Off Balance Page 20

  The man took a few limping running steps.

  His legs moved in slow motion as if he were running on air, but then he started to fall.

  Air rushed out of my lungs as he hit the wall halfway down. He screamed as he scrambled to grab onto one of the knives. One of the spikes had stabbed into his palm. Another his leg. He was going to have to pull his leg and hand from the wall if he wanted to climb it.

  Blood dripped down his leg as he hung there screaming.

  And no one helped him.

  Blood ran down his arm. Shit. I hadn’t seen that he’d been sliced there, too.

  The acid hissed and splattered when the blood hit the surface. The man was writhing in pain, but still, no one had come to help him.

  He was going to bleed out or fall into the acid, and I wasn’t sure which would be worse.

  “End this,” I said to no one in particular.

  “We can’t,” Eshrin said. “Not until he gives up. He has to say the words.”

  “He’s done. Everyone can see it. End it before he dies. Tell—”

  “He has to know it.” Eshrin looked at me then. “Otherwise, he’ll think he was cheated. Each Aunare only has one shot at this, if they even get this far. If we tell him he’s done before he surrenders, he’ll feel cheated the rest of his life.”

  “If that were you out there?”

  “I trained for years before I could try for a spot in the royal armed forces, and having been through it, I know that if at any point someone had said enough, I wouldn’t have listened. I would’ve felt the same. So, give him a moment to acknowledge and accept his defeat. It will be better for him in the long run.”

  I got that in theory—it sounded real nice—but the man was injured. Clearly, he wasn’t thinking straight. When someone was in that much pain and used to fighting for something, all rational thought was gone. He only saw the end goal.

  He was only seeing win or die. He wasn’t seeing giving up as an option.

  I knew because I’d been there before. On the surface of Abaddon with the heat from the lava cooking me from the outside in. On Apollyon with my brain bleeding out of my ears. Giving up never crossed my mind.

  I turned my back on the center of the arena. I couldn’t watch. I wouldn’t watch.

  The contestant yelled again, and this time it was different. This time it was the sound of someone who knew he was going to die.

  I spun back to the action. There was a trail of blood where he’d climbed up the wall, but now he’d fallen lower than he’d been before. He was barely hanging on now. The zoomed-in holo showed the fear and pain on his face, but he hadn’t given up yet.

  Why hadn’t he given up yet? He had to know he was done. “They’ve got to stop him.”

  “That’s not how this works,” Declan said. “As soon as he decides he’s done, they’ll come to help him. It might look bad, but a day in a healing pod, and he’ll be fine.”

  I watched the zoomed-in holo. Ulshan was hanging on with everything he had, but he was sweating, and his hands were bloody, and there was only a matter of time before he slipped. But the look on his face…he wasn’t giving up until he was dead. I knew it. I saw it.

  He wasn’t going to be fine. He wasn’t going to get the chance to be in a healing pod if someone didn’t do something.

  If it was the Aunare way to stand back while someone suffered, then I guessed they weren’t ever going to approve of me. That just wasn’t how I worked.

  “Sorry.” I wasn’t sure who I was talking to—Eshrin because this might get him into all kinds of trouble, Declan because this would piss him off, or Roan because he was going to be really annoyed at me.

  “Oh shit. Don’t!” Roan knew how my mind worked. “Don’t you dare—”

  But he was too late. My mind was made up. I knew what I was going to do, and no one was going to stop me.

  I threw my legs over the edge of the window and jumped.

  I landed hard enough to rattle my teeth—the smooth surface of the arena floor had no give to it—and took off running toward the right side of the arena floor, where the stairs up to the first platform started.

  I heard Eshrin land behind me, but I was faster. He was yelling at me to stop, but I ignored him. I knew I was faster. I’d seen his fao’ana for speed. Three thick waves and one thinner. I had five thick waves. I would always be faster.

  More guards thudded to the floor, but I didn’t look to see who was following me. All I knew was I needed to get to Ulshan before he died.

