Immortal Academy- The Complete Series

by S. L. Morgan

  “They are free,” she said. “Now, you can destroy it. The darkness you carried when you took this all in is gone. Now, end this and block it all.”

  “Don’t listen—”

  As easily as shifting into my wolf, I used my magic to imagine all of this gone, and me, waking up to a cleansed school and a normal Jenna. All of this mayhem would be gone, sealed in hell where it belongs.

  I felt lighter than ever before as I heard that beast bark, choke, and wail in agony.

  “Infernum erit vobis!” it screeched as it pointed to my mother before there was a flash of light, and it disappeared.

  My eyes snapped open, and that’s when I realized what that thing had shouted to my mother in Latin…Hell will have you.

  “No! I damned my mother’s soul to supernatural hell!” I screamed as I looked around at the audience around me, where I was lying on the ground next to the tar pit that held the portal to hell.

  I had to go in again. I had to get her back. She knew she was becoming the sacrifice to lure my magic to cleanse me of the souls, defeat that evil bastard, and finalize closing the gates to hell. Why did it have to end so horribly for someone who had been tormented for so long? Why did this have to end with the sacrifice of my mom’s soul?

  Chapter Forty-Two

  It took me a second to adjust to my surroundings and realize that the audience of people standing around me where I was lying on the ground were not living people at all. They were the images of various people, wearing smiles and emitting a peaceful feeling that I couldn’t describe.

  “Let us bring them to their afterlife,” a woman said. Her tight black curls, falling over her dark, flawless face. “You were gone to the darkness, but you found your way back. I wish we Woodson witches could take credit for this, but somehow you did this on your own.”

  “The Woodson witches?” I questioned. “Your coven is dead because of this too?”

  “No, child,” she smiled. “We are projecting ourselves. Until we met with the owl, and he begged us to trust the woman with emerald eyes, we had never been able to breach the barriers of this school—even when we felt it fall to evil. I do not know the identity of the green-eyed woman or where she gained such powers, but she helped, and now, we can usher the souls into peace where they belong.”

  “Wait,” I said, feeling hands trying to hold me down. I jerked away from that sensation as the woman turned to leave me. “My mom,” I said. “That evil thing took her soul to hell.”

  “We couldn’t stop that. We could only work to pull each of the souls we have with us now to their freedom. I’m sorry, child. Julia was a good woman.”

  “Then, I’ll get her myself.”

  “Do not try anything so foolish after all that’s been done to ensure your soul didn’t join Julia’s, or worse, unlock your powers while that force was controlling your mind,” she said in a harsh tone. “One day, maybe.” She nodded toward those standing at her side, “One day, you might have the power, but this is not that day.”

  Bright lights began to flash everywhere, and I watched as the souls of all those who were lost turned into balls of light and streamed up through the trees into the cloudless sky. One final flash of light blinded me, and then I opened my eyes to see Dom as he leaned over me, cradling my face in his hands.

  “Jen, look at me,” he said, his eyes blue.

  “Why are your eyes blue like my wolf’s?”

  He smiled. “The Woodson witches pulled me into your mind when we were working to keep you from that evil. You zapped my wolf with some pretty strong magic, and it must still be with me.”

  “You actually dared to head back into my mind after the last disaster of you doing that?” I asked, weak from the aftermath of what I’d been through.

  “It was either that or kill you,” he smirked.

  “Are the Guardians still here?” I asked Dom, so disoriented that I seemed to be bouncing from reality to reality without getting a grip on where I was.

  “We weren’t leaving, knowing wolf boy had a fighting chance to save you,” Harrison said.

  “Why do you look like you’ve been punched in the eye?” I asked the commander.

  “Let’s just say that it is an excellent thing for you that your boyfriend is as determined to save you as he is. His tenacity saved your life after you decided to take on death itself and the evil that went along with it,” Harrison replied with an arch of his brow.

  “You tried to kill me?” I asked.

