Page 1 of Angel of Ruin

1

LYRA

As I stride down the alleyways, my ears pick up on the latest gossip. Usually, it’s about who in town is seeing one another, but this time, I’m in for quite a shock.

“...you hear?”

“About the wing trials?”

“Yes! A new one opening up in New Solas.”

My breath hitches in my throat. A new set of wing trials?

At first, I don’t believe it. Until I hear more and more people talk about it.

For so long, I thought I would never have the chance to earn my wings. The wing trials come at random intervals, and it is the only way for a human to earn their wings. To become like a xaphan.

The last wing trials, they laughed at me when I tried to sign up. And I've never been able to shake off the shame that came with that.

But this changes everything.

Yara and Macy stand ahead of me, picking fruits from the bushes in lighthearted conversation. We're just outside of the village outskirts, foraging herbs and berries to take home to ourfamilies. I came here to try and do the same, but I'm more focused on their conversation.

I strain my ears, trying to catch every word they say while pretending to focus on the fruits in front of me. Reaching out, I take and observe a particularly ripe one in front of me, doing my best to feign indifference.

"Those wing trials sound awful." Yara's voice drops to a whisper. "The xaphan are trying to find all sorts of ways to humiliate us, I know it."

Macy hums. "Mhm. I figured that they'd stopped those for good, but for some reason, they're being opened up again. I hear there are three rounds this time." Macy holds up three fingers.

"But is it worth it? So many people have died trying to get their wings," Yara replies, shaking her head. "And these trials sound more dangerous than before."

My heart starts racing in my chest. I've dreamed of this moment for years, a chance to redeem myself and lift my family out of poverty. This might be my only chance to prove myself. To give my family a better life.

"Rosie's brother died during the last trials years ago, remember that? Poor thing has never been able to forget about it," Macy says, her voice trembling.

Yara nods solemnly. "That's not even the worst of it. Remember Kal? He was killed on his way into the trial. Never even made it to his room. And the xaphan didn't bat an eye about it."

My stomach churns. I remember Kal—always smiling, always helping others. And then he was left as a body by the door, a warning to the others.

Could I end up that way, too? If I went through with these trials?

"And they all gather to watch," Macy adds. "Like the trials aren’t hard enough, they bet and cheer for people to die. It's so terrible!"

Yara sighs. "Wings can’t be worth that."

I swallow hard, my hands shaking as I pluck another fruit from the bush. The dangers are real, terrifyingly so. But the possibility of earning my wings, of finally being respected in this world... It's intoxicating.

There's a chance that I can get my xaphan wings, a one-way ticket out of the poverty that I've always known. The trials sound tough, but… it's worth a try. Right?

"I wouldn't go near those trials if you paid me," Yara declares. "It's not worth dying for."

Macy nods in agreement. "Me neither. I'd rather live without wings than not live at all."

Their words should scare me, should make me reconsider. But instead, I feel a fire igniting in my chest. I've lived in shame and poverty for too long. I've seen the despair in my parents' eyes, felt the sting of their disappointment.

This is my chance. My only chance.

I take a deep breath, steeling my resolve. The trials will be dangerous, possibly deadly. But I've got nothing left to lose.