  There were excited shouts from the arena, and the announcer was yelling, but I blocked it out. I blocked out all sounds until all I could hear was the sound of my own breathing. I didn’t like being in front of such a massive audience, but I hated watching someone die.

  All the stages were hovering platforms, twenty feet above the ground. The only way I could get to him was through the course. So, that’s what I’d do.

  I took the steps up to the first stage two at a time, not pausing before running at the water wall. It was taller than I’d thought. A lot taller—but I didn’t think about that. It needed speed and momentum, and I had more than enough. I jumped with everything I had.

  I felt my skin tingle as it lit from within, and my fao’ana blazed.

  I didn’t quite make it, but close enough to grab the top and make one giant frog-hop to land on the top.

  Done.

  I jumped down to the platform below and watched the square of fire puff in and out, in and out, in and out.

  I went to the back of the water wall and stuck my feet in the spray. If I could keep my feet from catching fire, I would.

  I walked to the edge of the next platform and watched the cube of fire form and dissipate. There and gone. Fire cube and empty space.

  Sweat beaded along my hairline and rolled down my face where I brushed it away. I didn’t want to get burned. I never wanted to smell the stench of my own skin burning ever again. Not ever again. But the man screamed, and I knew I had to hurry. I had seconds, maybe less, to get to him.

  There had to be a trick to getting through it. Declan had mentioned that the challenger’s attunement to frequencies was low—too low to pass this test. Which meant that had to come into play somewhere. I knew that I was very sensitive to frequencies—something I’d assumed was an Aunare trait—but Jesmesha said I was extremely sensitive for an Aunare.

  I could do this.

  I would do this.

  Ulshan let out another scream, but this one was half-cry. It sounded like he was giving up on life. The crowd gasped, and I knew I didn’t have a lot of time left.

  I closed my eyes and ignored his screams. I needed to take my time, yet move as quickly as possible.

  Heat whooshed against my face. Held for five seconds. Gone for two. Back for three. Gone for eight. Back—

  I felt it. A low-frequency shift. There was a hum coming from the fire that lowered right before the heat went away. When it was about to be turned off for the longest span that I’d noticed—five seconds—the devices emitted a deep, low mm-mm-mmmmm tone. I could feel the frequency’s vibration lightly brushing along my skin.

  Okay. I really could do this.

  I waited until I heard the low tone with the right rhythm. I was running before the last beat of the hum, and I jumped with my eyes closed, hurling myself at the hovering cube of fire, praying that I didn’t burn alive again.

  Please, don’t let me burn.

  Chapter Sixteen

  AMIHANNA

  Air whipped along my skin. No fire. No burning. Just heat-kissed air.

  My feet hit the ground on the next platform, and I had a moment to breathe before a cheer came from the arena.

  I barely felt the hum of the frequency shift as the fire whooshed on again. Heat rose along my back, but I’d made it through. I hadn’t been burned.

  My blouse was wet from the water wall, so I stripped it off, leaving me in my tank. A hush fell over the arena. It took me a second to realize why. My skin wa
s bright, and my fao’ana weren’t faint flickering outlines anymore. I looked up to see my own zoomed-in form on the holo above me with the swirling Aunare script beside it.

  The announcer’s holo head popped in to say a few things, but this time he wasn’t booming with his opinions. It was almost as if he was muttering it to himself instead of talking to an arena full of people.

  Maybe I should’ve left the shirt on, but it was too late to do anything about it. I toed off my soaked shoes. Now that I was through the fire part, they were heavy, and I didn’t want the sloshy feeling of them to slow me down.

  “Be careful!” Declan’s voice was easy to hear in the quiet arena.

  I walked to the edge of the platform and looked down. Roan, Declan, and Ahiga were standing together on the ground below the platforms. They seemed to be enjoying the show. Eshrin and his men were next to them all glowing and looking mighty pissed off.

  I gave him a sarcastic salute and turned back to the next platform where Ulshan was hanging. Except as I stood at the edge of the platform, I noticed there were a few things that could make this stage of the test a quick yet excruciating death.

