Chapter 23 #4
“Yes,” she whispered. “And I think whatever is killing these students may be tied to it. Jackson told us about black magic that can corrupt runes and curse people. I haven’t found anything in the library yet, but—” She shook her head.
“The fact that Firebeard confirmed the professors are being bribed or threatened into silence and confirmed pretty much everything else tells me he didn’t pick this leave of absence, I think someone overheard us. ”
I nodded slowly, each piece clicking together in a way I hated.
“Yeah. Firebeard wouldn’t have just left.
Not without telling us.” I blew out a breath.
“Something’s clearly wrong.” I turned toward her fully.
“I think we should search Alice’s room, see if maybe she found something, maybe she hid it or we can find whatever killed her.
And we should search the area where we found the boy.
Whoever did this might’ve left something behind.
” Rynlee nodded, her expression hardening with determination.
“I can sneak into her room tomorrow night,” she offers and I arch a brow
I blinked. “You know how to lockpick?”
She smirked. “One of my many hidden talents. I’m full of surprises.”
I shook my head, half-impressed, half-concerned. “Alright. See what you can find from the areas. I’ll focus on my father… there’s something off about him. And I’ll see what I can find out about what really happened to Firebeard.”
She tilted her head. “What do you mean? Your father seemed… normal to me apart from the whole calling you by your rank and ignoring me.”
“Yeah, well, you didn’t grow up under his roof,” I muttered. “Besides, my shadows told me something was wrong.”
Her eyes widened. “Wait. Your shadows talk to you?”
“Sort of. They whisper. Constantly. It’s like a second heartbeat in the back of my head, low, quiet, always there. They’re who told me about the boy in the forest we found.” She looked at me differently, then. Not afraid. Just… curious.
“That must be exhausting.”
I shrugged. “I’ve learned to live with it.
” That wasn’t the full truth, but it was close enough.
The voices had once driven me to the brink made me question my sanity.
Now they were the only ones I trusted. I studied her for a moment, my eyes drifting to the scar again.
It still hadn’t faded. Still nestled just beneath her jaw like a signature no one could erase.
“I may have found something out about that,” I said quietly, pointing to the bite.
Her brows drew together. “About what?”
“That bite mark Erebus gave you.” I ran a hand through my hair, jaw tightening. “A few weeks ago, I read something in an old book in the restricted section. It mentioned a kind of magic… the kind that doesn’t need a spell or rune. Just blood.”
“Really?” she asked, her tone gentle, cautious. She bit her bottom lip, and I could practically see her mind racing.
“The passage said there’s magic older than the gods.
Magic passed not through sigils or chants but through blood.
” My voice dropped, more to myself than to her now.
“And when it’s mixed with shadow… or celestial essence…
it can root itself in the soul.” Her eyes widened slightly.
I met her gaze. “Permanently. Corrupting. Twisting. Binding.” The words hung there between us like a noose. “I think Erebus cursed you.”
Her breath hitched. “Firebeard had mentioned something like that to me as well, that Erebus marked me and after he bit me…. Something did happen.”
“What?” I asked, stepping in closer.
She hesitated, then looked up at me, her voice barely above a whisper. “The nightmares started that same night. Violent ones. Then hallucinations. And… the day I killed that boy from Athena’s group? I saw demons, corruption. It felt so real, and I thought I was fighting a large demon.”
My fists clenched at my sides, shadows tightening around my boots. That bastard. Erebus deserved every lash for what he’d done to her. Not her. He knew what he was doing. And he enjoyed it. There was something off about him. Always had been. But I still couldn’t prove a damn thing, yet.
“Have you had more?” I asked, voice low, holding back the growl building in my throat.
She shook her head. “No. Not since then.”
I let out a quiet breath of relief. “Good. That might mean the connection’s broken or the bite’s influence weakened somehow.” I hesitated. Then asked, “Is there anything else you want to tell me, Ruin?”
Her lips parted, but she hesitated. “No,” she finally said.
But the shadows curled at my feet like smoke in warning.
She’s hiding something. I didn’t push her, not yet.
Whatever she was keeping from me would surface, eventually.
Right now, the focus was figuring out who or what was killing students, and why.
