A quick nod as we swiped the sweaty red strands of hair from his forehead. “My job in Air Society was maintenance of the wind turbines. You had to get used to heights and climbing really quick.”
“Interesting. Makes sense.” I looked towards Aurora, but her gaze was focused on Cirrus and I suddenly had the distinct impression that they wanted to speak to each other. Alone.
“I’m going to look around. See you in a bit?”
“Sure,” she nodded, meeting my eyes now and giving a smile. “Thanks Sage. “I’ll catch up soon.”
Returning the smile, I wandered off. It was more than a little disconcerting to see everyone dressed in their stealth outfits. Until they turned around for me to see their face, I had no idea who anyone was. Sometimes I couldn’t even tell if they were male or female.
After circling the entire arena, I came to a stop at a station near the back. No one was there yet so it seemed to be the perfect place to start. In front of the entrance stood another trainer.
My heart sank. It was the woman with frizzy orange hair from the train. And as soon as she set her eyes on mine, the scowl embedded on her face deepened. She flicked her head, motioning me over, crossing her arms over her chest as I reached her.
“This station is an obstacle course. Your goal is to get to the other side,” she began, her voice just as grating as I remembered. “Reach the end and you’ll have completed it successfully. Understand?” She spoke tersely, with no indication that she was going to give me any actual advice on accomplishing the task.
Mutely, I nodded my head and prepared to go in. But as I stepped forward, there was a pat on my shoulder. “Hey Sage.”
My eyes widened in surprise, instantly recognizing the voice. Rowan!
He was dressed head to toe in the black leather outfit we both sported. “How are you doing, Sage?”
I paused. The words were right, but something was off. His expression was uncertain, as if he felt uneasy, almost guilty. There was no sign of the familiar lopsided grin. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but something about him had changed, just in the brief time we’d been here.
“I…. I’m fine Rowan. You?”
“Good.” There was an awkward pause. I was about to ask if something was wrong, but before I could get out a single word, I noticed him staring at something behind me.
It was the trainer.
Rowan paled, a nervous sheen suddenly coating his forehead. Clamping his mouth shut, he gave me a quick nod before walking away and disappearing into the crowd of trainees.
I stood there, just staring at his retreating back.
“Ahem.” It was the trainer. She was now staring at me with a look of even more displeasure. “I would suggest you go now. You only have two hours remaining for your supervised training session today.”
“Yes, sorry,” I muttered quickly, then stepped forward.
It took a few moments for my eyes to adjust to the darkness. The first obstacle was a series of narrow wooden planks spaced out over a gaping ten-foot opening in the floor that dropped down into impenetrable darkness. Taking a deep breath, I stepped gingerly onto the first board, but the wood was surprisingly slick, and my boots instantly began to slide. Gritting my teeth, I managed to find my balance, then took another cautious step, moving onto the next plank. Slowly, painstakingly, I continued to make my way across. I was almost to the other side when I felt it.
The tremble beneath the soles of my feet.
When I heard it.
The splintering of wood.
My stomach dropped as the worn beam suddenly gave at my weight, cracking in two. Not pausing, not thinking, I leaped the rest of the way across the gaping opening to solid ground, only just making it off the board in time. Stumbling forward, I lurched to the left, crashing against the wall.
I groaned, rubbing my sore elbow. Maybe this would be more difficult than I originally assumed.
Taking a breath, I glanced at my next obstacle. A large pile of massive blocks, each nearly as tall as myself, filled the path, stacked to form a sort of pyramid shape. Flexing my fingers, I walked up towards the nearest. Reaching up to grip its top edge, I expected my hands to slide from its slick surface. But surprisingly they held, the gloves I wore adhering just enough that I managed to heave myself up and clambered onto it. Over and over, again and again, reaching and pulling, arms aching and muscles burning, I continued to climb. Until finally, I dragged myself up onto the very topmost one. I paused there, catching my breath, allowing a prideful smile to come over me, if only for a moment.
