Bitter Magic

by Raven Steele

  “This way,” I said, walking straight ahead.

  “Can we run?” May asked. “In case there are more Vykens.”

  “Good point,” I said and picked up my pace.

  We ran deeper into the forest and farther from the academy. The landscape changed; older, thicker trees with knots and twists in their trunks looked almost lifelike. Their arms reached up and out in all directions.

  We crossed over a dirt road, and I wondered if it was the same one Liam had driven on earlier.

  “Slow down. Quiet,” the wind whispered to me in Liam’s voice.

  He must’ve had some crazy hearing to have heard us, but I was grateful for the warning.

  I slowed and signaled for the others to stop. Not far away voices could be heard. “We’re close.”

  Turning left, I quietly crept through the forest. May and Tessa followed, just as careful to watch where they stepped. The forest broke into a clearing, far enough away that Vykens wouldn’t have heard us, thanks to Liam.

  I sunk down in front of a fallen log and peered over it. My fingers dug into the bark when I saw how many Vykens there were, most of them in their true form, disfigured, monstrous. There must’ve been at least fifteen, including the two we’d run into earlier.

  And standing in front of them was Jackson.

  Chapter 29

  “That snake,” May hissed.

  I glanced around for Christian. If Jackson was here then Christian should be too. I was about to go look for him, but he found me first, scrambling over to us from a nearby clump of trees. His eyebrows were pulled tightly together.

  “What are you doing here?” he whispered between his teeth. “There’s too many of them. You’re going to get hurt.”

  “We came to help,” I snapped.

  He took hold of my arm. “You need to leave right now.”

  I shook it off with just as much force. “You have no idea what I’m capable of.”

  I wasn’t sure which side of me was talking.

  A breeze picked up, brushing across my skin.

  “Save your spats for later,” Liam’s voice said. “Get ready to fight.”

  Christian stiffened and looked around in confusion.

  “I don’t get it either,” I said, reading his mind.

  “What are we supposed to do?” Tessa asked Christian.

  “Be extremely careful,” was his only answer.

  Leaning forward, I strained to hear what Jackson was saying.

  “. . . be given more once I have your commitment,” Jackson was saying to the Vykens. “And for those who have already had the pleasure of drinking an Aura’s blood, more will only make you that much stronger.”

  The Vykens looked at each other, but no one said anything.

  “I get it,” Jackson drawled, his voice soothing. “You’re scared. But things are different now.”

  “Liam,” I whispered, knowing he could somehow hear me.

  “What?” the wind blew back.

  “How many are with you?”

  “Two.”

  “Is that enough to take them, including myself, Christian, Tessa, and May?”

  There was a pause before he said, “It’s enough to make them run, but—”

  “Good,” I said and stood up, dodging Christian’s out-stretched hand.

  I couldn’t wait to get out there and fight. My insides quivered with anticipation just thinking about it, and there was nothing I could do to stop from moving forward.

  “It’s not like it was before,” Jackson was saying as I drew closer. “Auras don’t know how to fight, despite what you say.” Jackson glanced at Blade’s burned face. “You don’t have to worry about Auras.”

  I left the shadows and walked toward them. “I am so sick of people saying that.”

  All heads turned toward me.

  Jackson’s eyes widened, but he recovered quickly. “You shouldn’t be here, Llona.”

  “Should you?” I asked.

  “What is this, Jackson?” a tall Vyken asked.

  “A slight disruption, but,” he smiled big, and the cruelty of it actually frightened me, “her timely appearance will actually help what I’m selling. Who’d like a fresh taste to feel just how powerful an Aura’s blood can be?”

  A few of the Vykens actually salivated.

  “I’d like to see you try,” I growled, forming a shifting ball of Light in my hands.

  Christian came up behind me. “Anyone touches her and I’ll rip you to shreds.”

  Jackson groaned and shook his head. “You are so stupid, C. I thought you’d want to die a more noble death.”

  A couple of Vykens laughed, but I noticed Blade stepping back.

