Page 37 of Royal Hunt
The fae’s mouth opened in a wordless scream, but he didn’t twitch a muscle. It took longer than the humans, but that minute felt like an hour as his body slowly rotted from the inside out.
“What magick is this?” I uttered, afraid and horrified.
Ellis gripped his sword tightly, his teeth bared and eyes trained ahead.
“Don’t focus on that,” he said smoothly. “Focus on what’s around you. The wind blowing in your hair. The sound the fae’s feet make as they run toward us. The power needed to thrust your dagger into someone’s heart, and withdraw it again for the next strike.”
His words focused me like nothing else could have, and my eyes closed as I became aware of everything around me. The noise of the crowd dulled, and instead I heard the squeak of Viana’s leathers as she kept herself loose and poised. I saw muscles bunching from the fae, indicating which direction they planned to run lunge first. I heard the pitiful cries of those terrified behind me, convinced they were going to die and that there was nothing they could do to stop it.
And despite everything, I felt the urge to protect Ellis and the others swell up inside of me. I didn’t blame the other humans for being scared, for being desperate, for being paralyzed by fear. Their lives in no way had prepared them to survive or cope with something of this magnitude.
Neither did mine, to be fair.
But for whatever reason, I was handling it. I was coping. I was surviving. And because I had this skill, this intangible thing inside of me that kept me functioning in an impossible situation, I knew I could use it to help the others. I had to use it to help others. What was the point if I didn’t?
I spread my feet like I’d seen Gregory and the other boys do during sword lessons, trying to keep myself balanced. Ellis gave me a cursory flick, the gold in his eyes glowing at me.
“Atta girl. Pick up a small sword after you kill the first.”
“BEGIN!”
The fae leaped over the boundary line.
Thirteen
Clearly, the fae had come into this battle with strategy. The largest fae attacked the line of heirs first, forcing Mixen, Matthias, Maven, Nessian, and Viana to fight for their lives within the first few seconds. I took a half-step forward, torn between wanting to help them and knowing that I’d likely be slaughtered.
“Hold your position,” Ellis ordered, his eyes darting between the fae as if searching for something. I glanced over my shoulder at Gregory, who surprisingly had organized a line of guards and others around our prison in a semicircle. The small fae behind them smirked, crossing her arms over her chest.
“There! Stop him!”
My head snapped back at Ellis’s shout, and I saw him. A lithe fae with green skin snuck through the first line of fighters, his eyes fixed determinedly on our prison and the fae captive within.
“STOP HIM!” I screamed back at Gregory, nearly tripping as I ran toward him. Ellis was already gone, a blur of motion. I ran as fast as I could and so did Ellis, but we were like clumsy children trying to catch up to an elite hunter. He outran us easily and dodged the humans guarding the prison like they were large statues, and not living beings attempting to attack him.
He made it inside the prison instantly, and my heart sank. We were all going to die.
“CLOSE RANKS!” Gregory shouted, trying to make it so the fae had no room to dodge when they left the prison.
“RUN!” Nessian screamed, and I watched Lily leap over the boundary line and run straight toward her sister in a direct line. There was no subtly, no tricks. Just a teenage girl running for her life.
The fae reached for her, but impossibly she stayed out of their hands. When her enemies realized she was faster than them, those in the back ran to form a solid line in front of the prison and Lyra. My heart sank, there was no way—
“JUMP!” screamed Nessian. But it was absurd, wasn’t it? Those fae ranged from six to seven feet tall, and Lily was barely over five feet! And yet, her eyes blazed with fierce determination as she ran straight at the guards. At the very last moment, she jumped.
I held my breath as she soared over the heads of the fae warriors, too fast for them to react. They raised their arms and tried to grab at her, but they were milliseconds too slow. Lily crashed down into Lyra in the middle of the prison, her ankle rolling unnaturally under her. She bit back a curse, wide-eyed with fear but grinning in victory. Now they both had to make it back.
“The rumors of her bloodline are true,” Ellis mumbled to himself.
“What rumors?” I demanded, but he shook his head, and ran toward the front line of battling heirs.
Incredibly, the line of a dozen or so fae who had attacked our front line was down to three left battling for their lives. With Ellis joining the fray, each heir doubled up to take down a remaining fae. It was over seconds later.
“YOU WANT SOME MORE OF THIS?” Viana shrieked, one foot propped up on a dead fae as she thrust her sword toward the other side. The fae roared in anger from their side, and that was the moment the two fae prisoners broke through the line of human guards behind us.
Or tried to.
The male fae lunged out of the prison, sword held high in one hand. The female was right behind him, a dagger in her hand but a devious smirk on her lips. The moment the male was about to plunge into the line of humans, the female fell and collided with the male’s feet. He went down hard, cursing and trying to separate herself from him.