I’d talk to Derek soon, see if the Blood Assassins were noticing the same signs.
If something this dark was moving, they’d know.
“Alright,” I reply, stepping away. “We’ll talk more tomorrow.
” With a flick of my hand, a shadow portal bloomed behind me.
I paused before moving through. I could’ve opened another for her.
But something in me, something I refused to name, held back.
It’s just the mate bond, I reminded myself coldly.
That’s all this is. Nothing real. Still, as I disappeared into the shadows, part of me lingered behind. Watching her. Wondering why it hurt.
The next day passed in a blur, another endless rotation of sparring, drills, and pretending I wasn’t unraveling from the inside.
After dinner, I finally managed to slip away from the other unit leaders.
Casting a shadow portal, I entered the hallway just outside my father’s office.
My shadows whispered around me, curling with caution. He’s not here. Perfect.
Without hesitation, I cast another portal, this one silent, and stepped into the familiar office.
But something felt… wrong. The air was still, too still.
As if the room was holding its breath. The scent of tobacco was fainter, like he hadn’t been working here regularly.
The fire in the hearth was cold. And the shadows along the walls twitched in discomfort.
I moved quickly to his desk, rifling through the neat stacks of parchment.
Most were standard war reports, troop placements, inventory manifests, but then one caught my eye.
A folded letter, hidden beneath a thick set of maps. My heart thudded harder as I opened it.
A report from the Eastern Encampment.
It was dated two months ago. “The hell?” I muttered under my breath, eyes scanning the page.
The letter was from Commander Varek. It detailed the fall of the Eastern Encampment, not to Blood Assassins, but to something far worse.
Shadow soldiers. Creatures with horns and red-glowing eyes.
Smoke that strangled breath. A corruption that moved like a storm.
I swallowed hard. This was more than an outpost lost. This was an invasion.
And my father never told any of us. Not a single word.
I didn’t have time to think. I heard footsteps.
His voice. Muffled, but close. Shit. Grabbing the letter, I shoved it into my leathers, slammed the drawer shut, and opened a portal just as the door creaked open behind me.
Darkness swallowed me whole and when the shadows peeled away, I was back in my dorm. Pacing. What the fuck is going on?
I didn’t have time to calm down before the world tilted again, my feet grounding in soft, cold sand.
The Moon Realm stretched out before me, black sand rolling endlessly beneath a violet sky, stars burning sharp and distant overhead.
Khonsu stood near the edge of a crater, the wind tugging at his silver-lined cloak.
A dark gem rolled idly between his fingers, the same way it always did when he knew something I didn’t.
He didn’t bother to look up when I arrived.
“Aiden,” he said calmly. “I owe you an apology. I should have told you about that rare gift. That was unfair.” I let out a slow breath, rubbing the back of my neck.
“Honestly? I’m over it. We’ve got bigger problems now.” I dragged a hand through my hair. “And since I haven’t actually done anything to her, it hasn’t turned into a disaster.”
Khonsu finally lifted his gaze, lips curling into that infuriatingly knowing smirk. “Good. And how is everything else going? Have you told her yet?”
I stared at him. “We’re… working together. And no, I haven’t told her why I resent her.” A sigh slipped out before I could stop it.
“Well,” he said evenly, “do you still resent her?” That question caught me off guard.
“I don’t know,” I admitted after a beat. “Yes. And no.” I waved it off, forcing the conversation forward. “But that doesn’t matter right now.” I sank onto the edge of a crater; elbows braced on my knees. “Two students are dead.”
Khonsu’s expression shifted instantly. The smirk vanished. The gem stilled in his palm. “Dead?” he repeated. “That’s… unexpected. I was under the impression this place had strict protections for the Chosen.”
“We do,” I said grimly. “But these two weren’t killed during sparring.
One was found dead in her dorm. And this morning Rynlee and I found the other in the woods.
” I hesitated, jaw tightening. “No signs of struggle. No wounds. Nothing.” I swallowed.
“Except all their blood was gone. Drained completely. Without breaking the skin.”
The surrounding air seemed to darken. “That,” Khonsu said slowly, “is very old magic.”
“You’ve heard of it?” I stepped closer.