Dragon Fire Academy 3: Third Term

by Rachel Jonas

  One foot moved in front of the other until I was stepping over cinderblocks and rubble, stepping onto the prison grounds. About halfway across the yard, a fallen sign stood erect with one corner embedded in the soil—‘Dragon Fire Penitentiary’. This was definitely the place Tristan had been imprisoned.

  A flutter inside my chest signified the moment my heart attempted to sway me against this idea, but my hand was already on the warm metal handle of a half-open set of doors. I heard my breaths as I stood there a moment, peering inside at the nothingness, knowing I’d have to find my way through this massive building by myself.

  With those last few moments before wandering inside, I whispered a final prayer to Spirit, asking for guidance and protection.

  Heaven knows I needed it.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Noelle

  How had I not heard these screams even while still standing near the burial ground? Or at least as I crossed the yard?

  Then, it hit me. The Darkness is always intentional. It had, without a doubt, purposely blocked me from knowing what lie ahead. Kept me from anticipating what I’d walk into. Terrified and acting on instinct, I turned back toward the entrance I’d just passed through, doubling my speed the closer I got to it. Feeling suddenly claustrophobic, I had to get out of there.

  However, the second I reached them, the doors slammed shut with a deafening boom that vibrated off the walls, adding to the unnerving chaos.

  Panting and resting my forehead against the steel, I tried to steady my breathing. The stench of decay was pungent in the air, just like it had been once bodies arose at the burial grounds. The thought of this place being filled with more of the same sent a frantic tear racing down my cheek.

  You were crazy to come here. This is what it wants—to torment you, to kill you.

  The shrieks coming from every corner of the prison were the epitome of the phrase bloodcurdling. I’d never heard anything so loud, so desperate. It was impossible to tell whether these prisoners had been male or female or … what they’d become since being stuck here so long.

  Even with both palms pressed to my ears, I couldn’t block it out. Only faint light filtered in through barred windows high above the entryway. There were once clearly several security doors to block the outside world from the dangerous prisoners this place held, but whatever evil swept through here had bent them on their frames. From where I stood, I could see level upon level of shadowy cells, separated by a narrow corridor that stood between me and the next space I’d need to pass through. Within these cells, the inmates they’d held for decades called out into the endless night, because it had been all they could do.

  Chief Makana could have done something about this, but he saw these lives as disposable, not caring what fate they would suffer. I could only imagine the things they’d seen, the torture they endured once they were left to the Darkness. My next thought was that it wouldn’t have been hard to imagine someone as opportunistic as Tristan taking a deal to avoid it.

  Actually, most probably would’ve taken it.

  I shrugged off the momentary flicker of sympathy I felt for that dick, and focused. Debris crunched beneath my soles and I trembled with every step that took me closer to the next set of doors. There was no alternate route as I stood trapped in the foyer. The one way out had just been sealed off, taken out of play, so there was only one direction I could go.

  Straight ahead.

  Practically hyperventilating, I pushed forward, being careful to keep to the center of the narrow, cell-lined corridor. Hands reached for me from both sides as air puffed from my lips. Seeing how close some got, my steps were incredibly cautious. Still, fumbling through the dark in an unfamiliar place had its hazards.

  Mine came in the form of a broken chair leg I would’ve seen under normal circumstances.

  Both knees stung on impact when I fell and they struck the tile. A second sharp pain made me cry out, but this time it was my hand. Something sharp and metallic—more of the strewn trash that lined the floor—had gone straight through my palm the moment I went down. As badly as I wanted to stop, as badly as I wanted to lie there and give up, I couldn’t.

  The sole of one shoe planted flat on the floor was the best I could do for a moment. The gash on the side of my head from fighting the ghouls was bad enough, now I’d sustained even more injuries, but … something kept urging me forward.

  There was just this feeling I couldn’t shake, this idea that if I just pressed a little harder, I’d—

  The hopeful thought was snatched from my head swiftly. Almost as swiftly as my foot had been snatched from underneath me. One of the inmates had gotten ahold of it and dragged me, literally, kicking and screaming out of the narrow sliver of light and into the shadows. Another hand caught a beltloop on my shorts and tugged me in a different direction. My scalp began to sting when several more hands wound into my hair and pulled me against the bars.

  Hands were everywhere—my face, my arms, my stomach—tearing at my skin with ragged nails. I fought with everything in me, but the problem was … there wasn’t much left.

  This journey had drained me of my magic, my strength, and now my will to fight. The last straw was the grip that fastened around my throat, locking me against the unforgiving bars, forcing the iron to press deeper into my skull and the backs of my shoulders.

  My fingers pulsed with a flood of energy I hadn’t felt since crossing over. It felt like magic, but … different. With any hope, it was coming back to me. These thoughts scrambled with the tightening grip that covered my throat. At the final second, before it cut off my last ounce of air, I managed to eek out a single word.

  “Stop!”

  Well … at least I thought it was going to eek out. Instead, the entire room shook as a deeper version of my voice ricocheted off the bars.