There was only one remaining obstacle now. A series of wooden planks in various stages of rot that spanned the next fifteen feet. They were attached by either end to the walls lining the narrow course and hung not even two feet off the ground. The bright red beams of lasers shone in all directions above them.
The meaning was obvious. I was to go under this time.
Kneeling, I peered beneath the planks. The area appeared clear, what I could see of it that was. I stretched onto my stomach and slowly, inch by inch, crept forward, pulling myself along the ground as I slid beneath the decaying boards. The concrete floor felt cold, its surface rough against my cheek. The air grew stagnant and I began to tremble, panic rising, the boards and walls now seeming to press on me from all sides. Closing my eyes, I tried to slow my breathing as I pushed myself forward again.
Suddenly, I felt a tug at my back.
Confused, I shoved myself forward. And didn’t budge.
Something had gotten caught on my outfit. I was stuck. Biting down the panicked scream forming in my throat, I tried to shift, to loosen whatever I’d snagged myself on.
A sharp pain instantly cut through me and tears filled my eyes. I reached back blindly for whatever held me. Finally, my fingers came upon the jagged bottom of a nail. I tugged against it, attempting to free myself, biting my lip as its sharp point sliced across my skin several more times before the fabric finally tore away.
I slithered underneath the final few planks as quickly as I could, finally reaching the end. I rose shakily to my feet, then placed a hand against my back, jerking at the sting of pain. I drew my fingers away and held them up to my face. Even in the dim lighting, the blood now marking them was easy to see.
Hurrying the rest of the way out of the obstacle course, I blinked as my eyes adjusted to the bright fluorescent lights. Why was a nail sticking out in the middle of a course we were supposed to go through? I couldn’t imagine it was meant to be part of it. What if it wasn’t the material of my outfit that had been caught? What if I’d lifted my face at the exact wrong moment and the piece of twisted metal had gone through my eye instead of the soft flesh of my back. I shivered, hugging my arms tight around me.
I didn’t know how long I stood there, but suddenly a shadow fell over me and I squeaked in alarm, spinning around.
“Sage? Sage!”
Finn. I looked up and met his concerned expression.
“Sage, what is the matter? Didn’t you hear me?” His gaze dropped down and focused on my hand, his dark eyes widening. He reached out and gripped it, his strong fingers drawing it closer. “Is that blood? Did you hurt yourself?”
“I…I got caught on something when I was going through the obstacle. It’s nothing…I’ll be fine.”
“Caught? What do you mean? Why are you bleeding?”
My head was beginning to swim and I blinked as his gaze narrowed. “There was a nail on one of the wooden boards and it snagged the fabric on the back of my outfit. It’s nothing, really,” I tried to brush it off. “I’m just going to go wash the scratch out.”
He nodded slowly but continued to stare, eyes focused on me as I moved away. I made my way towards the bathrooms, passing by the female trainer who’d been at the start of the course. Realizing I should tell her about the nail so no one else was injured, I took a step towards her. Then halted.
Her eyes locked on mine. And instead of vague recognition, instead of outright annoyance, she did some
thing I hadn’t anticipated.
She smiled.
But her smile didn’t even deserve to be called one. Because it was a cruel twist of the mouth, a knowing tilt of the lips. A smug victory.
She knew what had happened to me. Her lips pursed, eyes finding my stained hand. The edges of her mouth lifted the slightest bit higher.
I quickly turned and headed in the opposite direction, taking the long way to the nearest restroom, struggling to keep calm. Suddenly I felt very nauseas. And it wasn’t from the blood on my hand.
Chapter 10
“So where did you go? What happened?”
We were at dinner that night and Aurora was already grilling me on why I had disappeared from training that afternoon. I tried to concentrate on the plate of noodle casserole in front of me, but it wasn’t working very well.
“I just went to the bathroom.” It wasn’t really a lie. I did end up going there.
