by Eva Ashwood
They were both right, in a way. I had to do badly to do well. I would consider this final a success if I got a meager, passing grade.
Easier said than done.
It was hard for me to not put everything I had behind every spell. Not only was it just part of who I was, but my magic was so powerful that it almost took on a mind of its own. And this final in particular was going to be hard for me. Fighting had always been my specialty, even back when I’d been an ordinary, non-magical human.
We all stood around the perimeter of the room as each person went, battling the same apparition but with different tactics. Each of the guys went, all doing okay, but intentionally not fantastic. That gave me relief, knowing it kept them off the radar.
When it was my turn, I held down my nerves and stepped into the middle of the room. I managed to do just okay with defense, taking a couple shocks from the apparition, and finally ending it with a simple gesture. The men all nodded approvingly as I finished, and I smiled, fighting back a burst of semi-hysterical laughter.
I was proud of myself, but it was a strangely odd achievement.
“Good. Good. Well done, everyone.” Professor Howes scanned the classroom, her gaze skimming lightly over me. “You’re all dismissed. Grades will be posted shortly.”
Students began to file out, a palpable sense of relief surrounding them as they celebrated being done with finals. The men and I headed into the hallway, but I stopped abruptly as Wesley stepped in front of me.
He smirked, one side of his mouth lifting in a lazy, arrogant smile. “It looks like you’re not such a prized student anymore, are you?”
Godsdamn this fucking asshole. I gritted my teeth.
I had pulled my punches, and he’d given it everything he had, so he’d done better than me. I knew that, but it still irritated the shit out of me that he thought he was a better mage than I was. Especially after the shit he’d pulled in the godly realm.
He tilted his chin up, cockiness seeping from his damn pores. “All that shit talk, and then not only did I beat you in the trials, but I outdid you in this class too. Maybe they’ll have a remedial class you can take next semester.”
My lips twitched, and my hands curled into fists.
“You’re a fucking dick, Wesley. I wouldn’t go celebrating your win too much—it wasn’t exactly legitimate. All we’d have to do is replay the beginning of the Gods’ Challenge to see just how much you cheated. You couldn’t even make it through the first five minutes without using potions and spells that were created by someone else. Pathetic.”
Anger boiled through my veins, and I moved to turn away. If I stuck around any longer, I was gonna fucking snap.
But before I could make it down the hall, he raised his voice, a petulant tone to his words. “Maybe I should’ve just killed your little boyfriends while I had the chance. I definitely think it’ll be on my list next time we meet up in the challenge.”
My heart stopped.
Rage like I had never known suffused me like lava pouring out of a volcano, and I whipped around so fast the world was nothing but a blur.
“You ugly little rat. If you’re gonna try to kill somebody, why don’t you come after me? And why wait until the challenge?”
Magic burst from me, fury given shape, and a stream of bright light wrapped around his legs, waist, and torso. The end of it continued to grow, pushing heavily on his chest and around his neck. Wesley shrieked and clawed at it, but it stayed firm. All I could think about was how much I hated him, how much I couldn’t stand to see another breath come from him his sniveling little face. The magic squeezed him like a snake as his eyes grew wide and scared.
“Aria!” Merrick shouted as all three men wrestled me back, grabbing me by the arms and around the waist.
They shook me out of my anger, and I blinked, sucking in a ragged breath. I felt like I was in a tunnel, like reality was miles away.
My gaze caught on Wesley’s beet-red face, and I swiped my hand, breaking the stranglehold I had on him. He fell to the ground and grabbed his throat, choking and coughing.
“You… bitch.”
Lachlan strode toward him, towering over him like an apex predator. Wesley flinched, but the Irishman crouched down and hauled him up by the front of his shirt, bringing them nearly nose-to-nose. “Be careful what ye say, ye little cock. Next time we’ll just let her kill ye. And if she takes mercy on ye, I’ll do it myself.”
He threw Wesley back down and stormed away, grabbing my arm and pulling me along with him as the other two men kept pace with us. Professors poked their heads out of classrooms, drawn by the disturbance, but we ignored them as we headed through the outer hallway doors and into an empty, quiet room.
As soon as the door closed, Merrick grabbed me by the shoulders and looked me in the eyes. “Are you okay, Ari? Fuck, you can’t let him get to you like that. You’re going to bring too much attention to yourself. That magic was insanely powerful.”
I nodded. “I’m okay. That was stupid, I know. But I can’t fucking take this. I can’t keep pretending nothing is wrong. I need answers.”
Trace put his hand on Merrick’s shoulder, his gaze serious as he watched me. “We’ll get them. We’ll go back next semester.”
My eyes stung with angry tears, and I shook my head. “That’s too damn long to wait. You should’ve just let me kill him. If that little shit hadn’t dragged me away just before I found out something, anything, things might be different. But he had to go and find the fucking gem and end the challenge.”
Lachlan stepped forward, taking my face in his large, rough hands. His eyes burned, but his touch was surprisingly gentle. “Ye’ve got to keep yerself together, sweetheart. We’ve got to handle this the right way. They could be watchin’ us right now.”
