Chapter 30
Revyn
The very moment that the sun kisses the horizon, the air shifts.
Magic favoring the sun wanes while those that channel the moon grow in strength, and the subtle pressures of the academy’s wards hum in a constant reminder that there is power lingering in the earth, wind, and stars around us.
As a shifter, I don’t inherently sense magic, but even I can feel it in this place—like the bones of the academy are as ancient as the grounds they lie upon.
It makes the hair on the back of my neck rise.
As we wait for dusk to officially claim the land, every single student in Aesir’s remedial classes is standing shoulder-to-shoulder on the back lawn.
I track our professor’s movements as he paces the narrow strip of dirt in front of the forest he’s designated ground zero for our practical training sessions.
We’re not to stray beyond the academy’s grounds—that is, beyond the river on the far side of the woods—so that we keep our powers within manageable limits inside Heartsflame’s wards.
Of course, vampires won’t be able to cross a flowing body of water anyhow, but he doesn’t reveal that fact to the other magic folk in the class.
It’s nice to know that we’re keeping some secrets to ourselves.
Including our professor’s true identity.
If any alpha worth their salt knew that this ancient asshole was teaching their children to fight, they’d be up in arms in a heartbeat. But because we’re playing nice for the purposes of this exercise—and I really hope he doesn’t remember me—I keep my mouth shut and my head down.
It helps that Sienna holds my hand.
That small show of affection does wonders to soothe my soul, and I brush my thumb over the back of her hand to reaffirm that it really is her and not another one of Callum’s illusions. If he pulls illusionary bullshit tonight, I’m going to cave his skull in with my fist through his goddamn face.
I just got Sienna back—no matter how fleeting—and I won’t lose her again.
Aesir continues pacing as he explains the parameters for tonight’s training.
“I’ve divided you into four-man squads. Your objective is to reach the center of these woods, grab a figurine, and report back to me within two hours.
If any one of your team members is incapacitated, you fail.
If your figurine arrives in less than pristine condition, you fail.
If you show up here empty-handed at the end of the allotted time, you fail.
If you get lost in the woods, no one is coming to rescue you.
I don’t care if you stay out all night. I don’t even care if you’re injured.
But you do—not—leave—your—teammates—behind.
” Pausing his gait, he clasps his hands behind his back and glares out at the crowd of somber students.
“If I find out that you intentionally harmed your teammates or abandoned them, you will answer directly to me.” He flashes his fangs in warning.
Someone to my right asks a question. “What about other teams? Can we fight them?” His buddies laugh and clap his shoulder, but I can scent them from here—predator shifters, ones who enjoy the heat of battle. How they could lose the Mating Games if they’re—
One of them sneers at us, and I recognize the hook of his crooked nose on second glance. Bear shifter with a snub-nose in his animal form. Thick russet fur. Weak neck.
“This should be fun,” Sienna murmurs sarcastically, returning the bear shifter’s glare with twice the heat.
I wrap my arms around her shoulders and press a kiss to her hair, unable to keep my laugh to myself. “So, we’ve got a target on our backs? What’s new.”
“No points this time,” Callum muses, humming softly by our side. “We can claim our idol and wrap up quickly.”
I doubt anything will be that simple, but I keep my thoughts to myself.
Our professor’s eyes flash bright crimson as he listens to the murmurs in the crowd. “I don’t give a shit what you do to anyone who isn’t on your team. Academy wards are in place, so if you manage to kill someone, I might actually be impressed.”
A few more heads turn in our direction, and I feel their eyes on our little group. Sienna and I are sure to have gained enemies from the Winter Games, and if I had to guess, Alistair has some too on account of just how many points he stole.
The only saving grace of the evening is that Alistair Dire is nowhere to be found, which means that there’s no way in seven hells that he’ll come between me and Sienna tonight.
If every evening for the next three months is Alistair free, then I don’t give a damn what Aesir has in store for us.
I’ll take on any challenge if it means spending more time with my girl.
I slide one arm from Sienna’s neck to hold her hand again, determined not to let her slip past my fingers.
Anyone stupid enough to attack her will have to go through me first. Callum must be thinking similarly, because he steps closer to Sienna and peers over everyone’s heads to scan the crowd. Good thinking. See who the enemy is—
The air cracks around us and, all of a sudden, I’m dropped in another location. Three sets of eyes—not my mate’s and not Callum’s—hell, not even Gemma’s vibrant greens—blink warily at me.
