Bitter Magic

by Raven Steele

  “Stop,” a deep voice ordered.

  I continued to struggle much like the deer had beneath my grip moments ago.

  “What’s wrong with you?” the voice said again.

  I fought harder until I felt the entire weight of my attacker cover my whole body. His strength was like a concrete wall bearing down on me. Not even my new dark abilities could match his.

  In my ear, I heard, “Stop fighting. I’m trying to help you.”

  I gasped for air, several gulps in a row until my lips began to tingle and colors exploded in my vision. If I stopped moving, then I’d have to face what I’d almost just done.

  “Please just kill me,” I whispered.

  My attacker sat up, legs straddling my waist. His arms pinned my hands to the ground. “That’s not what you want.”

  I opened my eyes. Liam, the Vyken who’d turned into wind, stared at me with a concerned expression, something that shouldn’t be possible. It turned my world upside down and the confusion it caused made my brain hurt.

  I turned my head to the side, avoiding his eyes. “What do you want?”

  “I was stopping you from doing something stupid. What’s going on with you?”

  Tears stung my eyes. “I don’t know.”

  He moved off my body and sat next to me but kept a steady hand on my arm as if he was afraid I’d try to bolt. The touch was warm and oddly comforting. But he was a Vyken. I could feel it in my bones, despite him looking all-human. Maybe I was further gone than I thought if I took comfort in a Vyken’s touch.

  “What’s your name?” he asked.

  I hesitated briefly. “Llona.”

  Liam waited a few seconds before he said, “From the moment I met you, Llona, I felt there was something different about you.”

  That was the last thing I wanted to hear, especially from a Vyken. “I should go.”

  I stood but he stopped me from moving further. “No way. We need to figure out what’s going on.”

  “What does it matter?”

  He narrowed his eyes and leaned forward as if to study me. “You’re not a full Aura, are you?”

  “Of course I am.” How could I admit that I might be something else?

  Liam’s eyes widened in realization. That’s when I noticed their color. A dark green, like the moss growing on the forest floor.

  He shook his head. “It’s not possible. A Vyken wouldn’t dare.”

  “Dare what?”

  “Come here.” He reached for me.

  “No.” I dodged his grip.

  “Quit being difficult. Come here.”

  “Don’t tell me what to do!” The anger, always at the surface, bubbled over.

  I turned to leave, but Liam blinked behind me and wrapped his arm around my chest. With his other, he tried to force my neck to the side.

  “No! Please! Don’t bite me,” I yelled. I couldn’t move from his crushing grip.

  “I’m not going to bite you, fool. Just hold still.”

  Because I couldn’t do much of anything else, I did as he asked. His grip relaxed. He swept my hair back and drew in a breath when he saw what I’d been trying so hard to hide. “I’m so sorry, Llona.”

  The way he said it, all sincere-like, made me sick. No one was going to feel sorry for me.

  “We have to talk,” he said, his eyes frantic. “You need help. You’re turning into a Vyken, but you can beat it if you let me help you.”

  My hands balled tight. “I will never need help from a Vyken.”

  “Its poison is in your blood. It’s changing you.”

  I fixed my hair back over my neck. “You’re lying.”

  “Am I? You’re in denial, Llona. I know you can feel the evil destroying you, making you do things you wouldn’t normally do, say things you wouldn’t normally say.”

  I stared at the ground, not wanting to believe him.

  His voice lowered. “I’ve been where you are. It’s a dark and lonely place.”

  My stomach knotted, and my thoughts crashed in my brain giving me an even worse headache. How did I find myself alone in a forest with a Vyken who was giving me advice?

  “I can’t listen to this.”

  I ran away from him and his words.

  His voice carried into the forest behind me, “I’ll be here!”

  I don’t know how long I ran, but I didn’t stop until my legs gave out. I fell hard; my knee smashed into a rock hidden within the tall grass. I gritted my teeth and immersed myself in the pain. It was a welcome distraction from an even greater internal torment. But after several minutes, the pain subsided, and all I had left were Liam’s words. I rolled over and tried to throw up, but nothing came out.