  The wall was taller than I’d thought. It was at least a good twenty-five feet high instead of fifteen like the water wall. Which meant it would be harder to hit the top, and I’d probably get cut up by the razors and knives. Soon it wouldn’t be just Ulshan’s blood on the wall.

  It was also farther away than I’d thought. If I couldn’t get across the thirty or so feet from the platform to the wall, then I wouldn’t just splat on the arena floor. Nope. I’d land in a bubbling pool of acid.

  So, I had to jump higher and farther than I ever had before.

  And if those things weren’t enough, there was one more thing that could screw me over. Something made the air feel thick. It started about five feet from the edge of the platform and got worse with each step closer to the edge. I jumped up and down a few times, and it was as if I were moving through water. Whatever it was made me worse than Earther slow. That wasn’t what I wanted when I needed speed to get me over the acid pool.

  Ulshan was watching me with wide eyes. He wasn’t screaming anymore. He wasn’t showing any outward signs of pain now. If anything, the way his skin was glowing as he scowled at me told me everything I needed to know. This man wasn’t about to thank me for rescuing him. No. He wanted me to leave him the fuck alone.

  So, how was I supposed to get him down?

  I wasn’t going to be able to drag him up that wall. Not if he didn’t want to go. And I didn’t have a rope to drop down to him.

  Damn it. I really hadn’t thought this through. I’d heard his screams, and I reacted, but now what?

  He had to agree to give up.

  “Declan!” I yelled down to him. “Tell him that he doesn’t need to die. That every planet needs decent and brave cops. That stopping now doesn’t mean he’s a failure.”

  Declan didn’t hesitate to translate for me. I watched Ulshan as Declan spoke. He shook his head slowly and spoke a few harsh words.

  I wasn’t sure I’d like whatever he said. I looked down at Declan again as I waited for the translation.

  “He’d rather die than fail,” Declan said.

  There was no way I’d be able to talk him off the wall. “Fine.” Then I would do this the hard way.

  But how?

  The announcer said something, and I heard my name mixed in his words. I ignored him as I watched the man on the wall.

  What was I going to do?

  I needed a rope. If I could—

  The announcer said my name louder this time, and I looked up at his oversized holo head. I had no idea what he was saying, and I wasn’t sure I had time for it either.

  I went to the edge of the platform and squatted down. “Can you guys get me some rope?”

  Eshrin was messaging someone on his wrist unit, but he stopped to look up at me. “No. He doesn’t want you to get him. Jump down now before you get hurt.” He looked down at his flashing wrist unit, and his skin flared brighter.

  “I’m fine.” That wasn’t what I was worried about. I knew I’d probably be able to get over the wall if it was just me, but I needed to get Ulshan off the wall before he fell.

  The announcer’s holo head lowered to hover in front of my face, blocking my view of the arena floor. His long, white hair was woven into two intricate braids. His eyes were clover-green, and his tone sounded annoyed. I guessed he wasn’t used to being ignored, but I hadn’t a clue what he was saying.

  “I don’t speak Aunare. I only know a few words,” I said to the hovering holo head. Swirling Aunare captions rose above my head as if someone was writing them out in glowing bronze. “So, if you want to tell me something, you’re going to need a translator. Earther English or Spanish only. And maybe move away from me a little. It’s kind of weird talking to a head that’s taller than me.”

  There was a hush in the arena. I hadn’t given any interviews. The Aunare had only seen me in the released footage from Abaddon and the replays of my lovely encounter with the king.

  “You speak perfect Aunare. I interviewed you as a child.” His heavily accented Earther English was good for someone who probably hadn’t used it much.

  A lot of the information about my time on Earth hadn’t been released. The staff knew I didn’t speak their language, but part of their job was to keep my secrets. What happened at the estate stayed private.

  What would the Aunare think if I told them the truth?

  “Tell them!” Roan yelled at me.

  The head moved up, and I could see Roan below again. Ahiga and Declan nodded their agreement, and then I looked at Eshrin.

