The Forgotten Light

73. Fairlight

She knew that since the swapped sword was already gone, the illusion she had surrounded herself with was also starting to fade. They had no time to waste. Taking advantage of the ensuing confusion, she leaned over to Darksen, trying to ignore the cut shirt and blood on his back, and whispered in his ear, "Open the portal to Sedona in the crypt below the auditorium."

The Prince twitched in surprise and looked over his shoulder at her.

"Do it!" she hissed.

She saw Kaelen, who had been standing anxiously under the auditorium next to a group of slaves for some time already. Now his big golden eyes were fixed on her looking at her from under his hood and waving his hands impatiently.

Fairlight didn't know what he meant until she felt the illusion begin to disappear. She cursed under her breath, and then her gaze fell on the shield, which she managed to create surprisingly accurately, considering that the arrow appeared so suddenly, not giving her much time to think. She picked it up and called out to the entire arena, "Bravo! Great shot! I'm just not sure who to congratulate: the shooter or herself for that perfect throw." She yanked the arrow out of the shield.

She felt the gazes of everyone present on her. Good. That's more or less what she had in mind.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Invicta getting closer to them. These were the ones who had been with her in Darksen's cell. The one who was supposed to end the Prince's life, finally stopped his search for the sword and measured her with a murderous gaze, preparing to jump like a predator. 

"If you're done with what I asked you to do earlier, I could use a little help. Your hands have been free since you came out of that cave," she muttered barely audibly to Darksen, at the same time glancing at Kaelen and giving him a silent sign to lead people into the crypt.

They still needed some time.

She spread her arms, still holding the shield in one hand and an arrow in the other. She needed to keep the attention of the Beings, especially their ruler, focused on her. She prayed that he wouldn't use his power, because she didn't have the strength to create a wall of mirror to reflect his charm. 

"You wanted me to come back, here I am!" she called out to the King. "And now what?"

"It's a good thing you were reasonable enough to come back, although it took you a while."

Fairlight wouldn't call returning to this place reasonable.

"Better late than never. At least your son still has his head attached to his neck."

"Damned half-breeds, you're both worthy of each other."

"You think so?" She raised her eyebrow defiantly.

Thandor rose from his seat, staring her down. "I think creatures like you, with blood and power like yours, should not exist. You have no right to live."

His words were so strong that she felt as if he had literally hit her with them. She even wobbled slightly on her feet, and fatigue didn't help her at all. She thought that only the Prince's words had power, but the King's words also had some. She didn't expect that whatever else came from Thandor's mouth would be so severe for her, and yet...

She tried to shake it off, she had to. She had to hang in a little longer, to give the people who had already disappeared into the crypt enough time to escape.

She imagined how the shield in her hands was covered by a layer of mirror. This had to be enough to protect her from the King's power.

She raised her head high and answered in a loud, confident voice, "And they don't exist. I am only me. One of a kind."