Page 5 of Ironhold: Trial Five

And still, I have no choice.

I'm forced to follow a trainer upthrough the fortress. Ironhold is a place of granite walls and flickeringtorches, in contrast to the beautiful marble of the city below. It seemsdesigned at every step to remind us that we are captives here, held in by thegreat walls, patrolled by soldiers who have their own glimmers of power.

Fear builds in me as the trainerleads me through the interior of the fortress. The last time a patron paid tosee me, it was because she wanted to hurt me. Ravenna’s mother had decided totake his revenge for me killing her in the arena. She is dead now, but there'snothing stopping another patron from being as cruel, or worse.

I am led to a large, mostly emptyroom in one of the higher parts of the fortress, where there is a single couch.I steel myself for the sight of whoever will be there waiting for me, and I'msurprised to find that it's a familiar figure: a woman in her forties, her darkhair pinned in place by a golden comb, wearing a white dress trimmed with moregold.

“Lady Elara,” I exclaim as I stepinto the room. The trainer shuts the door behind us, and Lady Elara sweeps meup in a hug. I suspect that's for the benefit of the trainer if he tries tosneak a last glimpse of us. The noble woman has long put out the rumor that shebecame my patron only because she was infatuated with me, and that she hadtaken me as her lover.

It is a rumor that makes her look alittle weak to the other nobles, ruled by her emotions. But it serves todisguise the real nature of the connection between us: that she is a fellowbeast whisperer, the head of an organization dedicated to protecting them frompersecution within the empire: the spectral covenant.

“We must be careful what we say,”she whispers to me. “I would have brought you to my home, but there are limitsto what I can do at the moment. If I come to you, it looks like I simply can'tkeep away. If I bring you to me, I'm making a more formal claim of patronage.”

“Would that be such a bad thingnow?” I ask. “I am without a patron, and the emperor has put aside his claim onme.”

“Tiberius is jealous,” Lady Elarasays. “If he sees me claim you as mine again, he may prevent it just to spiteme, or you.”

“You think he cares enough about mefor that?” I ask.

“Consider who he sent you as yourlast patron,” Lady Elara says. “The mother of a gladiator you killed? He thinksyou're safe enough with that dampener on your wrist, but that doesn't mean he'sgoing to be kind to you. He will allow me this much, I think. Maybe more. Iwill think on it.”

“Why did you come here?” I ask,still staying close to her, still whispering. I have no doubt that the guardslisten. It means we must be careful. Besides me being this close shows themwhat they expect to see.

“I came to tell you that the timeis almost right for the rebellion.”

She's risking a lot just bywhispering those words here. It's unlikely she will be overheard, but ifsomeone does, the words will implicate her in treason. Noble or not, she willnot survive such a thing.

“You've been telling me that arebellion is coming for a while. I'm still not sure I want to take part insomething like that.”

She has assumed that I will standagainst the emperor because of what I am, that I will do what she wants, butI’m not sure if I can risk it.

“Don't you hate him?” She demands.“Don't you hate the whole system of Aetheria?”

I can't deny that, but it doesn'tmean I share her priorities. "At the moment, I'm focused on getting myfreedom and getting Alaric safe."

“Then you aren't thinking bigenough,” Lady Elara replies. “This isn't just about the two of you but aboutevery beast whisperer in the empire. People will rise up. They're ready to cometogether, but they need the right symbol. They need you.”

“And what do you want me to do?” Iask. “What exactly would my role be in all of this?”

“For one thing, I want you to rallythe gladiators to our cause,” she says. “They are held here, but they are someof the most powerful warriors in the empire, at the peak of their training andconditioning. Your guards can hold one or two of you in if you try to escape,but if you all act together…”

“You're acting as if I could evenpersuade them,” I say. “As if it would be easy to just get them all to do whatI wanted. Most of them here are afraid of me, or hate me or both. Isn't itbetter to wait? One more season, and I will be free.”

“Free to do what?” Lady Elara asks.She looks at me carefully. “What do you think will happen when,if, youearn your freedom? Do you think the emperor will just hand over Alaric? Do youthink that you will be safe as a beast whisperer out in Aetheria? Currently,you are protected by being in the games, but the moment you're out there in theworld, the emperor and his cronies will try to kill you.”

“If you haven't noticed, peoplehave been trying to kill me anyway,” I snap back. Throughout my time atIronhold, I have been handed difficult matchups, designed to test me to mylimits, or just to kill me outright. Last season, an assassin got into Ironholdspecifically to target me. The idea that I'm safe here is ludicrous.

“But they can't just have youkilled directly,” Lady Elara says. “The emperor can give you difficult matchupsbut he can't just order you executed. Out in the world… he could just decide tosend a squad of soldiers to murder you. And you wouldn't be in a position toaffect things as easily. You would be outside, the way I am, not able to talkto people easily. You must use your one chance to persuade people here to joinus.”

I wish it were that easy. I'm noteven sure that I'm a part of her rebellion. She has taught me much about whatit means to be a beast whisperer, but I never signed up to stage a coup.Especially not the kind of bloody rebellion she seems to want. My goal hasalways been to survive and become free.

“Think about it, that's all I'masking,” Lady Elara says. “If we change things you will be free anyway, and youwill get a chance for revenge on all those who have put you here. If you stayhere and try to work within the system, it will swallow you whole.”

She steps back from me, heading forthe door. “Please just think about it.”

I know I will be able to do littleelse, but I’m still not sure if I can give her the commitment, or the answers,she wants. I must focus on my own freedom, on Alaric’s, and on the games thatare coming up.

Chapter Three

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