Dragon Fire Academy 2: Second Term

by Rachel Jonas

  “No, what you have is their fear. Respect is something you earn by showing you’re worthy of it.” Ori leaned away from the table his hands rested on, standing straighter. “I suppose I get it, though. It can’t be easy seeing the man your son has become, and having to live with knowing you had nothing to do with it.”

  Chief Makana’s nostrils flared as he struggled to hold his composure.

  “How is it that I lost my father as a kid and he was still more to me than you’ve ever been to Kai?”

  “Enough!” Chief’s fist slammed the tabletop. The atmosphere in the room had suddenly changed, becoming far more hostile than before.

  The Council members shifted uncomfortably in their seats while each observed, serving as little more than props in this meeting. None had said a word to speak against Chief. If they disagreed, we would never know it.

  “I’m tempted to lock you up right along with him, but we’ll chock this little outburst of yours up to … displaced emotions,” Chief spat. “After all,” he crooned, “it can’t be easy knowing your beta appealed to your queen more than you did.”

  Ori breathed deep and smoke rolled off his skin, precisely at the moment a trace of his dragon’s outline began to form around his frame. However, the three who had only stood in observation before now, lifted their hands. Immediately after, a searing-hot pain shot through my head and I couldn’t move. My brothers growled in agony as well.

  “What you feel right now is only a fraction of what they can do to you,” Chief said loudly to be heard over our groans of pain. “Please, I beg you not to make me show you their full strength.”

  He let it continue a few seconds longer before nodding a command to his new pawns. As soon as they obeyed, the pain began to fade. Once I was able to focus again, Chief stared at the four of us with a smug grin.

  “Take heed, Omegas. Today you should have been reminded of your place,” he said with pride ringing in his voice. “That place is now, and will always be … far, far beneath me.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Ori

  That couldn’t have possibly gone any worse.

  Not even in a nightmare.

  Chief had shown us a side of him we’d never seen before, but it was one we were not completely surprised to discover existed. It was more than clear that he resented our positions—and the affection our tribal members held for us. He seemed to think it had gone to our heads, making us think we were greater than him, but the only one any of us revered as great was Spirit.

  We, like Chief, were imperfect and capable of screwing everything up, just like the next guy.

  “I can’t believe he’s doing this.” Kai hadn’t moved from his place on the couch, where he sat holding his head for the past half hour. “He’s always been cold, but … this is even a bit much for him.”

  I couldn’t have agreed more.

  “Once he comes for Rayen, we’ll be at a fraction of our strength. Yet, he’d rather prove a point than see to it that his people are adequately protected,” Paulo griped.

  “We’re overlooking an even bigger issue,” Rayen cut in. “The witches.”

  I breathed out, unsure where to even begin with that one. “Historically speaking, leaders only surround themselves with powerful witches for two reasons—for protection from great danger or impending evil … or to fulfill some wicked plan. The fact that I can’t nail down which of the two holds true with Chief Makana says a lot about how hard it is to read his intentions these days.”

  “He used them against us, so I think it’s safe to say it’s about more than protection,” Paulo pointed out. “Whole thing is screwed up.”

  Rayen released a heavy sigh before dropping down into an armchair beside the window, and I was reminded how all of this must have been ten times as difficult for him to process.

  “You holding up okay?” I asked.

  He didn’t answer right away, simply staring off into space. “I just wish there was something I could do to stop him.”

  I briefly placed a hand on his shoulder, sympathizing. “I’m going to check with the other alphas to see if they can help us come up with a plan. There’s no way we’ll let you sit in some cell, for any length of time.”

  Rayen was shaking his head before I even finished. “Don’t. The last thing we need is more of you getting caught up in this, crippling the hive even more,” he reasoned. “I’ll do my time.”

  It was hard to say which would have been worse—having Rayen taken from us the moment Chief declared his punishment, or having to sit and wait for him to be apprehended. Having to sit here, day after day, wondering when Chief and his minions would show up would be torture. Then again, that may have been exactly why he ordered it this way.

