Fatefall - 14

Chapter 14 - Nakoa 

My Grace of Void, for example, allowed me to negate the effects of other Graces, so there was no reason why it wouldn’t work against the Fates themselves.

Nakoa wished she had Moose with her. He would’ve been able to navigate the twisting stone corridors with ease. 

His company also would’ve been welcome in chasing away the loneliness of the dark. 

Nakoa hadn’t seen or heard any other competitors since she’d entered the tunnels. Not that she could see much in the first place. The torches that lined the walls of the tunnel did little in actually providing light and her ‘affliction’ only served to slow her down. 

She knew she’d gone in the right direction to begin with. When the gate had opened, their room had spilled out into a tunnel that sloped downward into a large, circular room with hallways of varying sizes branching off into the shadows. There had been five main tunnels, each one marked by a symbol of a Fate above the entrance. 

Nakoa had entered the tunnel marked with an hourglass, though she’d immediately been shoved aside by the other competitors. She’d stumbled along behind them, but it was a losing battle. 

Now, standing at an intersection in the shape of a y, Nakoa didn’t have anyone to follow. She suspected that there had to be some clue as to which direction she was supposed to continue. Maybe something to do with her Grace? 

But what good would the Grace of Time do in deciding which direction to go?

Nakoa tried listening for the ticking of a clock or the voices of her competitors. She tried inspecting the stones at the base of each path, running her fingers along the crevices and praying that no creepy-crawlies lurked in the shadows. Nothing. She was about to risk licking the floor when a fly buzzed by her ear. Nakoa swatted at it but it flew straight for her face. 

She sputtered and blinked, aware of how foolish she must look and then… A flash of movement, there one second and gone the next. Her Grace stirred in her gut. 

Nakoa closed her eyes. Once again, nothing. She’d only succeeded in making herself fully blind.

She froze. The Divine’s voice filled her head. Your affliction is a gift, Nakoa. Basar has made you more powerful than the others. Her golden iris---the topic of much discussion. Stunning. Extraordinary. Magical.

She held her hand over her good eye---the green one---and movement flashed to life. Ghost-like figures poured into the right path, all wearing black jackets. The other competitors. She couldn’t quite make out her surroundings, but the ghostly apparitions were as clear as day. Memories, she realized. 

Her Grace was showing her the past.

It took a few more intersections to get her routine down smoothly. When she looked into the past, she couldn’t see enough of the tunnels to avoid running into walls. Instead, it proved effective to cover her good eye when she approached an intersection, get a glimpse of the past, and then bolt in the right direction. 

Nakoa moved swiftly through the tunnels and before she knew it, she’d caught up with the other competitors. She ducked behind a corner before anyone could spot her, but another peek reassured her that she needn’t have bothered. 

The competitors were gathered around the door, but it didn’t seem like any of them were conscious. They moved very slowly, as though the air around them had thickened into a honey-like substance. A few of the competitors whimpered and Nakoa could’ve sworn she even heard one of them whispering to himself. 

She had no idea what the challenge for her Grace was, but she didn’t plan on finding out. 

Despite the dim lighting, she could just barely make out some runes engraved on the door. Years of reading prayers and hymns for the priestesses had taught her enough about runes that Nakoa could read the ones on the door.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, what happens to me will happen to you.

Not a perfect rhyme, but considering that it’d been translated from ancient texts used purely for lavish purposes, Nakoa let it slide. Besides, the big rune in the center of the doors that read karma was a big enough giveaway. 

What happens to me will happen to you. 

The doors were using their Graces against them. Nakoa couldn’t even begin to imagine how the creators of the Trial had managed it, but somehow they’d created a way for the competitors to feel the power of their own Graces. Which meant Nakoa needed to avoid touching that door at all costs. 

The other competitors were most likely experiencing some sort of side effect from the Grace of Time. Nakoa guessed prophetic visions were the worst of it, and the slower movements were probably an added bonus. 

Assuming that the Trials couldn’t continue indefinitely, Nakoa waited for the competitors to stir. It took a great deal of patience when her Grace was itching for a fight, but she occupied herself by trying to imagine what the other competitors were going through. There were seven of them here besides her, meaning two teams had probably opted for a “working together” type of strategy. 

One of the taller competitors woke abruptly and Nakoa’s muscles tensed. Cold, hard fear lodged in her throat. It’s now or never.

The competitor---definitely female, based on the curves---glanced around, probably taking in her unconscious opponents. She seemed to decide it wasn’t worth it to take any of them out while they were sleeping, so she warily turned to the door. 

Nakoa watched the woman hesitate before slipping her hand over the knob and releasing a relieved breath when nothing happened. She stood in the shadows, watching and waiting until the door was open enough that she could slip through, and then she called upon her Grace. 

It leapt to her call and settled over the narrow tunnel like a blanket. Nakoa barely allowed herself to breathe as she quickly stepped over the unconscious competitors that littered the floor. No one moved a muscle because they couldn’t. Nakoa’s Grace had ensured that when it froze time itself. 

Nakoa slipped through the door, surprised to find that this much use of her Grace didn’t wear her out. She felt a slight tug at her gut, the only sign that her Grace was working to begin with. With no strain to impede her progress, Nakoa hurried into the giant chamber. 

She wanted to be out of the way by the time her Grace released its hold on the tunnel, so she didn’t bother taking in her surroundings. The major challenge was the door, and Nakoa had bypassed that entirely. Pride heated her cheeks. A small part of her couldn’t wait to tell her team that she’d come up with a solution on her own. 

Nakoa grabbed one of the gems off the pedestal in the center of the room and rushed toward the archway on the other side just as her Grace finally relinquished its hold on the tunnel. 

Her excitement didn’t fade as she slipped back into the shadows to wait for her teammates. 

She only wished Ansel could see her now.

Author's Note

I know this chapter is a whole lot shorter than the last one, but I want to keep the "action" chapters shorter to improve the pacing. Let me know if you think this is the wrong approach or if you have any advice for writing faster-paced scenes.