The White Aura

by Felicia Tatum

  “Well, why not? You don’t like to fight? I thought the red calamari liked a good fight.” Mark mocked back. This wasn’t a good move, but I found it humorous.

  A chair went flying right at Mark, and he ducked just in time and Livvie and Juniper dropped to the ground. The CC turned his head to the side, a slight grin crossed his lips, and he extended his right arm forward. His hand curved up and closed, and suddenly Livvie was lifted, then pulled across the room, feet dragging across the floor. Her screams were almost too much, and I prepared to make myself known. He stopped her about three feet away from him. Her body was completely stiff and motionless, like he had numbed her. He looked her up and down, a hungry look on his face, and a low growl escaped him. “See? I’ll have you, whether you want me to or not. I’m going to release you, but if you run…know your friends will die.”

  She stood frozen, but I could tell when he released her. Her body went tense, and she glanced around. Then, she became brave and stood tall. She stared right into those red eyes, squinting in anger. “I would rather die than be with you. But you won’t hurt my friends. You don’t want them. You want me,” she said through gritted teeth.

  Oh, no. She was braver than I thought, and I fell in deeper love. But I knew this wasn’t going to end well. I clambered down the tree, knowing I was needed in the front with Mark. I slid past Sadie, looking in her wide eyes. She nodded in understanding and handed me a vial. It was filled with black liquid, I assumed was a blinding charm. I crept along the building, keeping my body flat and my steps silent. At the front door, I slipped inside, and Mark straightened. He heard me. I crossed to stand beside him and saw a sight I wasn’t prepared for. The CC held Livvie as his hostage, his fists in her hair and a knife at her throat.

  OLIVIA

  I hadn’t expected Aiden to capture me and try to slice my neck. I looked around wildly and shock overtook my body when I realized Mr. Sexy was standing beside Mark. He was here. He came to save me. And damn, he was even hotter in person. His hair was ruffled, like he had just crawled out of bed, and he was in formal attire. Black pants and a white buttoned shirt with the sleeves rolled up, showing off his toned forearms. He held a smaller knife than the one Mark had. His eyes locked with mine and a bolt of electricity shot through my body. I fought Aiden, but the knife felt sharper against my skin.

  My breathing became heavier, and that’s when my mystery man spoke to him. “Let her go. She doesn’t even know her destiny. How can you kill her if you want her so badly?”

  My destiny? What in the world was he talking about?

  “Shut up, Tabors. Yeah, I know who you are. I knew you were watching me, so I researched you. I know all about your family…and your little crush on Olivia,” Aiden said with a laugh.

  “Don’t mock me, Aiden. I know a bit about you, too. Why do you want Olivia? I thought you wanted to find a sacrifice for Delana. Is she too powerful for you, big bad sorcerer? You know you can’t kill her, don’t you? She’s stronger than you.” My mystery man’s words made no sense to me, but his taunting was working and Aiden’s grip on my hair was loosened slightly.

  Recalling Delana’s name, I gasped. That was who Juniper overheard him talking about at school one day. I searched for Juniper and noticed she wasn’t there. I knew she couldn’t have gotten out, because I tried and I was shocked as an invisible barrier rippled through my body. I peered at Mark, my mind trying to will him to look at me. But his eyes were focused on Aiden, as were Mr. Sexy’s. Suddenly, my head jerked back, Aiden’s hand tightly gripping and pulling my hair, causing me to cry out in pain. My eyes widened as Aiden’s glowing pupils glared into mine. He acted like a rabid animal, his head twitching back and forth. “What do you want?” I pleaded with him.

  “You heard me--you know what I want. But first…I have to get rid of lover boy and your friends. I know you’ll be upset, but one of these days you’ll get over it. If not, I can cast a spell to help you forget them all.” He released my head, and I fell to the tile floor, injuring my leg as I landed on it sideways. I cried out, and Juniper ran to my side.

  “Where have you been?” I mouthed to her.

  “I was sneaking around the back. I think I found a way out,” she whispered while her hands checked my leg for breaks. I winced as she pushed on the spot just below my knee.

