Page 94 of Once the Skies Fade

“Never?” I asked. “Not one lie? Not even when you were younger?”

“You don’t get to be the royal advisor by being dishonest.” He shrugged as if this answer was obvious.

“I thought dishonesty was a requirement in politics.”

“Maybe that’s how you do things in Emeryn, but not here.”

I smiled politely and changed the subject. “I do want to apologize for yesterday though.”

“For what?” Graham asked.

“For interrupting your time with Her Majesty. I shouldn’t have barged in as I did, even if it was truly my time.” Graham’s features twisted with surprised confusion. Leaning forward, I extended my hand to him. “I’d like to put all this animosity behind us, if you’re willing.”

His dark eyes darted down to my hand, regarding it suspiciously. “I don’t like you,” he said.

I chuckled lightly and lifted a shoulder. “I’m not asking you to be my best friend or anything. Just think it’s a waste of our energy hating each other like this.”

For several breaths he simply stared at me, looking like he wanted to take all that hatred out on me right there in the carriage. Then he cocked his head to the side.

“You think I hate you?” he asked.

“A bit.”

“You’re right, just a bit. Are you saying you hate me?”

I frowned and rocked my hand back and forth in the air. “Just a bit, but I’m willing to set it aside. After all, when I win?—”

His sharp glare cut off my words, forcing me to amend them.

“I mean,ifI win, it would be nice to not have to replace the Vael’s trusted advisor. And I don’t know. Ifyouwin, maybe?—”

“I’m not choosing you to replace me, general.”

Lifting my palms to face him, I laughed. “Of course not.”

When the carriages finally came to a stop, we stepped out to find Isa standing in front of a large lake. Korben stood beside her, cradling his bandaged left hand. His right eye was so swollen it couldn’t open, and a laceration across his eyebrow had been sewn closed, but looked far from healed.

Isa gestured to him as she spoke. “Before we dive into the second trial, I need to make something quite clear to all of you. Korben, here, chose to attack one of the other competitors outside of the official trials, as well as injure a dear friend of Her Majesty. For that, he has been punished accordingly. A finger for a finger. A beating for a beating. And a small dose of poison to keep his wounds from healing immediately.”

At this she caught my eye and dipped her chin crisply before continuing.

“He has not been stripped of any points earned in the first trial, but his punishment will put him at a significant disadvantage for the next one.” She paused for a long moment, studying each of us in turn. “Let this be a warning to each of you. Whatever happens among you during the trials is fair; expected, even. Attacking one another outside of the trials will not be tolerated. Do you understand?”

Beck nodded silently. The rest of us voiced our assent, albeit mostly in whispers.

“Very well,” Isa said, pulling her shoulders back as she clasped her hands behind her back. “Today’s trial will test strength inallits forms. Behind me lies Lake Vestia. Two hundred fifty meters across. Three hundred meters wide. One hundred fifty meters deep. At the far end, it feeds the Veslane River. Your task is to swim out to the buoy in the middle, dive to the bottom, select a rock, and bring it back to me.”

Korben scowled at his wounded hand. Beck laughed, albeit nervously. Seb shot Phillip a haughty glance, but the Arenysen native didn’t share his cocky demeanor. Phillip’s face drainedof all color, a stark contrast to Graham’s stern, calculating expression devoid of fear.

Isa didn’t seem to notice anyone’s reactions as she continued. “The points awarded for this trial are not as clear-cut as for the last one. Part of your score will be determined by your stone’s weight. The one to retrieve and deliver the heaviest will earn fifty points. Next heaviest, forty points. Third, thirty points, and so on. Should you return empty-handed, you will receive no points for that portion. However, you can earn—or lose—points by how you demonstrate strength of mind and spirit as well. Those points are awarded at my discretion. You should know, these waters harbor many dangers, not the least of which is the possibility of merely drowning. Any questions?”

Beck lifted a tentative hand. “What are the other dangers?”

“They are for you to discover on your own,” Isa said, smiling kindly. “Anything else?”

“What about weapons?” Korben asked, avoiding me as I smirked at his question.

Isa regarded him, her brows lifted high. “Thank you for the reminder.” She paused to snap her fingers toward one of the carriage drivers, who hastened to retrieve a box from his seat. “As we did in the first trial, everyone must relinquish their personal weapons and choose one we provide. Everyone except you. You will be competing with no weapon today.”

---