Holy fucking shit. Aesir just split us up. The bastard.
His voice echoes through the dark wood from all directions, the magic amplifier at his disposal making his tone sharper than usual.
“Whichever team completes tonight’s objective will receive an exemption from tomorrow’s practical training.
” The moonlight barely penetrates the thick canopy, the boughs overhead casting shadows all around us.
A few tendrils appear to move, making two of my teammates antsy.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Aesir has his shadow-fingers all over the wood.
I take a half-step into a patch of moonlight to my right, just in case he does.
“Work as a team and you will succeed. Fail to do so . . .” He draws a slow breath, the heat of it hitting my shoulder as though he’s standing directly behind. “. . . and you’ll wish you had.”
“You’ve gotta be shitting me,” one of my teammates says, his thick accent rattling on account of his nerves.
Sky blue eyes blown so wide that he looks like a fucking owl—shit, he might be an owl—and a shaking hand that he can’t seem to stop.
Fantastic. He holds his hand in front of his face like he can’t see it, and that makes everything twice as annoying.
Not a shifter. A human.
“Witch boy,” I growl, exhaling hotly. “Can you see?”
His eyes go even wider, if that’s possible. “N-no.”
“Don’t summon a light,” the vampire girl beside him hisses, “or someone will see.” Straight black hair similar to Sienna’s, but with a pointed nose and tiny fangs. She must be young. Her eyes are a dull shade of red that almost look human—meaning that on top of being young, she hasn’t fed recently.
At least the damp-skinned merman is quiet as he assesses our surroundings. That shows promise.
“They’ll hear us before they see us.” I take a calming breath and sniff the air, but all I scent are these three and the cold in the air.
The witch trembles like a leaf in the wind. “Which way do you think is toward the center?”
I’m not interested in winning tonight’s exercise, but I know that Sienna will be, and that’s enough reason for me to play along. I glance up, but the moon is hidden behind the canopy.
“This way,” the vampire says mysteriously, not waiting for us before she starts walking. “Keep your ears open and your eyes sharp.”
“Or your fangs,” the witch exhales, blindly following the vampire into the dark.
Under different circumstances, that blind faith might be funny, but I’m hard-pressed to find anything humorous about our situation.
The silent merman follows the trembling witch, and I’m left to bring up the rear.
I keep my senses sharp and quickly memorize my teammates scents, locking in on the northern ocean brine wafting off the merman, the vampire’s decrepit underpit like she hasn’t bothered bathing in a decade, and the witch’s distinct fear making him sweat like a pig despite the chilling temperatures.
He’s so cold that his sweat freezes on his freckled skin.
Tuning them out, I reach beyond our little bubble of awareness and search for others. The snap of a branch, the rustle of leaves, the hiss of a snake . . . but nothing remotely resembling my mate’s wildflower honey scent or gorgeous amber eyes. Damn.
“A witch helped Professor Aesir teleport us,” our very own witch boy mutters, suddenly spitting unnecessary facts in an attempt to keep calm. He rakes a shaking hand through bouncing red curls. “Do you think it was the same one who handled the teleportation circle for the Games?”
“Don’t know,” the vampire murmurs. “Don’t care, either. Keep up.”
“I bet Aesir split all the groups up evenly,” the witch continues, stumbling over a branch until the merman steadies him.
As soon as their skin touches, the merman hisses and reels back, his seafoam eyes narrowed to slits.
“Stop freezing the air!” He shakes out his hand, but the damage is done.
His fingertips are partially frozen, their natural pale green hue turning white as the liquid in his body solidifies. “Marick! Calm down!”
So the ice crystalizing on witch boy Marick’s skin is a nervous reaction?
Taking a breath, I grab Marick’s arm and haul him two steps closer to me. “My body heat will keep you from freezing solid.” I push him to keep us moving. “Stay close.”
“Th-thank you,” Marick mumbles, stumbling ahead of me. The unnamed merman keeps a wide berth but stays close enough to warn Marick of debris in our path. Swallowing, witch boy glances back at me. “You’re that wild wolf. The one with the black blood.”
“It’s not black.” I hold back a wince. How many people were paying attention in class today? “Turn around and keep moving.”