by Sarra Cannon
I was fascinated, wishing this was a magic I could use.
Training Day 4, Danger
I almost got caught today. I fell asleep during the afternoon session and fell against the rock behind me. I didn't lose my glamour, but I must have made a noise, because several students toward the back turned to look in my direction. For a moment, I was sure they could see me. I am going to have to be more careful.
A Tiny Glow
By the end of the week, my little notebook was almost completely full of journal entries from the training sessions I'd sat in on. Watching the shadow demons at work was fascinating. It was nothing like what we'd been taught on the Demons cheerleading squad. This training camp made ours look like child's play.
When I first followed the soldiers into the cave, I'd had to spend some time figuring out which class was the beginner's class. The training area was made up of about twenty smaller rooms and one giant room that was about a quarter the size of the Grand Hall marketplace. In each of the smaller rooms, individual classes met, each seeming to work at different skill levels.
Some of the classes were dealing with magic that scared me. I knew those classes were way too advanced for me, so I kept looking until I found one class that used types of magic I felt I could replicate. I found a dark place in the corner where I could sit and observe them throughout the day. I remembered as much as I could from the day's lessons, and in the evenings I would spend a couple of hours in my room writing down what I'd learned in my notebook.
Holding the invisibility for so many hours each day was draining, but I was surprised to find that it didn't make me sick the way it had back in the human world. Back home, I never would have been able to stay invisible for so long, but here it was much easier. I was still exhausted, but after a short break, my power came back to me. I wasn't sure where all this new power was coming from, but I liked it.
In the evenings after dinner, I practiced some of what I'd seen, trying to perfect the art of distraction or learn how to manipulate fire. Of course, since I was only in my small room in the suite, I had to be very careful not to catch the whole place on fire. The space limited what I could do, but at least I was working on new skills.
After that first week, though, I knew I needed a bigger place to practice. The best place would be the training room itself, but what if I got locked inside? Or if someone caught me in there? What if they had guards that walked through the rooms at night?
I worried about it for about five seconds before I decided to just do it. Hadn't I already come this far? The bottom line was that I needed the space to practice if I was ever going to learn to do these things myself.
That's when I decided to stay in the training room until every last soldier and teacher had left. It took about an hour of waiting after the last class before I felt confident that I was alone. The lights had been turned out and everything around me was silent as a tomb. I finally stepped out of my hiding place and let my invisibility glamour drop.
Drained, I had to sit down and meditate in the darkness for almost an hour before I felt my power return to me. Plus, I was starving. It was stupid of me to forget to bring any food along. I'd seen the demons eating some kind of power bars during their lunch break so they didn't have to go back to the marketplace for food. I lit a small orb and made my way to the front of the room where I'd seen the instructor with the bars. Unfortunately, there was nothing left in the box. I searched around a little more, but figured out pretty quick that I was out of luck as far as food was concerned. Luckily, there was a large container of water in the hallway.
With my stomach growling from not eating since breakfast, I positioned myself in the middle of the large training space and got to work. For hours, I worked on the momentum magic I'd seen them learning last week. Not knowing which type of energy would be my strongest, I played around with all of them. I didn't want to limit myself, but I was also curious if I would naturally be better at one than another.
Fire was by far the easiest for me to manipulate. I'd been accused of playing with fire my entire life, ever since my adoptive father died in a fire that I accidentally started. But I alone understood at the time that I hadn't created that fire. It was my ability to move objects around with my mind and my emotions that had set that fire.
The same thing happened with Agnes the night she died. She was the one who lit the candle in the lakehouse that night. All I did was use my powers to make it fall over. Still, the fire had spread much more rapidly than any normal fire should have. Was that because of me?
I remembered back to the old hospital the night the Others tried to kill Jackson. Hadn't I killed someone with fire that night as well? I'd sent the fire across the room like a wave to save Jackson's life.
A chill spread up my arms. I'd always thought my relationship with fire was purely accidental. An unfortunate result of my ability to move things with my mind. But there in the quiet darkness of the training room, I found something different to be true.
The easy way my hands manipulated the small fire I created told me in my deepest core that I had a real connection with this blazing light in front of me. The flames responded to my every thought, like an extension of myself. I moved my hands high into the air and the fire spread itself up like a giant wall in front of me. I spun around in a circle and the blaze followed, creating a perfect barrier around me. I held my hands out to my side and lifted them, amazed as the entire circle of flames rose from the ground to a spot just above my head. I was completely encircled in flame.
The control and power of it made me giddy and light. I brought the fire back down to its smallest self, a tiny glow in my palm. Then, with a happy smile, I leaned over and blew it out like a birthday candle.
A Piece of Myself
I slept in a dark cubby on the far side of the largest training room. After my practice the night before, I'd gone to the door and tried to find a way to open it, but it wouldn't budge. I was locked in for the night. So I searched for a relatively safe place to curl up and sleep until morning.
