by Jaymin Eve
The door swung open silently and I stepped inside, half expecting it to be dark and tomb-like. When bright sunlight greeted me, followed by the musty scent of old books, I let out a little happy sigh. Of every place I’d been to in the Academy, this one was the first to have an immediate presence. I could feel the energy and knowledge of everything here.
I liked it.
Just inside the entrance was a desk with a blond-haired, fine-boned fey behind it. She was writing in a ledger; I assumed this was how they kept track of books borrowed. There would be some sort of magic involved as well. There always was.
She greeted me with a smile, which I returned before I ventured further into the huge room. It was legit massive, with shelves spanning all the walls and running in a mass of dark timber dividers throughout the area. Nothing here was orderly; it was almost like controlled chaos, and I found myself pushing closer so I could see more. Strolling along the shelves, I noted the genre and category labels—everything looked alphabetical inside their categories.
I ran my fingertips across a row of books, marveling at the thick leather spines in this section. These books felt … old. And powerful, maybe. I might have just been high from the awesome book smell, but I could have sworn I felt power coming from certain books.
“You can just ask for the book you want as well,” a low voice said from beside me, and I spun to smile at Axl.
“What do you mean?”
He inclined his head, and I followed him through the rows of shelves until we came to small area with half a dozen tables. Axl clearly already had a table staked out with a heap of books piled on it. He pointed toward the school crest carved in the center of his table. “Just like with food, you can request a specific text if you know what you need. Just be careful if you’re going too general, because you might end up with a hundred books in front of you.”
I chuckled, working to keep my voice low. “Like if I asked for books on shifters or something?”
He nodded, a broad smile on his face—the library was Axl’s happy place. “Exactly.” He took a seat on the opposite side to me and reached for the book that he’d left open. “Have fun,” he said before he got right back to work.
This was definitely Axl’s idea of a fun time. I couldn’t believe it had taken me so long to get into this building. I’d just been so overwhelmed last year, I couldn’t imagine trying to take in any more information than I absolutely had to. However, now I needed to know more.
Placing my hand on the crest, I whispered, “Omlong.”
I wasn’t sure if that was too general or not, so I waited with high anticipation for how many books might fly my way.
Six.
Six books landed in front of me, and I eagerly opened the first so I could view this kraken creature.
Twenty minutes later, when I’d learned all I could about the somewhat mythical, extremely powerful, scary as hell beast of the waters, I smiled. “The fact that Asher has a friend that is this insanely scary and powerful should worry me, but I find it kind of … reassuring.”
Asher was powerful in his own right. He had something extra in his blood, just like I did, but somehow the Alex thing cemented it even further for me.
Axl laughed, a low, husky chuckle. “Yeah, Asher grew up in the water. I mean that literally. Before his parents died and then after, because no one could keep him out of the ocean. Somehow he found Alex as a hatchling. It’s like … the odds are almost incalculable, considering the rarity of these creatures.”
He shrugged and went back to his book, but I knew the truth. It was fate. Alex and Asher were meant to be together, for whatever reason.
Ready for my next study, I pushed those books aside and dropped my hand on the table again. “Jessa Lebron.”
I expected even fewer books with her in them, but twenty books zoomed off the shelves, flying through the air and neatly stacking in front of me. “Whoa, okay.” Amanda hadn’t been kidding about the famous thing.
I reached for the first on the stack, flicking through quickly to find it detailed the Lebron family lineage. It spoke of her father and grandfather, who were powerful shifter alphas. Jessa came from a long line of famous wolves. The next few books were similar, and then I got to the ones on the dragon marked.
I was mesmerized, reading for over an hour about the race, which was persecuted and locked away to prevent the rise of the dragon king. Fate decided he would rise though, and there had been a great battle.
“Oh my God,” I gasped, and Axl was immediately focused on me.
“What?”
“Jessa had a dragon,” I said softly. “She used to be a dragon and a wolf shifter. Like … at the same time.”
Axl held his hand out and read the page I’d been up to. Jessa had to sacrifice her dragon soul at the end, and now that dragon was the queen of all beasts in Faerie. I mean … what the fuck? No wonder she could fight.
“She’s been through a lot,” Axl finally said, reading it much faster than me. “Kidnapped, tortured, her sister going through all of that too. I’ve heard she’s very tough.”
I shook my head. “You have no idea. She’s teaching my Advanced Attack and Defense, and she is legit chick goals.”
Axl looked confused and amused as he handed the book back.
The rest of my time was spent studying the Lebrons and Compasses—when I asked for books on them, I got about fifty. Apparently being the first natural-born quads to possess the souls of all four races was kind of a big deal. No wonder they ruled the American supernaturals.
“So Jessa’s twin, Mischa, was kept in the human world with her powers blocked,” I said after sending all the books back. I was still deep in thought, and something told me I wasn’t going to make the gym tonight. My mind was occupied with everything, and my body itched to swim. It was how I dealt with stress and information overload. “I wonder if she’s close by as well. I’d really love to talk to her about how she dealt with it all.”
