CHAPTER 12
“Who here has seen a heartstone?”
No one in my Amplifying class raised their hand, including me.
Liar, the little stone resting on my sternum silently accused, but I ignored it. No way was I going to risk exposing my one and only boon. After an entire week at this school, I was completely convinced that the invisible amulet around my neck was the only thing keeping me alive.
Survived my first week at Heartstone? Check.
Grown increasingly paranoid that someone here—or many someones—was out for my blood?
Check. Failed to make any friends or alliances?
Check. Resorted to taking showers at night to avoid further humiliation?
Check. Struggled to perform classroom demonstrations while also keeping my darkness contained?
Check. Spelled and shielded my dorm room so no one could kill me in my sleep?
Check. Pissed off my mentor multiple times a day simply by existing? CHECK.
Yes, I was still alive despite all the odds, but I was starting to crack under the constant pressure and loneliness.
The threat written in blood on my mirror had shaken me to my core, and although I’d immediately placed protection spells around my room, the scare had triggered my proclivity for nightmares.
More than once, I’d woken up in a cold sweat from dreaming about a faceless foe shoving me out that broken window to my death.
Although my sleep had been unsettling this past week, at least my body had stayed in bed every night.
The last thing I needed was to wake up and find myself in a completely different location.
Walking the halls past midnight was forbidden, and I doubted a sleepwalking excuse would spare me from being disciplined.
“As you all know,” Professor Holt continued, drawing my attention back to her, “heartstones are the rarest, most powerful gemstone of known existence on Earth. One small stone can amplify a magic wielder’s abilities to devastating proportions.
That capacity for unmatched power is what inspired the founders to name this school Heartstone Academy.
Every student admitted to Heartstone is a rare and powerful gem, but whether or not you have the capacity for unmatched power, only time will tell. ”
Her brown eyes rested on me for a second before moving on.
“Today, we will test out an assortment of amplifiers to determine which one enhances your magic best. Since amplifying can have dire consequences depending on the wielder’s intentions, first years are not allowed to carry an amplifier on their person outside of class, the only exception being future trials. ”
A few groans rose up from the class. I inwardly winced, feeling guilty for already breaking the rule. Not that I would give up my amulet. Guilt I could live with, but surviving this place without my protection necklace? Probably not.
Ignoring the reactions, Professor Holt pulled aside a black cloth covering her desk to reveal a wide array of stones and gems in every color imaginable.
“Once you’ve made a connection with the best amplifier for your magic, it will become your signature relic.
Although it’s important not to grow dependent on a relic’s aid, the most influential witches and warlocks throughout history used amplifiers when the need arose, be it to assert authority or to protect themselves and the community.
As an Earth Elemental, I’m naturally drawn to the emerald.
Watch what happens when I wield my magic with and without the relic’s assistance. ”
With a confident flourish, she lifted a hand and conjured a glowing green orb into existence. It was about the circumference of an adult fist, but when she picked up one of the emeralds on her desk, the orb flared brighter, instantly tripling in size.
“Amplifying is an advanced skill and requires a higher level of control, so if you’ve never done it before, practice extreme caution,” Professor Holt warned before returning the emerald to her desk.
The green orb noticeably dimmed, then vanished as she dropped her hand.
“One of the trials you’ll face this year requires the use of amplifiers, so I suggest you choose your relic wisely.
A poor connection could endanger your life and even doom you to failure. ”
That got my full attention. I knew that every witch responded to amplifiers differently, but what if my hidden heartstone interfered with my connection to another amplifier?
Drawing on the combined power of two completely different relics could harm more than help me.
My magic was unstable enough as it was, and I could only imagine how dangerous it would become if I threw more unknowns at it.
With that troubling thought etched into my mind, my stomach lurched when Professor Holt called me up to test the amplifiers.
I’d practiced with various stones before under Gran’s watchful eye, so I already knew that my magic connected best with the darker ones.
Black onyx and obsidian were great ability boosters, but my magic also paired well with amethyst and tanzanite.
