ZaiWin was considering where to safely spend the night when a warm hand landed on his shoulder, startling him. Spinning around, he immediately relaxed at the sight of Wen NimRen’s gentle smile.

“I didn’t see you the entire day. I was worried something might have happened …” she added in a low voice.

“I’m fine. Please don’t worry.”

“Yes, I can see that,” she declared looking up at the scores. “Tenth place. Not bad at all.”

“Look who’s talking,” he retorted and she blushed, averting her gaze.

“As if I could take any of the merit. You know my brother would never stand to see me placed lower than that. In truth I didn’t do much of anything …”

Of course he knew that. Neither she nor any of the royals had gathered all those tokens all by themselves. Taking into account how well they’d been hidden, it would be simply impossible to gather so many of them in such a short amount of time. So it was obvious that other kids had gathered them for them. Which was hardly against the rules, he thought. In fact the Calzai had never said anything against people working together, or even stealing other people’s tokens. He’d only stated that they couldn’t injure one another.

“I wonder what happened to the four that are missing …” NimRen sighed, her face growing a shade paler when the twins silently walked by, side by side like two synchronized copies. ZaiWin also followed them with his gaze.

So they knew, he concluded bleakly. It was clear that NimRen had immediately suspected the two of them, and the fact that such a horrible thought had crossed her mind could only mean that the twins’ … twisted games had become widely known, at least amongst the royals.

Well, he didn’t have to wonder about what had happened to two of the missing kids. He’d seen it with his own eyes. And yes, NimRen was probably right. The other two had probably fallen victims of a similar fate. He was sure that the Calzai’s men would eventually find their bodies. After all, it wasn’t as if they’d taken the time to hide them or dispose of them. They had just left them there, out in the open. He just didn’t know what the men would do once they found them.

Taking a deep breath, as if that could expel the dark thoughts from her head, NimRen held his hand and, with a renewed smile, quickly pulled him to one side.

“Where are we going?” he asked and she looked back at him, a happy, almost excited expression on her face.

“I have something for you.” He frowned suspiciously but still followed her. “But you have to promise me that you’ll keep it a secrete from my brother. He’ll kill me if he finds out.”

“Then maybe you shouldn’t give it to me.”

“Nonsense! Those are two completely different things!”

Once they’d stepped a few ways away from the camp, enough to be hidden from unwanted eyes by the shadowy trees, NimRen finally stopped, releasing his hand, and looked for something inside her backpack.

“I’ve been watching you and I noticed you haven’t been using your fire daitai,” she started and he couldn’t help taking a step back, his entire body tense, ready for a fight. “I don’t know why. I remember you used to control them rather well. But I also know that when we practice other daitai too much the less used ones can go dormant for a while. And so I did this for you,” she declared with a smile, showing him a small crystal with an orange-fiery marking engraved inside it. Like the orienting crystal, the marking had a gentle glow to it, and he immediately recognized it as one of the royal daitai of fire that only the direct descendants of the El’Dur carried on their bodies since birth. “I had a lot of free time on my hands today, so I spent it imprinting it on this crystal. It is only one of the weakest daitai and, since I didn’t have a lot of time, it will probably only last a few days. But, until then, you can use it to light a fire anywhere you need.”

ZaiWin looked at the crystal, his throat tightening at the sight of the beautiful fiery lines. For more reasons than he could list he wished he could grab it and throw it as far away as he could. But NimRen had spent the entire day charging that crystal especially for him, and he knew that imprinting a marking into a crystal, even a weak one like that, could be very tiring. And she was right. A way to make fire would really come in handy.

You damn kid! Do you still think of yourself as some kind of rich, pampered lordling? Do you still think that others will come and save you, and help you, and solve your problems for you? Wake up! So what if you have to beg for help? So what if you have to bow in gratitude when others help you? Is pride going to feed you? Is pride going to feed your people? Or are you intending to be the prideful lord of a barren land full of people starving to death? If you need help and there’s someone willing to help you just accept it and be thankful for that!

