"Trial complete. Remaining contestants, return to the main room. Those who failed… are now part of the next trial—The Megalodon's Trial."
A long silence fell. Only the ocean's sloshing and the quiet whimpering of injured contestants broke it.
I turned my head, trying to count. There were bodies all around me….people gasping, sobbing, coughing up seawater. I started counting under my breath.
One… two… three…
When I reached twenty, realization hit me like a hammer to the chest.
"Zaara," I whispered. "That means… thirty-nine didn't make it to the finish line."
She blinked rapidly, water streaming off her lashes. "Does that mean… they're all going to die?"
I swallowed. "No." I stared across the ocean arena, toward the swirling waters and the closed gates on the far side.
Zaara's lips parted as horror spread over her face. "You mean… they have to stay out there? Go through another trial in that water?"
My stomach twisted. "Yeah. That's what it sounds like."
