by Jaymin Eve
“Asher,” the teacher said, hurrying over, “is everything okay?”
He nodded, his serious Atlantean-god expression back in place. “Fine, Sam, no problems. We’re just hoping to get that ocean outside in here where it belongs.”
The teacher’s eyebrows, which were thick and white, lifted almost to his hair, which was the same white blond color. “Did it come from the water world?”
Asher didn’t confirm or deny that; he smiled and waved his hand. “If you could just ask your class to step back.”
Sam nodded, hurrying back to his students. Asher led us down to the waterline. I fought against the urge to kick off my shoes and peel down my stockings. I could just imagine what Asher would text me if I did that.
“Are you ready, sweetheart?” Jesse asked, leaning in closer so that we wouldn’t be overheard by the fey class. “Just use your energy and pull the water in here.”
He took my hand and squeezed it, Asher did the same with my other hand, and then they both released me, stepping back to stand as support just behind me. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and reached for the hot swirl in my center. I can do this. I’d created this mess; now I needed to clean it up.
I didn’t know the words to bring the water to me, but I knew the most important part was intention, and lately I’d been able to make a lot of magic happen without any use of the fey language. Hence the damn ocean in the sky acting as a shield.
It was easy to find the body of water outside; my senses and energy were acutely tuned to it. I felt like I could find it anywhere. Come to me. My energy swirled hot, blazing through my body.
“Fuck,” Jesse said a moment later. I opened my eyes just in time to see a giant wave heading for us. The fey started screaming and running on the beach, but we were far too close to get away before being hit.
“Looks like you’re gonna get me wet after all,” I said to Asher, right before the wall of water hit us.
Only it didn’t. Asher stepped forward, his power almost knocking me down as he weaved a shield around us, using the water itself to form a barrier to deflect the wave. Blue crashed all around us, and I honestly thought it was maybe the coolest thing I’d seen in a while.
Less than a minute later, the ocean was back to being mostly calm, with just a few lapping waves on the shoreline.
“Well … that was unexpected.” I laughed and shook my head.
The dolphins distracted me when they suddenly made a lot of noise a few hundred yards offshore. “Are they okay?” I whispered, moving toward them. Asher stopped me just before I headed into the water.
“They’re fine,” he said. “They’re adjusting.”
I crossed my fingers, hiding my hand in the folds of my skirt. Please let that be all. Please don’t let me fuck up this amazing ocean world with this new ecosystem I added.
I’d never forgive myself.
10
After my water magic escapades, I had just enough time to grab a sandwich—which thankfully was one of the fastest items to order—and then I was running to my next class: Advanced Attack and Defense. Luckily, the huge room we’d held the assembly in was close by, and I joined the back of the group of students trailing in. I’d never been in this room when it had been cleared of all the chairs, and I was surprised by how massive it was.
Everyone was moving toward the middle of the large space, where a structure had been set up. A quick calculation told me there were about fifty students in the class, and Simon wasn’t one of them. Not at all surprising, since he’d definitely never shown any interest in advanced fighting. Damon was there though, and he nodded in greeting. I waved before turning my attention back to the middle of the room.
“Who do you think the teachers will be this year?” a girl beside me asked.
I shrugged. “I have no idea. Who was it last year?”
Because of the short burgundy curls bouncing across her shoulders, her shrug was more impressive than mine. As I gave her more of my attention, I noticed her unusual looks. Unusual but very cool. Her skin was a shade between Ilia’s and Larissa’s, and her eyes were the brightest, clearest green I’d ever seen. Teaming both with those burgundy curls that flew uncontrollably around her face, she was definitely striking. “They change the teachers a lot in this class,” she said. “Last year it was Stew, but he’s gone back to teaching in his hometown. So it’ll be someone new.”
Hopefully the new teacher would be as good as Striker. He really brought out the best in his students and didn’t focus too much on the violence, despite his background as a warrior.
