The Trials (The Elite Series) (9 page)

“H
ow are you here? You weren’t supposed to come. What if the Council finds out?”

“Calm down
. I just traded places with the driver, offering him a paid vacation. Well, more like insisting he take a paid vacation. And it’s not like I’m going to help you do your trial, I was actually on my way to visit my brother and mother. As far as I’m concerned, you’re tagging along and hopped into my car, buddy.”

“What? Your mother and brother?”

“Come on,” Laren said, grabbing his hand in hers. “I’ll explain everything on the way, but right now, we have a boat to catch.”

The “boat” Laren was referring to actually looked like an oversized raft.

“Orion, are you here? Hello?” Laren shouted at the boat.

A mess of long dark hair, eye patch,
and a thick beard appeared over the side of the ship. “It depends who’s asking.” The man’s black eye patch and weather beaten skin made him look like a true sailor. As soon as he saw Laren, his beard parted to reveal a set of pearl white teeth. “Laren Abelardus, my favorite Elite. How are you?”

“Great, Orion
. This is Connor.”

Orion hopped out of the boat a
nd onto the pier to shake hands. “Hello, Connor. So you’re the Judge I keep hearing so much about.”

Connor’s surprise must ha
ve showed because the man smiled. “Word travels faster than one would think when you’re part of a covert society.”

“I see, well
, it’s nice to meet you, Orion.”

“What brings the two of you to my humble part of the pier?”

“We need passage to The Island,” Laren answered.

Orion nodded
. “Aye, I understand why you’re going there, Laren, to visit your mother and brother, but what brings you, young master Connor?”

“My second trial
is to bring back the crown of the Zhan—Zhanshi King.”

Orion’s eyes widened
. “Is it, then?” His bare feet shuffled on the wooden floor of the pier. “Well, if it is your trial, I guess you don’t have much of an option, then, do you? Well, get on board, you two. Daylight is wasting. If we want to catch our window of opportunity, we have to leave now.”

Connor followed Laren on board. The bo
at, if you could call it a boat, was no more than thirty yards long and ten yards across. The wood was cracking and paint peeled off the sides like a dog shedding hair. Orion was already at work as soon as they stepped on, removing the lines that connected the boat to the pier. “Since it’s Connor’s first time on the
Lady’s Shadow,
you better get him up to speed and in position before we hit the mist.”

Laren nodded
, removing her black jacket and tie and rolling the sleeves of the white dress shirt she wore to her elbows. “Connor, the only way to get to The Island is through a curtain of mist that forms on a certain part of the ocean everyday. In order to make this window, the boat has to be going at a very high speed or we’ll miss it.”

Connor raised his eyebrows and ra
n a hand through his black hair. “This boat? This boat is going to go fast?”

“Aye, lad
,” Orion shouted from the wheel of this ship. “She may not look like much, but the
Lady’s Shadow
is the fastest boat on the water.”

“O
ookay,” Connor said, not trying to sound rude.

“Better strap in,
“Laren instructed as she took a seat near the front of the boat and strapped herself into a pair of seatbelts that were firmly connected to the rest of the boat.

“So
, you’re telling me this boat is going to go so fast that you need two straps to hold you in?”

“Yes
. Now hurry before Orion gets under way or you’re going to be thrown off.”

Connor shrugged his shoulders
, thinking that the whole situation was ridiculous. The ship he was on looked as though it could barely stay afloat, much less be the fastest ship on the sea. Connor strapped himself into both seat belts, the first one across his lap, the second diagonally across his shoulders. He couldn’t help thinking he was better off strapping himself into a life vest than into seatbelts. Then the ship started to pick up speed.

The boat headed out of
the harbor and into the open water. The sun was high in the sky and other ships floated lazily by, none close enough to get a good look, but all in much better condition than Orion’s ship. The boat’s speed picked up a few more knots and Connor changed his mind. He guessed they were going somewhere around forty to fifty miles per hour and that was impressive. But Orion didn’t stop there… he continued to increase the speed until the boat was skimming over the water at a rate that made the land disappear within minutes.

“Still think she’s a slow girl?” Orion laughed.

Connor and Laren were strapped in near the front of the ship and seawater and wind whipped their faces. He thought about answering back, but the wind would have muffled his response anyway.

The boat continued to increase its pace until
he was sure they were going well over one hundred miles per hour. If he opened his mouth, air gushed in at a rate that made his cheeks blow out and he squinted his eyes to protect them from the intensity of the air rushing past. Connor looked over at Laren, she was smiling.

She seemed to revel in the sensation of the boats breakneck
speed, she looked over, her eyes twinkling, and shouted, “I told you it was a good idea to buckle in!”

