Page 89 of Lost and Stolen Gods
Araz wasn’t here.
I was on my own.
The crowd fell silent as Dharma took position at the log. She crouched for a moment, fingertips grazing the wooden platform, her gaze on the path ahead, focused and intense.
I’d watched her complete this course twice now. The woman was an athlete. She was born for this. She stood slowly, thighs bunching. I held my breath, heart pounding as she tucked in her chin and broke into a sprint.
There was no hesitation, no drop in speed as she crossed the log. She leapt to avoid the slip spot, landing on the next platform and barely touching down before launching herself into the spike run. Damn, she was setting the bar high.
The frame with the snakes came next, and here shetook a breather to study the vines before leaping up to grab the frame and begin swinging across. She altered trajectory a couple of times but made it across without incident. I lost view of her then as the gauntlet curved away from us, but I heard Chaya yelling encouragement and the roars of the seasoned demigods that had come to watch.
“Dammit, they should give us a better view,” Priti said.
I flexed my sweaty palms and took a couple of deep breaths. A collective roar of triumph filled the air.
“I think she did it,” Priti said. “There!” I spotted Dharma running toward us, soaking wet and grinning.
Priti rushed forward to hug her. “You did it!”
“You can too,” Dharma said. “You guys have got this. Watch out at the pedestals, though. They move.”
“Dharma,” Chaya called out from the other side of the main platform. “We’re not supposed to be on this side of the gauntlet. Come.”
Dharma blew us a kiss then followed Chaya across the arena and out of view.
“Next potential please,” Guru Chandra called.
“Wish me luck,” Priti said before jogging up to the ladder.
I blinked to clear the sudden blur in my vision as Priti took her place on the platform above.
She rocked back and forth on her heels, then set off. Like Dharma, she made it easily to the vine frame,where she stopped to assess before leaping up and swinging across effortlessly.
My chest grew tight, and I massaged it with my knuckles.
“You okay, chick?” Blue asked.
“Indigestion. I don’t think the porridge agreed with me. I’ll be fine.” The burning in my chest abated a little, and I wiped my sweaty palms on my trousers.
The crowed roared again. Priti must be close to finishing. Someone screamed and the crowd began to buzz.
“An excellent effort,” Guru Chandra said. “Next!”
Wait, did that mean Priti hadn’t made it all the way across? Shit.
Blue tugged on my hair. “Leela, ya next. I’ll see you on the other side.” He scampered down my arm then leapt to the ground. “You’ve got this!”
I could feel the eyes on me as I climbed the ladder and took to the platform.
Center of attention, the worst place to be.
Just block it out, Leela. It’s you and the gauntlet.
My stomach rolled, and I breathed to calm it, channelling my focus onto the beast I needed to tame.
I’d beat it in dummy form, I could beat it now.
The whir of the log filled my head, the sound familiar and almost comforting.
