I expect her to go for the changing rooms or at least grab her stuff, but she’s heading for the exit. As she steps through the back door, her form shimmers for a moment with unmistakable magic. Her dress from the performance changes into dark, form-fitting clothes and a hat, with a mask covering her face. The perfect outfit for sneaking around.
No. No. She’s the same size and shape as the shadowy figure I was following in Serynda, but that has to be a coincidence. It can’t be her.
I speed up to catch her outside, but by the time I get through the door, she’s gone. I scan the street but there’s no sign of her. I’m afraid to look up.
“Uqra,” I call as loud as I dare. “Uqra, by the gods, where are you when I need you?”
The golden quetzal glides down from the roof and lands on my shoulder.
“I just saw our enemy heading for the middle of the city.” She tugs on my loose hair. “Why haven’t you changed yet?”
I swallow hard. “How do you know it’s an enemy? Because I just saw—”
Uqra’s talons dig into my bare shoulder. “They picked up the crate from the ammunition factory. Whatever they’re planning, it’s not good. Hurry!”
I must be in a nightmare.
I transform my clothing, tucking my hair up under my hat and placing my goggles over my face, and jump to the rooftop. Rinari is halfway down the block of buildings, struggling with the heavy crate. I run after her but hang back just enough so she won’t see me.
“Why are you hesitating?” Uqra snaps from her free ride on my shoulder.
“I want to see what she’s doing.”
Rinari reaches the square at the middle of the city. With an extraordinary leap, she glides and lands on the roof of the Crystal Temple.
The pieces click together. She hated the life that the gods had given her, stuck in a clothing factory, and now her one chance at fame was stolen—by me. She had nothing left.
“Wait!” I rip off my goggles to show my face, but she’s so far away.
Rinari bends down and opens the crate.
I don’t know if I can make a jump that big, but she did it, so I have to try. I back up far enough to get a running start and launch myself across the square.
The slick, angled glass roof of the Crystal Temple rushes up toward me. I scrabble for something to grab onto but it’s all too smooth. My feet hit a pane of glass and slide down. I feel the hat fall off my head and my hair tumble down around my shoulders.
A hand catches my wrist before I fall. I look up and see Rinari straining to hold me. I can’t read her face behind her mask.
With her help, I’m able to brace myself enough to climb up. There’s a flat area around the top point of the pyramid just large enough for the two of us to stand on beside the crate. The crate is open and inside I can see an explosive device with lots of wires.
I look up in horror. “Don’t do this, Rinari.”
She rips off her mask and stares at me. “How did you know it was me? I thought I lost you in Serynda.”
I nod. “Yeah, but I saw you just now when you left the theater. I know you’re upset you lost, but it’s not the end. People loved your performances. You can still be a star.”
She turns her face away from me. “Tamarau promised me I would win. I guess your goddess was stronger.” She waves her hand out at the city. “It doesn’t matter anymore. These people deserve to be punished for what they did to us. I don’t want to be their dancing monkey.”
I point at the bomb. “This isn’t the right way to fix things.” I take the copper star out of my pocket and show her the word ‘Freedom.’ “Look, I’m part of the rebellion. We have lots of ways to resist the empire. You could join us.”
“Well, aren’t you just full of secrets.” Rinari stares at the star in my hand. “But what has the rebellion done to change things?”
I rack my brain for answers. I’ve asked this question a thousand times and never been satisfied.
“We give people hope,” I say finally. “The more people who join us, the more we can do. It takes
time and patience, but we never hurt innocent people.”
Rinari looks at me and her eyes are full of fire. “Tamarau told me no one who lives in this city is innocent.”
She turns and stomps on the pane of glass underneath the crate. Magic sparks from the heel of her boot, shattering the glass. The crate falls through the hole.
“No!” I grab for her.
An explosion rocks the temple, causing cracks to spread across the entire glass roof. I land on a steel beam and catch Rinari’s hand as she falls. Now she’s the one dangling in midair as I strain to hold her.
