by Bob Dattolo
We fell into silence, staring back and forth between us. Blood dripped in places. Feet shifted. Fear scent filled the space. Kaylee cried softly, crouched on the cement not too far away. Long, long minutes passed.
“Then what do we do? How do we do this?”
Yells from behind us didn’t really register to me.
Samantha, Paige, Riley, and Parece started talking in their little group.
Angelica, Gage, and Kynal moved closer together, as if expecting an attack.
Kaylee huddled down more.
I pointed at the solo girl. What the fuck is her name? “How do we do this? Do we wait here and have our power stripped when we fail?”
She shrugged, “I don’t know. I’m kinda shocked I made it this far, frankly. I want to graduate and get out of here with at least 25 percent of my power, but…maybe being a norm isn’t all that bad?”
“But it doesn’t have to be that way!”
“You can’t guarantee that someone won’t attack me with magic and make me fall. Or that I might not slip. I have a guarantee of no death and loss of magic, a high probability of possible death, or a smaller chance of making it through. Which would you choose?”
Dammit! “I’d fight with everything in me to live.”
“Would you?”
The guy off to the side laughed, “I call bullshit on that.”
“You do? Why?”
He shook his head, “Seriously? You let almost the entire fucking class piss on you yesterday. You were so fucking lost that you didn’t even begin to react to it. Now here we are, and you’re trying to convince us that we should fight and risk everything?”
“You know what? Yeah, I am.”
“Why do you think we should believe that?”
“Because I’m telling the truth?”
“Right. Like you didn’t want to kill all of the weakest in the class?”
“The dragons here can tell that I’m telling the truth. Here’s the God’s honest fucking truth. I had no plans to attack the weakest. I had no actual plans to kill anyone and drain them in this trial. None. The only person that I kinda want to kill is Levi because he’s a dick and will never stop coming for me. Otherwise? Samantha was a bully to me and a ringleader of a group that didn’t like me. I don’t want her to die. I don’t want to have to kill her. I don’t want to be killed by her or her group, either. All I want to do is get the fuck out of here and live long enough to find my former parents and then the assholes that fucked me when I was a pet. Those people, I want to kill. Most heinously. As for you all? You’re my classmates. You’re all 18. I don’t even remotely know most of the kids in our class, but I’d like to. As for yesterday? Here’s my reality. For the past week, someone has been fucking with me. Destroying everything I own. Repeatedly. New laptops. My phone. Every piece of clothing. Plus replacement clothes. Again and again. Then rumors about me everywhere. I’m going to attack this person. That person. Yet Samantha can smell that I’m telling the truth here. I never made those plans. I never had them. When I offered to have the weakest go with me? I meant it. If half of our class is dead, then that makes me want to fucking cry for the stupidity and evil going on in this fucking thing. I firmly blame the adults in charge of us that think something like this is necessary. That teach others that killing our kids when they don’t test highly enough is normal. That turning us into a stricken is a valid decision that no one else questions. It’s legal. If I had the power, I’d kill every adult in the entire fucking world that has a part in that and leave the rest to rebuild our society. Because what they built? It’s bullshit. Utter bullshit. That’s the truth. Right there in a nutshell, that’s what I believe in. That’s what I stand for. All I want is to get across that fucking path and graduate, except I’m not about to leave Kaylee here since I’ve seen how vicious others get. I can’t chance it, and I swore to her that I’d help her get out of this.”
No response.
“Then we stare at each other? Is that what this comes down to?”
No response again.
The clock continued to tick away. The fear began to build more, which is shocking to me. This has to be why the third-year kids have that thousand-yard stare. From dealing with this bullshit. That part of their brain is probably burned out from going through two trials already. Given what I’ve seen, I can see why that one book compared the trial to two service rotations in an active war zone.
I seriously didn’t believe that when I saw it. I really didn’t. I actively scoffed and giggled at the balls the guy had in saying that.
Until I learned that he was in the special forces and served in Afghanistan. Six tours there. Then two other war zones before that.
Yet his therapy was still all about what took place in the two trials he survived. He bailed before the third one and ran to the service.
I still didn’t believe him fully.
Until this. Right here. With safety just over there, I have 10 people that are too afraid to take the step needed.
I shifted back to human as I waited, earning looks from the others but no responses beyond what they had already been doing.
The clock on the wall ticked past 15 minutes, counting down towards the end. Seeing that made me speak up, “We have 15 minutes left and 11 of us to get across. Unless something fucking happened, Levi, Wes, and Ryan are still back there. I don’t know how many others.”
“What happened to Shane?” Samantha asked from her huddle.
“They attacked me when you guys left the challenge. I tore him up and gave him to Ryan to drain, then left.”
“Why the fuck would you do that?” She sounds upset and freaked out.
“Because he’s partnered with two dragons. Like I said in the beginning? He knew he was the odd one out with Colin gone. He’s powerful, but the others were gonna gobble him down. With Shane in him, that pushes him way up power-wise. I figured it’d give him a shot at getting out of this alive.”
Angelica’s group broke up, with Gage coming forward, “I’ll go.”
“Okay? Why now?”