  The sound of scuffling feet filled the room next, as the bodies of those unseen retreated in their cells. But what was perhaps most noteworthy was how abruptly the screams stopped, how immediately the hands that held me fell away. I should have scrambled to stand, but didn’t move. Instead, a mix of fear and confusion dominated my thoughts as the strange energy moved from my hands, spreading everywhere.

  Slowly, I gathered myself, tugging the torn sleeve of my shirt up my shoulder as I finally got to my feet. It was so quiet I found it even more unnerving than the wailing I’d endured before. My steps were unhurried as I made my way down the center of the corridor again, glancing left and right with every movement I made, fearing the inmates would get riled up again.

  But that never happened.

  They stayed against the far walls, breathing heavily as I passed.

  A second set of double doors marked the end of the passage, although they’d been blown clear off their hinges during whatever event had taken place here. Stepping over them, I peered around. The space I came to had considerably more light, but that wasn’t saying much, seeing as how I still had to feel my way around, keeping my hands out to avoid another nasty fall.

  There were more cells, but they were structured more like those I’d expect to find in an asylum—solid doors with a single, circular window near the top. About halfway down it, a thin slit I guessed had been meant for passing food trays through to those whom these tiny rooms once held.

  At first, I believed these chambers to have all been empty, but when I dared to peer inside, a heavy hand smacked the glass just as I approached. With my palm to my now rapidly hammering heart, I backed away.

  This place was straight out of a nightmare. Right down to the falling ceiling tiles and random breezes passing through that moved paper and debris just in time to give me a heart attack. At the entrance to a stairwell, I paused, sensing what a terrible idea it might be to venture into what seemed to be the darkest area of the prison I’d reached so far.

  No windows.

  Not a single sliver of light.

  But I felt that nudge again. The one that seemed to be leading me to the two I’d come to save.


  Shaking so hard my entire body vibrated, I put one foot in front of the other and ascended. The only sound was that of my own breathing and hesitant footsteps as I kept a hand on the cinderblock wall that steadied me, climbing several floors. Nearly tripping over a file cabinet and then a chair were warning enough to slow down, so I did. Although I wanted nothing more than to get out of this particular area as fast as I could.

  There were a few more steps to the landing, and I fumbled for the handle of the door I found. With the turn of its knob, the hinges creaked as it opened, much louder than I hoped it would.

  There was nothing more to do but keep moving forward. Again, I was met by nothing but darkness. However, the echo of this space made it clear just how vast it was. Running into a long table with an attached bench was my first clue this was the cafeteria, accidentally kicking a metal meal tray across the floor was my second.

  It felt like I was still getting nowhere. If I intended to find these two, I’d have to start calling out to them.

  My breath quivered in my throat. The thought of intentionally making noise here was counterintuitive. However, I didn’t see any other way.

  “Malu! Sydney!”

  The sound reverberated off the hard surfaces and right back to me. A shiver rushed down my spine despite the stifling heat. I took a few steps, and then called out again.

  “Guys, it’s Noelle. You don’t have to be scared,” I assured them. “I came to help you.”

  Again, my words were met with silence, and it dawned on me that the Darkness had likely played off their emotions like it had done to me. Meaning, I shouldn’t be surprised if they were in earshot and chose not to answer.

  I ventured deeper into the room, only stopping when a noise caused my entire body to go rigid, frozen with fear. It was the heavy clatter of a door slamming shut.

  I drew in air and held it, immediately stooping near a table that had been flipped onto its side. After several silent seconds, I knew I needed to move. The heaviness in the pit of my gut told me I was being followed or … hunted. By what, I had no earthly idea.

  As quietly as I could, I eased from behind the makeshift barricade and felt my way through the seemingly endless obstacles—tipped trash bins and fragmented tables. It wasn’t easy, nor was it as stealthy a mission as I hoped for, but I finally cleared the vast room and hit another set of doors.

  The now familiar hesitance that came with passing through one space to the next still hung with me. The difference was, fear of what lurked not so far behind kept me moving ahead. Eventually each hallway looked like the last hallway, until I was completely turned around, unsure of where I’d already been and checked.

  Unsure of which direction I’d just come from.

  Of all the places it sucks to get lost, this place had to be number one. Hands down. The creep factor was off the charts, and being lost also meant my chances of locating the kids had just taken a serious nosedive.

  Another eerie sound from the shadows and panic took on a life all its own, swirling through the air, my limbs, creeping up my spine. My pace slowed and I spun once slowly, taking a survey of the strange room I wandered into. It wasn’t as vast as the cafeteria, but bigger than the foyer I first stepped into when entering the building. I couldn’t see much else, but the hollow quality the rest of the building seemed to hold was oddly absent at the moment. It was as though the air moved differently here, leaving me with the distinct sense that … I wasn’t alone.

  I backed up slowly, keeping my eyes trained on the faint outline of the broad entryway, and I counted my breaths. I measured them with caution to avoid being heard by whoever—or whatever—I now felt here with me. I inched back some more, and the silence was deafening, which was why I paused, frozen in fear. Fear I realized in that next second had been completely warranted.

  A hideously malevolent shriek seemed to explode from all directions, sending my nerves haywire, and my body flying backward through the air with its force. Never had I heard anything more sinister or treacherous.