  “You didn’t leave us with many options when you pulled that move. All I can say is that I would have delivered a much more merciful death than your lover-boy’s cousin over there,” Harrison said.

  “Jenna, Dominic and the witches helped to keep my owl’s mind occupied and unwilling to kill you. I fought it too,” Ethan said with shame.

  I smiled at Ethan’s expression. “If it makes you feel any better, I was stuck in the hell of my mind, wishing you would kill me.”

  “That does not make me feel better,” Ethan returned. “I’m sorry for your pain.”

  “What about my pain?” Harrison stated. “While I was trying to come to grips with killing my newly-adopted wolf orphan, I get clocked by her boyfriend while I was distracted.”

  “Distracted while holding that blade to her throat,” Dom scoffed.

  “You know that if you were not able to intervene, there would be no other option,” Levi said as he approached.

  “Well, it’s over now. I’m glad you both trusted that I could help her.”

  “We trusted the witch coven that trusted the emperor’s wife when she told them how to breach the barriers of this place,” Harrison taunted, and then he sighed. “Well, that was fun—a little dull on the fighting end of things, but fun in its own, sadistic way.”

  “So, is this where we part ways?” I asked, glancing back to this new tar pit, watching the water turning from tar to crystal clear, and the smell of sulfur that filled the area was dissipating along with the change.

  “Well, you’re not a demon who’s going to take up residence in that water, so yeah,” Harrison said. “We’ll leave you two to graduate, and you both can hope you’ll be able to pass our interview panel to be able to work for the Supernatural Elite Forces.”

  “Wait,” I said. “What if we’re done with this place? The main building was a pile of rocks when we left to come here. School’s out, guys.”

  “We need to get back to the school.” Levi glanced over at Melanie’s lifeless body, “Her father is still alive, and I am confident he will not be taking the news of his daughter’s death well, not to mention that he will be transported to prison in my realm.”

  “Melanie is really dead? Did that thing kill her?”

  “She killed herself by believing that she could join in on the hostage-soul situation you had going down,” Dom said. “She chanted something, and before I could take her down, we all watched her spew out some black liquid that covered you entirely. She held you in place and kept me from getting anywhere near you.”

  “That’s when I urged the emperor to ask his wife to speak to the Woodson Coven. Luckily, her powers give her the ability to move extremely quickly when necessary. She helped them stop all of it, so Dominic could get to you and help you fight,” Harrison added.

  “I owe your wife my life,” I said.

  Levi’s face was filled with pride while still remaining solemn. “Reece would have punished me harshly if I did not give the owl a chance with his argument.”

  “God, my legs are shaking,” I said, feeling my energy was completely gone.

  “Good,” Dom answered.

  “Good?” I questioned him.

  “Hell yes. We’ve all heard your thoughts. You’re not going after your mother’s spirit. We’ll find another way to release her from that place, but no stupid moves on your part, got me?” Dom said.

  “Here, kid,” Harrison extended his hand down to me once he was on his horse. “You ride with me. We need to be sure that school did
n’t fall into its own pit of hell while you were up here saving it.”

  “I heard Vannah’s voice too,” I told Dom before taking Harrison’s hand, and the guy effortlessly pulled me onto his stallion’s back before I could blink.

  “You probably heard a lot of things,” Harrison said, then spoke out to his horse to get us back to the school. “You were fully possessed. Foaming out of your mouth, eyes white, your body seizing—you looked like a real slice of evil with a side of demonic possession.”

  “Oh, my God,” I said.

  “Do not listen to him,” Levi responded as Dom shifted, and his wolf paced alongside the massive stallions. “You did very well. I was certain we had lost Harrison’s favorite fairy,” he teased.

  “Oh, don’t call her a fairy. That’s so mean, Levi,” Harrison said with a laugh. “Which reminds me, since you are no longer my adopted kid, don’t count me in on your graduation festivities, either.”

  “I never was, dumbass,” I said with a sigh.

