Page 21 of A Clash of Stars

I took a step back in apprehension about what I was going to ask because I was unsure if it was against the rules of the Variance to ask such a thing, but it was only fitting for me to ask out of curiosity.

“Could you tell me what the Variance entails? What should I prepare for?” The emotions in the room shifted as I noticed her eyes darkening at the penetrating question. I almost wanted to run out of the room and pretend that I had never opened my stupid mouth in the first place.

“Ah, I am... I am so sorry if I upset you. I just thought it was worth asking.”

As I turned to walk out of her office, her cold hand grabbed my wrist. She turned me closer, and her eyes were still the darkest shade.

“What do you want to know,” she whispered.

I replied, “Everything…”

Luna locked the door to her office, placing a magical barrier over it to hold all conversations inside.

From what I know about her, Luna was a particular person who was given powers as gifts from the Thea bloodline, but we were still determining why. I only knew she could create this barrier because she had done it once before.

When I first came to Sefida, I was timid and didn’t want to interact with the guys much, even though we had grown up around each other. The first night here, Evander and Griffin locked me in a hallway closet in complete darkness. I remember the panic and screaming as I tried to get anyone to help me. I felt my chest tightening as time continued, like what I imagined drowning to be like. Wanting to breathe but not having any oxygen to keep you alive.

An icy chill rushed over me as someone finally opened the door, and I fell onto the oakwood floors in the hallway. Luke leaned down and picked me up, carrying me to my room. My muscles spasmed and shook throughout that night.

Traumatized.

I tried to figure out why I reacted as I did, but I could never place it. I could never understand why I couldn’t handle being in that hallway closet. I never knew why Griff and Evander did what they did, but I distinctly remember the conversation in this same room with all of us that night.

I had never seen Luna so red with anger before. Of course, Griff looked completely ashamed of what he had done and apologized profusely, whereas Evander did not.

I even had to miss out on dinner with the Aster family because of it. Evander told Luna and Master Edward that I would be an embarrassment at dinner, and he didn’t want me loose lipped about what had happened.

Only worried about his image, I’m sure, but I didn’t mindnotgoing.

The King of Aster was not my favorite person, so I didn’t fight the arrangement. My mind returned to the present, and I braced myself for what she would say.

“What I am about to tell you is strictly forbidden, but part of me feels it is destiny for me to tell you.” I looked at her with thankful eyes as she continued. “The Variance is a contest; all royal competitors will bond their blood together in the Sefida Chalice. You will be brought into a portion of our land that isnow completely uninhabited on a special task. This specific task is to find the Claiborne Relic.”

She took a deep breath and continued as she stepped closer to me and lowered her voice. “The Relic for this Variance is a long-lost item of Athiana. For you to win the crown, you must retrieve it. No one will know what they are looking for until the day of the competition.”

I gave her an intrigued and curious look as she continued telling me the description of the Variance.

“There has only been one other Variance and one winner. The victor was never heard from again after the Variance was over, and the Kingdom of Claiborne fell immediately after the victor went missing.”

I blew an uneven breath, “Should I even attempt to win this Variance if I am only going to be snuffed out by another Kingdom?”

Her eyes burned into me, and I prepared myself for the lashing of her voice because I knew that statement struck a chord with her.

“It is against the rules to kill another royal bloodline. Anyone who does this is immediately disqualified and banished from their Kingdom.”

She knew I wanted to respond to her statement, but I couldn’t work up the nerve to speak of it.

“If you think someone might try to hurt you, I would prepare yourself for battle, stand your ground, and be ready to use your power. Clara, I know you don’t like to use it, but you have significant power that should be used, nothidden. Your natural ability overpowers every single person in this castle.”

She stepped towards me, gripped her hands on both shoulders and leaned in to ensure I was listening.

“Youdeserveto win this Variance. Youmustwin. You are stronger and smarter than all of these guys, I know. You will lose everything if you don’t get your mind right.”

A spark was ignited inside me. This whisper in my head told me that I needed to get ready. To prepare as best as I could.

I stood rather abruptly, thanked Luna for the advice, and walked out. At this point, I didn’t know if I had an opportunity to win the Variance, but it was worth a try.

I headed towards the courtyard to train while I had the motivation. I grabbed my sword and stepped onto the emblem of Sefida to begin my agility trainingalone. Practicing my steps, I was brought back to a memory I had with my father.

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