The problem was, besides the heartstone, I hadn’t touched an amplifier in nearly two years.
I was out of practice with them. Even with the heartstone pressed against my skin for the past week, I hadn’t drawn from it—not intentionally, anyway.
I didn’t know what to expect, and with Professor Holt plus an entire class of students watching me, my nerves could cause me to lose focus and put everyone here in danger.
A slight tremor shook my hand as I raised it to hover just above the stones without touching them.
I immediately felt a pull to pick them up, their promise of power calling to my magic.
I continued to avoid direct contact, my trembling increasing when I felt the darkness within me stir, drawn to so much potential power at my fingertips.
The heartstone isn’t enough for you? I inwardly grumbled at it.
You do not use it. Or me, I could practically hear it hiss back.
Fair point.
I passed my hand over every gemstone. Once. Twice. Hesitating. Afraid to choose. On the third pass, someone behind me muttered, “Just pick one already.”
Blaze.
“The connection process shouldn’t be rushed,” Professor Holt sternly chastised him before looking at me again, her expression softening. “Take your time, Winter. You’re doing just fine.”
Right. She had no idea just how not fine I was at the moment. One misstep, and I could put us all in grave jeopardy.
Just when I thought I wouldn’t be able to choose, making it clear to the entire class that something truly was wrong with me, my hand passed over a deep purple stone and stopped.
The amethyst.
This one, my intuition firmly said. Choose this one.
Swallowing hard, I decided to listen to the prodding voice in my head and scooped up the stone.
It settled against my palm, cold and lifeless.
But when I lifted my other hand to conjure an orb, at the same time coaxing the stone to respond to my magic, it burst awake, instantly warming my skin.
My orb tripled in size and flared brightly, the scent of a crisp winter’s evening after a heavy snowfall permeating the air.
“Good,” Professor Holt said, nodding in satisfaction. “Your connection is strong.”
A relieved sigh silently fled me, and I allowed myself to relax a little. It was okay. I was okay. One relic was awake while the other lay dormant. As long as they weren’t both activated at the same time, I should be perfectly—
Before I could finish the thought, my chest started to warm. No, not my chest, I realized with horror. My necklace. My heartstone.
It was awakening, responding to the command I’d given the amethyst. Panicking, I dropped the stone in my hand.
It hit the edge of the desk and clattered to the floor, just as a powerful wave of energy rushed through my veins and ignited my magical orb.
In an instant, I lost all control. With a loud whoosh, the orb transformed into a massive ball of destruction.
“Winter!” Professor Holt shouted, raising her hands to contain the angry magic.
Too late.
The twisting ball violently erupted in a spray of lethal shadows.
The dark strands became razor-edged like obsidian blades, transforming into deadly shrapnel and hitting anything in their path—including me.
Pain sliced through my cheek before I could protect myself, several students crying out as the magic found other victims as well.
As fast as the magic erupted, it vanished, but the destruction in its wake was catastrophic. Something warm trickled down my cheek, and when I lifted a hand to touch it, my fingers came away red with blood.
“What the hell?” an irate voice barked. Still reeling from what had happened, I didn’t see Blaze jump up from his seat until it was too late. “You did that on purpose, you little freak, and I’m gonna make you pay!”
The furious Fire Elemental stormed toward me, blood from a deep cut right above his left eye dripping down his face. Flames engulfed both his hands as he prepared to retaliate, and the heartstone’s heat intensified, a fierce need to defend myself rushing through my veins.
It all happened so fast that I thought for sure an altercation was unavoidable. The tension between me and the hotheaded warlock had reached a boiling point, and if I didn’t meet him head on, he was going to kill me.
Already awakened and raring to go, the darkness inside me pushed to the surface. So close to getting what it wanted, I felt how eager it was, how excited. Excited to be unleashed, to be used. But that wasn’t all, I realized with shock.
I could feel how much it wanted to hurt. To maim. To kill.
Horrified. Terrified. I burst into action, doing the only thing I could.
I fled.
Willing my body to disappear into the shadows, I slipped away before Blaze could use his bright flames to discover my position.