Forged in Frost and Fire (Book 1 in the Chronicles of Kings trilogy)

Chapter Twenty

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾　　☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

I got to the end of the rope and practically flung myself onto the small platform attached to the ladder. Other initiates were starting to move onto the rope and I was so glad that Mason and his meatheads weren't competing, they would've made this so much harder than it already was. Wiping my tears away with my throbbing hands, I climbed down the ladder, keeping my lips pinched so that my sobs weren't heard.

Raven was throwing herself to the ground and running off. She was closer now than she had been before, I must have travelled fast down the rope. Leaving a few rungs unclimbed, I forced myself to jump. My feet slammed into the ground and pain flared up my shins but I hardly felt it as I forced myself to continue.

Ravens blue hair was like a beacon to me as I ran. I kept my eyes trained on it as I moved. My whole body was aching now and I could feel my heartbeat everywhere. My head was pounding and my tears were cold on my cheeks. I kept seeing Lucy's face, full of fear, as she lost her grip and gravity took over. I could have helped her. I should have helped her. Was she dead? I had no way of knowing.

Stay focused, a voice chanted through my head. I couldn't focus on it then, but the voice wasn't my own. It helped me to focus, though. And I continued sprinting onward. I kept my strides long and my footfalls powerful. This was when I could close the space. I sprinted towards Raven, seeing how badly bruised and bloody she was as I got closer. She practically growled as she saw me come into her peripheral vision. She thought she was going to remain in front.

People were shouting at us as we sprinted towards the next obstacle. A bridge of sorts, except the pathway was a simple slim rod of metal, only about a foot wide. The river was beneath it, keeping it slick and slippery. I fought back a swear.

Raven got to the bridge first and flung herself onto it. She didn't hesitate as she began to take quick steps across it. I was a beat behind, my shoes struggling for grip on the smooth surface. The river was white and raging beneath us and I could feel mist on my face and clinging to my clothes as I moved forward. My hands sprung up into the air, horizontally, to keep myself balanced. Raven glanced behind her and moved her hands to the side as well.

I kept my footfalls steady and swift as I moved and kept my head straight, my nose pointed forward. I could get past this. I could do it. More water crashed below and I felt more mist coat the metal underneath me. The rain was growing heavier now too and it came down in sheets around us.

We were about to the middle of the structure when suddenly Raven turned and swung at me. I screamed and clammered backwards, my foot slipped on a spot of water and I came crashing down. The people who were collected on the ground beside the river, staring up at us, gasped collectively. But I didn't fall, I only slammed my ass into the metal. I winced before clambering to my feet.

"You don't have to do this," I said, turning my head to look at her through the tendrils of white hair cutting my vision into strips.

"I don't?" she said. Her own hair was sopping wet as well, and looked like dripping tar as it spanned over her forehead and shoulders. She looked angry, livid. Her tan skin was practically glowing with it. Her forehead was crinkled and her lips pinched. If she had a weapon I was sure she would have already lodged it into my throat by now. I was so grateful that those had been banned.

"No. You don't, you're taking up more time," I said, glancing behind her to see that we were close to the end. After this I was sure there was only a bit more left, surely we had almost run nearly a mile by now.

"But you're going to win," she spat out at me. She took a step towards me and I stumbled back one. "I can't let you win."

"Then I won't win!" I shouted over the roaring water below us and the rain. She was shivering now, though the cold wasn't affecting me. I just felt uncomfortable with how wet I was, with how my clothing was clinging to my body. It wasn't an exactly nice feeling.