Chapter 3 Rune #2
His gentle brown eyes met mine, and his winter woods scent hit me. I breathed it in before I could stop myself.
I swallowed hard.
“You’re staring.” Slater nudged me, and my heart skipped a beat as tingles spread from where he touched me. “I wouldn’t mind him being a brother-mate of mine.”
“Shut up.” My face heated, but my eyes didn’t leave Jesper’s.
Pops cleared his throat and gave more detailed instructions, but I was too focused on Jesper and Drecken to hear Pops explain more.
“You have immense magical power for even a dragon.” Drecken offered his hand to Jesper. “Drecken.”
“Thank you.” Jesper let out a nervous chuckle as he shook his hand. “We’ve met. Remember? Demon Capital. The dark magic cult. I was the lead agent.”
“Oh.” Drecken tilted his head. “Right. You led the sabotaging of the ritual sites and the team that went with Pandora and her mates to destroy Sybil Shaw. Well done.”
Jesper gave a curt nod. “Yes.”
“Pandora’s magic is just as fascinating as her father’s, and the capacity for killing dark magic she has is astounding,” he rambled, his eyes twinkling as if talking about rare magic really did it for him.
“I was too caught up in all the power that I forgot many who were around. Do not take it personally.”
“I don’t.” Jesper folded his arms behind his back. His gaze swept over the group, landing on each student as if he was reading our auras. When his brown eyes passed over me, though, they stopped.
My breath caught as he held my gaze. His stare wasn’t as intense as Zuko’s or as amused as Slater’s. It was deep and comforting.
I tore my gaze away before I did something stupid like go up and hug him or something.
Slater let out a soft whine. “Tell me you’re not in love already. I wanted to be your first love.”
“I’m not in love,” I snapped, feeling venom seep from my fangs before I pressed them against my bottom lip. “Never been in love.”
“Aw, venom baby, I’ll fix that,” he cooed, his red eyes filling with excitement. “I’ll make you fall deeply in love.”
I was going to humor him with a reply, but Pops called Zuko up first, and my words caught in my throat.
At 6’7”, the basilisk was a brutal figure with that sunset-colored hair that flamed from yellow into blood-orange.
His hair was untamed and sticking out messily.
His skeletal hand tattoos drew my eye as his venom slicked his palms. His dark orange eyes were locked on Pops with the intensity of a predator.
He moved fast, too. He was a blur of toned muscle and orange splashes of venom. He feinted low and drove his entire body forward for a punch to Pops’s chest.
But Pops didn’t even blink.
He simply side-stepped and snatched Zuko’s wrist mid-air, twisting and slamming him to the ground.
The impact cracked through the training field like thunder.
Zuko groaned, blinking up from the dirt. “Respectfully…fuck.”
“Observe, then strike. Don’t plow in without a plan,” Pops told him as Dad called out Slater’s name next.
“Wish me luck, venom baby.” He winked at me, gently brushing his arm over mine before he switched spots with Zuko.
My arm tingled from the contact.
Slater’s red eyes sparkled with mischief, and his daisies and jasmine scent curled on the wind as if to mock my attraction to him.
“Go easy on me,” he pleaded. “You will become my father-in-law by mating.”
Pops raised an eyebrow. “You honestly think commenting about your crush on my daughter will do you any favors?”
“It’s not a crush. It’s the Fates.” Slater spun low with a flicker of chaos magic between his fingers as his black snake with red eyes came into existence, warping the very air as it did.
His snake struck, but the bite missed as Pops’s phoenix wings burst behind him, and he took flight. Slater had no time to react to the kick from above. Pops’s foot cracked against his skull.
Slater dropped face-first into the ground, and his snake faded back into him.
“I promise to never hurt her…” he mumbled, eyes rolling back.
I stifled a laugh as Dad called out Koa’s name, and Jesper had to drag Slater off the arena and plop him on the glowing perimeter.
Slater jumped up a few seconds later, scratching the back of his head as he strolled back over. “I’m usually a lot more capable, but your dad is really fucking scary.”
I giggled. “He taught me to fight. I know.”
“Damn. You just keep getting even more attractive.” He waved his hand over his face, trying to cool off.
I rolled my eyes.
Koa stood in front of Pops, his wavy dark hair curling slightly with the heat he was exuding. His gold chain glinted on his collarbone, almost taunting the sunlight. Those warm brown eyes, flecked with embers, flared with barely-contained power.
“I intend to learn from this,” he said, lighting his fists with a casual ignition of red flames.
“Your move first.”
Koa nodded once before throwing a massive fiery punch.
Pops took the hit in his open palm, absorbing the phoenix heat as if it was nothing. To Pops, it probably was.
“Good strength.” He pivoted and swept Koa off his feet with a single grounded spin-kick.
Koa slammed into the dirt hard, smoldering slightly.
Three seconds passed.
“Fates,” he coughed, getting back on wobbly feet. “Your kick shattered my ankle.”
Pops shrugged. “Limp over the perimeter. It’ll heal. Next time, don’t leave your bottom half open.”
“Noted,” Koa mumbled, limping over the golden ward slowly.
“Dimitri Nocturnus,” Dad shouted.
The vampire I’d locked eyes with earlier walked into the arena with Pops, his eyes glowing red. His black hair fell to his shoulders, and that one stark white patch was still as pretty as it was when I first saw him. His lean frame moved with precision.
His name suited him.
Dimitri didn’t waste time saying anything. He only nodded once before launching his attack.
Pops almost struggled to catch the strikes. Left hook, right uppercut, knee, palm, and right hook.
Pops managed to block all four, stepped inside Dimitri’s space, and slammed an elbow into his gut.
