The Wishing Game

Chapter 53

FIFTY-THREE

T he girls selected by the high priestess are led by the other priestesses toward the pavilion on the left, traversing one of the gazebos and heading into a small room at the end of the corridor. White, bare walls surround us, caging us in.

"The high priestess will be with you shortly for an in-depth assessment. Until then, please remove your clothes."

I blink at the pronouncement.

"What?" I blurt out.

The sharp gaze of the priestess pierces through me, making me freeze.

"The high priestess detected an unusual energy around you. To continue in the selection, we must ensure there's no foul play involved," she explains in a chilling tone.

The other girls all nod, already fumbling with the fastenings of their garments, and I'm forced to go with the flow.

"Ze , what am I going to do?" I reach out to him, my hands trembling as I pull the dress over my head and lay it on the floor next to me. We're all left in our undergarments, waiting in a line.

The priestess doesn't look over our naked forms, but that doesn't make it any less uncomfortable—not that I've ever been comfortable without my clothes on.

"Ze?" I keep calling his name, yet as seconds go by and he doesn't answer, it strikes me that something might be wrong.

My eyes take in the room, and I look around wildly for any clues. I almost miss it at first. But as I glance at the ceiling, the light from one of the windows reflects against a yellowish, almost transparent symbol, highlighting it. The symbol is only visible when directly hit by light. Otherwise, it blends into the white of the ceiling, remaining undetectable.

My breath catches in my throat.

If the temple has runes that prohibit males from entering, could they also have some to prevent any males from communicating with the priestesses? Going by those odd symbols and the way my brain is too quiet, that might be a possibility. This world does not have the advanced technology that Earth does simply because it relies on magic to get everything done. Those symbols could very well act like a Faraday cage to stop all types of communications—we were singled out as suspicious, after all.

But what does that mean for me?

My thoughts are interrupted as the door opens and closes with a whoosh, the high priestess suddenly appearing before us.

The red painted around her eyes makes her irises appear otherworldly. She lowers her hood, her hair a white blond pulled back in a bun at her nape.

She walks slowly, gracefully, her gaze swallowing the entire room in the span of a second.

One by one, she stops in front of each of the girls, staring intently for minutes on end before she gives a nod of assent—her way of deeming someone fit to continue in the recruitment process. Some girls pass, others fail. I don't know what her criteria are—not when all she does is stare blankly at us before the verdict is announced. The girls who don't pass are taken away by the other priestess and thrown out of the room.

Four have failed so far and have been removed from the premises.

I'm in the middle. A few girls separate me and the high priestess.

My legs won't stop trembling from the anxiety, especially since I don't have Ze's voice to guide me in my head. I'm on my own. Yet I find that I'm not as worried for myself as I am about what Ze will do if he cannot reach me should he try to because he will raze this place to the ground.

I don't doubt him just as I don't doubt the fact that he has the capacity to do so.

The high priestess approaches.

Drops of sweat form on my forehead, slowly dripping down my face. I swallow, trying to regulate my breathing. My heart is racing like crazy.

Will she find out about the pearl? Should I have taken it off? The questions continue to plague my mind, and I lose track of time and space, my hearing dimming until suddenly, the high priestess is in front of me, speaking to me.

I blink.

"What is your name?" she asks, her voice rough and husky.

"Luce," I murmur. Even my vocal cords are trembling, for God's sake.

I might be wearing a camisole and a pair of underwear, but that doesn't mean the rest of my skin isn't out there in the open—including my marks.

"This..." She brings her hand to my collarbone. "May I?" she inquires.

I nod, my tongue tied.

She lays one finger on the dark marks on my skin, tracing the flat designs.

"Why do you have this?" she asks, her gaze glued to my chest.

"I-I don't know," I stammer.

"Hmm..."

Her light eyes flash at me.

"Do y-you know what they are?" I find the courage to ask.

Her face screws up.

"It does not matter if you do not know," she says, half turning to move to the next girl. But something catches her attention as she suddenly stops.

She grabs my hand, her eyes narrowing as she peruses my bracelet.

Oh God! I'm freaking out on the inside and I'm doing my best not to show it, begging my muscles not to spasm uncontrollably—though that's exactly what happens.

I make a bad liar. I make an even worse criminal. And to think I was wanted by the police for fraud and whatnot. I almost snort at the thought.

The high priestess pulls the bracelet off my wrist, bringing the pearl closer to her face to study it.

"This." She purses her lips. "I will hold onto this."

