Page 17 of Bonded to the Fallen Shadow King (Of Fae and Wolf Trilogy #1)

Chapter Seventeen

Briar

T he fae bastards had dropped us into hell. I blinked, hoping this was some sort of sick illusion.

The stench—thick rot, stagnant water, and the sharp bite of mold and metal—hit hard enough that my eyes watered and bile churned in my stomach. It clung to the back of my throat, coating my tongue until all I could taste was decay.

My shoes were on slick black stone, solid but damp beneath the soles, and I stepped forward onto the platform with the others. The air here didn’t move. Not a whisper. Just thick, sour stillness.

Myantha gasped, as did Calla Lily.

Kaylen simply stared.

The labyrinth stretched out ahead of us, suspended in air like some deranged spiderweb. Dozens of narrow wooden paths jutted out across the expanse, most no wider than my hips, some barely more than planks lashed together and covered with dry lichen. They intersected at random black platforms, and some stretched into nothingness. The wood sagged with age, worn pale at the edges and darker in the middle, with spots that reminded me of old rot or blood. No rails. No support above, and only a handful of stone columns crumbling beneath them like afterthoughts. We could easily slip and die.

My thoughts turned to Aelir.

A tall, gray tower cracked with age rose in the center like the bones of some ancient god. It had no windows, just deep grooves and shadows carved into its rock like forgotten symbols, and a large arched doorway on each side. The top was where we were headed.

Hundreds of clicking sounds echoed in the air, soft and staccato, like chitin on wood, and beneath them thudded something slower. A deeper cadence. Heavier. Mechanical. Like a massive clock ticking toward something none of us wanted.

Kaylen walked past me without a glance, heading toward the north edge of the platform. She halted and stared out at the maze, arms loose at her sides, gaze flicking over the paths. No quip. No glare. Her silence didn’t comfort me. It stretched too long, and that quiet calculation in her eyes said she was already three moves ahead of the rest of us.

I didn’t trust her.

Calla Lily let out a sharp breath. “How in the scaffing void are we supposed to survive this?”

“I don’t know,” Myantha said, her voice smaller than usual, “but Briar will protect us.”

A spike of tension twisted under my skin as Thalira, Velessa, the brown-haired fae who had been with Calla Lily, and Malnon appeared in the center of the square black platform. The expectation wrapped around my spine like a heavier weight than what was strapped to my wrists. I stepped forward, the toe of my shoe brushing the edge of the stone. It looked solid at least, and a wall rose up along the back, giving a little protection.

Rhielle, Quen, Ceana, and the lilac-haired fae appeared next.

I braced my hands at my waist, the discs swinging lightly at my sides. “I’ll stay and defend anyone who wants to stay here, as long as they fight as best they can and swear they won’t hurt anyone.” Heavy gray clouds obscured the sky, blocking out the sun. I couldn’t see anything threatening overhead, but that meant nothing. The Hall of Ruthlessness had been just as quiet before the manticores dropped in like Fate-damned thunder.

Rhielle moved past me without a word, yanking up her sleeves and heading for the southern edge of the platform. She crouched low, fingers brushing the stone, then pressed her foot against one of the connecting planks. It groaned under her weight, the wood dry and strained, but it didn’t break.

Yet.

She drew back, scowling. “I’m going.”

I moved to the edge and looked down.

The drop was far enough to kill, but that wasn’t what made my skin crawl.

Jagged rocks jutted up between black pools of filth. The water should have been crimson, like it had been in the last trial, and I could tell even from here that the color came from rot and decay, not magic. Sludge floated across the surface like grease on soup, thick and unbroken.

And moving in the water—my gut twisted.

Massive leeches, long and pulsing, slid through the muck. They had circular mouths full of ringed teeth like lampreys, the kind that bored straight into bone. They undulated through the filth, sucking and writhing. Alongside them skittered enormous crabs and lobsters, all in shades of shadow and bruise. Their claws clicked against one another, sometimes clashing, sometimes prodding gently, like they were testing their own strength—or waiting for a signal to swarm.

It wouldn’t take much.

Whoever made the run had three options to start.

Two of the paths ahead led to the same black platform, probably twenty feet away, the boards thinner there and sagging even more. The third shot off in another direction entirely, toward a distant block that looked older but maybe offered a clearer route toward the tower so long as you didn’t mind going farther.

Squabbling voices snapped me back. We’d split into two groups again, but Calla Lily and Oaro were now with my friends. While we were a wall, the mean girls were falling apart.

Siray had her hands on her hips, and her eyes narrowed at Kaylen. “I have no interest in the prince. But I will test myself against this labyrinth to see if I can best it. Do not patronize me, air fiend. I know why you want us to remain behind.”

