by Sarah Reeves
“Fire is my primary power. Then it was darkness, then water just a bit ago.”
“What does it take for you to be able to manifest each one?”
Alex shrugged. “It seems to be tied to certain emotions. Darkness manifested the first time out of anger, and water appeared when I was calm. No,” she corrected, considering. “Peaceful. I was showering and I let myself relax completely, and it happened. Darkness started out mixed with the fire, but it wasn’t till I got so frustrated during training that it appeared by itself.”
“Huh. That’s interesting.”
“I know. It makes me wonder what emotions are tied to the other elements.”
“Well that too, but I was talking about you in the shower.”
Alex’s face heated up, and she punched Kieran in the arm in response. “You’re gross.”
“No, I’m a man who is sitting next to a very attractive woman, who just told me about her shower being very… relaxing.” He jumped up, laughing again when Alex swung at his face. “Hey, hey, not the face. People need their next king to be unscathed.” Alex couldn’t help it; she started laughing, too. She grabbed the pillow off her bed and flung it at him. They started to scuffle, until Alex had him pinned to the floor. They were breathing hard, and Kieran’s gray eyes were locked onto hers. Power of a different kind sizzled. Alex knew she had to get up, but she couldn’t make herself move. Her hands pinned Kieran’s into place, and she’d subconsciously linked her fingers with his.
“I win,” she said, trying to ease the tension.
“Do you?” he asked. Too fast for her to see, Kieran hooked a leg around Alex’s and flipped her, pressing her into the floor. “I think I win.” His face was closer now, and he held himself above Alex with no obvious effort. Their breathing had calmed somewhat, but Alex could still feel his heart pounding against her own. Kieran glanced down at her mouth, then back up to meet her eyes. “They say that physical contact between Companions is more intense,” he said softly. Slowly, as if giving Alex time to push him away, he lowered his head until their lips were a whisper apart. “Should we test that theory?” Alex couldn’t reply, only looked back at him with wide eyes. Her brain seemed to have lost all ability to form thought. “You should probably let me know one way or the other,” he continued. “I’m close to making the decision for you.”
“I’m close to letting you,” Alex managed.
“You have no idea how much I want to convince you to let me.” He got to his feet, and pulled Alex to hers. “I don’t think we should take things that far tonight, though.” He pulled her close and hugged her. Alex’s hands smoothed up his arms to his shoulders. “No matter how badly I want to, I would hate to do anything to cause awkwardness between us.”
Alex nodded. “That sounds like a good idea. You’re still a douche.”
“Of course,” Kieran said with a grin. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I gotta go back to my room, and take a very cold shower.” With one last glance, he let himself out of Alex’s room. Alex sat down on her bed, then flopped back and stared at the ceiling. She threw an arm over her face. Why did feelings have to be so complicated? Why on earth had she wanted Kieran to kiss her so badly? They were Companions, and Alex had made clear that they were nothing more than that. Suddenly, the idea of kissing him seemed less revolting and more… tempting. Alex had wanted him to, there was no denying that.
But she wasn’t here to form relationships. Not like that, at least. She was here to train, so that she could protect her family and kill the Unseen. Nothing else mattered. Nothing else should matter to her. Why had it been so easy for her to start to forget that? Guilt made her stomach churn, and Alex resolutely told herself that from now on, she was going to be completely focused on her training. Nothing else mattered.
With that, Alex wrapped herself in blankets and promptly fell asleep.
She was awoken the next morning by someone pounding at her door. Groggy, she turned over and rolled completely out of the bed, thumping onto the floor. Cursing her now smarting elbow, Alex stumbled to her feet and threw open the door.
“What time is it?” she asked a very awake Adrien.
“It’s roughly six fifteen.” Adrien cocked her head to the side. “Are you always so unwilling to be awake in the morning?”
“When it’s roughly six fifteen, yes. Why am I up this early?”
