Under the Burning Stars

by Carrigan Richards

  “Ava, I’m really sorry for earlier.”

  She turned and their eyes met.

  “I wasn’t myself and I took it out on you. That wasn’t right.”

  “What was the matter?”

  He shook his head. “It’s nothing. I just wanted to apologize for being a jerk.”

  “Thanks,” she said but still felt cautious of him. She sat next to Jeremy and Gabriel walked past and took his usual chair by the fireplace.

  “I learned so much today,” Jeremy said. “Learning to control my powers more to affect one person or two at a time. It’s so amazing.”

  “Who was your teacher?” Ava asked.

  “Joss. She seems shy at first, but when she starts flicking her fingers together, she creates a current of electricity. It’s fascinating. She shocked me a few times. But I got her good.”

  “Wow. She told us at dinner that you were very strong.”

  “Cool.” Jeremy smiled.

  “You seemed to have made a friend today,” Link said. “Was Natalia upset?”

  “Probably.”

  “Does she not like you?”

  “Seems like it.”

  “She doesn’t hate you,” Gabriel interrupted. “She’s a little adverse to young witches.”

  “Didn’t she used to be one herself?” Jeremy asked.

  “She did. But it doesn’t matter to her.”

  They were quiet for a moment.

  Link sighed. “I can’t believe we didn’t get any answers at the Cruciari. What a wasted trip.”

  “What exactly are you wanting to know?” Jeremy asked.

  “Someone’s behind this. Devon wasn’t a mastermind.”

  “Maybe. He definitely wasn’t smart enough to get what he wanted. He failed miserably.”

  “That’s just it. Why would he go through such an elaborate plan and then screw it up in the end?”

  Jeremy removed his glasses, cleaned them with the hem of his shirt, and then replaced them. “Maybe he got too impatient and greedy.”

  “I don’t know. I just remember bits and pieces of my capture but I remember them mentioning Havok. I think. Was Devon ‘Havok’?”

  “Trudy mentioned his name,” Ava said. “Maybe that’s what Devon called himself.”

  A few minutes of silenced passed and Ava could feel Gabriel’s eyes on her. She didn’t know what to make of his weird mood change.

  Joss bounced into the room with a bright smile on her face. “There you are, Gabe.” Her dark hair was pulled back into a ponytail and swayed as she walked. Her caramel skin seemed to glow under the dim lights of the library and the scars and rash were gone from her face. “I should’ve known.”

  “Should’ve known what?” Gabriel smiled as Joss joined them at the table.

  “That you’d be in here. I swear, every time we’re here we can’t ever get you out of the library. How many times have you read these books?”

  “Just twice.” He winked. “Maybe more.”

  “What are you all talking about?”

  “Cimmerians.”

  “Oh.”

  Link caught Ava’s eyes. “Do you think it was Cimmerians who burned Thomas’s house?”

  “I have my suspicions,” she said, careful with her words since she didn’t want Gabriel or Joss to take them back to Savina or Aaron. “What if the Elders are right? But what if the Cimmerians controlled the Ephemerals?”

  “That’s possible,” Jeremy said.

  Link aimlessly fanned the pages of his book. “Like we were?”

  “No, not Halflings. Just being controlled by them.”

  “What do you think, Gabriel?” Link asked.

  Gabriel looked up from his book and closed it. “I’m not sure. It could be any number of things.”

  “Maybe Ava’s right,” Joss said. “Maybe they are controlled by Cimmerians. Or maybe it was Hunters.”

  A crease appeared between Link’s eyebrows. “Hunters?”

  “They hunt and kill Enchanters.” Gabriel moved and sat across from Ava. “Cimmerian or not. But there haven’t been any in ages.”

  Joss shrugged. “Maybe with everything that’s happened in the last few years, they’re coming back.”

  “Coming back? Did they just disappear for a while?”

  Gabriel nodded. “Once Corbin died, there was peace. So, the witch-hunts ceased. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had returned.”

  Ava ran her hand through her hair. Not only did she have to worry about Cimmerians and Ephemerals, now there were Hunters to worry about too.

