Sebastian stared at the woman. He could see her fidgeting, watched as the pulse on her neck escalated with each word. He couldn’t truly see if it was accelerating out of terror, lying or just plain nerves. Most would assume a little of both and that was what Sebastian was going with. How could someone who seemed so affected by what happened knowingly stay within the walls of the Exodus. He commended her effort to get out as soon as she was feasibly able to.
“I can let Geneva know that that is what you’re interested in doing. Whether or not that happens will be her call. Depending on her mood, of course. You Epsilons are known to have emotions much like the elements. Unpredictable,” he teased with a wink, running his thumb over his hand, changing his gaze from her to the road once more. “You’ll like it here, if you wanna know my opinion. I know you feel or felt at home with the Exodus. I did too. So did Chase which I’m sure you know. He’s all over you,” he said, looking back to her as she blushed, her tongue running over her bottom lip and he watched as she arched her brow at him.
“How do you know that?” she said with a laugh, looking at her clothes.
“I’m magic, remember? Even without using, I can tell that you’re surrounded in my Chi Origin. And, while it’s not me using at the moment, it must be a remnant of someone else. Seeing as he is joined to you, I just put two and two together,” he said and shrugged. “If you choose us, that’ll have to end, you know? Other than the fact that star crossed lovers are a big no-no, we can’t have you joined to an Exodus member. If Geneva approves the trial period, that’ll be the first thing to go once you’re officially one of us.” Sebastian was trying to break the news to her earlier rather than later but he even wanted to break it nearly instantly. It was a tricky process but it was possible. And, personally, he hated the idea of being forcibly attached to another person just because they brought you back to life. In his mind, someone should be able to decide if they want to join to someone. But, magic was a tricky little game. More often than not, it did things that you didn’t want it to but that you needed it to.
“I assumed so. It’s why I need to think so hard on this decision. I don’t expect open arms. I don’t expect sunflowers and daisies but... I need to know I’m making the right choice before I make it. I need to know that we can end this war without any more bloodshed and with the good of the people at the forefront. I need to know that I can do some good,” she said, her voice growing more genuine as she spoke, staring at her hands. The most she saw so far with magic was the ugly or the manipulative that could be done with it. She wanted to see the life changing aspects.
“I can’t promise we’re all sunshine and rainbows but we’re the good guys. We may not show it all the time. We may be a bit unorthodox in our practices but I promise you, we’re doing it for all the right reasons.”
“Then, I’m your girl,” Cassidy said with a nod, moving to stand as she brushed off her jeans, pushing the hair up and out of her face. “But, I’m exhausted,” she said with a yawn, stretching her small frame out as Sebastian also stood, gazing down at her. “Come and get me bright and early tomorrow and we’ll do the whole debrief introduction thing,” she added with a quick nod.
“Right, meet you at noon then,” he teased, watching as she walked back over the invisible barrier through her door. She laughed and nodded at his comment, watching as the red pulsed angrily over his frame. Despite being from the same Origin, Sebastian’s magic looked upset and angry. The red was a bit darker than most, possibly showing the weakness he had to wanting to use. Without another blink of her eyes, he was gone, the dust of red in the spot that he left fading away just as quickly as it was there.
Chapter 16
They’re not gonna kill you, you know,” Sebastian teased as they walked up the cobblestones to the rather large mansion of a house in front of them. The exterior was old, probably built in the early 1900s and hadn’t been taken great care of. The vines wrapped themselves aggressively around the stone, as if it were trying to strangle it as tightly as the plant could. The lawn was mowed, at least, and the paint was rather dark. If she were to walk by such a house daily, she would automatically steer clear of it. Whether it was meant to put off a terrifying charm or if it was just a coincidence, that was exactly the feeling that Cassidy was embracing at the moment.
