The Trials (The Elite Series) (8 page)

“Thank you so much for all your support, and I will continue to do my best for you during the second trial, but I must get going. I have to meet with the Council.”

Grins and nods met him
and the crowd cheered for him as he left. Laren following alongside, he made his way into the castle and toward the Council chamber. “I knew you’d bring back the head, but still attached to the body, Mr. Moore? Impressive.” Laren winked.

Connor grinned, and thought for the hundredth time how beautiful she was. Tall and slender with strong
, attractive features, she would catch the eye of anyone, but he knew her so much better than just a pretty face. Fate had brought them together for a reason, it wasn’t a mistake or by chance, and as time went on, Connor believed that more and more.

“It feels like I’m running a political race more
than performing an ancient set of trials.”

“In a way you
’re doing both. You need the support of our race if they’re going to follow you through whatever darkness Morrigan’s prophecy is talking about.”

Connor nodded in agreement as they approached the C
ouncil room doors. He was content for now just to look at Laren and think about what he felt for her and what it could mean.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Oh, sorry, I—I just missed you. I missed you more than I thought I would.”

Laren lowered her eyes, her brown hair falling in place
perfectly beside her cheek to hide her own expression. “I missed you, too, Connor.”

The two stood i
n front of the entrance to the Council chamber. Connor and Laren reached for the handle to the large wooden door at the same time, his hand landing on hers. They stood still for a moment, looking at each other and enjoying the simple joy a touch could bring.

Connor and Laren didn’t need to say anything. He closed his palm around hers.

“Time is forever our enemy, Connor, please enter the room.” It was Morrigan’s familiar voice from the other side of the door.

“How does she always know?” Connor wondered out loud.

“You got me, must be a sorceress thing,” Laren laughed as they reluctantly broke their grip and opened the door, but the laugh abruptly ended as her eyes found Katie’s, who was sitting next to Morrigan.

“Connor
, you did it!” Katie jumped up, ignoring everyone in the room and threw herself into Connor’s familiar arms. “I knew you would. I wanted to go see you and the dragon but Morrigan said we had to keep training. I thought this sorceress thing would be cool but its worse then cheer practice. There’s not an end in sight and so much to learn!”

Laren
made no attempt to hide rolling her green eyes and took a seat in front of the Council. Connor wished that things didn’t have to be so tense when Laren and Katie were in the same room, but he knew there was no other choice. He needed to make a decision, but even then, there was no guarantee they’d all be friends.

But he couldn’t think about this now, too much was happening.
“What, you’re a sorceress?” Connor asked.

“Yeah
, crazy, huh?” Katie answered.

“It seems as though Katie has the sa
me gift for magic as her mother,” Morrigan said, smiling at Connor. “It’s good to see you again.”

Connor
didn’t have time to grasp what Morrigan had said about Katie’s mother as he smiled and he and Katie walked toward Morrigan. “It’s good to see you, too. Zuna says hello.

Morrigan
smiled. “I knew you would be safe under her care.”

“If we could save the catching
up and congratulations for a bit later?” Morrigan’s brother, Arden Hayes, suggested. “If I am correct, Connor has some vital news for the Council.”

“Oh
, of course, excuse me,” Morrigan said, sitting down between Katie and Laren.

Connor approached the high table where the five
ruling members of the Council sat, each representing one of the Five Families. From left to right sat Raban, Thema, Adolpho, Arden, and Tien.

“It’s good to have you back
, Connor. And with a dragon. I bet you have a story or two to tell about that, but there seems to be something more pressing on your mind.”

Connor nodded at Raban, the blue-eyed
older Elite and leader of the Ulfric family. He decided to leave the part about Faust and Christof out, because if the Council went after the two, Randolph would more than likely be caught in the crossfire. Also, if Randolph was serious about gathering information, exposing Faust and Christof as conspirators might blow his cover and kill any chance of gaining information about their enemy with it. “Vercingetorix is alive. Somehow he’s escaped from his prison and he’s gathering strength to take back control of the Elite race.”

