Chased by Darkness: A Reverse Harem Academy Romance: (Four Kings Academy Book 1)

by Taylor Spratt

  “Ahhh!” I yelled, before spinning around to see a fiery mane of hair fluffily bouncing its way down the passage toward me.

  “Cas?” I asked. “What the hell are you doing here?”

  Smiling with her usual cheery grin, Cas plopped herself sweetly in front of me.

  “I left a History of Magics class and saw you walking across the gardens, so I followed you.” She said, her expression hardening.

  “You shouldn’t be here, love! The Kings are going to meet here today. It’s way too dangerous.” She gave me a hard punch to the arm.

  “That’s exactly why I’m here, please don’t ask questions but just know I need to crash the meeting, okay?” I said, hoping not to get another punch.

  She cut her eyes in suspicion. “This wouldn’t have anything to do with King Luca, would it?”

  I froze, looking nervously in her direction.

  “I knew it!” She squealed in delight, jumping up and down in excitement. “You totally have a thing for him don’t you?! Have you kissed him ye…”

  “Shhh!” I said, cupping a hand over her mouth, my eyes scanning all around for listening ears.

  “Incognito, Cas! That’s kind of the point of crashing, isn’t it?”

  My hand slid from her mouth and she nodded sternly, “roger that!”

  “Good,” I said, nodding back. “I’ll fill you in later but now the only question is, where in the hundred hells is this meeting, anyway?” I turned to look at the numerous passages and, twists and turns all around us. The options were infinite.

  “It could be anywhere. Maybe not even on this floor.” I said and Cas shook her head.

  “Nope, it’s on this floor alright,” she declared.

  “Oh yeah? How do you know?” I said, raising a suspicious brow.

  “Oh, I’ve been here before, Love. Allesandro has some weird fetishes, it takes us all around the bloody school.”

  “Ok, great.” I said cutting her off before I had to hear another word about Allesandro’s sexual proclivities. “Show me then, please”

  She nodded, tickled pink to be of help.

  The stomping of footsteps clattered up from the staircase. And before they could get to us, Cas grabbed my wrist and pulled me down a long path. After a twist and two turns, we stopped at a large vent in the wall. It was about a foot taller than either of us were.

  “They’ll be here soon, you have to hurry,” she said

  “Um, is this the door?” I asked, confused, pointing up at the vent.

  “No, love. You can’t just barge through the front door. Incognito remember? They’ll be guards to stop you.”

  “Ah! Gottcha.”

  She went on her tiptoe, trying to stretch high enough to pry the covering open with her fingernail. Then with a splat, the cover fell to the ground leaving a pitch black hole leading to god knows where, open before us.

  “Are you sure about this?” I said, not liking the look of that thing.

  “Think theirs rats and spiders in there?” I said, trying to mask my unease. I’d seen enough spiders to last me several lifetimes.

  “Nah love, this place is fancy, they clean every inch regularly,” she said batting her hand as if the question were silly. Her hand movements shifted her long red hair from over her shoulders to fall behind her, and in the absence of her glorious tress you could now see a big ugly dark red mark on her shoulder. One that sure as hell wasn’t there when we met.

  “Cas? What’s that?” I said pointing to her arm, my brows drawn.

  “Oh, this little thing?” She said dismissively. “I fell is all. Nothing to worry abo..”

  “Fell? Seriously?” I demanded. “It looks like you were kicked by a horse right in your arm! Are you sure no one did this to you? Was it one of those guys? Did they find out your secret?”

  “Love! Love! Calm down, you’re making a mountain out of a molehill, here. If I said I fell, it means I honestly fell. I wouldn’t lie to you,” she said, seeming earnest, but she was lying, I just knew it. I could see it in the tremble of her eyes and back. She was afraid of something, maybe even terrified.

  I swallowed, taking a step closer to scan the mark. But, before I could, she slapped her hand over it, masking it from me.

  Not a good sign.

  “Welcome my kings! We do hope you will find our facilities to your liking,” a voice called out from down the hall.