  “I don’t think it’s broken, but we need to be careful when you walk just in…”

  She was cut off. Aiden grabbed her by the hair, just as he had me. He pulled her to her feet, and she let out a painful scream. She looked terrified, and she whimpered for Mark. My heart stopped as I realized what was about to happen. He held her in the same position he had me in. Only this time there was no reason to keep her around. He looked at me, a glimmer of excitement in his eyes, and ever so slowly, slicing the knife across the tender skin on her neck. Hot, red liquid blinded me as her body dropped with a thud, her head falling in my lap. Blood spurted out of her neck, the sweet, salty smell momentarily distracting me as it covered my gown and everything around me. I pressed my hand on the wound, but there was no point. I looked into her hollow eyes and felt my heart being ripped out of my body.

  SCOTT

  Livvie’s scream shook the silence. It burned my ears and pierced my heart. Looking at her, I realized her vision had come true. Juniper lay still and bloodied in her lap, her neck sliced open. Livvie’s beautiful white dress was smeared in blood, and her hands were no longer visible. Beside me, Mark realized what happened. A heartbreaking “no!” shot through the air, and he fell to his knees. The knife slid out of his reach, and he doubled over, clutching his stomach. Sadie and Grandma appeared beside me, somehow getting through his wards with their magic. Now, we were all trapped in this building. Grandma looked disgusted, and Sadie threw up in the trash can.

  Aiden stood smirking at us with his bloodied knife in hand. He laughed as he studied each of us. Beside me, Mark seemingly found his strength. He jumped to his feet, his teeth bared and his hands reaching out like claws. He flew at Aiden with an amazing force, grabbing his throat and knocking him to the floor. “You killed her! You killed my heart mate! I’m going to murder you!” He growled at him through clenched teeth.

  More laughs. The CC reveled in the pain he’d caused. He showed no remorse, only glee as he watched Mark lose it.

  Sadie ran to Mark’s side, chanting some unrecognizable words, and threw a vial of green liquid in Aiden’s face. He stopped yelling and moving. She had hit him with the immobility spell, meaning we only had about five minutes to figure out how to save ourselves from Juniper’s fate.

  I ran to the middle of them, pulling on Mark and saying, “Get up. There’s may still be a chance. My grandmother is a healer. We have to do something, or he will kill us all.” I handed him my knife, “Stab him a few times, but don’t lose your head.”

  He did as I asked, stabbing the CC twice in the heart. A black liquid oozed from his wounds. It smelled like dead fish and stuck to Mark’s fingers. He glanced up, face wet with tears, and stood. Holding the blackened knife, he stared at Juniper’s limp body and once again broke down. The knife fell, clattering to the floor, and he rushed to her.

  Beside me, Grandma lifted Juniper and took her to the stage at the front of the room. She arranged her so we could work on bringing her back later. I really hoped it would be possible. It wasn’t unheard of to bring someone back from the dead, but I’d never seen it done myself.

  I searched for Livvie, who had grown quiet after her initial screams. She sat on the floor in shock, only staring at Sadie. Sadie was attempting to heal her leg, but she wasn’t powerful enough. I knelt beside them, laying my hand on her knee. Electricity shot through the room, my head spun, and a fire ignited between Livvie and me. She looked up with those green eyes, brighter than usual, and slowly reached her hand out. She caressed my face and softly said, “It’s you,” before she passed out.

  I cradled her in my arms but had to stop short. There wasn’t time to move Livvie, because the CC came back to
life, and he was even angrier than before. The time for playing around with us was over. He rose to his feet, a roar bellowed from his throat, and the windows shattered. We all moved swiftly. Mark ran to Aiden’s back while I slashed at his front. He cocked his head to the side, and I knew he had more up his sleeve. He smirked and challenged me to a sorcerers duel over Livvie, showing how ancient he truly was.

  “If you want her, you have to win her,” he sneered.

  “This is the twenty-first century. You might wanna learn a few things. She’s not a possession,” I replied.

  “Duel me if you want her,” he spat, his face red with fury.

  Sorcerers would duel over disagreements back in the 1400s but I hadn’t read anything about one since I had begun learning of our history. My gut told me there was more to this than he was letting on. “Why should we have to duel? She’s my heart mate. I know she is.”

