“I know that,” I said, because I did. “And you’re always going to be the one for me. But Sarah’s right.”
The older woman crossed her arms and grinned. “I usually am,” she said.
I rolled my eyes at her, and refocused on Noah. “I love you,” I said. “And even though I’m worried about tomorrow, I do believe I can do this. But in the chance that I don’t make it, I want you to be able to find love again.” He moved his mouth to speak, but I continued before he could. “And what if Sarah’s right, and mating changes me into something not human?” I asked. “I’ve worked so hard for all these months. So many people are counting on me to pass these Trials. It would be selfish of us to do anything to risk that from happening.”
Noah’s eyes flared with a range of emotions. But because of his silence, I could tell he was coming around to seeing the point.
“Fine,” he said after a few tense seconds. “But we’re mating after you pass those Trials and become a Nephilim.”
“Deal.” Heat rushed through my body as I stared longingly into his eyes.
“And you’re sleeping here tonight.”
Sarah inched out of the room so she stood in the doorway again. “Now that I’ve helped the two of you come to your senses, I’m seeing myself out,” she said, looking at us in amusement. “Your sleeping arrangements are none of my business. And Raven? Go kick ass in those Trials tomorrow. We’re all rooting for you.”
“Thanks.” I gave her a small smile before she left and closed the door, leaving Noah and me alone again.
I turned my gaze up to meet his and bit my lip. “Are you sure sleeping in the same room is a smart idea?” I asked, glancing at both of our nearly naked bodies.
Yes, we’d slept in the same bed before. But we’d never let things get so heated between us. Now that we had—now that I’d finally let myself want him instead of forcing myself to hold back my desire—I wasn’t sure I could return to the way things had always been before tonight.
Plus, Darra would throw a fit if I didn’t sleep in the manor house with the rest of the students.
“You might not be able to control yourself around me, but I’m more than practiced in controlling myself around you.” He smirked, some of his shaggy brown hair falling over his forehead. “And if you want to do your best in the Trials tomorrow, you need sleep. You were so busy thinking about me that you weren’t getting any sleep in your room at the academy. There’s only one way to fix that. You sleep here, with me.”
I stared at him, knowing he’d won me over before he was done speaking. “You’re impossible to resist,” I said. “You know that?”
“Of course I know that.” He smirked again, as confident as ever. Then he found our pajamas strewn across the bed and floor, and handed me mine. “But since we’ll just be sleeping, you need to put these back on,” he said. “It’s best not to tempt the wolf.”
“Wolves aren’t the only ones who can be tempted.” I allowed my eyes to roam across his perfectly tan, fit body, even though I knew I was only torturing myself further by doing so.
My self-imposed torture unfortunately didn’t last long, because he put his pajamas back on, and I did the same.
“Good night, Raven,” he said, pulling me under the covers with him and snuggling me into his body. We fit together perfectly—like we were made for each other. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” I repeated, and then in his arms, I finally fell asleep.
4
Raven
Noah walked me back to the manor house the next morning, waiting in the hall as I freshened up and changed into my black academy jumpsuit.
I stared at myself in the mirror before leaving. I was the same person I’d been when I’d arrived here, but also not. Toned muscles lined my body where it had been soft before, and I was more confident than ever. After a rocky first few days, the people of Avalon had accepted me and I’d quickly found my place here. In the past three months, this island had become my home.
I couldn’t wait to bring my mom and Sage here. They’d love it just as much as I did.
I also couldn’t stop myself from thinking that this was what I would be wearing when I either became the first human to drink from the Holy Grail and become a Nephilim, or when I died. Hopefully the former.
Anxiety and excitement shot through my body. It seemed like just yesterday that I’d first stepped foot in the academy. Now that the Big Day was finally here, I felt ready, but also not. I didn’t think this was the sort of thing anyone ever felt fully prepared for.
Not wanting to get caught in a loop of worrying about how the day would pan out, I rejoined Noah outside. He took my hand in his, sending confidence through the imprint bond that helped calm down my nerves. I gave him a nod of thanks, and together, we walked down the steps and into the dining hall.
Darra stared us down like a hawk as we entered. “Sleep well last night?” she asked as we took our normal seats by the far window.
“Very well, thank you,” I said as I poured myself a glass of Holy Water. “You?”
“Same.” From the way she was looking at Noah and me, I could tell she knew exactly where I’d been last night.
Luckily, she didn’t say a word about it as we ate breakfast. And unlike the night before, people were giving me my space again. It was like they could feel the nervousness buzzing from my skin, and were afraid of getting too close.
After breakfast, we left the manor house and were greeted by our unicorns and wyverns, as always. But unlike always, our magical creatures didn’t take us to our training grounds.
Today, they took us to the arena where I’d compete in the next Trial.
The obstacle course looked like something straight out of that Ninja Warrior television show. I’d seen the course many times, since I’d been practicing on it. It was built entirely on top of a lake, so the water could cushion any falls. During practices—especially in the early weeks—I’d fallen into that water more times than I cared to admit.
