The Discovered

by Maggie Sunseri

  I knew he would. “What are we doing, Daelon?” I groaned, still exhausted from this morning’s intense sessions. Not to mention my battle in the astral realm.

  “It’s a surprise.” He led me toward the clearing where he practiced magick, and a chill ran down my spine at my last memory of the place. “I’m teaching you offensive magick now.”

  We headed into the center of the circle of trees, but Daelon suddenly halted and let out a frustrated sigh. “I tire of this. Can you melt it?” he asked, nearly pouting.

  I laughed. “Okay.” I let go of his hand and moved a few steps ahead.

  I reached out as if to clear a path for us, but instead turned on my heel, channeled a gust of wind, and hurled a wave of snow at him. I couldn’t contain my laughter as the burst of white powder rammed into his chest, some of it ricocheting into his face.

  Confusion quickly turned into annoyance as he lunged for me. I couldn’t stop giggling as he wrapped his arms around me in a mock hold and pulled my back up to his chest. “You think that’s funny?” he asked into my ear. He attempted to sound menacing, but I could tell he was trying not to laugh with me. His forearm was tight under my chin.

  “No, no, not funny,” I laughed, gripping at his arm. “Hilarious.”

  He let go of me, spinning me around to face him. I looked up into his eyes, dizzy from the movement and laughter. He looked flustered for a moment, but he soon melted into pure adoration. His hands encircled my waist, and I looked to his lips. I thought he was going to kiss me, but he pulled me into his chest instead, his hand on the back of my head. I breathed in his clean, woodsy scent, content to skip out on the rest of training to be held by him instead.

  He let go and clasped his hands on either side of my face. He leaned down and finally pressed his lips, which were soft and tasted of cold and snow, to mine. I responded to him hungrily, tilting my head and reaching up to tangle my fingers in his hair. He groaned softly, feeling his way along my curves and grabbing my ass.

  We lost ourselves in each other, my head spinning with desire, pent up emotion, and intensity that needed an outlet. He bit my bottom lip lightly, deepening the kiss until I couldn’t figure out why we ever did anything else.

  He pulled back, resting his forehead against mine. “As enticing a distraction as you are,” he said, “we have work to do.” He pulled his head back.

  I huffed. “Sounds boring.” Tired and longing for him—all of him, I changed tactics. “And I want you,” I said softly, putting all of my yearning into my gaze up at him. I reached my hand out slowly, curling a finger through one of his belt loops beneath his coat, lightly pulling him toward me.

  He shook his head, grinning. “No, Áine. But an admirable effort, truly.”

  I glared at him. “I know you want to,” I said, feeling bold.

  He chuckled. “Of course I do. But I need you safe most of all, and I think I know something that will help.”

  I sighed in defeat, pulling back to cross my arms. I turned on my heel and continued to the center. When we got there, I faced an amused Daelon.

  “We’re going somewhere,” he said, a glimmer of excitement in his eyes. “I thought you’d appreciate that, at least.”

  This was an interesting development, I had to admit. “Aw, at least my kidnapper is kind enough to take me out every once in a while.”

  He shot me a warning look. “Stop that.”

  I raised my hands up. “Kidding!”

  “I’m going to need to channel you to make the leap, if that’s all right. Nothing like last time, of course.” We both paled at the memory.

  “Maybe if you tell me where we are going.”

  He nodded, though I could tell my pushback made him edgy. “Have you ever been to any Nordic countries?”

  I shook my head. “Are we going to Earth?”

  “Similar to there, but here in Aradia. It’s remote enough to avoid any prying eyes, and I know you like the snow,” he said with a shrug. “Plus, I’m hoping we can catch a glimpse of the aurora borealis.”

  I grinned. “That’s been on my bucket list. I’m down for witchy Norway.” I furrowed my brows, remembering his intentions for this session. “Wait, why are we traveling to use offensive magick?”

  “When we get there, I’ll explain what I have in mind.” He gave me a reassuring smile, but something darker flashed in his eyes.