I licked my lips, letting the warmth of his skin and the feel of his palms comfort me. I didn’t want him to think I was upset with him. I wasn’t, but the whole reminder that people could be watching us made me even angrier.
Lach pressed a kiss to my lips, then stepped back, regret twisting his features. “Fuck. We have another final to get to. Are ye gonna be okay if we leave ye alone?”
I tilted my head back and groaned. “I have half a mind to go start some shit with Wesley again while you guys can’t stop me, but I won’t. I’m done for the day, and I’m pretty sure I’ll be safe in my room as long as Wesley doesn’t come hunt me down in there. Just come find me later.”
Merrick and Trace kissed me too, and I hated that I could practically feel the worry coming off them in waves. I was falling apart at the seams, and they had a front row seat to the shit show, unable to do anything but watch and try to reassure me.
We left the room together, splitting up in the hallway. I could feel the magic coursing through me as I made my way toward my dorm room, and it wrapped itself around my anger. I was almost blinded by it, and all I could think about was how badly I wished I could go back to the godly realm.
Not next semester.
Now.
I kept repeating those words over and over in my head, imagining myself finally finding answers.
As my foot swung forward to step through the doorway of my room, my stomach suddenly flipped, and I fell forward.
But I never hit the floor.
I plummeted straight through space.
Gasping, I flailed for something to hold on to, but there was nothing there. Everything went wild and fuzzy in my vision, and I shut my eyes tightly. I felt like I was falling from a fucking skyscraper.
Suddenly, my feet landed again, and I stumbled, rolling across a hard floor. Very carefully, I opened my eyes. My equilibrium was slightly off, and I stumbled like a drunk, putting my hand up on the wall. Steadying myself, I stared at the wall beneath my palm, realizing that it wasn’t one of the normal stone walls within the school.
But it was familiar.
I was staring at one of the gleaming white walls of the gods’ palace.
Chapter Twenty-Four
What the fuck? How did I end up in the godly realm?
Shock flooded me, but there was no denying the truth right before my eyes. I could feel the cool marble wall against my hand, and everything was so white and sparkling it hurt my head. Somehow, some way, I was standing back in the palace.
The last thing I remembered was storming into my room after nearly killing Wesley.
What could have possibly thrown me straight back to where I needed to be?
Instantly, I began to think about all the ways I could’ve gotten here, but before I had a chance to organize my chaotic thoughts, voices met my ears.
My head shot up, and I realized for the first time how exposed I was. Drawing my magic to my palms, relishing being able to use it fully for once, I swirled it around me, creating a cloak that should hide me from any watchful eyes.
That is, if any of my magic will actually work on the gods themselves.
Panic filled me at that thought, and I darted down the hallway I had appeared in, slipping behind a large marble column a few yards away. As I peered around the column, two gods came barreling around the corner.
I froze in place as the one I recognized now as Omari stopped only a few feet from me. My heart skipped a beat, and I held my breath, hoping like hell they couldn’t see me.
The god with Omari was nearly as tall as the white-haired man was, and I assumed it must be Ryker. Not just because the power radiating from him seemed to match Omari’s, or come close to it anyway—but because he seemed furious with Omari, which fit what I’d heard from the gossiping gods while I had poured their wine.
Glancing around, I tried to get a bearing on where I was in the palace. It was obvious that I was far away from the court, possibly in a back area of the palace. I saw no other gods, and no servants, messengers, or concubines either.
“You need to step back, Ryker,” Omari boomed angrily. “We’ve had this discussion multiple times. We shall continue as we have been. This plan will work.”
Ryker slammed a fist against the wall, and I swore the whole palace shook. “You useless old fool. You’re wrong. It doesn’t make any sense. I don’t approve of this, and I’m not the only one.”
Omari let out a noise like a growl and stormed off down the hallway before I could hear much more of what they were saying. I grabbed the cloak of illusion magic, pulling it tighter around me as I hurried after them.
They walked so fast and with such long strides that I practically had to run to keep up with them, and I moved carefully to keep my footsteps silent as I went.
I found them in an open air pavilion somewhere deep in the palace. There was a door that led out onto the pavilion, and I eased through it quickly and slid behind another pillar off to one side.
Ryker glanced up, but the door had already shut behind me. Still, his brows pulled together slightly, and my heart thudded against my ribs. Fuck, that was too close.
Shaking his head, the dark-haired god turned back to Omari. The two men were both staggeringly tall, but they were the opposite in almost every other way. While Omari had flowing white hair, Ryker’s was jet black. Ryker appeared younger as well, although I had no idea what that meant to gods.
“You’re wrong, Omari,” he ground out. “You’ve been wrong for far too long. I’m not afraid of you, and I’ll do everything I can to stop you.”
Omari scowled. “You have no solution, and you expect to rally followers behind you? I know how to handle new magic users. My tactics have been subtle and effective. The Gods’ Challenge is the perfect way to rid ourselves of those who grow too powerful, too fast. Those who present a threat to us.”
The other god spat on the ground, a gesture that was so un-godly that it took me aback. I barely collected my focus in time to hear his next words. “The only thing you’re afraid of is losing your power. You hold up the ‘threat’ of these wild magic users as a way to control your followers.”
