Magical Compass: A Supernatural Prison Story

by Jaymin Eve

  I needed it now. I needed it to save Grace.

  I called for the fire, letting it consume me. This charring pain was nothing … just a slight irritation on my road to power. I had heard the stories. I knew that this evolution from wizard to sorcerer was not an easy one – especially if you rushed through the process.

  I did not care.

  My teeth cracked together as my jaw clenched, hands and arms trembling as I fought to contain the sphere. I knew Jacob would be feeling a slight burn; there was no way to block him completely when we were connected like this, but he just stood by my side. His energy anchored me to the earth when I felt like I might lose myself. This was the reason magic users were not allowed to try magic beyond their experience level. It was so easy to let the power control you, and once that happened, there was no going back.

  Fire unfurled across skin and bones, cut through organs and muscle, reforming and renewing each part of me. Energy followed close behind, fleshing out the parts of me that had not been whole.

  Tyson…

  A voice flittered across my mind, a desperate breath tinged with horror and pain and fight. A series of cursed growls left me at the same time that I flung the sphere. My sorcery ascension was not quite complete, but that whisper had been Grace.

  I had run out of time.

  My control slipped momentarily as the sphere collided with the protective dome of magic around the property. I would have fallen to my knees, but Jacob held me up until I could find my feet again. Shaking off the disorientation, I fed my power into that spell. I would not stop until the barrier keeping me from Grace crumbled at my feet. I had a lot of pent-up anger and power within me. I’d been little more than a bomb waiting to go off for the past few months.

  I should have come sooner.

  “You need to cut the power off!”

  Jacob’s shout broke through my thoughts, and I realized I was still pouring power into my spell. The energy had risen up and surrounded the shield.

  I had forgotten to say the spell out loud. “Lectus unravelen medicine crestin!” I roared.

  The crack was loud enough to shatter windows as the wards exploded, flinging fizzling magic off in all directions. Jacob and I hit the ground, but I was up again in an instant, running toward the house.

  “Think you might have poured a little too much power into your sphere,” Jacob snorted out, as he reached my side, both of us running and taking in the destruction around us.

  The shield had exploded, so everything that had been inside was fine, but the surrounding forest and crops, unlucky enough to be outside, were flattened. It was fortunate that I hadn’t blown Jacob and myself up in the process.

  A heavy energy washed through the air as we closed in on the house. I’d been heading for the front steps, but then a muffled yelp caught my attention. Veering off, I changed directions, toward the back porch. The sun beat down on us, and I could feel heat from Jacob – he had called on his favorite element.

  As I rounded the corner, everything in my world ground to a halt. It was like time froze for a second as my brain tried to process the scene. Grace was on the ground, a man straddling her, torn sections of her shirt hanging off her, having been ripped down the center. Grace was scratching and bucking, trying to dislodge him, but he was too strong and heavy, using his weight to pin her. My fury hit a level beyond any I’d experienced before, like a volcano exploded within me, fire burning my veins, and all logical thought was lost.

  Neither Grace nor her attacker seemed to notice the shield was gone. They did not look up as I barreled toward them. When I was a few feet away, and knew there was no chance I would miss, I sent a sphere of energy out. It was tinged with red and gold now, as more of my sorcerer side unlocked. It slammed into the soon-to-be-dead fucker, knocking him about six feet from her.

  Grace’s wide dark eyes met mine then, silent sobs shaking her chest as she struggled to pull her shirt together and lift herself up. I sensed her pain, which only increased my volcanic rage. There were bruises across her face; her cheek was swollen, her right eye almost glued shut.

  He hit her.

  He. Fucking. Hit. Her.

  It also looked like he was going to rape her. She might have already been … I couldn’t even finish the thought. I knew one thing for sure: he was a dead man.

  I turned, my vision flickering as I faced him down. He brought up a shimmering ball of power, a washed out orange and yellow. “Stop or I’ll destroy you!” he shouted, holding the ball out for me to see.

