A Test Of Pride -

Elias walked over, his face a mask of cold fury. "You got lucky."

The silver trophy stood between Kaelen and Elias, not just as a prize, but as a mirror reflecting two very different kinds of hunger. A Test of Pride

Kaelen stepped to the line. He felt the weight of his father’s old bow, scarred and unpolished. He watched the grass. He waited. Elias walked over, his face a mask of cold fury

Kaelen unstrung his bow, feeling a lightness he hadn't known in years. He looked at the trophy, then back at the man who was now a slave to his own reputation. He felt the weight of his father’s old

Elias stepped up first. He didn’t check the wind vanes; he didn't need to. He was the Great Elias. He released a shot that looked perfect, but a sudden downdraft caught the fletching, pulling the arrow an inch from the gold. The crowd gasped. It was a winning shot for anyone else, but for Elias, the sight of his arrow in the red ring was a puncture to his soul.

Kaelen left the silver behind. He had entered the trial to save his name, but he left having saved himself from the pride that had nearly swallowed him whole.

Kaelen shifted his stance. He didn't aim for the gold. He aimed for the very top of the target frame—a nearly impossible correction for the wind he felt coming. He released.