“Sorry, Elle,” Gabe says, removing his hand. “The sensor must detect more than just light. Perhaps it reads the solar radiation levels, too.”
The woman standing on Gabe’s opposite side curses under her breath. “We can’t take it off until the sun sets?”
“How are we supposed to eat?” Gem asks.
Gabe frowns. “I don’t think you can. At least, not until later this evening.”
I throw my hands up. “So, we’re expected to fight the Sols while we’re dehydrated, starved, and sleep-deprived?”
It makes me wonder if they truly want us to succeed, to survive, or if this is all a punishment for our nonconformity. I’ve always suspected that Chancellor Bren and his chosen cabinet members, like Commander Guffian, valued the Hunt first and foremost as a source of entertainment and tradition more than a viable path to victory. The lack of sufficient training suggests as much. Yet I’d interpreted their carelessness as a lack of faith in our abilities, not as malicious intent.
What if I presumed wrong?
We don’t stop againuntil the sky’s overcast silver light bleeds to a natural black. The cursed sun couldn’t be bothered to make an appearance today, though perhaps that was the only thing that kept us alive.
Tall grass grazes my shoulders, smearing leftover droplets of rain against my leather suit as we set up camp in a meadow. Though it offers minimal cover, the break in the tree canopy should allow us to waken tomorrow morning at the first sight of the brightening sky.
Gem and Gabe continue hovering at my sides near the back of the pack. Between Gem’s frequent side glances and Gabe’s insistence on holding out his arm anytime I trip, their actions do nothing to staunch the fear that I’m too weak to hack it on my own, that I’ll bring them down with me. But I refuse to be the reason Gem or Gabe don’t make it through this.
I square my jaw, tamping down the growing urge to collapse into the dampened earth while setting my mind on doing exactly what my parents instructed.
Whatever it takes.
Even if it means ignoring every slicing ache as I push my body further than it’s ever had to go.
“Thank the shadows.” Gem sighs as she tugs off the helmet.
Gabe, who’d immediately put his own headgear back on as a sign of solidarity after discovering the solar sensor, removes his, too.
The night’s steady breeze is quick to caress my cheeks as I follow suit, then take a deep inhale. My ill-fed lungs welcome the abundance of fresh air. When my eyes blink open, I glare at the round lump of anodized aluminum and tempered glass.
“You look like you’re debating whether to toss that in the creek,” Gem remarks.
I blink away the tunnel vision, realizing my feet must’ve subconsciously carried me to the lapping stream running along the meadow’s edge. Would that be so bad? Limited sun exposure won’t turn me into the soul-thirsty monsters we’re meant to hunt. I know that, thanks to my firsthand experience in the transport tunnel andKalden’s confirmation. What I don’t know is whether exposing the entirety of my head for a prolonged period would be enough to tip my body past the point of no return.How long would it take for the sun’s corrupting light to mutate my body and burn away my humanity? A few hours? A day? Longer?
My fingertips itch with the urge to test it. Maybe I could pretend to lose my balance and “accidentally” drop the helmet into the fast-flowing current.
Gem nudges my arm, careful to avoid the folded blades. “You okay, Orelle?”
I turn on my heel, preparing to shrug it off.
“Don’t you dare say you’re fine. I’m not fine. None of us are.” Gem lowers herself to the ground, shucking off her boots and dipping her reddened toes into the water. “I’ve got blisters in places I didn’t know were possible. My stomach is so starved it’s queasy. And this suit is giving me one hell of a wedgie that keeps coming back no matter how many times I tug on it.”
I snicker and collapse gracelessly at her side. “You could leave the flap unbuttoned tonight. Let it all air out down there while you sleep.”
Her jade eyes widen. “And let all my bits be on full display? No chance.”
“We can choose a spot away from the others,” I suggest before adding, “though I doubt any of them would?—”
“No, I know.” Her shoulders deflate. “I wish we could have stayed in our little cabin forever: you, me, and T. For all the drawbacks we put up with as Tier Threes, at least we had the choice of sticking together. That was all I ever wanted.”
“That was always going to change, though. Whether Taur got pregnant or we got selected, forever was never a real option for us in Caligo.” We both fall quiet for a time while Gem stares at the ripplesof the creek bouncing between blades of grass, until I press on, “Do you regret not pursuing marriage?”
“No.” Her reply is quick and firm.
“Even if it meant saving yourself from this fate? I mean, you have to realize you’d make the perfect wife. You’re young, healthy, radiant. Unlike me, you wouldn’t have to beg for anyone’s affection.”
“I couldn’t be with them in that way, romantically—not without forcing myself. But even then, how could I guarantee they’d never leave me? I’ve seen what you and T have gone through, how fragile relationships can be.” Gem shakes her head. “So, no, I don’t regret spending the limited time I’ve had with people who wouldn’t leave. Well, until T got pregnant.”