  I dropped onto my back and stared into the night sky through the branches of the trees. As much as I didn’t want to believe Liam, he was right. I may not have known that I was turning into a Vyken, but I knew there was something inside me, taking hold. A dark and dirty seed had been planted, and its roots had begun to grow.

  I lost track of time, lying on the cold ground, when the sound of a snapping twig made me sit up. The forest was quiet, except for . . . I listened closely. The soft rustling of leaves and grass. Something was coming my way. I scrambled over behind a nearby tree and waited.

  After a minute, I peeked around the trunk. Not far away a form moved in and out of the shadows. I couldn’t sense if the thing was Vyken or human, but the moment it stepped into the light of the full moon, I knew it was a Vyken. And by its slender form, I guessed a woman, but I couldn’t tell by the face, which was missing half of its leathered skin. The other half was a rotted skull with a green, moss-like substance clinging to the cheekbone. The bone was a dirty yellow, the same color as her two rows of broken teeth.

  She looked around and sniffed like she was searching for something. Her eyes jerked to the tree I was hiding behind. I ducked farther behind it and held my breath, my heart pounding. Sweat broke on my brow. Any other day I would’ve jumped at the chance to fight, but I was still too afraid of what Liam had told me and of what I already knew. Is that how I would look if I became a full Vyken?

  “I smell you, Aura,” the woman said. Her voice was deep and raspy.

  I left my hiding spot and ran as fast as I could, crashing through the forest, arms outstretched. I pushed my already exhausted legs hard as I hurdled over, under, and around what felt like an Amazon jungle.

  The Vyken chased after me, making a strange sound with her throat, almost like a pig grunting. I glanced back at her and saw that the sound was from the wind moving between exposed cords on her neck where there was no skin. The sight and sound of her made me find my second wind, and I sped up.

  Bursting through a tall bush, I moved to take a step but found nothing but air. I fell, more like bounced, end over end down a steep hill. I didn’t stop moving even when I landed in cold water. I sucked in air and jumped to my feet.

  In front of me was a lake the size of a football field. Moonlight stretched across it like a lit-up road. Other than a steep incline around the water’s edge, most of which was covered in trees and bushes, there was no easy way around it.

  I thought about climbing back up the hill, but the female Vyken’s steps were coming closer. Having no other choice, I moved farther into the cold water until, once again, my foot found no ground beneath me. A sharp drop-off plunged me into the water. I gasped at the shock of it and swam backward to keep my eyes on the top of the ridge.

  Just then the hunched-over female appeared. I sucked in a deep breath, held it, and dipped beneath the water’s surface. A few feet away I spotted a branch attached to a fallen tree lying at the bottom of the lake. I swam over and took hold of it to keep me from floating up. Through the clear water, I could just barely make out the Vyken’s form as she made her way down the incline. When she reached the water’s edge, she paused and scanned the surface.

  After a moment, she turned and began to move back up the hill. Just in time, too, because my lungs were burning.

&n
bsp; I was about to push up when she stopped and turned back around. I bit the insides of my cheek to keep from instinctively taking in a breath.

  She returned to the water’s edge, and what she did next had me frantically looking around for an escape. Her black boot slid onto the water’s surface, and as soon as it touched it, the water beneath her foot turned to ice. Another step. More ice. An ice bridge was being created wherever she moved. Ten more steps and she’d be standing directly above me.

  Seeing the ice and being trapped in water made me think of how I’d nearly died back in Wildemoor under very similar circumstances. Panic gripped me.

  Although I was terrified, my lungs no longer cared. I let go of the tree branch and began to float up, but as I was about to break the surface and gasp for air, something took hold of my ankle and pulled me down.

  Chapter 16

  I fought against the tight grip around my ankle since all I could think about was getting air, but when my feet touched ground, and I felt arms spin me around, I was surprised to see Tessa, her hair swirling in the water around her face.

