Iron Forge is gone, disappearing between the trees in the distance.
“Ember?” Aiden asks cautiously.
My heart floods with terror.
Blood soaks Aiden’s right leg, and a small pool forms at his feet. He follows my gaze downward, and his hands tremble as they touch the wound. He takes a step and falls.
“Aiden!” Somehow, I find the strength to stand and rush to Aiden.
He groans in pain while holding his leg. Blood pours from a large gash through the outside of his right thigh.
It dawns on me; the dagger Iron Forge threw at me found its mark with Aiden instead. Realization about how badly I screwed up hits me. I feel like scum, the kind found floating on top of a stagnant pond. This isn’t the time for me to get lost in self-loathing, however. Aiden needs me. He’s losing too much blood, and, if we don’t stop the blood loss soon, he’ll be in serious danger.
“You’ll be okay, Aiden,” I say, trying to convince both of us.
His eyes scrunch in pain, and he takes a deep, calming breath. “I know, but … we should probably stop the bleeding.”
What do I do? What do I do!
I scan the area, hoping an idea will come to me, and one does. My belt! It will make a perfect makeshift tourniquet. I quickly unbuckle it and take it out to wrap it around the top of Aiden’s leg. I pull it tight, and a loud groan escapes him. I grab his hand to try to comfort him, and, even with blood covering both our hands, we manage to hold onto each other tightly. I realize we should try to cover the wound as well, to help it stay clean. “Aiden, are you able to take off your tank top? I want to use it for your leg.”
He laughs while also wincing in pain. “Oh, we can’t use yours?”
My cheeks get warm. “I’d rather not.”
“Of course, I was just trying to lighten … the … the mood.” He chuckles weakly and tries to pull up his tank top. With every movement, he grunts in pain, and it causes me physical discomfort to see him struggling so much.
“Here, let me help you.” I assist him with taking it off, and he closes his eyes, focusing on his breathing. I keep my attention on the job I need to do—not on his naked, sculpted torso. I wrap the shirt around his leg, covering the wound.
His body trembles underneath my hands.
I hold his hand again; it’s hot and sticky from the blood. “This will work for now, but we need to get you back to the training field. I’d get help, but I don’t want to leave you here by yourself in case Iron Forge returns.”
He takes a deep breath and nods. “I know … but I … I don’t know if I can … can walk.”
“I’ll help you.”
Aiden really looks at me for the first time since the fight, and his eyes almost bulge out of his head. “Ember, your eyes!”
My hand instinctively goes to them. “What? What’s the matter with them?”
“They look like fire … no. Lava! I just … just haven’t seen that b-before.”
"Oh, that,” I say, like it bores me. “Well, since I used my abilities, they’re just reflecting my power.”
“Yeah, you’ll have to f-fill me in a bit m-more about your abilities.” He attempts to stand. I’m concerned he’s already having issues talking so much, and his breathing is rough, ragged.
“Maybe later, but first, let’s try to get you on your feet.” I stand while holding onto Aiden’s arm.
He uses me as leverage to help him, and I put his arm around my shoulders to act as a crutch. I become very aware of his body next to mine. He feels solid, like a statue—but warm, like an oven. We step forward, but he stumbles and winces in pain.
I secure my hold on him by tightening my grip around his waist. “Are you sure you can do this?”
“Yeah, I’ve been through worse,” he chokes out.
His comment shocks me, but this isn’t the time to question him.
Very carefully, we shamble toward the brush. I realize it’s an unnecessary obstacle for us. Controlling my thermal energy, I scorch away a bit of the hindrance. It burns furiously bright, and black smoke rises skyward. In about thirty seconds, just ashes remain.
We step through the smoldering opening onto the dirt path. It’s becoming a bit difficult to support Aiden, even though he’s trying to put most of his weight on his good leg. My breathing becomes more ragged, and Aiden suddenly moans—very loudly. I glance to check his wound, and blood is running like a stream down his leg.
Guilt stings my eyes. “I’m sorry, Aiden. I’m so sorry.”