  “Are you scared, Tabors?”

  “Never. Choose your weapon.”

  “Brawn.”

  We both bowed, customary in a sorcerer’s duel, and faced each other. The opponents were to respect each other and not make any movements not defined under the terms. If anyone cheated, death was guaranteed. It was a sorcerer law. It had been around for centuries, and the council would destroy anyone who cheated. Not that the council was strong enough to defeat this evil. He was still here wasn’t he? Since the CC had chosen brawn, we wouldn’t be able to use magic in this duel. Only our strength and our wits. I wasn’t worried about the wits, but strength may be a problem. This was an ancient sorcerer I was dealing with. And even with his injuries, he was ten times stronger than me.

  Sadie snuck up beside me, chanting a few Latin words and dousing my back with a warm liquid. I really hoped she knew what she was doing. I didn’t want her to ruin the small chance I had before I even started.

  The dance began. We circled each other like wolves snarling over the same prey. My eyes never left his limbs. I knew the second I got distracted, he would attack. I slung myself to the right but at the last instant skidded to the left, leaving him flailing about, trying to keep steady. I took the opportunity to kick him in the rear and knocked him completely down. Outraged, he jumped up and spun around. He slammed into my chest, and I flew back, landing with a loud thud. My chest burned, and my bones ached. I prayed nothing was broken. As a healer, my body would mend itself fairly quickly, but I didn’t have the time to wait.

  Rising unsteadily to my feet, I circled him again. I wouldn’t win this duel. I had to find a way out so we could use our powers. I shifted my eyes to Grandma momentarily, hoping she would have an idea. The only way the duel could end before death was if both parties agreed to discontinue. I knew Aiden wouldn’t agree. He knew as well as I that he would win this fight and Livvie. Grandma flung her hands out at him, her mouth moving as she chanted words I couldn’t hear. He stopped moving and looked confused. “What did you do to me?”

  “Nothing, but I don’t think we should fight anymore, do you?”

  “Well, of course not...wait…you’re trying to get out of this. One of them cast a spell on me. Fine! If you want to use powers, we will.”

  The spell hadn’t been strong enough to last more than a few seconds. The more we fought, the more I realized how strong he was. My heart longed for Livvie to be safe. I wanted her out of this battle, but we were trapped. The pure evil being looked at all of us, amusement radiating from his face. “Are you ready?” he asked with a grin and laugh.

  His arms spread wide over his head, and his eyes glowed a fierce red. He shifted and knocked us all off our feet. Stunned, we scrambled to get back up, just to have him knock us down again. His sadistic laugh rang out, and he looked around the room at his hostages. “Are you ready to give up, you stupid sorcerers?”

  OLIVIA

  I woke up sprawled on the floor. My group of friends and saviors were all lying down. Aiden had awoken and was terrorizing everyone. I tried to gather my thoughts and stop the dizziness. Sitting up, I waited for the room to slow down and assessed the situation.

  When my leg was healed, a fire lit inside my stomach. And now…well, now something was changing within me. They kept speaking of my destiny, and suddenly I knew visions weren’t the only ability I would have. My inner strength was fighting its way to the top, allowing the magic to stir within. It settled over me like a warm blanket, comforting and secure. Everything clicked and I was ready to trust my power.

  We were all on the floor while Aiden played his game with us. My rage over Juniper’s cold and bloody murder was almost too much for my body to handle. I knew I was defenseless at this point, and I needed to let the sorcerers handle it. Sadie, their Grandma, who was Anna from the dress shop, and Mark were all assisting the man I knew at that moment I was in love with. I was too busy worrying about what was happening to be shocked about the Anna revelation. I glanced around at our make-shift group. They didn’t exactly appear to be warriors, but they looked determined.

