by S. M. Boyce
Audrey levitated slightly, her toes hovering above the cobblestones as her hair whipped around her face. Victoria couldn't even see her friend’s eyes anymore—everything was lost in the brilliant white glow.
Sparks leapt from her skin and attacked the creature in front of her, and with every spark that landed the paralyzed creature screamed. Smoke began to rise from its skin, and the attacks from the sparks grew more frequent.
In a final violent blow, a bolt of white lightning shot from Audrey to the creature, striking it squarely in the face. It screamed, smoke billowing off it now, and fell to the ground with a lingering sigh.
But Audrey didn't stop.
Her head flew back, and the white glow began to recede. She still hovered above the ground, and her skin began to change. It took on a silver sheen, like scales. Her hair straightened and darkened until it was as black as night.
It was Audrey—her face, her hands, her nose—but also something else. It was as though something had taken over Audrey's body, Victoria wasn't about to let that something steal her friend from her.
“Let her go!" Victoria shouted, lifting her sword.
A hand grabbed her shoulder, and she nearly decapitated the person without looking. Fyrn stood behind her, one brow quirked as he watched Audrey float.
“Astonishing,” he said.
“What's happening to her? She looks possessed!”
Fyrn shook his head. “Quite the contrary. She's waking up.”
“What the fuck are you talking about? This is my friend, Fyrn! I need to know she's okay!”
“She'll be fine,” he said.
“So what’s—”
“It seems Audrey isn’t entirely human, Victoria. Your friend has been hiding something about her heritage from us. Time to find out what it is.”
Victoria gaped at Audrey as his words penetrated. She knew Audrey had been hiding something, but this was quite a secret to keep.
CHAPTER 9
When Audrey woke up, her head hurt like hell.
She groaned, pressing her hand to her face as she tried to get her bearings. The world spun around her, and she couldn't really see. Something soft was beneath her and she balled it in her palm, savoring the warm soothing touch of this foreign fabric.
The pounding in her head began to slow, and after a while she was able to open her eyes. Three faces stared down at her.
She yelped, caught off-guard. It took a moment to recognize Bertha, Fyrn, and Victoria. Audrey looked around to find that she was in her room, lying on top of her bed.
“Tell us exactly what happened. Everything you remember,” Fyrn said.
“What are you talking about? I don't even know what happened. Did we kill the creature?”
Victoria nodded, arms crossed. “It’s apparently called a ‘chezlewok,’ like that Berserk team we played the other day, and yes, you did. By yourself. With magic. Care to share with the class how you managed to do that?”
Audrey shrugged and stared at her hands, suppressing the desire to reach into her pocket and grab the crystal. “I'm not sure.”
Fyrn stared at her over the bridge of his nose. “Audrey, guessing games take time and patience, and I don't have either. If you don’t tell us everything right now, we can’t help you at all.”
Victoria took a step closer. “Every time we tried to get close to you the white light would flare up again. It looked like you might take us out the same way you took out the creature. In the end we had to let you burn out before we could bring you back here. You nearly took out an entire block of homes. We’re lucky no one was reported missing, and even luckier that you're not in jail right now. Both Fyrn and Bertha pulled some strings to keep you out of the dungeons, because right now people think you’re a menace. Yeah, you killed the creature, but as far as they're concerned you just took its place.”
“That's ridiculous!" Audrey said.
“I think so too, girl, but let's face the facts. You’ve been hiding something from me for a little while now. I had no idea you could use magic at all. It looks like you have the ability to use magic, but you haven't had the training, and that could be deadly. We saw you kill today. We’re just lucky you didn’t kill a citizen. Magic takes study and training to master, or you can hurt people. What the fuck were you thinking?”
Bertha wagged her finger near Audrey's nose. “We're lucky you didn't kill Victoria. She was by your side the whole time, trying to get you down.”
Audrey shoulders drooped, and she hugged her knees. “I'm sorry.”
“Then tell us everything,” Fyrn said again.
Audrey sighed and reached into her pocket to pull out the crystal. It glowed at her touch, and all three people in her room flinched at the light as it played on the wall. She set it on the bed, and the light disappeared as soon as her skin left the crystal surface.
“But that's... ” Victoria stared at the crystal with an expression of recognition.
Audrey nodded. “It's the crystal I put on the table the other night. I wanted to see how you reacted to it but didn't want you to know what it could do. I really wanted to study it, to understand it, but I still have no idea what this is. As far as I can tell, it only reacts to me.”
Victoria frowned, and Audrey couldn't suppress the guilt that rose up like vomit in her throat. She had treated her best friend like a case study, all without telling her the truth.
“Victoria, I'm sorry.”
Victoria looked away. “I know.”