Connor nodded and looked forward, there was a wall… no a billow of mist on the water that was evaporating
quickly. It was a small form, no more than twenty feet across. Connor heard Orion, it was muffled. “Hold on this is going to be close!”

Connor didn’t believe it
, but the little boat went faster, faster than any car, rollercoaster, or train he had ever been on. They hit the wall of mist at a speed he couldn’t even guess.

They were only in the mist for what seemed like a second,
and then they were through. The boat began to slow down and Connor was able to breathe comfortably again. He blinked his eyes and squinted, examining their new surroundings. Nothing seemed to have changed, water still greeted them on all sides; land was still nowhere to be seen, and the sun… Connor shook his head, trying to clear the thoughts and ideas coming at him faster than the boat had been traveling. When they entered the mist, the sun had been high overhead, now it rested on the horizon, either heralding the morning or night, Connor didn’t know which.

The boat slowed even
more to a comfortable pace. “Laren,” Connor said under his breath, still trying to grasp the reality of the situation. “The sun.”

“I know, it’s
setting now, its evening here.”

“Here?”

“Don’t expect a lot of answers. I’m not sure I understand it myself, but The Island isn’t from this world. It’s protected and guarded by its inhabitants. Orion is the only one granted permission to ferry people to and from for certain purposes.”

“What kind of purposes?”

“Well, you know how I said I was going to see my mother and brother?”

Connor nodded.

“My mother is here with my little brother, who has a very rare condition that attacks only the Elite gene. It’s debilitating and makes its victims weak. Unchecked, the virus kills its host like a cancer. The Island and those on it perform a kind of healing that’s not found in our world. My mother is here with my little brother, Reap, to see if they can halt the progress of the virus.”

“There she is!” Orion shouted from the helm of the ship.

Connor had to squint to see a tiny landmass that was growing bigger by the second. Soon the tiny speck took on more definitive characteristics. It looked like the Amazon, a rich green landscape with a backdrop of mountain ranges. The same mist Orion had taken them through clung around The Island like a wall of guards standing sentry.

Orion
took the group to a small wooden dock that looked worse than the boat.

“Well
, here we are. Better get a move on and make our presence known before they find us.”

Connor gave Laren a quizzical look as the two jumped off the boat and headed inl
and. “He means The Island’s population, its protectors. They’re a welcoming group. It’s just polite for us to head straight to the palace and introduce you. Not everyone is welcome on The Island, so when a new visitor arrives, we have to present you.”

“Ok
ay, I have to politely present myself and then tell them I need their crown. This should go over well.”

The three crossed the small beach
, and with Orion’s lanky shape in the lead, they made their way zigzagging through the jungle and thick underbrush. It didn’t take long for Orion to find a path, and twenty minutes later, the trio found themselves approaching a huge stone wall with an impressive iron gate set directly in the middle.

Lion gargoyles stood guard on either side of the gates
. More statues were spaced out strategically across the dark stone battlements. Stone wolves, griffins, dragons, and tigers stared back at him, almost daring him to look away.

Orion walked to the door, and with the nonchalance one would expect when knocking on the door of a close friend, Orion wrapped on the gate. The noise made an echo and reverberated back into the kingdom’s walls. Nothing happened. “The boys must be napping,” Orion said as he lifted a fist for another knock.

Before he could make contact with the gate
, the left side of the door slowly swung open and a small man with an orange robe smiled at the group. “Oh no, Mr. Orion, it is the meditation hour. I’m sorry for my late arrival. Please come in.”

Orion bowed to the little man.
“Thank you, brother, and I’m sorry for the disturbance.”

“Not at all
.” The small man shifted his amber eyes past Orion to Laren. “Oh, and Miss Abelardus, your mother and brother will be so happy to see you.”

“Thank you,” Laren said
, bowing. “May I introduce Connor Moore to you, brother?”

In the same
soft-spoken manner Tien used to converse on the Council, the man bowed again in Connor’s direction. “Oh, it is so nice to meet you. Your father was a great friend of mine.”

Connor did a
n awkward half bow of his own as he tried to piece together how his father would have made it to The Island. “Thank you.”

Smile still in place
, the man closed the door behind the travelers and slowly made his way down the stone pathway that led to the main palace. “I’ll show you to your rooms and then I’m sure the king would like to meet you, Connor. He also knew your father.”

Connor didn’t know what to say
, so he kept quiet and followed their pleasant guide. The palace was a huge building with sharp, pointed roofs and ornate stone and woodwork. Everything was picture perfect; the garden they walked through on the way to the palace was immaculate and would give even Morrigan’s green thumb a run for her money. A large staircase led up to a set of wooden doors that stood wide open.