  I didn’t bother to speak as I stalked toward him, my eyes surely telling him the million ways I wanted to torture and kill him. He paled, and with trembling hands whispered, “Lumina,” shooting the ball of magic at me. I barely even touched my energy, needing only the smallest amount to bat his paralysis spell away. It volleyed off to land harmlessly in the field behind us.

  He tried to run then, which had a rumbling growl rocking my chest as I lashed out with my energy to immobilize him. My power was far beyond his little lumina cast, and I had not used words … just intention, which would have been fine for spells I was familiar with, simple things, but for attack spells I was messing with magic beyond my pay grade. And I didn’t give a single shit.

  The asshole fought against my hold, but his strength was nothing. He started babbling when I reached his side, words jumbling over one another. I just reached out and gripped his throat, lifting him off the ground. I waited a moment for our eyes to meet, for him to truly understand that this was his last moment on earth, and then I slammed my fist into his face. Bone shattered beneath my knuckles; his cheek and nose were gone in that one hit.

  “I will kill you,” I said calmly, finally able to speak. “But you need to suffer first.” My fist slammed into his face, again, and again, and again, until there was nothing but blood and shards of bone left.

  A hand landed on my shoulder and the only reason I didn’t turn and attack was the familiar jolt of her gentle energy colliding with my own. She wrapped her hand across my bicep and my breath was knocked out of me. My magic reached for hers, recoiling slightly at the differences it found. Her energy felt colder … darker … but still with splashes of my Grace.

  A fizzle of power ran through my chest and along my neck. Grace’s eyes widened, and I was pretty sure she felt it too. Then our powers smashed together with what felt like the force of a thousand explosions, just like what had happened earlier with my sorcery, only this was deeper, a reforming of my very DNA. My essence.

  A true mate bond.

  I dropped the lifeless mage, letting him fall to the ground in a heap, turning to the witch beside me.

  “Ty…” Her low whisper broke through my blind rage; a tiny morsel of sanity began to bleed back into me. “It’s okay. I’m okay.” Her long, slender fingers remained tightly banded across my right bicep.

  My hand lifted to brush her healing face. Her eyes weren’t swollen now, they had already returned to normal, and for the first time since breaking the barrier, the image in my mind of her being attacked was pushed aside.

  All I could see was her perfect face, those tiny freckles across her nose, only visible close up; the light bursts of shine in her dark eyes; full pink lips; red hair hanging in knotted tendrils. I knew I was staring like a creepy fuck, but I couldn’t seem to stop. True mate. The bond had kicked in hard, thrumming strongly between us. It was almost impossible not to wrap myself around her, to feel every part of her pressed against me, to protect her from all the horrors of the world. But I was too late for that. Despite the rapid healing, she had multiple cuts and bruises on her skin. There was a large gash in her shoulder weeping blood. But even worse than all of that were the shadows deep in her eyes. She had been through hell.

  My fury spilled over once more and the ground beneath us began to tremble. I was on the verge of causing some sort of natural disaster as I leaked magic and anger, but I couldn’t stop.

  Again Grace tried to calm me, her gentleness seeping out. “You s
aved me, Ty … and I can feel … we’re true mates.” She sounded astonished, but also somehow emotionless.

  I wondered if the catalyst for our mate bond had been her touching me after my sorcerer side was unlocked. All of that magic flowing between us, it seemed to set off the bond.

  “Who else did this to you?” I said in a slow growl, my words barely recognizable. “I will kill each and every one of them.”

  She swallowed hard, and a darkness crossed her face. For a second she didn’t even look like Grace. “My gran, this was all her.” She took a deep breath. “But before we do revenge … I need your help.”

  Before I could reply Jacob stepped forward. He’d been close by, watching our backs. I took a second to glance around, finally noticing that there was another supe, headless, a few yards away, and the side of the house had been blasted off. It looked like a war zone here.

  Fire leapt from Jacob’s hands then and engulfed the magic user I’d pummeled to a bloody mess. He burned up in seconds. Grace watched without a word; her eyes remained dry and hard. She did not turn away until her attacker was no more than ash.