He looked up to the clock, “Clock’s running out. We gotta get across. I don’t want to die, but…I want to get through first year. We all do.”
“Then go for it. Be safe.”
“I’ll try.” He didn’t give me another look before he hit the beam and started across. He went slowly, watching everything, while I watched every bit of magic going on over here. No one went for him. No one cast a spell.
It took him over a minute to get across.
13 minutes and change.
I clapped, startling everyone, “13 minutes! Get the fuck across or we fail, let’s go!”
Kynal was pushed forward by Angelica, “Go. Do it.”
“You said you were going next.”
“Just go.”
“You sure?”
“I am.” She sniffled, “Thank you for not killing me earlier.”
His smile was wilted, “You’re welcome. Thank you as well.”
Then he rushed past me to the beam.
12 minutes and change.
“Next!”
Angelica waved to the other groups, “Someone else can go.”
The girl and guy didn’t move. Kaylee didn’t move when I called for her.
“Come the fuck on, people! 10 minutes!” We’re pissing away too much time.
Paige was pushed from the group, “Just fucking go. If they kill me, then they kill me. Go.” Riley looked upset and was holding herself.
“Riley? Come stand near me. Do you trust me not to kill you?”
“Not really?”
“Umm…okay? Then either way, Paige? Get across!”
She hemmed and hawed, finally starting across. Riley was shoved up next and nearly ran across.
Seven minutes.
“We’re running out of time!”
Angelica approached, as did Samantha and Parece. They stopped right in front of me, like a small group. Samantha shocked me by nodding at me, “Tell us ab
out your dragon. What she’s like.” She raised a hand when I opened my mouth, “We know you’re integrated. We don’t get it, but we know. Still, tell us about your dragon. What’s she like?”
I nodded slowly, “Dominant. Very.” My soft voice carried farther than I expected it to. “Willing to share. Willing to help. She’s a teacher. A coordinator. Seeing people die like this? It fills me with such rage and hatred. It’s a waste. Life. Talent. Possibilities. She’s willing to risk it all to help people, yet at the same time wants people to pull together. To do things together. To my core, she doesn’t understand turning on each other when someone is injured. An ally is an ally. Injured people, even an enemy, should be taken care of. Healed if possible. Unless they intend to continue attacking. Don’t think she’s a pushover, because she’s more than willing to slaughter everyone in this room to save someone. Yet she’d rather not. We can achieve more together. We can achieve such greatness. Except we’re forced into this nightmare that pits us all against each other. Sets us up to be enemies. Even those of us that are friends. The hatred between the mages and dragons. The hatred between mages of the same affiliation. Of dragons of the same affiliation. It skips right by me, because in the end? I’d love nothing more than to unify all of us together. One class. One group of allies. One people. That’s who my dragon is. That’s who I am.”
They shared looks but didn’t respond.
The scared girl behind them spoke up, “You know none of that is possible, right?”
“It’s a dream.” I shrugged. “I don’t know what else to say. That’s who my dragon is. I see him,” I nodded to the dead dragon, “and I don’t care that he’s dead. Yet I’m weeping inside at his death. That there was a need for it at all. It never should have gotten to that point.”
Without warning, the other holdout raced past her, skipping right by us, and charged out across the beam. I swear he nearly lost it again and again yet didn’t. The kids on the other side welcomed him to safety with open arms.
“Four minutes left. Who’s next?”
The girl shocked the shit out of me by getting up and walking. Huge tears filled her eyes as she mounted the beam, but she continued on over, trembling the entire way.
That left the four of us plus Kaylee.
“Three minutes. Who’s going?”
Loud voices from the far side of the space shattered my attention.
“Hahahahaha! Looky here, boys! We still get our chance at some fun!”
Levi, Wes, and Ryan stalked into the room. Ryan’s a little to the side and still with them, but he looks like he doesn’t really want to be.
“Don’t fuck around, Levi. We only have four minutes and have to get across a fucking beam to safety. Just don’t.”
“Don’t tell me what to do, stricken!”
I nearly whispered, “Get the fuck across, now!”
They didn’t move as I left them behind, but I heard Parece eep and caught that she was shoved forward.
“Stop being a dick and just fucking pass the trial!”
He laughed again, “Oh, we’re gonna pass the trial. Just as soon as we’re done with you.”
“Why, though? Why not just graduate?”
“Because you’re vermin? Because you killed my parents? Because I want to taste your fucking blood as you die?”
Wes laughed as well, “Clock’s running out. Nowhere to hide. I dare you to try to get across that beam. I really do.”
Fuck. Parece is trying to get across, which means they may try to attack her and knock her down! My shift happened in an explosive move as I flapped and launched myself up and towards them. They split apart, with magic rolling like crazy. Mine joined in as I rocketed through the air, marveling that I wasn’t spiking into the ground. I could feel their powers and what they were trying to do, and I began working like crazy to counteract them. Dazzling light spells were countered with darkness. Pressure with changing gravity. Spikes and balls of metal with devouring magic to wipe the metal away.