  Gabriel placed his hand on top of hers. “Take a deep breath. I promise you will be fine.”

  Ava inhaled deeply and exhaled, and then removed her hand from underneath Gabriel’s. “How can we find out about the Hunters? I mean, do you think Drew and his friends are actual Hunters?”

  “We can find out.”

  “Like spy on them?” Link asked.

  “Sure.”

  “Good idea,” Ava said. “When should we start?”

  “Gabriel and I will.”

  “Why not us?” Ava asked.

  “They’ve never seen us before so we’re unassuming.” Joss winked. “Besides, don’t you all have to start back to school soon?”

  Link sighed. “Next week. But why bother.”

  “Savina will make you go. She believes in normalcy and wants everyone to experience things.”

  Ava let out a laugh. “There’s nothing normal about us or our situation. If we go back to school we will be at the forefront of bullying and attacks and who knows what.”

  “Especially after what I did,” Link said.

  Joss frowned. “Too bad Savina can’t erase all of their minds.”

  Gabriel raised his eyebrows. “Joss! Did you really just say that?”

  She shrugged. “What? Just trying to help them out.”

  Link shook his head. “It’s okay. I’m definitely not going back. I’ll homeschool myself.”

  “Not a bad idea,” Ava said.

  “There comes a time when you can’t be afraid,” Gabriel said. “Let them think what they want. So what if they bully you. You’re all strong. Mentally and physically.” He was speaking to the group, but his eyes trained on Ava.

  “You aren’t the one who bombed a school and killed twelve people.”

  “You’re right. I’m not. But I’ve done things in my past that I’m not proud of and some I had no control over.”

  Jeremy pushed his glasses up on the bridge of his nose. “We’re supposed to be protecting them and yet here we are having to protect ourselves from them.”

  “Not all of them,” Joss said. “Gabe’s right though. Don’t be afraid. None of you is responsible for that bombing. There is no proof. They’re just looking for someone to blame. I think we can all understand that.”

  Both of them were right. They had nothing to fear. Besides. Ava had to get back to trying to find out who killed her mom. She would ignore the humans and keep to herself. Maybe she could do a little spying on her own as well.

  “Have either of you been at war with Cimmerians before?” Link asked.

  “Yeah,” Joss and Gabriel replied simultaneously.

  Ava locked eyes with Link and then Jeremy.

  “So what happened?” he asked.

  “We were trying to stop Corbin from creating a war with the humans,” Gabriel said. “We unfortunately lost a few members from the battle. Corbin knew us better than we knew him. They defeated us. Some of us weren’t ready for the fight. They put images in our heads, morphed into other people, manipulated us, shot objects from nowhere at us. This was also several years ago. Probably eighty years or so.”

  Link shook his head. “So Corbin was trying to obliterate the entire Ephemeral race and anyone who got in the way?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Okay, so what about people like my mom?” Ava asked. “Were there revolutionists or what?”

  He frowned. “I don’t know.”

  “What about Ca
prington?” Link asked.

  “What about it?”

  “What happened there? All I know is that the village people thought Corbin was this upstanding guy, and thought the same of Savina and Colden. His sister Veronica randomly visits and then she and Corbin goes to Caprington. Corbin returns home and decides to unleash hell among the citizens.”

  “No one knows what happened in Caprington,” Joss said. “Except that Veronica killed her husband because he was a Hunter. He knew he was getting involved with an entire family of Enchanters and wanted to kill them all.”

  “But they had a child,” Ava said.

  “It was part of the ruse.”

  “And no one knows what made Corbin snap?”

  “Savina and Colden don’t even know.”

  “Do you think it was a Hunter that killed your mom?” Link asked Ava.

  No one knew what happened between Ava and the blond Cimmerian at the Cruciari except her and Gabriel. “She was a Cimmerian. And I think she killed her to get revenge or because my mom betrayed someone.”

  “How do you know that?”