She nods to herself, pocketing the pearl bracelet as she continues to the next girl.

I blink in confusion. That makes no sense. Half sentences that hold no real meaning to anyone other than her. She must have sensed that something was off with the bracelet, but I doubt she knows exactly what . Otherwise, she would have disqualified me. If she sensed Ze's energy, she wouldn't have been so calm.

I try to look at the bright side as the high priestess checks the rest of the girls. We slowly get dressed as she finishes, and to my surprise, all of us are good to go back. Yet as we exit the room, I can't help but feel the high priestess's heavy gaze on my back.

When we reach the courtyard, the priestess in charge divides us among the other lines, and somehow I end up in the same queue as Wyn. When she sees me walking toward her, her lips pull up in a wide smile.

"Everything all right?" she whispers as I squeeze between her and another girl—anything to have someone familiar by my side. My limbs are still trembling from the residual anxiety, adrenaline pumping in my veins and urging me to run away and never come back. Yet I can't do that. Not yet...

I nod, straining a smile.

"Luce?" Ze's voice resounds in my mind.

"Ze! The high priestess took my bracelet," I hurry to say.

"Do not fret. I presumed she might take it."

"But what will I do now?" I mutter, agitated.

"You will do nothing. Continue on, and should you fail the first test, you will come back to me."

"But... I let you down. I'm sorry." I sigh.

"You did no such thing," he immediately replies. " Everything is going according to plan, Luce."

"But she took my bracelet..." I grumble, realizing how disappointed I am that she took it from me. Will I be able to get it back? It was a gift after all, regardless of why Ze gave it to me, and I happened to like it very much.

" I will recover the bracelet for you," he intones confidently. "I shall see you soon, Luce, " he adds before he severs the connection.

I didn't even get to ask him how his demon slaying is going.

Huffing out a breath, I look around, noting that the high priestess has not made another appearance yet.

"Do you know what's going to happen next?" I whisper to Wyn.

She shakes her head.

"I am not entirely certain. From what I've heard, the first test measures spiritual power, after which, those deemed worthy advance to the next stage. But I don't know what the test entails," she whispers back.

My lips flatten into a tight line. Okay, so I'll wait to fail this spiritual power test and then I can be on my way. Still, I can't help but feel a slight disappointment at not being able to help Ze further. I promised him I'd disable the runes, yet not even five minutes into the mission and I'm singled out, my only advantage taken away from me.

A sigh escapes me, my fists clenched by my side.

Why can't I be just a little more useful? If only I had some cool abilities to help me navigate these circumstances... Then I wouldn't have to depend on anyone to help me in The Wishing Game either, and I could simply move from one trial to another until I'd get my crowning wish and Nikki would come back to me.

Yet things are not as simple as that, are they?

I'm just a lowly human to everyone around here, and no matter how much I wish otherwise, the truth of the matter is that I am rather useless.

Wyn's question echoes in my mind.

Why would Ze want to associate himself with a human? He told me countless times how weak and breakable I am due to my human condition , yet he still continues to hang around me, being nice to me.

What would a powerful god like Ze—one who is feared by most of his world—want with me?

My musings are interrupted by the sound of a horn reverberating through the air. My gaze snaps forward, my eyes focusing on the fountain where a flash of red announces the appearance of the high priestess. She's sitting on the ledge of the fountain, walking along the thin border in her high heels.

"Welcome, my darlings," she calls out as she spreads her arms. Her voice booms in the entire courtyard, snapping everyone to attention.

"Thank you for joining me on this marvelous day. I cannot wait to get to know some of you over the course of the next week. After the tests are over, one of you will join us at the temple for a permanent position."

Low cheers erupt among the participants, but a severe glance from the high priestess and the entire courtyard falls silent.

"The duty of the temple is to preserve tradition, and from its inception, priestesses have been tasked with protecting the ancient artifacts left behind by the Primordials. This is a duty that no one should take lightly. The temple needs its priestesses to be strong both in mind and spirit. Loyalty, honesty, and perseverance are the three qualities we look for in our recruits. As you have noticed, some participants have been excluded, and that is because they were caught using underhanded ways to secure a spot at the temple. I understand that this is a prestigious position, but trickery will not be allowed." Her eyes meet mine, holding my gaze for a second before moving on.

I swallow hard, somehow feeling that was directed at me. But if she thinks I was trying to use the bracelet to get ahead, why didn't she expose me? Why let me continue?

"Aside from a strong character, we also look for strong spiritual ability, which is why the first test is designed to measure your spiritual ability."