The obstacle course didn’t intimidate me anymore.
The bleachers packed with every citizen of Avalon, on the other hand, did.
Annar trotted us over to the designated “waiting area”—a space resembling a dugout outside the arena. The Earth Angel Annika was already there when Noah, Darra, and I arrived. Another glance at the arena showed me that her fiancé Jacen was already seated in the center box, along with the three mages Dahlia, Violet, and Iris. The mages wore bright colored, floor-length gowns, as always. They weren’t the types to blend into a crowd.
Annika wore simple jeans with a green blouse, and she looked bright and confident as she watched us approach. I’d been so busy training over the past three months that I hadn’t been able to spend much time with her. But she looked so much happier than she had the day I’d met her, when she’d been depressed and hiding away in her room.
I suspected that had to do with me—well, with her faith that I’d be the first human to survive drinking from the Holy Grail.
I couldn’t let her down.
“Raven.” She smiled at me when I stepped into the dugout. “How are you feeling?”
“Ready.” I hoped that the more I said it, the more it would become true. But as I glanced at the crowd again, my stomach swirled with those annoying nerves.
How had this day come so quickly?
Darra followed my gaze out to the crowd. “Remember—the onlookers are the only thing different about today,” she said. “You’ve successfully completed this course in practice ten times now. You’ve got this.”
“I know.” Her words helped, but only slightly. I didn’t think I’d feel better until I finished the course, drank from the Grail, and learned my fate once and for all.
“Pretend they’re not there,” Noah said. “And if it becomes too hard, look for me. I’ll be following along on the sideline, with you the entire way.”
“As will I,” Darra added.
I took a deep breath, imagining it calming me
down as it made its way through my body. “Thanks, guys,” I said. “I needed that.”
Annika watched us all talking, although she was mostly focused on me. “I don’t imagine you want to put this off any longer,” she said, and I nodded, since it was like she was reading my mind. “Very well.” She smiled. “Good luck, and I’ll see you at the final platform.”
She flashed out, teleporting herself onto the final platform—the one where I’d drink from the Grail.
And then, with Noah on one side and Darra on the other, I raised my chin high and walked to the start of the obstacle course.
5
Raven
As I stepped up to the first platform, the crowd erupted into applause. The clapping and yelling thundered in my mind. It was like a physical thing, adding pressure that hadn’t been there before. I felt like I was drowning in it.
But then I looked to Noah, who was standing where he said he’d be on the sideline with Darra, and the pressure released. I could breathe again.
I glanced over the crowd once more, refusing to let the fact that they were there to interfere with my performance. I could do this. I’d already proven it to myself ten times.
But it was different to prove it in front of others.
When I looked at the main central box again, I saw that Thomas had joined Jacen and the mages. He was seated next to Jacen, and in his formal suit and stiff posture, he looked as intense as ever. I knew why. Sage’s future rested on what happened to me after I drank from the Grail. If I couldn’t become Nephilim, she could be lost to him forever.
Determination burst through me. I needed to succeed. I refused to let down the people I loved.
I glanced at Annika to begin, and the Earth Angel raised her arms, silencing the crowd. Her golden eyes shined under the light of the sun, and she looked every bit an angel.
“Welcome to Raven Danvers’s second Trial.” Either the acoustics of the arena carried Annika’s voice through the entire space, or she was using magic to amplify it. “Raven will have fifteen minutes to complete all of the obstacles in the course. If she succeeds, she’ll immediately progress to the third Trial—drinking from the Holy Grail to transform her blood from that of a human to that of a Nephilim. If her body accepts the transition, she’ll move onto the final Trial to ignite her powers.” She glanced to me, gave me a nod of confidence, and turned to face the mages. “Now… it’s time to begin.”
On her cue, the mages all stepped forward to stand at the front of the main box and raised their hands to the sky. Colorful streams of magic burst out of each of their palms. Red from Dahlia’s, purple from Violet’s, and green from Iris’s. Their magic matched the colors of the dresses they always wore. The magic swirled together above the obstacle course, coming together to form a giant, luminescent timer in the sky.
It reminded me of the magical timers from the simulation during King Arthur’s challenges.
The fifteen minutes started counting down, and I was off.
Darra’s training immediately kicked into gear. Don’t pay attention to the timer. Don’t pay attention to the crowd. The obstacle I was trying to complete was all that mattered.
The first obstacle was the boulder run. I’d completed it the first time I’d done this course, and back then it had been challenging. Now it was a breeze. I jumped from boulder to boulder, arriving at the next platform like I’d been born for this.
Next was the log drop. This had been where I’d fallen into the water the first time I’d tried completing the course. But back then, I’d had no training.
Now, I held tightly onto the log as it slid down the zip line, prepared for both times when it suddenly dropped in an attempt to knock me off. I held on firmly, landing on the opposing platform with ease. I didn’t pause before running toward the next obstacle—the floor that rotated under my feet—and zipped across it without stumbling or falling off.