  “Get it over with, boys,” Jackson said. “I still need to finish my presentation.”

  Three Vykens moved forward, but stopped when one said, “What is that?”

  I turned around in time to see a fireball racing through the forest toward us. It barely missed Jackson, but it caught a Vyken on his arm.

  Jackson’s smile disappeared and his nostrils flared. “Kill them all.”

  “Not so fast,” Liam said as he moved out from within the shadows.

  Behind him strode in two extremely tall men built like tree trunks. Identical twins, by the looks of them. Both had brown hair and the same crooked noses.

  “We will still destroy you,” Jackson breathed, his voice full of confidence. “You don’t have the numbers.”

  “No more talking,” Liam growled.

  And that’s all any of us needed.

  The forest became a whirlwind of activity all at once. I lunged for a Vyken heading straight for me. We slammed into each other and rolled to the ground. He scrambled on top of me, but before he could pin me down, I swung a fist at his jaw. And not just any fist. One lit up with Light’s power.

  He screamed and clawed at his face, which was already missing half its flesh.

  With a few spare seconds, I glanced over at Christian. He had already beheaded the Vyken who had come at him and was now running towards Jackson.

  I jumped to my feet and was about to pounce onto my Vyken who still writhed in pain, when I heard May’s voice yell, “Duck, Llona!”

  I bent over just as a fireball flew over me and smashed into the chest of another Vyken that was about to land a deathblow to my head.

  “Thanks!” I called back to her. I wasn’t sure where she was, but she was doing a great job of keeping a bird’s eye view on everyone. Fireballs continued to fly across the clearing.

  My Vyken pulled himself to his feet, but before he could do anything more, I placed both hands on the side of his head and lit them up. The Vyken struggled against me, a feeling I enjoyed. I surged more Light into him until his head exploded into dust followed by the rest of his body.

  I fell to the ground, my eyes locking with Liam’s for a split second before both of us had to continue fighting. I felt invincible.

  The twins Liam had brought turned out to be extremely helpful. Any Vyken they got their hands on was broken, twisted, and tossed. The two were stronger than anything I’d ever seen, but their size and strength came with a price. They were slow. On more than one occasion, May saved them by using her highly effective fireballs.

  Just as I shot a spray of Light at an approaching Vyken, I caught sight of May at the edge of the clearing. A Vyken was sneaking up on her from behind.

  “May!” I sprinted toward her despite a Vyken on my tail.

  She turned around to see what I was yelling about, but the Vyken tackled her to the ground. Only May’s ability to create fire kept him from tearing off her head. He kept trying to reach for her hands to stop her, but she didn’t give an inch.

  I was almost to her when out of nowhere one of the twins came barreling down like a raging bull. He dove into the Vyken, and the two rolled away from May.

  Slowing up was my mistake. The Vyken behind me, the one I’d temporarily forgotten about, crashed into me. My body sailed through the air and landed hard ag
ainst a fallen log. Air exploded from my lungs and pain shot through my bones.

  “Llona!” Christian cried. He left his battle with Jackson to help me.

  While I tried to get air back into my lungs, I dragged myself over the log, my nails digging into the cold earth. The Vyken who’d tossed me was surely going to attack again, and I wasn’t near ready yet.

  I continued to pull myself along the ground, grunting and gasping for air. Two different kinds of magic warred inside me. Both wanted to be used, I could feel it, but the presence and the voice of the darker one was louder and more demanding. So much so, I was getting a headache on top of all my other aches and pains.

  Glancing over my shoulder, I was surprised to see that no Vyken pursued me. I winced and sat up to see why. Beyond the log, Christian had gotten to the Vyken in record time and the two exchanged powerful blows.

  I moved to help but a terrified scream escaped the forest. Tessa.

  Despite the pain, I scrambled to my feet and took off into the woods to find her. It wasn’t hard. I could hear her frantic whimpering and hear the sounds of a Vyken snarling.

