by Cece Rose
“Open your eyes, Kenz,” Locke whispers close to my ear. I open my eyes to see us still in the air, hovering above the pool. Most of the water is outside the pool, and the teacher is standing with the other students by the changing rooms.
“We are flying,” I say in awe.
“No, I am, and you’re having a ride,” he chuckles. I hold on tight as he moves us, and then slide off him when he lands by the edge of the pool. I hear clapping, and I watch as Miss Betson walks over to us as she claps her hands.
“Very impressive, Miss Crowe. I see Mr. Daniels was right to add Locke to this class to watch you,” she says.
“Mr. Daniels made you watch me?” I ask him curiously.
“Yes, he asked us to his office this morning. Logan, Enzo, Easton, Stella, and I are going to be in all your classes until you have some control over your powers. We are the best at most of them. Mr. Daniels is watching you in the rest, except divination. He thinks you’re safe in that one.” Locke laughs.
“I’m not a child, and I don’t need watching,” I snap, placing my hands on my hips and glaring at him indignantly.
“They are just there to help you, Miss Crowe. You have a lot of power, and if Locke hadn’t helped you today, you could have seriously hurt yourself,” Miss Betson says, sounding reasonable, and it annoys me.
“Fine,” I mutter, and Locke winks at me. Miss Betson walks over to the other students, and Locke steps closer to me.
“You may not like having us all watching you, but I know you liked me getting close to you in that pool. I won’t forget that,” he whispers and walks away. I can’t take my eyes off him as he crosses the room to the changing area, the way the water drips down his muscles, the confidence in his walk.
He isn’t wrong, damn him.
Chapter 10
Kenzie
I frown at the paper on the floor as I walk back into the bedroom from the adjoining bathroom. Kelly is a neat freak, so I doubt she left it there. I cross my room and pick the paper up. The letters M C are written across the front. Turning it over, I frown as I read the strange message printed on the back.
Mackenzie Crowe,
If you want to live to see your life outside of the Marked Academy, meet me in the abandoned dorm building by the forest at Midnight.
Come alone, and don’t be caught by the monitors on duty. There will be consequences if you fail to comply.
—A
What the actual fuck? I re-read the message again and again, trying to discern what the hell this could be about, when I notice the symbol drawn at the top of the note. The twelfth mark. Shit. This can’t be good.
I stuff the note into my back pocket and pull my jacket on. I’d slept in and missed breakfast, having told Kelly to go on without me earlier. My bed was just way too comfy this morning. Or rather, I was just way too tired. I didn’t get much sleep, constantly replaying Kelly’s vision in my head trying to figure out what it could possibly mean. I just know it’s something important, something I need to figure out.
Making my way from the dorm to my first and only class of the day, I’m relieved there is just the one on Saturday. Although, I’m nervous about this class more than any other.
How can a technophobe be expected to perform technomancy?
I follow the directions on my map app, surprised when it leads me away from the main building and towards the forest. I frown at the old, unused dorm building as I pass it, not able to shake the sketchy feelings it gives me. I continue walking along the edge of the forest until it thins out, revealing a lush, green field filled with flowers. A woman whom I assume to be the teacher is sitting crossed-legged on the ground, looking like she is meditating. Did I stumble into an earth class by mistake? A few other students who I recognise, but haven’t spoken to, are hovering around looking as unsure as I am.
“Sit down, class,” she calls softly, not opening her eyes, or moving from her meditation position. We all sit awkwardly around her in a lose semi-circle. Someone sits closely behind me, I turn around and catch Enzo’s dark eyes staring daggers at me.
“What’s your problem?” I mutter.
“You. Thanks to you, I now have an extra class on Saturday, just because they don’t trust you without a babysitter. I already passed all three years’ worth of exams for this stupid class, and now I’m stuck taking it from the beginning again,” he replies bitterly.
“Wait, how did you manage to complete all three years’ worth already?” I ask.