She rolled her eyes, sighing audibly. “Okay, but you didn’t come back until the session was almost over. We walked around the arena looking for you.” She glanced over at Cirrus and he nodded in agreement, though I could tell he was barely paying attention. For some reason he kept glancing towards the far corner where Rowan and several others sat.
“I was feeling a little sick after finishing the obstacle course. Something I ate at lunch must not have agreed with me.” Thankfully, Finn was sitting with some other trainees from Water Society tonight so I wouldn’t be caught in a lie. I had felt sick, but it wasn’t from anything I’d eaten. That afternoon, after washing out the scrape as best I could, I stayed in the bathroom. All I could think about was that trainer and the look in her eyes. And that smug grin on her face.
“Wait a minute,” Aurora said suddenly. “You went into the obstacle course?”
“Yes. Why?” I asked, surprised at her tone.
She frowned. “I was going to go in, but one of the trainers was blocking the entrance. She said no one could go in. That there was an issue with one of the obstacles and it needed to be fixed.”
“What did she look like?” I asked, growing suspicious.
“She was older. Frizzy reddish hair. Dressed like all the others. Didn’t seem very friendly. Dressed like all the others.”
I pushed my half-finished plate away, the sickening sensation from earlier returning. “So, no one went into the course?” I bent my arm down, pretending to scratch my leg. Instead, I rubbed right above my ankle, feeling the impression of the small metal ring lying beneath my pants. The smallest bit of reassurance and comfort filled me at its touch.
Aurora looked at me strangely. “Well, eventually they did, but not until two of the trainers finished working in there. I saw them carrying out several wooden beams. Maybe they had fallen apart or something.”
Yeah, or something. So, I wasn’t imagining things. At least one trainer had set me up for that. The fact that Aurora had seen several pieces of wood being removed meant that I was probably lucky to have caught myself on only one nail. The entire thing had probably been laden with them. Aurora was still staring at me, her green eyes now growing wide with concern. She leaned in across the table, the ends of her long hair brushing against its surface. “Sage, what aren’t you saying?”
I hesitated, wondering if I should tell her, then shrugged nonchalantly. “Nothing. I was just curious why no one else went in, that’s all.” Letting out a slow breath, I looked back down to my plate and forced myself to pierce a broccoli stalk with the tines of my fork. I could still feel her stare penetrating into me. Glancing up, I knew instantly from the look on her face she didn’t believe me. But she remained silent.
Pursing her lips, she leaned back, then turned towards Cirrus, bringing his attention back to us.
My face warmed as I realized she would likely come pressing me for answers later.
Answers to questions I didn’t understand myself.
✽✽✽
That night, I was certain I would hear Aurora’s pale fist pounding on my door. But to my surprise, it didn’t come.
The next morning, we ate breakfast together, the four of us once again. But to my relief, todays topic of discussion was instead focused on our lives before coming to the Training.
Poor Finn. Aurora seemed to be digging every possible detail out of him, to the extent that we were more than halfway through the meal and his plate was barely touched. Relieved for the change as I had no desire to rehash yesterday’s events, I thoroughly immersed myself into the conversation. He told us about his mother and father, his seafaring grandfather, and his little sister Pearl. His dark eyes grew misty as spoke of leaving her and instantly my thoughts flew back to Mason and the very real idea that I may never see him again. And yet a moment later we were all laughing as he told how every night Pearl would force him to play with her dolls together, never taking no for an answer. By the end, I felt as if I knew them.
Hearing the scuff of chairs and the clack of trays around us, we quickly gathered up our own items. Knowing Aurora had purposely steered the conversation away from anything Training-related, I gave her a small smile as we walked towards the classroom, receiving a quick green-eyed wink in return.
“Good morning, everyone,” Eden began, her blonde hair tied back in a simple knot today. She strode towards us, then clasped her hands in front of the black lace blouse she wore, pearl buttons trailing down its front. Again it struck me that, despite her clothes being neutral colors, they were softer somehow, more delicate than those of the other trainers.
