Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
~ Shade ~
“Do we have to do this right now?” I grumble.
After the incident with Professor Yevar, Knox forced us out of bed, and I’m standing in the middle of one of the more private training rooms in Shadowbone.
My mates surround me from a short distance, watching my every move, and I can’t help but feel like a circus performer on display.
Yawning, I rub my eyes while wishing I was back in bed. Okay so sure, I’m not keen to see the evil professor again, but I’ll happily take up Knox’s offer of nightmare-free dreams if it means I can have another few hours of sleep. “Can’t this wait until morning?” I moan.
“Yevar just tried to take you from your dreams,” Knox says, and his voice is so cold I actually shiver. Okay, so the goosebumps might also be because it’s the middle of the night and I’m standing on a training mat with bare feet, but it’s obvious he’s pissed.
“The professor tried to do what?” Tarlaz exclaims in my head. The shadows are high up on the training hall wall, watching from beside a pillar. I haven’t had the chance to explain what happened to them yet.
“Always knew that one was trouble,” Elgen comments. “I hope you gave him a piece of your mind.”
“Uh, something like that,” I mumble, not willing to admit that I did absolutely…nothing. I’d like to think that if Knox hadn’t been there I would have still managed to fight Professor Yevar off, but truthfully, I have no idea.
“Is it even possible for him to take me from my dreams?” I ask my mates, racking my brain as I try to remember what Professor Yevar’s unique powers are. I don’t remember them having anything to do with dreamwalking.
“His strongest gift is the ability to heighten a person’s fear,” Galen answers. “But who knows what power he holds now that he’s working with the Xalgrith.”
“The last time he found you in your dreams he must have somehow tapped into the connection I created with you,” Knox adds. “By doing that, he discovered your location in the human realm. But like Galen said, who knows what abilities he has now.”
“This time he found me because I asked you not to protect my dreams tonight,” I mutter, my tongue feeling like lead.
Knox’s lips tighten. “It doesn’t matter how he reached you. I’ll make sure he doesn’t visit your dreams again.”
“Yes, it’s clear he’s determined to recruit our mate,” Galen says.
I exhale through my nose. “Okay, but it’s not like I’m going to willingly just go with him and be his weapon,” I say. “So we’re fine, right?”
“Your powers are stronger now the curse on you has been removed,” Thane growls. “But that power is useless if you cannot harness it.”
“You think I can become powerful enough to fight Professor Yevar?” I give him a dubious look. Even I’m not that delusional. Professor Yevar is an immortal shadow warrior who possibly also has abilities bestowed on him by the Xalgrith.
“I think,” Thane says steadily, holding my gaze, “that you’re more powerful than you realize, mate. And even if you only manage to wield enough power to hold Yevar off for a short time, it could mean the difference between life and death.”
I shiver, hoping it never comes to that.
“Now,” Thane instructs. “Close your eyes and focus on the energy of your powers.”
Sighing, I shut my eyes.
“He’s right, you know,” Elgen croaks in my mind. “Any ordinary student at Shadowbone with such…shortcomings no doubt would have died some time ago.”
“I’m sorry, and how does that mean he’s right?”
“What she’s trying to say is that you’re special, child,” Tarlaz explains. “We’ve been able to feel your power since you returned from the games, though it’s obvious you’re suppressing some of it.”
I frown. “What? I’m not supressing anything.”
“Are you sure about that?” Tarlaz questions.
“I mean, I know I have power,” I say. “It’s just…
” I trail off. Honestly, I hadn’t thought too much about my power since returning from the games.
It didn’t seem to matter. I can’t bond with my mates, and I’m trapped at Shadowbone Academy for the foreseeable future.
Besides, Blake and her mates are here now to help with the war.
“It’s just what?” Tarlaz rasps.
“I guess…I didn’t think it mattered anymore,” I admit.
Elgen cackles in my head. “Doesn’t matter? We’re at war, girl, and if this Professor Yevar is determined to have you, you’re in more danger than most. Not to mention…” She stops speaking then, like she’s struggling to find the rest of her words.
“Not to mention…?” I prompt.
Elgen mumbles something in my mind, but I can’t make it out.
“Not to mention that we need you,” Tarlaz answers for her.
Shock ripples through me. “But you know I can’t help you. I told you what happened at the games. Now that the queen knows I’m fated to these guys, the chances of her ever granting me a favor are basically non-existent. I can’t free you. Like I said, I’m sorry—”
“No, no,” Tarlaz cuts me off. “We don’t need your apologies. What we need is for you to get stronger. It’s been centuries since we’ve been stuck in this place, and we believe there’s a reason you’re the only one who has been able to speak to us.”
“Okay, but that could just be a coincidence,” I murmur. “Besides, isn’t it bad if I become stronger? Won’t that just make me more of a threat to the war?”
This time both Tarlaz and Elgen laugh in unison, and their cackling laughter echoes through me. “Still so na?ve,” Elgen says when her laughter stops.
I want to ask what she means, because if you ask me, they’re the ones being na?ve, but what they’ve said makes me pause.
It is strange that I’m the only one who can talk to them.
I think of the nasken creature I’d spoken to during the games.
He’d said something about a prophecy circulating amongst the creatures.
“Have you heard about another prophecy?” I ask the shadows. “One that’s spoken by the creatures of the shadow realm?”
The shadows are silent for a moment, but it’s Elgen who replies, “In case you haven’t listened, girl, we’ve been trapped inside this academy for centuries.”
They don’t say anything other than that, and I’m surprised when they leave the training room.
Thane stares at me impatiently. “Come on, Shade. Show us what you’ve got.”