Page 27 of Bonded to the Fallen Shadow King

The hairs on the back of my neck rose, but I managed to pass the bear without issue and land on a concrete circle with no problem. That was, until the platform flashed pink before going out again.

Fuck. Of course I was weak. The platform didn’t even acknowledge that I had any magic. No one would join me, but at least I’d die on my own terms.

My stomach gurgled and churned, informing me there was no point in lying to myself. Even if I went out on my terms, I would rather live and have a full life.

Something clanked against the ground, and I turned and found that the bear had its claws in a hawthorn tree...and apparently a golden crystal had dropped and rolled toward me.

I jumped a few feet off the platform and snatched it up, the weight feeling wrong in my hands as I ran back into the circle. The moment I stepped onto the edge of it, the space around me exploded with a faint pink light.

“Hey, she got a platform,” Deallan called out and scowled.

“The shield won’t stay. Don’t worry. We’ll get to watch her die.” Kaylen waved a hand, not bothering to look at me.

The insult hit right in the gut, but I ignored it. She wanted me to react, but I didn’t have time for that. I needed to survive this trial and figure out how to get my ass back to Earth where I belonged.

An amber light flickered, and I glanced over and found an enormous dragon looming in a corner opposite me. Magma and black stones surrounded it, and twisting shadows made it look alive.

Somethingtuggedat me, and I noticed something even more unnerving.

A secluded platform.

Not for us. Not to help us. But from which to observe.

A sour taste filled my mouth. What sort of people enjoyed watching people struggle and die?

A tall figure stood on that platform, staring down at us with a guarded expression as four others joined him.

My heart twisted, and I might as well have been punched in the gut.

Vad.

Of course theprizewould be watching.

Elara stood beside him, her delicate hands gripping the railing. She looked withdrawn, her mouth tight and her eyes strained.

The king was also there, his dark-blue eyes matching Elara’s, standing tall like he had something to prove. Thalen and Silus flanked their sides.

They weren’t going to help us. This was a game to them. Something to entertain them and help Vad pick a wife from it all.

The softness I’d held for Thalen and Elara vanished. They enjoyed death and agony as much as the prince himself. I hoped one of the animals attacked them too, so they wouldn’t feel so safe or confident. Bastards.

Hot anger flooded my veins, but using it to wish awful thoughts at them wouldn’t help me. I needed to use it to focus.

Shaking my head, I snapped my attention back to the chamber and everything in it. I needed to get enough crystals to have the strongest possible protection. That was the only way any of us would survive.

More fae appeared and passed by the animals as if they were nothing. Aelir’s white hair flashed like a beacon as she tried to get on multiple platforms, but Siray and the others wouldn’t let her join.

When she looked at my spot, her face twisted in panic and she ran toward me. “I don’t know how I’m going to survive. No one will let me on a platform. They’ve all been taken.”

“Get on mine.” I held out my hand to her, wanting her to know I meant it. I felt bad, basically inviting her to her death, but she had a better chance with me than with no circle at all. “We’ll protect each other and survive this.”

Her hand gripped mine, so small and cold I thought she’d shatter. She joined me, glancing around the arena. “Every kingdom’s magical beast is here. It does seem fitting.”

Ahh… sothatwas what the animals on the medallions signified. What kingdom they came from. If I survived, I’d need to learn more about that. But first, we had to get through this.

“If we stay on the platform, we’ll be fine. We just need a lot more crystals. That’s all.” I tried to believe in my own words as much as she seemed to. My gaze caught on more fae racing to the circles, trying to find a place.

“Send the pink ones away.” Deallan laughed cruelly in between the two platforms closest to where we’d landed. She tossed her hair, the golden brown curls wild, and glanced at me. Her voice rang out, taunting and mean. “Looks like your team is as weak as you are.”

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