Angels Grave

~ Chapter 7 ~

The second trial was brutal.

Zhysa watched as Lucien was strapped to the board in the arena, yelling in protest. Tamlin had protested beforehand but only a sentence from Amarantha on his left and his face lost its usual golden sheen and transformed into a sickly white.

The chamber was split into 2, separated by a giant gate. The chamber itself wasn't very special, surrounded by polished stone and bore no furniture. The faeries around Zhysa suddenly started to cheer and her head whipped towards the Attor. He held Feyre's arm tight, a maniacal – what Zhysa assumed was a grin – adorned its face.

Amarantha was also smirking, which made Zhysa's stomach feel like there was a stone that had been dropped into her gut.

Feyre looked around at the faeries surrounding her, noticing Lucien's brothers that stuck together, fox-like cackles escaping them. Zhysa rolled her eyes at them and focused back on Feyre. She was now locking eyes with Tamlin and as Zhysa pried at his wall, she balked at the overwhelming amount of despair, worry and anger that flooded through him.

If he didn't find some type of conduit, he would explode at some point in the future. She just hoped it wouldn't be upon Feyre.

Feyre descent had started, the platform lowering before she walked off it and it returned. Zhysa could see Feyre's subtle handshakes but she quickly hid them by clenching her fist.

"Here, Feyre darling, you shall find your task. Simply answer the question by selecting the correct lever, and you'll win. Select the wrong one to your doom. As there are only three options, I think I gave you an unfair advantage. That is... if you can solve the puzzle in time" Amarantha's smile was lupine.

The loud groaning from above started and the cheering from the surrounding faeries increased as well. Looking up, Zhysa spotted a spike encrusted panel, heat rippling off the points. They glowed a faint red, proving their fatality.

Feyre stood and shock and quickly ran over to the panel that held the levers, including the riddle... Feyre couldn't read. She had offered to teach her but the girl was as stubborn as they come and Zhysa learnt not to breach that subject again.

Zhysa clenched the bars of the railing, forcing herself not to jump in and grab the girl. She would be fine. At the very least, Rhysand wouldn't let his new investment die. And Zhysa hoped that Tamlin could pull his own head out of his arse long enough to stop the trial.

"Come on, Feyre" Zhysa whispered, worry becoming evident.

She could spot the sweat that collected on the girls head now, glistening and matched Feyre's hopeless look. Zhysa couldn't help, Amarantha – or at the very least Rhysand – would notice if she looked through the girl's eyes to help with the riddle and it was too far away from even Zhysa to read.

Zhysa thought back to how much more his servants – the wraith sisters – patrolled the halls near Feyre's cell and they're much more thorough searching. In fact, only 2 days ago she had almost been caught but managed to get away before the wraiths could wrangle her.

Rhysand had to be alerted by now that someone was lurking around that wasn't himself or Lucien. And that made Zhysa wary. Even now, Zhysa let a glamour over herself to hide her true features. It had been much better since she told Feyre around 2 weeks ago but she still thought that Feyre was wary of her. Maybe it was just her imagination.

Shaking her head, she focused on Feyre. She was hyperventilating now, the sharp movements of her chest giving it away. Feyre had reached towards the second lever but her lips pursed in mock pain. The same thing with the first lever. Her hand flinched and Zhysa noticed it was the one with the tattoo bargain.