  She signaled for me to relax. I signaled back that I was going to pass out if I didn’t have air. She shook her head and rolled her eyes.

  What did that mean?

  Tessa patted my chest and gave me the thumbs up sign. I looked down at my almost non-existent breasts and raised my arms as if to say, huh?

  She laughed and tried again. Pretending to breathe, she patted my chest and gave me a thumbs up again. I think I was starting to catch on. I was so busy trying to communicate with her that I didn’t notice I no longer needed air . . . as long as she was touching me. It was like she was transferring air into my lungs. I smiled big.

  Tessa’s smile disappeared, and she pulled me close, pointing upward. Up above, the Vyken’s icy footsteps passed overhead until we could no longer see her. I was glad I wasn’t alone.

  We waited several minutes before Tessa began to move to the other side of the lake, pulling me with her. The bottom was squishy and threatened to suck us in with every step. Because of this we moved quickly.

  This far down, the water was surprisingly clear, giving me a spectacular view of this strange underworld. Schools of fish swam by us, some large, some small, but each of them beautiful in their own way. They reminded me of people.

  Tessa looked at me knowingly and smiled. This deep in the water her scales seemed to be glowing, and I wondered if she was more comfortable down here than up above.

  As soon as we surfaced, I sucked in air. “What the hell just happened?”

  “Which part?”

  “All of it. You, what the Vyken did, the breathing. I feel like I’ve just entered the Bermuda Triangle.” I followed her to shore and, like her, began to ring out my clothes. A slight breeze made me much colder than I’d been under the water.

  “I’ve never seen a Vyken do that before,” Tessa said. “Maybe she was some sort of water creature that got turned into a Vyken. Pretty scary, though.”

  “Terrifying.” I flipped my hair upside down, careful to keep my bite marks on the opposite of Tessa, and squeezed the water from it. “So what was that cool trick you did in the water?”

  “All Lizens and anyone they touch can breathe underwater, but please don’t tell the Auras.”

  I rubbed my arms to try and get warm. “Why?”

  “We’ve given them so much already, but there are some things we want to keep to ourselves.” Moonlight shimmered against her green scales.

  “I get that. Your secret is safe with me.”

  Tessa began to walk, half pull, herself up the steep incline toward the forest. “So what were you doing out here this late?”

  “I was—” I shook my head, realizing that something else had to be said first. I hurried after her. “I owe you a huge apology. We had such an amazing afternoon, and then I blew it. You were right about what you said earlier. Something is going on with me, but I’ll figure it out and make it up to you somehow.”

  “Will you take me out again? Maybe to see a movie?”

  “I’d love to!”

  “Then you’re forgiven.” She smiled and started walking again. “So, seriously, what were you doing out here?”

  I thought of Liam. “Running.”

  “You shouldn’t be out here.”

  “Should you?”

  She stopped moving and turned to me. “No, but my life is not as valuable as yours.”

  I scoffed. “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

  “Auras’ population is dwindling.”

  “And from what you’ve told me, so are the Lizens’.”

  “But we don’t affect the world like Auras do. Even if it’s from a distance, you guys do so much good.”

  I stared at her, aghast. “Who’s teaching this crap? Any person can make a difference in the world.”

  “But you have Light in you.”

  “And you have the ability to breathe underwater and who knows what else. Everyone has something unique about them, but that doesn’t make them special. It’s what they do with their gifts that makes them special. Light means nothing if I don’t do something with it.” I swallowed hard at what I was about to say next. “With the way I’ve been acting lately, maybe I’m turning into a Vyken.”

  I watched her reaction.

  Tessa laughed and kept walking. “Now that’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

  Maybe Liam was lying to me then. Maybe I wasn’t becoming a Vyken and instead, the dark poison inside me was slowly killing me. Or making me crazy.

  For several minutes, we walked back toward the school in silence until I worked up the courage to ask, “Do you think all Vykens are evil?”

