Magical Seclusion

by Jaliza A. Burwell

  We got to the tent and a man sat on a stool inside, wrapping his hands. His hazel eyes snapped up as we approached, and he grinned.

  “Ami, I was wondering if you were showing up today.”

  “I had to pick this one up,” she said, pointing to me. “I never miss your fights. You know that.”

  They hugged, and he turned to me. He wanted to go in for a hug, but I nodded instead, so he mimicked. I could do the bro greeting when I wanted, and I didn’t need a dick to do it.

  Ami and Dion got into a debate about strategy, and I tuned them out, not really understanding much about fighting. All I knew was what the guys had taught me so far, which was how to fall, how to throw some basic punches, and how to not get my face pummeled. Any more than that and it went over my head.

  “Right, Laila?” Ami asked, turning to me.

  “Yup,” I said. She knew I wasn’t paying any attention at all.

  Her grin widened as she went back to talking to her cousin, and I continued to tune them out. A familiar figure caught my attention and I turned, focusing on the burly man moving through the crowd.

  “Alijah?” I said softly, and his shifter ears picked up his name. He turned and looked at me, the sun reflecting off his auburn hair. He changed directions, stalking right toward me with a scowl.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked.

  I raised an eyebrow. “I could ask you the same. I didn’t picture this being your kind of scene.”

  “I’m fighting tonight,” he said, surprising me.

  “Fight?” I asked. “The championship?”

  Alijah shook his head. “No, I don’t do matches often enough. I’m only here once a month and fight even less.” He glanced around briefly. “You shouldn’t be here.”

  “Oh?” I crossed my arms. “Why not?”

  “Because it’s dangerous here.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I’m with Ami, I’ll be fine. And besides, her cousin is pretty kick-ass, so we don’t need to worry.”

  Alijah sighed. “I’ll worry.” His eye blazed orange. “I’ll always worry when it comes to you.”

  I smiled and reached up, touching his dark skin. “Thank you,” I said.

  My touch seemed to relax him a bit, and the tension in his body lessened. He closed his eyes and mumbled something. When his eyes opened again, they were back to their orange color, no longer inching toward red from his heightened emotions. He’d managed to get himself under control.

  “So, you like fighting too?” I asked.

  “I’m a shifter, we all enjoy it. Our animals thrive on the violence. For some, it’s more so.”

  “You mean, for you, it’s more so?”

  He nodded and glanced around. “And I’m not here just for the chance to see blood.” His expression grew serious. “I like to keep an eye on the fights, keep it clean.”

  I snorted. There was no keeping this place clean. Alijah’s eyes narrowed and a flickering red flame entered his eyes. “Two years ago, a man decided to use one of the competitions here as an opportunity to sell drugs. The drug heightened the user’s senses and made them bloodthirsty, nearly feral. Fighters and spectators both got into the drugs. A brawl broke out. I was one of the enforcers who had to clean up the mess.”

  “You used to be an enforcer?” I asked.

  “For a short time,” he replied cryptically

  I mulled over that tidbit of information, making a mental note to add it to his file. I was beginning to realize that all those files I had were incomplete. Just like Elliot’s didn’t mention he’d been an orphan for a bit. At first, it had frustrated me, but it was kind of nice to learn about it from them, for them to open up to me about their pasts. It was like going on a scavenger hunt for information.

  “Come on, I’m in the second fight,” he said and reached for my hand, his touch sending light tingles up my arm as his energy danced across my skin. “I want to patrol before. I heard rumors.”

  I tugged him closer and smirked. “And I’m your ticket to blending?”

  “Maybe.” He led me into the crowd. I managed to send a wave toward Ami so she didn’t think she’d lost me. Once she disappeared from sight, I faced forward, focusing on Alijah’s back as he paved the way through all the people. He had an expansive frame, with wide shoulders. His back muscles rippled underneath his black shirt. My hand wanted to do its own thing and reach out to run along his body.

