“I swear I’m going to be sick,” I mutter out, crossing my arms over my chest.
“So tell me, Serene… what did you do to mymother?” Theon whispers in my ear, almost making sure none of the other men who have joined us hear.
“She caught me trying to go to the archives, due to someone betraying me.” My teeth clench with the thought of Koen. “But I suppose since she sees me as a threat, she threw me in here.”
“Most people are beheaded when they try to reach the archives.” Kaine’s brows furrow into deep, dark lines of concern. His eyes narrow as he adds. “I wonder why you didn’t meet the same fate.”
“Probably to make me suffer,” I mutter with a bitter tone. “The other way is quick and fast, I suppose that’stoodullfor her.” I can feel the heat rising to my face, my cheeks burning a bright cherry red at the thought of her eyes fixed on me during these torturous games.
A loud trumpet blares outside the sleeping quarters and men begin to bounce off their beds, tossing their apples and letting them roll across the concrete ground. Some get squished under their boots. A man strolls past casually, daggers wrapped around his thick thigh and his hair a dark shade of bronze, cascading in waves on the right side, while the left side of his head is shaved, marked with arrows etched into his buzzed scalp. He bites into his apple with a deliberate slowness, the crisp crunch echoing in the air, before casually tossing the half-eaten fruit onto the ground in front of me. He brings down his black boot, crushing the fruit. The apple's juice bursts everywhere, spraying the ground around us.
“This will be you,” he growls before spitting at the ground.
“Cool.” My lips roll between my teeth as I inhale a deep breath through my nose. “I am so screwed.”
“You wasted a damn apple!” Kaine throws his arms up, glaring at the man who walks ahead without a care. “Inconsiderate. I swear.”
“Those of the sea never are.” Theon removes his arm from around me and adjusts his daggers wrapped around his thick bicep. “Disrespectful scums.”
“What did you say?” a deep growl bellows from behind us.
Theon sighs, his lips part before tugging into a tight line. “Dryden.” His tone is laced with sarcasm. “How I have missed you. I was wondering when you’d show your face.”
He sharply turns on his heels, his hands firmly gripping the sides of his hips. Then in one swift motion, without giving me any time to process who Dryden is, he yanks my shoulder back, compelling me to turn with him.
“Have you met my dear friend,Serene?” he asks with a hint of mischief, as if he has something up his sleeve. “First woman ever to compete, seems as if you have some true competition this year.”
My eyes narrow into slits, burning with irritation throughout my body. I cast a sidelong glance at Theon. My nails dig into my palms and my jaw tightens as I glare at him. I know he can clearly see the annoyance raging within me as my brows deepen, but all he does isgrin.
Dryden glances my way for a mere second with a disgusted expression. Golden symbols along his shaved scalp beam against the darkness of this dormitory. His hair twists in multiple rows on top before his strands are pulled into a short ponytail, showing the points of his ears.
I pull my dark locks behind my ear, feeling the soft, round curve before my hand falls.
His dark hair blends in with his skin with a five o'clock shadow, but his ocean eyes are vivid, almost taking the air from my lungs. They are as bright as the moon. Against his broad, massive chest, two rows of necklaces draped in sea-shells and bones rests against his bare skin. Instead of him dressed in similar suits to the ones we wear, he is shirtless in a cloak of fur and feathers with gold metallic armor that wraps around his wrists. On his black pants, daggers are hung from his leatherbelt and his boots stretch upwards to his knees with tiny bones dangling along the sides.
“Why are you speaking of those from the sea, Theon?” Dryden bellows, his voice tinged with a burning desire to destroy Theon right here and now, but he stays calm with his arms crossed against his chest.
“He was saying nothing.” Kaine takes a step forward. “We were just about to head to the pit.”
Dryden grunts. I can hear his breathing from where I stand and instead of walking around us, he walks through us, his shoulders ramming into mine and Theon’s before leaving the dormitory. I grab my shoulder, my body feeling as if a boulder rammed right into me.
“Who the hell is that?” I say through clenched teeth, my eyes drying out as I stare at his massive frame ducking to leave the dormitory.
“Someone you don’t want around,” Kaine calmly says, shaking his head as he scans the empty bunk beds. “Never, and I mean never, engage with him again. Do you understand?”
His eyes meet mine, and the fear is written all over his face.
“You know better than to say something stupid like that outloud.” Kaine shoves Theon. “What the hell were you thinking? Dryden doesn’t follow the rules, he could have slit your throat right here!”
Theon pushes Kaine back. “You really think he would? That would start a war with the Realm of Eekatia and the Realm of Nilak!”
Kaine rubs his fingers over his mouth before letting his hand fall down his neck. “Can’t take any chances. He has been craving a war for many years, and you know it.”
The trumpet sounds off again, piercing my eardrums. I let out a shaky breath as my eyes glance around the room, knowing soon, ninety-nine men will be in here, sleeping here with me. ButI know, I shouldn’t sleep. I must keep my eyes open in order to survive. I fear they may try and kill me any chance they can get, and night will be the easiest way for them to target me.
“Line up time.” Theon tries to jump on Kaine’s back, but they tumble over before pushing another as they run to the door. Their laughs silence the trumpets. “Let’s go, Serene!”
But go where?
