by Rain Oxford
This was stronger. The lightning didn’t set him on fire, but his skin instantly charred beyond repair. His scream was chilling. It was the scream of a man who wished I’d killed him. Everyone around me, friend or foe, scrambled to get away from me.
At this point, I saw one of the council members standing behind Becky with his hand in her hair and a knife to her throat. Brian snarled and growled, but didn’t advance on the wizard for fear of Becky getting hurt.
I was about to pitch in when the wizard screamed and collapsed. Two students moved out of the way to reveal Grayson. When Becky fell to her knees, he moved to stand over her in a protective manner. “Did you just put a knife to my daughter’s throat?!” He flicked his wrist and the council member’s head jerked in the same motion, dead instantly with a broken neck.
When Kale geared up for another attack, five vampires converged on him, beating him to the ground first and following it with vicious bites. I couldn’t manage to feel sorry for him. To my utter horror, the magic was still growing stronger inside me. I aimed a strike at the nearest tree, and this time the lightning created a terribly loud noise. The entire tree burst into ash.
Fucking ash.
That was where I drew the line. I released the anger in the least aggressive way I could; I took hold of every mind in the vicinity. “Everyone freeze!” I demanded aloud.
Instant silence.
The only ones able to move were Professor Nightshade, Professor Watson, and Dr. Martin. I focused my power on the six remaining council members, not including Grayson. The rest of the students and teachers were apparently too scared to move even though they could. “Get on your knees,” I said.
It didn’t matter if they could hear me out loud; they were compelled to obey. All six men dropped to their knees without resistance.
Henry and Darwin shifted and returned to my side. I knew they wanted to talk me down, but they must have decided it was too dangerous. That, or they actually did want me to kill these men. And I wanted to. I wanted to take the easy way out and stop their hearts.
Felicity’s words surfaced in my mind. Is my life worth more than theirs? Would it really be wrong to sacrifice one of them to cure my heart? How many people have they killed out of greed?”
I breathed in, closed my eyes, and pictured John Cross. I knew what he would do, but did that innately make it wrong? Did I have to go through my entire life doing the opposite of whatever he would do?
And then I thought of Vincent. He didn’t spend his life trying to be a hero, but he did have morality.
“Devon?” Darwin called gently. “If you kill them, you will absorb their magic.”
It was just like Darwin to say the one thing I needed to hear. I took a deep breath. “The paranormal community combined is less than a tenth of the human population,” I said. “If we fight each other, we’ll never make progress in our own world. I don’t care if you want to be separated from others, but you’re not going to force your ideals on the rest of us. There are only six of you left.” Seven if Grayson joined them. “Six against thousands of paranormals in this world. You attacked one little group of us today and lost. Next time you try it, you won’t get a chance to retreat. Now, run back to your mansions, lick your wounds, and get your shit together. You work for the wizards, not the other way around. If you don’t want to do what’s best for the wizards, according to the wizards, then leave the wizard council to someone who can. Now…” I released my power over them. “Stand up and walk away. If you so much as attack one of us, you’ll be dead before you can hit the ground.”
It was a silent, eerie affair as each of them stood and retreated without a word or even looking at anyone. I terrified them. As if my body was trying to release its adrenaline, the fury and magic inside me erupted uncontrollably. My skin started to emit red static and I felt cold as ice. My heart didn’t even start beating too fast; it just stopped. A moment later, I couldn’t feel my body at all.
Everything was suddenly dark, quiet, and peaceful.
Chapter 10
Not again. This is seriously getting old. What Adesra said was true; the purification that the fire elementals used on me was gone since I went through the shadow pass again. I knew this, because I was lying on my couch in my apartment with Heather leaning over me. I sat up and pushed her away.
“You’re here to ask me to make a deal with you again,” I surmised.
“I can get anything for you. You can still have everything. I just want to get out of Dothra.” She sat down on my lap and tried to lean closer to me, but I grabbed her shoulders to stop her. “Why am I the only one you’re not trying to save?”
“Because you’re one of them,” I said without thinking. Devastation blossomed on her face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. I want to save you, too. If I make a deal with you to get the key, what would stop Krechea from taking it from you?”
“If I claim it as mine, he could kill me and take it. If I get it for you, nothing. You would have to be ready for me to return and protect me long enough to take it for yourself.”
“Well, I’ve never heard such a straightforward answer from you.”
She leaned forward and kissed my neck. “I’m a woman of many talents.”
I pushed her away again. “Thanks, but no thanks.” If I wanted a gorgeous demon in my bed, I would get back together with Regina.
“I’m not a bad person,” she said.
“I don’t know you well enough to think that. What I do know is that you will do or say anything to get me to make a deal with you.”
“What’s wrong with that? You’re a powerful man; you’ll learn that the more powerful you are, the more people are going to do anything they have to do to get you on their side. I can be a fantastic ally and if you want me to always tell you the truth, I will. Agree to a contract and I’ll never lie to you again. I can be whatever you want, do whatever you want, and give you whatever you want.”
“What happens if I agree to it and then destroy the tower?”
“Then nobody and no soul will ever pass the barriers between the worlds again.”