  Ah, screw it. I moved closer and touched his back. He stilled, turning his head just enough to stare at me. I smiled up at him and ran my hand up his spine. When I got to a spot just a hand’s width from his neck, he shivered, tilting his head up.

  “That’s a bad idea right now,” he said and stepped away so I could no longer touch him.

  Ouch. “Why?”

  “Because you put me on edge, and what you make me want to do to you, I can’t do in public. Come on, I want to get the best view before the fight starts.”

  He led me to the front, others moving out of the way.

  “Instead of watching, shouldn’t you be getting ready?” I asked. “You know, hopping in place, loosening up your muscles?”

  “I’m ready.” Alijah scanned the crowd and those around the ring.

  “Is there something going on that I’m not aware of?” I asked, growing sober now. Alijah was already a serious guy, and now he was more so.

  “No.”

  I nudged him with my shoulder. “Lie.”

  “Not here,” he said just as the crowd erupted into bloodthirsty excitement. The emcee climbed into the cage, calling the start of the fight. I winced as the noise overpowered my ears. Alijah didn’t flinch, and his ears should’ve been bleeding from the volume.

  The first match was Ami’s cousin against a mage. They were called to the stage, and everyone went wild again. While the championship was the fight for the night, this one was a close second. It was going to set the stage for the rest of the event, rile everyone up until they chanted for more, and then when the frenzy was at its peak, the main show would come out to finish them off.

  The first man entered the ring. He was about six feet and lean, with dark eyes. He moved around with deadly grace, prepared to release the violence built up inside of him. Mages were of the elements. They pulled on the magic around them and used sigils to focus that magic and help shape it to their needs. The man pulled off his sweater, showing off a toned chest.

  I stepped closer to the rope surrounding the cage. A faint glow came off his skin, and when I focused, I followed the light blue radiance, taking in the shape. I only knew the basics of sigils, just enough to get by if I saw them. I recognized the protection symbol on his chest, right over his heart. Along his spine was the hand and the eye, a symbol meant to focus him. I didn’t recognize the others on his skin, but there was no doubt that they would help him in the fight.

  I’d never seen a mage battle before.

  A mage and a bear. This fight was going to be intense.

  Alijah stayed by my side as I took a couple of steps to the side to get a better look at the fight. I felt the magic in the air drawing toward the cage as the mage collected it. This fight was going to be messy. The mage was already cooking up something big as the blue sigils on his skin intensified, blazing brighter.

  As the man loosened himself up, the emcee called for Dion, and for a moment, I thought my eardrums were going to explode from the swell of noise released from the crowd. It was obvious that Dion was the preferred fighter.

  I glanced at Alijah, wondering how he was in a fight. I’d never seen him fight before, not like this, with people egging him on, without backup, no one there to help him, but knowing he was a tiger shifter and taking in his large frame, I figured he’d be ruthless and calculating. I could see his calculating side as he sized up the two men, coming to a decision on who had the best chance of winning.

  The fight started soon after, the emcee booking it out of the cage with another man waiting to slam and shut it. A shimmer appeared around the cag
e the moment the lock clicked into place, the ward activated to ensure anything used in the cage stayed there.

  Dion eyed the mage critically as they did a slow circle. He moved like a stalker, light on his feet, all his focus on his opponent. He was ready. As a shifter, Dion was sensitive to energy, but not magic, if he could even sense it. So while the mage looked like he wasn’t doing much, that wasn’t the case at all.

  The man was rallying the magic around him for an attack. By Dion’s wary expression, he knew something was cooking, he just didn’t know what it was. Not wanting to give the mage more time, Dion went on the offensive in a flurry of movements. My eyes barely kept up with the punches and kicks Dion sent toward his opponent. The mage defended himself and yet his magic pull wasn’t disrupted. He had practice, a ton of practice, for his concentration not to break.

  I worried about Ami’s cousin.

  “He’ll be fine,” Alijah said. His focus was completely on the fight, eyes hard as he watched each move made, yet somehow he knew I was tense. For a moment, I wanted to be in his head, to see what he saw, to hear his thoughts. I didn’t have magic for that, so I turned back to the fight.