  He was already gone from my mind, all of my focus on the redheaded witch before me. When she finally turned back to me, I managed to speak, somewhat calmly, for the first time since finding her here. “Tell me what you need from me.”

  Grace Carter

  Part of me was ashamed to admit it, but in those final moments with Trevor, where he had me pinned, tearing at my clothes … I almost gave up. I was so tired, emotionally, physically, and mentally drained to the point where the thought of fighting for one more second was unbearable. I just wanted it to end.

  I’m still not sure why I didn’t just give up and accept my fate, but I was thanking all the gods I hadn’t. That somehow I found the strength to keep fighting. To hold on for myself … and Tyson.

  Standing on shaky legs, my body aching from multiple injuries, my heart and brain hurting from everything that had happened, I focused solely on the Compasses. Tyson and Jacob had come for me.

  Tyson’s tawny eyes met mine, and I had to take a moment to admire how stunningly handsome he was. Darkly tanned skin, broad masculine features, hard jaw, and furrowed brow.

  True mate.

  I almost didn’t believe it when the bond had kicked in, but I wasn’t surprised. For me, the bond had always been there. It just took him much longer to figure it out.

  I could feel it humming between us, a connection like nothing I’d felt before. A joining of more than just hearts, it was soul-deep, intertwining in my center, in my magic. Small flurries of ice shot out in all directions, but the dark tendrils remained subdued. They didn’t like my bond with Tyson, or the ice magic.

  Odd.

  It was like I had a multiple personality thing going on with my energy. Maybe my body had been broken, shattered into four pieces. One held the ice, one the darkness, one my witchy healing power, and one my bond with Tyson.

  I was grateful to the fates for this mate bond, but I knew Tyson would expect the old Grace. The gentle one. Not this shattered version of myself which had enjoyed the sight of my cousin burning to death. And since there was no guarantee I’d ever be the supe I had been before, would he want this new, damaged version of me?

  Concern shone from his eyes, and I swallowed roughly, my chest feeling like it had caved in. No matter what happened between us, I would owe Tyson forever. He had destroyed Trevor with barely a lick of effort, which was pretty typical of the Compasses. Had my cousin known who he was dealing with – he knew them by name but not by face – he would have disappeared as soon as they arrived.

  His arrogance got him killed, and I thought that was very fitting. The dark part of me seemed unhappy that I didn’t personally destroy my cousin, but there was still a grandmother to kill. That satisfied it.

  “Tell me what you need from me.”

  The tightness in my throat became a little more unbearable. I could tell he was all in, by my side. This was the first time I’d ever truly felt that from him.

  Pushing down past hurts, I said, “My grandmother … this was all her doing, luring me here, and the torture. She wanted something from me, something I couldn’t give until today.” I sucked in a deep breath, my throat aching from use after so many weeks of silence. “She stuck an old, powerful blade into me.” I touched my shoulder, which still ached. “And it gave me a burst of icy power. This ice energy opened a doorway, and I think both Gran and my mom went through it.” I pointed to the silvery portal, still in the sunroom. The boys briefly pulled their gazes from me to check it out, before focusing back on my face again. It was disconcerting having their powerful stares on me, but I pushed on.

  “I need to go after them and save my mom, but I’m … I’m very drained. They’ve held me prisoner for two months and—” I broke off, unable to continue. Speaking about it made it real. Brought the memories to life. I wanted them locked up tight, where no one could touch them.

  Tyson started growling again, his eyes flaring pure gold. His sudden animalistic noises gave me a moment’s pause. He didn’t usually growl like that … like Braxton and Maximus. Magic users were calmer, more connected to nature than the other supes. All of the Compasses were hotheaded and tough, but the Tyson I knew was mostly relaxed and happy.

  Who was this supe before me? And why the hell was my body urging me forward, wanting to press against him. Down, girl. You were almost raped, remember.