Glowering at Kaylen as well, Malron had her long violet hair swept back from her face. It contrasted sharply with her pink gown. “You do not get to dictate how I perform in this trial. I do want to dance with the prince, and I have the same rights as you.”

Deallan fixed the yellow flower in her hair, her smile sharp and mean. “We’re strong enough that we can handle it. Fair is fair. If we get to the end, we get the dance. You can say what you like, Kaylen, but you don’t control us.”

Hands on her hips, Kaylen glared at them. “If you think you can make it to the tower, be my guests. But don’t expect us to wait when you fail.”

“Very well.” Malron turned on her heel, her back facing Kalyen. “Try not to fall in, harpy.”

I drew back toward the others as Malron strode to the center path. An unsettled sensation twisted inside me. Why would Malron be foolish enough to turn her back on Kaylen after she’d stabbed so many that way?

The low heavy clicking sounds intensified, rising above the clacking sounds below.

“Looks like there’s trouble in their cabal.” Quen quietly snorted. The fire beetle emblem on her discs glowed faintly.

“Trouble or not, I’ve got no chance of climbing anything.” Velessa hugged herself, supporting her arm carefully and clutching both discs to her chest. “I’ll stay here.”

“We don’t all have to go,” Yuki said. “Those creatures down there—if I can’t use my magic, I’ve got nothing.”

Myantha nodded, her dark-brown eyes wide as she looked at the paths.

Already at the edge of the southern route, Rhielle yanked her sleeves high. She called over her shoulder, “I’ll get to the end as swiftly as possible. Stay safe.” She hopped onto the board, then continued testing steps along the walkway. The boards creaked with each step.

I didn’t doubt her. A little bit of tension seeped from my shoulders at having one less person to protect. Rhielle would make it to the end. Spite was one of the best motivators.

Unfortunately, Kaylen would probably make it too.

Malron walked down the middle path, heading for the closest block.

The lilac-haired mean girl who had stayed pretty quiet had slipped over to the top of the block. She jumped onto one of the floating planks.

“Let’s go.” I motioned forward, scanning the rest of the group. “We’ll stay here and keep as many of the creatures off as we can, then move when we have to. Who wants to be the third? Maybe a fourth? Anyone who is staying needs to help guard.”

Malron was now a third of the way down the center path, followed by Siray.

Malron paused and faced us. She shouted at Kaylen, “See you later, you fecking—” But then blades shot through the wooden planks. Six deadly spikes flung up, and two impaled Marlon instantly. Her body hung for a moment, lifeless and limp.

Then the circular blades retracted, and she fell into the dark waters below.

Mere inches from where the spikes had been, Siray screamed.

Shock rippled through me, and I stumbled. I stopped just short of the end of the platform, heart thundering in my chest.

Myantha’s hands flew to her mouth.

Siray bolted the rest of the way to the square platform. Her foot caught on one of the boards as it snapped. She fell forward and clawed herself back up.

Another loud click sounded with a heavier, more final note. Then the entire maze started to shift, the boards lifting or falling and then reforming in a different order all around the tower.

Leaping from the shifting walkway, Siray narrowly landed on the black square platform.

“Everything’s moving!” Velessa shouted, as if no one else was seeing what she saw.

The paths ahead and on the sides shifted, swirling in a mad cyclone faster and faster. The lilac-haired fae stood there, stunned.

“Hey, get back here!” I cupped my hands around my mouth and shouted, “It’s moving! Come on!”

The path the lilac-haired woman was on collapsed, boards falling into the water like rain as others moved upward. She dropped with a scream, and the leeches descended upon her as soon as she hit the water.

My throat burned as bile inched upward.

The third path had even bigger gaps now, the floating segments too far apart to reach without jumping and now angled in a different direction.

Rhielle’s route was gone too, the connecting plank snapping like a twig as the entire section twisted away. Rhielle stood on the black platform several yards away, her eyes wide.

We didn’t have time to plan more. The massive leeches and crabs had already taken notice, pulsing through the water and toward our platform.

The first ones reached us quicker than I’d expected, curling upward and straining with their huge, toothed mouths.

“Feck!” Quen sent a fiery red blast at them but missed. She dropped to the ground and lay on her stomach, driving her elbows into the slick floor so the discs didn't weigh her down.

Calla Lily swallowed hard. “I have to try to get across.” She bolted down the middle path, arm up to shield her face, weaving through where the blades had taken Malron. The boards flexed under her feet. One cracked, but she didn’t stop.

