“Ah, now that we’re all here, we can begin,” a voice called from the lower level. A woman with large elaborate braids wrapped around her head stood with her hands on her hips. Her ebony-colored skin glistened in the minimal light. She was muscular and had a formidable presence. She was wearing the same standard issue uniform as the guards, marking her as one of them. The only difference was where most uniforms held a white rib cage, hers was embroidered with a golden hue. I’d never seen a distinction like that before, but it’s not as if I try to associate with the god’s army. They were known for their maliciousness.
“I am Captain Thiel. You will address me as such. Now, you’ll be facing off as teams, demonstrating your new powers. The last one standing, will have won their team a five-minute head start. You may be wondering why we train our contestants at all. Well, there was a time before any of us were born, that contestants were sent into the catacombs with no training at all. However, the gods found that the lack of proper training ended with almost all the contestants dying rapidly. To ensure that you have a proper chance at winning, we allow three solid days ofgetting used to your magick. And then of course you have the masquerade, where you’ll be mingling amongst the gods and goddesses themselves. It will be a chance for you to win their favor, and that can make all the difference when you’re neck deep in a pile of shit.”
“Yeah, we’d hate to die too quickly for the god’s entertainment purposes,” Nat quipped, only to earn herself a deadly stare from the captain. Nat was mouthy and bold in a way I could only dream of. It was an admirable quality, but in this case, possibly deadly. The gods’ army members weren’t exactly full of compassion and empathy. They were cruel. Obedient. Soldiers that thrived on keeping us in line.
Making my way down to where the rest of the contestants were, I almost tripped over my own feet from how exhausted I was. If my team were to be allowed five whole minutes of access to the catacombs ahead of everyone else, it could make a huge difference. It might not seem like much, but every second counted when it was a race to the end. The first one to touch the wall with the engraved word ‘Fin’, marking the end, would be declared the winner. The only trouble was getting there. The catacombs were a maze of tunnels and rooms, filled with booby traps and pit falls. If your fellow contestants didn’t finish you off first, the catacombs just might.
I found an empty spot next to my teammates where Nat was visibly struggling to stand. How we were supposed to fight against the other teams right now, I had no idea. With Nat still recovering, and myself still reeling from the obstacle course, I was wishing we’d never gone up against Dex’s team.
“Team of Diamonds, please step forward.”
Four contestants stood looking just as beat up as I felt. Clearly, today had been rough on us all.
“Team of Spades, where are you?”
My eyes found Dex easily as he stepped forward with the rest of his team. His gaze caught mine as he walked into the cage and my stomach involuntarily flipped. Nat gave me a wary look, but I schooled my features to feign indifference. What did I care about Dex? Nothing, that’s what.
“You have ten minutes to defeat your opponents. Remember no killing is permitted until the games officially begin. Failure to abide by the rules will result in your immediate removal from the games.”
A shot rang out and the potent taste of magick filled the air all around us. Dread coiled within me. I had an ominous feeling that someone wasn’t going to make it past today. Selfishly, I hoped it was anyone but me.
Chapter 9
Dex
Icould feel her watching my every move. Her eyes tracking me felt like a caress against my skin. Was she worried about me or hoping that someone hit me with a fatal blow?
Probably the latter.
The moment the shot went off, magick came flying at us from all directions. Immediately, I took cover behind one of the concrete slabs and tried to formulate a plan. Céline, Genevieve, and Regis had paired off against the opposite teams, leaving the one asshole I ached to take down free for me— Magnus. He had looked at me like he wanted to snap me in half, but I wasn’t about to let that happen.
My magick was limited to being able to manipulate bones, and without being allowed to kill someone else for their power, I felt constrained in what I could do. I had to think outside of the box. Good thing I was an expert at solving problems.
The rules never stated that I only had to use what was in the ring, and we were in the catacombs. There were skeletons buried all around us. Reaching out with my power, I locked onto the closest bone I could find. It was above us, small in size and embedded in the rounded ceiling, but it was something.
A loud crack echoed in the cavernous space as the ceiling cracked and a partial piece of what looked like a mandible with some teeth still attached careened towards my outstretched hand. Bits of ceiling came down with it, and I dodged them before they crushed me.
A blinding beam of light hit me square in the eyes and caused my vision to instantly become obscured as Genevieve’s magick burst forth. I dropped to my knees, eyes shut tight as my palms pressed to the outside of my mask, hoping that the damage wasn’t permanent. Staying low, I attempted to open my eyes only to be met with spots and a large fist crashing into my ribcage by none other than Magnus. My body went flying with the impact and I felt my ribs become dislodged as his strength pummeled into me. The taste of blood flooded my mouth as I scrambled to stand.
The area around us had been reduced to rubble. My head swam and my lungs wheezed.
Magnus loomed closer, a sneer coating his cruel mouth, golden mask alight with the singular sunbeam’s fading light. I swallowed hard trying to figure out my next move.
The jawbone that I had summoned with my power lay a few feet away. If I could just get there in time, I could use it as a weapon.
Magnus moved, his size was a burden though, giving me enough time to clumsily scramble for the shard of bone. The magick beckoned me forward, directing my steps while my eyes were still struggling to adjust. I scooped it up just as Magnus clasped the back of my shirt, yanking me back hard enough that my feet were no longer touching ground.
The neckline of my shirt buckled against my throat, choking me.
My arm swung on him, the jawbone slipping in my weakening grip. But I managed to land a solid punch to his face.Bone hitting bone, his own jaw crunching beneath the mandible causing him to drop me. My ankles twisted on impact, and I went down onto the concrete ground hard.
“You’re fucking dead!” Magnus screamed as blood dripped down the side of his face.
I became vaguely aware of the chaos that surrounded me. Magick shot out from all around us. Contestant versus contestant were in a bloody brawl, all for the chance of five extra minutes. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like when the real games finally started if this is how we were acting for a measly five-minute head start.
Magnus reached down and grabbed me by the front of my shirt this time, arm raised and ready to strike. With his power of strength, it wouldn’t take much for him to punch a hole in my head and I’d be dead upon impact. My head turned to the side and my eyes caught Odessa’s horrified expression. Her hands covering her mouth and her dark brown eyes blown wide with worry.
Worry for me, I realized.
