ChaPter 2 - Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr

20
ChaP ter 2
Morning had come, but only just barely. The sky was still a
mix of the gray and plum streaks that heralded a new day in
The City, and as she had on so many other days the past year,
Aya was readying herself for another fight. She wondered
briefly what life would have been like by now if she hadn’t
entered the competition. She didn’t like killing, but the
thought of the life she was escaping reminded her that this
was the right path. Every ruling-caste woman was required
to reproduce. She’d avoided that for now by ending her
engagement, but that only delayed the inevitable. Eventually,
if she didn’t choose a mate on her own, she would be given
to someone by their ruler. Better to die in the fights than in
captivity. At least within Marchosias’ Competition, she had a
chance of freedom. The rules didn’t specify that the winner