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“Agreed,” I said fervently. “That’s why I’m going to spend the day trying to connect with the other students.”
I cringed a little at the thought. I wasn’t exactly a people person, and I’d almost rather go up against the gods right now than have to campaign for people’s trust. But if it needed to be done, I was at least going to try.
Trace nudged me with his shoulder, redirecting me toward the school’s large front entryway instead of toward the cafeteria. “We thought you would say that. And there’s good news on that front. Eden stopped by the room while you were in the shower. Instead of you just wandering around approaching people, she set up a meeting on The Hill.”
“The people who are going to be there either are curious about what you have to say or are already on your side,” Merrick added. “Eden said she did a little campaigning last night and convinced a lot of people to come and hear you out. People are scared, and while some are taking sides without thought or explanation, others want to make the best decision possible.”
Nerves exploded in my stomach. Oh gods, there should be a law against having to make big speeches before breakfast.
But it meant a lot to me that Eden had done this, and I knew full well that my men and I needed to take advantage of any leg up we could get.
“Great. Then let’s get on it,” I replied, picking up my pace.
As I crested the top of The Hill, I could see quite a few students gathered on the pavilion talking quietly, all looking nervous and uncomfortable.
Trace cleared his throat, drawing their attention. “Hey, if everybody can quiet down, Aria is here to talk to you guys. Let her explain what she knows, and if you have any questions when she’s done, we’ll answer if we can.”
I stepped forward, trying to give off an aura of casual confidence. I wasn’t much of a public speaker. But it hardly mattered, really. Everyone here had come to hear me talk, and I wanted to make sure they fully understood the situation.
“Um, thanks for being here. I appreciate you guys coming to hear me out. I want to start out by saying that in no way shape or form did I lay down my challenge to the gods on a whim. I thought about it from every angle I could see, trying to figure out what choice presented the best chance of survival.”
“And this is what you came up with? A suicide mission?” a voice yelled out from the back of the crowd.
I shrugged. “Low odds are better than no odds. Especially if we train hard, strategize, and stick together. If we do that, we’ll have a chance in this fight.”
A third-year named Delaney tilted her head as she spoke. “But why fight at all? Why did you challenge the gods like that?”
Okay. Here goes. Truth time.
I swallowed hard, then met her gaze and held it. “Because we can’t trust the gods. We’re all in danger because they don’t want people like us to exist. The version of history we’ve been taught is a lie; the gods never gave us our powers. No one knows where our magic comes from, not even them.”
A babble of shocked murmurs broke out at that, people turning to each other and talking in hushed voices.
My gaze shifted around, watching the crowd’s reaction. There had to be close to sixty people gathered, which spoke to the persuasiveness of
Eden’s earnest, sweet personality. Eden herself stood at the front of the crowd, glancing around nervously as she tried to gauge their reaction too.
“The gods don’t think we should exist,” I continued, raising my voice over the chatter. “And they’ve been using the Gods’ Challenge as a way of thinning our numbers. A way of picking some of us off.”
A few students at the edge of the crowd shook their heads and walked off, letting me know exactly where they stood. I wondered if they truly didn’t believe me or just didn’t want to believe me. Not that it really mattered, in the end.
I braced myself for more students to walk away, to head back to the school building as they shot me a metaphorical middle finger.
But the rest of them stayed.
Fear was the most easily distinguished emotion on their faces, but there was also curiosity in some and anger in others.
I held my hands out in front of me, hurrying on before anyone else could change their mind about being here. “I have to ask that you try to trust me. Teamwork is essential. We are all magic users—and more to the point, we all possess wild magic. Because of that, we’re also all in danger. As I already said, we can’t trust the gods under any circumstances. They do not have our best interest at heart. In fact, Omari would be happiest if none of us existed at all.”
A stocky second-year in the front of the crowd looked a little sick. “So… the gods want us all to compete in the challenge this semester so they can kill more of us?”
“That’s my best guess,” I replied, keeping my voice calm and even. “They were gonna try to kill us whether I challenged them to face us themselves or not. Now you’ve got two choices. You can either side with Wesley and keep pretending nothing is wrong, that this is all perfectly normal. Or you can train with us and be as prepared as possible to face the challenge.”
Delaney raised her hand. “What do you mean, train?”
Merrick clapped his hands together and smiled at me. “I got this one. Trace, Lachlan, and I are setting up multiple times for anyone who’s never competed in the challenge before to train. Even if they have competed, they’re welcome to come work with all of us. We need to find out what everybody’s strengths and weaknesses are, and the best way to do that is through controlled sparring.”
“Do we start that today?” Another student, Mitch Doherty, lifted his chin hopefully