Silence. The five most respected member
s of the Elite species sat quiet, stunned by the mention of one man’s name. Connor had never witnessed such a thing. In his mind, the Council were the highest, most powerful figures in the human and Elite world, how could one name worry them so much? It was Morrigan who finally broke the silence. “How do you know this, Connor? Did Zuna tell you?”

Connor turned around and nodded.

“Then it must be true,” Thema spoke for the first time. “Zuna was the one to imprison him with Morrigan and her other two apprentices. She would know if her spell was broken.”

“But
how?” Arden asked, furrowing his brow and shaking his head. “He was thrown into a volcano and a containment spell cast over the entire entrance in 1000 A.D. How did he escape now? Not under his own power—he has no access to the art of magic.”

“Vercin was a hard man. A warrior from the inside out
—that’s why he made such a great Judge. It is possible with the Elite gene, if he was not killed by another, and lived through the fall, that he survived,” Raban said.

Hands steeple
d and eyes dark with worry, Adolpho looked to his close friend and fellow Council member. “I agree, Raban.” He turned to address the rest of them. “Many of you were not yet born or were too young to remember, but a young Morrigan, Raban, and I saw the result of Vercin’s willpower and lust for control. He was a god on the battlefield, untouchable. It was only due to the power of the four sorceresses that he was weakened enough for our best warriors to defeat him in battle. It is possible that he has survived these long years.”

“That would explain his survival, but how did he escape with the containment sp
ell in place?” Tien asked quietly.

“Morrigan?” Arden asked, “Do you know how a spell that strong could be broken?”

“I do.” Morrigan stood, dressed in a light jacket with a knitted scarf around her neck. “It would take the power of one of the sorceresses who cast the spell in the first place to be able to undo it.”

“One of the four who cast it?”
asked Thema. “Well, that’s impossible. Zuna would never do such a thing. She’s the one that put him there in the first place. You’re here, Deborah Ulfric was killed in the attempt by Vercin himself, and…” her voice trailed off.

All eyes in the room save Connor’s turned to Katie. She squirmed uncomfortably in her seat.
“What? I didn’t do it. I just found out about this whole Elite weird eye thing last week!”

“Not
you, Katie,” Thema spoke softly. “Your mother.”

“M
y mother?” Katie asked, incredulous. “My mother isn’t a sorceress. I haven’t even seen her since the night Faust and Randolph killed my father and awakened my Elite gene.”

“No one has seen her since that night
,” Adolpho said gently, guiding Katie to the harsh truth. “Your mother broke the Law by marrying and conceiving with a human and hid her sin with magic, veiling herself and disappearing from the Elite world.”

Katie look confused
. She looked first at Connor, then Morrigan for help.

“It is possible,” Morrigan said finally. “I’ll contact Zuna and see if there
’s anyway we can locate Julie.”

Adolph
o nodded and addressed the other members of the Council. “In the meantime, the rest of us will use all the recourses we possess to find Vercin and stop him.” Adolpho turned to Connor. “There’s no doubt with anyone of us that you are the Judge. We now know what evil you must protect our people from, but the trials must be passed, not only to hold to our Law and traditions, but to prove to the rest of the Elite race that our side is the one worth fighting for.”

“I’m ready.
” Connor hadn’t had a shower in three days, he was exhausted and famished, but like Morrigan had said, “time was never on their side.”

“It is customary for the Judge taking the trials to be given a period of three days to rest in bet
ween the choosing of the stones,” Adolpho explained. “With the new information provided and Vercin on the loose, it is important that you finish these trials as soon as possible. Connor, do you think you would be up to the task of departing again as soon as possible on your next trial?”

“I’ll be ready to go
in a few hours.”

The Council sm
iled and nodded. “Morrigan’s prophecy couldn’t be of a better Judge, or a tougher one,” Raban said with a proud smile.

“Go, Connor
, you need a shower and food, no doubt. I can hear your stomach from my seat,” Arden said.