  “I need to tell Noelle,” Rayen said next, interrupting my thoughts. “She won’t understand.”

  “Hell, I don’t understand,” Paulo scoffed, seeming to get angrier by the second. He held his position, leaning against the wall, but then suddenly pushed off. “I can’t let Chief do this.”

  Rayen was on his feet the next second, blocking Paulo just as he reached the door. “You can and you will,” he asserted. “If we keep our noses clean, it’s possible he’ll end my sentence sooner rather than later.”

  “I might believe that,” Paulo countered, “if we were dealing with a fair man.”

  Rayen’s gaze slipped to the ground for a moment. “Being a Firekeeper has never been about controlling the actions of others,” he stated. “That goes for Chief and anyone else. His behavior doesn’t change who we are, nor does it lessen our responsibility to represent Spirit with integrity.”

  The rims of Paulo’s nostrils flared with his temper.

  “You have to keep your head clear and look out for our girl,” Rayen insisted, holding Paulo’s furious gaze. “She’ll need you all to reassure her that things are still okay.”

  The two stared at one another for a moment, and eventually, Paulo breathed deep and the harsh look set on his face began to soften.

  “Life as we know it is shifting,” Rayen sighed. “Our people were once led with love and grave conviction. However, I think it’s time we face a hard truth that’s been breathing down our necks for some time now. We need to accept that … The Darkness is no longer our only enemy on this island.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Noelle

  “Class dismissed.”

  Miss Audrina flashed a smile toward my classmates as they moved toward the door to exit, and the expression turned weary by the time it reached me. Once, her class had been my favorite to come to, but since I’d accidentally taken Jessica’s powers—and had yet to figure out how to return them—things were different.

  Not only in this classroom, in all of them.

  It wasn’t so much that I’d been forbidden from using magic, but my instructors had begun to alter my assignments. For instance, when others were encouraged to demonstrate their abilities, it was requested that I sit out and observe.

  Like today, for instance. The rest of the students were asked to perform a small charm to grant their partners with confidence. I, on the other hand, was only asked to memorize a simple incantation.

  One Aunt Hilda had taught me when I was twelve.

  Basically, no one trusted me, and therefore no longer wanted me here.

  I would have thought it a miracle that I hadn’t been kicked out by this point, but after one meeting with Chief Makana, it became clear that my leaving the island wasn’t an option. I had a hunch this was something a few of my instructors discovered, assuming they’d gone to the administrators to recommend that I be removed from the academy.

  Did I have proof of it? No, but having everyone except my friends suddenly afraid to walk within a ten-foot radius of me was a pretty clear indicator.

  Passing Ms. Audrina’s desk, it felt strange not speaking. I’d gotten used to her at least asking how my day had been, but now all I got were sideways glances that told me all I needed to know. As much as it sucked
to admit it, the woman was downright scared of me.

  I suppose that was understandable.

  “Ignore her,” a whispered voice said. Then, an arm looped with mine and I turned to meet Blythe’s gaze. Normally, her witchy scent would have told me it was her long before my eyes did, but it was slightly less potent than usual.

  “She hates me now,” I said quietly.

  “Meh, she doesn’t hate you,” Blythe said with a casual shrug. “Problem is, she can’t figure you out, and that is definitely not your issue. It’s hers.”

  Forcing myself not to take a second glance toward Ms. Audrina, I exited, pouring out into the hallway with the others. Blythe clung to me like Toni always did, both unafraid of what havoc I might wreak on their magic. Between the two, I felt less like a walking, talking disaster.

  Bright light flooded into the building when we pushed the bar, unlatching the door that led us outside. We took the steps slowly, and I felt a tug to my left—the non-physical kind. The kind that told me my dragons were nearby. So, I glanced that way, finding Paulo’s gaze set on me.