The interior to the building was no less impressive
than the outside. Clean carpets covered the wooden floors and tapestries hundreds of years old hung delicately on the walls.

“Brother?” Laren asked as the man led them through the p
alace’s halls. “How is my younger brother faring?”

“Reap is a strong child
. The sickness has not completely left his body, but we have managed to stop its progress. As we train Reap and he learns to harness his will, we have faith he will be able to make a full recovery.”

Laren walked quietly with a smile on her face but Connor knew her well enough now to tell the difference
between a genuine smile from one that was forced and worried.

“Here we are, three rooms all next to each other. If you would like to wash up and change, I will inform the
King, your mother, and brother of your arrival before I come back and gather you for the evening meal.”

Thanking the small man for his generosity
, the three travelers headed to their rooms to change. Connor entered his chamber, and unlike his quarters in the Abelardus castle, this room was small and barely furnished. A bed stood in one corner, a chair and desk across from it, and the only other two things the room boasted was a small bathroom and a smaller dresser just under a window that opened to the courtyard.

A bowl of water and towel stood ready on the dresser
. An orange robe lay neatly folded on the bed. Connor wasted no time in attacking the water and washing off the salt spray from his face. The clothes, on the other hand, were harder to deal with. Connor picked up the bright orange material and turned it around, trying to figure out which way to put it on.

“Laren, Laren!”
His door burst open and a small boy ran into the room, dressed in a smaller version of the robe Connor held in his hands. The boy’s dull green eyes widened when he saw Connor. “Oh, you’re not Laren. Who are you?”

“I’m Connor
. You must be Reap.”

“You know me?” the little boy asked
, scratching his bald head.

“Of course
. Your sister talks about you all the time.”

“She does? Are you her boyfriend?”

“Ummm—“ Connor was saved from having to answer the question with Laren’s appearance in the doorway.

“Well
, there you are, Reap. You look so good!”

“Laren!” the little Abelardus ran to his sister and threw his arms around
her as she knelt down to embrace him.

“I did
n’t know you were coming. Mom will be so happy to see you. How’s Dad and Lu?”

“They’re great
, Reap, and they miss you very much.” She extended her arms, holding her little brother at a distance. “You look so strong. How’s your time on The Island been?”

The little boy flexed a thin bicep for his sister to inspect
. “Good. I’m getting stronger!”

Laren smiled
. “Yes, you are. Have you met Connor yet? Connor, this is my brother, Reap. Reap, this is Connor. He’s a Judge.”

The little boy turned and looked at Connor with a new sign of respect and admiration
. “A Judge. I thought he was just a boyfriend.”

An awkward silence filled the room before Connor decided to break it, extending a hand to Reap
. “It’s nice to meet you, Reap.”

Reap’s tiny hand was engulfed by Connor’s as they shook.

“Better change and come down to the eating hall,” Orion said, popping his thick beard and patched eye through the door. “The King and Mrs. Abelardus are waiting.”

Connor
darted in the bathroom and threw on the robe as the rest of the party waited. It was actually much more comfortable than Connor had anticipated. The material felt like silk and allowed him to move freely in any direction. Barefoot, the four followed Orion down another long hall and to a huge dining room. It was easily twice the size of the Council chamber back at the Abelardus castle.

Gold
torch holders hung along the walls in shapes of dragons, lions, and eagles. In the center of the room was a long table with equally long benches on either side for seating. The table was full of fruit, vegetables, and water pitchers.

Each bench was loaded to capacity with amber-eyed monks in orange robes
, all with genuinely welcoming smiles and nods as the group entered the room.

Orion led them to the head of a table
, where a large wooden chair was placed. The chair wasn’t ornate. It was ordinary and plain. The man who sat in the chair, however, was anything but. He was a few inches taller than Connor, but with a similar muscular build. His mustache and goatee were long and combined with his black hair that was pulled into a ponytail, were the only things that set him apart from the rest of the monks.

Sitting to his right was a
n older version of Laren. The woman was tall with long brown, curly hair and green eyes that seemed to capture the torchlight and glimmer more than they should.

“Your
Highness, may I present Connor Moore?” Orion said, waving a hand in Connor’s direction as Laren went to embrace her mother and exchange quiet hellos.

Connor wasn’
t sure how he should address the King, so he knelt like he would during a Council meeting, averting his eyes to the ground.

“Please,” the
King spoke softly and deliberately. “You do not have to kneel.”

Surprised with the response
, Connor stood up, as did the King. “My name is Zheng, and it is a pleasure to meet you. If I am correct, it is your first time here. May I present Mrs. Abelardus?”

