Chapter 34
Chapter Thirty-Four
~ Shade ~
Knox steps through the pathway before me, and I follow him, entering the ballroom.
We’re hidden from the queen’s table by a thick stone pillar, and I’ve only taken one step from the portal when I spot a headless body that lays on the floor in front of us.
I only just manage to hold in my scream as I stare at the bloodied mess of red fabric.
Please don’t be Kenzie. Please don’t be…
“It’s not her,” Knox tells me, like he knows exactly what I’m thinking.
I stare at the body for a moment longer, feeling a little guilty at the relief that filters through me. It might not be Kenzie, but there’s still a dead student in front of me.
“Look at me,” Knox says, drawing my gaze to him as he reaches for me, his shadows curling in the air around us.
“The games are designed to spill blood, and we won’t be able to intervene when you’re out there.
We’ll be able to send shadow whispers to you, but otherwise, you’ll be on your own.
It’s not too late. We can leave through another pathway if you’ve changed your mind. ”
I exhale slowly. “No, if I can somehow make it through the games, I’ll gain my immortality,” I say softly, my stomach churning as fear washes over me. “I can’t run from this, Knox. I can’t hide while my friends are in the games.”
“Then you’d better fight,” he says, brushing his lips against mine. “Because if I lose you again, I don’t think any of us will survive the aftermath. I’ll do whatever is in my power to help you, my love.”
My heart stutters at his words, and his hands linger on me like he doesn’t want to let me go, but then he disappears in a cloud of shadows. I can still feel him hovering, watching me from somewhere out of sight, and I swallow hard.
My head feels like it’s about to explode as Knox’s words repeat in my mind.
My love. It’s like the memories of my past are conflicting against everything Knox has shown me these past weeks, but every time I think of his cruel words, I get flashes of warmth.
Flashes of Knox’s smile as he pleasures me in my dreams, making me feel like when I’m with him, life is worth living again.
He made me feel like I could breathe again.
Even if I can’t remember what it was from my past that pulled me into the darkness.
More memories press in my head, and the sound of my laughter from a time long-forgotten sounds in my mind, but I don’t have time to focus on the memories right now.
The ballroom shudders when another roar carries throughout the space, and I apologize as I step over the body before me, moving further into the room.
Taking a deep breath, I peer around the pillar to where there’s a massive, furred beast in the middle of the ballroom.
Patchy black fur covers its wrinkled skin, and it stands on four short legs.
Darkness leaks from its huge claws, the shadows bleeding into the marble and darkening the space where it walks, and its wide head leads into a long snout with razor sharp fangs.
The akzoran. According to Raith, if it touches me its shadows will fill me with a crippling despair.
It’s completely blind, but the creature senses fear, and it lifts its snout, sniffing the air before turning its head to the left.
Across the room, the queen and the originals are seated at the long table surrounded by shadows as they casually watch the scene unfold.
I step out, and Thane, Galen, and Raith all stare at me, but I’m distracted as the akzoran leaps with its powerful hind legs, snapping at a student.
The student screams and there’s a horrible crunch before the student is silenced and the akzoran swallows them whole.
Lifting my hand to my mouth, I fight hard not to throw up. Oh, fuck me, I hiss in my head.
“It’s not advisable to try and mate with an akzoran, girl,” Elgen quips back, and I realize I must have transmitted my words to her via our connection.
“Hmmm yes, its swollen member grows a few feet long and would likely tear you apart,” Tarlaz adds matter-of-factly.
I make a horrified face almost failing to keep the contents of my stomach down. “What? I don’t want to sleep with it. I meant—” I make a frustrated noise. “Never mind. Have you seen Kenzie or Jensen?”
“We were too busy trying to locate you, child,” Elgen replies. “Where did the dark one take you?”
“That doesn’t matter. Are you sure you haven’t seen them?”
Before either of them can reply, the ground shudders, and I find myself face-to-face with the akzoran as it moves further into the room. The giant beast steps closer to me, sniffing at my dress.
“Nice, beastie,” I say, wondering if I should throw some snacks at it or something, before remembering that I’m the snack.
I don’t move and I force myself to try and calm my racing heart, remembering that the beast can sense fear.
