Page 114 of Court of Lies and Deceit

Deep down, there is also another reason. One that I barely dare to admit to myself. I can’t be angry with how she accomplished her goal, because there is a secret part of me that wishes thatIcould be that ruthless too.

“Welcome to the special extra game,” a male Unseelie fae with short silver hair says. “I’m Yster. And I believe you have already met Grey.” He motions at the male fae next to him, who I recognize from somewhere.

He has shoulder-length brown hair pulled back in a ponytail, and eyes that are turquoise and yellow. It takes me a moment to realize that it’s the guy who brought us in to the city from the forest out by the wards. I blink, stunned. He has portal magic. So what in Mabona’s name is he doing here?

“And this is Hana,” Yster continues, and points towards a female fae with shoulder-length black hair.

The woman’s eyes, which are vibrant shades of blue and green, study the room around her before she notices that everyone is staring at her. Then she snaps her gaze back and flashes us all an awkward but genuine smile.

“Hi,” she says.

Alistair frowns at her, but I manage a small smile.

“For this extra special game, His Majesty has commissioned an extra special set,” Yster says, beaming as if he is very proud on the king’s behalf. “Grey here will open a portal into a pocket reality that Hana has created.”

Stunned silence falls down over our group like a violent slap.

“They’ll be doing what now?” Alistair at last blurts out.

“Well, we can’t get you into the pocket reality without a portal. So that’s why?—”

“Yeah, not at all what I was asking about.” There is a scowl full of suspicion on Alistair’s face. “What the hell is a pocket reality?”

“It’s, uhm…” Yster trails off, uncertain, and looks to Hana.

She was once again staring at the room around us, and she jumps a little when she notices Yster’s glance. Giving her head a quick shake, she turns back to us.

“A pocket reality,” she begins, her voice surprisingly gentle. “It’s a temporary intrusion into a place that is separate from our reality but then pulled into our reality for a brief, or longer, moment in time depending on the strength, while using certain measures to bend the edges around it and also?—”

“No,” Alistair interrupts, giving her a look that is somewhere between exasperation and disbelief. “Spell it out like I’m five.”

She hesitates, her lips slightly parted as she just blinks at him for a few seconds. Then she hums hesitantly and begins glancing around. We all stare at her as she suddenly drops down to her knees and draws two circles in the sand. She points to the first one.

“Think of this as the Unseelie Court,” she begins. Then she points to the other circle. “And this is some other place far away from here.”

We nod. Once she has seen that we are following her explanation so far, she reaches down with both hands into thecircle that represents the other place and scoops sand into her hands.

“When I create a pocket reality, I take a little bit of the place, like this.” She nods towards the sand she holds in her hands. “That place still remains in the circle. Physically, at least. But I can move that reality into our reality over here.” She nods to the circle representing the Unseelie Court. “So you see, the sand is physically still here. But now everything that is inside the walls of my pocket reality, which is the sand in my hands, now belongs to our reality. So no one can enter or leave this pile of sand in my hands until I release it.” She lets the sand drop back down into the circle. “Then it goes back to belonging to the original realm again.”

“That… actually makes sense,” I say, somewhat surprised by that fact.

The others nod as well.

“Good,” Hana says, flashing us all a bright smile.

Brushing sand off her hands, she stands up again.

“No, not good,” Galen interjects before anyone else can say anything. “What does that mean? This game takes place in another reality?”

“No,” she says, her tone pensive. “More like another world. Or perhaps another continent. I’m not entirely sure.”

Alistair stares at her. “Is that supposed to make us feel better?”

She blinks, looking startled. Because apparently, it was.

Next to me, Draven crosses his arms and fixes Yster with a commanding stare. “We’re being sent into another world for this game?”

“Yes,” Yster replies with a nod. “As I said, Hana has created a pocket reality, and Grey will create a portal to take you there. I am a farseer, so I will be looking into that pocket reality and projecting it for everyone out there in the arena to see. Wewon’t be able to hear you, unfortunately. But the crowd should probably be satisfied anyway.”

---