I was a little bit worried that Lea or Mary Anne would notice that I had never come home, but there was nothing I could do about it from here. Tired from so much magic work, I went to sleep instantly, only waking in the morning when I heard the first voices enter the training corridor. I'd been sure to hide in a place where I'd never seen anyone practicing. Mostly, the various groups seemed to stay exclusively in the smaller rooms, rarely ever coming together in this larger hall.
Rested, I quickly worked up my invisibility glamour and made my way to my normal hiding place in the beginner's training room.
Things went on like this for a couple of weeks. Obviously, I couldn't stay in the training room every night. It was too hard on my body to go for so long without food. Instead, I would spend a couple of nights resting up my powers, then spend a night training, and so on.
One afternoon, Mary Anne knocked on my door and pushed her way inside. "What the heck is going on with you?" she whispered, shutting the door behind her.
Lea was home for once, so I hoped she couldn't hear. I motioned for Mary Anne to join me in the bathroom. I closed the door and turned on the shower and the faucet full blast.
"I can't tell you exactly," I said.
She opened her mouth to protest, but I interrupted her.
"If I get caught, it's better if you know nothing, trust me," I said.
Concern darkened the blue of her eyes. "What's going on, Harper? I came here to help keep you safe, not to watch you get into any kind of trouble."
"I know," I said. "But I can't just sit here in the suite and stay completely clueless like they want me to. The Order is still out there, here and back home, killing people and making demons into slaves and doing whatever they want to do. You guys didn't really think I'd just stay here forever and let that happen, right?"
Mary Anne lowered her eyes and shook her head. "I guess not," she said. "But Harper, how can we fight them? Even if we took an army with us back home, w
e still wouldn't be strong enough to stop them."
"How do you know that?" I asked. "Everyone keeps saying we'd never beat them, but when has anyone ever really tried? I mean, sure, small groups have fought back, but never a massive army. At least not that I've ever heard of. Instead the King of the North sits on his throne pretending nothing is wrong. The King of the South, who knows what's up with him? The two are such vicious rivals they'd rather hate each other than work together to fight the Order. And back home? How is a demon gate town supposed to fight back when the entire coven's lives are bound to a single person? If the Prima dies, everyone dies. That's a serious weakness, and one that the Order uses to its full advantage."
"But-"
"But what if we could break the connection between a Prima and her demon? If we could find a way to do that, the Order would have to take us out one at a time. It makes the size of the army that much bigger in an instant, right?"
Mary Anne nodded, but there was still doubt in her eyes.
"I know what you're thinking," I said. "You and Jackson both think I'm crazy for insisting there's a way to break the connection, but I'm telling you, I know there is a way. And I won't stop until I find it."
"You think the answer might be in those books, don't you?" she asked. "The books the soldiers brought back from the hunters?"
I nodded. "I know it sounds like a long shot, but don't you think it's possible? I mean, these books could be hundreds of years old. These hunters aren't really human anymore. You heard what they said. They're bonded to several demons so they can live longer."
Mary Anne's face grew sad, and I knew she must be thinking of her own family. The old crow witch did something similar to stay alive for a hundred years by taking the power from other witches. These hunters were the same.
"I'm sorry," I said. "I wasn't thinking about..."
My words drifted off.
"It's okay," she said. "We all have our own family's past to deal with. I'm not proud of where I come from, but I'm not like them. I want to make something different of my life."
"You already have," I said.
Mary Anne wiped away a tear and smiled up at me. "I'll help you however I can," she said. "You know that right?"
I hugged her small frame and nodded. "I know," I said.
"Please tell me what you're doing," she said. "I hate being in the dark."
I suddenly realized, looking at the sadness in her eyes, that I was shutting her out the same way Jackson had shut me out. Yes, I'd been trying to protect her, but didn't she deserve to know?
We sat down together on the tile floor of my bathroom, and I told her about everything I'd been doing in the training room. She was surprised, but excited for me.
"I've barely used magic at all since we got here," she said. "I think my wounds are still healing, because I haven't been able shift. I tried to explain it to Essex, you know, my shape-shifting, but I couldn't make it happen. When I tried to cast my magic, my side hurt so bad I couldn't keep going."
"Just give it more time," I said. "You were hurt pretty bad."
"I know," she said. "I just worry that I won't ever be able to use magic again."
"You will," I said. "It's a part of you just like it's a part of me. Besides, it's the pain that's stopping you and that won't last forever."
She squeezed my hand. "Thanks."
"So you'll cover for me if Lea ever realizes I'm gone overnight?" I asked.
Mary Anne giggled. "Maybe I'll tell her you found a nice demon to shack up with."
I playfully punched her arm. "Hey speaking of shacking up, what's with you and Essex? Is there officially a romance there?"