“Oh great. She’s going to die before the games even begin,” Elgen comments dryly.
“And we never even reached the dessert platters,” Tarlaz complains. “Truly disappointing.”
The creature leans in close, and its hot rancid breath puffs into my face, nearly making me gag. Please don’t eat me. I’ll…I’ll give you indigestion!
I can still feel Knox watching me from somewhere close by. I know he won’t let me die, but he’s not going to intervene unless he has no other choice. Not when the queen is around.
The creature moves its snout closer to me, and it opens its jaw, revealing a long set of bloodied fangs. Bits of torn flesh cling to its teeth, and I turn my head to the side, trying not to look at it. The blood pounds in my ears, and the creature tenses.
“It’s okay, beastie dear. It’s okay, no snack is here,” I sing to myself under my breath, trying to channel my inner badass but failing miserably. Yep, I definitely should have stayed in the forest with Knox.
The akzoran doesn’t agree, because it’s clearly ready for another meal, but just as it’s about to snap me up, it senses a group of students that surround it.
Jerking its head to the side, it turns its attention to them as they all use their shadows to bind the creature’s legs.
Satine, Izzy, and Paiton are amongst the students, but their power isn’t enough to keep the akzoran contained.
It’s about to break free from its binds when someone yells, and before the beast can free itself, Ian jumps up from behind.
He drives his sword down into the base of the beast’s skull, the blade wreathed in shadows.
There’s a sickening, squelching sound, and I watch in stunned silence as the beast huffs a pained breath.
“Move, girl! Before it falls on you!” Elgen shouts a warning, but I’m paralyzed by shock as I stare at the falling beast, not sure why my chest fills with sadness as the light dims in its round dark eyes.
Shadows coil around my ankles at the last moment, and I sense Knox’s power. My mate’s shadows are subtle, but it’s enough to make me fall backward.
I sprawl to the floor, my chest heaving as the beast lands with a loud thump, and its eyes close.
Ian is still standing on the creature’s back, and he lifts his fist triumphantly into the air as he celebrates his kill.
Ed, Paiton, Izzy, and Satine watch from the sidelines, clapping and laughing with him.
Before long, more students start to gather, and soon the room is filled with applause, but the whole time I’m still staring at the akzoran. Slowly, I make my way to my feet, moving away from the fallen beast, and I flinch when someone grabs hold of me.
“Oh my god, Shade! Are you all right?” Kenzie asks me as she leads me further away from the beast, into the middle of the ballroom. Her dress is torn and bloody, but thankfully, she’s in one piece.
“I’m fine. Are you okay? Where’s Jensen?” I scan the students around the ballroom, but I don’t seem him.
Her lips tighten, and I immediately know something is wrong. “Kenzie,” I prompt, suddenly scared for my friend.
Her gaze flicks around us before she leans close and whispers, “I told him about how we’ve been looking for the missing students. He thought he’d use the distraction tonight to help search the academy.”
My brows lift. “What? But none of us were supposed to leave the celebration before the queen did.”
She twists her hands in the fabric of her dress.
“He was supposed to be back before then, but he’s been gone for ages.
” Worry shines in her eyes, but before I can say anything more, the applause in the room abruptly stops, and it takes me a moment to realize why.
The queen is standing behind her table, and the originals lift to their feet as well.
Knox is now back in his position, and all four of my mates have their gazes locked on me.
I force myself to focus on the shadow queen who’s smiling like she’s entirely pleased with how the night has played out.
“Shadow warriors!” she says lifting her arms wide, and the sound of far-off applause fills the air.
That’s when I notice the shadows have changed on the walls.
Instead of depictions of battle scenes, along the right wall is a spanned-out view of the filled seats in a large amphitheater.
The image is projected on the wall, and thousands upon thousands of shadow warriors are in the stands cheering and clapping.
Shadows twist from the queen’s fingers, connecting to the projection, and I realize she’s using her power to make this happen.
“What is this?” Thane growls, looking entirely pissed off.
Okay, so the guys really didn’t know about the queen’s plans.
Queen Krosia shoots him a dangerous look that has Thane closing his mouth, though he looks like he wants to say more.