  Tessa thought a minute before saying. “Well, if I go off the same rationale you just gave me, it would depend upon the Vyken’s actions. Does a person just become an evil Vyken, or is it their actions that make them so? I’m sure somewhere along the line, though, there’s a point of no return.”

  “I get where you’re going with this, but let’s say there’s a Vyken that hasn’t done anything wrong and is actually nice. How do I know he’s not tricking me, waiting for me to become vulnerable?”

  “Are you talking about someone specific?”

  “Maybe.” I snapped off a thin tree branch in passing and proceeded to break it into pieces.

  “Spill.”

  “I don’t know that much about him as I’ve only met him a couple of times. But he’s fast and does this cool thing with the wind—”

  “Liam?”

  I stopped her and raised my eyebrows. “You know him?”

  “I’ve met him a few times over the years, but lately he’s been coming around a lot more, asking me all sorts of questions about Guardians and who else I’ve seen out here. But, wait. Liam isn’t a Vyken.”

  “Um, yes, he is.”

  “No, he’s not. He’s an Enlil.”

  “What’s an Enlil?”

  “He controls wind. Liam’s a good guy, Llona. And he’s here trying to help the Auras, not harm them.” Tessa turned onto a worn trail. The dark silhouette of Lucent Academy came into view.

  I snorted at her answer. “I knew Lizens were simple, but I didn’t know they were naive.”

  Tessa whirled around. “You’re doing it again.”

  I closed my eyes tight. “Right. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it.”

  “What’s going on with you?”

  The painful memory of the night’s events and what I’d almost done to the deer rushed back. “I’m not sure yet, but I’ll figure it out.”

  She touched my arm. “Do you need help?”

  “I don’t think anyone can help me.” I started walking again, picking up my pace.

  “You’re not alone, you know,” Tessa said from behind me.

  I reached the wall and looked up, pretending I hadn’t heard her. “So how do you get over?”

  I could easily jump it, but didn’t dare in front of her. An Aura shouldn’t
be able to leap that high.

  “Over here.” Tessa walked to the wall and, at eye level, lifted what looked like a stone. Beneath it was a keypad. She pushed a series of numbers, and a section of the wall opened like a door. If I wasn’t feeling so depressed, I would’ve commented how cool that was, but instead I slipped quietly through the door.

  Before we split ways, I said, “I’m sorry again about what I said.”

  “It’s okay.”

  I nodded and walked away. “I’ll see you.”

  “Liam’s a good person,” she called after me. “And so are you.”

  I raised my hand to signal goodbye but kept walking forward.

  Back in my room, I left the lights off, collapsed into bed, and touched the necklace Christian had given me last year, which I had worn ever since. “Endure to the end,” it said. But could I endure, and to what end?

  I need Christian, I thought and rolled onto my side. If it was possible for someone to be half-Vyken, he was the only person at Lucent I dared ask, but his answer terrified me.

  After much convincing, I rolled out of bed the next morning and walked into my closet to choose my clothes for the day. Such a simple task proved difficult. All I could think about was how my life might never be the same. If what Liam had said was true and I really was becoming a Vyken, then Christian had been trained to kill me.

  The thought exhausted me, and I slumped to the floor, my back against the wall. How had everything gone so horribly wrong? I kicked the closet door shut, trapping me in the small closet. I stayed there for some time, willing myself to get up, when I heard the chimes.

  Wiping at the moisture in my eyes, I stared at the back of the door. Time to get up and pretend everything’s okay.

  As I was rising, I caught a glimmer of blue near the hinge of the door. A brick was dislodged just enough for me to notice. It was the only one like that.

  I reached for it and wiggled it around. With a little more effort, I removed it from the wall and peered inside. A book, no bigger than my hand, lay hidden inside. My pulse raced, and I sucked in a hitched breath.

  I removed it from its hiding spot and brushed the dust off its cover. Opening to the first page, I read: “This diary belongs to Britt Myers.” I jumped when I heard a knock at my door.