Page 43 of A Shadow of Betrayal

“What does the Seniorem do? Are they a Monarchy? Or a democracy?” Jordan's face scrunches up, and he shakes his head.

“Neither. The Seniorem has the final say in everything. Their word is law. However, there are several branches of the Seniorem, four in total; one in North America, one in Africa, one in Europe, and another in Asia. They have to have a majority vote in the Seniorem to implement a new law, but us little Umbra Hunters don’t get a say in what they do. There is no voting in our Seniors. It goes by name and power. The more you have, the higher up on the totem pole you are.”

“That doesn't bode well for me,” I grumble, scowling at the laces that are now twisted around my fingers.

“Nope,” Jordan agrees far too quickly, and I send him a scathing look.

“Alright, so tell me about the Ranger games and trials. Lennox made it sound like there were several of those and that I need to brace myself for them.”

“The Ranger Games are basically just a test at the end of the week that involves the skills we were taught. We are graded on them as a group and individually. Yes, they can be difficult; no, I don’t believe they are life-threatening unless you do something incredibly stupid. You may not know how to be a Hunter yet. But you're not stupid, Meyer. The Trials are a whole different matter,” Jordan says, trailing off and sighing as he opens his eyes and turns over on the bed to look at me.

“Life-threatening?” I guess, and Jordan nods. “Fuck… how bad?”

“Bad. Last year seven Rangers died. But that is more than normal. On average, two to three Rangers will die during the trials. There are different “themes” to the trials. A few years ago, during one of the Healing Trials, Daphne Axford’s group couldn’t figure out the venom remedy fast enough. She was going to die but chopped off her own arm to stop the spread. Which was pretty badass if you ask me. The last one was the theme that gets used the most: Evasion. We get dropped in the Demon pit at sunset and have to make it to the other side by sunrise. We can bring our weapons and fight as a group. But it takes longer to make it through the pit with a big group. Going on your own is fastest, because you don’t have to worry about other people, but if you are tracked down by Demons, especially the Alpha-class ones they have in there, it's game over.”

My mouth drops open as I stare at him in shock. “Please tell me that's a joke,” I whisper, my words raspy as my stomach twists. Jordan gives me a pitying look and shakes his head.

“But don’t worry, Meyer. Theo and I will get you through them. Make sure you know what you need to, and we won’t leave you behind,” he says with a bright grin that I try, and fail, to reciprocate. Does it make me feel better knowing that the guys have my back? Yes. But now I know that if we fail, it will be my fault, and it might cost the guys their lives. Shit! I need to start taking this thing seriously. I don’t want to be here, but there is no way to get home, and I refuse to be the reason Theo and Jordan die.

That thought alone strikes me hard in the chest, and I shake my head.

“So, how do I get better? I need to be better,” I rasp, and Jordan smiles.

“You are doing incredibly well, Meyer. Just keep doing what you have been, and in a couple of weeks, you'll be a whole new person.”

“But I need to be better now. I need to be able to kill a Demon to protect myself so you and Theo don’t have to worry about it,” I whisper. “What if I train more? Go to the training room after dinner and work out. I could—”

“Whoa, whoa. Slow down there, tiger. You have lessons with Lennox in the evening, and I don't need you burning yourself out. I’ll tell you if there is any other extra work you should be doing. But you have to remember that rest is just as important as fighting is…” Jordan trails off and arches a brow at me, making me frown in confusion. “As in, get your ass off my bed and let me sleep, Meyer,” he finally says in exasperation.

“Shit, sorry. Yeah, I’ll just—ow!” I hiss when I jump from Jordan's bed and bang my head on the bunk above us.

“Smooth. Very smooth,” Jordan teases, reaching down to snag his pillow that fell on the floor when he tossed it at me. I flip him off and walk over to my bunk, glaring at the corset that I’m now worried I might have to sleep in, since I haven’t figured out how to get the damn laces unknotted when the floor under my feet trembles. I frown and look down, sure I imagined something, but when it happens again, the feeling of dread runs down my spine, and the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

“Jordan?” I whisper, looking over to where he’s curled up in bed. “Did you feel that?”

“Huh?” he groans.

“Did you feel—” Just then, the entire Castle jerks, and I stumble back onto my bunk, nearly peeing my pants in surprise. “That! Did you feel that?!” I scream at him as others yell in surprise. Finally, Jordan jumps out of bed, his eyes wide before he looks over to Billy, who is now standing at the foot of his bed.

“What was that?” a boy I have yet to be introduced to, asks.

“An avalanche?” someone suggests, and I shake my head. No fucking way that was an avalanche. The force something would need to be able to move a Castle this size… fuck. It's not humanly possible.

“Demons,” Jordan whispers, and Billy nods in agreement just as a horn blares through the air like some medieval siren.

“The Castle is under attack,” Billy shouts, sprinting over to where his clothes are folded perfectly at the foot of his bed. “Move your asses!”

“Shit!” Jordan snarls, twisting and grabbing his own clothes before walking to the end of his bed, where a weird wooden trunk sits and starts yanking out leather pieces. “Get dressed and stick with me. We need to find Theo and report to the courtyard for assignment,” he shouts, looking up at me with wild eyes.

I swallow and nod, my tongue feeling much too large in my mouth to say anything. I grab the few leather armor pieces I haven't tried on yet and try to figure out where they go when Jordan strides over and takes them from my hands.

“Deep breaths,” he says in a calm voice, making me realize I’m moments away from passing out from the small shallow breathing I’m doing. Jordan places a weird shaped piece of leather over my shoulders, using the small buckles on the sides to pull it tight until it molds over my shirt like it was made for me. The next one he straps to my forearms, then my calves, placing them over my black pants and white shirt with ease before retying the laces on my corset. “Here,” he whispers, handing me a hair tie and nodding at my crazy blonde hair as the Rangers around us start to sprint from the room.

“I’m not ready for this,” I whisper, yanking my hair up into a high ponytail on top of my head.

“You don’t really have a choice here, Meyer. Remember that Theo and I have your back, and stick with us. You said you have taken these assholes on by yourself. Hell, you have seen more Alpha-class Demons than I have, and you're still alive,” he points out as he reaches into his trunk, pulls out a bow, and yanks it over his shoulder before grabbing a quiver of arrows and one of those weird zig-zag blade things. “You need to hold your shit together and be the Umbra Hunter I know you are.”

“This is stupid. Even if I had been trained for the full nine weeks of the Umbra courses, I wouldn't be ready, and you know it. This isn't some fairytale world where the girl suddenly becomes a badass overnight, and prince charming comes to rescue her,” I grind out, and Jordan laughs.

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