  Dion’s lip was bleeding, but other than that, he seemed fine. The mage looked out of breath, defending himself and pulling the magic to him was beginning to take its toll.

  “Soon,” I said. He was going to release his magic at any moment.

  Dion shifted into his massive bear form in a burst of energy at the exact same time that the mage released his spell. Some of his sigils burned bright as the magic released. The pressure against the wards around the cage built, and I swore the magic groaned trying to contain it all. It held, but barely.

  The bear was shoved backward, up against the cage, and landed hard on his side. The crowd went wild, screaming and yelling, asking for more, wanting blood. The bear rose up on all four legs and growled at his opponent. His eyes looked feral as he fell deeper into his animal, letting its instinct take over. Right now, Dion was very much more bear than human.

  The bear charged, cage shaking from his thudding weight, and the mage pushed out spells to create barriers. Dion crashed into each one and pushed through, none of them slowing him down much.

  When Dion was only a few feet away, the mage did a complicated hand gesture with fluidity and then pushed outward. A stream of water flew out of his palms and right into the bear. The bear growled and fought against the flow. Neither of them gave up, and both looked ready to pass out as they fought against the other.

  The ward groaned against the pressure. It wasn’t just magic building up on the other side. The energy was building too as Dion fought back.

  “Shit,” I whispered. The ward was ready to go at any moment now. The crowd didn’t seem to care as they pushed to get closer. Something needed to give soon or all that magic and energy was going to break through and explode. The two of them were cooking up a bomb inside the cage and didn’t even realize it.

  Alijah grabbed my arm and moved me back as people in black hoods came out of nowhere and surrounded the cage. They stood in a circle around the cage.

  “What?”

  “Don’t worry,” Alijah said and pulled me further back to put more space between us and the mysterious group of cloaked figures. They raised their hands and a low hum echoed through the air before another barrier rose.

  Not even ten seconds later, the original ward fell and crashed into the new barrier created by the group. The crowd went crazy as Dion shoved through the water and rammed into the mage, shoving him into the cage fencing. I winced. That had to have left a nice little crisscross pattern on the mage’s back.

  Suddenly, Dion flew up into the air and landed hard onto the ground thanks to some unseen force. That didn’t seem to faze him as he got back to his feet and roared. He charged and rammed into the mage again, his claws slashing. The mage barely avoided it.

  Another such hit made it past the mage’s defenses, and he went down.

  When the mage didn’t move, and the bear let out a roar, the bell rang, signaling the end.

  Dion’s fight fed the bloodthirst spreading through the crowd, setting the stage for a lot of violence for the rest of the night. The other contestants would fight even harder to try to get this type of reaction out of the crowd.

  The hooded figures released their barrier, carefully releasing all the built-up energy and magic. A group of four witches came forward, and while security worked to remove the mage and Dion shifted back to human, they built a new barrier around the cage.

  “My turn,” Alijah said, his eyes blazing nearly red. He was just as bloodthirsty as the crowd, craving the violence. He was going to get exactly what he wanted.

  Once everyone was set, the emcee went into the stage to call the next fight.

  “Today is a special treat, he only comes out every once in a while and we managed to snag him tonight. Let’s give a loud roar for Ripper!”

  The crowd paused for just a moment, as if the news needed to sink in, but once it did, the earth shook as they went even crazier. People shoved and crowded closer as Alijah scaled the cage within seconds. Since the barrier wasn’t live yet, I felt his energy flooding the place. I gaped, never expecting this reaction.

  This was a part of Alijah I knew nothing about.

  “You’re in for a treat,” Ami said, coming to my side.

  “He’s that good?” I asked.

  “If he wanted, he could be reigning champ, and I don’t think there are many out there who would be able to take him. Hell, the fucker gives me nightmares too. I’ve seen him fight for real. There’s a reason they call him Ripper.”

  The emcee was just able to be heard over the crowd when he announced Alijah’s opponent.

  Ajax.

  A lithe man appeared on stage, coming out of nowhere.

