The roc snaps its beak.
I advance another step.
“What about Snow?” Another step. I’m so close to the ribbon. “No? Hm, what about Heru?” The name of one of the Great Watchers of the initial guild after the Breaking.
The roc lowers its head, as if accepting the name.
“Alright, Heru it is. You like fish, right?” I keep my voice low and steady. “I saw you trying to catch some earlier. I have some right here for you to eat.” With all my might, I stab the stick into the nearly frozen ground.
Heru lunges at the skewered fish, slamming its wing into my stomach so hard one of my ribs crack. I scream but push on, forcing myself to pull the delicate red ribbon free from the distracted beast’s ankle.
Distantly, an audience cheers, and my body is lurching though space and time, like it’s being pulled through the abyss between stars, floating up and up and up until I’m shivering on the cold stone floor of the ballroom, broken and muddy. Dress ripped to shreds.
“Another champion returns with the ribbon!” Hogsmith announces.
“MOVE ASIDE,” the Lord of Terraguard commands. The crowd parts for him as he approaches. His nostrils flare as he looks down at me. Wings of black mist snap open from his back.Onlookers scramble backward, away from his tempestuous energy.
I lay curled on the floor in my tattered silk dress stinking of the marshy bog, mud, and blood. Slowly, I uncurl my fingers to reveal the ribbon in my palm.
“Akemi,” Atlys whispers with concern. Or was that anger? I want to respond, I really do, but sleep sounds so good right now.
My vision blurs, and I fall into the peaceful darkness.
25
Healing Waters
The faint smell of lemon and citrus nudges me awake. Bright lanterns line the sides of the infirmary, illuminating a large, open space where slender white beds line the walls in intervals. The glass ceiling is vaulted, and old wooden beams cross overhead in heavy, sloping lines. Plants are draped every few feet, giving the space a strange, organic feeling.
I blink away the grogginess. I am lying in one of the beds, the crisp white sheet pulled high up onto my chest. I scoot upward, conjuring the events of the night in my mind.
“Ouch!” Pain lances through my ribs.
“Akemi! You are awake, thank the Goddess,” Ramona sits at the edge of my bed and rests a hand on my leg. “Leaf! Castor! She’s up!” she calls over her shoulder.
I smile at the sight of my friends circling my bed despite the painful itching of healing skin. My stomach rumbles with hunger. “How long have I been out for?”
“You were pretty beat up, Akemi. Couple broken ribs,” Leaf says, confirming my suspicions.
“You’ve been out for two days since the first task,” Castor adds, handing me a bowl of soup. “You are probably starving. It’s already midday.”
“Thanks,” I say, cradling the bowl of steaming carrots and potatoes between my palms. I slurp down the savory liquid and almost immediately feel relief. I didn’t expect to be out for days after the task. Well… I suppose I wasn’t sure exactly what I expected. After another couple of sips, I take in the status of my friends. They appear mostly unscathed besides Leaf’s swollen eye. “What happened to everyone? Did we all have the same first task experience? I was transported to a field with a roc!”
Everyone takes turns sharing their battle stories. Leaf was chosen by Lord Clayoq of the Forest Tribe—to his apparent horror—but ended up battling a ghosthound from the Jord territory. It took him extra time to finally beat the ghosthound because it solidified only moments before attacking. His bruised eye is proof of how close he let the hound get before removing the ribbon.
Prince Laden of the River Tribe selected Ramona as his champion—to her great pleasure. She tries to sound nonchalant, but I don’t miss the slight blushing in her cheeks when she mentions the prince’s name. Leaf becomes extra interested in the lint on his shoulders while Ramona gushes.
Both Ramona and Castor were transported into water tanks with shapeshifting kelpies. As I suspected, Castor was first to return with the ribbon. As a Moon’cher—and three-Stone at that—he is a very skilled swimmer. Yet we both know the real reason why he was back first.
Our eyes lock, and from that one look, I can tell that Castor did not report anything about the tampering his father did with the kelpie tank.
Two other champions are being treated in the infirmary besides myself: Artemis, who was selected—to everyone’s surprise—by Tofina of the Forest Tribe, and Leo, champion of Lady Neda, whose blistering skin is wrapped with salves from his encounter with a fire monkey.
I groan just thinking of how much time I’ve lost from studies and training for the next task. Even though I don’t want to know, I find myself asking anyway.
“What are our rankings?”
“It’s not so bad,” Leaf tries to console, handing me a piece of folded paper.
