"How did she get in the top twenty?"
Frostvale warriors murmured their inquiry as they peered at the neutral holding grounds' main slate board. People's names were listed by success. A crude but public count of the outcomes. The first trial's safety, timing, and morale were examined. The first ranks were already producing problems before the second trial's public duels.
My number was 18. * Aerys. Unaffiliated.
A silent cry was on the board. Marek (52), Torin (47), and Lyra (29). Above it are Rowan (15) and Caelan (12).
From the rear of the crowd, I watched. I covered my head with my cap in the light rain. Doubt was intense. People shoved and attacked the King's servants to guard the board.
"There's no way this is right," one Blackclaw leader told my stiff-as-a-board father, who stood
