...69883, 69884, 69885, 69886, 69887, 69888, 69889, 69890, 69891, 69892, 69893, 69894, 69895, 69896, 69897, 69898, 69899, 69900, 69901, 69902, 69903, 69904, 69905, 69906, 69907, 69908, 69909, 69910, 69911, 69912, 69913, 69914, 69915, 69916, 69917, 69918, 69919, 69920, 69921, 69922, 69923, 69924, 69925, 69926, 69927, 69928, 69929, 69930, 69931, 69932, 69933-
"Fuck," I groaned, stopping again, even though I didn't want to stop now because I had stopped 225 steps ago, on the 69708th when I drank my 157th sip of water, my legs screaming for a little rest, my lungs burning as I struggled to breathe.
When I heard the steps coming from under me, I refrained from turning my gaze there because it meant looking down, and given how high I am in my climb and my fear of heights that's not the best decision, so, I just pressed my back on the dragon stone wall and kept my eyes on the stairs I'll still have to climb, my head dizzy with how they are spirally carved into the dragon stone. Of the 11111 of us, I would say more than 500 have died already, I did heard many screams and dragon growls, as well as inhaled the smell of burnt humans from above and under me. Around 12 people fell from the stairs above me also, and I've seen a handful dragons, but I'm keeping my attention on the stairs.
The fall would be horrifying, but wouldn't necessarily kill me. Not me. Again, I don't see how the Emperor could have imagined I would die here, he definitely knows I'll get through this madness, even if I have to fall and start again, he must be waiting for me to be killed by the despicable bastards in the academy, but for that, I would need to meet a certain requirement to be able to die.
He was known to be extremely smart, is he expecting all dragons to refuse any bond with me? Did he forget from what cursed bloodline I'm unfortunately from? Or is he counting on me getting a fucking dragon, just so I'll regain some stand, so he could come and try getting that information from me again?
That ain't happening, ever.
I've done wrong before, but I learned from it.
"Oh my Gods. Oh, my, fucking, Gods!" A girl cried exasperated as she got to me, hugging the dragon stone wall as she climbed, shaking and so scared I can almost smell her fear from above the scent of smoke and death in the air.
"Shhhh," I groaned at her, "dragons get attracted to sound and fear, lower your voice or get away from me," and I'm still not looking at her, by my peripheral vision I can tell she's three steps under me, and I'm not looking down.
"Barbie, don't scream," a guy came from right behind her, clearly familiar enough to know her name. "How... how do you know that about them? Nobody knows much about dragons!" I guess he's talking to me.
Closing the lid of my water bottle, I put it back on my backpack, safely, heavy breathing, "I studied," I had to, even if I hate those monsters.
"A... a dragon..." she cried, voice lower than before, but still exasperated. "A red dragon came close to us and killed more than a hundred of the people who were in front of us... the dragon just... burned them... burned them alive to death..."
"The reds are dangerous, volatile and violent," I muttered. "To dragons we aren't anything yet, we are only considered significant enough to live if they bond one of us, the rest are toys for them to burn and play with and some are taken as food. They freed the dragons today exactly to make them kill us, so only 8888 of us will survive."
"What? That's cruel," she squeaked horrified.
"It's Arkhane. You've seen nothing yet," sigh.
"What number... what number are you?" The girl he called Barbie asked, voice lowered but still shaking softly.
"888," I hate this number, I hate all that has number 8 in it, it's an Imperial number, it was supposed to mean something good but it fucking doesn't, not to me.
"Did anyone under you pass by you?" He asked.
"889, the Vadryon spawn. He passed by me 69489 steps ago," that fucker.
"I'm 1239 and she is 1240," he said, haunted.
That means 350 people died between us, and the guy gave his front to her, having her back, which only proves they probably know each other from before the choosing. Many may call that luck, but I call it a curse. "I see," I swallowed.
"I'm... I'm Barbara," she huffed.
"I'm Peregrinous," he followed suit.
"You can call me Barbie, and him Percy!"
When I didn't say anything back, he asked, "What's your name?"
"Grace," grabbing my backpack again, I took a deep breath and got back to climbing, feeling them following me behind, a step between each of us. "You shouldn't try bonding anyone new if you intend on surviving here," I told them when I got to step 69983, without stopping, after a long silence. "Only 888 out of the 11111 will make through the bridge."
"You don't know that," the guy groaned.
"It's statistical, it happens every year," I rolled my shoulders. "They say it's a random pick, that it's equal to everyone, that the deaths are accidental, but they lie. Every year 11111 kids are picked, and every year, only 888 make through the bridge, never more, never less than that, always 888. By the graduation, only 111 will live, if that's even a word to describe how we'll be by then, Arkhane is made to break the strongest of all the souls, in all ways possible."
They stayed silent for long enough for me to get to step 70082, when they spoke, they had seen it through me, just as everyone does.
"You have red hair," he stated the obvious. "Nobody has that hair color unless..." he cursed under his breath. "You're Grace Madalverel," he exclaimed, not asked, in such a low to that one would think my last name would summon a dragon to kill him for daring to saying it loudly. As dramatic as everyone else.
"Madalverel? As in... the tyrant-"
"Call my father a tyrant again and I'll throw you off those steps into the mouth of a dragon myself, Barbara," I groaned, trying to put more space between us, knowing they will grown weird on me now that they know who I am, or that they think they know. "But yes, I'm Grace Madalverel."
"What... what are you doing here?" He asked.
"Ask that draconic bitch," I mocked under my breath, angry. "I aimed for Von Damme, but she and her little master and who he serves had other ideas," I clenched my hands in fists so hard that my nails pierced the palm of my hands, not enough to draw blood because I'm not that stupid to do something that would call those stupid young dragons to come to me for a side meal.
"The tears of Belaxarim pick us randomly!"
I held the urge to bark a bitter laugh at the girl's innocence, "No, they don't. Maybe part of the quota of kids, but not all of them. I wasn't picked randomly because I never wanted to be here, they picked me to be here, it was all deliberate."
"That's impossible," he snapped.
"Believe whatever you want," I sighed, then I ran up until there were more than thirty steps between us, then I got back to my pace.
I wish I had the privilege to live in the dark, to get my memories taken from me too, and just keep it going without having any idea of what lies ahead, of the truths behind this stupid choosing. But I don't have the luxury to be brainwashed like the common folk does, I was born knowing about the truth behind it because I was born in the environment of the people who brainwashed the folk to believe in this bullshit. Until that was stripped away from me.
And it's my fault.
It's all my fault.
70126, 70127, 70128, 70129, 70130...