“Because I brought you this.” Adrien tossed a package at Alex, who caught it by reflex and nearly fell down the stairs with the unexpected weight.
“What is it?”
“Your training for the next few weeks, along with what we’ve already been doing.” Alex unwrapped the heavy fabric and stared at the large sword underneath.
“I’m training with a big ass sword? You do realize that I’m definitely going to hurt myself with this, right?”
Adrien’s lips twitched. “You’re not going to use that one yet, you’re going to use a training sword.”
“You were being intentionally dramatic.”
“Yes, I was. Get dressed, and come down to the Arena. Same place as last time.” Without waiting for Alex to reply, Adrien left. Alex waited a full five seconds before going back into her room, grumbling about how Adrien could have easily taken the damn sword to the Arena herself, since they weren’t even going to use it.
Twenty minutes later, Alex was arriving next to Adrien in the Arena. She thrust the now covered sword at her mentor. “You know, you could have just taken this with you when you left.”
“You need to get used to carrying it anyway. Here, switch with me.” Adrien held out a wooden sword and took the real one from her pupil. “We’re not going into anything complicated today, because you’ve never held a sword before, much less used one in combat. So for now, along with everything else, we’re just going over the basics.”
“When can I start Shifting into other creatures?”
“When we figure out how to safely do it. I want to try to do it today, but I also don’t want to try and trigger another episode like the one that started all this. Now that you have your amulet, that may not happen, but I don’t want to take any chances. If you go into another episode like that, there may not be a way for me to stabilize you.”
“Why not? You did it pretty easily last time.”
“Yeah but that was because you had your father’s power in you, and I combined mine with it. This would be all you, and there’s no way for me to help you through that with my power alone. Not with yours as complicated as it is.”
“Makes sense. We should probably do some research first then.” Alex looked around quickly. She hoped Kieran wouldn’t show up. “Okay. What should I do first?”
“First, we perfect your stance.” Adrien spent the next couple of hours showing Alex how to stand, and then moved into rudimentary thrusts and blocks. When she was satisfied Alex had a somewhat firm grasp on it, they moved back to using Alex’s power. Alex expanded on her knowledge of fire mainly, and was able to coat the real blade in flame by the time the training session was over. They moved on to darkness.
Darkness was very different from flame, and Alex realized just how much very quickly. It was a lot more volatile than fire, and therefore harder to control. Alex knew that frustration was the key to accessing that power, but trying to reign it in or control it once she had it was the difficult part. And the more she tried to reign in the emotions, the harder it was to control.
“Breathe. You won’t be able to use any of your power if you’re unconscious.”
“Thanks for that.” Alex swiped a hand over the sweat on her face. “Because I have no concept of how the human body works, and what it can or can’t do while unconscious. I was thinking I would try to do cartwheels in my sleep tonight.”
“Don’t take that tone with me. You don’t get to be a smart alec simply because you can’t control your emotions. Take a few minutes,” Adrien put her hands in her pockets. “Go and get a drink of water, walk it off for a bit, and come back when you’re more level he
aded.”
Alex strode away, muttering under her breath. Adrien had no clue what it was like, having to call on dark emotions in order to access parts of herself and then having to control the results. It was like trying to lasso a flood. She pushed into the restrooms on the outer edge of the arena, still muttering, and nearly ran into someone.
“Hey, watch where you’re- Oh, hey Vera.” The blonde girl caught Alex's arm when they bumped into each other, and her eyes were fixed on Alex’s with concern.
“Are you alright? You look angry.”
“I’m fine.” Alex winced slightly at how clipped her voice sounded, and forced a smile. “How are you?”
“I’m great! I just studied a little bit in the library, and now I have to go and train. I’m not totally excited for it, but you know. Gotta do what you gotta do.”
“Where do you train?”
“I’m with the intermediate classes. We’re working towards teleportation.” Teleportation? “It’s a very fascinating subject, I’m really excited about trying it. What class are you in?”
