CHAPTER 8 #2
As the weight of that responsibility bore down on me, the professor left the entrance to stand in the arena’s center.
“Students, my name is Professor Larkin Seacrest, and I will be teaching your Conjuring class this year.” The dome amplified his voice, making it echo loudly for all to hear.
“Everyone here should already be able to conjure magic, but during the course of this year, you will learn to connect more deeply with your affinity. The deeper you connect, the greater your potential.”
The lines of his face grew even more stern—if that were possible—as he continued on, “Only those who master their abilities will succeed in this class. You’ll face trials of increasing difficulty that test those abilities, so prepare to prove yourself.
Effort won’t be enough. Even your best could fail you.
Be willing to push yourself beyond your limits, and you might survive to the end of this year. ”
Pausing a beat, long enough for me to hear just how loud my heart was thundering, he then said, “You will complete challenges individually but sometimes as a team. As you all take turns demonstrating your abilities today—”
Wait, today?!
“—I suggest you pay close attention to your peers’ skills.
Study their strengths and weaknesses before forming alliances, because who you ally with could make or break you in the trials.
Starting with the Earth Elementals and ending with the Darkens, you will each have one minute to demonstrate your magic.
Show us why you were chosen as a potential leader for our community.
Prove that you deserve a spot on the Conclave.
First up is . . .” He consulted his clipboard before calling, “Levi Pierce.”
As a warlock with dark auburn hair rose from his seat beneath the Earth Elemental banner, Professor Seacrest beckoned him to take the floor, then stepped aside, leaving the student alone in the arena’s center.
When Levi hesitated, the professor said in a firm tone, “Impress us, Mr. Pierce. This is your chance to show the others why they should consider you as an ally. Your minute starts . . . now.”
Levi immediately raised both hands and willed magic to them. Twin green orbs sprang into existence, and for a second—one blissfully naive second—I let myself hope that everything would be okay.
Until Professor Seacrest’s voice snapped like a whip through the air, “You call that magic, Pierce? I said impress us.”
Looking flustered, Levi let the green orbs fizzle out as he scrambled to think of a way to appease the unhappy professor.
Abruptly falling to one knee, he slapped both palms on the stone beneath him and squeezed his eyes shut.
One of the students snorted, and I glanced at the Fire Elementals to see that it was Blaze.
He was staring at Levi’s hunched form with disdain, clearly not impressed with the Earth Elemental’s performance so far.
I bit my lip, suddenly nervous for the poor warlock. I knew all too well the pressure of being under a judgmental microscope. Hopefully he did something with his magic other than—
A faint tremor beneath my shoes had my eyes shooting downward, just in time to witness dark vines and roots erupt from the stone cracks.
Startled exclamations and shrieks echoed throughout the arena as the plants snaked around the students’ legs.
A thorny vine attached to my left leg, and I watched with morbid fascination as the thorns punctured my thin sock, embedding deeply into my skin.
A furious bellow distracted me from the sharp pinpricks of pain, and I glanced at the Fire Elementals again to see Blaze completely tangled in thorny vines.
As he struggled to pull them off, flowers popped open all around him, covering him in bright fuchsia.
Several of the students snickered, including Levi, who now had his eyes open.
Unlike the rest of the arena, the patch of ground beneath the Earth Elemental was blanketed in soft green grass and tiny white flowers.
Blaze glared at him, and I couldn’t help but admire the warlock for standing up to the bully.
I allowed a little smile to tease my lips, but it quickly faded when Levi abruptly swayed, nearly toppling over.
The vine around my leg loosened, as if he’d suddenly lost control of it.
I reached down and dislodged the thorns from my skin, not surprised when spots of blood saturated my sock. At least the material was black.
“Okay, Mr. Pierce, your time is up,” Professor Seacrest said with a note of satisfaction.
“An impressive display of concentration and control. Although, I should have mentioned that maiming your peers during demonstration is highly discouraged, especially if you don’t want enemies right off the bat. ”
A few of the students chuckled, but most didn’t look all that happy to be plucking thorns out of their skin. Blaze wrestled the vines off him, but not before they’d left several bloody scratches on his face and hands. He was livid, and it was nice not to have that attention directed at me for once.
As Levi slowly labored to his feet, clearly exhausted from expending so much energy, the professor stretched out his free hand toward the mess of greenery and uttered a quick obliterating spell.
“Eradico.”
Just like that, the vines, roots, grass, and flowers withered and died, disintegrating to dust and seeping back through the stone cracks.
The scent of their decaying rot reached me, and a shiver of awareness sliced up my spine.
Death might not be breathing down my neck at the moment, but it was still here, still showing itself in unexpected ways.
Nothing was safe here. Not even a harmless blade of grass.
By the time the spell was finished, not even a stray thorn remained. Everything the Earth Elemental had conjured had completely been erased.
“Next up is—” Professor Seacrest began, but I was suddenly distracted, hyperaware of a presence. Not death’s, I noted with a frown. No, this presence was far too alive. Too charged. Too angry.
Dread tightened my gut, instinctively knowing who it was even before I glanced toward the entrance and found Thorne there.
He was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest, staring directly at me.
A swallow lodged in my throat, and I hurriedly looked away, then silently cursed myself for looking away too soon.
What the hell was he doing here? Didn’t he have his own classes?
Struggling to concentrate on the student about to give her demonstration, I pressed my palms together in my lap, feeling a slight sting from my healing cut.
Even though my eyes were glued to the witch standing in the arena’s center, my senses were wholly focused on the warlock in the entryway.
I could no longer see his eyes on me, but I could feel them, their scrutiny so intense that heat flushed my skin.
Refusing to squirm, refusing to show any sign that his presence flustered me, I studiously watched the demonstration.
And didn’t see a single thing.
It wasn’t long before the other students noticed his presence, pointing and excitedly whispering amongst themselves.
A sharp throat clear from Professor Seacrest shut them right up.
In no time, it was Blaze’s turn to demonstrate.
He strutted to the arena’s center, arrogance oozing from his pores.
One of the thorn cuts on his face slashed diagonally across, making him look even more menacing.
Not surprisingly, he put on a big dramatic show.
With a jerk of his hands, he yanked the fire from the iron sconces toward him, then used them in a dangerous juggling act.
“Playing with fire” took on a whole new meaning as he leapt and twirled with the fire, even managing to stick a flaming orb into his mouth without getting burned.
With his one minute almost up, he threw the flaming balls into the air above him and swirled his arms, willing the fire to do the same. Around and around the fire went, forming one giant ball of fiery energy. When it resembled a mini sun, he violently slashed his arms down.
I thought the fire would dispel then, maybe break apart and shoot back to the iron sconces. Only half of my attention had been on the performance, the greater half still stuck on Thorne. Which was why I didn’t see the huge flaming ball streak toward me.
But I saw Thorne’s expression change as it did. He was suddenly alert, pushing off the wall to stand at attention. It was enough to warn me of the danger.
I whipped my gaze to the fireball, intense heat blasting over me as it hurtled my way at breakneck speed. The other Darkens scrambled away, but I had nowhere to go.
Well, crap. It looked like my destiny was to go out in a blaze of glory after all.