“You didn’t say that the League was holed up in the Addams Family mansion,” she said teasingly, pushing the hair out of her face as they walked in tandem up the short bit of steps. Each step was recorded in Cassidy’s mind. How many steps it took to walk from the street to the door, anything that was of possible importance with the outside integrity of the building itself. It was safe to assume that the League knew better than to just let her walk in off the street without any true form of security but so far, she didn’t see much of anything.
Sebastian chuckled, grabbing the door handle and pushing it open, waiting for her to follow him but Cassidy stopped at the doorframe.
“You have to invite me,” she reminded him, knowing that the barrier would keep her from crossing the threshold and before Sebastian was able to say anything else, he reached out and yanked her through the doorway, their bodies pressing against one another as the whimper erupted from Cassidy’s throat. Her body tensed up, her eyes clamping shut until she was through the door, peeking out through her eyelid when she saw how close she was to him. One hand lifted and smacked him dead in the chest as she put space between the two of them, her cheeks bright blood red.
“You are an asshole!” she said, frustration rolling off of her in waves while Sebastian couldn’t hold in the laughter.
“The house is in a human’s name. We’re not a great sanctuary if those who we want to save can’t just come in to seek solace,” he said with a shrug, rubbing his chest where she had hit him but thoroughly enjoying the fact that he was able to get under her skin. He couldn’t decide if he was more thrilled by the possibility of taking her from his brother or just to be able to see if he could intrigue her at all.
“Well, how am I supposed to know that?” she said, her face speaking volumes about how angry she was with him. Her heart was still eagerly pounding against her ribs, the blood flow making her head slightly dizzy but she simply brushed it off. With what she was about to go through, she needed her efforts to be stronger than ever.
The home on the inside looked rather lack luster. Cobwebs littered the walls from lamps to couches, the smell of musty old dust so strong she could nearly taste it. If she were honest, the entire home looked like it hadn’t been touched in decades.
“This doesn’t inspire a bunch of confidence, ya know?” she said, reaching out a wiping her finger across the dust on the shelf, coughing slightly as Sebastian walked away from her, deeper into the house. “That doesn’t mean just leave me!” she said quickly, her stride forcing her a few feet behind him but she was quick enough to keep up. The pair managed to get to a round room, one with each Origin symbol evenly spaced out within the circle. It was clear that the five origins were organized in a way to create a symbol of its own.
“Whoa,” she said softly, her fingers instinctively tracing over the Epsilon symbol. The paint was faint but the faded hunter green was clear enough for her to see. Before she knew it, the green was pulsing over her fingers, the colors matching perfectly before she glanced over to Sebastian. Cassidy hadn’t noticed that the man was scrambling with other things in the room and it took her a moment to notice what he was doing. Next to each symbol was a white pillar candle. Sebastian went from candle to candle, in a particular order, and lit each one before all five candles had a flame dancing back and forth. Sebastian motioned for Cassidy to walk back to the center of the room and the pair watched, each symbol glowing its respective color all on its own until all five were echoing against the walls. Cassidy blinked a few times, staring from the walls to Sebastian and by the time her eyes opened one more from her blink, the entire room had shifted. Where symbols on the wall used to be, doors leading to channeling rooms now existe
d. The room that they were now standing in was the rotunda that the other League members were talking when Cassidy was here the last time.
The new room was far warmer than the other one she was in. The lights were at least on, books strewn across the table closest to her and Cassidy immediately snapped her head to find the Epsilon channeling room, to her left. She could feel the pull towards the room but she needed to fight it for the moment. There was time to go in there later.
“A little paranoid, are y’all?” Cassidy teased but Sebastian’s face refused to move. Before he was able to even retort, Geneva, Caleb and someone she had yet to meet walked down the hall towards them. It was clear by Geneva’s face that she was the least excited person to see Cassidy standing next to Sebastian. If she were being honest, she was hoping that the whole wanting to become a League member was something she’d flake out on come morning.
