Page 83 of A Sky of Storms
A piercing electronic noise had me slamming my hands over my ears, which was followed by the sound of the Overseer’s voice. Not much fucking better.
“My heart is warmed to see so many of you valiant Potentials having come so far in your quest for greatness,” Celeste began in her usual drawn-out way. I assumed she aimed to come across theatrical to those she was speaking to, but it had the opposite effect for me. It ground my nerves and infuriated me that she wouldn’t just get to the fucking point. “It is a testament to the people of Terrulia that we have a wealth of talent in the coming generation.”
I rolled my eyes. More like literal wealth that supplied extra weapons and advantages to those with access to it.
“To be a royal in Terrulia is to be the guardian of all people. A ruler who will lead us to great things and a future so wondrous and bright,” she continued. “We are a prosperous people, made to endure the struggles that befall us, as those in history have attempted time and again. We continue to triumph, and our future monarch will do the same as the trials are rained down upon our valiant Potentials.”
I blew out a slow breath, my irritation rising.
“She talks a lot of shit, doesn’t she?” Kayden said in a low voice. “I think she likes the sound of her own voice.”
“Mmm,” I grumbled noncommittally. Just because I agreed didn’t mean I was going to get chummy with him about it.
“Reminds me of some other people I know,” Kendra said, giving Kayden a pointed look. I chuckled. The little woman had spark and zero fear of the big asshole despite him being more than double her size.
“And now you are to face the final step of this first trial that will take you to the next level on your journey,” Celeste said. “As Overseer, I have had the pleasure of planning this and believe it is a test that will make our future monarch shine. At the centre of the crater is a chest filled with golden coins, but be warned, its numbers are limited. You must obtain a single coin and make your way to the other side of the crater. You have until the sun sets to succeed. All who fail will be abandoned.”
I scratched my stubbled chin. Get the coin, get to the end point. Piece of fucking cake. The air shimmered as the forcefield disappeared and Celeste shouted for the test to begin. Then chaos ensued.
Potentials leapt, launching themselves into the misty crater in a panic to seize the prize, whilst others decided on eliminating their competition beforehand. Weapons were drawn, blood splattered, and I decided to join those who’d escaped into the crater, with a quick glance to where Kendra and Kayden had run off to. She had disappeared into the fog but Kayden was still visible, his fists pounding into whoever he could catch. I jumped down, landing in putrid filth. As much as it felt like water, the smell alone suggested it was far from it. I didn’t want to think about why Kayden hadn’t started a fight with me, being the bigger competition, instead going after the other Potentials. Who knew how that asshole’s brain worked? If it functioned at all.
Shouts rang out behind me as I crept towards the centre where the fog was thickest. As soon as I stepped through it, my sight cleared and I was able to see deep within the corrupted marsh. I passed a dead tree, following some Potentials as they worked their way to the chest. My plan was to stay out of sight. Someone would retrieve a coin and when they did, I would steal it with them none the wiser. No fights, just stealth. Not that I didn’t mind throwing a few fists, but we were given a time limit and I needed to play this smart.
The chest was exactly where the Overseer had said it would be, the gold practically glowing. She’d said they were coins, but they looked more like the size of my palm. There was no way you’d be able to carry one without someone noticing. I watched as two Potentials gathered multiple coins, stuffing the pockets of their jumpsuits. The thought behind the strategy was clever, culling the numbers of Potentials returning to the House of Ascension, but what those two idiots weren’t banking on was the huge targets they were painting on their backs. Those coins were not only obvious in their pockets, but they would weigh the two Potentials down.
A spear shot between them and they ducked to the ground. At times like this, it’s hard not to feel like a cocky asshole. The Potentials scrambled to their feet, but their greedy asses weren’t fast enough and whoever had thrown the spear ran through the dead trees and launched themselves at the thieves with a knife in hand. Let’s just say there was a lot of stabbing, even in my book. The attacking Potential clearly had other issues, that fact becoming clearer when they raised their knife and smiled at the eyeball pierced on it.
I could hear more Potentials drawing closer behind me, either running for their lives or running to end them. I dodged behind a blackened tree to avoid the onslaught and watched as the area around the chest became a fighting pit. I’d seen some dirty fights back in Damascon Hollow, but nothing like what I was watching. These people were fucking savage and that was putting it nicely.
Kayden was amongst them, his skin like solid rock as he picked someone up by the throat and threw them into a tree before targeting his next prey. The guy was living his best life, his brown eyes alight with each hit. People from the Crimson Steppes were raised to fight and favoured the strong, so it was no wonder he revelled in inflicting as much damage as possible.
Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a Potential sneaking away and took it as my cue to leave. Screeching sounded overhead and I ducked down as giant bats descended on those still fighting around the chest. The Potential I was trailing picked up their pace and I wasn’t too far behind, glad to be out of sight of the flying monsters. I followed them as they attempted to disappear, keeping to the cover of tree trunks and gnarled low lying branches.
Once the sound of fighting faded, I flicked a bionic finger to reveal a small scalpel blade, then ran towards the Potential. Before they could register my arrival, I sliced their pocket and let the coin drop into my hand, then slipped away out of sight. From behind one of the creepy ass trees, I fought back a laugh at the dumbfounded look on the Potential’s face while they searched their pockets and surrounding area of the marsh for the coin.
It was tempting as fuck to whistle like a cocky bastard as I strode away. All those Potentials fighting each other, and they were so blinded by the fox in their hen house. I was on a high no drug could give.
Tossing the coin in the air and catching it, I strode towards the other side of the crater. I grinned because fuck, I not only had the coin, but I was most likely going to be the first person over the finish line. I threw it in the air again only to be shoved forward into the cold mud.
“Fuck!” I growled, spinning around to see who had dared come after me, only to find Danger Dog—the rat from Hallow’s Griff—crouched beside me.
He pressed a finger to his lips, gesturing at the sky. “Chill man, I just saved your life. There was one of those bat things up there,” he said in a hushed tone. “I got your back Atti the Ant.”
I shoved him onto his ass with a growl. I fucking hated that name. It had been my nickname as a kid when Cormac first took me under his wing. I’d been stealing scraps off the street after my parents died and the good old foster system of DH didn’t bother to sort me out a new home. I was a small, skinny thing, barely getting by as I lived day to day. I wasn’t beaten and I hadn’t been picked up by child traffickers, so I’d counted that as a win, but one day my luck well and truly ran out. I’d gotten caught stealing a slice of pizza from a street vendor. Rather than turn me into the cops, the merchant had cut my hand off and left me for dead.
Cormac found me, gifting me the bionic hand and that shitty nickname. Once I’d shown I could hold my own, the nickname fell away naturally. Okay, fine, I beat the shit out of anyone who used it other than Cormac. I wasn’t an ant; I was a Drake. Using it was a slap in the face for all I’d become.
“Meant no harm,” Danger Dog said, his eyes wide as he raised his hands before him and sat up. “I’ve been thinking about how you said we shouldn’t work together.”
“Still not interested.”
“No shit, but—” He looked above me, pointing to the horizon. “Fuck! I think it’s coming back.”
I had to fucking look, didn’t I? A big mistake because Danger Dog took the opportunity to grab my bionic hand and twist, pulling the limb off.
“What—” I mumbled, attempting to shove him away, but my whole body went into reboot mode at the loss of my hand.
“How does it feel to know I have the upper hand?” he snickered. “Get it? ’Cos I have your fucking hand?”