“I’m Amanda,” she said, thrusting a hand at me. “Magic user and fey mixed race.”
“Cool,” I said, meaning it. I shook her hand quickly. “You’ve got the most gorgeous features. I love your hair and eyes.”
She chuckled before releasing me. “Yeah, my mam is Irish and redheaded. She’s the fey. Dad is a warrior, and he’s crazy scary, but he loves my mother so much that he gives me faith that maybe one day I’ll find a man worth my time.”
“Don’t settle for anything less,” I said, thinking of Asher. The class started to quiet then and I guessed the teachers had arrived. I lowered my voice. “I’m Maddi, by the way.”
Amanda chuckled. “Girl, everyone knows who you are. You’re one of the Atlantean-six.”
My heart skipped a beat when I realized they’d changed the number for me. I’d never felt so included in my life. Linking her arm through mine, Amanda pulled me closer to whatever the platform in the middle was. I could see ropes around it and a light blue mat on the floor. It almost looked like a boxing ring, but much larger, and in the shape of an oval.
“Quiet,” a female voice hollered, and I strained my neck to try and see her. There was a bit of a scuffle, and then suddenly she was up on that stage staring out across the room.
“Quiet the fuck down,” she shouted again and I snorted, because the teachers usually weren’t so blunt. It worked though, or maybe it was the gigantic dude who moved to stand behind her. He towered over the chick … and the rest of us.
“Holy hot levels of hell,” Amanda whispered, her eyes locked on the dark-haired god. “Is he Atlantean too, because they make you guys extra fine.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “He’s not Atlantean, but he would definitely fit right in with the five.”
His energy was different to the Atlanteans’, but there was still something extra powerful and other about him. I wondered what he was.
“My name is Jessa Lebron, and this is my mate, Braxton Compass,” the chick said confidently. “We’re here as a favor to a friend, to temporarily fill in as teachers for this class.”
The room went deathly silent, and I couldn’t figure out what the hell was going on. It seemed like the moment she’d mentioned their names, everyone went into shock.
A hand rose in the middle of the room, and Jessa flicked her long dark hair back. “Yep,” she said, with just a little impatience.
“Are—” The student broke off to clear his throat. “Are you the Jessa Lebron?”
Jessa blinked down at him before she shook her head. A small smirk appeared on Braxton’s face behind her as he crossed his massive arms.
“Yes,” Jessa said with a sigh. “I’m the Lebron you’ve probably heard about. The dragon marked and all that bullshit. Yes, Braxton is a dragon shifter, and no, he will not shift for you, so don’t ask. We’re here to teach you all how to fight, how to defend yourselves, and how to handle whatever Atlantis brings when it finally rises. Once we have that all worked out, we’ll be heading back home to Stratford with the tyrants.”
Braxton shook his head. “Jessa, babe, you have got to stop calling the twins tyrants,” he said in a deep, rumbly, sexy-as-hell voice.
She shrugged, but didn’t agree to anything.
Twins. Jesus. I could only imagine miniature versions of these two supes. They’d be both adorable and scary.
“They’re like really, really fucking famous,” Amanda whispe
red breathlessly, her eyes so wide they took up half her face. “Like … Braxton is the leader of the supernatural council in America, along with his quad brothers.”
Compass. “Tyson Compass?” I asked, remembering one of the guys mentioning his name.
She nodded. “Youngest supe to ever become a sorcerer. They’re legit legends. I can’t believe we’re going to learn from them.”
I wondered then if the favor had been for Louis; he was from Stratford and would have well-connected and powerful friends. My insides were filled with heat, energy bursting to life at the thought of learning from supes like this. This was invaluable. Now I was triple excited that I’d decided to take this class.
“Everyone line up,” Jessa said. “I want one long line.”
Students started to move, and eventually we all got into a line that spanned half of the room. Jessa and Braxton waited near the fight ring for us to sort ourselves out. When we were all situated, they walked toward the first student and introduced themselves. Then Jessa, who was dressed in gym clothing, faced the student.