The leeches surged up the sides, thick bodies slapping against stone as they attacked our platform. Crabs followed, claws raised, their shells black and bruised. One scraped across the platform and snapped at Myantha. Quen torched it, and it recoiled with a hiss. The smell of burning shell hit fast. Yuki summoned up three large rocks and slammed it repeatedly, driving it back.

But several huge ass crabs seemed intent on me. The first crawled faster than I’d have thought possible, and my wolf surged forward. I waited until the last second and, just as the first one reached the top, I slammed my disc into the crab’s face. The metal vibrated all though my arms and into my bones.

The crab jerked back, legs skittering. But another one was already crawling up, mouth open and ridges grinding. I braced again.

Beneath all of it, the clicks returned. Slow. Steady. Heavy.

I’d just swung my disc and knocked the second crab off the platform when Calla Lily screamed, “Help!”

I glanced up to find her in the center of the path she’d chosen, its the planks snapping under her.

She tried to jump to the next plank, but it broke upon impact. She dropped like a sack of potatoes, but caught the broken edge of the hole in the bridge with both hands. Her legs kicked, feet slapping wood of the nearby structural enforcements but unable to get a hold. “Please! I can’t hold much longer!”

Kaylen shot past us, barely touching the boards. Her steps made no sound.

I stared after her. Had the fallout with her friends made her want to change her tune? I couldn’t believe it, but—

Instead of stopping to help Calla Lily, Kaylen jumped over the broken planks and kept going.

That fucking bitch. I should’ve known better.

Hands slipping, Calla Lily hung on for dear life.

I gritted my teeth. There was no way I’d leave someone to die like that.

The platform sagged under my weight, and unlike Kaylen, my feet thudded against the wood. The planks splintered, revealing what poor shape the bridge was in. Still, I pushed forward, determined to save Calla Lily before it was too late.

Her fingers were barely holding the edge of the wood, and sweat beaded her brow. I reached the last plank, ignoring the way it creaked, and caught Calla Lily’s hand just as it slipped off the board.

My entire body strained as I tried lifting her, and I grunted. “Lock your hands on my arm.”

When her hands locked on my forearms, her weight pulled me forward. My heart seized as my feet scraped the planks, slipping. My skirts tangled around my legs. A board behind me cracked loud and sharp. Something sliced my leg, then pain seared through me.

I leaned back and hauled hard.

Another crack shuddered through me. Then the clicks came faster. The spiked blades shot up again, the leftmost one grazing the side of my lower leg before I could slide it fully into the gap between the spikes. Agony shot through me as blood spilled down my boot, but I refused to let go.

I groaned and pulled Calla Lily out of the hole, and then I dragged her the last few feet until my back pressed against the wall of the starting platform.

The creatures below backed off and retreated from our platform. The water stilled again. But the ticking continued. Not loud. Just steady. But maybe a little faster than it had been.

For a second, we lay there, Calla Lily’s hands still clinging to my forearms. I couldn’t hear her breathing at first, but then she sobbed.

Once I realized Calla Lily was okay, the adrenaline wore off and the pain from my leg stole my breath. It was seeping blood from the scratch made by the blade. I needed to stop the bleeding so it wouldn’t lure more predators toward us.

I ripped off one of my sleeves and sliced a strip from my dress. Ignoring the warm liquid, I wrapped the fabric tight around the wound and tied it off. My fingers were shaking, but I got it done.

Cold tendrils of fear choked me as I found the center path was shot. No support left. Most of the boards had started to tilt.

The right path wasn’t much better. Gaps between platforms that would force us to do long jumps, which most of them couldn’t do with all the extra weight we carried, especially since there was no margin for error.

I bit my lips, trying to find the answers and attempting to ignore the way my leg burned. The more time this trial took, the harder it would get. Would any of these pathways even be here in an hour if at least three others didn't get to the top of the tower?

Thalira drew up her blue water whips and came to the edge to peer down, wincing as she moved. She wasn't putting much weight on her foot, and it was clear that wielding water while off balance and with the discs had taken a toll on her.

"You have to go, Briar," she rasped, her arms dropping to her sides. "Ceana and Deallan have already gone after the others, but the likelihood of any of those empty minds other than Rhielle and Kaylen making it is low. We can hold out for now, but you’re the most likely to get to the tower."

I shook my head. There was no way in hell I’d leave them. If I hadn’t been here, I wouldn’t have been able to save Calla Lily, and she’d be dead. If I left them and they died, that would be on me. I had to protect them. They were my fae pack. “I can’t. It wouldn’t be right.” I straightened my shoulders, ready to fight.

Another horrified scream echoed through the air.

My blood iced over. Someone was in danger and most likely hurt.