by Jay Boyce
As soon as she healed the damage, waking him with her power, his eyes shot open. He saw Stephen above him and started to relax until his eyes caught on her. Widening with fright, he scrambled backwards until he hit the shadows and then–where did he go!? She whirled, frightened, as she saw him pop out of the shadows on the other side of the room. She looked between him and Stephen.
Stephen was also looking between them, seemingly torn, before he abandoned her side to move towards the young man. She was about to follow him when he shook his head at her and asserted,, “Stay there.” Defeated and deflated, she sank into a nearby desk, staring at her shaking hands. What was going on? She held a hand over her heart, trying to slow the rapid beating and burst of adrenaline still rushing through her veins.
“Brad, it’s okay. You’re okay now. She didn’t mean to hurt you. She was just scared.” Stephen’s voice was soothing, yet firm, as if he was trying to calm a child. There was something familiar about his tone that was bugging her, but she couldn’t put her finger on what it was.
“Scary lady! Scary! Hurt me!” Brad’s voice was plaintive, and he was still shooting her nervous glances.
“She also healed you. She’s very nice. That’s Jade. She’s a friend. A friend, Brad. Jade is a friend.” He was repeating the words very softly, as if to console and confirm her status in his mind.
He’s on the spectrum. He’s on the spectrum and I almost killed him. The realization hit her like a ton of bricks. She shot up from the desk, hearing Brad’s whimper as she bolted for the door. She barely made it out of the classroom before she was heaving against the wall. She managed to choke most of it back down, but there was a small amount of almost identifiable vomit splattered against the stone.
She sank to the ground, curling up in a ball as her body shook uncontrollably. When had she become someone whose first reaction was to attack? She had just hurt an innocent. What if she had killed him? She rocked back and forth, a soft keening noise escaping her mouth involuntarily. A week ago, she’d never have unconsciously attacked someone for spooking her. She couldn’t have, but that was beside the point.
What am I becoming? Her thoughts ran in circles, trying to make sense of who she had become. She had asked Will a week ago if one day she’d be able to kill monsters without blinking. She just hadn’t expected such callousness to start appearing within a week! She was worried.
She didn’t want to become the monster. What kind of person hurt the innocent and lashed out violently when startled? Brad’s face kept flashing in her mind, her brain overlaying it against a boy she’d once known in the hospital. He was brightness incarnate, and he’d always made her smile. Someone who wouldn’t hurt a fly…and yet, here she was. It wasn’t the same situation…but was it? What was the difference?
She heard footsteps approaching the door she’d just escaped, and the light tread was something she immediately identified as Stephen’s. She heard his melodious whisper, “Jade, are you okay?”
Glancing up, she could see Brad peeking out of the door behind him. He was a tall lad, and a big one. His brown hair flopped every which way, and as she met his bright blue eyes he yelped, calling out, “Demon eyes!” as he disappeared back into the classroom. A muffled sob escaped her throat and she buried her face in her knees. She could almost feel Stephen’s hesitation, but he once again disappeared into the classroom. She could hear him trying to comfort Brad and convince him that she was a nice friend, not a scary demon lady.
At the moment, she wasn’t so convinced of that herself.
Chapter Forty-Four – Pride
“Jade? Is that…are you okay?” She sniffled, realizing the noises she’d heard were people approaching and that the voice addressing her was the familiar tenor of Lucas. He sounded concerned, and she couldn’t blame him. She was curled up in a ball on the floor of the hallway next to a wall lightly splattered with vomit, crying her eyes out. She would have been concerned if she’d found someone else like this too.
She forced her next sob back down her throat, trying to get herself under control. She didn’t need people to know she was a complete mess. Maybe if only Lucas had been there, she wouldn’t have minded so much, but there had been other footsteps and she could hear them whispering about her. Some of the voices sounded familiar, but she couldn’t immediately place them.
