Chapter 11 Velra
~Velra~
It was happening again.
I slapped another pile of my clothes into my open suitcase.
I was being forced to leave my life behind.
To retreat into the dark.
To go into fucking hiding.
Because of Puritas.
Because of Sorin.
Because of what I was.
And who my maniac of a fucking brother was.
I’d died—again.
Sylas had died. For me.
Now he was severely ill. His sickness had barely been sustainable before, but with what he’d done to save me, it was beyond even that.
Cassius had been at death’s door. Because of me.
And Lazriel was in the wind.
Everything was fractured.
I stormed to my dresser and ripped out the top drawer completely, all my underwear spilling over the floor.
I grunted and scooped up some of it, then just tossed it into the suitcase in a sloppy mess of a way.
As I went back to get some more, a familiar ringtone sounded.
Yet again.
It had been two familiar ringtones over the last little while.
One for Warlow.
One for Cornelius.
They were worried about me.
They’d wanted me to go into protective custody at their home like before, but Cassius had insisted on me staying with him—and the sweetheart, Ketheron.
I’d already been there for my recuperation, so it made sense to remain for this longer stretch.
And obviously, I wanted to be with him. And Ketheron too, because we’d really connected.
I wanted to be there with Lazriel and Sylas as well, I wanted all of us to be together, but of course that couldn’t work out the way I wanted it to and—argh!
I sucked in a breath
I’d told Cornelius and Warlow via texts that I was fine, that I was handling things.
But they wanted to talk on the phone. To know for sure.
And I wasn’t fine, so I couldn’t pick up now, could I? They didn’t deserve more worry piled onto their own.
I didn’t want to create a whole thing, a big panic.
I didn’t want people thinking I couldn’t handle my shit, that I was breaking down or some other pathetic sort of thing along those lines.
I just… I just needed a little time.
That was all.
My gaze darted to my desk where I’d found a thoughtful gift from them when I’d walked into my dorm room earlier.
A container of my favorite snack food.
Sugar cookies with crushed cranberries.
I grimaced and looked away, clenching my teeth.
I’d found a new favorite at Vantiqe. Those Cinnamon Cloud Muffins.
But now that was tainted.
Because of Sorin.
Because of that fucking attack.
Everything was tainted.
Everything was ruined!
Ruined! Ruined! Ruined!
I screamed and thrust my palms out, my Dark Fae power exploding out of me in violent purple blasts.
The room shook under the wrath of my power.
But it didn’t break.
Just like the dorms within Umbralis Circle were engineered to withstand mammoth displays of brute strength, these here in Obscura Circle were made to hold up against magical eruptions.
Well, the overall structural integrity of the space.
The furniture and items within said space were another matter.
I watched my power blast into my bed, destroying the hefty wood and setting the sheets on fire.
My magic radiated out, my hands trembling with the force of it that I was expelling in such a furor. It shattered a gargoyle statue, blew a hole in my closet doors, scorched the floor in several places as well.
My shadows and frost reacted, following suit, and wanting in on the destruction.
I tried to stop it, but it was too late—the need to let loose too strong.
My magic was angry too.
No. Beyond anger.
In moments, my shadows were swirling around, like a dangerous black and gray tornado sweeping up my clothing, knick-knacks, my bags and suitcase, my jewelry-making tools. My frost blasted into them, freezing and cracking them, as it also spread up the walls, trying to dominate the space.
And then it happened—my Dark Fae power evolved from my usual shimmering bursts to flash lightning. It was the darker aspect of my power that I rarely unleashed, for obvious reasons.
But right now… right now I wanted to.
I wanted it to rage.
I wanted it to destroy.
I wanted to feel better!
I wanted control!
This was my power!
I heard a knock.
A shove at the door.
I didn’t give a damn.
But I was made to in the next moment when a burst of white light blew the fucking thing open.
Cassius strode in, his magic live.
His gaze flicked from the destruction I was unleashing to me.
And then he strangely nodded to himself.
“As you wish, little shadow.”
In the next moment, he put out the flames, then blurred toward me.
He snagged my waist, unfurled his wings, then drove us through the window, shattering the reinforced glass under his Immortal power, as he soared us high into the sky at breakneck speed.
“What the—what the hell?” I demanded, shoving away from Cassius the moment we touched down on some… some… mountaintop?
