“At least Titan will have to shift from his raptor form to follow,” Jacey whispered. Like me, she must hate to break the hush surrounding us. “He won’t fit beneath the branches unless he changes back into a wizard.”
My skin itched as if spiders scurried across it. The silence was broken only by our careful footsteps and leaves clinking together in the wind that shouldn’t exist. Its breath never touched my face and while we’d left the sunlight, my body remained overheated.
“You feeling okay?” Brodin asked, his face wreathed with concern.
I shrugged. While he could heal me if I got sick, I didn’t think that was the issue. “I’m just hot from the run.”
We continued up the path, our footfalls nearly silent. We hadn’t heard anything further from Titan. Maybe we’d been wrong and the sound echoing up from below hadn’t been him climbing the icicle but someone else.
Over a rise and down the other side, the path wove through the dense, blue forest that remained utterly still.
Hairs on the back of my neck stood at attention, and my heart pattered in my throat. Something was coming for us. It was just a matter of time before we met up with it. We’d have to remain alert, waiting for it to drop down on top of us, spring at us from the bushes alongside the trail, or suck the ground out from beneath us.
Brodin must’ve read my thoughts. “You feel it, too.”
I peered around, watching for movement. “It’s waiting.”
Ahead, light stabbed through the forest. And I spied a clearing made up of another smooth, glossy green plain and…
“A maze?” Jacey pointed to the sky-high hedge structure. From here, I could only see one entrance. As we left the forest and approached the maze, my gaze was drawn to a basilique, like the two that had greeted Brodin and me when we completed the initial prison trials. The same as the one in the cave who’d hosted my part of the triad trial. Our footsteps slowed as we approached the creature.
As if it sensed us near, it came to life and stretched its snake-like body up toward the sky before spiraling down around the post to the ground, where it rose in front of us. Its head lowered in a short bow. “Try once, try twice, but thrice and you shall die.”
I waited for the basilique to continue, to give us more explanation of what to expect in what had to be our next test, but the creature remained silent.
“That’s it?” Jacey said, stealing the words from my mind. “We get to try two times to…do what?” Her hand swept toward the dense hedges towering above us. “Make it through the maze?”
The basilique stared forward as if made of stone.
A silver spear exploded from the ground on the opposite side of the entrance. Three golden rings appeared above it, graduating from the largest on the bottom to the smallest on the top, like a child’s play toy. Stack them then dump them off the post and do it again.
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” I said. “One, two, three rings. Three chances.”
“Two,” Brodin said. “The third failure is the real kicker.”
Death.
“Guess we better succeed by the third try, then, right?” I said with a shaky laugh.
Nodding, he shoved out a sigh.
“Enter,” the basilique said. It wound back up the post it had descended from and solidified into its original place.
The thick, wooden entrance door creaked open and a thin beam of light shot out, hitting the ground.
“We ready?” Jacey asked, stepping toward the opening.
“Take care,” Akimi said, holding Jacey back. “Do not rush into this. We must watch each footstep, our every movement once we are inside.”
“You’re right,” Jacey said fiercely, tugging away from Akimi. “But until we start, we can’t finish.” Did she hope to find Rohnan inside? Or at the other end, assuming this was the final trial of the Challenge? We had no way of knowing either, however, but I couldn’t blame her for holding onto hope. I’d ford a pit of snakes to reach someone I loved.
My gaze cut to Brodin, who watched me with a speculative gleam in his eyes.
I didn’t love him.
Not yet.
I’d been thinking of Fleur. That was who I’d ford a pit full of snakes to save.
But when he held out his hand again for me to take, I entwined our fingers together. He… was special. This had rushed up on me, faster than it would if we faced normal circumstances. Was I wrong to let myself fall so fast?
No. We didn’t know how much time we had, or even if we’d make it out of this alive. I wanted to live. To love. I wanted Brodin.
As we stepped inside, a tick-tick-tick echoed behind us. I peered over my shoulder in time to see the gorelon—Warden Bixby—oozing across a tree on the edge of the forest.
I didn’t know if the basilique would allow her inside the maze while we took the test, but it was clear the gorelon, and likely Titan, would be after us as soon as we made it through.
Assuming we made it through.
Fifteen
Tria
The door clicked softly closed behind us.
“Will the gorelon be able to follow us inside the maze?” I asked.
Brodin shrugged, peering around the chamber we found ourselves in.
“If we’re lucky,” Jacey said. “The basilique will eat the gorelon.”
“Do basiliques eat monsters?” I asked.
“In this case, I hope so.”
“Be careful, guys,” I said. “We need to watch out for each other. I’d hate if something happened to any of you.”
Jacey flashed a smile my way. “You, too.” She rubbed my arm. “We’ll watch out for each other.”
“Definitely.” Reaching out, I placed my palm on the glowing greenish-blue walls rising around us that were the same color and smoothness of the plain we’d crossed to reach the forest. Warm, they emitted a low thrum that trickled down my arm to my shoulder.
“We probably shouldn’t touch anything,” Jacey said.