“I’ve already completed three of my classes, I’m in an advanced class for another five,” he snaps. “What, surprised I’m not just good looking?”
“You’re good looking?” I ask, forcing a surprised, questioning tone into my voice. He scowls and gestures his hand forward.
“Just turn around and pay attention,” he snaps.
“Sure, whatever. I’m just going to pretend that you’re not here,” I answer sweetly.
“And, I’ll pretend that I’m anywhere but here,” I hear him comment as I turn back around to face the teacher. The teacher must be in her late thirties, but she isn’t dressed like it at all. A mixture of punk rock chick and hippy vibes shining through from her choice of attire. Her bright, bubble-gum pink-coloured hair is in bunches, with several beads and other accessories woven in with bright fabrics. A pair of aviator sunglasses sit atop her head, and thick, beaded bracelets cover up both of her arms.
She opens her eyes, and I’m surprised by the mismatched pair that stare right at me knowingly, as if she could feel my inspection. One eye is a shade of murky brown, and the other a sky blue.
“Welcome class to your first lesson of Technomancy, my name is Miss Arthur,” she says softly, her voice tranquil. Although she’s speaking to the whole class, I feel as if she is talking directly to me. “Now, I know a few of you must be feeling confused, bewildered even. How will we learn the basics of technomancy without any technology? These are questions every beginner student has, technomancy has a lot of misconceptions. That those adept at technomancy are all computer geeks is probably the main one. However, I am one of the most proficient in my gift within this country.” She pauses, and I glance around noticing everyone is entranced by her. Other than Enzo, who is smiling slightly while looking up at the sky. “I am one of the most computer challenged people you will ever meet, I can’t even connect my phone to human run WI-FI. Thank the gods that ours connects to all marked devices automatically,” she finishes and smiles at the class, a dazzling white smile. A girl with dark hair, streaked with lighter brown raises her hand from in the front.
“Yes, Miss Wilson?” Miss Arthur asks.
“Then what is technomancy if it’s not all computers? Isn’t technomancy magic in tech?” she asks in a somewhat belligerent voice.
“Technomancy is the use of magic in technology, that is correct. What you have incorrect is how you define technology,” she replies, not the least bit perturbed by the girl’s attitude. “Can anyone here define technology for me?” We all sit silently, nobody wanting to look like an idiot in the first lesson.
“Fine. Enzo, would you be so kind as to define technology for me?” she asks, shooting him a warm smile that crinkles the corners of her eyes.
“Technology is a means to fulfil a purpose,” he answers, as if repeating something he’s heard a thousand times. “Technomancy is the use of magic, in that mean, to fulfil a purpose,” he adds, in the same reciting tone.
“Excellent, thank you, Enzo. Do you have any questions, class?”
Tons. I glance around and see nobody else putting their hand up. Nope, not drawing any more attention to myself.
“Well then, let us begin. First, a brief history of technology, and how technomancy has linked with technology through the years.” I hear Enzo snort behind me. I shuffle back and to the side to sit beside him.
“What’s so funny?” I whisper, as Miss Arthur starts talking about early human, technological advances.
“Brief history,” he says quietly with a
smirk. I pull a confused face and he sighs. “She’ll go on about the wonders of technology and technomancy in history for most of your lessons.”
“Oh,” I say softly. Fuck, I always hated history in school.
“It takes her a long time to get to the good stuff,” he says in a hushed tone.
“What’s the good stuff?” I ask, shooting a worried glance to the teacher to make sure she hasn’t noticed us chatting.
“How you put the magic into the mean,” he answers. “It’s like skipping a step. You take the basic, human-created tool, fuel it with magic for the means, and boom, technomancy.”
“I don’t get it,” I mutter, frowning.
“Okay, say you have a human designed phone, but it has no signal where you are because of human technology limitations. You’d use technomancy to boost the signal,” he explains softly.
“Why doesn’t she just say that?” I mutter back.
“Because she likes the sound of her own voice, I think she should have gone into acting personally,” he replies with a grin.