  “As much as I might want to get rid of my twins and keep you as my child, I’d rather deal with two hellions for children than let Levi have the last laugh that I was the parent of a supernatural fairy.”

  “I will always have the last laugh,” Levi taunted. “I shall also be sure to fill in Angie on the fact that you believe your and her children are hellions as well.”

  “Indeed, they are. You were there when they turned Reece’s zorflak farm loose on the palace while we were entertaining all the kings and queens from their respective kingdoms.”

  “What’s a zorflak?” I questioned.

  “A creature in our realm that was meant to be wild until the emperor’s wife decided it would be cute to bring one home and make it a pet.” Harrison chuckled. “Levi hates those critters as much as I hate fairies.”

  “My hatred only runs deep for Mozart, and you know that,” Levi said as he smirked at me. “He is a pet zorflak who has a streak of jealousy a mile long.” Levi eyed Harrison, “I believe it was you who arranged for thousands of zorflaks to be freed in Pasidian Palace, not the twins.”

  “Do not act for one second like you weren’t ecstatic when that happened. All of those pompous royal windbags went home directly afterward, totally getting you off the hook for entertaining. I do not believe I ever got a proper thank you for that, by the way,” Harrison retorted.

  “Do you both always banter back and forth like this?” I asked.

  Levi laughed and nodded. “I suppose we have been this way since we were children. Although, I was previously pretty good about not encouraging it when we were on assignment on Earth, performing our Guardian duties.”

  “You miss it, and you know it,” Harrison popped off.

  “Hardly,” Levi sighed.

  The horses entered the clearing where thousands of students stood, and to my astonishment, the school looked like an enchanted paradise. It was as if nothing had ever happened to it. I shielded my eyes from the glamour, knowing for sure my fairy genes were exhausted when I was hardly able to handle whatever fairy enchantment had brought this place back to life.

  The massive crowd started cheering and hollering as soon as Dom’s wolf leapt out over the last bit of foliage and into the opening where the school grounds were filled. The horses followed behind Dom’s wolf as I buried my head into Harrison’s back.

  “Shit,” I said. “I don’t want this. Can you order them all back to their dorms and tell them the Woodson witches saved their asses?”

  “Listen, foul-mouth,” Harrison said, “Get over yourself. They’re cheering for me, and we both know it.” He laughed. “Why on earth would I tell them that story anyway? Why would you say that the Woodson witches saved this place? I believe I was there from the beginning.”

  “The black eye you’re going to have by tonight tells me that even though you were there, you also tried to kill me.”

  “Like I said,” Harrison answered. “I’m the real hero here. No one else could have committed such a horrendous act to save all these cute, glittering fairies, but I was willing.”

  “Remind me to thank you later for that.”

  “You can thank me now. Join in with the chorus of grateful students. I’m okay with that.”

  “Seriously,” I said as his horse stopped next to where Dom had shifted back, fully clothed in all black. “Thank you.” I looked at Levi, “Thank you both for riding this out and not killing all of us when you got here.”

  “You can thank us later,” Harrison said. “Thank us when you pass the interview questions that the emperor and I will have for you and lover-wolf on graduation day.”

  “Will it ever end?” I asked Dom, who held his hand up to help me slide off the horse and into his arms.

  “As long as the commander seems to adore you, I have a feeling it’s not ending anytime soon for us with that guy.”

  I looked up into Dom’s blue eyes that were striking, given his coal-black hair, “You look pretty sexy with blue eyes.”

  “And you look breathtaking with purple eyes.”

  “Purple?” I practically shouted.

  “A small price to pay, though, considering what you had to destroy to look like a beautiful sprite.”

  The selfish horror of my appearance was quickly dashed when we saw the pyres being built to burn the bodies of those who didn’t survive the attacks, and we saw the countless rows of students, laying dead on the ground in front of it.

  I was stunned into silence when I saw that Scott and Finley were among the casualties of the civil war that had taken place on this campus, but nothing could have prepared me for the moment I saw Vannah’s lifeless body.

