The Sowing (The Torch Keeper) by Steven dos Santos

Author:Steven dos Santos
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: teen, dos santos, Young Adult, the culling, the sowing, ya, young adult novel, YA fiction, Science Fiction, young adult fiction, teen fiction, teen novel, teen lit, ya novel
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide, LTD.
Published: 2014-03-01T00:00:00+00:00

TWENTY

The next Trial is about to begin.

Cage, Boaz, Drusilla, and Crowley are perched on the ledges of long cylindrical columns, which gleam like silver missiles ready to launch them into oblivion. Even through the unnatural flicker of the holo-projection, there’s no mistaking the new lines carved into their haggard faces. Their arms and legs tremble as they struggle to keep their balance, their backs pressed against the smooth steel.

But as bad as the other three look, Crowley’s fairing the worst. His flesh is leached of color, a sickly whitish yellow. His features are contorted, his cheeks and jaw clenched. Unlike the others, who are bracing themselves against the pillars with both hands, one of Crowley’s hands is grabbing his leg, just above the bloodied bandage that covers his torn flesh. Every time he teeters, I hold my breath, expecting

him to lose his grip, tumble off, and plunge down the twenty feet or so to the surface.

Dahlia is standing in the shadows of the common room with the rest of us. Her eyes remind me of the carcharian’s—cold, empty sockets reflecting the dark emptiness within. I can’t even imagine what she must be feeling—if she’s even feeling anything right now. Maybe it’s better if she isn’t.

Welcome to your third trial, Recruits!

The lights in the chamber dim even further, until I can barely make out that the other Incentives are standing here with me.

Spotlights capture the four Recruits, washing out their features in a flood of cold light.

This next Trial is a test of endurance, requiring strength, balance, and the ability to withstand any natural threats you may encounter in hostile territory. Be the last Recruit to remain on your pedestal and you will be the victor. The winning Recruit must then select which one of their failed competitors must choose between their Incentives. However, if the victor is too weak to make this choice, then he or she will be deemed unworthy and immediately be shelved, along with any remaining Incentives.

My stomach knots. I remember how, during my own Trials, I was faced with the terrible burden of making a blind choice. The horror I felt when I found I’d selected Cypress—and watched her die alongside her two young children.

The choice is always yours. Good luck.

My eyes dart through the darkness, toward my cell. Now. While this Trial is going on. I have to risk going back into those ducts to look for more weapons.

The signal blares through the chamber.

A low hum fills the room, vibrating through my teeth. Cage, Boaz, Drusilla, and Crowley are braced against their pillars, which have begun to shake as if they’re suffering the aftershocks of an earthquake. Drusilla and Boaz’s eyes are shut as they struggle to retain their balance. Crowley’s face is a concoction of fear and pain. On the opposite end, Cage is staring straight ahead, stone-faced, as if he’s a sculpture etched out of his pillar.

Something brushes against my arm and I whirl. It’s Leander. In the dimness, I can barely make out his silhouette as he nudges his chin toward my cell, then back at the holos.

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