Page 71 of Run of Ruin

“I wish I did,” he said, voice low. “It’s… a brutal one.”

I gave a small nod. I didn’t want to put him at risk. Even wanting to ask feltselfish.

“Can you tell me anything?” I probed.

He nodded. “You’re not gonna like it.”

“Of course I’m not,” I answered, trying to hide the fear in my tone.

“They intend to take advantage of the pairs of Challengers that are still in the Run,” he said. And when he noticed the confusion on my face he clarified, “You and Ezra will be partnering for this trial.”

Okay. That didn’t seem too bad. But there were only fifteen of us left. A few Collectives had already lost Challengers.

“Some Collective’s don’t have two Challengers anymore,” I pointed out. The color drained from his face.

“I know,” he said quietly.

And in that instant, I knew this trial was going to take a particularly rough toll.

“We’ll be okay,” I answered. Not surprised that I meant it. Ezra and I were a good team, I trusted him and if we needed to work together to make it through this trial, I knew we could do it. I also knew Briar and Thorne had been having each other’s backs since birth, so they would no doubt be able to handle anything the Architects threw at us, too.

“Yeah,” he smiled softly. “You will.”

He tapped something on his screen, hesitated for a moment, then stood.

“I need to hit the restroom before we leave,” he announced a little too loudly, performing for whatever unseen eyes might be watching. Then he slipped away, leaving the screen open on the counter.

I frowned after him. Was that intentional?

Curiosity pulled me around the counter, and I glanced at the display. A mess of images, parts of something I didn’t recognize, tubes, hoses and nozzles that meant nothing to me.My stomach twisted. Maybe I’d imagined the moment. Maybe he wasn’t trying to tell me anything at all. And now I was being nosey.

I shook my head and turned toward the door. The transport would be arriving soon. And whatever waited for us out there, it wouldn’t care whether I was ready or not.

Nova arrived, with all her effervescent and bone-chilling tenacity. She handed each of us a bag with our wardrobe for the trial. Skin-tight wetsuits, a dead giveaway that water was going to be involved in whatever was coming. Then the four of us were separated into two different vehicles. Ezra and I in one, and Thorne and Briar took the other.

We pulled up to a sprawling warehouse, its massive structure stretching for what felt like miles in every direction. Endless corridors and towering walls blurred past the windows as the transport carried us to the front entrance.

Cameras were already in place, Zaffir among them, and a crowd of eager fans had gathered, their cheers rising in a wave as Ezra and I stepped from the vehicle. Their excitement felt electric, but all I could think about was what kind of hell waited for us inside.

I searched the area for the other Challengers but saw no one as we were led through the doors and into a windowless room. Zaffir trailed behind, camera in hand, recording every tense step as the door shut firmly behind us.

The room was empty, no props, no clues, nothing but the door we’d come through and another one straight ahead. A single, ominous exit. The air felt heavy with anticipation.

Another trial, another nightmare.

A crackle over a hidden speaker cut through the heavy silence of the room.

“Welcome, Challengers,” came the sickly-sweet voice of Annalese Wyley, the ever-cheerful host of this nightmare. Hervoice echoed from somewhere overhead, far too chipper for what we knew was coming. “Who’s ready for the next trial?”

Silence. Not a single one of us gave her the satisfaction of a response.

“Today’s challenge is for water filtration systems,” she continued brightly. “As all members of the Collectives know, clean drinking water is vital to the survival of a functioning society.”

Especially in the desert. I stole a glance at Ezra, who gave me a stiff, terse nod. We both knew how important this one was, how it could mean life or death for our people back home.

“Beneath your feet,” Annalese went on, “runs miles of submerged tunnels and canals. Hidden within those flooded passages, you’ll find the scattered components of a water filtration system. Your goal is to collect the correct pieces and assemble the system before your partner is submerged in water.”

The blood drained from my face. My lungs tightened.

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