Then the speaker made us all jump in place.
“Hear, hear—welcome to the second Turning Trial, which just so happens to be the third in these backward times. Welcome, welcome, Your High Timenesses, our dearest ladies and gentlemen, and our favorite Hands!”
We turned on instinct, trying to see where the voice was coming from, but whoever spoke at the trials still remained hidden. The speakers must have been planted everywhere in the trees around us because the voice was coming from all directions again.
The people behind the velvet ropes and the guards burst into applause. Cheered. Called our names.
They knew mine, too. To hear it beingscreamedlike that from those strangers made me want to throw up extra hard.
“I know, I know. We’ve watched the sun unrise three times, waiting for this, but the wait is over. In a minute, our brave Hands will begin, and we the lucky spectators will watch everywhere from our casters, into the projections on the other side of this forest.”
Don’t panic,I told myself, but I was. I was panicking, and looking at the others didn’t help at all, because they were all panicking, too. Looking about. Asking for help with their wide eyes.
Nobody was coming, though. We knew this. It was the third time we’d been in this position—nobody was coming to save us. Our only way out of this, once more, was through.
“Before you stands the Tree of Years, a vertical maze made by the Labyrinth’s most hardworking allies with love and dedication. Now, we may not remember this, but youhavebeen in this maze before, and you’ve climbed your way to the very top,” the speaker continued. “Each of these branches remembers, I would say. All the choices you made, all the paths you didn’t take, all those you ruined—it remembers, so climb carefully.”
He paused again, like he wanted to allow his words a second to sink in.
“Before, you made it to the top. Today, you will begin at the crown of the Tree of Years, and to unwin, you must descend.”
A vertical maze—how strange. The Tree of Years looked menacing all on its own, and the tower hugging its side made it even darker.
“Choose where to step, and choose what to abandon,” the speaker said. “And most importantly—make sure to fall carefully.”
Another round of applause.
My name was being called again. I swallowed the bile rising in my throat and looked at the others one more time, then around. The queens weren’t there that we could see, though the speaker had addressed them. They would be on the other side of the forest, most probably, watching the projections. I had the feeling it was because the White Queen didn’t want us to see her, ask her questions.
Unless she’d spoken to the Red Queen about our dreams, andshe’ddecided not to be seen near us…
Elida stood alone at the beginning of the row, near Russ, smiling forcefully, giving us her thumbs up as if she were hoping to calm us down.
Then a loud bell rang somewhere at the very top of the Tree of Years.
“Gather up, brave Hands! We’re goingup-up-up!” the speaker shouted, and the crowd lost their minds screaming, and Elida waved for us to move toward the structure—the vertical maze that we had to descend.
Sweat on my brow. Soldiers around us. Nobody offered us any weapons, only rushed us to the side of the tree where there was a hole the size of a monster’s mouth. We had to enter it, and it was just at the edge where the blocks of the tower began.
The inside was darker than it had been out there, even though the walls of the round hall were full of torches and lanterns. There was no ceiling, like the tower went on forever, and in the middle of it extended a single chain as thick as the width of my hips.
It was attached to the top of a cage in the middle of the room.
“There—quick! Get in there. You’ll be up in no time,” Elida said, while four soldiers wearing silver armor went to pull the bars on the side of the cage open. They looked heavy, judging by how hard they strained and how much they flinched, but the cage opened.
A cage with bars as thick as my arms, barely big enough to fit us all in.
“Keep your eyes about you. Keep your focus sharp. Remember what we learned, okay? Remember your training,” Elida said, standing right there by the opening as if she couldn’t wait to get out already. Her eyes were wide and her face slick with sweat. Her smile would have scared me any other day, but I was scared enough already. Terrified.
Our legs moved. We had no choice but to step into the cage. Mimi’s eyes were full of tears. Helen’s hands were shaking so badly she kept trying to pull her very fingers off.
The soldiers pushed the bars closed and the sound of it when they fell in place was so final. So horrific.
Someone screamed.
“See you on the other side!” Elida called and slipped outside without hesitation.
The soldiers nodded their heads at us once, then followed.
