Chapter 19
My mind still reels from the visit with my Alita side on the beach last night. Luckily no one was around to see, or everything I’ve done so far to remain hidden would have been ruined.
I’m on my way to the canteen when an older male meets me halfway and tells me Levington needs to speak to me in the Alita building. I just reach the outside of the building when I hear a gasp of pain from somewhere around the side of it.
My feet move before I think about it, and I turn the corner to find three females surrounding a tall male.
One female has long, wavy black hair, and the other two with a similar deep brown, but one is cut into a long bob. All are a little older than me but stunning and have an air about them like they know it too.
The female with the long black hair has a glint in her eyes that reminds me so much of Arabella and the way she looked down on everyone around her. She grips the male’s arm tighter and smirks at him even when he winces and gasps in pain.
He doesn’t fight her. Doesn’t say a word. He just stands there and lets her do what she wants.
He’s a least a head taller than her and has muscles for days. It should be no problem for him to shove her off. But he doesn’t.
She must have something on him, just like Arabella did with every male Shadow that caught her eye.
It looks like she’s holding his arm and nothing more. But the pain on his face says otherwise.
The air shifts around us, and true fear flashes across his face as he starts to grow paler. Seconds later, I move forward and shove myself between them, breaking her hold on him.
“What the hell are you doing?” I ask and watch as the male sways on his feet. I turn to check on him and grab his arm to steady him, feeling the tremble in his entire body.
“What the fuck?” I whisper before turning to the black-haired female with a frown. “What did you do to him?”
The black-haired female stares at me like I’m a piece of dirt on her shoe. “We’re Alita. We do whatever the hell we want.” She takes a step forward and meets me toe-to-toe as I stand my ground.
“Move along, underling. Before you find out why we’re at the top of the food chain,” she warns.
Is she actually for real? “Seriously? What are you? Two?” I ask, looking at her like she’s a damn child because she is sure as hell acting like one.
Her eyes narrow to slits as she opens her mouth.
“Ah, there you are Sena—” Levington walks toward us, his smile quickly morphing into a frown. “Sasha? Girls? What are you doing out here?” Levington notices the male and frowns. “Cain? What happened?”
The black-haired female, who I now know is Sasha, quickly loses the rage in her eyes and turns to Levington with an innocent smile.
“We were getting some fresh air and bumped into Cain here.” Her eyes flick to his and his own immediately drop to the ground.
“He had a little accident, and we were helping him,” she says with a shrug.
Accident my ass.
“Cain?” Levington questions as his eyes flit from the females to him.
“I’m fine,” he says, avoiding Levington’s gaze. He stumbles out of my hold before bowing to the females and slowly making his way away from us and around the building.
Levington follows him with his gaze, but he doesn’t let it bother him too much before he shakes off whatever thought he had and turns to us.
“Time to get back to class, girls,” Levington tells them as they all give him a faux smile. I see right through it.
With a little wave and look of warning sent my way, they head off, leaving me with Levington.
When I turn back to him, he frowns as he hands me a piece of paper.
I open it to find a map of the entire academy.
Including the senior camp and many other buildings and hidden spots I didn’t know existed.
There’s a huge forest to the left of us with a large river running through it, and behind it is the mountains concealing us from the rest of the world.
“I thought you might need this,” he says as he points to a spot on the map just past the senior camp. “This is where the team going to the Hollow is training. They are aware you will be trying out for the team today.”
I freeze and glance up at him. “Today?”
He tries to contain his little smirk of glee. “Yes. They don’t know who you really are, but I told them that we’ve made a deal. They assume you have potential, but you will need to prove it to them. You will be treated as any other attempting to join the team and put through the same tests.”
“But… today?” I state again, still in shock that he’s literally just thrown this on me. But the more I think about it, he’s probably hoping that I fail purely from lack of preparation.
The dick.
I narrow my eyes, and he gives me an innocent look. But it quickly morphs into something else. An expression full of worry and concern I’ve only ever seen parents give their children.
“We haven’t had much time to talk, but I’ve heard you’ve been settling in well,” he says it as more of a question than statement.
“Apart from a certain commander trying to catch me off guard, I’ve been doing fine. Blending in, staying under the radar.”
He gives me a funny expression. “Something your mates could take note of.”
I give him a questioning look, and he shakes his head with a soft smile.
“Good luck in the test today. But I must remind you, that you still need to pass the flying part of our deal to go to the Hollow.” He turns and points out a huge, long white structure that appears to be an elongated triangular in shape and curves straight up into the clouds.
From here, its width is a least a few meters wide but every part of it is so visible that I don’t know how I didn’t notice it before.
“You must be able to fly up to the top of the structure in less than a minute,” he says, and my stomach drops.
It must be thousands of feet in the air, and I can’t even float with my wings out yet.
How the hell am I supposed to fly up that thing in less than a minute?
