Keeper of the Realms: Crow's Revenge (Book 1) (41 page)

Charlie grudgingly nodded. She calmed down slightly and Kelko and Jensen carefully released her from their grip. As much as she didn’t like to admit it, Jensen was absolutely right. First things first.

58

The Silent Duel

‘It is time,’ said the match official as he watched the last two K’Changa contestants leave the arena. ‘Ya must enter.’

‘What about Constantina?’ asked Charlie.

‘As the challenger she has the right ta enter last,’ said the official with an imperious look.

Charlie snorted. ‘Hhmpf. No doubt so that she can make another one of her spectacular entrances.’

‘Wotever the case, ya must enter first,’ he insisted.

Charlie stared out at the vast tide of faces that swamped the Colosseum. There were thousands and thousands of people out there. All of them were waiting to see her, Charlie Keeper. She gulped as she felt the first little tremor of stage fright.

A firm hand gripped her by the shoulder. ‘Good luck, me little Hippotomi,’ said Jensen.

‘Aye, good luck,’ said Kelko. ‘We believe in ya.’

Charlie wanted to smile, but with all the butterflies rampaging around her stomach she found it hard to control herself, so instead of getting a confident smile her two friends received a sickly grin. ‘Thanks, boys,’ she said in a small voice that quivered and shook.

She tried to draw strength from the outfit that she wore, one of her treasured gifts from Azariah. First she touched the jade hairpin that secured her top knot, then trailed her fingers down across the dark weave of her shirt, past her spider-silk belt to finally wrap her trembling hands in the fabric of her black baggy trousers. But although she took comfort from Azariah’s gift, it did little to quench her fear.

‘Will ya please hurry up?’ urged the official. ‘We haven’t got all day!’ He sneered at her. ‘Why don’t ya simply give the pendant over ta Constantina anyway? Save us all a lotta hassle.’

‘Watch yer mouth!’ growled Jensen. Stepping close to the arrogant official, he waved his fist beneath the man’s nose. ‘She’ll go out as and when she’s ready, so stand there and be quiet before I thump ya!’

Sic Boy growled too and took a couple of menacing steps forward.

The official quickly clamped his mouth shut.

‘Good,’ snorted Jensen. ‘OK, Charlie, lass. Just remember ta do everything that we’ve done in practice. Move fast, stay light on yer feet and, for the Seven Heavens’ sake, keep a firm grip on yer Will. Now get out there and show us wot ya’ve got!’

Leaning down, he slapped Charlie hard on the back to propel her out into the arena. Unfortunately Charlie squawked, staggered forward a couple of paces, then promptly tripped to fall flat on her face.

The crowd roared with laughter.

Blushing furiously, Charlie leaped to her feet. Quickly
dusting herself down, she threw her chin out, straightened her back and then stomped the rest of the way into the middle of the arena. Unfortunately, some joker in the Treman band decided it would be funny to tootle a horrible, shrieking squeak from his flute every time that Charlie took a step. For all those thousands of spectators looking on, it appeared as though the young Keeper was so uptight that she squeaked when she walked.

Again, the crowd wept with laughter.

Shame began to ripple through Charlie’s stomach. Embarrassment coloured her cheeks and dismay sent sweat coursing down her neck to puddle uncomfortably in the small of her back. Thankfully, when she reached the centre of the arena the idiot playing the flute grew bored and fell silent. So too did the rest of the Colosseum. Everyone was waiting for the champion to arrive.

They didn’t have long to wait, as one of the large gates that lined the arena was flung open and a long line of Alavisian Watchmen, pounding and rattling their swords against their shields, marched into the arena. Constantina followed in their wake, accompanied by a dozen maids scattering lilies in her path. The crowd roared out their approval.

Constantina sauntered over to stand in front of Charlie. ‘Hello, buttercup. Ready for your humiliation? Well, I certainly hope so, because I promised all my fans a real show,’ she purred.

Charlie, still frantically embarrassed by her own entrance into the arena, struggled to come up with a suitable reply. All she could manage was, ‘Let’s get on with this.’

Constantina sneered. Turning her back on Charlie, she
faced her audience. ‘Sylvaris! Sylvaris! Hear me now! When I defeat this impudent outsider I promise to show you just how great I can be. With me holding the pendant I will lead this city to a great future, free from Bane’s threat. A future of wealth and fame, so that throughout all of Bellania, Sylvaris will be known as the one great city … the city that saved our realm. Will you stand by me? Will you support me as your champion? What do you say?’

The crowd surged to its feet and bellowed out its approval: ‘Constantina! Constantina for the pendant! Constantina for the pendant!’

Delighted with the response, Constantina turned to Charlie and smirked. ‘Well, buttercup, it looks like your time has come,’ she hissed. ‘I hope losing to me hurts so much that you tremble in shame for the rest of your miserable life! Prepare to say goodbye to that precious pendant of yours …’

Staring into Constantina’s confident face, Charlie’s doubts grew more intense. How on earth was she going to win? Not once during practice had she succeeded in blending her Will with K’Changa, so what chance did she have now? But as nervous as Charlie was, there was no way she was going to show Constantina how she felt.

‘Yeah, well don’t expect it to be too easy,’ she blustered. ‘I might surprise you yet.’

‘With what? You’re a thirteen-year-old loser from the Other Realm and you’ve only just learned to play K’Changa. The only surprise that’s going to happen tonight will be if I allow you to touch the Zephyr.’

Charlie opened her mouth to say something witty, but fear for the future struck her dumb. Cold fingers of doubt
churned through her stomach. Her head pounded with the need to do something, anything, to ensure that the pendant remained hers and hers alone. But she could not move.