  Ava waved her hand. She didn’t want to talk about her encounter with the Cimmerian. Or her dreams and Marcel. “Did Corbin ever try and take any of you?”

  Gabriel looked away. “Maggie and Kira. Kira has a very strong venomous power. If Corbin had that, he could have easily killed someone without anyone knowing.”

  Link furrowed his eyebrows. “But he had a similar power.”

  “Kira’s is almost instantaneous, whereas his took days or weeks to take effect. He wanted everything. He wanted the most powerful army so he could treat the Ephemerals, the way they treated him, supposedly. But according to Savina and Colden the Ephemerals never did any harm. Since he died, there have been Cimmerians who try to start wars, but none of them were as powerful as Corbin.”

  “Like Devon,” Link said.

  “What made Corbin so much more powerful other than his age?” Jeremy asked. “Was it the abundance of followers?”

  “That and he was very good at tactics. In the beginning, Savina was rather…” Gabriel seemed to hesitate. “Naïve and not very strong.”

  “And now the Cimmerians know there is a coven of Elemental Enchanters that are on Savina’s side,” Ava said. “If Corbin was so desperate to create an unstoppable army, who’s to say there aren’t other Cimmerians out there trying to do the same? What if there is a growing army forming at Caprington? Maybe Devon was just a test.”

  “The Elders would know if there was an army forming in Caprington,” Joss said.

  “Would they?”

  “Of course.”

  “I don’t know. I just think they’re hiding a lot from us.”

  Joss raised an eyebrow. “I’m not sure what they could be hiding. There’s just a lot going on right now and they’re just as lost as us.”

  The room went quiet and Ava guessed everyone was lost in their own thoughts. She certainly didn’t see how Gabriel and Joss could think the Elders weren’t hiding things. They had to know about her mother. Someone had to know. Maybe she could find Marcel and talk to him. But the thought of being around him made her shiver.

  “Who’s the strongest witch you ever faced?” Link asked after a few minutes.

  “For me, it’s anyone who can control water.” Joss winked at Ava. “But I haven’t known too many others than you and your mom.”

  “Sorcha,” Gabriel replied as his lips set in a hard line.

  Ava exchanged looks with Joss, who only frowned.

  “What can she do?” Jeremy asked.

  A muscle twitched in Gabriel’s jaw. “She can cast a sleep spell over someone and severely weaken them. It’s the worst feeling in the world.”

  Ava, Jeremy, and Link both gawked.

  “Weaken you how?” Ava asked.

  “Weaken you to the point that you are powerless. And it lasts for months.”

  Ava felt her jaw drop.

  “But Aaron can strengthen you, can’t he?” Jeremy asked.

  “His works differently. If you have the power already inside you, he basically amplifies it. Since Sorcha practically takes away all your power, he has nothing to work with.”

  “Whoa. So does it come back?”

  “Eventually.”

  Ava looked up and saw Natalia enter the room. She tensed.

  “Gabriel, I need to talk to you,” Natalia said, standing in front of the table.

  “Okay.” He looked back to Ava and the rest, pushed the chair behind him, and then stood. “Have a good evening.” He followed Natalia out of the room.

  “I think I’m gonna head out.” Jeremy gave Ava a one armed hug and stood.

  “Yeah, I’m pretty tired,” Link said. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Good night,” Ava and Joss said and then they left the room.

  “Does Natalia know how to clear a room or what?” Joss smiled. “Kidding.”

  “Are Natalia and Gabriel…together?”

  She let out a sharp laugh. “No. They’re more like brother and sister.”

  “Why does she seem to order him around?”

  “She orders everyone around.” Joss hesitated. “She sorta doesn’t like you. So she doesn’t really like that Gabriel hangs out with you.”

  “Well, I think she’s rubbing off on him. So she must be doing something right. Why would it matter that he’s talking to me? You are.”

  “She’s just like that. I wouldn’t spend too much time thinking about it.”

  Ava nodded, but could tell Joss held back something.

  “It’s okay. I’d feel the same way about it, too. I’m a worrier as well.”

  Ava smiled. “Believe it or not, that’s comforting to know.”