Fyrn lifted the crystal, and it was almost as though the energy faded from it with his touch. It seemed to go dead and hollow, and Audrey suppressed the impulse to grab it out of his palm. The wizard stroked his beard as he studied the item. “This is Atlantean.”
Victoria scoffed. “As in Atlantis?”
Fyrn nodded.
“But that’s just a myth!” Bertha said.
Audrey’s mouth fell open. “Oh, shit.”
All three of her visitors stared at her.
She stammered, “T-the shopkeeper told me it was from Atlantis, but I thought he was full of it. You know, acting like a showman to make me think it’s more special than it is. But Atlantis is real?”
“Very.” Fyrn set the crystal back on the bed, and Audrey lifted it into her palm. Bertha and Victoria objected at once, both reaching for the crystal that had lit up with Audrey’s touch.
Victoria grabbed it and set it on the bed again. “Maybe you shouldn’t touch that until we know more about it. Let’s not blow up any more buildings today.”
Audrey chuckled. “Suit yourself.”
Fyrn stared at Audrey intently. “Do you understand what it means for an Atlantean object to react only to you?”
Audrey shrugged. “Not really. I’m human, same as Victoria. I don’t know why it likes me.”
“You’re part Atlantean, Audrey,” Fyrn said slowly.
Audrey just stared at him, not fully able to process what he was saying. It didn't make a lick of sense, especially given that Audrey had grown up a few doors from Victoria. Her parents had never said or done anything magical, much less owned a crystal. It wasn’t possible for her to have magic in her blood. “I think you're mistaken, Fyrn.”
“Far from it. Have you felt a change in yourself lately? Feelings of jealousy? Selfishness? Greed?”
Audrey sat up a little taller, stuttering as she protested without managing to get any of the words out. She glanced at Victoria and quickly looked away, once more shoving her emotions deep into her core.
Fyrn nodded. “This could've been much worse. Audrey, most people believe Atlantis is a lost civilization because Atlanteans want the public to believe that. The truth is, they simply don't want to be found. Atlanteans keep to themselves. There are two factions: those on Earth, and those in Oriceran. They have evolved over time to look starkly different, but they still respect each other all the same because to an Atlantean, other Atlanteans are superior than all other beings. There are very specific personality traits present in ne
arly every single member of their race.”
Jealousy. Selfishness. Greed. Audrey had become intimately familiar with each of them.
Fyrn began to pace the room. “You hid this from us, and that was the worst possible thing you could have done. You could have destroyed everything Victoria has built and done so far with a single action.”
“How on Earth could I—”
“If Fairhaven turned against you, what side would Victoria take?” Fyrn glared at Audrey, waiting for her to answer.
She didn’t.
“I’d take your side, Audrey, no matter what,” Victoria said softly.
Audrey sighed, disgusted with herself.
Fyrn nodded. “Audrey, it's evident that you have immense power within you. Unless you hone and train it, it's going to destroy not just others but you as well.”
“At least I'm a little special,” she snapped. As quickly as she spoke, she clapped her hand over her mouth and looked at Victoria.
To her credit, Victoria didn't look offended or hurt in any way. She looked sad. “Of course you're special, Audrey. You've always been special to me, dear. Priceless, and I'm sorry if I never let you know that.”
Audrey opened her mouth to respond, but she couldn't form any words. She didn’t know what to say. The anger and resentment still bubbled within her, churning in her chest like a deadly undertow in an ocean.
“Until we get this sorted out, there will be ground rules,” Fyrn said, stroking his chin.
Audrey narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Like what?”
“First of all, no Berserk games until this is dealt with.”
“Not fair! I—”
“This is not a discussion!" Fyrn's voice thundered through the room, impossibly loud.
Audrey sank back against the headboard, mouth shutting with an audible click.
“Secondly,” Fyrn continued, “you’ll need training, but I'm afraid I'm unfamiliar with Atlantean culture and magic. I haven't met enough of them in my life to be of much help to you. I knew of one back when I was in the Order of the Silver Griffins, but we don’t speak anymore. That means we’re going to need to find you a proper mentor, Audrey. I'm afraid there's not much I can teach you, at least to start. We have to find you someone who can teach you to control this magic, wield it, and direct it in a constructive way.”
“You mean—”
Fyrn nodded. “We must leave Fairhaven for a time and, by some miracle, find an Atlantean willing to train you.”
“But how?”
Fyrn squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the brim of his nose. “Don’t concern yourself with the ‘how.’ For now, just heal. Victoria and I will take care of this.”
Victoria perked up, eyebrow quirking as she studied the old wizard. He walked toward the door and gestured for her to join him, but she remained at the foot of the bed for a moment, gazing at Audrey.
“I’m with you, Audrey. To the end,” Victoria said softly before following Fyrn out the door.