“Attack me,” she said.
She was across from a guy, shifter for sure, who towered over her in height. I waited for Braxton to step up and act all protective, but he remained back.
“Uh, I … I don’t want to hit you,” the guy sort of stammered, looking very unsure.
Jessa waved an arm at him. “You won’t hurt me, I promise. All of you should have done some defense and fighting classes in your junior years. I can’t assess how to train you until I know your level of skill. So … attack me.”
From my position, I could just make out how pale he was, but he didn’t argue again, he just threw a half-hearted punch in her direction. Jessa had enough time to roll her eyes, jerk her head to the side, and catch his punch, twisting his arm around and kicking out his legs to land him on his knees while she held his arm in a position to allow an easy break.
She released him quickly, stepping back. “Up!” she said shortly. “Again.”
Some confidence, probably fueled by anger, embarrassment, and ego, entered his face, and he jumped to his feet. This time he attacked strongly, throwing out two-three punch combos before side-kicking. Jessa dodged each, sparring quickly with him before she got him on the ground again in less than a minute.
“You go over there,” she told the guy, pointing to the right side of the fight ring.
This continued on and on, and it was soon obvious that she was sending the skilled fighters to the left side of the ring and the mediocre fighters to the right. No one went easy on her after that, but somehow she still managed to put every single fighter on the ground.
“No magic!” she yelled when a wizard lost control and shot a spell off at her. It didn’t hit because Braxton moved super-fast, stepping between her and the spell. The magic bounced almost harmlessly off his broad chest.
“Dragon shifters are immune to a lot of magic. And when they’re in their dragon form, they’re so powerful…” Amanda whispered from beside me.
I nodded, but I was too nervous to really think about it. Unlike the others here, I hadn’t grown up in supe communities. I had zero fight training outside of knowing how to throw a punch if cornered by a handsy dude at a party.
And Jessa was almost to me.
Damon, who was two students down, faced off against her. I’d seen him in action before—he was quick and skilled, and he had an abundance of confidence.
“Attack,” Jessa said, her eyes assessing him carefully. She seemed to note that he was in a stance very similar to her own, looking completely at ease. She started to move on her feet then, light bounces, like she was preparing herself for the strike.
Damon was fast, his fist slicing out so quickly, that Jessa only just managed to stop it from striking her head. She looked impressed—she had not expected that sort of attack. Damon didn’t give her time to think about it though, he swung again and again. Jessa got her stride after that, smacking him a few times—love taps really—before Damon caught her across the shoulder. I waited for her to get angry, but she didn’t; she grinned rather broadly, like this excited her.
She’s incredible, but completely psycho. Seriously, I’d never seen any supe be this into fighting.
Girl had skills though, and I was feeling all the girl power.
“Left side,” she said to Damon when they were finished. She didn’t pin him—first supe to stay on his feet against her. “You’re team leader over there.”
He nodded, a huge smile breaking over his face as well.
The next thing I knew, she was facing off against me. She was a few inches shorter than me, but what she lacked in height, she made up for in a powerful presence. “I’ve been waiting to meet you,” she said softly, her eyes—which, up close, were a striking blue—assessing me. “Louis spoke a lot about the Atlantean people he’s been seeing, but especially about you, Maddison James.”
How she knew it was me, I had no idea, but I felt like this chick just … knew.
I swallowed hard. “Louis is amazing. Without him I’d probably be dead—or at least in jail for blowing up the school.”
Jessa chuckled, and Braxton moved a little closer. My eyes rose to look at him close up and my stomach swirled with heat. My energy was responding to his, and almost without thought I stepped closer.
I wanted to touch him, but I knew how possessive mates got of each other, so I refrained.
“The dragons and the Atlanteans are closely linked,” he said, his low grumbly voice filling the room. “Our energy calls to each other’s. You’re very strong, Maddison.”