  They were coming. The Kings were almost here. I didn’t want them to see me out here in the hallway. I’d get kicked out by the staff for sure, and before I could even say a word to the Kings. I had to get into that meeting. That way it would just be me and them.

  Cas’s head whipped back to me; eyes wide as dinner plates. “Love. You gotta get up there and pronto!” she barked.

  Cas gave me a leg up and before I knew it, my hands and knees were slamming unto the cold, metal vent floor.

  “Listen.” Cas whispered after closing the vent door. “The conference room is on the south side of the building. Go straight and stay straight. That should get you there, Good luck!”

  She tore in the opposite direction of the encroaching voices and I began my long crawl through the silent dark of the vent.

  It was cold in here and there were little pea sized things that made crunching sounds as I crawled over them. Yuck! It may be dark as hell, but I know a dead bug when I feel one. Thanks Cas.

  Tiny pockets of light illuminated the path ahead from the small opening that lined the vents.

  Each opening I passed led to rooms about the size of a classroom, but instead of desks and white boards, they had long mannerly tables and fancy chairs with old paintings lining the walls.

  Though well lit, all the rooms were barren of life, like little ghost towns. At least until, I heard some banging noises up ahead. It sounded like someone was knocking at a door in a room not too far from me.

  I shimmied faster through the dark and stuck my nose right up against the opening that led to the noise.

  This room looked like all the others. But wait. Was that chancellor Biggsby in there?

  It looked just like him with the same round face, glasses and bulging gut as before. But there was something odd about him now. He wasn’t the smiling older man I’d met before. He looked rigged and stern now, with his back straight and his head held high.

  He held a briefcase firmly in his hand as he slowly opened a door with the other.

  Suddenly the memory of what I’d seen in his office came to mind. At the corner of my eye’s I’d seen something strange in him, a malevolent presence with piercing red eyes and a soul black as ash.

  Though the chancellor appeared normal, I sensed the same dark presence in him. It hung in the air like a sickness, almost as if he were a monster in wizard flesh.

  “Hello Seer Mortdecai.” The chancellor said as an old bald man in a long red cloak walked in, the fabric of his cloak running along the floor like snakes. The chancellor smiled to greet the man, but he gave a cold glare in response.

  “Why have you summoned me Biggsby?” The bald man snarled, shooting the Chancellor a look of pure disdain. “You are aware that I did not come to this Academy for you, at least not today.”

  “It’s about the girl, I was hoping you would reconsider,” the chancellor said, eagerly flicking the briefcase open to hold it up to the cloaked man, its contents on full display.

  The cloaked man gasped, his eyes flying open and his head fell back in shock. The bright twinkle of gold glistened and glinted in his eyes, transforming his pupils into little shining candle lights.

  My God! I’d never seen that much gold in my life. You could build fifty cottages with that and still have change. Was that a bribe? And what did the chancellor mean by ‘it’s about the girl?’ What girl?

  “Nepotist! How dare you, sir!” The cloaked man said, pulling away, raising his hand in utter rebuke. “I am the Grand Seer of the entire Magical World! You have insulted me deeply with this. My answer is still no and it will always be no!”
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  The chancellor’s face was now red as flames, as if his head were a volcano set to erupt at any minute, sweat dripping off his face.

  “This is not fair and you know it!” The chancellor yelled, “I demand you reconsider!”

  The bald man rose a dismissing hand and declared, “I will hear no more of this!” He then turned and sped out the door, slamming it behind him.

  The chancellor just stood their trembling. The gold coins rattled in the case, rage boiling over in his chubby cheeks. Then, in a fit, he threw the case against the wall with all his might. It hit the wall with a bang and the coins went flying in every direction like bullets.

  One of them shot towards the vent and clanked loudly over the metal opening. I made a small welp, my hand flew over my lips and the chancellor’s eyes shot in my direction like lightening.

  Crap! Did he hear me?

  “Hello? Is someone up there?” He said squinting his eyes in menacing curiosity, creeping towards the vent.

  Oh my god! I froze, my heart pounding in my chest. Wait, I just witnessed a crime. Bribery is a serious offence. Wizards have been sent to Alcadene for less. And now the criminal responsible was inches from ripping the vent’s opening off its hinges and seeing me.