I look back to Miss Arthur, who is still blabbing about the same thing as she was before. I think he might be right. Damn.
“When do we start using magic in this class?” I ask.
“About halfway,” he says.
“That’s not so bad,” I reply.
“Halfway through the year, that is.”
“You have got to be kidding me,” I say. Seeing the serious, commiserative expression on his face says it all.
Looks like I won’t be dealing with my technophobia anytime soon then.
Chapter 11
Kenzie
I zip up my black hoodie and mentally kick myself for not wearing more layers. I walk within the tree line, using the cover to shield me from the sight of the main buildings. The last thing I want to do is get caught out after curfew. Curfew, it’s ridiculous; I’m seventeen, not seven. Like any self-respecting teenager is going to stay inside their dorm. I roll my eyes at the thought and then focus back on the task at hand, getting to the dorm without getting caught.
I spot the old dorm building in the distance as I approach. Casting my eyes across every inch of the building, I look for any sign of activity or life, but there is nothing. This can’t be good. Shit, why am I doing this?
I make my way around to the back of the building, wanting to scout out the place before I sneak in, somehow. Gods, how am I even meant to get into a locked building? Cat burglar I am not.
The fire exit door at the back provides the answer for me, as it’s been left ajar, presumably by whomever sent me the note. Shit, if I go in that way they’ll see me coming for sure.
I look more closely at the building. Bingo. I notice a window on the 1st floor isn’t shut all the way. I walk closer and try to work out how to get to the window. I stand there, feeling clueless for a while when it hits me. East jumping from the window. I could use my air ability to get up there. I’d already managed to call on it once during the fire lesson. How hard could it be?
I picture the air mark in my head and try to call on it. I picture the air lifting me. I look down, feet firmly still planted on the ground. Damn it!
“Why are you staring at a wall, Crowe?” Enzo’s voice drifts over to me. I turn to see him walking over from the shadows of the trees. Enzo looks every bit the bad boy he comes across as. With his leather coat, heavy, black boots, and denim jeans. His black hair is styled to the side, and even in the dim light I can see how dark his eyes are as he watches me. Why are bad guys so friggin sexy?
“Did you invite me here?” I ask, and he chuckles.
“Not even in your dreams,” he says slowly, and I have the feeling he is checking me out as he walks past. I don’t reply to his remark as he walks around me, but I do glare at him. I watch as he walks into the building through the fire exit. Fuck it. I follow him in, feeling the cold wash of a ward hitting me, just before the blasting music hits my ears. It’s not too loud, but I’m guessing the ward is a sound blocker. The abandoned building has a massive party going on inside. There are three huge speakers at the front of the room and a table full of alcohol at the side. There are chairs littered around and people dancing to the music. The girls look half dressed in skimpy dresses, and I look down at my jeans and hoodie. I clearly didn’t get the memo. There must be about hundred people in here I think as I look around. I catch a glance of Enzo’s back before he disappears into the crowd of people. I walk around for a bit, not seeing anyone I know and jump when Enzo stops next to me.
“You should leave,” he says, and I look up at him.
“Why?” I ask, and he doesn’t respond to me, but gives me a look that suggests I’m stupid or something. I watch as he walks away.
“Kenzie Crowe, right?” a woman’s seductive voice says next to me. I turn a little to see that Stella girl standing next to me, her arms crossed and a sweet smile on her pretty face. Shit, this girl is pretty, and it makes me want to hide in a corner. She has curly, blonde hair, a stick-thin figure with big boobs, and the heels she has on make her taller than me. Her dark-red dress matches the red lipstick she has on. I want to think it looks slutty, but my mind betrays me by thinking how nice the outfit is with the lipstick.
“Yes, you’re Stella, right?” I say, and she smiles widely.
“I see you’ve heard of me. Welcome to this year’s welcome party,” she says holding out a hand. I don’t take it as I think over her words.