“Oh, I’m not in any class right now. I train with my mentor, Adrien.” Vera’s gaze turned thoughtful, and Alex shifted uncomfortably. Was that the wrong thing to say? Should she have made something up?
Vera smiled again, and Alex grinned out of pure relief. “That’s really cool! Not many of us have private tutors, unless you’re pretty high up on the social scale. If you don’t mind me asking, what’s your Form?”
“Dragon.” Alex linked her fingers, twisting them.
“Yeah then you definitely have a reason to have a private mentor. I’d like to meet them, they’re probably really smart.”
Alex thought for a second, then nodded. She didn’t see the harm in letting Vera meet Adrien. “Follow me.” She led her back over to where Adrien stood, waiting. She wasn’t moving except for the impatient tap of her index finger on her folded arms.
“That was more than a few minutes,” began Adrien, then stopped when she saw Vera. “Who’s this?” she asked with forced politeness.
“Adrien, this is Vera. Vera, this is my mentor, Adrien.” Alex watched Vera’s face drain of color, and thought she would have to catch her when she wobbled a little on her feet. “What’s wrong?” asked Alex.
“Huh?” Vera’s voice was sudden and louder than normal. Alex frowned and opened her mouth, ready to repeat her question, but she didn’t have to. “Nothing! Nothing’s wrong, I promise. I just got light headed for a second, that’s all. I’m okay though, I promise. How are you?” She jerked her hand up, offering it to Adrien, who took it warily. “I’m Vera, it’s nice to meet you.”
“And you.” Adrien shook once, then let go. “You’re friends with my daughter?”
“Oh, she’s your daughter? I thought she was just your student.” Vera gave a high pitched giggle, then quickly put a hand over her mouth. Alex opened her mouth to say something, but closed it with a snap when Vera kept talking. “That’s neat, though, really neat. She told me she’s a dragon, which is also cool. Are you a dragon too?”
“Yes…” Adrien sent raised eyebrows at her daughter.
“I thought so. Genealogy is one of my strong suits, I like to try to guess parentage. Your power isn’t fire though, is it? I’m sure you know that power is passed from father to daughter, not mother to daughter. I’m sorry, I’m rambling again. I gotta go though, I’ll be late for my class. See you, Alex!” Before Alex could say more than “bye”, Vera had taken off, walking very quickly away and around the corner. Alex turned slowly to look at her teacher, who had the same bewildered expression on her face, mixed with suspicion.
“I have no idea what happened there. She does ramble sometimes, but she wasn’t outwardly nervous towards me like that.”
Adrien shook her head. “No, I don’t think that that was a normal reaction either. What did you say her name was?”
“Vera.”
“Hmmm. She looked like she thought I was going to attack her.”
Adrien didn’t say much after that, only directed Alex through her physical training. Several hundred repetitions later, Alex’s arms and legs were shaking, but she was able to stagger to her feet after the last push-up. She lifted a shaking hand to wipe the sweat from her face.
“It’s going to get easier, I promise.” Adrien offered her a handkerchief, which her pupil took gratefully. “You just need to get over the week or two it’s going to take to get used to the physical parts of this. The rest is just a mental game.”
“This mental game is pretty rough already, I’m not sure how much more I can take.”
“You’re tough. You’ll make it.” Adrien grinned, and in an uncharacteristic movement, ruffled Alex’s hair. Alex ducked away, scowling. “Deep breaths.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Alex fixed her hair. “I take any deeper breaths, I’m going to float away.” She started walking towards the path that would take her back to her room and found her way blocked by about a dozen men in official looking uniforms, swords drawn. Alex took a step back automatically, but they didn’t seem to be focused on her. They were looking at Adrien, who gazed back without fear. “Adrien?” Alex asked warily.
“Adrien Makos, you have been ordered to be placed under arrest by the Royal Guard.” The one in the front raised his sword, pointed it at Alex’s mentor. “You will surrender immediately for detaining until your trial.”