Connor swallowed hard
. He knew that he and Laren weren’t dating, but it still felt a bit daunting to shake her mother’s hand. “It’s nice to meet the man who has the Elite race in such a frenzy. So you’re the soon to be proclaimed Judge of our people.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Abelardus—“

“Please, call me Kora. I’ve insisted Zheng do the same, but he’s stubborn.”

“It is our custom to show every respect,”
Zheng said, smiling with a small bow. “But please sit and eat, you all must be very tired and hungry from your journey.”

Kora, and Orion
sat on the king’s left; Connor, Reap, and Laren on the right. Everyone at the table began to serve themselves. There was every variety of fruit and vegetable Connor could imagine and some he couldn’t place. The dark wooden table was alive with colors as the group began their meal and the hall was full of talk and laughter.

“
So how was the trip to The Island?” Kora asked Connor over the table. “I still remember my first time making the journey.”

Connor stole a glance at Orion
, who was all smiles and laughter as he cut apart his mango. “It was surprising. I don’t think I gave Orion and his ship enough credit.”

“I told you,” Orion
said around a mouthful of mango. “She’s faster than she looks.”

Connor nodded in agreement.

“And Lupus and your father, Laren?” Kora asked.

“Oh
they’re great. I’m sure they wished they could come, but with the Council meetings and everything going on, they’re a bit busy at the moment.”

“What do you mean
by ‘everything going on?’”

It dawned on Connor that
with the secluded location of The Island, they may be a few days or more behind on information. “They, ummm…” Laren looked at Reap, who was burrowing into a huge slice of watermelon like a small squirrel. “There have been some developments. Vercin has been seen alive.”

The entire table suddenly stopped eating. The entire table
, that is, except for Reap, who didn’t miss a beat and bit deep into his juicy mound of goodness with a satisfied little smile.

“How is this possible?”
Zheng asked for the first time, showing another emotion besides happiness and good will.

“That’s what
the Council is trying to figure out, but it’s been confirmed. There’s no doubt about it.”

“I would imagine that your presence here
, Mr. Moore, would have something to do with all of this?” Zheng asked.

This was it
. The part of the journey Connor had dreaded from the instant he had met the first monk at the gate and experienced their welcoming attitude and giving spirit. How was he supposed to tell them he needed to take their crown? But a multitude of amber eyes begged the question. The entire hall was silent as they all waited. “Yes. My second task to prove my right as a Judge is to bring back the crown of the Zhanshi king.”

Gasps erupted from the monks at the table and angry shouts filled the hall. A few monk
s even stood up from their seats, grabbing forks and knives, just waiting for their king to give the word and attack the intruder that would dare speak such a thing. Connor didn’t know how to respond. Reap sat up wide eyed in his seat, and the Abelardus women, along with Orion, sat poised, ready for action.

Zheng
rose from his seat and extended muscular, tattooed arms forward, palms open to calm the table. “Brothers, peace. Our guest does not know the weight his words carry. Please sit down.”

The shouts died as the monk regained their composures and retook their seat
s. Connor could still feel their eyes on him.

“Connor, you must forgive us
, but the crown is something we guard with our lives, and it would be quite impossible for you to take simply carry it away.”

Connor took a deep breath
. He felt like a jerk. “I’m sorry, Zheng, but with all due respect, I must insist. It’s the only way to prove myself as Judge and unite our people for when Vercin makes his move.”

Zheng
sat in his chair, stroking his long goatee and staring at Connor. It wasn’t an intimidating stare or one that was meant to scare him. Zheng was deep in thought, his amber eyes, although looking at Connor, were searching far beyond him for an answer, a million miles away. “Mr. Moore,” he said, slowly rising from his chair. “Will you walk with me?

Connor nodded and stood.

“Please, continue to eat and excuse us,” Zheng said, addressing the many at the table as the two left.

Zheng
led Connor deeper into the palace, and soon the noise of the great hall died away. Zheng didn’t say a word and Connor’s nervousness increased with each passing step.

Soon the
King and Judge found themselves at a large iron door lit by a single torch that hung from the stone wall. Zheng produced an iron key from a necklace that had been concealed by his robe. The large door swung open with a loud creak. Taking the torch, he led Connor down a spiraling stone stairwell. The two traveled in silence, deeper and deeper into the belly of the palace. Just when he thought he couldn’t take the silence anymore and was deciding whether or not to break the stillness, Connor saw a faint glow below them.

Down
and down they went until they reached the bottom. The stairs opened into a small room. A single stone pillar in the middle with a glass case resting on top was the only thing the room held. Inside the glass case was a stone that glowed a faint blue. It was a rock about the size of a large dinner plate, but it was a rock unlike any Connor had ever seen. He could almost sense the power that came from the stone.