The first three obstacles were down, and faster than ever. I had this.
Next was the big swing that launched me into a roped net, which I needed to climb down toward the next platform. This was one of my favorites during practices. I’d always loved swings.
I jumped up onto the swing, using my bodyweight to gain momentum. I swung once, twice, three times. On the fourth time, I launched myself onto the netted ropes.
As I was flying through the air, someone in the crowd screamed, “You’re running to your death!”
My breath caught in my chest. Time froze around me. I stopped thinking for a second—and that one second was enough that my right hand slipped off of the line of rope I was aiming for, my feet missing it entirely.
I was supposed to have landed on the rope holding onto it with both my hands and feet. Now I dangled from it with only my non-dominant hand. I was slipping by the second.
If I fell into the water below, the Trial would be over.
I refused to let one jerk in the crowd mess this up for me. So, using the strong muscle I now had in my body thanks to weeks of training, I swung my body forward and got myself situated firmly in the rope net. I began the climb down, keeping my hands and feet gripped firmly as I got closer and closer to the next platform.
Once I was close enough, I jumped onto the platform, landing solidly on my feet.
I took a breath to compose myself, and glanced to where Noah and Darra were following my path on the sideline.
Noah clapped, staring up at me with fire in his eyes. “You can do this!” he said.
I nodded in acknowledgment. Because he was right. I could do this.
It didn’t matter what a jerk in the crowd thought. I’d complete this course, and then I’d become the first human to drink from the Grail and survive.
I couldn’t wait to prove my doubters and haters wrong.
From that point forward, I attacked every obstacle just like Darra had taught me in training. I drowned out the crowd—well, I drowned out everything but Noah and Darra’s encouragement.
Pride shined in their eyes with every obstacle I completed. I was so lucky to have them in my life. I wasn’t going to let a day go by without telling them that.
When I reached the warped wall—a nearly vertical wall about three times my height—I stared up at it, focusing and preparing. This was the second hardest obstacle in the course.
Which was exactly why Darra had trained me with it extensively. I’d done my fair share of falling on my face with this one, especially in the early weeks. I definitely didn’t want to do that in front of the crowd, even though I could technically keep trying until the timer ran out. I wanted to get it on my first try. The key was not to get intimidated, so my mind wouldn’t hold me back.
I rocked back and forth on my heels a few times, and then ran up at it in full force. My momentum carried me far up enough that I was able to grip the flat top of the wall and pull myself up. Those torturous pull-ups I’d been forced to do at the gym were really coming in handy now.
The crowd went crazy when I pulled myself up onto the top platform, successfully completing the warped wall. But I didn’t pause to congratulate myself. Because there were more obstacles ahead, and none of what I’d done so far mattered if I didn’t finish those in time.
As I continued on and got closer to the final, most difficult obstacle of the course, the crowd clapped louder and louder. There were no more discouraging comments—or at least, there were so many encouraging ones that they drowned out anything else. And anyway, I focused on Noah and Darra’s cheers. Those were the ones that mattered the most.
After swinging and leaping from poles like Tarzan, I reached the final obstacle of the course. The spider climb. A tall, chimney-like structure with the front wall missing.
All I had left was to jump inside and scale it up to reach the top platform where Annika was waiting.
When Darra had first demonstrated the course to me, she’d made every obstacle look easy, including this one. And sure, the course was easy—for a vampire. Not so much for a human.
I st
ared at the spider-climb and pressed my hands together, preparing myself. Once I started, I couldn’t stop or I’d risk losing energy and momentum. Like the other obstacles, I just had to go for it.
I glanced at Noah and Darra, and both of them stared back at me confidently. I could feel their thoughts in their heavy stares. They knew I could do this.
Physically, they were right. I could do it—I’d done it before in practices. Mentally was a different story. Because this wasn’t a practice session.
Now the Holy Grail, AKA my possible death, waited for me at that final platform.
Terror rushed my veins at the thought. But then I saw Thomas in the box again, noticing the steady way he was watching on me, depending on me. The weight of responsibility pressed on my chest. Because my mom’s life, Sage’s life, and countless other lives… they all depended on these next few moments.
I refused to forget that.
I also didn’t come this far to wimp out now.
And so, I braced myself at the bottom of the vertical space, positioning myself so both my hands and feet were on the sides of the wall. Then I launched myself up to hold onto the area directly above. Again, and again, and again, and again. I launched myself ten times.
Before I knew it, I was at the top of the spider climb, pulling myself up to join Annika at the final platform where she waited with the Holy Grail.
6
Raven
The timer up above burst into fireworks the moment my feet hit the platform. The flairs of red, purple, and green magic lit up the sky, celebrating my victory.
But all I could focus on was the Holy Grail.
The large, intricately designed chalice sat on a small table next to Annika. It was an intense shade of gold, so bright that the sunlight reflected off it strongly enough to nearly burn my eyes. It was beautiful, but in a scary, intimidating way.
The Angel Trials- The Complete Series Page 94