  Chancellor or not, there was something very wrong about him. There was evil in the slant of his eyes. There was something carnivorous lying beneath his pudgy exterior. And something told me that if I met whatever that was, I wouldn’t live to talk about it.

  I lunged forward, desperate to get as far away as possible from the opening, my knees now banging loudly against the metal floor.

  “Wait a minute! Stop!” he threatened, and I ignored him, my heart exploding in my chest. With a clack the opening flew open and a cold slimy hand gripped tight around my ankle. I gave an ear shattering scream.

  The hand yanked me back and my belly slammed hard on the floor, my knees skidding painfully over cold metal.

  “Let me go!” I screamed, kicking at the dark frantically, trying to shake him.

  “Aria? Aria Kolgrim?” The Chancellor questioned, releasing my leg.

  Crap, he knows it’s me. Of all the voices in this school, how the hell did he remember mine?

  I didn’t reply, silently continuing my crawl as fast as I could. The space widened between us and I didn’t dare look back.

  Of course, he’d let me go. He knows where I live. Damn! Okay, Aria. Calm down. This was all one big misunderstanding. He’s the chancellor. It’s not like he’s really gonna kill me, right? Maybe I’ll just get detention for eavesdropping or something, I thought, desperately trying to put myself at ease. But deep down I knew it wouldn’t be that easy. Nothing at this school was easy.

  The clatter of silverware came from up ahead. Was I finally at the meeting? Okay Aria. One crisis at a time. First this, then you can worry about Biggsby.

  There was a bright light ahead, much brighter than any I’d seen in here, up until now and it all came from the final opening along the vents.

  Looking through it, I saw a large conference room with golden chandeliers and pristine white walls accentuated by golden floor moldings. The entire room shone, from the perfectly polished marble floors to the impossibly smooth white tablecloths that covered the two large tables in the middle of the room.

  At one table Bane and Luca sat together and at the other was Alexander and Raiden. You could cut the tension in there with a knife. They all just sat their leering at one another as fancy plates of food were put before them by waitstaff.

  Raiden and Luca ate their meals with perfect manners despite the hatred burning in their eyes for each other’s tables. Alexander on the other hand didn’t take a single bite. He just sat their staring daggers at Bane and Luca. Bane, unlike Alexander, tore into his meat like a wild animal, only breaking his feast to snarl at Raiden and Alexander every few bites.

  After a few minutes, a man in a black tailored suit entered the room and declared, “the time for pleasantries is over, my Kings. Let the discussions commence.”

  The Four Kings stood then, as a team of servants rushed in, removing the tables, chairs and silver wear. They then ushered in the Four thrones from Orientation day as the Kings stood, sizing each other up. They seemed to have just been there for show because not a single king took a seat.

  “Why have you called this meeting, Luca?” Alexander questioned.

  Oh, boy! Here it comes, I thought. Now Luca’s gonna tell him what we did last night and he’ll throw a fit.

  “This game we’ve been playing with Aria has gone far enough,” Luca said.

  “Game?” Alexander said with a raised brow.

  “That’s right. I’ve come to inform you that you’ve lost,” Luca said, proudly. “Aria and I are in love and she is not interested in any of you. So, I’ll kindly ask the three of you to but out of our lives from now on.”

  Raiden stared at Luca blankly, as if he’d said all of that in a foreign language. Alexander’s face slowly twisted in a murderous rage as if he were inches from pouncing on Luca and strangling him to death. But Bane was the first to speak.

  “Three? What the hell do you mean three!?” Bane boomed, jabbing a harsh finger into Luca’s chest. “You plan to cut me out?! Steal my future from me? You dirty cheat!”

  “What did you expect?” Luca said, batting his finger away, looking at him from under his eyes. “I warned you not to hurt her. Think a woman would want a man who bullies her?!”

  Bane and Alexander both seethed at his words.

  Bane grabbed Luca by the blazer and shook him furiously. “The prophecy said we both get to have her Luca! What the fuck are you trying to pull here?”