  I crested a small ridge and found her trying to climb higher into a tree while a Vyken continued to leap an unnatural height to get at her. And by the looks of Tessa’s torn pant leg, he almost had her.

  “Tessa!” I yelled. I ran faster, unsure of what I was going to do next.

  That’s when I heard Liam shout my name, followed by, “Use this!”

  I glanced back to the clearing and saw his silhouette as he tossed me a machete-like weapon. It wind-milled toward me barely missing several trees it passed by.

  Leaping into the air, I caught its handle just before I reached the tall Vyken. I swung downward at him, but he bolted out of the way at the last second. I swung again, but this time he caught the gleaming steel with his bare hands. He grinned a near toothless smile, like he’d gotten the upper hand. I returned his smile and lit up every particle of the weapon with Light.

  His one good eye widened, and he yelped and stumbled back. I stepped forward and kicked him hard in the chest. His sternum cracked, but it didn’t seem to faze him. It only pissed him off.

  I swung the blade again but he dodged the blow and kicked backwards, knocking the weapon from my hands. He lunged for me but a spray of liquid rained down on him. He screamed and clawed at his face as if he’d been doused with acid.

  Confused, I looked up. Perched above us on a tree limb was Tessa. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Super spit?

  “Awesome,” I said and picked up the blade.

  I licked my lips and stalked after the Vyken who was stumbling away from me, still wiping at his face. Laughter vibrated my chest. So this is what it felt like to be a predator chasing its prey.

  The weapon in my hand lit up. I raised it high and brought it down once. His head fell from his shoulders but turned to dust before it hit the ground. I stared down at my victim, feeling pleasure race through my body. The sounds of fighting not far away beckoned me.

  I glanced back to make sure Tessa was still safely in the tree, then returned to the battle, feeling like I could’ve taken them all on by myself. Two more Vykens died by my hands. Each one only made me more hungry for violence. I wanted to see blood, feel it on my skin, taste it on my tongue …

  Only a few Vykens remained, and they were running away into the forest. I looked specifically for Blade but didn’t see him. Either he was dead or he’d escaped with the others.

  I moved to give chase, but froze when I caught Liam watching me, his jaw flexed.

  May jogged over to me. “That was crazy! Where’s Tessa?”

  “Still in a tree.” I called back to her. “You okay, Tessa?”

  “Peachy,” she called back.

  “How are you doing, May?” Her hands were fire red.

  “Amazing! That felt incredible.”

  “Really?” I said, surprised by her answer.

  “Get off me!” Jackson yelled.

  I turned around. Christian had Jackson pinned to the ground and with his free hand was smashing Jackson in his already bloodied face.

  “Why?” Christian demanded. “Why did you do this?” Another punch.

  Liam jerked Christian to his feet while the twins took hold of Jackson. Jackson tried to break free of their grip but stopped moving after just a minute, probably realizing it was pointless.

  “Tell me why!” Christian yelled again. Liam was having a difficult time holding Christian back.

  “You smug, arrogant—” Jackson yelped as one of the twins, or both, must’ve tightened their grip. Jackson lowered his voice. “You think this life we live here is perfect? That we’re given all these abilities to babysit princesses?” He spat the words in my direction. “We were meant for more, C, and you’d see it too if you weren’t hanging around social rejects.”

  Christian broke free from Liam, or Liam let him go, and punched Jackson again, this time knocking him unconscious. The twins held up Jackson’s limp body by his arms.

  “What should we do with him?” one of the twins said, the one with slightly more freckles. His voice was deep, gravely.

  “We need to question him,” Liam said as he began to type something into his phone.

  “Should we go after the others?” Christian said, his chest heaving with adrenaline.

  Liam pocketed his cell phone. “No. We were lucky we had the element of surprise, but next time they’ll be ready.” He glanced over at us three girls. “Thanks for coming to help, even though,” his gaze focused on me, “I believe I specifically told you to stay home.”

  Christian turned to me, his brows drawn together.

  “I think they did great,” one of the twins said.

  Liam nodded his head toward them. “This is Arik and Aaron.”