She quickly pulled water from the air, sweeping up the tear tracks on her face and leaving it clean, if a bit red. Her eyes were bloodshot too, she was sure. She sent a tiny jolt of healing to her face, reducing her puffy eyes and feeling the cooling sensation as they returned to normal. She almost laughed at the thought that most modern girls would have killed her for her ability to get rid of puffy eyes after crying. She figured she was probably one of those ugly criers, so it was good that she didn’t have to let anyone see her like that.
Taking a deep calming breath, she forcibly reigned in her emotions, settling her mind and questions to deal with another time. She looked up, smiling wanly at Lucas and noting the two people behind him. She now recognized Scott and Joseph, both from the library and light class the night before. She absently wondered if Alexa, David, and Marie would be joining them too, since she’d told all of them they had the aptitude for dark magic. She sniffled, “I’m good now. I was just feeling a little sick for a moment.”
Lucas offered her his hand, helping her to her feet. She waved her hand, using water magic to quickly clean the wall and sending it to the dirt of the courtyard, not wanting to leave evidence of her weakness. It was just in time too because several other people were coming around the corner.
Britney was strutting like a queen among peons, flashing her cleavage at a nervous Steven, a bored looking Jackson, and a slightly enamored David. Alexa and Marie were also behind them, Marie ignoring them in favor of the book she was reading, while Alexa looked disgusted at the display in front of her.
“So, of course, a ball was thrown in my honor…” Britney’s manipulative honey-sweet voice entered Jade’s ears as she got closer, and she seemed to light up and almost coo as she saw the boys in front of her, whom Jade had slipped slightly behind. “Oh Lucas! I didn’t realize you’d be in this class too! That’s just wonderful!” She was moving forward to kiss Lucas when Jade stuck her head up, peeking over Lucas’s shoulder at the girl. Britney paused, surprised to see her almost glowing emerald eyes and flawless complexion appear there.
Jade almost crowed in satisfaction when she saw Britney’s eyes flick to Lucas in confusion, happy with the easy diversion for her brain. He turned to see what she was looking at and noticed Jade looking over his shoulder. He smiled cheerfully and said, “What’re you doing back there?” She just grinned impishly at him as he stepped to the side, motioning to Britney. “Lady Britney, have you met Lady Jade?”
“Jade!?” Her choked cry sounded strangled as she took in the new and improved Jade.
Smiling like the cat that ate the canary, Jade nodded at Lucas. “Oh, we’re acquainted. Isn’t that right, Britney?” Jade modulated her smile into one of polite indifference.
Britney was spluttering incoherently, gesturing to her before she finally spat out, “You look so different!”
Jade nodded serenely. “Yes, I imagine I do. In any case, we’d better go in. After you.” Jade smiled, motioning for Britney to precede her. She didn’t want to go in first just in case Brad was still freaking out; she didn’t want to set him off again. She was hoping to blend into the crowd.
Britney threw her head up haughtily, marching stiffly into the room. Jackson was now grinning cheerfully at her, while Steven looked like he’d calmed down. David had trailed after the huffing Britney in his infatuated state. Marie just ignored her, walking in to sit down, and Alexa nodded to her as she passed and did the same. Jade took a deep breath, then followed, knowing that the guys around her were waiting for her to enter.
As she entered, she met Stephen’s eyes and he nodded encouragingly to her. Brad was by his side, and though his eyes widened a little,
he seemed much calmer now. Jade still took a seat at the back, not wanting to crowd the poor boy with her presence. Lucas and Jackson took seats on either side of her while the rest ranged to other seats in the room. She’d given all of them polite smiles, but they still seemed more nervous around her after last night’s class, save Steven, who sat in front of her with a smile. Geography hadn’t managed to make him scared of her, and he hadn’t yet lent credence to the rumors flying around about her behavior. Britney glared ferociously when she realized Lucas had sat next to Jade instead of the seat she’d kept free beside her.
When everyone had settled, Stephen nodded briskly, shutting the classroom door. “Well, that’s everyone. Welcome to dark magic, which is also sometimes referred to as shadow magic. This is my assistant, Brad. You will treat him with respect.” His voice held a note of warning there, and everyone heard the silent ‘or else’ loud and clear. Jade sank lower in her seat, trying to make herself scarce. Jackson and Lucas cast her curious looks but didn’t say anything to draw attention to her sinking figure.