Audrey tried to stand and follow, but her legs were like jelly. They screamed at her to lie down again, and she obeyed. She could only watch as her best friend retreated into the hallway to save her yet again.
“I’m sorry,” Audrey said, too softly for anyone to hear.
“There, there.” Bertha patted Audrey’s shoulder. It ached when the ogre’s heavy hand pressed down on the tender muscle.
“Ow!”
“I will mix up an herbal compress for you. Back in a few.” The ogre lumbered out of the room, and all was still and quiet.
Audrey stared at the crystal on the bedspread in front of her. She hadn’t told them about the soft voice urging her to be silent, but she assumed that was the greed. She stared at her hands, wondering what it even meant to be part Atlantean. If Fyrn was right—and honestly, she doubted his theory—Audrey was partly a magical creature from an ancient and mostly secretive civilization. It sounded impossible, and yet she could control a brand of magic no one else could use.
She was special.
Despite the destruction she had caused, Audrey smiled. She had a gift. She had an entire culture to discover. But most of all, she had power.
The memory of the sadness in Victoria’s eyes snapped Audrey out of her daze. She lay on the bed, exhausted and aching, wondering what on earth she had gotten herself—and Victoria—into.
CHAPTER 10
Victoria followed Fyrn closely as he led her down a dark alleyway in a seedy corner of Fairhaven. These streets reminded her of the first time Fyrn had come to her defense, all those weeks ago. An elf had attacked her in the street because he knew she was a Rhazdon host. Now that she had been exposed to the whole city as a Rhazdon host, she didn’t have to worry about being recognized. Still, the seedy back streets made Victoria nervous, and she couldn't wait to leave.
She wondered what on Earth she and Fyrn were there for.
“There is something you need to know,” Fyrn said, eyes scanning every alley they passed. So far they were alone, but Victoria had the feeling that wouldn't last.
“What is it?”
Fyrn hesitated. “I meant what I said about Atlanteans having specific personality traits. You need to be careful. Even though Audrey is your friend, the more she learns about her Atlantean heritage, the less like herself she will become. The more she reconnects with what she really is, the more careful you will need to be.”
Victoria shook her head. “You don’t know Audrey like I do. We’ve had disagreements and she’s said mean shit about me before, but we always get over it in the end. We always make up.”
“You don't understand,” Fyrn said. He paused, turning on his heel so that Victoria had no choice but look him dead in the eye. “Audrey doesn’t have control over this part of herself. The more Atlantean magic she touches, the more she will have to choose between being the person you know and surrendering herself to the Atlantean voice in her head. I haven't seen that many human hybrids of any race, much less Atlantean, but the magical side of them has always won in the end. This is bad news, Victoria. Very bad.”
It took a moment for Victoria to understand the expression on his face—deep concern. Maybe even fear. He was legitimately worried, and that shook Victoria's confidence, however slightly.
But in the end, this was Audrey. In middle school, Audrey had bitch-slapped the school’s Queen Bee at lunch to protect Victoria. In high school, she had pantsed a jock who had publicly shamed Victoria for having a crush on him. No one had dared fuck with Victoria, because in the end they hadn’t dared fuck with Audrey.
When push came to shove, Audrey always chose Victoria. Audrey would never let her down.
When Victoria didn't respond, Fyrn mumbled something unintelligible and started searching the alleyways again. They passed a few crumbling brick ruins with boarded-up doors before Fyrn knocked his walking stick against a door with an ogre's head painted on it.
The ogre’s head came to life, pivoting on an invisible neck to scan the empty street. It finally settled its gaze on Fyrn. “What's the password?”
Fyrn groaned and rubbed his face, cussing silently to himself.
“The password!" the ogre’s head shouted.
“I’m a tense bastard and need to lighten up,” Fyrn said through gritted teeth.
The ogre's head chuckled, bouncing a bit as it flashed a rotting smile. “Yeah, you do. Enter, Fyrn.”
“Idiot thinks he's a damn comedian,” Fyrn muttered under his breath. The door swung open, and he gestured for Victoria to follow him.
Somehow it was it even darker inside the building than on the gloomy streets. The only light came from a few glowing lamps in the corners, which cast a dim glow over a floor littered with stained red and gold pillows. Every now and then she saw a body lying among the cushions, immobile and silent. Horrified, Victoria squinted to get a better look, but they were thankfully breathing.
The longer she looked, the more sprawled bodies she saw. A couple of beautiful elvish women stroked the hair of
a man lying across their laps, his eyes glazed as he stared at the ceiling. If Victoria didn't know better she would think they were all high, but there weren't any hookahs or needles in sight.
“What is this place?" Victoria whispered to Fyrn.
Fyrn cast a weary glance at the person lying closest to him. “In Fairhaven, we don't have heroin or cocaine. We have something deadlier.”
