The Sacrifice of Yalak

Twenty-four chances. Twenty-four small slips of paper with the name “Shalif Trubor” inscribed on them, each one representing an entry into the drawing which would determine who was sacrificed to the Forest Tutelary, Adjali. In a town of less than two hundred, twenty-four chances was quite a lot. Shalif had spent every coin he had saved trying to find a cure for his father’s illness, and it still didn’t work. With no money left to buy out any of his entries, he knew what could be awaiting him as he walked through the gates of the Naming Arena.