Holding out her hand, she materializes a white sphere the size of her palm. The sphere rotates in her hand, slowly floating in the air until it's above our heads.

I tilt my head back, watching it slither through the lines of participants until it reaches the first line, hovering over the first girl.

"This is the Elegian Sphere. It's empty inside save for particles of chaos that bind onto spiritual power. Depending on the level of spiritual energy, the particles will change color," the high priestess continues. "To establish your level, each one of you shall touch the sphere," she says as she gracefully steps off the ledge. She drifts to the ground, seemingly walking on clouds as she comes closer to us.

The white of our dresses in the inside quadrant is surrounded by the black of the priestesses' garb as they converge around us. The high priestess is a dot of color as she steps forward, infiltrating the tightly formed group, becoming the nucleus.

"There are five broad levels," she speaks as she walks farther into the middle of the crowd. "The first one is the bottom one, wherein the sphere will remain white. That means you have little to no spiritual power, and you will be asked to leave the premises immediately. If the sphere turns blue, then you are a first level—not bad, but not great either. You will also be asked to leave, cultivate more, and return in future years." She pauses. "Contrary to popular belief, spiritual power can be enhanced by up to fifty percent the amount you were born with. If you have blue at this time, you can cultivate and level up in time." She smiles—the first time I've seen her do so—as she meets the gazes of some hopeful participants. She nods at them, giving them a little boost of confidence.

"For the third level, the sphere will turn yellow. That means you have a good amount of spiritual ability—but still not enough. Just like blue, you will be asked to leave the premises and cultivate more. And that brings me to the last two levels—black and red. If the sphere turns black, you have a very good spiritual ability. You have likely trained for many years before you have come here, or you may have even failed before and tried harder. We do not judge those who've been turned away before. In fact, we value the perseverance, and if you did improve, that will be noted. The black level is allowed to remain and will pass to the next round.

"There is one last level—the best one. If the sphere turns red, then you have the best level of spiritual ability. You will, of course, advance to the next round."

Whispers ripple among the participants.

She pauses.

"You are probably wondering if black will be at a disadvantage compared to red in the subsequent rounds. The answer is no, for the simple reason that red is exceedingly rare. I have not encountered a red candidate in..." she trails off, pensive. "My, I don't believe I've ever encountered one." She chuckles. "In fact, working toward the red level will be part of your priestess training."

The girls bubble with excitement when they hear that—after all, it's one of the reasons they want to become priestesses. Red should be the equivalent of a Supreme in spiritual power if it's so rare, and as such, put them onto the path of becoming a Supreme in the future. That makes me wonder what color Ze would be. With his power, I have no doubt he would be an instant red. Hadn't Thea mentioned he is being considered for a Supreme position?

"What if there is "A red?" Wyn stuns everyone by taking a step out of the line, directly questioning the high priestess. "Will she automatically become a priestess?"

The high priestess raises a brow at her.

"What is your name, child?" the high priestess asks as she comes closer.

"Arwyn," she replies confidently, looking straight into the high priestess's eyes.

"How old are you, Arwyn?"

"Three thousand years old." She pushes her chin up.

"A young adult, I see." She smiles. "Hopeful. Maybe too hopeful." She laughs. Turning with her back to Wyn, she addresses the others. "Arrogance is not something we welcome at the temple. And youth is no excuse for it," she adds, her voice cutting just as her features morph into a scowl. "Arrogance breeds recklessness, and recklessness breeds disaster. The temple is here because we have been steady in our devotion."

Silence envelops the courtyard.

"The sphere will now decide who leaves and who goes on to the next round." Glancing back at Wyn, she adds in a low voice, "And it might also give some a lesson in humility."

Wyn's lips flatten as she moves back into the line, her body tense. I reach out and pat her on the back, a small comforting gesture. She looks startled by it, but she musters a small smile as she inclines her head.

The sphere descends to the waiting hands of the first girl in line number one. Her palms are wide open, curving to the sides of the sphere. Her fingers press to the surface of the object as she stares at it intently, waiting for the color to change.

Seconds pass and nothing happens.

"That is enough," the high priestess intervenes. "Unfortunately, your level is white. Please pass it to the next person."

The sphere floats out of the girl's hands and into the next person's. Dejected, the girl takes a step back as one of the other priestesses comes to escort her to the exit.