“It’s … okay, Ember.”
I shake my head and cry. “No! No, it’s not! You shouldn’t have helped me! It should’ve been me, not you!”
He lets go of me and pushes on my shoulder to get me to stop walking. His eyes almost petrify me because of their ferocity. “Ember, I’ll never stand by and do nothing when someone’s safety is at risk! I did that once, and I’ve regretted it every day of my life!” Aiden breaks eye contact and takes a shaky breath, like it took everything in him to say that.
I want to say something to him, but I don’t know what. I recall my conversation with Stella regarding him having a rough time in middle school, but this definitely isn’t the time to ask him about it. One thing occurs to me that I should tell him. “Thank you, Aiden. I owe you my life.”
He doesn’t look back at me. “Please, don’t … don’t thank me.”
I grab his hand again and put it around my shoulders. “We should get going.”
Aiden nods, and we continue—painfully slow. He abruptly puts more weight onto me and stumbles sideways.
I jolt pretty badly as I struggle to keep him from falling. “Aiden! Are you okay?”
He forces a smile. “I’ll … I’ll be fine. It’s … It’s just a scratch.”
I shake my head at the ridiculousness of his joke. “It’s definitely not just a scratch.” The seriousness of his wound makes me feel sick to my stomach. “I just don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“Hey … I’m not going anywhere. As … As long as you want to … to try to be friends.”
I roll my eyes. “Oh, we’re talking about that right now? Perfect timing.”
He tries to chuckle, but instead, he gasps as if he is struggling to get his breath.
I don’t know what to do but try to comfort him. “We’re friends, okay? Don’t worry about that. First we need to make sure you’ll be fine.”
He nods while clenching his eyes in agony.
I feel him start to drop, and he goes limp for a second. “Aiden!” I almost fall, because his weight is like an anchor on me, plunging into an ocean.
He manages to regain his footing.
Looking ahead, I see the opening for the training field. “We’re almost there, Aiden! Just hang on a bit longer!”
Chapter 12
Aiden
“Did you call my parents?” I ask, my voice trembles.
Nurse Pumpa shakes her head. “No, not yet. Since we stabilized you quickly, I figured I would let you do that.”
A sigh of relief passes my lips. My mom would freak if she got a call about what happened. Now, the challenge is to figure out how to tell my parents without it sounding too concerning. I can just imagine it … “Oh hey, Mom and Dad! So, I was with Ember Vulterra. You know, the daughter of Emerald Blaze and Digger? Well, we were alone together in the woods when we ran into Iron Forge. You know, the guy who murdered Digger right in front of me? Well, he threw a dagger at Ember, and I got her out of the way before it killed her! However, it hit me instead. No big deal! I just almost bled to death. Anyway, I have some good news! I got an A on my English exam!”
Yep. This will go over exceptionally well.
Nurse Pumpa still stands at the end of my bed, reviewing a chart. Her bright orange dress and forest-green apron contrast sharply against the room’s sterile whiteness. She’s a shorter woman and a bit plump, resembling a pumpkin. It doesn’t help that her dark green hair is styled like a twisted stem on top of her head. “Aiden, you sh
ould stay off the leg for another day. It probably won’t be until Tuesday morning when I release you. You’ll miss class tomorrow, but, with the ointment I made for you, it should be healed by the end of the week. The scar shouldn’t be too noticeable.” Her voice reminds me of my grandma’s—gentle and warm.
It’s comforting but doesn’t console my disappointment for missing my classes tomorrow. I’m alive though, so I shouldn’t complain. “Okay, thank you,” I reply, conveying my gratitude.
“Can I get you anything? Are you comfortable?”
“I’m fine, thank you. I’m tired, so I may nap.”
She smiles, understandingly. “Of course. I’ll check on you a little later.” She eyes her chart again as she leaves.
