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Smiling politely, I took my seat at the head of the balcony, beside my mother, noting that my father hadn’t yet arrived. He was late again. Typical. For all his lecturing about duty and responsibility,hewas the one who was late.Maybe I should lecture him, for a change.
Once I had settled into my seat, Tallin jumped onto my lap. “There,” he said, “Much better.”
“Comfortable?” I asked.
“Very.”
“You’re going to get fur all over my lovely new dress.”
“That’s a lie, and you know it. I don’t shed.”
“No,that’sa lie. I’m always covered in fur.”
“Maybe because you change into a wolf all the time?”
“If you two can’t behave, I’ll have to seat you separately,” said my mother, a scolding look in her eyes.
“Sorry,” I said.
Tallin lowered his head. “Sorry…” he echoed.
Lord Bailen looked to my mother, his wide eyes quietly asking the question—should we begin without his Grace?My mother looked across her shoulder, around the side of her large, throne-like chair. She was about to nod, when the doors opened, and my father came rushing down to join us at the front of the balcony.
With a start, Lord Bailen straightened up, and announced his entrance. “Lords and Ladies,” he hurriedly said, “It is my esteemed pleasure to introduce to you, King Cillian Wolfsbane!”
The crowd started cheering again as my father took his seat next to my mother. She took his hand, kissed it, and smiled at him. Despite the roar of the court, I heard her ask, “Is everything okay?”
I saw him nod and read his lips as he replied. “It’s taken care of.”
I frowned, but I didn’t inquire. He wouldn’t have heard me, and he wouldn’t answer if he had. Lord Bailen raised his hands, and the roar of the gathered courtiers began to fall. When it had lowered to a more manageable level, he began to speak again.
“My Lords, my Ladies,” he said, “My fellow courtiers, and friends from afar… we are here today to celebrate another glorious day of the Royal Selection, and let me tell you, this one will be quite something!”
Everything he said prompted cheers, applause, hoots and hollers. Even the nobles on the balcony couldn’t resist themselves. Many of them clapped, whistled, and otherwise made their excitement known. He had them all eating from the palm of his hand, and he loved every second of it. Bailen was a natural born showman. This was what he lived for, what he excelled at.
“Today,” he continued, “Our daring contestants will tackle a trial unlike any they have faced so far. It will be exciting, it will bedangerous, it will have you on the edge of your seats! But I will not waste time, shall I? How about we get right to it?!”
More applause, more cheering, more Fae basically frothing at the mouth.
“Let us bring forth our first contestant,” Lord Bailen called out, and perfectly on cue, a set of huge doors opened in the coliseum beneath us.
I didn’t have to lean forward to see what was going on in front of me. From up here, about thirty feet in the air, I had the best seats in the house. Entering the arena was the first contestant, he was wearing a standard suit of leather wraps and straps, the kind of armor that was useful against bumps and bruises, but little else. He was, however, carrying a spear of some kind with a hook on the end of it.
Thatmade me perk up a little.
“Court of Windhelm,” Lord Bailen proclaimed, “I present to you, our first contestant of the day—Taegen Lux, of Lysa!”
Taegen took a bow, and the court cheered for him. He then grabbed his spear and performed a little martial display with it, grunting, and occasionally exclaiming“Hiya!”It made my eyes roll into the back of my skull, but the people loved it. Judging by the applause and the hoots, I had to say the court was eating it up.
“Look at him go!” Lord Bailen yelled. “So eager!”
“Is it over yet?” I grumbled.
“We haven’t even started,” Tallin said. “There’s at least another hour of this, maybe two.”
“Eyes up, Princess,” said Tellren from his seat off to the side, wagging his eyebrows. “You’ll like this.”
“Now,” Lord Bailen continued, “Young Taegen is about to face one of his most dangerous trials yet… for inside of that mound is a creature renowned for its agility, its aggression, and its lethality.” He paused for dramatic effect, and then quickly exclaimed, “Lords and Ladies, I give you the Souldirge!”