  “He’s new.” Ami frowned as she looked him over critically.

  Alijah eyed the man up and down, his expression blank, eyes cold. The man, Ajax, held a sneer on his face. He had dark hair, blue-ish with the help of the sun. Thin lips were shaped by a wide jaw, and his dark, nearly black eyes, blended in with his shadowed skin.

  “He’s from the south,” Dion said, coming to stand next to Ami. His eyes were ringed with exhaustion, and his skin had a sheen on it. He had exerted himself by shifting during the fight. The fact that he wasn’t passed out in a tent said a lot about his strength. “There’s a group of them going from city to city, touring the fighting scene. From what I heard about the group, for about every loss they have, they have five times the wins. This should be fun.”

  I moved closer to the roped off area, trying to get a better look at the opponent. There was a small hum of energy, and when I reached out with my magic, just a light brush, it snapped at me. The man’s eyes flickered to mine, and his smile turned even more predatory.

  Alijah snarled to get his attention back.

  “A shadowsmith,” I whispered. They were our worlds’ ninjas. Sneaky bastards and expert energy manipulators. There were only a handful of tribes of them left, most of them out in the wild. They were mercenaries, hired to do dirty work no one else wanted. I didn’t like that they were here.

  “Shit, are you sure?” Ami asked.

  I nodded. I met two of them in my last foster home. Both foster parents were not good people and hired them for different jobs. They came by once for payment, smelling of violence and death. I stayed out of sight, scared out of my mind. Their energy had been repressive and felt old to me.

  This guy had a similar feel.

  I wanted to jump into the cage and pull Alijah out. I wanted to throw my magic at the man and dissolve him into nothing but bone mash. Or maybe have him swallowed up by the earth. Maybe teleport him to an abandoned island to rot, forgotten.

  I did not want him fighting Alijah. All my instincts screamed to stop the fight.

  “He’ll be fine,” Ami said, but there was a slight shake in her voice. She didn’t sound so sure either. Shadowsmiths were people of
legends. They were nightmares who killed you in your sleep. It was said that if one had you in their sights, you were screwed. They were expert trackers and silent killers. You were dead before you even realized you were dead.

  Children in foster homes used them as ghost stories because we’d been told on multiple occasions that if we misbehaved, they’d come after us.

  “Do people die in these?” I asked.

  “Accidents happen, especially when you put two bloodthirsty creatures in the cage together. If pushed too far, there’s always the risk of losing control,” Dion answered.

  I frowned. That did not make me feel better. I knew Alijah was excited to be in there. He was looking to cause pain. I could feel his eagerness through the hum of his energy. The other guy, though… For all appearances, he looked bored, and I didn’t know him well enough to read him, but he wouldn’t be in there if he didn’t want to hurt someone too.

  I bit my lip, hating that I had to watch this. I really didn’t like violence. Curiosity always brought me here, but that was only when Ami asked. Otherwise, I avoided these fights. My hand curled into a fist, my magic preparing.

  A hand landed on my shoulder and I jumped.

  “Relax, Sparks,” Ami said and pointedly looked down at my hands. “If anyone can defeat a shadowsmith, it’s Alijah.”

  “And if he can’t?” I asked.

  “They aren’t impossible. They’re strong, but not impossible. Like I said, Alijah is right up there in terms of strength. Sheath your magic and believe in him.”

  Wanting to believe in Alijah, I gritted my teeth. I did, a little. But the thought of people I cared about in danger set my magic on edge. Doing something was better than sitting on my ass, but there was nothing for me to do. After forcing my shoulders to relax, my magic settled down, resolved to the fact that I had to watch. I didn’t really have a choice. If I wanted to stop this, I’d need to get through security and the ward.

  I studied my obstacles. If I planned it just right, it could be possible. Those hooded figures flashed through my mind. I wasn’t sure what they were, I just knew they weren’t witches or mages. They didn’t feel like it. If things went to shit, no doubt they’d come out of nowhere and join the fray too. Not knowing who they were, I wouldn’t be able to do anything against them.