Connor grinned and wondered how closely they were related as he turned to go.
Katie and Laren both stood up but were dismissed with a firm look from Morrigan, who fell in step with Connor. “It’s time to rest and recover before your next trial,” she said, “other things can wait.”

Connor knew exactly what she meant by “other things” as the two headed to his room.
He even felt a bit guilty for being grateful she had saved him from another Laren/Katie standoff.

“You’re doing a wonderful job as Judge. I would have been with the crowd to welcome our conquering hero back but Katie needs as much training as she can handle about being an Elite as well as a sorceress.”

“I still can’t believe she’s capable of magic or that her mother was the one that freed Vercin,” Connor said.

They mou
nted the castle stairs together. “Although it appears that way, let’s try and give her mother the benefit of the doubt when it comes to freeing the darkest figure in Elite history. I knew her well and would like to think her incapable of such a thing, but who knows.”

***

Connor smiled to himself as he soaped his hair in the shower. It was an amazing feeling to scrub the dirt and grime off his tired body. He had taken so much for granted and his trip to the jungle had made him appreciate all the little things in life like hot water and soap.

He knew he couldn’t stay in the shower longer
, no matter how hard he tried to convince himself. Reluctantly he shut off the water, grabbed a thick towel, and dried himself as Morrigan began talking from the other side of the door, a tradition that had been forced upon them with their chronic lack of time. It was, however, a tradition Connor had come to look forward to.

“Under the drawers to the sink
, you’ll find clothes. And if you hurry, I had the cooking staff whip you up something quick to eat. You need to—”

Before she could finish
, Connor had opened the shower door, releasing a wall of steam. Connor quickly pulled on a pair of dark jeans and a grey shirt. “Did you say you had food?”

Morrigan let out a laugh.
“Yes.” She pointed to a desk that stood by the door with a large silver tray on top.

“Sometimes it’s easy for me to forget how young you are.”

“I’m not that young, I’m eighteen.” Connor opened the tray and picked up a large sandwich, studying it contents.
I don’t even know what I’m doing looking at this, I’m going to eat it anyway.
He took a large bite.

“Eighteen to someone who has lived centuries is young
, Connor. I think we need to do something with your hair soon, you’re going to look like Lu.”

Connor ran a free hand through his black
hair, it was long enough now to reach his eyebrows. “How’s Katie doing with training? She’s your apprentice now?”

“That’s right, very few
Elites have the gift of sorcery. When one shows promise, we try to encourage and nurture the gift. She only just started, but she’s talented.”

“I guess that makes sense,
considering who her mother is.”

Morrigan nodded and too
k a seat. “Connor, I don’t want to alarm you, but I always want to be honest with you. With Vercin released from his prison, there’s a very high chance that he will try and interfere with your journey, either by tempting you to join him, or by trying to kill you.”

Connor paused
, French fry halfway to his open mouth. “I had a dream about him. I didn’t know who it was at the time, but he did try and convince me to join him and then he threatened me. In my dream, he killed all of the Council members.”

Morrigan
didn’t sound surprised. “Then Julie is certainly with him. Vercin is no magician and wouldn’t know the first thing about entering someone’s dreams. He needed the help of a sorceress to do that.”

“I’m not going to give in to him
, Morrigan. I promise.”

“I know you won’t
, Connor. Let’s get going. We have an appearance to make.”

Throwing on some socks and shoes
, Connor left the room, one hand clutching the second half of his sandwich like a treasure, and the other hand trying to smooth down his still damp hair.

Elites were still entering the C
ouncil chamber when Connor and Morrigan arrived. With the short notice the Council had provided for the choosing of the next trial, Connor was surprised to have another full audience. Elites from all over had been gathering at the castle once the news of a Judge had surfaced. Everyone wanted to get a look at him and witness history.

All his supporters were present
, as well as those who wished him to fail. Lu, Miyanda, Laren, Katie, Randolph, Faust, and Christof were all there. Christof glared at him, Randolph nodded, and Faust, who sat at the edge of the row closest to Connor as he passed, sniffed the air, smelling his presence. He bent towards him to whisper, “You will fail, there is no doubt.” Extending a pale hand, he asked from behind dark glasses, “May I shake the hand of a dead Elite?”

