Page 81 of Of Spindles and Nightfall
She huffed. “I don’t trust you.”
“You don’t have to. But know that at this moment, I’m not going to kill you.”
“What if I want to kill you?”
“You’ll lose.”
Neri huffed again, but didn’t argue further.
Aryana looked up and saw Pohan climbing the spears. Was he leaving? Without a weapon. His champion most likely would be livid if he found out his kalator didn’t even try. Jesir remained wedged between the spear-like poles, watching other demons attack each other.
Little vampire.
She stilled, looking around.
Little vampire. Look up.
She glanced up to see Pohan staring at her with meaning in his eyes. That was right, the bread. He was speaking to her mind.
You seem to have some fighting skills. Would you like to team up?
“Why are you—”
Don’t speak. Listen. You must know there are spells and potions that can connect minds.He spread his wings, revealing his bandaged wounds.I realize these appear destroyed, but I think I have one or two good glides left in them. I can get you across, if you can help me get back across with the weapons. Nod yes or no.
If she succeeded in crossing, she might obtain weapons for fellow kalators as well as herself. She peered up at Pohan. But could she trust him? What would stop him from dropping her?
Her fists balled. She wouldn’t leave Neri to suffer.
Plus, her job as kalator was to help Zarathos win the Demon Trials. If she made no attempt, would her bargain kill her? Either way, she was committed to trying.
She nodded.
Good. Two sections to your right. Start across. When the section in front of you starts to crumble, leap onto someone else’s section. I will get you the rest of the distance.
She looked it over. Yes. It was ingenious.
What about getting back? She had to trust that between the two of them, they’d figure something out.
She faced Neri. “I’m going to try for the weapons. What do you want me to fetch for you?”
“What?” She followed Aryana’s gaze up to Pohan and paled. “You’re definitely going to die. If Pohan’s wings still worked,maybehe could, but they’re destroyed.”
Aryana flinched as she raised her eyes again to look at Pohan’s wings. It was a risk. But she was determined to try, anyway.
She moved around the edge until she found two wedges in the floor that still hadn’t fallen through. She took a deep breath. Gods, she hoped this worked. Focusing, she tapped into her top speed and raced across. The ground shook under her feet, and as she felt it fall away, she leapt onto the other ledge, leaping over the boundary of where the floor gave out. She landed hard and immediately the ground began to give. Her heart leaped into her throat, but she raised her hand, hoping she hadn’t been tricked into falling to her death.
The ground pulled out from beneath her feet and a scream rose up her throat as she began to fall. A sickening realization burned through her.
A hand grasped her wrist and swung her hard, throwing her across. She struck the plateau’s edge, her breath knocking out of her, but she scrambled upward. Placing her hands on her knees, she gasped for air as Pohan made a less than graceful arrival as his wings gave out, hitting the ground harshly on his side.
After her breaths calmed, she moved forward, snatching up Zarathos’s long sword. Then glanced around, grabbed a spear and… one more. She grabbed a small battle ax.
Take this, too.Pohan was up and moving, though his eyes betrayed his pain. He thrust a bow and a quiver of arrows at her, along with another sword. She slung both over her shoulder while grasping the other three under an arm. At the last second, she tucked a jewel-hilted dagger into her clothes.
“This makes no sense,” she whispered as she rearranged the weapons. “I know they don’t want a kalator to win, but why wouldthey maim us so badly we can’t help when we are required to bring our champions weapons?”
The council are the ones who set the trials. The champions most likely don’t know what they are ahead of time,Pohan pointed out.And the opening ceremony is designed to encourage them to be as cruel as possible to their kalators.