“Call me Maddi,” I said, shaking my head to try and clear it. “I go by Maddi.”
Jessa nodded, seeming pretty cool with whatever weird thing had just happened when I got close to the dragon shifter. “Have you had any fight training, Maddi?” she asked.
I shook my head. “Nope.”
She nodded again. “Okay, no worries. Go to the right side—you’ll be starting with the basics.”
“Thank you,” I breathed, thrilled to not get my ass handed to me today.
By the time Jessa and Braxton were finished going down the line, the class was over and Amanda had ended up on the right side with me. “She was so freaking strong,” she complained, rubbing at her arm. “I’ve been training since I was five, and she kicked my ass.”
“How old are they?” I asked. It was so hard to tell with supernaturals, because they stopped aging until they got really old. So Jessa and Braxton looked the same age as me, but there was an ancient feel to their energy.
“Only a couple of years older than us, I think,” Amanda whispered, because the teachers were close again.
Surprising.
“Great job today. Some of you have strong fighting abilities,” Jessa started, still taking point in the class. “Next lesson, we’re going to start expanding on our skills, learning how to fight without magic or our advanced race skills. Once you’ve mastered hand-to-hand, you can resume using your race abilities to build your skills.”
Braxton nodded. “Yes. Hand-to-hand first, but after that … vamps with your speed, magic users with spells, shifters with strength, and fey with elements.”
They dismissed us then, and as I turned to leave I found both of them watching me closely. “Maddi,” Jessa called out, and I paused while they walked toward me. “We think you should have some private lessons with us,” she said. “We’ll work it out with Louis and Princeps Jones, but … this Atlantis thing … it’s worrying, and I’m afraid you’re caught right in the middle.”
There was this look on her face … like she knew exactly how it felt to be stuck in the middle of a world-changing situation. She’d mentioned dragon marked, but I had no idea what that was. I wished there was a book I could check out that would tell me everything.
I paused. Amanda said they were famous. Maybe there was a book in the library about it. I’d find out soon enough.
“Thank you, I’d appreciate the extra
help,” I said honestly. “I don’t like that I’m behind, and I’m willing to work extra hard to catch up.”
Jessa’s beautiful face creased into a smile. “What’s your favorite dessert?” she asked randomly. I blinked, not sure where she was going with this. Of course, as a food lover, it was an easy question.
“Chocolate cake and apple pie,” I said immediately.
Braxton shook his head, but he was staring at Jessa, and the look was so hot that I almost blushed.
“Good choices,” she said. “You’re a girl after my own heart.”
Braxton snorted, finally pulling his gaze from his mate. “Word of warning, friend or not, don’t ever touch her cake.”
Jessa glared at him but didn’t argue. “We’ll be in touch about the private lessons. It was really nice to meet you, Maddi.”
My smile was genuine. “You too. Thanks for kicking all of their asses today. You’re pretty amazing, and I’d be honored to learn to fight from you.”
Jessa waved me off, but she looked pleased. I turned and grabbed my bag, heading out of the now empty room.
11
After class, I sent out a quick text to my friends to let them know I was heading for the library first and then the weight room. Their responses were as expected, and they made me smile at the familiarity. I loved my family.
Calen: The Academy has a library? Fuck.
Axl: I’ll be at the library researching thermodynamics.
Jesse: See you in the weight room, sweetheart. I’ll be your spot.
Rone: Okay.
Asher: Swim after?
Larissa: Girl, I’m exhausted. Where do you get your energy? I’ll see you at dinner.
With a laugh and groan, I replied to the ones who required a reply and hurried off to find the library. Just because I hadn’t been inside before didn’t mean I hadn’t walked past the building a ton of times. It was situated between the classrooms and practical magic building—connected to both but somehow still standing on its own. The outside was brick with ivy—the Academy trademark—with six steps leading up to the front entrance and two wide, red doors with brass handles. There was no clear indication it was open, so I just pushed down the lever and waited to see if it was unlocked.