literature

~ FFM 3. The Last Fairy ~

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Literature Text

A white fire burned in the centre of the room, its light wavering like the twinkling of a star. It hovered above the ground, slightly above Radyn's head when he stood up, but always feeling out of reach. He hadn't the energy to try touch the star. He could feel no warmth from it, nor coldness. It was never too bright so as to hurt his eyes, nor did it ever dim. It merely hung there, inexplicably, magically, impassively.

The first time Radyn saw it, almost a month ago, he had felt hope swell up inside of him. He had thought the star would guide him out of this hellish prison. It hadn't taken him long to learn the star would not be commanded. It seemed it was sent there simply to mock him and torture him further. He now lay dejected on the ground under the burning fire, staring without blinking until his eyes hurt. For the first time in a long time, he wished death to take him then. This was not the life he was meant to live - forgotten, imprisoned, fading slightly from view with every passing day.

A noise sounded outside the cell and a light flickered in the hallway through the gap between the door and the floor. Keys rattled, squealed against the rusty lock. The door flew open inwards, crashing against the wall. Radyn didn't move.

"Get up," a gruff voice demanded. Someone stomped over and kicked his bloodied feet. "Get up, rat!"

Radyn groaned, pushing himself to his feet. He winced, the harsh stone floor sending stabbing pain through the skin of his feet, tender and broken from hours of pacing back and forth, kicking the walls, attempts at climbing to the unseen ceiling far above. His hands were no better - blistered and bloodied, the nails broken or missing in some places. The blood was blackened with age.

"There's someone to see you upstairs," the guard grunted, motioning to the hallway with his lantern. "Go on then!" He shoved Radyn ahead of him, grinning his disgusting toothy grin at seeing the boy's limp. In the narrow hallway, he clamped two thick cuffs onto Radyn's wrists, ignoring Radyn's yelp of pain when the iron burned his skin. His hands shook, rattling the chains, but he ground his teeth together against the pain, glaring at the guard.

"Shut up," the guard grumbled, motioning towards the end of the hallway. Uneven stone steps spiralled up towards daylight. Radyn dragged his feet, growing weaker with every step, until at the top he collapsed at the foot of an iron gate leading to sunshine and forest. He breathed in the fresh scent, his skin warming where it met sunlight.

"Up, up!" The guard hauled him to his feet and shoved open the gate. He led Radyn towards the edge of the forest, where the trees thinned to reveal the rear of a stunning castle looming up against the sky, its towers spearing the heavens and glimmering with gold.

Radyn was unimpressed.

They entered the back gardens and approached one of the four main gates. The chains weighed heavily on Radyn's wrists. In the open courtyard, he felt the sunlight going straight through him, instead of warming him as it had in the initial moments of being outside. He was Fading.

They stopped just before the gate, where a young girl in a dazzlingly white gown awaited them. The Queen stood off to the side, glowering at the fairy boy, but the look she gave the girl held even more disgust. Radyn blinked, trying to make sense of the glow emitting from the girl.

"Take those off," she said, nodding to the chains around Radyn's wrists. "He is not a threat."

"I wouldn't recommend that," the Queen said hastily, stepping forward to stop the guard who would not take orders from this guest. "He may be dying, but he is still powerful."

"He's dying because you are killing him," the girl snapped. She turned a bright, wide-eyed gaze on the boy - her eyes were inexplicably white, as indescribable as the star in his cell. I have come to take you home. Do not be afraid. "I demand you release him at once," she said to the Queen, turning her cold, eternal gaze on her. The Queen faltered, taking a step back. The boy couldn't explain the power he felt rolling off the girl, or the way the Queen moved to obey. "He is the last Fairy," she was saying, but the iron against his skin was becoming too much to handle. He felt himself fall forward, her voice coming to him as if through a dream.

"He must not die."
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NamelessShe's avatar
I'm very interested in Radyn's plight and who the girl is and why she's helping him. Being the last fairy must be terrible.