  That was a splash of cold water to my hormones, a few memories leaking out from where I had them locked down. Tyson still couldn’t speak past his anger, but his chest continued to rumble.

  I turned to Jacob and asked quietly, “Is he okay?”

  The fey Compass grinned broadly, and as always his perfectness was a little disconcerting. He was probably the most flawless supe I had ever seen: white-blond hair, grass green eyes, golden skin, and sparkling fey energy. It was overkill, really. One of those attributes would have been more than enough to entice any female or male. I had always admired Jacob – for more than just his looks – but he was not the Compass for me. I preferred a more rugged look, like the hard, broad planes Tyson had in abundance.

  I accepted the hug though, as he wrapped his arms around me. “Nice to see you again, healer-chick. We’ve missed you in our pack.” The fey’s voice was warm, his words genuine.

  Tyson’s rumbling only got louder then, and I stepped back so I could see him better. Realizing we weren’t getting anywhere while he was acting so crazy, I locked my eyes on him and said with force, “Stop growling at me, Tyson Compass, and start using some bloody words. I don’t speak predator.”

  He tilted his head to the side, just enough to register his confusion. Then something really odd happened. He smiled. A broad, breathtaking smile that seemed to light him up, his darkly tanned skin pretty much glowing as energy flowed within him.

  I understood then. Knew why he was struggling with emotions. “You’ve ascended to sorcerer,” I whispered, one hand clutching at my throat as I blinked stupidly at him. “Not that I’m surprised, but … you’re so young.” Of course he would be the youngest. He had been determined to beat Louis’ previous record. Competitive bastard.

  His voice, when it finally emerged again, was a rough husky caress across my skin. “I had to ascend to break the shield. Grace … I need to touch you.” Each word was slow and deliberate. “I need to know you’re okay. Then we can go after your mom.”

  Everything inside of me stilled. The need in his voice, the heavy-lidded expression, it was more than I ever thought I would have from him. And even though I was pretty sure that broken Grace was no good to anyone, I couldn’t stop myself from taking this moment. I stepped into his heat, uncaring that he was covered in specks of blood, his hands almost entirely red. His huge, muscular body wrapped around me, somehow fitting to my curves perfectly.

  His arms felt like bands of steel, so powerful that I couldn’t imagine anything would be able to tear him from me if he didn�
�t want to step away. The surge of strong emotions flowing across our new bond was too much for my tired body, and my legs gave out from under me. I was swept up in his arms in an instant.

  I’d seen the Compasses carry Jessa around for years, and I had secretly hated that she got them all to herself while the rest of us had to watch from the outside. Right then, though, I realized I wasn’t into the being carried thing; it chafed at my independence. But I was just too tired to fight him. Besides, it was a Compass trademark, and I doubted I’d ever stop them.

  With a heavy sigh, I closed my eyes and let my head flop against his shoulder.

  “I’m sorry,” I murmured, barely able to stay awake. It was like Tyson’s skin was a tranquilizer. “I just have no more fight left.”

  A warm palm started running up and down my back, while his other hand readjusted under my butt so he could hold me one handed. “I’ve got you, and I won’t let you go again. I know we have a lot to work through, a lot of anger and trust issues, but I will prove my worth to you, Grace. I will make you proud to be my mate.”

  I was already proud, but that didn’t make me any less broken. A fact he would find out soon enough. Drawing his scent in deeply, it was an earthy, fresh smell, like piney mint, and I allowed myself one more moment of comfort, one more moment to pretend everything was okay, that I could just return to Stratford and live out my days as a happily-mated supe.

  Reality slithered back in, as it always does, and I focused again on what I needed. Reaching for the magic within me, my healer energy that had been cut off from nature for too long, I let it connect to the earth. Ignoring the ice and dark tendrils – both of which seemed contained and subdued – I brought forth my original power. Pure earth energy flowed into me, healing my injuries and filling the empty well. I was able to lift my head then and push away from Tyson, wiggling to get down. He set me on my feet without objection, but remained close.