Seeing Charlie’s hesitation, Constantina grinned. But before she could say anything the arena doors opened and out stepped the referee. She was dressed in robes of gold and black and as she strode towards the contestants they could see the bright blue Zephyr by her side.

‘Ya’ve both been briefed on wot ta expect with tonight’s Silent Duel,’ said the referee. ‘The first ta win two rounds will win the right ta hold the pendant. Right, are ya ready?’

‘I’m always ready,’ smirked Constantina.

‘And ya, Charlie Keeper, are ya ready?’

Charlie gazed around the stadium. Realizing what was at stake and that now was her moment to stand up for herself, she straightened her back and did her best to push her doubts aside. She wanted to make Azariah proud, even if he wasn’t here to see her. ‘I’m ready,’ she said.

‘Good. Sylvaris!’ the referee shouted out. ‘Let the Silent Duel begin!’ She nodded at one of the officials, who in turn nodded at the Treman band.

They began to pound on their drums, filling the arena with a rolling, thumping rhythm. The beat echoed around the Colosseum, bouncing off the walls, and crashed into the night sky. The torches and illuminating fires seemed to burn brighter as the crowd, anticipating a match of legendary proportions, leaned forward in expectation.

The referee threw the Zephyr into the air.

59

Unleashing the Will

Charlie breathed in and time seemed to slow.

The moan of the crowd sounded long and drawn out, the drumbeat seemed slow and thick. She could feel the brush of the wind on her cheek and the grate of sand beneath her feet. Torchlight glittered off the Zephyr’s incandescent feathers and the referee’s robes flapped slowly around her as though she were wading under water. Beneath all of this Charlie felt a sense of impending doom settle around her heart like a fist.

Breathing out, time returned to normal.

Charlie leaped desperately for the shuttlecock, but Constantina beat her to it. Landing lightly, the champion began to duck and weave from side to side, the Zephyr moving like a blue flash around her body. Horrified at just how quickly Constantina could move, Charlie started to pursue her. Somersaulting and cartwheeling, kicking and sweeping, the two opponents streaked across the arena. The shout of the referee beginning her countdown urged them to even greater speeds.

‘One! Two! Three!’

It soon became apparent that Charlie was outclassed. Constantina moved with the speed of a snake. Elusive and slippery, she constantly evaded Charlie’s efforts to take the Zephyr, moving even faster until she left Charlie groping helplessly in the dust of her passage.

Already disheartened, Charlie grew even more miserable as it finally dawned on her just how skilled her opponent was. Constantina was on a whole different level. Hearing the count drawing perilously close to the end, Charlie gritted her teeth and did her best to block out the sound of the crowd as she drew upon her Will. Azariah had been right – it was her only hope.

Focusing, she breathed deeply and summoned her Keeper power. It seemed to come easily this time, surging through her and racing down her arms until her fists started to glow. Grinning with new confidence, Charlie raced forward. Bounding and leaping effortlessly into the air, she swiftly caught up with her opponent. Eyes intent upon the Zephyr, she flung out a hand … But, just as it had during training, everything started to go wrong. Her head pounded, her heart jittered and her vision blurred.

KRA-KHUMPF!

The blast from the backfire sent Charlie tumbling across the sandy floor to land in a heap of sprawling limbs. Pain racked her body; it tore at her flesh with cruel fingers and caused her to arch her back. The crowd jumped to their feet in shock, the drums lost their rhythm and in the sudden silence came the shout of the referee.

‘TEN! Round one to Constantina.’

There was a long moment of silence. Of stillness. Charlie
stared up at the night sky and wondered where everything had taken a turn for the worse. Then Constantina’s unwelcome face appeared in her line of vision.

‘Ha! I knew you’d be no threat.’

Misery swept through Charlie’s soul. She clenched her teeth and bunched her hands into fists so that her nails dug into her palms. She wouldn’t cry. She wouldn’t show any weakness. She would –

‘Charlie Keeper, this is no time for sleeping!’ said the referee. Reaching down, she heaved her upright. ‘Are ya all right?’ She peered at her face for signs of sickness. ‘Do ya want ta quit and forfeit the pendant?’

‘No. No! I’m, uh, I’m all right. Really.’ But she wasn’t. Her Will had failed her and now she had no idea how to prevent Constantina from robbing her of her pendant. Her hopes of overcoming Bane and being reunited with her parents lay in tatters at her feet.

‘Well, if yer sure. Here,’ she said, holding out a towel. ‘Clean yerself up, then please return ta the centre of the arena and we will commence with round two.’

Constantina grinned as she saw Charlie stagger towards her on unsteady feet. ‘What’s the matter, Charlie Keeper? Has your Will got the better of you or have you just lost your Way?’

Full of bleak despair, Charlie finally snapped. ‘Shut your trap! You’re stealing my parents from me and all you want to do is laugh about it? I’ve had enough. Enough, you hear me? I might lose this stupid Silent Duel, but that doesn’t mean that I have to put up with you smirking while my parents hang in Bane’s Tapestry. If I hear any more taunts
coming out of your mouth I promise you that I’ll see you after this match and we can settle this with a different type of duel!’

‘Oh-ho! So you do have a backbone after all? Well, Charlie Keeper, guess what? I’m not done with you yet. This is a Silent Duel, best of three makes a winner, but if I win this round the duel will be over too quickly. No, this is a match of a lifetime. This is the K’Changa game that is going to make me a legend. After tonight I’ll be more than a K’Changa champion, I’ll be champion of Sylvaris! So, Charlie … I’m going to let you win this next round.’