Connor stopped and turned to his eyeless adversary. Faust wore a dark blue suit with matching tie. Connor reached down and placed his mostly
eaten sandwich in Faust’s hand. “Here, I have something for you. Don’t know what it is, but it’s delicious.”

Over the noise
of the crowd, no one caught the exchange between the two or noticed the sandwich. Connor continued forward and took a seat next to Morrigan in front of the Council, not waiting to see the surprised and disgusted look on Faust’s face.

T
he Council members were clad in long dark brown robes with wide sleeves. Adolpho stood in the front, just as he had done when the first trial was chosen. A large metallic container masked the stones from which he would choose.

“If I
may have your attention,” Adolpho said over the noise of the room. The chamber immediately silenced. “Connor Moore has proven himself true to the claim of Judge thus far by delivering the head of the fire serpent. His next task will be—” Adolpho paused as he reached a hand into the large iron pot. Pulling a dark stone with white writing out, he read the inscription. “To bring back the crown of the Zhanshi king.”

A mix of applause, shouts
, and gasps erupted from the crowd. Connor had no idea what to think. Adolpho could have told him he had to capture the crazy cat of Atlantis and it wouldn’t have made any less sense.

“As always
, Connor will be required to leave now, and with a clear idea of where The Island is, he will not require a guide.”

The attendees of the C
ouncil room took that as their cue to start filing out and await the Judge’s departure at the main gate. 

Con
nor turned to say his good-byes. “You’ll do fine,” Lu told him.

“Hurry back
. I think the dragon misses you, but I will look after him while you are gone,” Miyanda reassured him.

K
atie wrapped him in another hug. “We have to find some time when this is all done to actually talk.”

“We will
, Kat. Train hard while I’m gone. Don’t get into any trouble.”

Katie smiled
. “Look who’s talking. Stay out of trouble yourself!”

Connor left
, following Morrigan and searching the crowd for Laren, but she was nowhere to be found. It was déjà vu all over again as Elites cheered and shouted his name. Someone fell in step beside him as he walked to the limo that waited at the entrance to the castle. It was Tien, amber eyes full of concern.

“Just
listen—we have but moments. These are my people you now travel to, and they will not only test your mind and body, but your heart, Connor, your will. When the pain starts, find something inside to keep you going. That is the only way you will survive.”

Connor
didn’t know what to think. It wasn’t exactly what he wanted to hear but he knew Tien was trying to offer advice. Connor just nodded as the small man fell back and melded into the crowd.

“Ready? Here you go again.”

Connor grinned at Morrigan as he entered the limo’s dark interior. “I’m ready, I’ve had a great teacher.”

Morrigan gave him a smile and closed the door behind him
, shutting out the cheer of the crowd. The limo started to roll forward and soon was underway to where? Connor had no idea.
To somewhere that would lead him to the king of… of where again? Wu Tang? No, that wasn’t it. Zhan something?
Days of his body working off catnaps and short sleeps finally caught up to him, and now in the cool interior of the limo, Connor surrendered to the comforting embrace of exhaustion.

He
wasn’t sure if it had been hours or days when he awoke, but he felt great. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he forced himself into a seated position. The limo had stopped, but what had woken him? There was a tap on the window. Connor reached for the door handle and squinted as the sun’s brilliant light swept into the limo’s cave-like interior. The smell of the ocean met his nose. Brown eyes adjusting to the light, he thanked the person who opened the door for him, and stepped out.

He was on a pier,
and if he had to guess by the sun’s place in the sky, it was sometime around mid-morning. The ocean slapped against the wooden pier and seagulls flapped lazily, looking for their next meal.

“Pretty
, isn’t it?”

Connor whipped around
. “Laren?”

Laren stoo
d in front of him, dressed like a limo driver with black suit, tie, and even a little octagonal hat. She removed the cap and shook her head, letting her brown hair fall down in waves. “Yep, I was going to tell you on the way here, but you looked like you could use the sleep.”