Turning, she smiles at the warriors in the stadium, and then at all the students in the ballroom.
“That was absolutely thrilling, wasn’t it!
” She beams. “Every graduation, the games and trials have followed the same format to the point it has become predictable,” she says, projecting her voice, and I get the feeling she’s talking more to the people in the stands than she is to us in the ballroom.
“But this year, I’ve decided things will be different.
During these games, there will be higher stakes, more brutal challenges, and more creatures to keep you on the edge of your seats! ”
There’s a roar from the crowd in the amphitheater, and the students around the ballroom clap politely, though most of them look uneasy. My stomach twists. More creatures? I know about the ones my mates collected. Are there more than that?
Queen Krosia stretches her arms wide and there’s a darkness in her eyes that terrifies me. “Welcome all! Welcome all to the beginning of the graduation games!”
The answering applause is deafening, and more shadows shoot out from the queen, spearing in all directions.
One of them surrounds me, growing in size until it has wrapped around my arms, legs, and my waist. Unlike Knox’s shadows, these are so cold they sting my skin, numbing my fingers and toes, and the shadows squeeze painfully as they swallow me whole.
I gasp, feeling like I’m suffocating. I can’t breathe. I can’t—
“Good luck, girl. You’ll need it.” Elgen’s voice is the last thing I hear before the darkness takes me.
~ Knox ~
“What are you doing to them?” I snarl at Queen Krosia as Shade disappears, and all the students collectively vanish from the room. The spot where my mate, my love, had been standing is now empty, and I struggle not to react and do something I might regret.
Germain cracks his neck, grinning at me like he wants me to know he helped the queen plan this. He’s such a fucking idiot. If Shade doesn’t make it through this, he’ll be one of the first I’ll come after, and I’ll make him suffer until he begs for the escape of death.
The shadow queen smiles, clearly loving how she’s gotten under my skin.
“Relax, darling, they have simply been transported to where they’re needed.
” She lifts her hand, and I follow her gaze to the projected image on the wall, and where the focus is now on the arena.
Shadows gather before my eyes, and the unconscious students are all deposited onto the sands.
Beside me, a low growl rumbles deep in Raith’s throat, and I know his beast is as agitated as I am.
Galen curses under his breath, and Thane presses his lips together.
“Our warriors needed something truly spectacular this year to boost morale amongst the troops,” the queen says, smiling smugly. “And what better way than to see the next batch of hopeful graduates prove themselves in even more daring challenges?”
“You should have told us,” Thane says, his voice low. “We could have prepared the students more appropriately.”
“Prepare them?” The queen laughs. “The surprise is what will make this fun, darling.”
I scan the scattered bodies in the ballroom.
We didn’t lose many. Maybe half a dozen students.
But while I can acknowledge the purpose of testing the students in the arena, sending a beast in here while they were celebrating was un-called for and a waste of lives.
The queen has lost her mind, but I knew that a long time ago.
“How much have the other games deviated from the plan?” Galen asks. His voice is steady, but there’s no disguising his concern.
The queen smiles wickedly. I don’t doubt the main goal of these changes is to excite the crowd, but there’s more to it than that.
There’s a reason she didn’t tell me and the others about this.
She wanted to catch us out. But why? Simply because of Shade?
There’s a dangerous glint in the queen’s eyes, and I get the feeling she’s just waiting for us to slip up.
I think about how Germain had been questioning Shade earlier. She’s onto us. Fuck.
“Like I said, change was necessary,” the queen says, her smile broadening like she’s having fun seeing us uncomfortable.
“Enjoy the excitement like the others. Now, I suggest we hurry. We wouldn’t want to miss their entrance act, now would we?
We should find ourselves a better view.” Her shadows start forming a pathway when she pauses, turning to us again.
“Oh, and I’m sure I needn’t remind you, but there isn’t to be any interference during the games.
If I discover you’ve been favoring any of your… pets, it will not end well for them.”
I clench my jaw, and Thane tenses, his gaze hardening.
“Don’t worry,” Thane growls, quickly speaking before any of us can say something stupid. “We understand perfectly.”