Page 33 of The Song of Sunrise
Our stares clash for a painfully long pause. I do not break eye contact but rise to the challenge. I am used to being looked at or watched. I’ve been the recipient of much worse looks and jeers as a female Prentice Teller.
This is no different. I will not give this man the satisfaction of looking away from his depthless eyes.
At last, Markus breaks away and addresses the Commander. “Begin at once, Commander. I want all cadets training on the course to prepare for our finals.” Markus pivots and walks toward the hatch, Elders Burroughs and Hightail following afterwards.
“You heard ‘em!” Commander Hogsmith says. “Form two lines in front of the course.”
In a flurry, we all run toward the course, past archery stations and hanging weighted bags, racing to get the best spot. Ramona, Leaf, Castor, and I end up in the middle.
Sabra pushes aside two other cadets to secure her spot as first in line. Violence radiates off of her. Artemis, the smallest cadet besides myself, is a few spots in front of us. Selene and the twins, Leo and Lacerta, are in the back.
“Ready yourselves!” The Commander raises his hand.
“Wait, you aren't going to explain it first?” the golden-skinned woman, who glared at me when I was next to Castor earlier, asks loudly.
“No Vega. Let’s see if a legacy Falling Eagle can live up to its name without any insight first,” he addresses her.
A Legacy. She must be from a long line of Watchers to be considered a legacy cadet, like Ramona. I store that piece of information to dissect later. Even now, her eyes find Castor’s large shadow behind me. Maybe she and Castor have history together? I have nothing to be jealous of, and yet my jaw clenches tightly.
Hogsmith sighs overtly and continues to explain. “Wait until the person ahead of you finishes or fails and swims out. Then you can give it a try. We have time for each of you to try to cross once.”
“Oh Goddess, did he say swim?” I whisper to Ramona frantically. She looks at me incredulously.
“Yeah, look.” She points. The series of obstacles is suspended over a large, dark pool.
Oh no. No, no no. This cannot be happening.
“GO!” Hogsmith bellows.
Sabra makes a running jump onto a small series of square planks, barely large enough for half a foot to take hold. She hops effortlessly side to side, making it past the first section. A long, circular barrel spins and bobs in the water. Sabra jumps across three of them with ease, somehow managing to balance long enough to reach the ropes tied above in a geometric web. She hooks her feet and crawls upside down across the net like a spider.
There is no way I’m going to make it. I can barely pull myself up onto my bunk—I don’t remotely have the arm strength to make it across that net.
Sabra drops down to face the next section of the course, a floating beam of wood the same width as a foot. All of the cadets watch, taking notes of her technique as she balances across, arms out on either side. She is halfway across the beam when theswoosh of a spiked rod swings in front of her. She wobbles, but recovers.
I let out a shaky breath and shake my sweating palms.
Another rod swings, and this time its aim is true, knocking Sabra off the beam and into the water below. She curses as she splashes.
“Next!” the commander signals.
My stomach turns and flips. There has to be another way to make it into the Presentation. I want to—no,needto—become a champion. Win the protection stone for Goldenpine and other suffering Midland villages. Then there are the nomads. If the Elders don’t believe in helping them, then who will?
After a few minutes of watching more and more cadets splash into the water, I am next in line. At this point, I’m trying all I can to keep the bile in my stomach at bay and my legs from quivering, though neither effort is working as well as I’d prefer.
The Commander bellows, “Go!”
I freeze.
“At once!” he adds.
I can’t do this.
My whole body is locked up. My eyes are fixed on the first small foothold jutting out from the murky water. All I can think about is the water lapping at my skin, pulling me down, filling my lungs just like four summers ago. When my so-called “friends” in Ashwood forced me to jump off a cliff into the Jaragon Sea. I almost died that day.
“CADET AKEMI, NOW!”
Hearing my name snaps me out of my stupor, and I leap toward the small foothold. I connect with the square only to slip on the wet surface. I flail, trying to find my balance, but that only makes it worse. My leg scrapes against the corner of the foothold as I fall.