“Does that mean I wouldn’t go to Dothra when I die?”
“That’s exactly what it means, which is why I’ve been pushing so hard.”
This time, I didn’t stop her from kissing me. She was very gentle, warm, and soft. It was neither the type of kiss I preferred nor the type I expected from a demon. Was it racist to expect a little biting?
“Get off him.”
I shoved Heather off me onto the couch and stood. “Astrid.”
She was just a few feet away from me in a zipped up, red leather jacket and black jeans with black leather boots. My first reaction was to fight the urge to kiss her. At the university, passion built between us no matter what shit we were both going through. She was still my childhood friend, but she was now a very beautiful woman as well.
Yet a little too thin. “You haven’t been eating enough.”
She smirked. “Food is a little harder to get when I have to kill for it.” Her eyes trailed down to my heart. “You’re not looking too well yourself.”
“I can fix that,” Heather said, standing.
I didn’t say anything. “You can’t trust her,” Astrid said, scowling.
“I’m the only one he can trust,” Heather argued, facing Astrid and blocking her from me. “I’m not the one who betrayed him.”
“Devon, as soon as she gets the key, Langril will take it from her. He’ll kill you if he has to, if you get in his way. Even if you make a deal with her, he can still take it from her.”
“You’re wrong. My father doesn’t care who has the power as long as I’m free.” The sadness in her eyes when she looked at me was real. “He just wants me safe like you want Astrid safe.” She honestly believed it.
“If I made a long-term contract, Langril would kill me to free you.” She opened her mouth to deny it, then hesitated and closed it. “If I make a short-term contract, it would have to last long enough
to destroy the tower first.”
“Devon, please tell me you’re not really considering this,” Astrid said. “You’ll find another way.”
Someone had to get the key so that Krechea wouldn’t. If he goes after one of those kids next… I could protect myself from him better than others. If I got the key, I could protect it and continue learning from Langril until I had the power to save Astrid and Heather. Langril wouldn’t kill me until Heather was safe.
“Devon, tell me you trust me,” Astrid said. “Even if you’re lying, tell me.”
I looked her in the eyes and pictured my parents on the floor of the kitchen, covered in blood. I remembered her vacant stare and the blood all over her mouth. “I trust you.” I meant it.
“Then don’t make a deal with Heather. You’ll figure out another way to save her, so please don’t do this.”
If there was anything in this world I was certain of, it was that Astrid was the only person who would put me before anyone else in the world. Not even Krechea could make her betray me, and she proved that when I fought Gale. I nodded. “I trust you. I---”
* * *
My vision disintegrated and my eyes snapped open. I found myself on a slab in the morgue. “Tell me you’re joking,” I said. Darwin and Henry were sitting in chairs to my left while Remy and Vincent sat at my right.
“The infirmary was full,” Henry said.
I closed my eyes, both with embarrassment over passing out again and the shame of nearly killing six people in the blink of an eye.
“You did the right thing,” Remy said. “You used magic to prevent deaths and you didn’t kill them.”
“I wanted to.”
“Of course you did. Everyone did, and we would have if you hadn’t commanded us to hold back. We would have ended the battle in two minutes, but there would have been a pile of bodies on the ground.”
I opened my eyes to see Vincent. “Where were you this whole time?”
“Logan needed me.”
I scoffed. Apparently, it didn’t matter that I needed him, too. I couldn’t really fault him; you can’t choose your family like you can choose your friends.
“Rosin was in trouble,” Remington explained.
Okay, that was a good reason.
“He was trapped in the shadow pass, but we got him out,” Vincent said.
I noticed then that I didn’t taste my healing potion in my mouth. “What happened? How did I survive this time?”
“You didn’t,” Henry said. “Your heart didn’t beat for over two minutes no matter what we did. Even the fae couldn’t get it started again. Then, for no viable reason, it just started again, as if you had decided not to be dead.”
“So death is all in the mind? I can live with that.”
“How can you make jokes like that?!” Remy asked.
“Easily. I can’t make jokes when I’m dead.” I sighed and closed my eyes. None of them looked amused. I wasn’t amused myself, but the alternative was more embarrassing. “Just tell me I wasn’t out for long.”
“It’s Friday morning. Classes are all cancelled for the day, since a good number of students are injured.”
“How many did we lose?”
“None.”
I looked at her. “Nobody died?”
“Kale Lucos and Jameson Carmichael, but no students or staff.”
Although I was glad, I was also getting increasingly tired, so I let my head fall back and my eyes close. A few minutes later, I heard Remington leave. I was surprised she had even come to see me at all when she was so worried about Alpha Flagstone. “Did anyone happen to get the sword?” I asked, opening my eyes again.
“It’s back in its hiding place,” Henry said.
I noticed then that Darwin was wearing gloves. “I thought you were cured.”
He shook his head sadly. “It’s only Amelia that I can touch, which must be because of her fae powers. I touched another student and saw him drowning. I felt like I was drowning.” There was something unsure about his expression; he wanted to tell me something. “You should call your familiar.” I groaned. “Don’t argue. Are you going after the key?”
“I don’t see that I really have a choice. We can’t let Krechea get it.”