“I can if I…” Shaking my head because I couldn’t imagine why I’d started to snap at her, I yanked my hand back before the electricity reached my spine. The walls towered at least three stories up before curving overhead, blocking out the world outside. Even the three suns’ light couldn’t penetrate. The walls emitted just enough light for me to see my friends’ bewildered, anxious expressions.
Uncomfortable with their attention, I shifted my feet, and the ground underneath my sneakers crunched.
“I hope we’re standing on dirt and rocks,” I whispered.
“Me, too,” Jacey wrapped her arms around her waist and shivered. “Ugh. This is giving me the creeps.” She also spoke in a low voice, telling me she felt the same way I did. Speaking in a normal tone might draw…something to us.
I crept forward. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. Cringing and praying I wasn’t stomping on bugs, I peeked through the archway leading into the main part of the structure, finding a hallway with more openings. From what I could see, the entire maze must be made up of shiny, glowing walls.
“A series of tunnels,” I said, ducking back into the entrance. “There are four doors, four options.”
“Are we each supposed to choose one?” Jacey asked, gnawing on her thumbnail.
Akimi did her own assessment then rejoined us. “I believe we must remain together. We select one, and we all enter.”
“Should we vote?” I asked without a hint of tease in my voice. My conversation with Brodin while crossing the plain kept gouging its way through my mind. Would we be better off without Akimi? “Or split up into groups of two or three?”
“That could increase our odds, but I’m not sure,” Brodin said.
Jacey fed me a confused look. “We should stick together.” She strode through the archway. “Follow me.”
“Hold on.” I scooted behind her with Brodin and Akimi taking the rear, and caught up with Jacey in the hall with four doorways. “Who voted for you to go first?”
“I assume any of us can.” She
glanced past me with wide eyes as if she hoped to find support from the others, but they remained silent.
“And who says you get to decide we’ll all stay together?” I added, digging deeper. “Maybe that’s not the best option.”
“We’re a quad,” she said reasonably. “We’ll all make it through the Challenge or none of us will.”
So we’d been told, but by who? “Yet you were ejected back to the prison and your former roommate, Kylie, and Rohnan weren’t.”
Her wince was the only concession to her pain, and I felt shitty for bringing up their disappearance.
“You’re right.” Her sigh sliced down between us, leaving a gaping maw behind. “They must’ve made it through. I did not.”
I’d already spoken when I shouldn’t have and it was clear I’d hurt her. I would not point out that it was unlikely we’d find Rohnan alive. Though, for some reason, I was tempted to shout out the words. Yet another part of me wanted to give her a hug. But Brodin and Akimi crowded into the tight space behind me, so I settled for a rub on her arm and a muttered, sorry.
She didn’t acknowledge my apology, just stood stiffly, staring past my shoulder, at Akimi.
I felt the weight of Akimi’s disapproval like a stone cloak around my shoulders.
“How will we know if we’ve failed?” Jacey asked blankly.
“I believe it will be clear,” Akimi said. “Select a door for us, but take care of which you choose, Jacey.”
“Thank you for your confidence in me,” she told Akimi before pivoting sharply and studying the doors. “One, two, three, or four.”
“We’ve been given three chances,” Brodin said. “I imagine what lies beyond each door helps decide if we’ve made it through or not.”
“A trap or a test,” I said, shifting over to stand beside him.
“I bet only one doorway offers a way out,” he added.
“Which means we will fail with the other three,” Akimi said.
“Or we could win with any of them, depending on what’s expected of us behind each door,” I said. “Like, if there’s another canyon we need to cross or with the house-shaped puzzle. If we solve the clue or get through the scene to safety, we’ll find ourselves on the other side of the maze.”
“It could be multiple routes leading to dead—literally—ends,” Jacey said dryly. She scanned the four choices. “Which should I pick?” Her hands flailed at her sides. “I don’t want to make a mistake. The last time…” She gulped, and I knew she’d sunk back in time to the moment when something horrible happened, and she’d lost the boy she loved.
None of us wanted to be the one to set the others up for failure. But jeez, someone had to lead. Akimi had helped push Jacey into that role, and the two of them had been our trailblazers since we’d entered the Challenge. It was past time I did something other than trot along behind Akimi and Jacey.
With my spine tight and my nose elevated, I nudged past Jacey and, while gasps rang out behind me, I reached for the knob on the far right door.
“Wait,” Brodin shouted, but it was already too late.
Another jolt of electricity traveled from my hand to my shoulder but this time, I welcomed its warmth. It’s validation. This was the right path. I knew it. The others would praise me after I’d blazed the trail to the exit.
The knob turned at my touch, and I yanked the door open. “Try to keep up, guys,” I said with a hint of snark as I stepped inside the opening.
The greenish glow from the walls generated barely enough light for me to see my hands lifted in front of my face. Forget seeing where I placed my feet, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to know even if the option had been given. Half my steps met softness like I walked on the soil. The rest resulted in a crunch.
Bugs. It had to be bugs. Or were they bones from prior contestants or creatures who’d been trapped inside these walls and never found their way out? My shudder ripped through me, bringing gooseflesh to the surface. I hugged my arms and tiptoed forward.
