‘You will not die here, girl from the islands,’ he says. ‘Not today.’
‘Why are you helping me?’ I manage, standing to face him.
‘Because you were born for more than this. You have not come this far to die for the entertainment of a crowd, or your rulers’ pleasure.’
‘Thank you,’ I say, clasping his fist in mine.
He eyes me carefully and I can only just hear him over the sounds of the crowd. ‘Sember Lockswift spoke to Fey and me. We see what your rulers are, what they are capable of. We will stand with you against tyranny. But we must be careful. If it seems as though we are helping you, this may affect your friend …’
I blow out a breath and nod. So Sember is gathering allies. ‘Thank you. Truly. Just help me find Kell. We can split up, draw less attention. Help us to stay alive so that—’
But my words are snatched away by an almighty crack as the wither beast breaks through the door behind us. Soturi whips out an arrow, firing it faster than I can see, but it’s not enough. The wither beast rakes at the ground, releasing a deafening roar, and Soturi presses the handle of a blade into my hand. ‘Fight with me.’
I don’t need asking twice. With a weapon in my fist, I circle as far to the left as the space allows, as Soturi distracts the wither beast, firing arrows into its flank. As it readies to charge, blood dribbling down its sides, I leap for it. The beast is still focused on Soturi and his arrows as I scramble up its side. It starts to buck as it realises what I’ve done, but I don’t give it time to throw me off. Angling the blade, I slam it into its skull, driving down with a roar. It bucks again and I’m afraid I’ve just enraged it further, fists still wrapped round the handle of the blade, embedded in its skull. But then it groans, tilting to one side, and collapses to the ground. I leap away just in time, landing awkwardly on my feet. My ankle twists painfully and I gasp, but I can’t give in to it. I have to keep moving. I have to stay alive. Suddenly I’m aware of the crowd, half cheering, half disappointed that the fight between us and the creature is over.
‘Soturi, it’s dead,’ I breathe, tugging the blade free from the wither beast’s skull. But when I look down, I find Soturi on the ground beneath it. ‘Soturi?’
He grunts and I slip round the wither beast’s lifeless form, kneeling beside him. My heart stops when I see the blood. A gash, right along his side, bleeding freely.
Fast footfalls sound and I look up to see Kell rounding the corner. Relief spreads across his features as he sees me, then turns to horror as his gaze lands first on the wither beast, then on Soturi. ‘Is he dead?’
I shake my head, then swallow. Blood trickles down to my fingertips and I look at my arm, vaguely surprised to find a cut down the length of my bicep. It’s long, but shallow, and as I look at it, I feel the first thumps of pain, like a second aching pulse. ‘He defended me. Saved me. He said they spoke to Sember. That they’re with us.’ My voice cracks on the last word and I look down at Soturi.
Kell swears, kneeling on his other side, assessing him quickly. ‘Soturi, can you stand?’
‘I don’t …’ He blinks quickly, features turning pallid. ‘I will try.’
Kell shrugs out of his shirt, using it to bind the wound as best he can, but the blood blooms over it almost instantly. We get on each side of Soturi, pulling his legs from beneath the wither beast. He winces but stays silent, and we help him stumble up to stand. He staggers forward, features pinched and pale, and I think in that moment he’s the bravest person, the calmest person I’ve ever met. And I don’t want him to die.
‘We need to find Fey,’ he grunts. ‘Help me …’
‘Of course,’ I say, still bracing him. We hear a distant scream and I bite my lip. ‘Let’s get a move on.’
Staggering through the maze of walls, we find ourselves in a larger space, many doors leading off it.There’s a click as one of the doors opens, and Kell’s magic ignites in his palm, focused on what might be coming through. I grip my blade harder, ready to defend all of us.
‘Oh, a welcome party,’ Sember says, as the door snicks open and she walks towards us. If anything, she looks almost bored, but I don’t miss how her gaze falters when it lands on Soturi’s side. ‘Well, hurry up. I’ve been looking for you.’
I frown, not believing what I’m seeing. ‘How did you just open that door?’
She smiles, flicking back a strand of her hair. ‘Nowthat’sa bit of a secret, I’m afraid. Can you manage him? He’s not looking too good.’
‘I found them. I kept my word,’ Soturi grates out.
Sember nods. ‘And kept them alive. Well, come on, places to be and all that.’
She turns back to the door, beckoning to us to follow. When we’re through, she turns back, hiding what she’s doing, but the door clicks again, as though locked. Then she’s off, scouting ahead, opening and closing doors as Soturi slowly gets heavier and heavier, slumping further against me and Kell. I can’t figure out how she’s manipulating the maze like that, but there’s no time to watch closely.
When I’m sure I can’t drag Soturi another step, she ushers us through a final door, and I look up, to the rows of crowd above the great door that leads throughthe tunnel, out of the maze. Heath is waiting there, arms crossed, staring at us. ‘Took your time.’
‘Apologies, Your Royal Pain-in-the-arse-ness,’ Sember says, hands on hips. ‘Sorry I was a bit late ensuring the survival of ourallies.’
‘It’s us that owe you in this Trial,’ Kell says. ‘Not that I’m not grateful, but why help us? And in a Trial, in front of a whole crowd?’
‘You could have taken victory easily like you wanted. You didn’t need to save us…’ I say.
‘It’s simple really,’ Sember says, growing suddenly serious. ‘The ruling council want to block the use of the Straits. They want to control the flow of merchant goods and therefore the wealth. Skylan will be crippled and Leicena could turn on us. It’ll mean all-out war across the continent. None of us want that. Not even the people of the Spines.’
‘But if I die they can’t block the Straits,’ I say quietly to her.