“Then you need to either find a cure for your heart or you need your familiar.”
“I don’t want to endanger anyone’s life.”
“If you don’t, you will probably die trying to get the key and fail anyway,” Vincent said before standing and walking out of the room.
“He doesn’t handle emotional crap well,” Darwin said. “Sorry, I actually had to bring that up to get him out of here. You remember when Flagstone attacked you in the courtyard under John Cross’s control?”
“Yes.”
“When he shifted back, I touched his skin, but not more than I’ve touched other people before.”
“Then why were your injuries so severe?”
“I didn’t know, which was why I never said anything. Now I think I do. I think it’s because of the other person. I think I can touch Amy because I’m not able to feel her emotions. Nobody has ever hurt as much as Flagstone did, and I believe it’s because he’s going to die in a devastatingly painful way. All I saw when I touched him was darkness, yet it was the other sensations that confused me. It felt like I was being suffocated, like I was in a tar pit, and being stung all over. From what you two have told me about the shadow pass…”
“You think that’s where he’s going to die?” I asked. He nodded. “It’s probably Krechea’s fault,” I sighed. “Just another reason I have to get the key.”
“Whether or not I am your familiar, I agree with Darwin and Vincent,” Henry said.
I nodded, knowing they were right. It wouldn’t do anyone any good if I died trying to get the key because I didn’t have my familiar. Besides, if Henry was my familiar, I knew it would help in getting Scott back.
From the visions I had of Scott and of Henry saving Addison using magic, I realized my instincts had been trying to draw me towards my familiar the entire time.
I felt well enough to make it to the dining room for breakfast. It was pretty awkward as some of the students stared at me with awe while others shied away in fear. This wasn’t going to blow over anytime soon.
“Alright! Who’s the bastard who thinks he’s so funny?!” Jackson yelled, emerging from the laundry room with bright pink, sparkly jeans in his hands.
* * *
It took an hour to get all of the ingredients we needed because Professor Houx had not yet ordered anything for the familiar-calling ritual. Thus, we had to dig through in the remains of the greenhouse, search Langril’s classroom, and convince Dr. Martin to give up his precious supply. Once I had aconitum, artemisia absinthium, marrubium vulgare, aristolochia rotunda, and taraxacum officinale prepped, measured, and in a mortar, I started grinding them into a fine mash with a pestle.
It occurred to me that I should have had Vincent or Hunt with us just in case, but this felt like more of a private moment. That was why we were at the burn slab— so we could do this without spectators. It was also because if Henry was my familiar, we didn’t want too many people knowing. Along with the actual ingredients, I had a silver knife to my right and a small fire in front of me.
I picked up the slim knife and pricked my finger. As I watched a drop of blood drip into the paste, my senses dulled. I set the pestle aside, picked up the stone mortar, and placed it carefully on the burning sticks. I knew the fire that licked at my fingers was supposed to hurt, but I didn’t feel it.
As the concoction burned, my mind became as cloudy as my senses, so much so I was barely aware that I was muttering the ritual words. “Reus ut meus animus. Reus ut meus pectus pectoris. Per vox ego dico vos ut meus pars.”
Something was taking shape in the smoke that rose from the mortar. I didn’t try to identify it or force it to form faster; it felt natural. My mind was open, my magic was working, and soon, I felt another presence.
&nb
sp; The fire doused itself and I was once again at full awareness.
I knew instantly that my familiar was going to answer my call, and that Henry wasn’t it. The creature I felt in my mind was strong. It was so strong in fact that I couldn’t imagine it was anything smaller than a dragon, or less mythical for that matter. I was prepared for a dragon, a griffin, or a phoenix. Obviously, I needed to learn more about mythical creatures.
What appeared in front of me made my mouth drop open in shock. Between astonishment and mild fear, I had to resist a chuckle from the irony; I had seen this creature before.
Hunched over, the familiar barely reached my chest, but size wasn’t everything. His flesh was made of gray stone. Not stone armor— he was actually made of stone. His body was short and muscular with arms a little too long to be called humanoid, massive bat wings, and a club-ended tail. His head had a short snout, resembling something between a human and a dog, with a bat nose, bat ears, horns, and glowing white eyes.
“Holy shit,” Henry said.
“What he said,” Darwin seconded.
My familiar was a gargoyle. More specifically, it was the gargoyle I had seen in Vincent’s vision and in Hunt’s office.
“Don’t blink,” Darwin whispered.
“Wrong movie,” Henry said.
The gargoyle turned his head to glare at them. With his attention off me, I could focus on my other emergency; my heart. I dug my hand into my pockets.
No potion.
As the pain grew deeper into my chest, I sat down in the grass. It didn’t help me catch my breath. I had suffered too much from this fucking curse; I was going to either learn to survive it or I was going to die. I first focused on my breathing… or lack of. Then I focused on my heart, but it just made my head pound.
I have work to do, damn it. Stand up. Barely able to see and feeling like I had an elephant sitting on my chest, I forced my legs back underneath me and struggled to my feet. The gargoyle was obviously unimpressed. His left wing shot out, slammed into my chest, and pinned me to the ground.