Will you be all right on your own?
It’s a human. What’s the worst that could happen?
I didn’t hear the sound of retreating footsteps, but the faerie’s armor gave him away as he left, clanking softly into the stillness of the tunnel.
The instant I couldn’t hear his armor anymore, the remaining Guardian tugged the blindfold off my head. I blinked and peered through the slits of the mask—it was the mean-faced one who had stayed with me. Strangely, he didn’t look quite as mean as before.
Disregarding him, I hurried to take stock of my surroundings before my vision had fully adjusted.
Unlike the dungeon or the salon, these tunnels looked underground. The walls were rounded and the bricks that formed them were misshapen from age. Flickering torches showed they were discolored, too, and I didn’t want to know what the black or green substances were. Ahead of me was a gate, its lattice pattern made of rusting metal. Light streamed through it, pouring onto the cobblestones, and I stood just outside the brightness. Past the gate, I could see a vast open space. The ground was covered in sand. Thick, golden sand, as if there were a beach nearby. There was no sign of the crowd I could hear, but I knew those sounds were real—the walls and ground vibrated.
I dared to step closer to the gate, and in an instant, I found the source of that noise. Fae cheered from seats high above, the writhing mass of them a blur of colors. I stared, dry-mouthed, and finally understood what was happening. The costumes, the sand, the stands. She’ll need to be properly dressed for the Games, Belanor had said.
These faeries had recreated the Roman Games. And I was about to fight in them.
“I have a message for you.”
The sound of the Guardian’s voice made me jump. I looked back at him, frowning. “What—”
“‘Tell her to remember what I said right before she killed Jassin.’”
The faerie didn’t look at me as he recited the words he’d been given. For a moment, I was utterly confused, and I kept staring at him with a baffled expression. Then it felt like a meteor shot across a dark sky, lighting up the entire world.
Laurie.
I wasn’t surprised that he’d made a riddle out of his message. Annoyed, but not surprised. What had he told me before I killed Jassin? Laurie was the only one to offer encouragement, I knew that. I tried to remember every detail of that night, envisioning the throne room in all its bizarre, bleak beauty.
I just wanted to say that you’re the bravest creature I’ve ever met.
That was what he’d said as firelight flickered in his silver eyes. At the time, it had been the most sincerity I’d ever seen Laurie display. The words were tainted now, because Collith had said nearly the same thing the night I told him about Oliver.
But why was Laurie reminding me of that interaction just as I was about to step into an arena? Maybe he meant his message to be encouraging, but it had the opposite effect. I stared through the openings in the gate, feeling nauseous with fear. Whatever awaited in that room, Laurie couldn’t save me from it. That was what I’d really taken from his message.
I was on my own.
Suddenly I was filled with the overwhelming urge to run. I knew I wasn’t a coward, I knew I would find the strength to face this. But for a moment or two, I allowed myself to imagine what it would be like to panic. To give in.
Never. I would never give in to Belanor.
Resignation felt like a weight. Not just on my shoulders, but every part of me. I stayed outside the circle of light, breathing slowly and faintly. No one had seen me. Not yet. I existed within my world where it was safe and quiet. Soon, I would have no choice but to emerge, and the chaos and terror would surround me. For now, I had a place that was my own.
At that moment, I realized I was trying to recreate Oliver’s dreamscape.
I was using Dad’s breathing techniques when the other Guardian returned. He held a spear in each fist, and he handed one to the faerie that had given me Laurie’s message. “Shouldn’t I get—” I began.
A roar tore through the air.
My mind went completely blank. What kind of creature would make a sound like that?
As if it were a signal, there was a hollow clanging sound and the gate started to rise. Both of the Guardians tensed. From their perches above the arena, the crowd screamed louder.
“If you remove the mask,” one of my escorts said, his baritone voice flat and toneless, “you will be shot. If you try to communicate with the patrons, you will be shot. Nod to indicate you understand.”
I gave him the finger instead.
The faerie’s expression didn’t change; it was almost impressive. I faced forward again, half-expecting to feel his spear pierce my back. The crowd kept screaming, and it seemed as if the sound had an edge of impatience to it now. I stayed where I was, even more reluctant to step into that bright light. It was getting harder to breathe. The mask felt tighter. Darker. Against my will, I started remembering all the creative ways Belanor had tortured me these past few days. I thought of the relish in his voice as he’d spoken earlier. She’ll need to be properly dressed for the Games.
I was absolutely certain this was not a game I wanted to play.
Something hard jabbed into my back. I turned sharply, and the guard I’d flipped off brandished his spear—he’d poked me with the handle, rather than the pointed end. But if he’d had any sort of training, he knew how to twirl that spear quicker than a blink. The other guard held his out, as well, and he wore his mean expression again. Giving me Laurie’s message hadn’t made us friends, apparently. There would be no getting past either of them. Not while I was human.
The reminder of my weakness sent my heart into a frenzied gallop. I knew I probably had a second, maybe two, before I got jabbed by one of those spears again. I faced that enormous space and started walking, almost mechanically, as if someone else had occupied my body. The light hit my face, and after being blindfolded for so long, it hurt. The din intensified, if that was possible. I squinted and faltered, wondering what I was doing here. What they expected me to do.
My eyes adjusted quickly, and once again, I found myself taking in new surroundings. The place rivaled the size of a football stadium, or how big I imagined the Colosseum in Rome to be. The stands circled the space on every side. Stretching between the lip of the wall and the ceiling far above, there was the same material used to make chain link fences. Down here, its purpose was to protect the onlookers from whatever happened on the sand.
The only ways in were two gates, standing on opposite ends of the arena. The other one was still closed, while the one I’d come out of remained open. To let the guards through, I saw as they emerged, spears extended. I walked backward to avoid them, glaring at the two males. Their expressions were hard and pitiless as they kept coming, even the one who had passed on Laurie’s message. They were herding me, I realized.
Normally, I’d send them to their knees with dark images and twisted hallucinations. My fingers twitched, the gesture as natural as breathing. I lowered my gaze, hating myself for the choice I’d made in yet another moment of recklessness.
That’s when I noticed there was something jutting out of the sand. My self-loathing evaporated as adrenaline heated my blood. It was a knife, I realized once we’d drawn closer. The hilt of a knife.
There was no way the fae were unaware of it, which meant it had been left for me. Me, or another person that would be in this arena.