The moment he’d grabbed me, my magic had shorted out, recognizing him, not wanting to hurt him.
All right, it had been me. Consciously pulling it back immediately.
But I could still feel that painful build, the need to release and take action buzzing under my skin in a way that wouldn’t fucking relent.
“I thought you were in class teaching your Ritual Ethics class?”
“Time must have gotten away from you, as it can very well do when you’re invoking such potent magics. I finished ten minutes ago. I’d texted you to see if you would like some of those Cloud Muffins you mentioned last night as Vantiqe has already been repaired and is up and running again.”
“Already repaired? How?”
He lifted a shoulder. “I saw to it.”
“What? When? We were together all last night at your place and we even came here together this morning.”
“While you were sleeping a couple of nights ago. I briefly left to fix what was broken. The owners have it up and running again now. It took a couple of days for them to return to normalcy. I’d been planning to surprise you after my lecture by bringing you some of your favored foods and beverages from there.
I wasn’t sure whether you could actually bring yourself to visit the place in person after what happened.
But I was sure you would desire their refreshments. ”
“I… wow.”
He smiled and came to me, taking my hands gently in his and holding them between us.
“Do not worry, I am not conveying that in order to calm you. You have been calm. And believing you need to maintain that is what is causing these outbursts.” He gave my hands a squeeze, then stepped back and gestured around, his wings sweeping behind him as he did.
“These are the Mordrek Mountains. Ryker Morgan has recently begun to use them as a space for intense Guardian Movement training of both new recruits and those who need to brush up on their skills. He’s imbued a magical lightning rod of sorts at the heart of this space that releases a portion of his defensive magic into the air, which turns magic into a harmless ambient mist. It enables magic-wielders to invoke high-level power without any risk to the environment. ”
“If it’s a prominent Guardian training ground, how are we even allowed passage here?”
“Cornelius put in a word with Ryker.” His lips quirked. “At Warlow’s insistence.”
Despite everything and the way I was feeling right now, I smiled. “That was really sweet. Of all of you. Thank you, Cassius.”
“Go on, let it out,” he said, gesturing around the vast space. Snowy mountains surrounded us for miles in the distance.
I stepped forward and turned my palms up.
Let it out.
“Argh!” I screamed, my voice echoing hauntingly through the mountain range.
My Dark Fae magic streamed violently from my upturned palms out into the distance, vibrant-purple lighting up the area.
My frost tore across the mountaintop in the next beat in crackling veins, as my shadows swirled around me wildly in a vortex that I stood at the epicenter of.
Through it, I caught sight of Cassius.
He wasn’t even flinching.
He just watched, his wings still unfurled, his hands clasped over his worn black jacket, his boots and part of the cuffs of his black pants sunken in the snow.
Unwavering.
Grounded.
He was never afraid of me.
Never.
I jolted as my flash lightning came into play and I roared out across the vast space as it tore into the sky and struck all around in vicious chaos, sending chunks of snow spraying everywhere, even calling dark clouds forth.
He arched an eyebrow at the clouds.
It was intrigue, though, not fear.
Even with this. This lightning aspect of my power… it was the darkest facet of my Dark Fae magic. The dangerous part. The part I’d always been afraid to bring out.
“All is well,” he assured me. “Release at will.”
“It’s… it’s dark…”
“Not under your command.”
I shrieked and thrust more of my might into it, the lightning spreading and ripping through our surroundings, sparking all around.
“You don’t know that.”
“I do. And so do you. Do not let others determine who and what you are. They know not what they speak of.”
I stared out at him.
He was… he was incredible.
I staggered back, snuffing out my power, which given the level of it, took a few moments of intensity to actually manage.
I watched the actual marks of my magic that had been unleashed into the environment dissipating—my frost, the storm clouds that I’d gathered with my lightning, and the destabilization of the snowy winds my shadows had caused. Ryker’s defensive magic spell working its will.
Cassius turned to me frowning. “You are done? Already?”
I stormed toward him.
He tensed, his brow furrowing deeper.
When I was just a couple of feet out, I launched myself at him.
He caught me easily with a single hand, and I linked my arms around his neck and crushed my mouth to his.
It wasn’t soft and reverent this time.
It was deep, ferocious even.
And absolutely all-consuming.
When I broke the kiss, we were both panting, his hand that was holding me up and splayed across my ass was trembling with desperate need.