Lunch was the same as usual, paired with bitter medicinal soup that took willpower to swallow. Eyes scanning the dining hall, Kealor and Nirro sneakily stuffed food into a piece of cloth, tucking it into the folds of their clothes and making sure no one saw.
By the time they were expected at the training site for physical drills, Kealor and Nirro took a detour to where Kira was stuck.
"Kira," Kealor called in a whisper, bending down to peer into the opening of the crevice while Nirro kept watch for instructors and warriors.
Lucian had seen them but paid them no mind. There wasn't any point telling someone what to do, not after what happened to Sapphire. All he knew was he wasn't going to take punishment for a girl who'd joined their group not long ago. He left for the training grounds. Besides, there were other things occupying his mind now.
"Kira?" Kealor called again, several times. No answer.
They couldn't stay here long. 'I hope she sees this,' he thought, pulling the stashed food from the folds of his clothes.
Nirro didn't speak. He hadn't spoken all morning. He just pulled the gauze from his own sleeve along with his stashed food and handed it to Kealor, eyes still on the crevice.
Kealor understood. He bound the foods together and dropped it into the dark. where he thought she might be.
Nirro tapped Kealor's back. Twice. We're done. We have to go._ Even that wasn't spoken. It was the only reassurance he could give even though he had doubts himself. For now, nothing more could be done
He started back toward the training grounds first. When Kealor lingered, Nirro stopped, turned, and waited. Said nothing. he didn't need to.
Kealor exhaled and followed.
They fell into the series of physical drills they'd been taught. Sweat drenched their clothes. Some took breaks in between.
Instructor Ryven appeared without warning. Those resting sprang up like startled deer. Others jolted as if caught doing something wrong.
"Assemble."
Everyone came forward, arranging themselves into rows.
"You will use another form of training," Ryven said, then pointed toward the sloping edge of the mountain.
"You will learn how to scale this section until you reach the top." Ryven's voice left no room for questions.
The section he pointed to wasn't a path. It was a wall.
Sheer rock, slick with moss from the morning dew, jutting out at angles that promised broken bones. Loose shale littered the base. One wrong step and you'd take three people down with you.
A rope was thrown at their feet. One rope. For all of them.
"Pair up," Ryven barked. "One climbs, one belays. Then you switch. If your partner falls, you both fail. If you both fall, you don't eat tonight."
Nobody moved at first. Then the scrambling started.
Kealor caught Nirro's eye. A nod. No words needed. They grabbed the rope. Nirro didn't speak. He never did during training.
Lucian ended up with a boy named Jex who was shaking so hard his teeth clicked. Lucian didn't look at him. Just started tying the rope around his waist with sharp, practiced movements.
"Begin."
The first twenty feet were the worst.
Fingers went numb on cold stone. Boots skidded, sending showers of grit down on the people below. Someone cursed. Someone else whimpered. Ryven stood at the bottom, arms crossed, saying nothing. His silence was worse than shouting.
Kealor went first. He moved like he'd done this before — testing each hold, shifting his weight slow. "Rock," he called out, kicking a loose chunk free before it could fall on Nirro. The chunk bounced past Lucian's head. Lucian didn't flinch.
Halfway up, the moss got thicker.
Nirro tugged the rope once, sharp. Kealor glanced down. Nirro pointed at the wet stone under Kealor's hand, then tapped his own palm. _Watch it. It's wet._
Kealor nodded. Shifted his grip. Too late.
His hand slipped.
For a second his whole body dropped. The rope snapped taut, burning Nirro's palms as he locked it. Kealor slammed into the wall, chest first. The air punched out of him.
Nirro's eyes went wide. His mouth opened, but no sound came. His hands clamped harder on the rope, knuckles white, veins standing out in his forearms.
"I'm good," Kealor wheezed, though his eyes were watering. He found a new hold, fingers white. "I'm good. Keep it tight."
Nirro gave one short nod. Didn't look away from Kealor for a second.
Below them, Jex froze. He was ten feet up, clinging to the rock like it was the only thing keeping him alive. Which it was.
"I can't," Jex whispered. "I can't do it."
"Then climb down," Lucian said flatly, not looking up from his own section of wall. He was already fifteen feet higher, moving with angry efficiency. Like he wanted to out-climb whatever was in his head.
"I'll fall if I move!"
"Then don't."
"Lucian!" Kealor shouted from above. "Talk him down, damn it!"
Lucian paused. Just for a second. His hand hovered over the bruise on his neck before he forced it back to the rock.
"Jex," Lucian said, voice low. "You let go, you die. You stay there, He will makes you do it again. So move."
It wasn't kind. But it worked. Jex sobbed once, then started climbing again. Inch by agonizing inch.
They were three-quarters up when the screaming started.
Not Jex. Someone else. A girl from the second group. Her belayer hadn't locked the rope right. She peeled off the wall, arms pinwheeling.
The rope caught her after thirty feet. Too late. Her leg hit an outcrop with a sound like a branch snapping. Her scream cut off into a choked gasp.
"Keep climbing," Ryven ordered. He didn't even look at her. "Pain is a distraction. Distractions get you killed."
Kealor froze on the wall.
Below him, Nirro's hands were shaking on the rope. He jerked his chin up once, hard. _Go. Don't look down. His eyes were fixed on Kealor, fierce, pleading.
Lucian didn't stop. Didn't look. But his pace faltered. Just for a step.
At the top, Kealor hauled himself over the ledge and collapsed, chest heaving. He rolled over and reached down immediately. "Rope!"
Nirro didn't answer. He was already tying in, movements tight and precise. He started up. Slower, less sure than Kealor, but steady. Each move, deliberate. Ryven's eyes were on him the whole time, like he was waiting for a mistake.
Nirro never looked down at him. Never acknowledged him. Just climbed.
Lucian crested the top five minutes later. He didn't collapse. Didn't celebrate. He just untied the rope from his waist, coiled it with jerky movements, and threw it down for Jex.
Then he walked to the edge and looked down.
Far below, instructors were carrying the girl with the broken leg away. She wasn't screaming anymore. That was worse.
Kealor came to stand beside him. Neither said anything for a long moment.
Nirro pulled himself over the ledge last. He didn't collapse either. Just sat, breathing hard, forearms raw and red from the rope. His eyes went to the girl being carried away, then to Ryven, then to the ground. Jaw locked.
"You okay?" Kealor asked finally, to both of them.
Lucian's jaw worked. His hand twitched toward his neck again. "I told you. I'm fine."
Nirro said nothing. He just wiped blood from his palm onto his pants and kept staring at the stain on the rocks below.
"They're going to keep doing this," Kealor said quietly, watching Ryven point at the next group to start. "Until one of us doesn't get up."
Lucian didn't answer. He just kept staring down at the drop, at the dark stain on the rocks where the girl had hit.
Then, so quiet Kealor almost missed it: "Good."
Kealor turned to him, startled. "What?"
Lucian met his eyes. And for the first time since the riverbank, Kealor saw something colder than fear in them.
"Maybe if one of us dies, they'll stop," Lucian said. "Maybe they'll let us go."
Nirro's head snapped up at that. He stared at Lucian. No expression. Then he stood, picked up the coiled rope Jex had left, and walked to the far edge of the ledge. Away from both of them.
Below them, Jex finally reached the top. He crawled over the ledge and vomited from exhaustion and terror.
Ryven's voice drifted up from below. "Next pair. Now."