“In a few weeks’ time, after you complete the four challenges, the second stage of the Training will commence.” So that was why River said we would only be here for four weeks. This was only the first part.
“After the last challenge, everyone will enter into one of the Divisions.”
Divisions? There was that word again. The same one that Flint had said. Confused looks were exchanged as nervous murmurings filled the air. Eden waited patiently until we quieted.
“Based on your performances in the four challenges, as well as your overall performance during your time here, the appropriate Division will be assigned. There are three Divisions in total. Regent, Combatant, and Proletariat.”
The names were unfamiliar to me. Were they additional Societies? I glanced at Aurora, but she just shrugged, apparently as confused as I was.
Eden continued. “Those entering Regent will effectively be in positions of governance of all the Societies, of Elemental as a whole.” Elemental. The unifying name for all four Societies. “You will work to establish the decrees for each Society, in order to keep the necessary peace.”
My palms grew sweaty and I tried to subtly wipe them on my pant legs. So Regent members were the ones who created the laws we had to follow in Earth Society. The decrees that restrained us, that made us submissive. That encompassed everything I hated. Immediately I felt a cold dread build in me. What if I ended up in that Division?
“As a member of Regent, you would also spend some time in each of the other three Societies, but not your home one.”
Her words played through my head. I caught Finn’s eyes widening in understanding at the same moment I realized it as well. The guards in the fields. The moderators in the Distribution Center. It now made sense. They were members of the other Societies, ones who been chosen for this Regent Division. And so they came to watch us, study us, and report us. I recalled the way they always stared, as if waiting to catch someone committing a crime. Anger raced through my veins. They were the reason I’d become a pariah in my own Society. And they were the ones who’d taken away two of the closest people to me.
I became vaguely aware that Eden had already moved on and was already beginning to describe the next Division. I tried to focus on her words, hoping one of the next two would be a better fit.
“…is known as Combatant.”
At the mere mention of the word, several Fire Society trainees glanced around at each other, grinning. Aurora’s brows knit together i
n a frown; her expression identical to my own.
“Those chosen for Combatant also will not return to any of the Elemental Societies, but instead stay within the Combatant Division grounds. They are the trained warriors of the Elemental Societies. Those entering into this particular Division will be the ones responsible for protecting us from…threats.” A nervous chill ran through me. What type of threats?
Eden cleared her throat uncomfortably. “And finally, the last Division is known as Proletariat.” She paused for a moment. “The Proletariat Division is the only one where members will return to their home Societies after spending a brief period of time at that compound.”
And with that, Eden moved effortlessly on to discuss the next topic of the day.
It didn’t escape anyone’s attention what she left out, though. Perhaps on purpose. In her very brief description of Proletariat, there was no mention of what would happen during the time members spent there before returning to their home Societies. Once again, we were left with more questions than answers.
✽✽✽
Later that day, as I made my way into the cafeteria for our lunch, my gaze immediately landed on Rowan. There he sat, surrounded by the same group of people he’d been with since arriving here. The group of them chatted and laughed with one another, Rowan joining in with ease, as if he’d known them for years and not a mere few days. A reed thin boy nudged him with an elbow and the entire table burst out in laughter at a comment he’d made.
Plopping down into the seat across from Aurora, I tried to ignore the painful feeling in my stomach. What was it? Worry? Anger? Jealousy?
Likely all three.
After a while though, I couldn’t help but notice how Cirrus’ gaze was once again focused on Rowan’s group. Same as earlier. His brows were furrowed, as if in serious contemplation.
“Cirrus? Cirrus!” Aurora said his name for a third time, shaking his shoulder now.
“Wha...What?” He blinked rapidly, looking around at the three of us.
Awakening Earth and Fire: Earth and Fire Trilogy Book 1 Page 8