  It was strange having him just keeping watch from a distance, seeing as how we’d all gotten considerably closer. However, I suppose the separation between them and me had been my own doing. Because I still hadn’t figured out how to address the not-so-small issue of knowing one of the island’s darker secrets, my way of coping was avoidance. If I cast up walls between us, I wouldn’t have to pretend everything was okay. Wouldn’t have to pretend I understood why they’d allowed this to go on.

  Apparently, I gawked at my mate a few seconds too long, prompting Blythe to squeeze my arm a bit.

  “Sooooo … managed to bag all four of ‘em, huh?” she asked once she had my attention.

  I glanced over to find her bouncing both brows at me.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  A hard eye roll came before she turned away, wearing a knowing smirk. “Those dudes. You’re messing around with all four of them, aren’t you?”

  When I didn’t answer right away, the smirk broadened into a full-blown grin. “Hey, no judgement, I just thought I’d ask instead of playing the guessing game. You’re playing with fire, though, aren’t you? Assuming they’re all as close as they seem.”

  I took a breath, lowering my gaze to where my fingers toyed with the stone on the necklace I’d been given. “What makes you think I’m involved with any of them?”

  “Ohhhh, I don’t know. Maybe it’s how I’ve seen you hugged up with, and/or kissing each of them in various ‘hidden’ places around campus.” She said that word with air quotes, making it more than clear we hadn’t been as inconspicuous as we thought.

  “I guess your lack of an explanation means my hunch is pretty solid then?”

  I smiled a bit. “Maybe, but … it’s a little more than that.”

  We reached our dorm and went inside, headed toward the stairs that would take us to the basement, instead of up to either of our rooms.

  “Well, call me crazy, but if I had four smokin’ hot dragons falling all over me like you do, I don’t think I’d even know Ms. Audrina was alive. Much less care what she thought of me.”

  The comment made laughter bubble in my throat.

  “Just sayin’,” Blythe added.

  We made our way down the dark stairwell, not bothering to turn on lights, now that we knew our way without them.

  “Listen, if it’s okay with you, I really don’t want to talk about any of this right now. Things have been … complicated lately.”

  I couldn’t see Blythe’s expression all that well, but felt the mood between us shift. “Gotcha,” she answered, “but I’m here if you change your mind.”

  I smiled as we entered our ‘study space’ and removed our identical blazers. I took the box of matches from on top of the hot-water heater and handed one to Blythe. She struck hers against the cinderblock wall, and I did the same, moving through the space to light the ten or so candles we’d left lying around last time. Once finished, we both took a seat on the pile of blankets in the middle of the room, careful to keep our pleated skirts in place.

  Today was going to be different. The plan was to finally move on from meditation and yoga—which had helped with self-control tremendously—and now focus on using actual magic.

  Blythe mentioned an incantation that should draw small amounts of the dark energy from me, releasing it into a jar sealed with the magic of a powerful spell. Currently, it rested beside us on the floor, ready for use should this actually work. We hoped that, if we tried this enough times, whatever traces of The Darkness that dwelled within me might disappear for good. It wouldn’t be the one-stop fix I hoped for, but it was something.

  Being honest, a small part of me still held out on giving Blythe my total trust, but we had made progress. With how she’d stepped up to help me, continued to hole up with me in the basement like it was the safest thing in the world, I couldn’t help but to see her. She was trying, she was willing to help me. For that, I was certainly grateful.

  “K, close your eyes,” she instructed, and I followed her lead, placing both hands palms up on my knees.

  “You’re gonna repeat after me, but fair warning,” she continued. “When this starts to work, according to research, you’ll feel … uncomfortable.”

  My brow quirked. “You mean I’ll be in pain, right?”

  She lifted one shoulder, as if to say ‘sort of’. “Maybe, but based on what I read, it won’t take long. Actually, you should probably open the jar and hang on to it in case this goes faster than we think.”