“Why was my friend not invited?” I ask her. If this was a welcome party for first years, Kelly should be here.
“Who?” she asks, a slightly annoyed frown on her face as she pulls her hand back slowly.
“Kelly Curwood.” I say, watching as she laughs.
“The two?” she chuckles out, and I narrow my eyes at her.
“Oh, hunny, we only let seven and ups in here. You should get some better friends, rather than that weakling. She might as well leave the academy now. She would be better with the humans, I mean, she basically is one. Such a waste of space,” she says, and I don’t think as I slap her. Her head swishes to the side, and she glares back at me as she straightens up. That felt good.
“You shouldn’t have done that, you little bitch,” she says, wiping the blood from her lip.
“I’m not the one who’s a bitch,” I say. I won’t let her speak about Kelly like that. Stella doesn’t reply, but she grabs my arm quickly. Pain slams into me and filters though every part of my body. Falling to my knees as I scream, the pain just keeps flowing through me. Wave after wave. I can’t think straight. I try to pull my arm away, but her fake nails dig into my arm as she holds on tight.
“Let her go,” Enzo’s voice comes through all the pain, his words are clipped and full of anger. I take a deep breath the minute Stella’s hand falls away from my arm. My knees give, and I begin to fall to the ground, but someone catches me. I feel a large arm slide under my knees as someone lifts me up.
“The stupid twelfth girl needed to be taught a lesson about her place,” Stella says.
“You need to fuck off, Stella, this shit isn’t cool. She has had her powers a week. Just one fucking week. Winning a fight against her is nothing to be proud of,” Enzo replies. I faintly register that it’s him holding me, but everything is still fuzzy. I burrow my head into his chest, smelling his leather jacket and a faint smell that reminds me of a bonfire.
“Whatever,” Stella says flippantly, and I feel Enzo moving with me.
“Why did you help me?” I whisper when the music of the party disappears and chilly air hits my face. Enzo doesn’t reply for what seems like a long time, but I know he heard me.
“I don’t know, Crowe,” he replies softly, and everything goes black.
“You have gotta wake up, Crowe,” a deep voice flitters through to me as I pull my eyes open. Every part of my body aches, reminding me of last night. That Stella girl is a bitch. I resist the urge to move when I look up and see Enzo hovering over me, his face too close, and I see how dark
his eyes are this close. They really do look nearly black, I find myself struggling to look away. They are something else. I blink when he straightens up, standing by the bed. I sit up and look around at the dimly lit room. This is not my bedroom.
“Enzo?” I ask, looking around the big room. There are two single beds in here, and there is a guy with light-blond hair lightly snoring in the other bed. There are two large wardrobes, and I notice straight away how much bigger their room is compared to mine and Kelly’s. That’s so not fair. I feel myself quickly, noticing I’m wearing the same clothes as the party last night. Enzo must have looked after me.
“You have gotta go before Logan wakes up,” Enzo says quietly, nodding a head towards the blond man who stirs in his bed.
“Too late, dickhead. Kenzie, is that you?” Logan’s sleepy voice drifts over to me as he rolls over. I watch as he grins at me as he sits up in bed, shirtless and looking amazing. His blond hair is messy and all over his face but it’s not that I’m looking at. No, it’s his muscular chest, the marks covering his heart and ribs. He has quite a few, just like his twin.
“Hey,” I say, pulling myself out of the bed and stretching. My shoes and coat are missing, I notice as my feet touch the cold floor.
“What are you doing in Enzo’s bed, and why wasn’t I invited?” Logan asks with a wink that makes me blush.
“Crowe decided to pick a fight with Stella, and it didn’t go well,” Enzo answers dryly.
“Shit, your ex? That girl is fucking crazy,” Logan says, suddenly looking much more awake as his eyes widen.
“You dated her?” I ask Enzo, and he narrows his eyes on me.
“For a bit. It wasn’t my best decision. She got a little crazy,” he says.
“How?” I ask with a chuckle that makes him groan.