  “How do you think the new Enchanters are handling all of this?”

  “I guess okay. I haven’t really talked to Seth or seen him much here, but Peter’s helping him. Nicole and Link are just trying to figure things out. I can’t imagine what they’re going through though.”

  “I know. I mean, I never knew I was an Enchanter until I was like sixteen. But being kidnapped and turned into one…” She shook her head.

  “Wait, you never knew?”

  “No. When my parents died, my aunt and uncle adopted me. They didn’t want me to be included or aware of the Enchanter world after what happened to my parents. But even they couldn’t stop it.”

  “Were they not Enchanters, too?”

  “No. They were Drolls.”

  Ava had only known one powerless Enchanter and that was Colden. They were extremely rare. “Wow. So how did you find out?”

  “Weird things started happening to me. Like when I’d walk outside on a snowy day and suddenly would be warm. The worst was when I took a shower and my body electrocuted itself.”

  “Oh, wow. That’s awful.”

  “That was when my aunt and uncle told me everything.”

  “Did you have an Aureole or anything?”

  “Yeah. I remember when I was seven, this strange man found me and brought me back to his home with five other kids. I didn’t know what was going on and I never told my aunt and uncle until we talked. But I never saw that Aureole again.”

  “How did you get into this one?”

  The corners of her lips turned upward into a big smile. “I was still in school and there was this gorgeous brown-haired boy, who everyone seemed to fall in love with. But once Eric locked eyes with me, it was like love at first sight. We both knew we were different, but it took a lot of getting to know each other, because it was so hard trusting anyone back in those days. Enchanters would be so friendly to you and then turn against you in a split second.”

  “Sounds familiar,” Ava said under her breath.

  “We were together for quite a while before I became part of their Aureole. Aaron says our love makes our Aureole stronger. I mean, other than Savina and Aaron, we’re the only couple. But we all have a strong love for each other. I sound so sappy don’t I?” Joss
rolled her eyes.

  “No, not at all. It really is amazing.”

  “It is. And I don’t know what I would do without Eric, or any of them.”

  “I feel the same about Peter. He makes me stronger.”

  Joss smiled. “I know. I feel it. How does it feel to have him with you now?”

  “It’s so surreal. I never thought this would happen. But at the same time, I don’t know. I’m feeling a little conflicted.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “Because I broke the rules. Lost the trust of my Aureole. Thomas and Gillian are still angry with me.”

  “They’ll get over it eventually and they’ll trust you again. That’s kinda why Natalia doesn’t like you. She thinks you’re rather naïve and selfish.”

  Ava bit her lip. Selfish? Okay, maybe she’d been worrying about Peter more than Devon, but if she hadn’t, maybe they never would have found out the truth.

  “I really wouldn’t worry about her. She took a while to warm up to me.”

  “I’m not going to worry. There’s too much other stuff going on.”

  Joss nodded and then yawned. “Gabriel and I will try and find out about these Ephemerals. But it’s getting late. We should get some sleep.”

  They both stood, but Ava didn’t want the discussion to end. She really liked Joss. It was like the same strong connection she felt with Gabriel. They walked up the stairs and Ava stopped in front of her door.

  “I’m all the way on the end,” Joss said. “But if you need anything, feel free to come knock the door down until I wake.” She smiled sweetly and then reached up and hugged Ava tightly. “See you in the morning.”

  “See ya.”

  Ava turned and quietly opened the door and slipped inside the room. Peter had left the lamp on for her and after changing into a soft shirt and shorts, she slid underneath the warm blankets. She clicked off the lamp and Peter rolled over and placed an arm around her, drawing her closer. He sleepily kissed her forehead.

  Joss was right. She didn’t need to worry so much. Peter was one of them now. A strong addition to this world and she felt incredibly lucky.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  FIRST DAY BACK

  Ava and Peter were anxious as he pulled into a parking space at the school. She twirled her ring around her finger and dreaded the day. Ava couldn’t believe it was September already and definitely didn’t want to be at school.