Festiva - Part two 

Merran

She froze. Standing on a bridge overlooking the darkness interrupted by one tiny light. A light six shapes were hurtling towards. Everyone had leapt, everyone had shown no fear — they had also proved that this competition, for that is what it was now, was not going to be played out as a simple participation trophy; where everyone was happy as long as they had fun. No! This was a competition, what was at stake for each leader would have more damaging effects than her brain could come up with.

"Ah," the vendor exclaimed triumphantly, "here we have the first one to fail, Merran of Temis, I wouldn't vote for her, although, a small fishing town was never going to produce a champion, a Queen."

Merran gritted her teeth. She didn't care about the words, or the whispered phrases about her city that hissed through the audience. Provocation had never driven her; she didn't work like that. No, it was how she would view herself if she didn't try, if she showed here and now that she didn't deserve to be a part of the leaders then she let herself down. She took a deep steadying breath, took the two steps to the ledge, bent her legs...

The vendor said something, but it was lost on her as the wind swept up the cliff and almost threw her backwards.

She glimpsed six shadows in flight and a light still resting far below. The other leaders had missed. But they would have another chance as gravity kicked in again. She didn't have long. Merran zoned in on that light, focussed, ready — it moved... it was moving. She didn't spare a thought for the vendor and his manipulations. She simply tracked the movement, walking along the ledge of the bridge, it went faster, she broke into a sprint and just before the end of the bridge she launched herself...

The fall was madness, the wind rushed by so fast it made her eyes water. However, long underwater stints had prepared her for this, she watched that light get closer and closer, but it was still moving, the stick had morphed into an insect that scuttled across the water. She opened her hand and grabbed it... just. The tricky little insect had attempted to fly off at the last second, but she was far too fast — another advantage of a fishing town, learning to catch fish with your barehands.

She crushed the strange contraption into her chest as the chord went taut and had her shooting upwards, victorious.

The war between gravity eventually ended with Merran being hauled up and onto the platform where she presented the glowing — now broken stick to the crowd. The audience didn't respond, but she didn't really care, she had won. Proved to herself that she could do this, that Temis was more than just a small city with a leader that had no songs sung or stories retold about her. Maybe just maybe she could beat the leaders in this tournament, she could —

"You cheated," Kaijan was right in Siva's face, "you almost pushed me into a rock."

Siva shrugged. "I didn't hear anything about rules. Did any of you?"

"You could've killed me."

Merran didn't miss the outrage in Kaijan's voice, mixed with desperation. The Kavain needed information about the stone, and Siva — Merran couldn't believe he would be drawn in like this so easily, but then again so had she. And with that the flare died as quickly as it had sparked. She too had been reeled in so effortlessly.

"Don't worry Kaijan," Tia stood with her hands on her hips, "his not the only one who'll do anything to win."

Mez squared off against her sister. "It's a competition Tia, the whole point is winning."

"This wasn't a competition Mez, exactly like hunting Forcian offspring is not a competition."

Mez rolled her eyes and looked to the heavens. "Oh, here we go again."

"It was — Tia stopped. "Fine we'll play it your way, let's see how you like it when I'm actually competing instead of trying to keep the peace with you."

"Bring it little sister," Mez teased.

Tia worked her jaw, her long scar stretching with the movement.

And this Merran thought was how easy it was for all the leaders to end up resenting each other. How long would it be until they no longer traded? How long before wars broke out, they would if the cities stopped sharing. Every item that arrived was necessary and most couldn't survive without.

And the tournament hadn't even started...

"Everyone needs to calm down," she tried, still holding onto the partially broken, now feeble glowing stick, "we don't even know what this tournament is about, there's no reason to fight."

"Merran," Arya scolded. Merran was so surprised she couldn't think of a reply fast enough.

"Whatever game you're playing you can stop. I can see right through you. Act all innocent and then when we least expect it from you, you swoop in and steal the victory."

"That's not what I did."

"Really," she tried again desperate for them to understand. But gauging by the expressions nobody believed her.

"I just —

"Give it a rest Merran," Kaijan said, but there was no malice in it, he was massaging his temples like this had given him a headache.

"Don't talk to her like that," Siva stood in front of her. But she pushed passed him. She couldn't believe Siva; the humblest man had cheated in an attempt to win. Then again, the Dharysian was about the most headstrong person she knew, and most interactions had been his way or no way.

She held out the dimly glowing stick to Kaijan. "Here, ask your question."

Kaijan's eyes widened, and a weak smile tilted his lips. "Thank you Merran, you have no idea how much I owe you for this."

She shrugged. "If the island is to survive after all this we have to stick together."

She glared pointedly at Arya, who looked bored.

Before Merran could even utter the word teenagers, Kaijan swore. Badly.

"Where is he?"

Merran didn't need to look to know. The vendor had vanished, and any evidence on the blue Gift-stone had disappeared with him.

"We'll find him," Merran offered, "if we split up, we can cover this platform easily, he couldn't have got far." She tracked the Discs and found none of them were in motion.

"I think I'm gonna pass," Arya yawned, "long day and all." But instead of heading to the Discs she disappeared into the crowded Night-life streets, her walk a swagger that made Merran so angry she could hardly talk.

"I'm also out," Mez turned to follow, "this is a tournament, one winner, the rest losers, I won't let anything," she looked directly into her twin sister's eyes, "get in the way of ensuring the right person holds those Gift-abilities, so that Aradia remains safe."

"And you're the right person," Tia scoffed, "leadership is about helping your people not walking away and then claiming you want to defend them."

"You sure do talk a lot of sis," she said over her shoulder and then wondered off.

Merran finally managed to find her voice, but she was interrupted by Siva. "I'm going as well Merran," he bowed his head as if he were unable to look into his eyes, "and I suggest you do the same. You can't get everyone to like you, sometimes you have to make a hard choice to do the right thing."

Her voice was bitter as she replied. "And what exactly is the right thing?"

He managed to face her. "For an Aradian to win this tournament. Not Sulphites or Frostlanders. Not those who will destroy the peace that has been so hard to build, not those who wear their powers as blackmail. Imagine he," he pointed at Kaijan, "comes into control, what's to stop him using the gift-abilities and his precious stones to make us bow, or her," he nodded at Tia, "the Frostlanders have been after more land for years, what's to stop them from taking over Aradia?

They won't need us to fish or forest or harvest. And when they've got that, you think they will let their own kind suffer on another continent, no, they'll ship them in, and it'll be us who have to go out into the seas and bring them back. Us facing the Forcian's. Us."

Merran assumed he would storm off when he was done, but it appeared as if he had run out of steam. It was such a rant. She knew he was headstrong, but not to this extend. It sounded as if this fear had been growing in him for decades. Eating away at him.

"Siva, everyone on this island is Aradian, no matter what they looked like, how they speak, what culture they follow or what god they worship. We have existed peacefully and worked together for years, there is no reason to undo that now."

"Well, then you're blind."

With that said Siva turned and walked away, leaving her angry, frustrated, tired, and confused...