  Wait. Prophecy? What prophecy are they talking about? Is that why they’d all been pursuing me?

  It looked like I wasn’t the only one confused here. As Alexander and Raiden’s eyes popped open and their jaws dropped the moment Bane said the word ‘Prophecy’.

  “What do you know about the prophecy?” Alexander boomed, staring daggers at Bane and Luca. “And what do you mean by ‘you both get to have her? The prophecy has nothing to do with you two morons! That prophecy was meant for Raiden and I only!”

  Bane released Luca and stared down Alexander. “Oh yeah Adelgrief?” Bane laughed. “Grab a chair because this has been a long time coming.”

  “No Bane, don’t.” Luca said pulling at Bane’s arm.

  “Don’t fucking touch me, you traitor!” Bane bellowed, shaking Luca’s hand off.

  “Aria’s not yours, Adelgrief. She’s ours,” Bane said.

  “What in the hell are you talking about?” Raiden said as Alexander blinked, stunned speechless.

  “That’s right,” Bane said with a shrug. “The seers made a mistake. Your prophecy was a mistake. They came to us a year later, said there was a new prophecy. Fate chooses us now to have her.”

  “Cut the crap!” Raiden spat, his hand balling up into a tight fist. “As if we’d believe a word a liar like you has to say. Your nothing but no good thieves. Everything we have, you come after it. Why don’t you get your own lives’, already!”

  “Poor little baby rich boys. Upset that something in your perfect lives didn’t go quite as planned? Well, tough luck. We’re Aria’s new soul bonds and we’re both the next Grand Lords.” Bane said with a hard look over at Luca.

  Raiden and Alexander just looked at each other like they’d just been stabbed in the chests.

  What the hell are they talking about, Grand Lords? Soul bond? I gasped, covering my mouth. Is that why they were all fighting over me? Because some prophecy says they need me to become the Grand Lords? And is that why I felt a connection with all of them, because they’re my soul bonds? All of them?

  I’d heard of soul bonds as a child, but I thought it was a myth. The idea that certain people were born to be together just sounded crazy.

  My head spun barely registering a single word that flew between the bickering four. I can’t believe any of this. This whole time I thought
Alexander and Luca deeply cared for me. But this entire time they were just using me?

  The door of the room flew open, banging against the wall. The same bald, red cloaked man who was just with the chancellor shadowed the doorway. The room fell silent. All of the guy’s heads whipped in his direction and Alexander and Bane looked half ready to kill the old man.

  “You!” Alexander said, his face hot, his voice hoarse from yelling. “What’s the meaning of this, Seer? What is this replacement prophecy I’m hearing about?”

  “That’s right,” Bane said as Luca cupped his forehead in frustration. “The cats outa the bag. Go on and tell them.”

  With a slow exhale, the bald man removed his veil and looked at all four kings with a look of deep regret in his eyes.

  Raiden and Alexander stiffened, almost trembling with impatience.

  “I think I owe all of you an explanation and it’s about time you all got it,” the Bald man said, glancing over to Bane and Luca. “You two only know part of the truth.”

  Bane and Luca’s expressions soured at his words.

  “The same is true for you two, Alexander and Raiden,” he continued. “As you all know, the Grand Lord and his life bond are not long for this world. Miss Aria Void User was chosen by the universe to be the next Queen of our world, as was written in the stars on her birth. She and her two life bonds will take power on the current Grand lord’s death and…”

  “Get to the point already!” Bane and Alexander shouted in unison.

  “There were two prophecies!” The old man blurted. “In the first prophecy it was Alexander and Raiden who wed Miss Aria Void User and in the second, it was Bane and Luca. The Seers of the royal court are walking in circles, stressed and confused by the meaning of this. This has never happened. We have no idea which prophecy is true.”

  The bald man sighed in complete exasperation, and his shoulders sank in defeat.

  Wait, two prophecies? So that’s why they were fighting. I’m prophesied to wed two kings, not four. Still, at this point marrying any one of these lying bastards was the last thing on my mind. Right now, I’d sooner kick them than kiss them.