Finally, I have a chance to be alone with my thoughts. Yesterday is a complete blur. The last thing I remember is Ember trying to get me out of the woods, but I ended up passing out at some point. When I woke up, I was in the medical wing inside the student center. Billy was by my side and drilled me with questions, but I only had one thing on my mind: is Ember okay? I know running into Iron Forge had to shake her world—again. Part of me wanted to ask Billy if he knew anything, but I didn’t. Ember is the last thing we should discuss together.
I remember the disappointment in Billy’s eyes yesterday when I told him I planned to talk to her and can’t help but relive our conversation out on the training field.
“Aiden, are you serious? You stopped talking to her for a reason,” he snapped.
I rubbed my forehead. I could feel a headache coming on. “I know, but I can’t let this go any longer. Did you see how she looked at me?”
He nodded and shot his hands in front of him. “Yeah, like she hates you! That’s good, man! You shouldn’t get close to her!”
I reached out, trying to reason with him. “I miss her, okay? I know it seems irrational, but I miss talking with her. We were becoming friends, and I freaked, because I knew I was getting close to her.” I pointed at him. “You made me paranoid about that.”
“Well, good! You should be paranoid about it! Man, why do you have to be so interested in her? Go ask out Carly. She’d take you up on that in a second!”
I sighed loudly. “I’m not going to ask out Carly. I don’t want to ask her out. You’re the one who likes her! You ask her out!”
He dropped his hands in defeat. “I have. But she wants nothing to do with me.”
For the first time in a long time, Billy looked sad. I didn’t know he had asked her out, and I felt bad I made him remember her rejection. “Well, I’m sorry. I didn’t know,” I said a little more gently. “Just know this, Billy, I don’t plan on asking out Ember. That isn’t what this is about. I just want to be friends.”
Billy eyed me while shaking his head. “Yeah, sure, Aiden. And rhinos can do ballet.”
Suddenly, I sense someone looking at me, snapping me from my memory. I glance around the room, just seeing the white walls, a couple empty hospital beds and light flooding in from the windows.
“Aiden?” a familiar, soft voice calls out. Ember steps in from the doorway, wearing a white t-shirt and blue shorts, and her hair is up in a messy ponytail. Her red and puffy eyes have deep black circles under them.
“Ember! Are you okay?”
She chuckles and wipes a tear from her eye. “You’re seriously asking me if I’m okay? I’m not the one in here because of my careless actions.”
“I’m fine,” I tell her, hoping to comfort her. “I’ll be back on my feet before you know it!”
She shakes her head and walks over to stand at the end of my bed. “No. No it’s not, Aiden. I didn’t think, and you paid the price for that. I’m so sorry,” she says a little more quietly, and a few more tears fall.
I sit up straighter. “Ember, seriously, it’s okay. I understand why you did what you did.”
She smacks the bedframe in frustration. “Let me apologize to you for once!”
I laugh, and she smiles, but the light atmosphere doesn’t last.
Her crying intensifies, and she feverishly wipes away her tears. “You have no idea how sorry I am.”
“Don’t work yourself up so much. It’s not worth it.”
She takes a deep breath, and her bottom lip quivers. Her crying slows, but she hiccups. “I didn’t know if-if you would want to see me again after ev-everything I put you through, but I ne-needed to make sure you were okay.”
I smile. She doesn’t realize I could never not want to see her again. “I’ll be fine. I have to be off my leg for another day or so, but that’s it.”
She nods. “Good. I know Nurse Pum-Pumpa is magical with her ointments, since she can height-en the plant’s medical properties she uses them for.”
“Yeah, the school is lucky to have her.”
Ember eyes the foot of the bed, and her hiccups start to be fewer in between. She fidgets nervously with her hands, and I get the feeling she wants to say something else.
I so badly want to soothe her. “Ember, really I’m okay. I’m glad you came. I was worried about you. I know seeing Iron Forge couldn’t have been easy.”
She looks up, and her emerald eyes shine brightly. “It wasn’t, but I shouldn’t have lost control like that. It was like all I could see was him.” She breaks eye contact. “I couldn’t control myself.”
I swallow hard. It was scary when she shot a blast at me, but I knew she did because she just wanted to get to Iron Forge so badly.