And then I hit the ground, and another spell triggered, that lifted the guys and shot them into the walls around us. I hit them with air to push them, gravity to lift them, changing gravity to drive them at the wall, and then more air to make them hit hard.
Blood splattered around them as I held them in place, “Get across the beam!”
“We’re not leaving you!” Angelica shocked me by her yell.
“Get across! Now! Less than two fucking minutes! Do it!”
Levi started to contort into his shift at the same time Wes did. Ryan got dropped as I focused on them, ramming spikes of rock into them. One got through on each, but the rest shattered against their forming scales. Our ability to counter spells is just too powerful sometimes.
Instead of waiting, I shot forward at Levi again, expecting to drive my fist through his head before he grows too large. Just before I connected, the ground heaved, and I was smacked by a wall of ice that drove me away with more than a few broken bones.
By the time I was able to struggle up, they were both shifted.
And pissed.
A wash of gold dragon breath, which is closer to a plasma torch than what I can do, came at me. It hit and hurt, but I weathered it as I struggled to figure out what to do.
Missing that Wes was coming.
He roared through getting hit by the breath yet still managed to smash me with his tail, shattering my ribs on one side and batting me into the wall. I’ve never seen literal stars, that I know of, yet they’re there as I struggle up. This is fucked. I have two dragons here helping each other. I have Kaylee. I have Ryan.
And I have a minute and 20 seconds on the clock. Samantha is just crossing now, with Angelica waiting to start.
Fucking hell.
Magic raced through me and worked to heal me at the same time I weathered spell after spell from them in my efforts to stand. Only to get fangs into me as Wes grabbed me with his teeth.
My scream was lost in Levi’s roar and more plasma eating into his ally, then my spell wrapped me in protection and shattered Wes’s teeth and destroyed his jaw, making him drop me entirely.
Hitting the ground hurt, just not as much as nearly being eaten.
An errant hit knocked me to the side to the wall again, and it was a struggle to stand, only to find Levi tearing into the injured Wes with abandon.
Roars and magic and tearing claws filled the space as they turned into a whirling dervish of pure death.
This place…it’s a fucking nightmare.
Ryan was still trying to force his way up when I grabbed him and began racing back at the beam. His magic kept trying to trigger, but I shook him, “I’m not trying to kill you! Just fucking stop it!”
He didn’t, but nothing he tried to trigger worked as I ran, watching Angelica pass the halfway mark.
The clock says 47 seconds.
“Get moving quicker!” Magic pushed my voice, startling her into nearly falling, but at least she started moving faster.
An idea hit me, and magic began flowing. I spared a look behind me to catch the fight getting more vicious. Huge rents are in both of them, with Wes getting the worst of it.
God, this is so fucked up.
More magic went out, and I was rewarded with bellows from Levi as he was hit by a mass of ice and then wind that pushed him to the side, letting Wes get in more hits.
Then I was at the beam as my other spell went off. Angelica reached the end just as I came to a stop and literally threw Ryan. He screamed bloody murder, but my spelled walls that don’t grab you if you fall, they stop you from falling, kept him directly over the beam.
He didn’t touch it once before tumbling out the other side, still screaming.
Kaylee was huddled in a ball, screaming for me to help her. Wes and Levi are getting even more vicious, which I didn’t think was possible.
She latched onto me as I hauled her up, magic flowing every which direction, and I raced back at the beam.
I was running full out when I trippe
d on nothing. Something was there that stopped my leg, sending us tumbling across the ground. The fuck? Wind tripped me?
Kaylee screamed and crawled towards me, blood pouring from her mouth, “Please help me!”
“Dammit, you gotta get across the beam!”
“I can’t!”
Wes’s agonizing roar deafened me, and I turned to find him falling over, Levi standing over him in a wash of swirling power.
Wes is dead. And now Levi’s more powerful.
Kaylee screamed again and launched herself at me, nearly tearing out my eyes with her fingers as I caught her and tried to hold her steady. I have no idea if we can go across the beam together, although I’m thinking no.
Fucking hell, 28 seconds on the clock.
She was gripping me like crazy as I started for the beam again. Her power kept flaring, with spells going off at random. Light dazzled me; shadows blocked things at random. It’s like she’s having a fit and can’t control herself. When another hit of air tripped me, my grip tightened on her and I came down on top of her, banging her head against the stone even though I tried to protect her.
That stopped her freak out, and I launched myself up and threw her across the same way I did for Ryan.
I nearly had my foot on it when a wall of metal appeared that shot me up and backwards. You can’t block a challenge, but there’s a path around it that I can barely make out from the air. My wings catch me and shoot me for it, only to ram into more metal when the open path changes.
There’s a whoosh from behind, and my dodge to the side is the only thing that saved me from being crushed between the metal wall and his ridge of horns.
Then my magic went out and I ate through the wall of metal and ran for the beam. I had my foot on it when my wing snagged, and he yanked me back and rammed me into the ground.
The huge clock on the wall mocks me as I struggle to breathe as a huge, clawed foot comes for me.
My magic feels raw. Weak. Yet stone forms a bubble around me, stopping his foot and letting me escape while he struggles to figure out where I am.
