Sora Brontarion
Fuming, I stood at the finish line.
"You get my message, princess?" Mira asked, trotting up to me with Nerena behind her.
"No, I didn't. You know all devices used for communication were deactivated before the race started." I responded, fighting back the urge to lash out.
Mira looked at Voen. "What's her problem?"
"We failed the test," Voen said, taking a glance at me.
"Oh, I think someone else is gonna be very upset too."
"And who exactly would that be?" I said, stepping up to Mira.
"Cyrus."
"And why would Cyrus be upset? For all I know, he was the one who messed up the message."
"Because he tried to correct your brother's mistake. Jace was the one who told us the message, since he crossed before Cyrus did," Mira said, her hands on her hips.
I stood in silence. I knew my brother; there was a good enough chance that he did not pay attention while the proctor was providing the message.
It was embarrassing.
Shortly after Cyrus and Jace appeared, the tension between the two was high, neither letting the other get close to each other as they approached us.
"Did we pass?" Cyrus asked, his gaze locked on me.
I didn't want to give him the satisfaction that his efforts would have kept us from losing if I had checked the message that was miraculously sent despite the restrictions.
"We failed."
I watched as his body slouched.
"But we would have done better if you guys hadn't messed up," I said, pointing towards Cyus and Jace.
Then a voice rang over the loudspeaker that hovered above the course.
"The second group test is finished." Head Master Naga's voice said from above as he rode the same platform from the first midterm.
"After this test, I think you all understand how important communication is when you are a part of a rift runner team. One slip-up can cause devastating results. Your communication has to be absolute. If not, there will only be loss and failure that awaits you."
As headmaster Naga spoke, I was hoping to see Jace's body language change. He was the reason for our mess-up, but he didn't seem to care. He is my brother, but I'm wondering if I could count on him going forward.
"Now, I have a surprise for you all. You may already know that after completing the Rift Final Exam, I granted you access to my vault." Murmurs began to rise from the other courses nearby.
"This year, I'm departing from the status quo. There will be an additional opportunity to enter. The team that scores highest on the third midterm will gain access to my vault, choose a relic of their liking, and use it during the Rift Final Exam." The excitement that filled the test isle felt like a crowd cheering their favorite musician on at a concert.
This was exactly what my team needed to light a spark. We were operating far from our potential, and sooner or later, we would completely crumble.
Shortly after, the headmaster disappeared, floating away on his pad.
"So are we done here?" Jace asked. Everyone just stared at him, and as I was getting ready to express my feelings, he vanished up into the sky on his cloud.
"Sora, get a hold of your brother. Next time I won't play nice," Cyrus said as he walked off.
The others looked at me in agreement.
"I'm gonna check on my plants," Voen said, scurrying off after Cyrus, followed by Nerena, who gave a curt nod. Then there was just Mira and I.
Her face shifted, going from a still expression to one that furled, causing lines to wrinkle on her forehead.
"Why did you do that earlier?"
"Do what?"
"Sora, don't play with me. Do you want to get buried again?" She said, her fist clinching tighter.
In fact, I didn't want to get buried again.
"Because he deserves it."
"How so? He stepped up and gave us an opportunity to pass. I feel like that's cause for some acknowledgment."
"Not when he treated us the way he did, during the totem games."
"For Pantheon's sake, you are still holding on to that?"
"Of course I am, wouldn't you?"
"I fought him, and I fought your team during the totem games. We all did some questionable things during the game. Nerena drowned me in that river. Did I like it? Not one bit, but guess what, that means I have to get better, so something like that can't happen again.
It means I was too weak in that moment. And right now, you are too weak as a leader. If you're supposed to be a princess and a leader of your people, act like it." Mira said, stomping her foot on the ground, causing a few pieces of rock to rise in the air.
My throat tightened, and my gaze ventured off past where she stood.
I've heard that before.
Her voice slid in clean and sharp. Finding the places I kept those words buried, and exposing them like a fresh scab.
She stood in front of me, silent, waiting for me to speak.
Say something, Sora. But all that came out were soft stutters of nothing as I shifted my gaze to the ground.
"Now, if you excuse me, I'm heading back to my lab. Hopefully, you have it figured out before the next test." Mira left, and I was standing at the finish line.
I didn't leave the test isle for a couple of hours. I just sat alone, looking at the sky.
Replaying the steps I performed in my lighting reading, wondering if I messed up the ritual.
I didn't.
But looking up at the sky, I could still feel the faint streaks of cosmic charged lightning.
I translated the reading incorrectly. I was giving two outcomes.
I must have picked the outcome I desired the most.