by Holly Hook
I took a breath.
Would the shocks and revelations ever end?
"Help her!" Alonso shouted.
Evil or not, I had to hear more. I had to know the truth.
Leaning down, I seized the trees, and I could feel why Maria was having trouble. One was hooked under a marble shelf, and I strained as I lifted, but the trunk snapped, allowing me to pull the rest free. Dominique squeezed her eyes shut at the sound, but pushed herself up, holding up a hand to Alonso. She was perfectly capable, thank you very much.
Another round of howls rose, and as Dominique stood, dark shapes danced behind Cal, Celestus, and Wendy, who stood gathered in the doorway. Wendy whirled and lifted her sword, but didn't attack. "Stay back!"
"Do not attack," Alonso ordered the wolves.
"We have a truce," Prometheus shouted.
They climbed into what was left of the Temple, Wendy with her dreaded sword raised. But was it at me or the werewolves outside?
Everyone was here but Ronin.
He was just as broken as me.
"We must go to Cursed Academy," Dominique said. "It is time to rally the troops."
Prometheus nodded. "Giselle, you will be a major help. We need you."
My stomach turned. I could still feel disgust. If I closed my eyes, I knew, I could pretend that I was still mortal. Somewhat ordinary. But how long would that feeling last?
"You can't get into Cursed Academy," Wendy said as a faint feeling of dread washed over the remains of the Temple. "Zeus's barrier will stop you. And Hades will keep his up as well."
She didn't know about the dark god's fate yet. I looked to Mikey, Maria, and Cal, but saw no recognition on their faces, either. Only Natalia, who stood against the wall with blood soaking the sleeve of her lavender robe, shook her head at me. The time to talk about that wasn't now.
She had encouraged me to fight.
To take this path.
Why?
I'd just lost everything. Ronin. My own fate. Even my friends.
Wolves plodded around outside, but didn't attack. Dominique eyed me but made no move to order anything. The power balance had changed. She couldn't hurt me. But I could hurt her. That, plus the fact that Ronin was gone, was the only reason my friends were still alive.
Ronin was gone.
A painful lump formed in my throat. I could still feel sadness. Regret. One thing hadn't changed. I held onto that as I stared down Dominique, who held her ground among all the fallen branches. Alonso remained right behind her, working his cheeks like he was trying to figure out what to say.
"You won't be rallying any troops," I blurted. I should destroy her and Alonso right now, but just like Zeus, Dominique had used her words to stop me, to wound me, to pull the ground out from under my feet.
Maria and Mikey snapped their attention to me. Mikey's jaw dropped. "Giselle. You're still Giselle?"
No one said a thing for what felt like eternity. I eyed my arm again, willing the horror to go away. If that was how my arm looked, what did that spell for the rest of my body?
I was Giselle, trapped in a body I didn't know anymore.
"Our intent was never to harm those downtrodden by the gods. You can help us get through Zeus's barrier," Dominique said.
"Then why did you almost have Wendy and her friends killed one night?" I advanced, and Dominique took a step back. But no satisfaction rose in me. I should kill the whole Lower Order right now. All I had to do was grab my weapon. Maybe I didn't even need it.
"We must protect our movement. We're the only hope!" The witch collected herself and leaned in, locking me in her gaze. "You fight evil without evil."
"Giselle," Prometheus said.
I faced him. "What?" I was about to lose it in front of everyone.
"You...you can change your appearance, and I'll explain how once we get into the school. But I'm sure you can tear a hole in Zeus's barrier now. The Oath does not constrain you."
He was dangling what I wanted in front of me like bait: the ability to hide this, to maybe even go back to Ronin. And for a moment, I wanted to snatch it. "You want me to let the Lower Order into the school?" I could never get used to the way my voice filled the walls of the Temple.
"I'm just telling you what you might be able to do," the titan said, raising his palms at me. "We need to move because Zeus will return. And Giselle, you need to put your own shield around Cursed Academy or he may turn on the students to get revenge on you. I'll guide you through this process." He backed to the doorway.
Dizziness stole over me.
I was--
Ronin still did not return.
He was convinced I was a monster. And maybe I was, as much as I felt like a scared girl. The darkness waited on the horizon for my use. Could it corrupt me and turn me bitter, as it had Hades?
Icy tears of anger gathered in the corners of my eyes.
"Would Zeus do that?" Maria blurted. "I don't understand what's happening. Giselle, what's going on?"
"Zeus is fond of punishment," Prometheus said. "Hurry. Now that he can't sway you, he won't hold back. The most dangerous part of this has started."
I didn't know who to blame for this or who I hated more. Worse, I didn't know who to trust.
"Giselle, move," Natalia pleaded, giving me a gentle push. "We're still with you. I told you to fight because Zeus revealed his true nature to me. I still see the good in you. All that's changed is your magic."
"Zeus does not have warm plans for humanity," Alonso said. "We've done terrible things, but it is for the greater good. And we need your help. Please." The warlock looked right at me, eyes pleading. "We can remove the gods' influence from the world. Maybe we can even stop people from turning into monsters."
I balked at him.
No trace of a lie appeared on Alonso's face. He maintained eye contact. And neither Maria nor Mikey refuted him.
"Are you serious?" I eyed Maria and Mikey, stepping over the fallen trees and stepping out into the night. Wolves parted and ran into the night at my presence. I whirled to face everyone still in the temple. "You have to promise me that you will not hurt any of the students or teachers at Cursed Academy or even Olympian. That includes descendants of Zeus."
"We promise," Alonso said with a nod. "We harm no students or teachers."
Dominique hesitated before a hardness came over her eyes. "We promise." Then she smiled, turning up her wrinkles. "But you need us. Trust me, you need us. There will be no taking down Zeus alone. Remember that. You'd hate to see your friends become monsters, correct?"
I held back a shudder.
Could they have a way to save my friends?
Because I could no longer fill that role. I needed the Lower Order.
I nodded. "Let's go. We'll talk about how much we can trust each other later."
END OF YEAR THREE AND A HALF
Thanks for reading Cursed Academy, Year Three and a Half! Year Four comes out mind-November! You can also follow me on Amazon to know when it releases!
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