With ZenTar’s severe words ringing in his ears he smiled bitterly and accepted her gift.

“Thank you.”

NimRen smiled happily and nodded in approval.

“It was nothing. I just wish you could join us. You’re always on your own …” she breathed with a sorrowful expression that immediately renewed his smile.

“I don’t mind it. I’m used to it.” She gave him an inquisitive look. “Well, there aren’t any kids my age, back in Nox. Only old men and old women. So I’m normally on my own,” he explained, which she seemed to naturally accept. What he didn’t tell her was that even when he’d lived in the palace, surrounded by other kids his age, he’d still been alone. And that he’d much rather be alone than have to watch his back every waking moment.

“So, have you learned to control all your daitai?”

He averted his gaze and scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. He didn’t like to talk about his daitai. Were she any other person he would have already told her that that was none of her business. But he could hardly be rude to her when, unlike all the others, she’d always treated him with nothing but kindness and respect.

“All but one.”

“Really?!” Her beautiful blue eyes widened in disbelief. “I still can’t control three of mine, and I’m four years older than you! You’re really amazing!”

“That only means your markings are more powerful than mine. Age has nothing to do with it.”

She ruffled his hair, releasing his hairpin in the process, the blue metallic feather sliding down his smooth hair, and he couldn’t help but just stand there, completely petrified, dark locks of hair falling over his shoulders, partially covering his face.

“Just look at you!” she laughed, winking. “All smooth talk, just like a grown-up!” He blushed, tucking his hair behind his ears, and couldn’t help smile. For a moment he had actually expected her to scorn him for how darker his hair looked when falling loose down his back and chest. “If you were a bit older I’d probably ask you to marry me. Then we could both go on a trip, and get to know Nox and Won together,” she sighed, playing with the blue hairpin between her fingers, and he quickly snatched it back, turning around to tie his hair up again.

“Don’t be silly. They would murder us both before they’d allow that to happen.” And for more than one reason!

NimRen laughed nervously.

“You’re probably right. My brother would certainly be the first one in line. But if we really could get married, just think how much fun we would have.”

As if life could ever be about having fun, he thought, but, once more, didn’t want to ruin NimRen’s dreamy state of mind. Tossing the crystal she’d given him in the air and catching it again, he turned to her with a renewed smile.

“Thanks a lot for this. It will really come in handy. But now you should probably go back, before your brother comes looking for you.” Which would undoubtedly happen, and which would only get him into trouble.

NimRen’s forced smile told him that she had just thought the same.

“And you?”

“I still want to look for something to eat. Now that I can light a fire I’m kind of eager to catch some fish.”

Her smile immediately brightened up and she nodded, the precious stones still attached to her hair glistening in the dark.

“I’ll see you later, then.”

He nodded and stood there, watching her go, before he turned around and made his way towards a wider stream he’d found during the day.

Even though his legs and arms ached from all the climbing and jumping from tree to tree, that night ZaiWin slept way up, above the ground, sitting on a sturdy branch, his back against a tree trunk. He’d much rather spend the night taking care not to fall from a tree than spend it being afraid someone might sneak on him and stab him to death. Since the first competition had ended the hateful glares his way had doubled. Some of the kids that had simply ignored him seemed to suddenly have realized that he was actually among them, to the point that he was really regretting not having thrown away half of his tokens.

Once morning came orders to move out echoed throughout the entire camp. Apparently they’d spend the rest of the days like this, marching during the morning and having competitions in the afternoon. As he’d guessed, no one provided them with any food or even a change of clothes, which meant that sometime during that day he’d have to wash his tunic and pants.

The two injured kids, the boy with the twisted ankle and the girl with the broken leg, were left behind, but this time another boy from the same Clan as the girl offered to stay with them. As for the four missing kids no one said a single word, even though whispers kept traveling back and forth as people tried to guess what had happened to them.