Axl gave me his full attention, which was quite the feat since he usually couldn’t tear himself away from his studies. “I’m not sure she’ll be able to relate quite the same. From what I read, she’s pretty much a normal wolf shifter, while you’re something very much more than normal. You’ve come so far from the early days of having no idea who you were … powers locked away. You fit in now like you were born and raised a supernatural. I don’t think this Mischa could do much but commiserate with you about the early difficulties.”
He had a point, but I still thought it might be nice to have someone who understood everything I’d gone through. Or at least some of it.
Waving goodbye to Axl, I left the sanctuary of the library and was surprised to find it was dark outside, and freezing as snow fell about the Academy. Sometimes the random weather changes were really random.
It would be fine once I made it under the magical barrier of the commons, but I had to make it there first. Ducking my head, I rushed along the path and through a few archways before warmth engulfed me from magical fires that had been scattered around the commons, staving off the cold. Music was playing, small nymphs and fey singing in their melodic voices over in the corner.
I headed for our table, ready to eat everything I could get my hands on.
Asher was the only one there; the tables on either side of him were empty. Usually everyone got as close as they could to the Atlanteans, but since the Clovers were disbanded, pretty sure the other students thought their table next to ours was cursed.
I had no idea why the one on the other side was free. Maybe Rone was here earlier. His glare was a great supe deterrent.
“Hey,” I said as I slid in next to Asher, almost gasping as his power collided with mine. I wasn’t sure I’d ever forget how it felt when our powers first exploded. Even now, when the two mingled together like old friends, it still shocked me.
Asher, who was reading an old parchment, lifted his head and smiled that perfect grin, those dimples slamming into my lady parts and bringing them to li
fe.
“Hey,” he said softly, leaning over to press his lips to mine. He started to say something else, but just as his mouth opened, the barrier above us fell. Before I even had time to look up, a slash of bright light—lightning?—struck the pair of us, blasting us apart. It happened so fast and then I was flying through the air. Heat burst to life inside me, and one thought registered just before my head slammed into the table and I was knocked out cold.
Asher pushed me out of the way.
12
I woke to an aching head and sore tongue. I had apparently bitten it, and now it was fat and half filling my mouth. “Open up, Maddi,” the healer said. The blond, curvy woman was a witch I hadn’t met before, which was odd, because I’d spent a lot of time in the herbalism wing last year. “I can’t help you if you don’t open up.”
Since I was desperate to find out what had happened to Asher, I did what she asked.
The warmth of her magic washed over my face and into my painful spots, and within a few minutes I felt back to normal. “You got lucky,” she said conversationally. “The male they brought in received the bulk of the blast. Looks like you mainly just got an outer hit of energy.”
I stilled, everything inside me screaming in panic, but somehow I managed to keep breathing. “What do you mean? Asher … where is Asher?”
Despite my best efforts, the fear in my voice was obvious. The healer must have finally clicked that Asher was important to me. She placed a hand on my shoulder. “There’s nothing to worry about. It’s been a few days, and he’s stable. The other healers will sort it out.”
I gawped at her. “A. Few. Days?” I practically jumped out of bed, ignoring her startled face. “I’ve been unconscious for a few days?”
She nodded. “Well, yes. You guys were hit with a very powerful burst of magic. So far we have no idea where it originated. But Louis”—her face went all dreamy—“has been in here with you almost the entire time. He made sure you didn’t die. He’ll be so happy you’ve finally awoken.”
But Asher wasn’t awake. Stable. What did that even mean? He wasn’t dead, so that was something, but if I’d been unconscious for a few days after getting a small hit of the energy, what did that mean for Asher, who had taken the full blast?
“He pushed me out of the way,” I choked out, finally remembering. She fluttered closer, and I glared at her, even though none of this was her fault. “If I’ve been here for a few days, why are you only just healing my head and tongue now?”
She looked wary. “We’ve had to keep healing you,” she said softly. “Those injuries have recurred over and over. Louis said it was something to do with the magic in the spell, but it’s almost out of your system now. This is the first time you’ve opened your eyes for more than a few seconds.”
I racked my brain, trying to remember anything about the last few days, but there was nothing. The last thing I remembered was getting blasted away from Asher.
Standing, I looked for the exit. “You really should take it easy,” the healer said, fluttering her hands in front of her like she was trying to stop me from moving. “Even if the magic is mostly gone, I’m sure some is lingering. You should wait for Louis.”
I shook my head. “I need to see Asher. Right now.”
She swallowed hard. “I’m afraid there’s a no access policy on him.”
The floor started to rumble, and the healer looked around like she thought it was an earthquake. Meanwhile, I was fighting my power with everything I had, because I was losing it at being denied access to Asher.
I was losing control.
Lifting one hand, I managed to grip my necklace, like that would somehow help me. But it didn’t. My fear for Asher pushed my emotions to new heights, and I had fuck-all hope of containing my energy.
“What’s happening?” the healer all but screamed, barely able to stay on her feet. Pieces of plaster rained down on us, and I knew it was mere seconds before I destroyed the building.
Asher! My mind was screaming for him. My soul. We might not have figured out how to trigger our true mate bond yet, but I knew without any doubt that he was it for me.