“I like to think the right amount of paranoid,” Geneva said as Caleb and Joseph, the man that Cassidy hadn’t met yet, sat at the chairs in front of their respective origins. Joseph sat closest to Sebastian, next to the Chi Origin, and thus Cassidy assumed that he belonged there. Caleb managed to show her a genuine smile at her presence in their compound. If anyone could’ve brought her there, it was his words.
“Right,” Cassidy said, clearing her throat and looking from Geneva to Sebastian. “I trust he managed to inform you as to what’s going on?” She arched a brow as she watched how Geneva reacted. The heavy sighed left Geneva’s lips, plopping a seat behind the desk.
“He told me that you haven’t picked a side at all and want to go on a soul searching adventure with us,” she said, condescendingly.
Cassidy clenched her fists and tightened her jaw, managing a snide chuckle at Geneva’s comment. Before she could speak, Geneva continued.
“No... you don’t get to stand there and laugh when what I’m saying is the truth. This is far bigger than you, pretty pretty princess. You might be some precious gift to the Exodus. You might very well be the special snowflake that everyone thinks you are but this is a war. It might not have hit you like it has us yet, you may not know the world that you’ve stepped into but the shit that goes down in here, we take very seriously,” she said, pushing herself up and walking to stand in front of Cassidy. The women were the same height, a stark contrast between the brunette and blonde hairstyles but both women, whether they knew it or not, were glowing a hint of green.
“Ohkay, break it up you too,” Caleb said, moving in between the two women and pulling them apart from one another.
“You have no idea what I’ve been through. You don’t know who I am and even if you knew me before, that’s not me anymore. So, how about you throttle back your sass and try being nice for a change. It might help with the wrinkles,” Cassidy snapped back, taking a step back when Caleb stepped in the way. Both Sebastian and Joseph were content with watching the women go at it, keeping their heads out of it entirely.
Geneva managed to crack a smile, albeit begrudgingly, at Cassidy’s wrinkle comment, watching Cassidy for another moment before walking back to her seat and sitting back down. “You’re not going to be allowed to be around here without someone with you at all times, not until you’ve broken your connection with your Origin inside the Exodus. Until you do that, you will have the rights and privileges of a guest in this place.” Geneva fiddled with her nails, fixing one before moving to the next.
Cassidy accepted the temporary freedom, knowing damn well that she needed to prove herself worthy of anything more. Somewhere down the line, she’d have to show her dedication without severing her connection to the Exodus or to Chase. That glimmer would hopefully present itself sooner rather than later. “Got it. No place by my lonesome,” she said, moving to the Epsilon channeling room and leaning against the threshold.
“Those are off limits too,” Geneva added and even Sebastian perked up at that one.
“You don’t think that’s a little extreme, Gen? I mean, regardless of what side she’s with or could be with, the channeling rooms are sacred,” Sebastian reasoned, watching as Joseph shifted closer to his own Chi channeling room. It took an incredible amount of energy to even create a proper one in the first place and to keep someone from their abilities wasn’t something Sebastian could stomach watching.
“And, until we can trust her loyalties, she’ll be held to a short leash. I’m not going to have someone who decides to go Exodus sit here and channel to become stronger, I’m sorry,” she said with a shrug and Cassidy took a step forward, running her tongue over the bottom of her lip.
“I get it. Is there anything I can do while I’m here?” Cassidy asked passive aggressively, putting on the best fake smile she could manage. Geneva laughed, looking from the three men then looking to her.
“We’ll find a way for you to be useful,” she said, her smile growing, only to be cut off by the throbbing alarm sound filling the entire room. The alarm was deafening, causing Cassidy to cover her ears and grimace as the others seemed to be responding to the noise.
“What the hell is that?” Cassidy exclaimed, eagerly following after them down the halls. A handful of others moved to respond to the alarm, others that she had never seen before except for one. Jon. She quickly panicked that he heard her proposal about being a double agent but remembered that he was gone before she ever was able to get that out. The last thing he saw from her was her throwing up at what The Elder did to him.