I can see the temple floor below her as an inferno spreads across it. The marble is crumbling, falling into a vast, dark space below. That must be the labyrinth.
“Rinari, hold on!”
She looks up at me sadly. “I wish I still had hope.”
“You do!” Tears fill my eyes, but I blink them away. I can’t afford to lose sight of her. “I’ll help you, just don’t let go!”
The steel structure lurches forward. I glance down again. The floor has collapsed into a gaping hole, and now it’s threatening to swallow the entire building with it.
“I’m sorry,” Rinari whispers.
Her fingers slip through mine. She plummets.
“No!” I lean forward, preparing to launch myself after her.
“Don’t!” Uqra tightens her grip on my shoulder. “We have to get out of here!”
I push myself up and stumble backward, too numb to look where I’m going. The steel beam shifts under my feet and pitches down, and the rest of the structure follows.
I jump as far as I can and land in a heap in the middle of the square. All I can do is watch in horror as the Crystal Temple disappears into the ground. Flames reach up from the depths below.
I pluck Uqra off my shoulder and hold her in both hands. “Why would Tamarau tell her to do this? Is she jealous of Chysa?”
Uqra squirms, but I grip her tighter. “It’s complicated. I don’t speak to Tamarau, but yes, some gods have a problem with Chysa being in charge.”
“What about Qachmy? Is she going to make me blow up temples or anything else crazy?”
Uqra shakes her head. “No, she doesn’t want violence.” She disappears out of my hands and teleports to the ground in front of me. “I told you that your singing will spread her name. You’ve already done that, and now you’re famous, your voice will reach even further.”
“But she also wants me to fight.” I slump forward and bury my face in my hands. “This enemy you’ve never named, is it the other gods? Or humans who were chosen by them?”
“Some of them,” she whispers. She hops closer to me. “But some agree with Qachmy. If you find humans who will serve them, you can have allies. Divine warriors.”
I lift my head to look at her. “Warriors… who stop violence?”
She nods. “We have to fight for peace.” She points her wing at the ruined temple. “To make sure this never happens again.”
Sirens fill the air. Emergency services are rushing to the square. It’s too late for me to run away, even if I wasn’t hurt. All I can manage is to change my clothes back into my dress from the concert so I don’t look suspicious. Uqra flies away, promising to tell me more later.
Uniformed guards surround me, guns at the ready. “Miss, did you see what happened here?”
I stay on the ground, playing up my helpless-and-injured look. “I don’t know, it was crazy!” I point at the temple. “I was supposed to meet my friend in there, but it just exploded! Please, go see if she’s okay!”
I know there’s no chance that Rinari could have survived that fall, but I still can’t tell them she was responsible for the bombing.
But the guards are more concerned with securing the area. One of them stays by me like I could be a threat. The rest spread out, checking the roofs of nearby buildings. How could they have known to look up there?
Firefighters show up soon after and rush to the temple with their hoses. Healers also arrive, and two of them bend down to examine me, shooing away the guard.
I tell them I hit my head, which is true, and it’s left me confused. “I don’t know how close I was,” I say, struggling to look up. “I think the blast threw me back.”
“It’s okay, don’t move,” the older healer says, holding me down with her firm hand. “We’ll get a stretcher and take you to the hospital.”
The guard holds up his hand. “Wait, you can’t take a witness. The captain will want to question her.”
The healer ignores him and waves to a pair of men with a stretcher. “This is my patient and I say she’s in no condition for questions. Your captain will just have to wait.”
The guard scowls. “Then I’m coming with you to make sure she doesn’t run off. Something about this bombing is very suspicious.”
I turn my head to the ruined temple again. “I just want to find my friend.”
The second healer pats my shoulder. “When they find her, they’ll bring her to the hospital, too. Just rest for now.”
The pair of men ease me onto the stretcher and lift me up. It’s so weird to have someone else carrying me. The guard follows right behind us, clutching his gun.
“What are you doing?” a flamboyant man’s voice says. “Amena!”
Bymonten rushes to my side. “Oh, no, you’re hurt! What happened with Rinari?”