  I dropped to my knees, covering my face with my hands as I sucked in a breath and wailed with a sound that I’d never heard come from anyone before. Dom quickly knelt next to me, wrapping me in his arms. Grief ripped through me so ferociously that my body was shaking to the core, tears streaming endlessly as I sobbed.

  This was why I heard Vannah’s voice in my head when I was fighting for my life. Even in death, her spirit was still helping me. They had all unselfishly sacrificed themselves to make sure the darkness didn’t prevail, and none of them deserved to die…not my best friend, not Dominic's best friends, and not any one of the poor souls who’d been possessed or the others who tried to stop them.

  Even after all we’d done to wipe out the evil from this school, it took down every person it could anyway.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  After what seemed like a lifetime of sobbing, I stood and stared at my best friend—the one who put up with my crazy mood swings, constant complaining over trivial things, and the one who stayed by my side through every issue I ever had. She was the best friend anyone could ask for—supernatural or otherwise.

  I couldn’t imagine where I’d be without her guidance and loving friendship, but now, she was gone. Her parting gift to me was her spiritual guidance, helping encourage me in my final fight with this evil school, and I couldn’t hug her or thank her for any of it.

  When I found my voice, I moaned in agonizing grief. I’d never felt so weak, and even after all the crap I went through in taking on demons, souls, and the torment that went with it, nothing could fill the emptiness I had inside, knowing that I was never going to have another conversation, laugh, or hug with my best friend again.

  With all of these unfamiliar emotions of profound loss washing through me, I hadn’t realized I’d fallen back into Dom’s strong embrace. My tears wouldn’t stop as I turned and buried my face into his chest.

  “I have to know what happened to her, Dom,” I sniffed, sucking up every last ounce of emotion I possibly could.

  “She was attacked while revealing the Woodson coven’s location to me,” Ethan said. “I’m sorry Jenna. I’m sorry to Sahvannah that I couldn’t save her from the evil beasts who didn’t want her to reveal the spell that would help me and the emperor’s wife find the strong, pure coven.”

  I looked at Ethan’s saddened expression. �
��I don’t understand.”

  “It was the incantation Vannah had said that alerted the dark, flying creatures. I fought them, I did. I thought my owl had destroyed them all until I heard Vannah fighting…”

  “Fighting?” I asked. I didn’t want to hear how my best friend had died but couldn’t stop myself from asking.

  “It was our only chance. The emperor’s wife had the power to open a portal for the Woodson witches to enter IA’s grounds and spiritually help you,” Ethan said. “Vannah knew you would be lost to the darkness if we didn’t try.”

  I looked back at Vannah’s beautiful face. “She had that way of always watching over me,” I said.

  “She wouldn’t want you to be sad,” Ethan said. “She fought to keep you as the friend she loved, Jenna, not the evil person that the malevolent beast wanted you to be.” Ethan took my hand in his. “Of all the witches, supernaturals, and powerful beings out there, Vannah was the one who was successful in helping you end it all. My parents died protecting House Silvers. My parents had the Woodson witches as their hope, but everyone was too late to save your family. Sahvannah was the difference this time. She was prepared and willing to do anything to help you, Jenna Silvers. She saved you and Immortal Academy.”

  “Did she, now?” a menacing voice said as a woman with long, stringy hair appeared out of nowhere with an army of demented-looking creatures, making me wonder if this shit was ever going to end.

  As soon as Dom and I turned around to shift and attack, the woman screeched out a spell, paralyzing every supernatural where they stood.

  “Oh, how I loathe evil, creepy-looking witches,” Harrison said as Levi and he walked toward the dark coven that had manifested from thin air.

  “I spelled every living creature to be paralyzed.” She glared evilly at the two men approaching her and the mob she showed up with. “Why are you still moving?”

  Levi and Harrison drew the long swords that hung at their sides, prompting the Guardians who were surrounding the campus on their horses to do the same. The stallions of both men reared back and trotted with a fierceness beside Levi and Harrison.