Page 41 of Ironhold, Trial One

How do I feel about that? Should I correct her, explain that this wasn’t some snatched moment, that nothing happened?

Even as I think that over, though, a figure comes running over to me. I recognize Finn, with his spikey hair and lean frame.

“Lyra, I’ve been looking for you. You weren’t in your room.”

“Rowan was wounded. I needed to make sure that he got back here safely,” I explain.

“Oh.Oh. I wasn’t… interrupting something, was I? Only I heard that you and Lady Elara…”

It seems that everyone around here is making assumptions. More to the point, how does Finn know any of this?

“There’s nothing going on with me and the noblewoman,” I insist. “Or with me and Rowan. Nothing happened.”

I add that part hurriedly. It seems that rumors can spread quickly around here if left unchecked.

“What did you want, Finn?”

"They've put the pairings for the doubles bout up in the dining hall," he says. "You and I are going to be on the same team against Vex and Lazlo."

“I don’t know Lazlo,” I say, but the thought of fighting Vex again is frightening enough. I got lucky last time, the shadow cat coming to my rescue. I know he’s a dangerous fighter, and his ability to control blades in the air means that attacks could come from anywhere.

“He’s tough,” Finn replies. “He uses kinetics, similar to Vex, but he does it to make himself faster. We need to practice together if we’re going to fight together in the colosseum.”

It’s already getting dark, but I nod. I know that Finn and I will need to work together smoothly if we’re going to survive. I don’t want to be the reason that he is hurt or worse out on the sands.

So we go out to the practice yard. There are still a few people training by torchlight. The guards don’t seem to care. It only matters to them that we do not try to escape.Finn and I take up positions near one of the practice posts. I have my trident and net, while he has his daggers.

“We're both fighters who rely on hitting and moving,” he says. “We will need to play into that but not get too far from one another. The moment both of them corner one of us, it's over.”

I know what he means. Fighting one skilled gladiator is difficult enough. Trying to take on two at once would be almost impossible. Finn and I need to stick together.

We start to work on tactics. With my net and my longer trident, my job will be to keep the other fighters off us. Finn will try to use his illusions to distract them, either giving me an opportunity to strike, or allowing him to slip forward to attack with his knives.

“What about when Vex starts throwing knives our way?” I ask.

“You were able to get some of them when you sparred with him,” Finn says, although he doesn’t sound certain. “We need to stick to our plan, Lyra. Lots of movement, a distraction, and then a decisive blow.”

I know it's our only option, but I don't like having his life in my hands. Finn is depending on me to deal with any knives that come in. I only hope I can do it.

Eventually, we break off. Working together will help, but not if we're both so tired that we cannot fight properly. We both leave the practice area, Finn going first while I put my weapons away. I'm surprised to find that Finn is not heading in the direction of his room.

Instead, he seems to be heading for the quarters where the free gladiators are housed. I follow, sticking to the shadows as best I can. Ironhold still holds the sounds of celebration, as some of those who have survived today insist on making the most of it with singing, drinking and loud storytelling. I see one young gladiator slip into one of the rooms as we pass, obviously on his way to a tryst of some kind. The constant threat of death seems to have brought out the need to celebrate life among all those in Ironhold.

Maybe that's where Finn is going. Maybe he has just attracted the attention of one of the noble gladiators and will be spending the night in a bed other than his own. Yet there is something about the furtiveness of his movements that makes me keep following him. And the location is not one of the gladiators’ rooms.

Instead, it is the museum like space, given over to the glory of previous gladiators. I sneak up to the door, watching.

“What took you so long?” a voice asks. It is one I recognize, even before Vex steps into view around a statue.

“I needed to train with her to get ready,” Finn says.

“How much do you really need to train if you're going to betray her?” Vex demands. “You do still remember our arrangement, thief?”

I see Finn nod. “I abandon her out on the sands. I make you look good, and in return, you beat me without killing me.”

“Exactly,” Vex says. “The alternative is that I cut you to pieces out there alongside her.”

“Why do you hate her so much?” Finn asks.

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