Page 78 of Of Songs and Silence

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The arena is filledto the brim.

Nobles, warriors, and servants alike are seated in the stadium chairs, silent as the grave when we enter.

How long have they been waiting? Were they forced to move through the dining hall before they came here? Did they see all the death, and do they still have some of the blood lingering on their skin?

It would explain the silence. I wonder if any of them were part of the rebellion, if they wanted it to succeed. If Moli is among their number or if she was killed just for existing, like so many others in the king’s orbit.

Killed because he suspected her of the smallest shred of kindness.

The atmosphere is charged, like it’s primed and ready for a storm—waiting for that first bolt of lightning to strike. I just don’t know yet where it will land. I feel the weight of the people’s stares as we make our way to the royal box, the tension coursing through them as they bow their heads in greeting for their king. For me.

My throat burns, and a thousand spiders dance along my skin at their obeisance. I don’t want to be linked to this monster in any way.

They sit stoically as the king announces the change of plans, all the while displaying the broken body of one of his top warriors like a demented keepsake. Kane floats just above us, close enough that I can sense his feeble heartbeat, but far enough away that the sharks have already begun to circle. They’re waiting for permission from the king to take his body as their next meal.

I want to be sick.

The only consolation I have is that Cepheus dismissed Noa to the stands. He has allowed her to live.

“We are going to do things differently today,” the king begins, his voice grating on my mind like nails on a chalkboard. “I have decided to allow one final contender to enter the competition.”

The crowd stirs. They shift in their seats uncomfortably, scanning the nobles being led into the arena. Ari is the last to enter and a collective gasp rings out.

“This will be the final battle,” Cepheus continues, his grin widening. “May the best Mayima reign victorious.”

Chills creep down my spine, covering my skin in goosebumps and hollowing me from the inside out.

Peace, Kala.Ari’s voice wraps around me, and tears prick at my eyes. For the first time, the words fail to comfort me, but I try to find strength in them anyway.

There is nothing we can do but play along now. Even if it kills me to watch as every single competitor sets their sights on Ari, their first target already chosen.

The gong rings out.

The bloodshed begins anew.

CHAPTERFORTY-NINE

MELODI

Pain ricochets through my body, perfectly in sync with each blow Ari takes.

A spear slams longways against his back, and the pang explodes along my spine. Another stab of pain in my shoulder nearly sends me sailing from my seat. Silent tears stream out from my eyes into the open water.

Not for the pain itself, but because I know he is bearing it too, even more intensely.

I lock down my walls as much as I can, trying to keep this endless loop of agony from bouncing back to him. All I want to do is swim down to the arena and stop him from taking one more hit. To end this useless battle before another life is lost.

But I will not stew in my own feelings of uselessness when Ari fights on, so I resolve to find a way to be useful. I have a vantage point he doesn’t, and a way to communicate with him that no one else can hear.

I watch the fight more closely, trying to pick up on things I normally wouldn’t.

Ari moves through the pain as if he doesn’t feel it at all. He attacks with a strength I have never seen before, taking down Mayima after Mayima, even when they circle like sharks who are desperate to devour him. All except for the silver-haired man who had looked at me before—Nino, Ari had told me. He hangs back a bit, taking the others out instead of Ari.

Which makes sense because he is on our side. Or he was. Now, there can only be one survivor. He can’t be on Ari’s side and his own, and I don’t know which way he will land if it comes down to just them.

Napo clings to my leg, burying his face in my calf. His entire body is trembling in fear. I place a hand on his head, offering him what little comfort I can while sending Ari a few timely warnings through our bond. I try to be his eyes when he can’t track them all at once.

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