Joren looked up calmly as the Mithran priests entered the chapel. He nodded at them as he swept over the cold stone of the floor to the waiting door of the Chamber. He stepped inside, quenching any fear he felt. He looked around the dimly lit room, noticing a face above the door. He frowned. It looked like a face, but it was impossible to tell if it was male or female. The eyes were just slits of the wall; its mouth was unmoving and seemed to radiate cold towards Joren.
Joren strode confidently into the middle of the Chamber and waited.
So, a ghostly voice sounded in his mind. Let us see if you're worthy.
The room blurred, coming back into focus as a small clearing in the forest. Vinson's body lay on the ground, torn and bloody. He was obviously dead.
Too bad, Joren thought coldly. He was a good friend.
"You truly are made of stone aren't you?" a feminine voice that Joren knew all too well sounded, echoing,impossibly,from the trees. He spun to face the tall woman coming out of the forest. He was about to snap something at her, before he realized that he wasn't supposed to talk.
Lump! He thought instead. She smiled.
"Or ice," she said thoughtfully, coming closer. "Stone Mountain has plenty of both, even in their 'noble' family." Joren raised his hand at her insult to his family. She glared at him, her Yamani mask falling off her face.
"You hit me, and I swear by all the gods, I'll kill you," she snapped. Joren let his hand drop. Even if the real Keladry of Mindelan couldn't kill him, it was all too possible that the Chamber's version would be able to. Instead he made a rude gesture at her and turned away. The image faded and he was back in the unfurnished room where he had begun.
Hmmmm. The Chamber thought as the room went dark. How about this?
Joren stood absolutely still in the now-lightless room. Suddenly he heard voices calling him. Friends and enemies alike, begging him for help. He saw visions, bright flashes of light which showed the people dying. He started forward, feeling restraining bonds around his chest and legs. He shrugged, relaxing completely. He watched as people he knew, people he hated, and some didn't recognize died in front of him.
What are you trying to prove? He asked the Chamber silently. Aren't you supposed to show me my fears? The bonds fell away and the images faded back into darkness.
Fine, the Chamber snapped. How's this?
Light stuck and he was standing in his room back at Stone Mountain. He seemed to be 13 again, and his ten year old sister Becky flounced into the room.
"Guess what Jore!" she cried. He smiled at her, thinking what? and gesturing for her to go on.
"Mamma and Father said I can become a page!" she said, laughing. "I'm going to be a knight!" Joren felt the color drain from his face. He almost screamed at her, but caught himself at the last second.
"They finally said I could go when they found out that other girl would be there," Becky explained, oblivious to Joren's pain. "Kelari, or something like that," she continued, dancing around the room.
Why my sister? Joren thought desperately. Why Becky?
The light flickered, and when the room was light again, Joren's room and Becky were gone. In their place, there was the Lump again. She was grinning evilly and holding a knife.
Where's your pig sticker Lump? Joren taunted silently. When she started forward, he stood his ground. You don't have the guts to hurt me. Kel batted her eyelashes at him.
"How do you know?" she demanded, stepping closer. "You don't know anything about me. You know that I used to fear heights, but do you know why? My brother held me over a balcony when I was little. Did you know why my family is regarded so highly in the Islands? It's because my mother saved the Sacred Swords." Her voice dropped. "Do you know what the sad thing is Joren?" she asked. "It's that if you had gotten to know me, we could have been friends. And then, maybe I wouldn't have to kill you now." By this time Kel was so close he could feel her breath on his face.
She smiled at him, and drove the knife into his gut. He screamed; the pain was so real. Kel let go of the knife, kneeling down next to him as he fell to the floor.
"I'll let you in on a secret," she whispered, her voice reinforced with the voice of the chamber. Joren cried out again, the pain causing him to forget not to talk. "This may be your fear, but this is not your test," she continued, her voice as cold as his was when he had seen Vinson on the ground. "Your test was before, when those people were begging for help. That's what being a knight is all about Joren, helping people. You failed when you just stood there and watched them die." She stood, and walked away.
Joren's last living memory was the room spinning, and coming to a rest with the face above the door facing him.
Joren's spirit stayed in the Chamber as the door opened. He heard his mother screaming as gasps went up around the room. He watched numbly as Paxton of Nond, his knight-master, whispered, "The Chamber has claimed him." He heard his mother's hysterical crying and his father yelling, "That Mindelan girl did this!" He shook his head and stepped out of the Chamber after some men carried out his body.
What was left of Joren strode through the crowd, noting horrified expressions from his friends and sightseers. He stopped and bowed as a shadow moved forward. Smiling grimly, he took the offered hand of the Black God.