  I moved out of position only long enough to place it in my lap. “Ok,” I sighed, closing my eyes again.

  I heard Blythe let out a breath, and then the next sound I heard was her voice filling the room. Words I didn’t understand flowed from her lips, and I was pretty sure she didn’t know what they meant either. From what Aunt Hilda told me, magic had more to do with your intention when stating the words, than it did with your comprehension of them.

  My shoulders rose and fell when I inhaled, wondering when this feeling Blythe mentioned would finally kick in. Then, no sooner than I could release the same breath, my stomach began to roll. It was like that feeling you get at the peak of the hill on a rollercoaster. That one that’s kind of your body’s way of alerting you that something really freakin’ bad is coming.

  I shook it off, trying to focus only on the words that filled the quiet space.

  Tightening in my chest made it hard to breathe, and I did my best to hide it until I couldn’t anymore. First, a single cough left my mouth, causing Blythe to pause for a second. But then, it was like I’d swallowed water that went down the wrong way, nearly hacking up a lung.

  Blythe, having been prepared for this, didn’t stop again. She simply spoke the words louder, while I coughed and choked, rivaling her volume. It felt like something was trying to claw its way up my throat, but my body fought it, trying to hold it in. My focus was completely broken now, and I was on all fours, hoping whatever blocked my airway would somehow dislodge itself so I could breathe. There was a strange sense of being detached, and also the awareness of my dragon retreating. It was almost like my soul had somehow separated itself from my body, but hadn’t left it. Not quite like how I imagined death to feel, but close.

  With my eyes wide as I panicked, I noticed the moment the space around me began to glow with the strange turquoise light I’d seen before—the sigils. They were beginning to show through my skin. I still couldn’t breathe, and for some reason the lack of control that had once bread a sense of terror, was beginning to shift to anger.

  Rage.

  Only, it didn’t feel like my own, or even that of my dragon.

  It was something else.

  A swift breeze swept through the sealed room, blowing out the flames that once flickered all around us. Illuminated in the blue light of the sigils, smoke wafted eerily toward the ceiling. My body went still, no longer struggling for breath
or control, and while I should have been relieved the terrifying moment had passed, I was anything but that.

  My nerves were on edge, and the urge to tell Blythe to run swelled within me. It had become commonplace that I’d lose control in the blink of an eye, and this felt like one of those moments.

  Brave, she continued screaming the words as the now constant cyclone that filled the room whipped her hair across her face. A sudden surge of calmness swept over me, and it only alarmed me more.

  Without commanding my limbs to do so, they were now bracing the floor, positioning themselves to stand. It was like … I wasn’t even in control of them anymore. It was like something else had taken possession of my body, moving me into place like a doll. It seemed to fit the feeling of my consciousness being shoved aside within me.

  Maybe sensing that I stood over her, Blythe finally peered up, but her lips never stopped moving. The word ‘RUN!’ screamed from within me, but I couldn’t seem to make it leave my mouth. Instead, I felt the corners of it curve upward with a wicked smile.

  “You can fight this, Noelle!”

  When her words ceased, the wind pushing around debris and knocking over the candles gained strength. Blythe, no longer focused on the spell, stood to her feet, but showed no signs of leaving, which I couldn’t understand. Clearly, things were not going as we hoped they would, and her best bet at this point was to save herself.

  However, instead, she took two steps closer, and then did the stupidest things she possibly could have.

  My hands warmed when she took them, holding my gaze. It was then, in her eyes’ reflection that I saw my own—solid black—as we stared at one another.

  “You can fight this. You’re strong,” she reminded me.

  Only, I didn’t feel so strong then. I felt small, powerless as something within seemed to have more say-so in my actions than I did. Hence the reason why, the next second, I snatched both hands from hers.

  “She’s whatever I say she is.”

  My heart raced with the sound of the voice that exploded from my mouth—deep, menacing … not mine.