  They all got to their feet. Aiden was too busy reveling in the fact that he’d thought he’d won the battle to notice. His eyes were closed as his clenched hands shook in triumph. His evil, sadistic cackle echoed through the room, proving he didn’t think of anyone as a threat. They circled him, putting their hands below their stomachs like they were cradling birds. They closed their eyes in unison and lifted their faces to the sky. I didn’t know what they were doing, but they were mesmerizing. Mark trembled, and a lightning ball appeared in his hands. Sadie was next, hers only a small glowing fog. Anna and mystery man possessed the largest energy in their hands. They summoned theirs together. Heads snapped down, each person’s eyes glowed with the power summoned. One by one, each shot the bundle of electricity at Aiden’s body. After releasing it, they summoned more. Again and again they bombarded him. He didn’t wince until the assault went on for at least twenty minutes. Still, he stood frozen in place like a statue.

  I noticed they were all growing tired. Sadie looked as if she might pass out at any moment. I struggled to my feet, closed my eyes, and tried to grab the burning sensation I felt growing in my stomach. It was a fire hot enough to burn Aiden all the way back to where he came from. I imagined my hands reaching in and plucking it out of my body. Peeking down, I didn’t see anything. Growling in frustration, I tried again. I concentrated on Juniper, and the anger I felt when I watched her slump in her death. There was a hot spark shooting through my core, like an ember being fed. I thought of how I felt when Aiden threw Mr. Sexy across the room. I felt another shooting spark within me. Looking at my hands at my stomach again, I noticed a small flame. Excited, I closed my eyes to focus on producing more.

  Juniper, Mr. Sexy, Sadie, Anna, and even Mark being harmed was more than enough fuel. My hands cradled a circle of fire the size of a soccer ball. Even though it was touching my skin, I felt nothing but a slight warmth. I looked up, a newfound confidence in my soul. “Aiden.” I said his name with no emotion. Everyone turned to me, their eyes registering the shock of me holding flames.

  “Why, look at you, Whitehead. You finally found your power. I didn’t think it was time yet,” he said and moved toward me.

  “Don’t come any closer. You murdered my best friend, harmed the man I’m falling in love with, and my friends. I will make you pay, Aiden.” Dream man’s face lit up like a candle on a dark stormy night at my confession. His eyes held his secrets. He longed to hold me and love me, but now wasn’t the time.

  “You can’t make me pay, Whitehead. You’ve just found your powers, and I’m the most powerful being alive. I’ve killed hundreds. I have more power in my finger than you can even imagine. You have a white aura. We don’t even know what you are,” he said with that laugh that made my ears want to bleed. “I wanted to sacrifice you, but now I think I’ll keep you. See what’s to come.”

  Enraged, I lifted my hands to my chest. I was so angry I felt like I could shoot sparks from my eyes. I pulled the fireball back and shot it toward his heart. He moved out of the way
, and it ignited a chair. Screaming, I felt the flames reappear, dancing on my hands. I ran toward him, catching him off guard, and lit up his face with a fistful of flaming rage. He screamed and the black oozing mess started dripping off him. I didn’t stop there, though. The rage inside me took over and I slammed the burning ball into his heart. I was engulfed in power, blocking out the people behind me yelling my name. The energy I was releasing was a part of me; strength and love and anger. Each emotion I felt was stronger than before, fueling the immense power I now felt coursing through me. I was a powerful being, a sorceress of some sort, and I would destroy him. He wouldn’t be allowed to hurt those I cared about. My newfound power made me more confident, releasing a strength I didn’t know existed.

  I lit his whole body into a pyre. He was screaming and pulling at his hair, like he was trying to escape his own skin. His screams died down, and suddenly his body seemed to be evaporating. Then, he disappeared.

  SCOTT

  Livvie was a fire throwing goddess. We started to wear the CC down with our energy blasts, but it wasn’t enough. We were wearing ourselves down, too. Livvie noticed and tapped into her inner power. The power she possessed was unlike any I’d ever seen. She harmed the most evil and powerful sorcerer in history by herself. Grandma was the most powerful sorceress I’d known, until now. Livvie stood where he had been, her eyes wide and her face pale.

  Mark and my grandmother ran to Juniper, trying to bring her back. Sadie lay on the floor, exhausted from the overuse of her powers. She was only fifteen, and while she was extremely powerful, she was still coming into them. This was a lot for her, so I left her to rest and walked to Livvie. Each step I took slowly, because I never wanted to forget this moment. “My Livvie,” I said as I reached to caress her soft skin.