“I have the right to know what I am being arrested for,” replied Adrien, lifting her chin. “It is unlawful for one to be arrested without knowing the charges against them.”
“You are a suspected accomplice of the criminal known as the Unseen.”
“Wait-” Alex started toward Adrien, but her teacher cut her off harshly.
“No, Alexandra. This doesn’t involve you.”
“But-”
“Go to your room!” Adrien’s voice rose commandingly, and Alex obeyed. She hurled a look of fury at the guards, then left. She turned back just in time to see the men take Adrien, none too gently, and fit her hands with iron covers attached to chains. They marched her away, and Alex watched them disappear into a hallway under the Arena. What she didn’t see was the set of wide blue eyes that followed the progression of soldiers as well, before retreating into the shadows.
Chapter Thirteen
The Unseen bided his time. He had all the pieces in place, ready to go as soon as he started the sequence of events that would ensure his victory. There were times when he had to work to control the triumph ready to burst forth. Time and patience is what he needed now, he knew. It would be all too easy for him to slip up and make a mistake in his hurry to defeat that infernal creature, his nemesis. Just thinking about her made him want to throw caution to the wind and take her out, now.
He stopped and ground the teeth of his new body. It was past time to receive the report from his informant. However unwilling they were, they’d been invaluable thus far. He’d have to see about a reward for them, once he accomplished his task. A feral grin stretched the partially decayed skin around his mouth. Yes, a reward was in order for them.
Because of them, he would win.
Alex slammed into her room, anger crashing through her like a tidal wave. They had no right, no right to take Adrien like that. Adrien hadn’t asked to be possessed, nor had she asked to be released. She was a victim, nothing more. Alex was ready to go down to wherever she had to go to give them a piece of her mind. She had strapped the sword to her back and was headed out the door before she realized what she was doing.
“Hold on, Alex, think, think. Going in to the parliament or whatever the fuck isn’t going to help Adrien’s situation. You have to think.” As if in answer, someone knocked at the door. She threw it open, then turned away to hide the disappointment when she saw Ronan standing on the other side of the door.
“I know you probably don’t want to see me right now, but I know what happened with your mother.” At this, Alex whipped around. Her eyes bored into his.
“What hap
pened? She’s innocent, all the ones possessed by the Unseen are innocent.”
“Nobody gets out of the possession alive. Your mother was the first, the only, and because of that, people are inclined to think that she made some kind of deal with him. You have to see how this looks, Alex.”
“I see that the Royal Guard, or whoever tipped my mother off to them are narrow minded, and prejudiced. They need to take a step back and open their freaking eyes. She’s not possessed anymore. Why on earth would she come back here to train a kid if she were? Wouldn’t she be laying siege, or attacking small children, or whatever stupid crap the Unseen likes to do to inspire fear in the Undari?”
“You see that, but they see differently. The Unseen wore your mother’s face for a long time. And wreaked havoc across all the realms. People lost their families, their friends, their homes. Someone was bound to recognize her, and turn her in. Someone who wanted him to pay, someone who didn’t see that Adrien isn’t a host anymore. The hysteria and fear take off from there. She’s your mother, but for a very long time, she was the puppet of a villain.” Ronan sat at Alex’s desk. “They have her in a holding cell in the castle. It’s a long way away, but they were able to teleport. In order to make a case for your mother, you need to get there. The law states that she must have a trial, but with the mass panic caused by the Unseen, it’s not likely to be a fair one.”
Alex sat on her bed and fixed him with a desperate look. “What’s going to happen to her if they convict her?”
“Well, they’re most likely going to convict her with conspiracy against the realms, several counts of murder, conspiracy with a known terrorist, and maybe some other things. The Undari that were affected by the Unseen are definitely going to want any revenge they can get. The most likely outcome is that she’s sent to the Realm of Nightmares.”