  I swallowed. I didn’t know how much more action I could take today. “What do I do?”

  “I need you to act as a battery again so we can make the jump.”

  He held out his hands. Reluctantly, I placed my hands in his, making sure to give him a warning look. I would not channel that dark power from last time ever again. It felt eerily similar to Lucius’s energy… I wondered what that meant about Daelon’s spell.

  In that moment, my hands began to tingle, and I felt myself pulling in power from the world around me. I was pleased to feel the familiar head high as it flowed through me, like a rush of euphoria. Just as energy sharing had been, this process felt intimate. I couldn’t imagine someone channeling through me without my consent, or anyone but Daelon, for that matter. It was like I was giving him access to the entire Universe.

  The impression from this energy was that of travel and movement, and I could catch glimpses of our destination as it flowed. I could see the snow, the monstrous evergreens, and the magickal night sky.

  “How does this w—”

  Before I could finish the thought, a loud whirring sound filled my head as if we were being sucked through a cosmic tunnel of space and time. Almost instantly the scenery shifted, and in the dizziness of the transition I fell forward into Daelon.

  Chapter 13

  “You all right?” he asked as he caught me.

  I steadied myself. “Yeah. Motion sickness, I guess.”

  “Teleportation is weird the first couple times. Like airplanes, I would imagine.”

  “This is much more eco-friendly,” I joked as I spun slowly, in awe of our surroundings. It was like a winter wonderland.

  Daelon was right, the landscape was very remote. Nothing but snow and trees in all directions. I looked to the sky and broke out in a grin at the swirling green, blue, violet and pink hues shimmering above. It was even more breathtaking than what I’d seen in pictures or videos. The air was fresh, crisp, and woodsy. Daelon moved to stand behind me, wrapping his arms around me and kissing my neck.

  Then he pulled away and knelt to the ground next to me, chanting something unintelligible. His forehead creased in concentration.

  “What are you doing?” I asked. I felt an almost undetectable shift in the energetic field around us, like I was suddenly exposed. I frowned, scanning the dim environment. “Is something wrong?”

  He stood, now all business again. “We can only do so many mental exercises, Áine. You need some low-stakes real experience.”

  “What does that mean?” My voice turned icy, and I narrowed my gaze. “What did you do?”

  “Sent out a bit of a broadcast,” he said, and my stomach dropped. “Only to some local lowlifes. Remember when I told you about energy vampires? Witches who syphon energy and magick from unwilling victims?”

  He said they were like moths to a flame, and that my flame burned brighter than most.

  “You want me to fight them?” I asked, incredulous. “What if I don’t want to?”

  He sighed, exasperated. “They’re terrible witches, Áine. They abuse other witches and humans, often killing them, eventually, for power or fleeting pleasure. They are probably abusing people right now in order to syphon enough energy to make the jump to us. When they sense your power, they will want to do the same to you.” His features were stony, his voice commanding. “I need you to be able to defend yourself.”

  I gaped, a million thoughts racing through my mind. I knew this was one of the moments Daelon wanted my submission. He wanted me to blindly accept that he knew what was best for me. I wasn’t sure if his methods were as solid as his intentions,
or if I was ready to give over so much control.

  “Daelon, I—” I paused. “You said you wanted my consent for all things.”

  “I do,” Daelon scoffed, his face contorting as if I’d offended him. “You agreed to learning offensive magick. You say you want to hurt people who hurt others—to avenge the downtrodden. This is your first opportunity. We can’t stay in that cabin forever, and you need to be able to fight off even greater evils.”

  A flash of Lucius masked as the Devil entered my mind. I shuddered, pressing my lips together. Daelon was right, mostly, but he still hadn’t adequately prepared me for this. He’d made the decision for me, and I didn’t agree to that kind of power exchange.

  “You can be angry at me. We can discuss it in detail later, but we don’t have much time now.”

  “How long?” I asked curtly, barely looking at him.

  “A couple minutes, probably. You’ll do fine. I’ll be here for backup in case something goes wrong. I’ll coach you through it.”