“Hey,” I say softly, and she refocuses on me. “I know.”
“Ember Vulterra and Aiden Stiles! Just the two people I wanted to see!” a man excitedly exclaims out of the blue. Dean Stuard Warwick enters and stands next to Ember. This is the first time I’ve seen him in person. I’ve only seen him before in brochures about the university. He’s about my height, but that is all we have in common. For one, he’s bald, and the light reflects off his head, displaying how shiny it is. He dons a full beard and mustache, like an old western cowboy would, the color of caramel with hints of white and grey throughout. He also has a good amount of extra weight around his midsection, and his tucked-in, button-up shirt highlights this.
Ember and I stare at him, wide-eyed and surprised. “Oh, hi, Stu!” she says.
Dean Warwick beams at her. “Ember! It’s so good to see you! It’s been what? Eight? Nine years? I’ve been meaning to reach out to you, but things have been a bit crazy. How’s Eliza?”
“She’s good. I’m sure she’d want me to tell you hi.”
He enthusiastically pats her back. “Good, good! Tell her hello for me.”
Ember answers with a nod and a smile. “Of course.”
Wait a second. What just happened?
He grins and eyes me. “So, Aiden Stiles. How are you doing?”
His chirpiness, along with what transpired, still baffles me, but I keep my composure. “I’m fine. Thank you for asking. I’ll be up before you know it.”
“Good. I’m glad to hear it!” His grin fades, and a new seriousness falls over him. “You both are probably wondering why I’m here. I understand Iron Forge attacked both of you, is that correct?”
Ember nervously glances at me; she’s probably worried about saying too much, since she started the fight. It would be best if I do the talking. “Yes. Although someone else was with him, but they disappeared almost instantly before we had a chance to see them.”
“Really? How did they disappear so quickly?”
I close my eyes while trying to remember, and the scene comes back to mind. “There were some sparks, then the person was just gone.”
His eyes widen, reflecting a moment of realization, but he composes himself quickly. “You said sparks?”
Ember clears her throat. “Yeah, it was sparks, kind of like—”
“Sparklers,” I say.
She smiles at me. “Yeah, sparklers.”
Dean Warwick lips tighten together, and he grabs the end of the bedframe. His knuckles whiten as he tightens his grip. “I see.”
The dean keeps his head down but angles toward Ember. “Why were you two on that path to begin with? I understand there was no good reason for anyone to be out that way, since nothing was happening at the arena.”
“Oh, we were just talking. You know, it’s loud on the training field, so we just wanted to talk somewhere a bit quieter,” Ember answers.
Dean Warwick lets go of the bedframe and straightens his posture. He focuses on me. “No one told you to go down there? You didn’t see anything suspicious beforehand?”
I keep firm eye contact. “No. We just wanted to talk somewhere quiet.”
“What did you two need to discuss?” He brings his fists to his hips and squints. “It must’ve been important.”
I narrow my eyes. My first reaction is to tell him it’s none of his business, but this is the Dean of Students. It would not be a good idea to get on his bad side. “With the utmost respect, Dean Warwick, what we were discussing is not important to the situation. I think what is important is that a well-known villain somehow got on campus and attacked two students.”
He glares at me, like he’s trying to read my mind. “So, just to be clear, he attacked first?”
Crap. Reflexively, I look away. “Yeah, I mean—”
“No, I did,” Ember says while looking confidently at the dean. “That is why he attacked, and that’s why Aiden got hurt. It was my fault, but, I mean, the man did murder my father. I think you should be trying to figure out why he was here in the first place, not drilling us about our conversation that’s not relevant to the situation in any way.”
Surprisingly, the dean’s face softens, and he puts a hand on Ember’s shoulder. “We will, Ember, but you need to keep your emotions under control. Especially when you become a Guardian.”
Ember locks eyes with him, like a magnet. “I’m not in the Defender program.”
His mouth drops open. “What? That can’t be right. I’ll ensure that’s corrected. I know you have amazing abilities.”
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