“We have Chis trained to search for trigger pulses. When someone gets triggered, we get an alert. Then, we try to be the first person there to explain it all to them,” Caleb said as some of the Chis red magic spread across the room in front of her. There were a handful of computer screens, the red sparking when the Chi, Joseph, brought the information to the forefront. There was a bright spike of green which she anticipated coming from Geneva but she was surprised when she saw another female, jet black hair and darker makeup, using her Origin. The green seeped into the computers, altering the electrical design of the hub and controlling it to do her bidding. It was one thing to watch one of the standard elements be manipulated by an Epsilon but it was apparent there were avenues that she hadn’t truly delved into just yet. A whole plethorea of untapped potential.
“Why?” Cassidy asked, watching as they pinpointed information on the screens in front of her. What did it matter that they tracked freshly triggered people? To Cassidy’s knowledge, they needed people who already picked their Origin and people that seemed to already know what they were doing magically.
“Because, stopping someone from ever believing the bullshit that the Exodus feeds them is easier than trying to sway them. It keeps them from needing to rip themselves away from their Origin, there’s a lot of elements that we’d like to try to avoid,” Geneva said, crossing her arms over her chest. Cassidy had to hand it to her, it honestly sounded as if she cared about someone other than herself.
“I know, it’s hard to imagine her having a heart,” Sebastian teased and the green lightning spark left Geneva’s hand and absorbed itself into Sebastian’s shoulder, getting a yelp of pain from the man for a brief second before clearing his voice and rubbing the spot that was now throbbing. Cassidy couldn’t help the snicker that left her lips, moving closer to the screen and watching as the person became clearer as the information rolled in. The person on the screen had their entire social media and medical history pulled. It appeared that she was nineteen, brown eyes, dark hair with a rather interesting police history which seemed to lead to her death. Most of her police rap looked to be domestic violence, although the photos that were associated showed injuries on both sides. And, her cause of triggering appeared to be asphyxiation due to being strangled. The medical team was there quick enough to resuscitate her and trigger her abilities.
“We’ve got about ten minutes until Exodus gets to her. Sebastian, take the newbie with you, see if she can be persuasive enough out in the field to reel her in,” Geneva said, pointing to Cass which caused her to shrug. Seba
stian looked like he wanted to question being the one going out to grab someone new, especially when he was being so pushed magically, lately, but obliged without much backtalk and led Cassidy down the hall towards the rotunda room once again.
“You know, someone else can take me? Caleb or Joseph or someone else, you don’t have to go,” she said gently, trying to build some semblance of a relationship with the man. He seemed to be broken enough to be the in she needed to get closer to the League. Working an inside angle would only go so far unless she had someone who believed in her.
“It can’t be someone else but, thanks for the suggestion,” he said with a small grin, reaching his arm out to her and tugging her close which caused the blood to pool in Cassidy’s cheeks. She pushed back to widen the gap and Sebastian just laughed, licking his lips. “I need you to be close to teleport. It’s sort of the point,” he said in a teasing tone and Cassidy narrowed her eyes, shaking her head.
“So maybe next time lead with that instead of just getting grabby,” she muttered, moving to close the space once more.
“Duly noted,” Sebastian said, laughing as the red Chi magic spread across his skin and wrapped the two of them up, moving to the outskirts of the hospital within a blink of an eye. Cassidy’s breath caught in her throat, forcing her to lean against Sebastian as the magic started to fade away. “You alright?” Sebastian asked, taking a step and looking her over before Cassidy opened her eyes and nodded.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m alright. Just a little dizzy, I guess,” she said softly, glancing over his shoulder towards the hospital and taking another shaky breath. “Time to go convince someone who just died that her entire life has changed,” she laughed, squeezing his arm and pulling him towards the hospital, Sebastian falling into step next to her.
Epsilon Page 12