The others crowded behind.
“Bold move,” Brodin hissed in my ear, and I couldn’t tell if he was disappointed or proud of my action.
“Someone had to do it,” I said.
“And you selected yourself.” No judgment in his tone as far as I could tell, but I wished I could read his expression.
“You would’ve done the same,” I said.
“Would I?” He dropped back and stayed with the others and, for the first time since I woke on the boat, loneliness sunk through my skin and grabbed onto my bones. It shook me and my teeth rattled in my skull, the sound echoed by the crunch-crunch-crunch of my sneakers whenever they hit the ground.
I continued down an arched corridor, guided by the green glow and the compelling need to see where the passage led me.
Light slowly bloomed ahead.
“This has to be the first trial,” I sighed. Would my choice lead us to victory or would I slink to the back of the pack in failure? Only one way to find out. I moved faster, eclipsing myself in the glowing light. I didn’t care if my friends followed or not. I’d begin the test without them if need be.
Don’t be mean.
As a tiny voice inside me shook its finger my way, shame filled me, but the feeling was easily shoved aside by excitement. This was it. If we made it through, we wouldn’t have to worry about rings or whatever might wait for us behind the other doors. And I would be the one to lead us to the victory.
The light grew and I sought it like a flower the sun, stepping forward with more confidence, nudging aside my unease about the endless crunches below my feet.
By the time I reached the end of the tunnel, the bright light overshadowed everything. I reached forward, feeling my way, unable to use my vision to guide me.
“Take it easy, there,” Brodin said, his hand tapping my lower back. “Wait for us. We’re a team, remember?”
“Yeah, a team,” I said, but all I could see was a corner. I rushed toward it and into yet another smooth tunnel.
A grinding sound overhead sent me skittering forward, though I slowed and looked up. Seeing nothing, I waited for the others to join me. They stared around, their faces creased with worry, and their bodies hunched as if they feared someone would drop down onto them from the ceiling. It wasn’t an unreasonable assumption. The catacombs presented one surprise after another.
“We should stay together,” Brodin said, coming up beside me.
“You just want to be in the lead,” I said. I added a smirk but even I could tell it held no humor.
He rolled his eyes and waved toward the tunnel stretching ahead. “After you. Who am I to hold you back?”
“No one.”
Which wasn’t true at all, but I couldn’t hold back the words. Why was I acting this way?
Shrugging off the notion something was wrong, I strode forward.
“What’s up with you?” Brodin asked, following.
“What do you mean?”
“You’re acting cocky. Arrogant. Irritated.”
“That’s your norm, not mine.”
He grumbled. “You know why I behaved like that. And I no longer do.”
I reeled on him. “Yeah, I do know why. But the thing that bugs me most is that you didn’t believe me right from the start.”
“Why should I? Everyone saw you do it.”
“And I told you it wasn’t me.”
Raking his hair, he ground out a sigh. “We’re going to have to talk this through soon.”
“You’ve said that,” I said stiffly. “Don’t see it happening so far.”
“Was I supposed to tell you I like you, that I have regrets about everything while we were climbing the icicle with Titan hot behind?”
He liked me? I shoved aside the comment and focused on the subject at hand. “The point is, I told you and you didn’t listen.” I stomped a few steps farther before turning to glare back at him. “As for why I’m frustrated, maybe take a good look around you. Here we are in yet another scary situation
. I’m trying to get us through it quickly. I could use a little support, not criticism.”
“I see.”
“Do you? It doesn’t feel that way to me.” I flung up my hands then pivoted on my heel and stomped forward. “Maybe I just want to get this over with.”
“Fair enough,” he said to my back.
While I hurried down the tunnel, he dropped back with the others. They spoke in voices too low for me to understand. Were they talking about me? The idea hurt more than it should but I didn’t need them. I could get through this on my own. I’d wait for them at the exit.
I came to an intersection and took a right, not waiting for the others to catch up. I knew where I was going. They’d have to pick up their pace or be left behind. As I walked, I skimmed my fingers along the wall, savoring the tingling sparks that traveled up and throughout my body. They invigorated me, as if I’d eaten a great meal or taken a long nap.
The ground sloped downward, slowly dropping what felt like two levels, taking me deeper into the bowels of the catacombs. I labored up a rise and walked along a level section. A sharp corner to the left was followed by another steep hill. Awesome. My thighs were going to be complaining tomorrow.
At the top of the hill, I found a door. Empowered by the electricity arcing through me to feed the confidence I could do no wrong, I opened the door and stepped inside.
While I didn’t look back, I felt them catch up.
I stumbled over a stoop but caught myself when my palms smacked on the wall. Heat blasted through me, and I swore my hair stood on end.
But when light from the room ahead hit my body, outlining me, I stepped inside.
The room, encased with the gleaming green walls, extended about two hundred feet and was filled with long shards of grayish-white matter. And on the opposite side of the room, an arched doorway waited.
Wicked Challenge (Darkwater Reformatory Book 2) Page 12
