Page 18 of Wild Hunt
I finally crossed the finish line, followed immediately by Ingrid, and Daphne after her.
“You did it!” Daphne cried, grabbing me by the shoulders. My thoughts were still racing and none of it seemed real. It was impossible to believe I’d actually made it across the finish line, let alone done it first.
“Wedid it,” I breathed, still in a state of shock. “We won?”
As if answering my question, Artemis cried, “Kore wins first place! Ingrid’s second. The rest of you, just hope you do better at the next event.”
With that, she left the field and they watched as the other students milled about in their defeat. One girl with fire powers raised her hand to melt the ice, freeing the other students. A big jock shoved the kid who’d used his explosive powers to such great effect, reassuring me that there was no leaving hard feelings at the door when it came to the Games. Not even the preliminaries.
This time, the Valkyries weren’t the only ones glaring at me. It seemed that performing well in the Game was going to put even more of a target on my head than being the Rabbit had.
Whatever. If anyone had a problem with that, they could take it up with me on the field. I still didn’t know was coming next, and planned use every moment I had to catch my breath.
Dionysus came over to us, still panting even though his portion of the race had been done with minutes ago. “That was amazing,” he said, looking between us. “Both of you!”
I couldn’t help but smile, trying not to think about the fact that his praise meant more than winning. “Wish I’d thought of that earlier, but I guess it worked out. Any idea what’s next?”
“Probably disc throwing,” said Daphne.
I grimaced. “Okay, well, I’m definitely not winning that one.”
Daphne laughed. “Leave it to me.”
“Hey, what is your gift, anyway?” I asked. She was the one student who never used her power in class, at least as far as I knew.
Daphne winked. “You’ll just have to wait and find out.”
Chapter 10
Kore
When the time came, choosing Daphne as our team representative for the discus challenge was a no-brainer. She lined up with the others and I found myself watching in a combination of curiosity and anticipation to see what she was capable of.
She was up against Ingrid, who I knew would pull out all the stops. There were markers set up at every ten-yard line, and the goal was simple: throw as many discs as possible as far as possible. Then again, when you had magic powers in the mix, nothing was ever really simple, and when Artemis announced that the challenge had begun, it immediately became clear whose powers were suited for the task. I recognized the girl next to Daphne as Miriam from alchemy class, and her power of superhuman strength proved especially beneficial.
It didn't take long to realize what Daphne's power was. The gust of wind each time she threw one of her discs made it nearly impossible for the others around her to get a clear throw. Discs went flying everywhere, but hers sailed true, over the field as far as the eye could see. Miriam was the only one catching up, only because her powerful throws gave the discs too much momentum to be affected by the wind. Soon enough, the others stop trying.
Both competitors looked exhausted, but I could tell neither of them was giving up anytime soon. Artemis finally had to call time, and my heart pounded as we waited to see what the final result would be.
Artemis gave the command to her assistants to run out to measure the results. When they finally returned, they handed her two scrolls.
Artemis unrolled the first scroll, and her eyes widened, as if she was impressed with what she saw. It took a hell of a lot to do that. "Miriam came in with forty-nine discs at an average of one-thousand meters."
Dionysus and I exchanged a wary look. That was nothing short of amazing, and it was hard to imagine anything that could top that, despite the impressiveness of Daphne's performance. We watched with bated breath as Artemis unrolled the second scroll.
She looked up at Daphne, her eyes glimmering. "Daphne came in with fifty discs at an average of nine-hundred and eighty meters."
"What does that mean?" I asked eagerly. "Who won?"
"It's a tie," Artemis remarked. "You're equally matched competitors with slightly different strengths."
The crowd went wild. For a moment, there was so much electricity in the air, it almost felt like the actual Games were in progress. And for the first time, I actually had hope that we could win.
When Daphne came over to us, I dove to throw my arms around her. "You're amazing!" I cried.
She seemed surprised by the gesture, and even more by the praise.
"You really were," Dionysus agreed, grinning from ear to ear.
