Eyes Up, Guardian

Chapter 19

"Prince Damian, of the Skotadi, do you challenge for the privilege of this ceremony?" The elder brother asked, stepping towards the edge of the rock.

A hush fell over the crowd around them, all turning to look, a large semicircle forming around them, closing them against the riverbank. Tessa halted a few feet from the bank, looking back to Damian, behind her. He was wearing his ceremonial leathers, interactively carved leather that had been stained black, with silver lining the edges and in the engravings. He bore no weapons, and did not bear a cloth as the younger boy did. He stepped towards the bank, surveying the crowd around them, briefly turning his back on the older brother on the rock, waiting for his answer. He surveyed the crowd slowly, an elder moving to the front as Damian turned back to the boy on the rock.

"I, Damian of the Skotadi, challenge for the right of this ceremony." Damian's voice rang out over the banks, projected well enough to be heard on both sides of the river. At the sound, Tessa saw the younger boy turn his head, to look at him. Even with the distance, she could see his eyes were red and puffy, like he'd been crying.

But, the eldest brother stepped forward, perhaps noticing her gaze. He swung his sword in one swift movement, making a whooshing noise, even over the current.

"Send forth your champion." The brother said.

Tessa glanced to Damian, who nodded firmly. As the only one at the entire gathering without a pair of wings, she knew the jump to the rock was going to be tough. Damian had warned her the day before, and they had gone by so she could practice it a few times after their swim at the lake. The rock was a fair distance from the riverbank, and with the light, it would have been an easy jump, but without light, or a pair of those wings, it wasn't. The crowd parted a bit more as Damian cleared her more space, and with her sword still in hand, she took a deep breath and sprinted for the river, leaping high and landing in a careful slide on the rock.

Before they had arrived in the village, Damian had told her that not all of the villagers had wings, though there was a harsh split between those who did and those who didn't. All of the upper class had wings, it was a sign of strength, and honor. Any child born into an upper class or noble family without wings was abandoned and given to the lower class citizens, or the members of the Skotadi clan that didn't bear wings. They were viewed as outcasts, misfits, less than, because they lacked the blessing of Oryx. The lower class citizens weren't allowed into any important ceremonies like the renewal ceremony, and their only function was to work in basic labor jobs within the village. The only function they had near any of the upper class was to be servants in the castle. Damian was her only opening to anything that had to do with the upper class. She'd arrived as his partner, granting her access to anything any other noble might have, through him. It allowed her to stay with him in the castle and compete on his behalf in the ceremony.

On the rock, she felt like all of those suffering, lower class citizens, looked down upon, doubted, and as an outsider, it was worse, because they did not believe she should be holding the sword she held, or standing on the rock on which she'd landed. But none of this mattered, not now, not yet. Her first task was to save this boy.

The elder that had come forward earlier approached the bank, and Tessa could only assume he was the one called Palio. He watched as she stood and moved to stand across from the older brother. "Let the challenge begin!" He shouted over the sound of the rapids.

The older brother was the first to move, lunging down, towards her, aiming a straight jab towards her shoulder. She sidestepped it easily, moving up to gain the high ground he'd lost. He followed it with a swing at her, recovering quickly after she'd dodged his previous blow. She hopped above his sword slash at her legs, hearing the blade scrape the stone below her. She landed on one foot, kicking out and shoving him backwards, sliding down the slope.