I point at the temple. “I was following her inside when… I don’t know what happened. Everything exploded.”
The guard puts his arm between Bymonten and me. “Step back from the suspect, sir.”
“Patient,” the healer corrects the guard, but she also waves my manager back.
“I’m her emergency contact,” Bymonten snaps at both of them. “I demand to know what’s happening.”
The three of them argue, but I’m feeling dizzy so I lay back on the stretcher and stare up at the sky. Behind the plumes of smoke, I can see Uqra gliding overhead, staying with me.
I don’t know what will happen next. I won Star Search and I have a manager, so I’ll have a singing career. But I also have to find other divine warriors to help the gods fight for peace.
And I never want to let anyone die again.
Pronunciation Guide
Amena (ah-MAY-nah): a teen girl in the rebellion
Arkia (ahr-KEY-ah): the dominant language and culture of the Arqan Empire
Arqan Empire (AHR-kahn): the joint government of nations on the continent
Bymonten (bee-MON-tehn): an assistant in Star Search
Chelynne (shay-LEEN-nah): goddess of the earth, the world
Chysa (SHEE-sah): goddess of the sun
Deryt (DEHR-eet): a young man in the rebellion
Dunruis (doon-ROO-ihs): a judge in Star Search, one of the past winners
Jabin (YAB-ihn): a hidden village in the rebellion, outside of Pisan
Linar (LIHN-ahr): god of blacksmiths and other crafts
Nysa (NEE-sah): a judge in Star Search
Olona (oh-LOH-nah): a floating city, capital of the Central Province
Omer (oh-MEHR): god of agriculture
Osev (OHS-ehv): a judge in Star Search
Pisan (PIH-sahn): a town on the west side of the Central Province
Qachmy (KASH-mee): goddess of the rainforest and wild animals
Qumejola (KOOM-ay-YOH-lah): a family House
Rinari (rih-NAH-rih): a singer in the Star Search competition
Sawycha (sah-WEE-shah): goddess of the ocean
Serynda (seh-REEN-dah): a city on the eastern side of the Central Province
Tamarau (TAH-mah-RAW-oo): goddess of the arts
Uqra (OOK-rah): a gold quetzal bird
Xiso (ZEE-soh): god of domesticated animals
Thank you for reading Amena’s Rise to Stardom! I’d appreciate it if you took a few minutes of your time to write a review online. Your feedback can help other readers decide to give the book a try. Word-of-mouth is the most important way for books to get discovered
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Read More
Are you ready for more adventures? Join Amena and her friends in the next book!
Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts
A clumsy school girl with the magic of a goddess. Mechanical beasts attacking her friends. Can she become a divine warrior and save the floating city?
Fifteen-year-old Riwenne is bad at school, chronically late, and lost in a daydream, but she has help from her best friend, Nexita—until the two of them get separated. During the mysterious test on Choosing Day, they both wanted to become priestesses, an important job in the sky city. But only Riwenne became a novice, and Nexita was chosen by the engineers. Now she’s on her own for the first time in her life.
When a talking bird tells her that her best friend is under attack, Riwenne faces her worst fear. She must become a divine warrior and save her best friend from mechanical beasts!
As she juggles warrior training and priestess duties, Riwenne can’t let herself get distracted. She must recruit other warriors and lead the quest to find out the mystery behind the mechanical beasts, but most of all, she must follow her heart.
If she fails, the gods will judge her.
A complete list of all my books:
www.kristenwalker.net/books/
About the Author
Kristen S. Walker wishes she was a pirate mermaid who could speak with sharks, but she settles for being an author. She currently resides in Northern California with her family and a rescued cat, but she grew up in the mountains, running barefoot through the woods and chasing imaginary dragons. Her fantasy novels for teens and adults explore diverse characters, detailed worlds, high-stakes adventures and emotional journeys. When she's not writing, Kristen enjoys geeky crafts like cosplay, toy photography, and watching anime.
For more books and updates:
www.kristenwalker.net
Amena’s Rise to Stardom: Divine Warriors #0 Page 9