Supes rushed into my room, and there was a familiar voice and purple eyes that sent a tiny sliver of relief through my mind. Louis. He would know what to do.
His hand came up and rested against my forehead—no doubt he was the only being able to push through my energy and touch me—and then everything went dark.
I wasn’t out long, that much I knew, because they were still discussing what to do with me when clarity returned.
“She’s too powerful for us to keep her away from him,” Louis was saying. “We’re just going to have to let her see for herself, and I’ll figure out how to deal with the fallout.”
Despite the fatigue in my body and the pounding in my head, I pushed myself up from the bed, drawing their attention. “Yes, please. I need to see him.”
Louis just nodded, and I noticed Jessa Lebron was right behind him. Oh, and the dragon shifter too, of course. Jessa’s eyes were assessing as she moved closer to me, offering a hand to help me up. I barely hesitated before deciding to take the offer.
“Thank you,” I muttered, gaining my feet again, disorientation pushing in on me for a split second before my head cleared.
A smile tilted up her lips. “Glad to see that you’re awake. You had us all worried.”
I snorted and shook my head. “After almost leveling the building, I would have thought you’d prefer me unconscious.”
She laughed and shook her head. “Dude, I’m not afraid of powerful supes. You’re already at the top of your game. It’s the ones below you, who are desperate to steal what is yours, that you need to fear. Oh, and by the way, I’m totally adding you to my girl gang.”
Braxton made this amused sound that tingled down my spine, because it was part sexy man and part pure animal. “Girl gang?” he said, that amusement carrying into his words.
Jessa shrugged and tossed her hair over her shoulders. “Yep. I’m starting one. Girls rule the world, in case you haven’t noticed.”
Braxton pressed closer to her, and Jessa’s eyes darkened as she locked them on her mate. “Oh, I’ve noticed, babe,” he said, his voice a low rumble. “You’ve ruled my world since you were an annoying-ass toddler.”
Jessa smiled the sweetest smile. “I made your life interesting, Braxton Compass. Without me, big man, you’d have been so fucking conceited that your dragon wouldn’t have been able to fly with the size of your ego.”
If I wasn’t so stressed, this would have had me laughing. The way they teased each other … it reminded me of Asher. My heart ached, and the low-key panic I was fighting to keep contained kept trying to burst free and destroy my mind. And the school.
Louis cleared his throat. “Come on. We need to get Maddi to Asher if you’d like to still have an Academy to teach at.”
Just knowing that I was going to him helped rein in my power. I moved toward the door, not waiting for anyone. The healer was long gone, and she’d left the door open, so I stepped out and waited for the other three to lead me to Asher’s room.
I felt him nearby somewhere. I had a sense that I could get to him if I wanted to, but it would be easier just to follow the ones who knew. Louis led me through the herbalism wing, and then we entered a section of the forest I hadn’t seen before. It was in the deepest, darkest part, and an eerie feeling settled over me.
“Why is he all the way out here?” I asked, side-eyeing them. I didn’t know Jessa and Braxton at all, so my trust in them was minimal, but Louis … I trusted Louis.
“When he first arrived here, he was spilling power everywhere,” Louis said softly. “It was beyond what any of the healing rooms could hold, so we ended up having to take him into the deepest part of the forest.”
“Is he still spilling power?” I asked, not sure I was ready for the answer.
Louis hesitated, and that only had my anxiety skyrocketing. “Let’s just say that he’s still d
oing something, and it’s not safe to have him around other students.”
The pit of dread that had been in my stomach since I awoke bloomed into a full-blown cavern. Before I could lose it again, though, I smelled something familiar.
“Water…” I said softly, trailing off.
Louis shot me an impressed smile. “Only an Atlantean.”
Jessa and Braxton were watching me closely but didn’t comment. We pushed through another few trees. I gasped as the tank came into sight. It was set up in the middle of a round clearing—one magically created—with a circular barrier of trees right around it.
“The trees are from Faerie,” Jessa explained. “They’re the best at blocking energy.”
Outside of seeing the khaki leaves and dark brown trunks, I didn’t really notice them; my eyes were locked on Asher.
“In my opinion, they went a little too fairytale in setting this up,” Jessa said with a snort, “since this reminds me of that human story about the chick who had to get kissed to wake up.”
Snow White. Yeah, I could see that … if you added in a huge tank of water, one godlike Atlantean, and visible ripples of energy zipping around the tank.
“Have you checked he’s breathing fine in there?” I asked, not really worried about that because … Atlantean … but I had enough human in me to still wonder.
“Breathing fine,” said Braxton. “The water is pretty much the only thing that stopped him from exploding.”
My gasp was loud. “Exploding?” Louis took my hand and I stared at him like he held the only hope left in my life. “What do you mean, exploding?”
Pain flashed across Louis’s face before he masked it. “Whatever you were hit with, it traps the energy inside your own. Inside your cells. We barely managed to heal you, to siphon off the spell, but so far, nothing I’ve done has helped Asher. It was too large a bolt that he was hit with, and right now I’m trying to buy as much time as I can to figure out how to save him.”