The Recall Trials
Chapter 100: One Breath at a Time

Chapter 100: One Breath at a Time

It was the worst moment of my life.

Zaara still held me, her breath shaky against my ear.

I couldn’t speak. My voice felt ripped from me, as if Carter had carried it away when he waved goodbye.

I stared over her shoulder. The main room looked sterile and harsh under the fluorescent lights. It was colder too.

All around us, contestants began shifting uneasily, looking broken.

Zaara finally pulled back, just enough to search my face. Her cheeks were slick with tears.

"Vincent," she said softly, brushing sweat-damp hair off my forehead. "Listen to me. Carter made his choice because he believed in you. Don’t let them break you now."

My throat tightened painfully. "He should be here. He deserved..."

"I know." Her voice cracked. "I know he did. But if you give up now, everything he did... everything we’ve all lost... it’ll mean nothing."

She held my face in her trembling hands. "One breath at a time. Remember?"

I tried. I inhaled. My chest felt like it was collapsing.

Zaara kissed my forehead. "I’m so glad you’re back."

"I’m not all here," I whispered. My eyes burned. My vision blurred. "A piece of me is gone."

She nodded, tears sliding down her chin. "So is a piece of me."

I pulled her into another hug, tighter this time, desperate to hold onto something.

A voice broke through the crowd:

"Vincent... what happened in there? What happened to the others?"

I looked up. A contestant with matted hair and hollow eyes stared at me, pleading.

I just shook my head. I couldn’t form the words.

Around the room, more people were crying, clutching each other, some silently rocking back and forth on the beds.

Then the overhead speakers crackled:

"ATTENTION, CONTESTANTS."

Zaara and I both jerked our heads up.

"THE TENTH TRIAL HAS ENDED. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FINAL TWENTY CONTESTANTS WHO REMAIN."

Gasps rippled through the room.

Twenty?

There were thirty-five of us left this morning. Now... only twenty.

I felt bile rise in my throat.

"YOU WILL BE GRANTED A TWENTY-FOUR-HOUR REPRIEVE TO EAT, REST, AND PREPARE."

I squeezed my eyes shut, but the Voice continued:

"BECAUSE TOMORROW... THE ELEVENTH TRIAL BEGINS."

Zaara’s fingers dug into my arm so hard.

"Eleventh..." she whispered. "How many of these are there?"

The Voice paused:

"THE NEXT TRIAL WILL BE... YOUR GREATEST TEST YET."

"AND REMEMBER... LET THE BEST PLAYER WIN."

The speakers cut off.

I stared at Zaara. Then at Nomi, who stood a few steps away, eyes glistening as she blinked back tears. Dinesh sat slumped against a bedpost, staring blankly at the floor. Luca paced in circles, rubbing his palms over his face.

My chest tightened.

Is this how I’m going to lose everyone?

I walked to my bed, my legs felt like jelly. Zaara followed, still holding my hands.

"Carter didn’t even get to see his daughter one last time," I said.

Footsteps approached. Nomi stopped beside us, folding her arms over her chest.

She stared at me for a long moment before finally speaking.

"Vincent... I saw him waving when they dragged you out. He looked... peaceful. Like he knew he’d done the right thing."

I felt a sob clawing its way up my chest. "That doesn’t make it any easier."

I swallowed hard, glancing between Zaara and Nomi.

"Wait..." My voice came out hoarse. "How did you guys know... what was happening in there?"

Zaara lowered her gaze, her fingers still wrapped around mine.

Nomi finally spoke:

"We... we saw everything, Vincent."

My eyes widened. "What do you mean you saw everything?"

Zaara’s face crumpled, tears welling again. "It was... live-streamed in here. On the wall."

She gestured behind me, toward a large blank section of the chamber’s metallic wall. I turned and stared at it.

Nomi went on. "There was a huge screen that dropped down from the ceiling. We watched the river... we saw you and Carter talking. We saw the artifact..."

"They... they stopped streaming the second the guards grabbed you. We didn’t see what else happened after they dragged you away."

"So... you saw him give me the artifact?"

Zaara nodded. Her lips trembled as she whispered, "We saw Carter... choose you. We saw him wave. I screamed at the screen, Vincent. I was yelling for them to stop. But... they just cut it off. Like it was a show they’d gotten bored of."

Nomi’s voice wavered. "Everyone in here... we all saw how much Carter loved you. How much he loved his daughter. Nobody’s ever gonna forget that."

I dragged my hands over my face, trying to steady my breathing. But the images wouldn’t stop looping in my head: Carter’s trembling smile. The guards dragging me backward. The forest glitching.

Zaara reached out, gripping my wrist gently. "I’m so sorry you had to go through that alone. We’re going to survive, Vincent. Even if it kills us."

She wiped her tears. "We’re not letting Carter’s sacrifice be for nothing."

Nomi punched my arm lightly. "And after we get out... you’re buying me a drink. Several drinks."

A weak, choked laugh escaped me. "Deal."

But when I looked around the room, my laughter vanished.

People were gathered in small, silent groups, leaning into each other for comfort, like survivors huddled against a storm. Some sat alone, shaking. Others stared up at the blank screens as though waiting for the Voice to come back and tell them this was over.

Someone kept muttering over and over again.

"We’re all dead. We’re all already dead..."

A girl nearby whispered to someone else, "I can’t do another one. I can’t. I can’t..."

A pair of contestants in the far corner were praying together, voices trembling as they whispered to whatever gods still existed in this place.

I swallowed around the taste of grief.

Tomorrow... I might have to watch someone else I love disappear.

Zaara hugged me again, burying her face in my chest. We all hoped that someday... we’re all going to make it out of here.