She blushed and avoided my eyes. She shrugged like it wasn't a big deal, but I knew different.
"Hey, it's not like you're the only one who ever loved a shadow demon," I said. "You don't have to worry about judgment from me."
"I really like him a lot," she said. "I never liked any of the boys back home. Not even a little bit. I always felt so different, you know? Like I didn't really belong there. But here, with Essex..."
"He feels the same way about you," I said.
"You think so?"
"Isn't it obvious?" I said. "Have you guys talked about it?"
She shook her head and started playing with the hem of her skirt. "I'm too scared to really bring it up after, you know, what Jackson said about the demons here being forbidden to love humans."
"It's a stupid rule anyway."
"Yes it is," she said. "Do you miss him?"
My breath caught my throat for a second. Did I miss him? Such a simple question for such a complex set of emotions. I nodded yes, but what I meant was that every day we spent apart, I felt like a piece of myself was missing.
"I try not to think about it," I said once I felt that I was in control of my voice again.
"Is that why you're doing all this?" she asked. "Risking so much to train and look for the books?"
I shrugged. "Maybe," I said, tugging on the white strip of fabric tied to my wrist. "But mostly it's because I am tired of being helpless."
Mary Anne gave me another hug and stood up, moving to turn off the water. "I've got your back," she said. "Whatever you need."
"Thanks," I said.
"And Harper?" She turned back just as she was almost out the door.
"Yes?"
"Promise me you won't leave here without saying goodbye."
I started to deny that I was planning to leave, but I knew she wasn't stupid. After a moment, I nodded.
"I promise."
I Had To Know
I'd learned so much about magic and fighting from my days in the training room, but there was still the matter of the library.
I knew I could spend the rest of my life training at the different magic levels and probably still not learn everything. After all, the shadow demons were immortal. They had no time limit to their learning, while I felt time slipping through my fingers with every day I remained stuck inside this underground fortress.
I had to find a way into the library.
My only guess was that it was somewhere down the same hallway I'd seen Jackson disappear down the day I'd connected to his essence.
As reluctant as I was to stop my training, I knew my best chance at getting into the library was to follow a similar plan to the one I'd used to sneak into the training door. I needed to get there early. But I knew that there would be no throng of soldiers crowding in and out, making me much less noticeable. Getting into the council's secret space was going to take little bit more planning.
I followed the map I'd made in my notebook back to the place where I'd seen Jackson disappear into the wall. I studied the shops in the area, looking for someplace where I could sit and watch the entrance without looking too suspicious. Unfortunately, the only place I could find that had a clear view to the wall was a blacksmith's shop. I couldn't think of any reason why I'd be spending several days hanging out at their shop, so I needed a different plan.
I stood there for a minute, studying the area and trying to find a place I could maybe hide, but the tents here were more spaced out. Hiding between them might be a little more risky.
Then I looked up and saw that from here, I could see the balcony of the stairs where we'd first come into the Underground. My heart skipped. If I had a clear view of it from here, then I should have a really good view of this wall from way up there.
I had to slow my steps to hide my excitement. As casually as possible, I made my way through the maze of tents, up the left side of the double staircase, and straight to the balcony area. Yes! I could easily sit here in the corner and peer down through the marble banisters. I had a perfect view of the wall and would be able to see exactly who was coming in and out. And more important, when they were coming and going.
The only trouble would be if there were other people on the stairs, but for the most part, no one came in and out of the Underground except to bring in food or supplies. As far as I had observed, that only ha
ppened every once in a while, certainly not every day or even every other day. Besides, if anyone saw me sitting here, I could easily explain that I was sitting up so high so that I could get a better view of the marketplace for my drawings.
Drawings I would work on while I sat up there for hours.
I used to love to draw. Before I came to Peachville, I would spend hours working on drawings of my mother or trying to draw things I'd seen in my dreams. Since I joined the cheerleading team, I'd barely taken the time to draw much of anything. It might be nice to sit up here on this balcony and get back into it.
The next morning, I woke up early and made my way to the hidden spot on the balcony. This early, there was never much activity in the marketplace. Mostly, it was just quiet and peaceful. A bakery somewhere on the south side smelled of heaven. My mouth watered, but I was anxious to get in place. I didn't want to miss anything.
I carried a blank notebook today. I didn't want anyone to question me and find that I had been taking notes and drawing maps this whole time. I needed my drawing excuse to look legit if someone saw me.
An hour passed before anyone made a move toward the wall. I didn't recognize the robed man who went inside. I'd never seen anyone dressed that way, and I wondered if he was one of the elusive scholars Essex told me about. No one else went through the wall for another hour or so, but I recognized the woman who went in next.
Ourelia. Andros' wife. She was alone, but in an obvious hurry. In her hands, she carried a couple of bags, but I couldn't see what might be inside of them.