“Now then, this is, as I said, beginner dark magic. While there are many different uses for dark magic, they fall into three general categories. The first is counteracting light magic. Just as light can be used to throw back the darkness, darkness can be used to snuff out the light. However, there’s a difference between putting light out and pulling the energy of light into yourself. The first isn’t hard, but the second, where you absorb the light to create darkness, is far more difficult and can bolster your energy. It is also useful in remaining unseen, since you can pull the light in so that you appear as nothing more than a deeper darkness.”
He paused to let them absorb that, then went on, “The second is shadow manipulation. This is giving the darkness a tangible form. As with the first, it can also be used to hide yourself as you wrap yourself in a cloak of shadows which can double as a shield. It can be used to restrain others and create incredibly thin shadow weapons that are hard to see. The more finesse you have with your shadows, the more you will take your enemies by surprise.”
He paused, looking at Brad, who was smiling like a child again. Stephen nodded to him, and he said in a happily childish voice, “Third is shadow movement! You use the shadows to travel between them!” He stepped back into the shadow of the wall, then seemed to disappear and appear at the side of the classroom.
No one heard Jade’s small gasp as Stephen went on. As soon as she’d realized what was about to happen, she’d activated her mana sense, watching him meld into the shadows. The glow of black edged in violet had clued her in that while it might be dark magic, that wasn’t all it was. She tried to pay attention to what Stephen was saying. “Shadow movement is incredibly hard, and very few people are able to grasp the profundities necessary to use it.” Jade hesitated, then raised her hand slightly, but Stephen still caught the movement. “Yes, Jade?” His voice was nonchalant.
“I can actually tell you why that might be…” He raised a brow, indicating for her to go on, so she did, “When Brad used shadow movement just now, I was watching the magic. It was dark magic, yes, but it was edged in spatial magic. It was a very small amount, but it was there.” Her voice fell into the silence like a boulder, and all the other students had twisted in their seats to stare at her.
Stephen nodded and said simply, “That makes sense. Well then, let’s move on to practice. I’d like all of you to have some grasp of basic manipulation before the night is over.” As quickly as she brought it up, he dismissed it for later consideration because it wasn’t something he was planning on teaching the class anyway. It was something that only high intermediate to advanced dark magic wielders even attempted; he had just wanted to show them the possibilities.
Jade took a moment, studying Stephen with her mana sense active, realizing she’d never done it before. What she saw took her breath away. Dark magic was obviously the most prevalent, but there was a good chunk of the light blue wind magic too. The white, yellow, and lilac of light, lightning, and illusion magic looked untapped, just colors at the edge of his aura. There was a band of violet spatial magic that was a hair wider, but it wasn’t very noticeable either. No, the thing that had grabbed her attention more than anything else was that he had an area of deep purple that she recognized as compulsion magic. No wonder he’d been able to call her on it; he had it himself, and he obviously used it since it wasn’t just a band of possibility. She realized that was what had been bugging her about his tone with Brad earlier; he’d been using compulsion magic.
Stephen was having them focus on manipulating their own shadows at the moment, and she absently followed along, the magic coming easily to her because of her corrective level, which left her mind free to wander, and wander it did; down the road of memory lane she went, her mind trying to scrutinize each and every single thing Stephen had ever said to her, wondering if he’d ever tried to compel her to do anything. The closest thing she could think of was the night she was first attacked by the mesmer, when he had been trying to calm her down. Maybe he only used his power for good?
She sighed, brushing aside that thought. He was a spymaster. She didn’t want to admit it, but there were probably some things about her friend that she didn’t want to know because she wouldn’t totally approve of. Then again, she had done some things she didn’t totally approve of either. What was that phrase…necessity is the mother of invention? No, that wasn’t it. Necessity knows no law? That was closer… It was like a lightbulb went off. Necessity was the argument of tyrants, the creed of slaves.