Omari stepped forward, his voice lowering dangerously. “I don’t understand why you’re so upset about this, Ryker. You act as if these humans are your children. They’re not. They belong to none of us. We didn’t gift these humans their magical abilities. It was not in our control. Don’t you understand the danger in that? It. Shouldn’t. Be. It is against the laws of magic for ordinary humans to suddenly begin manifesting their own magic themselves. It’s a threat. A threat to all of us.”
What?
My throat tightened, and I put my hand to my stomach, feeling it flip-flop wildly. All the students at Magic Blessed were taught that the gods had given us our powers—it was one of the only pieces of magical lore and history we were taught. And it was a lie?
Merrick, Lachlan, Trace, and Eden. Everyone else at the school. Me. We had all manifested our magic ourselves. It had appeared in us spontaneously, not as a gift from the gods at all.
And they didn’t want us to have it.
They considered us a threat.
“I’ve heard your ranting too many times to count, old man,” Ryker drawled, anger in his tone. “Save it for your followers.”
“My followers understand the danger,” Omari insisted, his voice cracking like thunder as waves of power poured from him. “We need to nip this in the bud. Destroy the most powerful of their kind now. Because we can’t control the spread of this magic. It was never part of our plan.”
“Not everything has to fit your plan,” Ryker shot back angrily.
“No.” Omari shook his head. “But I’m the leader here, and I decide what’s important and what’s not.”
Ryker’s lips curled back, and I swore he actually swelled with anger. He pointed his finger at Omari, just inches from the white-haired god’s face. “Then understand what you are doing, fearless leader. What was in the plan is the mages. We rely on the magic users who live here, and those who worship us on earth. If they begin seeing you, us, murdering magic users indiscriminately, they’re going to start a rebellion.”
Omari and Ryker began to move away as they continued arguing, their strides eating up the ground. My mind was reeling from what I’d heard, but I followed after them anyway, desperate to learn more. Rage was burning inside me, and I still couldn’t quite comprehend what they were saying. The magnitude of what it meant stunned me.
As I stepped forward, Ryker turned to look over his shoulder, and my heart seized in terror.
Shit. Can he see me?
I stumbled backward in panic, crashing into a stone birdbath, and the mask of illusion I had wrapped around myself slipped. My hands faded into view as I suddenly became visible again, and I gasped and concentrated hard, trying to send myself back to the school.
I could feel the world blurring around me as my magic took control.
As my body began to sink back through whatever portal I had come from, I looked up, catching sight of Ryker staring at me for just a split second.
Piercing gray eyes met mine, and fear suffused me.
He knew I was there.
The dark abyss pulled me in, sending me hurtling back to the earthly plane, but it was too late.
Whatever cover of invisibility I’d had before, it had faded before the ether sucked me in.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Whatever magical force had dropped me in the palace hurled me back into the Magic Blessed Academy building.
But this time, it was a lot more violent.
My eyes were open, my senses sharp—not just physically, but mentally as well.
All around me, I could see visions of the world, mixed with scenery from the godly realm. It swirled and contorted, and loud shrieking noises echoed through my ears. I couldn’t catch my breath, and it felt as if I was careening toward the ground at maximum speed.
For a moment, I feared I would smash down and never survive the fall.
But just like in the palace, my feet were suddenly firm on the solid stone floor, and everything snapped back into place. My head whirled, and I clutched it tightly as I dropped to my knees.
It took me a second to get both my vision and my hearing back, but when I did, I looked around quickly, finding myself in one of the empty practice rooms.
It was dark, and I was alone. No one had seen me fall there. I tried to stand back up, but I was so dizzy that it took me three tries.
Everything was spinning, and my stomach lurched. It took a minute for my mind to catch up, but when it did, a fresh wave of panic hit me. My hands rested on my knees, and I sucked in gasping breaths.
Ryker had seen me.
He had seen me, and he knew that I’d heard what they were saying. I hated Omari with a burning passion, but just because Ryker opposed him didn’t mean that the strange, powerful god was on my side.
Fuck. He could follow me to this realm right now. He wouldn’t even need a portal to get here, he could just slide across the barrier between dimensions like it was nothing.
The thought propelled me into motion, and even though I felt like I was going to barf with each step I took, I staggered toward the door. Shuffling as fast as I could through the hallways, I looked down into the classrooms, but it seemed that enough time had passed that everyone was out of finals and in their dorm rooms.
The guys. I need to find the guys.
I turned the corner in the maze of hallways that led to the other side of the school where the dorms were. As I raced forward, almost at a run, one of the classroom doors flew open and Wesley strode out. I was so close that I rammed right into him, bouncing back and almost losing my footing. He furrowed his brow and dropped his bag on the floor.
“Watch where you’re going, bitch.” He chuckled. “I see you came back for more. I would’ve thought you’d bring your entourage with you since you can’t take me on your own.”
I didn’t have time for this. I had to get to the guys and tell them what I had just found out.
“Fuck off, you weaselly asshole,” I blurted. “I don’t have time for you. We can take care of this little issue some other time.”