Dimitri hit one knee with a hand gripping the loose dirt. When he looked up, his voice was softer than I expected. “Impressive, Professor Bloodwyne.”
Pops’s lips twitched into a smirk. “You as well, Dimitri.”
Pops fought the rest of the applicants until it was just me. We lost another fifteen applicants with this trial because Pops deemed them unworthy for some reason or another.
Nobody questioned his assessments.
My heartbeat echoed in my ears as my turn loomed closer. Adrenaline pumped through my veins.
Pops turned to me and rolled his shoulders, his massive form still completely calm. No bruises or sweat. Even though he’d sparred with, well, more like defeated with one hit, over one-hundred other applicants.
He gave me a faint, knowing smile. “I can’t fight my daughter. She knows all my tricks. Jesper?”
“M-Me?” His eyes widened, snapping to meet mine. “You want me to fight your daughter?”
“I want you to spar with her.” Pops chuckled, stepping out of the arena and slapping Jesper’s shoulder. “She’s already beaten me twice. Watch yourself.”
I stepped onto the dirt as whispers broke out about me actually winning a match with my pops. As proud as I was to win against him, two wins against the well-over a thousand he won wasn’t as impressive as I’d wanted it to be.
Jesper stepped forward, and his winter woods scent was exactly like I remembered. It settled over me beautifully. Clean, sharp, and powerful.
My magic stirred low under my skin, but I smothered it. I wouldn’t need it to fight him, even if he was a dragon.
He stopped across from me, his chest defined beneath the tight black suit. I couldn’t help my gaze dipping between his legs, where there was a very noticeable bump. His muscles flexed subtly as he rolled one shoulder, bringing my thoughts out of the gutter quickly.
He gave me a half-smile. “I apologize for this.”
“Don’t hold back,” I said, cracking my knuckles.
“I was about to say the same,” he murmured, voice low and rasped, reminding me of the crack of ice under weight. “If you’ve beaten Gavin, you’re more than formidable for me.”
Pops blew a whistle.
Jesper moved for me first, swinging an open-palm toward my throat.
I dodged, my body twisting out of the way on instinct. Ducking, I kicked out a sweep at his ankles, but he jumped. As he jumped, I planted a blow to his ribs that rattled my knuckles and drew a surprised breath from his throat.
His eyes lit up with admiration, and he stumbled back before circling me. I did the same. Our feet thudded rhythmically against the arena’s dirt-packed floor.
When I struck out and nearly clipped his jaw, he smiled. “You fight like you enjoy it.”
I stepped back once with a ragged breath. “Don’t you?”
“Never before now.”
My brows furrowed at that. I’d never met an agent who didn’t enjoy fighting before.
He leapt at me as I was contemplating what he’d said.
My back hit the ground, his forearm braced against my shoulder, but he didn’t pin me yet.
Fates, he was so warm.
I scrambled to focus and used the force of the fall to twist around and wrap my legs around his neck.
Then, using my raw strength, I flipped him off balance.
His body slammed to the dirt with a heavy thud.
I tightened the hold with the inside of my thighs, hating how much I loved the feel of his head between them in this moment.
My parents were watching, Fates-damn it.
Jesper choked on a breath, arm sticking out before he tapped the ground with a sharp slap that came out as a low thud.
I released him and rolled to my feet in a smooth push, heart hammering but steady.
The crowd of applicants and staff were dead silent.
Pops barked, “You let her take you down?”
“I didn’t let her.” Jesper, still on his back, wiped the sweat from his brow. “She took me down. You even said she’s beaten you.”
“True, but so have you. Once.” Pops crossed his arms with an amused expression.
I caught Jesper’s stare again. He was shocked. His chest rose with heavy breaths, and his throat flexed when he swallowed.
Something in me hummed at the way he looked at me, and I crouched near him and smirked. “You said ‘don’t hold back.’”
Jesper swallowed hard again. “Great form.”
“Same to you.” I offered my hand.
His hand swallowed mine, but I pulled him to his feet with a goofy ass smile. “Does this mean I pass?”
“You earn top marks, just like your brother did last year,” Dad muttered under his breath. “When he beat me.”
Behind me, Slater whistled low. “Okay, venom baby. You’ve got mad skill. Can you hold my head between your legs like you did him?”
I flicked him a heated look without meaning to, and my grip on Jesper tightened a smidge.
Slater only grinned. “You like the idea, too, don’t you? Don’t worry! I’ll make you fall in love with me first. I’m a gentleman.”
Jesper stepped back, dropping my hand and watching me with that same quiet, unreadable expression. He didn’t seem to hear Slater, or maybe he just didn’t think it deserved a response.
Both of my dads glowered at him, though Slater definitely didn’t notice. He just kept staring at me.
Dad cleared his throat. “Okay, the next trial for the practical exam…”
I walked back to the applicant group. I didn’t look back as I walked off the training grounds, but I could feel Jesper’s gaze on my back the entire time.
“That’ll be my expertise.” Drecken clapped happily, his sparkly blue eyes meeting mine as I turned back around to fall in line with the others.
“One-by-one, you will be going into the simulation chamber for the Arcane Exposure Trial with me. Your job is to survive where spells fluctuate unpredictably—”
“Survive?” Dad raised a brow, interjecting quickly. “No deaths, Drecken.”
“Not yet?” He blinked.
“Preferably not,” Dad insisted.
He sighed dramatically. “Okay, fine, but that’s not realistic. Instead,” he addressed us, “you must maintain composure, document changes, and neutralize arcane threats. If you can’t handle it, you fail.” He slid his gaze back to Dad. “Better?”
Dad nodded stiffly, casting a worried look between Mom and Pops.
I couldn’t wipe the feral grin off my lips. Drecken sounded unhinged, and I was actually looking forward to that trial.