  “They need to see you. To understand,” Eshrin shouted at me. “Just don’t die up there. I don’t want to get fired.”

  I laughed, and a second later, more laughter filled the arena as Eshrin’s words were translated in the glowing font.

  The holo head lowered just a little. “How do you not know our language?”

  I didn’t want to tell the story, but I wasn’t ashamed of it. But still, I wasn’t sure I wanted to tell anyone. I liked having my privacy.

  Ulshan screamed. He was slipping farther down. His face was pale, and the glow to his skin had faded to nothing.

  I moved to the edge of the platform and tried to figure out how I could help him, but the announcer’s head lowered in front of me again, blocking my view.

  “You want to help him?” the announcer asked.

  “I’ve watched a lot of people executed in arenas. Letting him die here like this without doing anything to help him, that’s not an execution exactly, but the result is the same. He’ll die. I can’t let anyone die like this.”

  “And if he wants to die?” He asked me frankly as if daring me to give him some sort of emotional response.

  I wasn’t playing the announcer’s games. “Then he needs counseling because he’s not thinking straight,” I said, using the same frank tone the announcer used with me.

  “Well, then, I have a proposition for you.”

  The announcer had my full attention now. “Go ahead.”

  “You agree to finish this course, and I’ll break centuries of tradition and save him. But you have to run this course in his place.”

  A cry rose up from the crowd, and I wasn’t sure if they liked this idea or not.

  “You’re Amihanna di Aetes,” Eshrin yelled up to me once the crowd quieted. “All you have to do is order it, and it’ll be done.”

  “And you didn’t tell me this before I jumped up here?” I shot a look at Eshrin, who shrugged.

  “I didn’t know you were going to do anything crazy for the man. Otherwise, I would’ve said something. You didn’t technically order me to do anything. You asked.” Eshrin’s fao’ana flashed brighter for a second, before dimming.

  “You could order it.” The announcer drew out his words slowly as if he were building up to something. His holo head rose, almost brushing the ceiling of the
arena. “But you’ve made it through two stages. There are three left. This phase. One more. And then a battle. If you decide to take me up on my offer, then the blame for breaking tradition is on my head. And you’ll be free to prove to everyone you’re worthy of ruling. After all, every ruler has to pass this test.” He raised an eyebrow as he looked down at me, daring me to finish the test. “Lorne took it when he turned twenty, and I believe your birthday just passed.”

  “It did.” But Lorne hadn’t said a word about me taking any tests to prove my worth.

  “So, you’re eligible. Why not let me take the blame for Ulshan while you prove your worth and maybe answer some questions? Let the Aunare get to know you. This is a good deal. No? Show us who you are. Show us why you deserve your betrothal to Lorne. Show us why you should rule us all.”

  I wasn’t sure about the last one, or really the one before that, but I knew Lorne believed both of them. I’d agreed to stay on Sel’Ani, and that meant giving this whole being Aunare thing a shot.

  “You haven’t trained for this! You haven’t taken any of the tests to make sure that you’re ready for this final phase. You’ll get yourself killed!” Eshrin sounded seriously pissed, but I didn’t look down at him again.

  I’d gotten through the first couple of stages without a problem. I had no clue what the other three would be like, but I’d faced a lot of battles in my life, and I was still here. Still fighting. Still breathing. And it wasn’t really life or death because I could tap out.

  Screw it. “Fine.” I shrugged. “You got yourself a deal. Get him down.”

  The man yelled as he pushed away from the wall, diving headfirst toward the pool of acid.

  A grid of crisscrossing lasers turned on just above the pool, and I had a moment to scream before the grid caught Ulshan.

  It wasn’t a grid of lasers at all. It was a glowing net.

  It took a second for me to catch my breath, but everything happened so fast.

  Emergency ships with flashing lights and open roofs shot out from a door at the bottom of the arena, stopping just beside the man. The medics spoke to him, reaching their hands down to pull him into the ship, but Ulshan yelled at them.