  “Do I have a choice?”

  “No.”

  I took a deep breath, blowing the air out slowly from my mouth. Daelon seemed to ignore my displeasure. He’d been hellbent on pushing my limits all day long.

  “A few things to remember: Focus on reining in your emotions, like we’ve been practicing. Be very direct and intentional. You have a lot more power than they will ever taste, which obviously gives you the upper hand. But, as we’ve seen, you can get lost in its depth and forget how to channel it into more simple, practical moves. This is what you will need to fight them.”

  “How many?” I refused to meet his eyes.

  “Whoever was in about a thirty-mile radius. There’s a camp of them near here. I wouldn’t guess more than a handful would show up. I didn’t let them sense all of what you are.”

  My pulse quickened. I really didn’t want to do this. It was one thing to defend myself from attack, but this felt different. We were luring these people into a deathtrap. Did their crimes fit the punishment? Daelon seemed to think so, but who was he to decide? I didn’t think he understood why I took issue with this at all. What did that say about him? Or did it say something about me? Maybe I was just scared to face reality and leave our bubble, like he insinuated.

  The time for careful analysis was over as a series of whooshing sounds erupted in the distance. I counted as a group of witches appeared, dressed in ratty, tattered clothing with haggard features and grown out facial hair. There were seven of them as of now.

  Daelon grasped the back of my neck in a move of dominance, whispering, “You were made for this. Let them approach us, and then give them hell.”

  I closed my eyes and took one last deep breath as they approached, excited as they eyed us with wild curiosity. They stopped about ten yards in front of us, some cocking their heads to the side, looking at each other in mild confusion.

  They were close enough now that I could read their auras, and as Daelon warned, the energy they emanated was disturbing. It was devoid of color, light, or warmth, its hunger overwhelming, like an addict in the depths of withdrawals. It hit me like a foul smell in a dark alley, and I could sense the remnants of their victims hanging on to their auras like ghosts. I could feel their pain and desperation as these witches had drained them, used them, or even killed them.

  My blood boiled at what I gleaned, and my palms began to tingle. My nostrils flared as I watched the energy vamps huddle together. I sensed how badly they wanted me to be their next victim.

  A man with a red beard and a scar below his left eye spoke up. “The power comes from the girl,” he spoke, his tone as if he was answering a question. One of his eyes was unfocused, the other darting between Daelon and me.

  “It does,” Daelon answered.

  “What is this? Does she belong to you?” another hissed, his eyes narrowing as he shivered in the cold.

  I glanced at Daelon, who smiled slightly in a way that was deadly.

  “You’re outnumbered. I think we can take her off your hands and all get back to our business, okay?” the red-haired man said, his strange accent lilting.

  Daelon stiffened, but an easy grin spread across his face. “You may try.”

  It only took a couple seconds before the red-haired man’s hand made the slightest of movements at his side, and I felt a pull on my body like an invisible riptide. I smiled coolly, which seemed to unnerve him. I could tell he thought this move would be enough to send me flying toward him, but to me it felt like a small child’s attempt at magick.

  With a flick of my wrist, I intercepted this force and sent it hurdling back at him, colliding with his body in a violent jolt. His fall backward sent the others deeper into their frenzy.

  The only woman of the group licked her lips. “She’s strong. She’s going to taste delicious.”

  Um, ew.

  I wrinkled my nose in disgust. Her words seemed to excite them, and I wondered how long it would take for that excitement to transform into fear.

  She chanted something under her breath, and a jolt of fiery electricity shot through the air in a crackling white orb.

  In that instant, Daelon’s words flashed in my mind: You were made for this.

  They triggered something deep within me, like the flip of a switch, and I tuned into my power in a way I’d never done before. I entered a deeply natural, instinctive state, and time seemed to slow down as I connected all of my experiences together. They lay out before me like a web, each a connecting thread of who I was. I felt the guidance of my mothers, the elements, the oceans’ tides, all witches who had come before me, the oppressed and the suffering, and even Daelon, all of this intertwining to weave a tapestry of who I was and why I was here.