As the next girl touches the sphere, it turns blue, eliminating her from this round too. The sphere continues to travel through the rest of the line, with most getting yellow, a few blue and white, and only a handful of blacks. The second line goes more or less the same, and it looks like there will not be too many people participating in the second test. Around two to three people per line get the black level. The most common level is yellow, which means they have a good level, but they aren't quite there. Still, with enough training, they will be able to return as blacks in the future.

The sphere passes from hand to hand until our row is next.

Wyn is still tense from her interaction with the high priestess, her expression a mix of confidence and rebellion. And when the sphere floats into her hands, she grips it tightly, her eyes fixed on it. Mine are too, my heart beating loudly in my chest as I hope she'll get black to pass to the next round.

Seconds trickle by.

The white matter inside the sphere vibrates, and we all wait with bated breath to see what color it will change into. Light shines from deep within, and at first, the color changes to a deep yellow. But the yellow quickly loses its intensity until a powerful beam of light erupts from the nucleus of the sphere, the color becoming the purest, brightest red.

Silence blankets the courtyard.

I sneak a glance at the high priestess, who for one moment has a naked expression of disbelief on her face, which she quickly masks with one of indifference. Pushing her chin in the air, she clicks her tongue against the roof of her mouth as she assesses Wyn with narrowed eyes.

"Very well, Arwyn," she murmurs. "You have proven yourself."

Wyn's lips fight to stay in a neutral position, twitching at the corners.

"Congratulations," I whisper to her.

"But you will understand why I find it hard to believe that a mere three-thousand-year-old child would get the red level on her first attempt. I will need to ensure that no rules have been broken," she intones, making her skepticism known.

"Of course." Wyn inclines her head out of respect, but she is not pleased with the high priestess's words. Yet it was to be expected, wasn't it? After ridiculing Wyn for her confidence and stating how rare it was to get a red level, she must find a way to save face.

"You can pass the sphere to the person next to you," the high priestess mentions, her tone biting.

I inhale deeply as I open my palms to receive the sphere.

"Are you there, Ze?" I ask in my mind. Yet only silence greets me. He must be busy. Damn it. I could have used his boredom now when my nerves are threatening to get the best of me. I know that the worst thing that can happen is that I'll get a white and be escorted off the premises of the temple. But at the same time, that means I will not be of any use to Ze, and for some absurd reason, I really wanted to help him. Maybe it's because I haven't felt needed in a long time—or perhaps it's because I could have finally done something he couldn't ... Regardless, my time in the temple has come to an end.

The sphere slowly descends into my waiting palms. The crystal surrounding the white matter is cool to the touch despite having been in Wyn's hands just moments ago. My fingers grip onto the surface of the sphere as I gaze into the chaos within. The particles inside dance around each other, moving in a rehearsed tango, going back and forth and waiting to respond to my absent spiritual power.

Yet as I focus on those tiny meandering dots, my surroundings fall away, the whispers behind me muted until there's only the stark white of the atoms. The more I stare at them, the more it feels as though they are growing in size until I'm standing face to face with giant white balls that roll back and forth around me.

A bitter taste assails me, and I smack my lips together in an effort to isolate that odd flavor. The air around me thickens, the temperature dropping suddenly.

The sound of a waterdrop falling into a pond echoes in the background, along with a whispered voice.

Remember.

I blink.

The spherical particles flatten and change their shape, becoming mirror-like reflective surfaces. I'm slowly engulfed in a palace of mirrors with no way out. My heart squeezes painfully in my chest, the feeling of being trapped intensifying.

Remember.

The same voice yells from far away.

I blink again. This time, the mirrors reflect back my image, only it's not me.

It's me, yet it's not me.

A shrilling noise erupts in the air, and as my eyes flutter open, I note the crowd that's formed around me, caging me in. The sphere in my hands is no longer a sphere, only shards of broken glass lying on the ground. Muddy, mercury-like particles stain my hands, seeping into my skin and dripping to the ground. The moment they touch the pavement, a cloud of smoke erupts as they erode into the solid surface.

Startled gasps resound around me as the girls step away to avoid getting touched by the toxic substance that seems to destroy everything in its path—everything but me.

Slowly, I raise my gaze to meet that of the horrified high priestess, who in a loud voice proclaims, "The test is now postponed. Everyone leave." With one hand, she summons a cloud of smoke that envelops my hands, slowly traveling down my body and cleaning the corrosive substance out of the way.

I tentatively step back, my legs made out of jelly. Wyn is at my back, grabbing my arm and holding on to me.

"Not you two. You will come with me," the high priestess singles me and Wyn out.