  “Who’s who?” I asked, but Liam didn’t answer. He had turned around and was walking away, scanning the ground for something.

  “I’m Arik,” the twin on the left said.

  “And I’m Aaron,” the other said.

  Their voices were just as large as their muscular frames.

  “Nice to meet you,” I said. “I’m Llona, this is Tessa, and the fire-thrower is May.”

  They dropped Jackson and shot their hands out in front of Tessa and May. “Nice to meet you,” they said in unison.

  “So are you guys half giants or something?” May asked.

  The twins laughed; the sound would’ve been frightening if they didn’t have smiles on their faces. Arik spoke first. “Our kind come from the trees.”

  May and I looked at each other frowning.

  “Long story,” Aaron explained. “Let’s just say we’re hard to knock down.”

  “I’ve heard of your kind,” Tessa said, her voice softer than usual. She was tugging at her hair in a way I’d never seen before.

  Christian left us and joined Liam on the other side of the clearing. They spoke softly, and by the looks of it neither of them was happy.

  “One second,” I said to May and the others.

  Christian and Liam stopped talking when they saw me approaching.

  “What’s up, guys?” I asked.

  “Jackson didn’t bring anything,” Liam said. “I was expecting some kind of trade.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “That the blood is probably still back at Lucent.”

  “And?” Christian asked, voicing my same question. It should be a good thing Jackson didn’t have any with him.

  Liam’s dark gaze flickered between us. “I’m worried Vykens are planning on going inside to get it.”

  His words hung in the air, making it feel heavy. I rubbed at the goosebumps forming on my arms.

  “They wouldn’t dare enter Lucent,” Christian finally said, but his words sounded hollow.

  Liam lifted an eyebrow. “And why wouldn’t they?”

  “Because the place is protected by Guardians.”

  “Jackson is a Guardian. How many more have switche
d sides?”

  Christian didn’t answer, but by his bulging jaw muscles and white-knuckled fists, I knew he was upset. I placed my hand on his back and let it warm with Light.

  He stepped away from me. “Don’t do that.”

  “I just—”

  “I know, but I need to feel this anger. I need to be upset. Things are not okay.”

  Christian was right, of course, but I hated seeing him so serious, as if he were doubting our chances. It made me scared.

  “I’ve got to get back,” Christian said. “I need to see who’s still on the good side.”

  “I have to go too,” Liam added, then called, “Arik, Aaron, grab Jackson and let’s go.”

  The twins hesitated, their eyes lingering on May and Tessa.

  “Seriously, guys. Let’s go,” Liam said again.

  Arik and Aaron slumped their shoulders and each grabbed an arm of Jackson’s.

  To me, Liam said, “Clear your head tonight, Llona. Use Light. Do something positive. I can tell you’re buzzing hardcore and not in a good way.”

  Christian looked at me, waiting for an explanation, but instead I said to Liam, “You stopped me, with your voice.”

  “Stopped you from what?” Christian asked.

  “Back in the woods. We ran into a couple of Vykens, and we were about to fight them, but I heard Liam’s voice. How did you do that?”

  Liam stared up at the moon and then back to me. “It’s sort of a thing I do with wind. It carries sounds to or from me.”

  Arik and Aaron began dragging Jackson. The motion stirred Jackson awake. “What?” he mumbled. “Hey, let me go!”

  “Shut up,” a twin said.

  “Taking me is pointless,” he growled. “They’ll come for me.”

  “Nobody cares about you,” the other twin added. I wish I could tell them apart.

  Jackson’s gaze found Tessa. “Hello, Lizen. Hasn’t your kind been warned to stay out of this?”

  “Get him out of here,” Liam snapped. The twins picked up their pace. This time Jackson didn’t argue, but he didn’t look worried either.

  I moved over to Tessa. “What’s he talking about?”

  Tessa sighed. “A while ago, Lizens got a letter. We don’t know who it was from, but they warned us not to get involved in upcoming events between the Vykens and Auras. They said there would be consequences.”