  I didn’t need spells for my magick. I was magick.

  I held out my hands and absorbed the orb sent to hurt me, neutralizing its aggression and carrying it into my palms. I watched the incredulity pass over the energy vampires’ faces, scrambling to make sense of this action. I strained as the electricity bubbled over my skin, yelling out as I hurled it back at them.

  It slammed into a short man next to the woman, sending him into a fit of spasms as it stunned and then electrocuted him, like a military grade taser. I stepped toward the group, and they began to hurl their attacks.

  But I could feel their fear now. It tasted raw and wild like a cornered animal facing a predator.

  I deflected what they sent my way, moving on autopilot in this heightened state of alignment. A man with a bag over his shoulder stepped forward and hurled what seemed to be a dagger my way, and at the same time the woman cast another ball of electricity. I heard Daelon utter a low growl from behind me. I caught the dagger in front of my face, where it hung suspended, and then sent a gust of wind to deflect the orb into the snow where it crackled and snuffed out. I frowned at the dagger, realizing it was charmed somehow. I could nearly taste the torture it had inflicted on others as it dropped to the ground. The thought of all those victims’ suffering sent me into a fury.

  This was almost too easy. Whatever power they’d stolen from others was no match for mine.

  “End them, Áine.”

  I hesitated. I knew I could, easily. I glared at the man who threw the dagger, lifting him up into the air and throwing him sideways. He landed awkwardly on the snow and his body stilled. The bag he’d been carrying spilled out its contents, which appeared to be shackles. I could sense their painful, stifling magick from here.

  “Were those for me?” I asked sweetly, cocking my head at the girl, who was now backing away.

  The red-headed man ran forward to his fallen friend, grasping his arm just before they both vanished. I submitted to the power that coursed through my veins, sending a jolt at the woman who stayed to attack me. She screamed as I sent her flying into a nearby tree with a loud crack.

  “Good, Áine. Use the anger constructively.”

  The other four started chanting, and soon a high-pitched wailing overwhelmed my eardrums. I cried out in
pain, momentarily stunned. I couldn’t concentrate. Daelon doubled over next to me, also overcome by the assault.

  Seeing his face contort in pain sent me straight back into my power. I shouted out again as I channeled an intense force of natural chaos, moving through me like a storm. The snow in front of me lifted off the ground and formed a shimmering white cyclone, and on my command, it moved to attack. I heard screams as it drew bodies into the tempest, jerking them in all directions before throwing them back out onto the earth.

  Daelon stared at me in awe, and as the arctic wind dispersed, I could make out a lone vampire remaining. He knelt on the ground with his hands planted firmly into the earth. He’d somehow avoided the cyclone.

  When he rose, he looked ravenous. “You’ve deceived us,” he snarled. “Are you the one they speak of only in whispers?”

  I had no idea what the hell that meant, but considering everything, the answer was probably yes. Before I could respond I felt a force sneaking toward me, catching me off guard. It blew into me like the wind, knocking the air out of me. I tumbled back onto my backside, gasping for breath. In this lapse of concentration, he sent what appeared to be a storm of glass shards toward us.

  In a panic I went off instinct, leaping to my feet to stand firmly in front of Daelon. I channeled fire, feeling its heat rush through my blood. The shards melted above us, showering us with warm water. It was ice, not glass, which my power intuitively understood on a level my conscious mind couldn’t.

  I let the fire continue to move through me, and a burst of crackling flames spread out along the earth from me to the man, who scrambled back. But the fire was too fast, engulfing his body within seconds. I watched him roll around in the snow, steam and smoke rising from his body. I frowned, realizing this would kill him. I looked back to Daelon, who looked fierce and determined. The flames in front of us reflected in his eyes.

  I turned back to the man who was yelling out in agony, feeling the fear rolling off his body. I shuddered, and in a split decision I waved away the flames.

  “No, Áine. Finish him.”