Page 6 of Fae Champion

“Shhhhh,” another immediately scolded. “Don’t be an idiot. She’ll skinyoualive for being involved. Shut it and just keep blowing on that blood.”

“I don’t see you jumping.”

“Only because there’s no more blood to get out of ‘im.”

“There’s always more blood to squeeze out.”

“Shhhhh. Both of you,” a third tiny fairy snapped.

Azariah leaned his weight into three of his legs, then switched directions. “Ah. Um. My queen? What will you have me do?” he asked of the ear.

Righteous indignation bubbled through me, fizzing into my extremities, while I looked from the queen to the ear, wondering if she’d somehow answer through it.

She forced her jaw to release and to spread into a smile, like a reptile or a hungry cat.

“In moments, Azariah will announce the next match,” the queen called out, her voice steady as it effortlessly circled her audience thanks to Ivar’s magic.

“Yes, Your Highness,” Azariah told the ear with a deferent nod. His bowed horn, a majestic knob of twisted ivory, marked his subservience. I wanted to lead him over to her—who was still a living woman after all, even if everyone treated her as if she wielded the power of a god—steer his head, and gore her with that beautiful spike.

“I’ve brought you several more days of fighting for you to enjoy,” she continued. “We’re beholden to the magic of the Fae Heir Trials, but there’s no reason we can’t take pleasure in the spectacle. As the matches march on, each fight will become more competitive, more fierce … andmore bloody!”

The spectators roared in response. It was what she’d expected. Her smile turned genuine and somehow even more wicked.

“Our secret surprise competitor Lady Elowyn will have to face the toughest of our warriors, those who’ve trained all their lives just to meet thischallenge and claim the honor of fighting in this sacred arena.”

I snorted. “Sacred my ass.”

The queen’s smile faltered for an instant, but she otherwise ignored me.

“To all the contestants who remain in the trials, may your ancestors cheer you on from the Etherlands, and may you draw first blood!”

On cue, her subjects bellowed their approval once more.

Azariah cleared his throat and walked in front of me.

I shook my head and stepped up beside him.

“Oh no,” one of the fairies breathed. I ignored them and the panicked look the unisus shot my way.

“Fellow fae,” I yelled as loudly as I could. Without an enchantment to project my voice, not everyone would hear me, but my reach would be sufficient.

Movement around the queen caught my eye. Ivar jumped to his feet to shoot his disapproval my way while tugging on the vest of his trim, sharp suit, then fingered the handle of his cutlas. Braque’s dark blond curls bounced out of sight behind the thrones as he presumably raced off to obey his monarch’s rushed commands.

“Your queen lies to you,” I shouted, and her guards, dressed in blue tunics, rushed out onto the field of flowers.

I wiped at the blood clinging to my cheek and committed to the path I’d chosen, largely withoutforethought, borne from the pit of injustice brewing in my gut.

“I’ve been forced to be here and to fight against my will, because the queen threatens others to get me to obey.”

The guards ran toward me faster. I had seconds before they’d reach me.

“On her command, Lennox stabbed me before my fight?—”

An industrious guard slammed into me at a full run, tackling me, so that he and I landed on top of Russet. My skull cracked against Russet’s shin. My thoughts became fuzzy while the guard pinned me down, the others catching up to surround me. The little fairies were no longer anywhere in sight.

The ear zipped around us, keeping just out of reach of the guards, who didn’t seem to notice it, or if they did, they were so used to the queen spying on them that the fact no longer warranted attention.

The guard pressed a hand to my cheek and smushed me into the dead man’s legs.

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