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I picked it up and slid the blade inside.
The fae woman was inspecting her chamber. “I cannot say I shall miss this place. No, I cannot say that at all.” She caught me watching her. “My name is Orcades, daughter of the High King Gorlois.”
She seemed to be waiting for some sort of recognition, but when I looked at her blankly, she continued with a languid sigh, “Princess of the High Fae Court, Mistress of Lights, Lady of the Enthralling Gaze, Slayer of the Siabra, Keeper of the Sacred Groves, Defender of Numenos, Mistress of the Sword and Bow, and Protector of All Who Dwell Beneath Meridium.”
Orcades studied my face. “No? None of that rings a bell, does it?”
I blushed. “The fae have been gone from Aercanum for more than a hundred years, my lady.”
“And memories are short, yes, I see.” She tapped a finger to her chin. “Still, I wonder... Who is this Arthur you concern yourself with? A king? Is he a mighty one?"
Briefly I felt tendrils reach out to me, like the soft touch of fingers. Not an unpleasant sensation, but still, I shuddered.
I gaped. “I did not mention him.”
“There was no need for you to. Tell me.”
“He is my brother,” I said, with some confusion. “The king of Pendrath, ruler of the city of Camelot.”
Orcades smiled serenely and I felt the tendrils withdraw. “Time to go. I have my own war to wage, you see. My enemies have slumbered in peace for far too long. When I wake them, I shall remember you with thanks. The blind girl who freed me from this infernal prison. Come. Shall I lead the way?”
Then she stepped closer towards me, peering at my face more closely. “Really, what a mess they have made of you,” she muttered. Her eyes sparked with a curious light, as if she had found something interesting. “Yes, I see why your blood was enough.”
And then, before Orcades vanished like a wraith, she touched a finger to my forehead and cursed me with a single word. “Remember.”
So I did.
I remembered my mother.
I remembered her running through the city of Numenos with me in her arms.
And then I gasped as the lavish prison around me vanished like a puff of smoke and I broke through the surface of the lake, water pouring down my face, holding the sword above my head.
CHAPTER 34
Vesper ran to the ledgeand reached out his hands to pull me up.