Now that the thought was there, she was uncomfortable with it. Was she just making excuses for herself? At what point did a hero become a villain? What if for the greater good meant sacrificing the few? She’d had a nurse at one point who was utilitarian and had described her life philosophy, which Jade had thought was a little too black and white at the time.
Shaking her head to clear it of her philosophical thoughts, she concentrated on the lesson. She respected Stephen enough that she didn’t want to disappoint him, despite her possible misgivings.
The next two hours passed in a blur, and she was getting quite good at manipulating the shadows around her. Manipulating light the night before had given everyone but Britney, Steven, and Jackson a leg up on the process. Jade tried to help Steven and Jackson catch up as best she could. Ironically, it was rather easy for her to absorb light, since it was the same principle as applied to the energy of plants and the heat she’d taken in.
She wondered if this might finally solve her need to eat massive amounts of food. Sunlight was an eternal resource, and she was definitely going to experiment with using it to cap off her stores.
When class ended, Britney turned to the three that had surrounded Jade. She arched a brow as she asked with a coy smile, leaning towards them to flash flesh, “So, who’s walking me home?” Her tone was filled with such confidence it made Jade want to gag. Poor David behind her had looked hopeful when class ended, but his expression fell as soon as he realized she was ignoring his existence. With a frown, he got up and left the room with the rest of the others, and Jade hoped his infatuation really had been killed that quickly. He seemed like a nice guy, if a bit shy. She didn’t want to see Britney tear him to shreds for her own amusement.
Jade stood up, stretching as she smiled. “I’m going to stop by my workshop, let out the fellacai for a bit.”
“I’ll come help you!” Lucas jumped to his feet instantly.
Jackson was just a beat behind him. “I’ve never seen your workshop, so I’d like to tag along too.”
“Me too!” Steven didn’t even attempt to come up with a different excuse.
Jade smiled at Britney, who look dumbfounded, with a tiny bit of pity. If she wasn’t so mean and self-absorbed, people would like her better, but she had so much pride and tried to manipulate everyone. She was well aware of her own hypocrisy, her only defense being that she was kind until you crossed her, generally… “Well, I suppose I’ll see you la
ter. Good night, Britney,” she said politely, with the boys echoing her sentiments. They walked to the door as a group, leaving her gaping behind them.
Stephen nodded to her as they passed, obviously having observed what just happened. “I’ll stop by in a minute as well.” She nodded as they passed outside, hearing him speak to Britney, who was the only one left in the room, “Miss Larkin, I need to close the room. If you would…?”
Jade had already opened the door to her workshop at that point, ushering the boys in so they wouldn’t see Britney’s sad figure as she was ushered out of the room in her shame. There was no need to heap more humiliation on the girl and make her do the walk of shame past them.
“Mommy!” She heard the delighted cry of Willow in her mind as she entered, closing the door behind her. She was a little surprised at Willow’s use of the term, but she called them her babies, so maybe they were just picking up on that. She greeted them warmly, feeling their love and affection rush at her through their bond. She’d missed them today, as much as they’d been in the room without her for their own safety.
She’d keep them with her for as much as she could tomorrow.
Chapter Forty-Five – Mirrors
Jade had let the caged fellacai out to fly around and be fed again by Lucas, Jackson, and Steven when a quiet knock came at the door which opened a moment later to reveal Stephen. She smiled and gestured for him to come in, not having left her spot beside her metal working table where she was attempting to craft herself a signet ring. It was something of no importance to the hunt, but rather a note of pure pleasure and leisure as she attempted to unwind.
Manipulating the darkness had bothered her more than she let on, and the three boys who’d entered with her had said nothing when she lit up several sheets of glass and placed them strategically around the room to provide light. As much as she desired to be well-rounded and able to use all of her magic equally, she knew she might always hesitate to use the darkness. It scared her instinctually in a way she couldn’t logically explain as anything other than a byproduct of mesmer attacks.