  Vulnerable and at my physical limit for pain after crashing to the ground when I landed, I lie there panting, propped up on my elbows as I tried to survey my surroundings.

  The awful wailing had quieted to a menacing growl, but the dark presence was too close for comfort, closing the distance between us. I scrambled away, but didn’t have much hope at this point. Not that I had all that much before.

  My body slid across metal bars, like those of a cylindrical grate in the middle of the floor about the size of a sewer. I settled there, holding my breath as the outline of a broad, formless silhouette became visible.

  … And that’s when I heard it.

  Heavy, frantic breaths coming from underneath me, underneath the grate I laid on.

  Seemingly aware of the discovery I just made, the presence reached for me, snatching me up by my throat, before tossing me several yards across the room. A cinderblock wall stopped me, and I slammed to the ground with a thud.

  “Malu!” I called out. “Stay where you are! Keep Sydney safe!”

  I’d seen him be brave enough times to know that reminder was one-hundred-percent necessary. He’d never just standby knowing someone was hurt, instead doing everything he could to help. It was this shared trait I believed accounted for the bond between him and Kai.

  The presence was on me again, and even though I couldn’t quite make out any details, I’d seen it before. At the lagoon that day so many months ago. It came to me in a dark cloak that hid its ominous appearance, but I hadn’t forgotten the feel of its boney grip on my shoulder. It was the same one now locked around my throat.

  Air sputtered out as my body was dragged up the wall. A labored gasp hissed out when something sharp jutting out from between the bricks bit through skin, sinking into my shoulder. I was so high off the ground, which said a lot about the height of this thing. With the length of its arm, not even my wild kicks were landing. All my effort, everything, was futile.

  It chuffed a deep, rumbling breath, seeming to inhale the scent of my fear. The sound was not even close to being human, and beyond the shadow of a doubt I’d fallen right into its trap. There wasn’t even an ounce of regret, though. Coming here, trying to save Malu and Sydney was never a mistake, no matter what it was about to cost me.

  The Darkness leaned closer and it wreaked of death. I wanted to turn my head when it inhaled deeply, inches from my face, but I couldn’t. Not even when it squeezed my neck tighter, so I’d open my mouth. Not even knowing what it intended to do—spew more of its essence into me, making me even more like it than I already was.

  Being so close, I felt it—how parts of me had taken on its likeness, how I mirrored its anger and rage. It was this kinship of sorts that shifted things into perspective, reaffirming what I already knew. It didn’t intend to kill me now that I was within its grasp.

  It wanted to use me.

  A moment later, I was overcome with a sudden realization, a vague understanding of how this must’ve all worked. Nearly the entire time I’d been on this island, it had primed me for this—a complete overtaking. Perhaps that had been the chief’s role in all this, luring me into traps.

  Like now.

  The final thoughts that fluttered into my head were of the guys, how devastated they’d be once the Darkness won. There was no telling what I’d become, what I’d be made to do, but one thing was for certain. It would likely break the Omegas. I could only pray Spirit would keep them focused on their mission.

  Even if their new objective was to take me down.

  Peace overcame me and I didn’t allow myself to feel guilty for how this all played out. For the first time in a long time, I’d done something for the right reason. No matter what happened from here. I peered up one last time, expecting to see only the dark mass that hovered before me, but instead … fire.

  A swirling streak of embers trailed a fast-flying fist cloaked in flames.

  The powerful hit landed with a burst that sent the dark entity up into
a plume of smoke and ash. I fell toward the ground, thanks to my strength being gone, but I never hit the pavement.

  Instead, a set of strong arms gathered me to a chest that held such a familiar scent.

  That of my alpha.

  I’d been fooled before, thinking Ori had come for me while I was in the wilderness, but somehow, this time I knew it wasn’t an illusion.

  Barely conscious, exhausted, and in agony that rivaled that of my first transition, I leaned into him, letting him pull me closer.

  “Guys! She’s in here!”

  At the sound of his voice, three sets of heavy footsteps filed into the room, each one with brightly lit flames outlining his body.

  They came for me. I had no clue how they knew I was here, or where to find me, but they all came.

  Even Ori.

  With hooded lids, my eyes flitted up to meet his gaze, seeing the glow of fire reflecting in them. In that instant, all our differences, all the harsh words we exchanged were simply forgotten. All that mattered was that I was still important enough to him that he’d risk his life to save me.

  “You came to find Malu and Sydney,” he stated, seeking clarity, but not quite asking.

  I nodded against his shoulder. “I tried to do it on my own, but—”

  He didn’t let me finish explaining. Instead, lips I’d missed more than I’d miss life itself pressed gently to mine and I knew he didn’t need to hear anymore. Maybe, this had been enough to show him I wasn’t a complete lost cause.

  Deep down, beneath all the confusion and strange occurrences, I was still the same Noelle. The one who annoyed him long before she loved him. The one who somehow managed to break through the mile-high walls surrounding his heart.

  “It’s okay that you didn’t find them,” he said quietly, only loud enough for the words to reach my ears. “Once we get you home safe, we’ll assemble a team to come back and—”