26. Rafe
26
Rafe
C haos erupted below us.
I hovered above the Academy, heart pounding as Zade and I unsheathed our swords and dove into the fray.
Something was wrong.
For every undead that fell, more surged forward, multiplying like a grotesque tide. My stomach twisted as the realization sank—this battle was a trap designed to wear us down. Eris had somehow conjured a multiplication spell.
As I fought to protect everyone long enough for the students to escape, I kept my eyes on Evelyn. She was doing her best; I could tell she had realized the only way to stop this was to attack Eris directly.
But Eris’s power was overwhelming. The horde would have swallowed Eve whole if not for Adrien’s quick reaction. Chad arrived next, and I forced myself to stay in position, resisting the urge to break formation and fly to her side.
I should be next to her. But we were the air support—I couldn’t stray from the plan.
Whatever Chad and Evelyn talked about made her shout for us to join her. We landed near the others, and Adrien increased his protective shield around us.
Concentrating, my mate called upon her storm weaver powers while Adrien kept his shield up to protect us. The undead bounced at Adrien’s shield, punching and kicking, but they could not break it.
I watched as the sky darkened further, and the air became thick with static electricity. The hair on my arms stood on end.
Evelyn kept her arms raised to the churning sky. A bolt of lightning struck her square in the chest. Then another. And another. My pulse quickened, fear gnawing at me.
“Zade,” I forced out, “how much more can she handle?”
Zade’s face betrayed a flicker of worry—the sight was unnerving; my brother was never worried.
The lightning strikes intensified, forming an unbroken stream of raw power that poured into her at blinding speed. The others shouted, voices pleading with her to stop, but Evelyn remained unmoving, eyes shut, absorbing the storm’s fury.
I took a step forward, ready to intervene. This was too much. This would kill her—
The lightning halted, and silence fell, heavy and expectant. The charged air buzzed against my skin as Evelyn’s eyes snapped open—an electric glow flickering in their depths.
“Take cover,” she warned in an eerily calm voice.
Then she brought her hands down, unleashing a torrent of lightning that lit up the battlefield.
“Holy shit,” Zade muttered.
The undead army convulsed as hundreds of bolts struck, bodies disintegrating in light flashes. But more kept rising from the ground, multiplying faster than the bolts could cut down.
Eris stood at the far end of the lawn, watching with a triumphant smile. This was her plan all along—to exhaust us, to show that we couldn’t win.
Evelyn let out a scream of frustration as the lightning bolts subsided. Then, with a battle cry that echoed across the battlefield, she went supernova. A shockwave of raw power erupted outward, sending us flying backward like ragdolls. The Academy’s windows burst in a violent spray of glass, the force tearing through everything in its path and shaking the ground as if it might split open.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw an elder step forward, his hands raised as he attempted to conjure a shield around Eris. His power flared brilliantly for a moment—but it wasn’t enough. Evelyn’s raw energy ripped through his defenses, instantly reducing him to ash.
The others turned to run, their once-formidable presence reduced to desperation. Only a few of the fastest shifter enemies escaped the blast.
Through the chaos, Eris didn’t so much as flinch. She remained where she stood, her gaze locked on Evelyn as the shockwave washed over her.
The courtyard fell silent, smoke rising in twisted tendrils. The smell of scorched flesh and burnt earth choked the air. At the far end, only Eris remained—her clothes burned away, hair singed, and flesh knitting itself back together at an impossible speed.
There was a momentary flash of anger, but she masked it quickly as she stepped forward, her lips curling into a chilling smile.
“That’s more like it,” she said, her voice calm as she waved her hands and conjured a new dress that wrapped around her body. Her silky blonde hair fell in waves about her face as if it never burned. “I knew you had potential, Evelyn. But raw power without control is nothing more than a temper tantrum.”
Evelyn squared her shoulders, meeting Eris with an unyielding glare. Then, a slow, victorious smile spread across her lips.
“Control or not,” Evelyn said, her voice ringing with defiance, “I’m not the one standing here all alone.”
Eris’s smile faltered, her fingers twitching at her side as her gaze sharpened with fury. Shadows rippled across the battlefield as Ryker’s father descended on his massive chimera form, his wings stirring the smoke around them. Without a word, he scooped Eris up in his powerful claws.
Eris cast one last, smoldering look at Evelyn before they vanished into the sky.
“Fuck,” Viper breathed, breaking the silence. “I think I’m in love.”
Chad shot him a glare. “Nope. No more dicks in this harem.”