Shea shifted under their regard. Had she everheard anything about a test? The way Caden said ‘The Test’ made itseem important.
She fidgeted slightly as they discusseddetails, the tight feeling of being closed in on all sides comingback.
She hoped this was just a skills test. Maybea personality test.
This wouldn’t be as bad as the last testshe’d taken. Probably.
Shea jerked back as a crack rent the air. Theold man flicked a thin whip again, curling it around her thigh andleaving a smarting welt behind. She hadn’t even seen him pick upthe weapon.
Shea reached for the dagger at her back andcursed silently when she felt nothing but air. She’d been disarmedyesterday before meeting Fallon, and they never returned the blade.She dropped into a crouch and watched the man’s torso carefully asshe prepared for the next blow.
“Her pain tolerance is pretty high.”
“Was that supposed to hurt?”
“She speaks,” Meynard cried. He fainted tothe left with the whip. Shea went right only to gasp as he nailedher in the ribs. “I had begun to wonder if you were a mute.”
He cracked the whip several times on eitherside of her, driving her back with each flick of his wrist. Despiteher best efforts he caught her twice more. Once on the ribs andanother on her left hand.
“You can avoid these any time you’d like,” hetold her.
She snorted. “Why? I can barely feel it.”
“Oh?”
She wanted to hiss as fire raced down one armbefore blood slowly trickled out of the cut he’d opened. He hadexcellent control. Until then, he hadn’t drawn blood, just raised afew welts.
“You’ll have to do better than that,” shetold him.
Taunts and bluffs were all she had to defendherself with at the moment. Caden had very carefully made sure shewas unarmed for this meeting, and the old man was good enough withhis weapon that every attempt to sidestep or escape wasthwarted.
Perhaps this was the test.
The last ‘test’ she had taken had nearlykilled her. All pathfinders were subjected to the trial at the endof their apprenticeship. Many died in the dangerous rite ofpassage. She didn’t like to remember that time.
“So does this test consist of torturing yourtarget until they try to kill you?” Shea asked idly.
The old man cocked his head, observing herfrom under bushy eyebrows. “No. What makes you think that?”
“Oh, because you keep hitting me WITH YOURWHIP.”
Two more cracks and welts formed under herpants.
“Don’t be a goat brained Lowlander. This isthe easiest way to test your mental fortitude.”
Of course. She winced as one of his blowslanded across a previous one.
She’d had enough. She didn’t care if shefailed. Maybe if she couldn’t pass their little test, they’d lether go back to being a scout, or better yet forget all about her soshe could get back to her life.
She reached back, grabbed a stack of clothingand then threw it in the air between the old man and her. He drewback, raising one hand to protect his face. Shea dropped low andlunged, reaching out and twisting the whip out of his hand in asmooth movement.
She backed away quickly. She looked from itto the old man. He wasn’t getting this thing back.
“Took you long enough,” the old man said,making no move to take the whip from her. “Takes a little to gether going.”
Caden nodded once. “That was my assessment aswell, Meynard.”
“But once she gets going, she acts with cleardecisive intent.” The old man made a ‘hm’ of approval. He clappedhis hands together. “Next phase then.”