Shit. Levington’s smug smile is starting to make a whole lot more sense now.
Glancing down at the map Levington gave me, I follow the path through the forest, keeping my guard up.
Though I doubt Levington would perform as many random tests on their shields as Talos, it would only be my luck to run into a Terrigon here.
I’m halfway through the forest when the silence around me shatters, and the ringing and slashing of metal sound out to my right.
I pull up my shield and wrap it around me. Pocketing the map, I keep my guard up as my eyes scan for the threat.
But nothing happens and no one jumps out of the tress to attack me.
Moving as quietly as possible, I make my way over to the tall trees where the sound is coming from and slowly make my way through them.
Releasing my shield, I stop just before the edge of the forest to find an entire base of Shadow warriors training with swords, target practice with arrows, sparring with one another and practicing with their abilities.
This must be the senior camp the boys mentioned.
Just like the Shadow Academy, there are four sectors, but all are training like well-oiled machines, each section running drill after drill effortlessly and without breaks.
Blue tattoos light up as a group of Sentinel Shadow warriors practice using their chakrams. White tattoos light up in the larger group beside them as arrows form from the Seekers arms and shoot at the target practice further away.
The slightly smaller group across from them must be the Shield sector as their purple tattoos light up on their skin and they create their shields.
The smallest group of the four are further down from the other three groups. I immediately know what they are when their black tattoos glow on their skin as they call on different weapons and spar.
The Elite. Just like those in the Shadow Academy, their attacks are merciless, and their skills controlled.
Every single one of them has their wings out, moving from fighting on the ground to fighting in the sky. And the ease at which they move is effortless and graceful.
It reminds me of my own wings and how I should really be learning how to use them.
Without the spell keeping them hidden, I feel them trapped inside my back, and they itch to be let loose and set free.
I may be able to call on my sword thanks to my Alita’s help, but it seems learning how to use my wings is going to be a much longer process.
I glance back at the men. All look no more than a few years older than those in the main academy. But they all appear to be highly trained and capable.
No wonder my mates wanted to train here.
A pang of pain seeps into my chest at the thought of them. But just like everything else, I shove it to the back of my mind. With one last glance, I step back into the thick expanse of trees and head back out and onto the path to the spot Levington pointed out on the map.
No matter what he thinks, I need to make sure I secure a spot on the Hollow team.
After talking to my Alita side, I now know it’s not just instinct guiding me there, I need to be there to end that royal’s suffering once and for all.
I take my map out and double check the path I’m on.
If I keep following it, it should lead me directly to a large clearing where the team that are going to the Hollow should be.
Behind it sits another large expanse of forest with a large river that that weaves its way in and out of the trees, breaking off into little streams and waterfalls before finding its way out to the ocean.
Some cave systems spread out around the area, but there are even more in the colossal mountains behind it.
Folding the map, I pocket it and move.
I guess I should be grateful that Levington even gave me a map considering he doesn’t want me near the Hollow.
But I suppose he did also spring this test on me. And while others most likely had time to train for this, I’ve been busy with basic drills and classes.
It’s such a dickish move. He probably planned this to try and stop me from going. But if there’s anything I am, it’s stubborn.
And there’s no way in hell I’m going to give up so easily.
I finally come out into the wide-open clearing. There’s hundreds of trees spread around the edge, concealing everything else around us.
There’s a group of males not too far down from me. Standing beside them are four very familiar forms with their backs to me.
Seeing them, I freeze.
I’d knew they’d possibly be going to the Hollow. Levington specifically thought they’d be a good addition to the team. I just assumed they would have already joined.
Levington must have decided to make them work for it. I wonder how he got them to agree to go.
Steeling myself, I make sure all my blocks are in place before making my way over to them.
I attempt to block them out as I round them and join the group, but I catch each of them freezing when they spot me.
“Hell, no!” Knox shouts out. “There’s no fucking way you’re going to the Hollow. Over my dead body.”
I blank my face. “Then lie the fuck down so I can step over you.” I look away from them. “You don’t get a say in this. None of you do.”
“Sena…” Cyrus starts, but I ignore him to inspect the others.
Four males stand in front of me with an air of leadership about them. Two have short black hair, one tighter than the other. The third has blonde hair similar to my own, but his is short and floppy. The fourth has a deep brown hair color that’s shaved on one side and long on the other.
All assess me within minutes, scanning me from head to toe before their eyes flit back and forth between my mates and me.
“She’s not competing for a spot,” Malakai starts but I drown him out as the four men start introducing themselves.
“I’m Zane,” the one with the tight black hair and blue eyes says.
“This is Ajax,” he points to the male with the same color hair as himself but slightly longer.
Ajax dips his head to me before Zane points to the blonde.
“Colton.” Colton gives me a boyish smile, and a growl sounds out from beside me.
It only makes his smile grow wider and a mischievous glint in his eyes form.
“And last but not least, Theo,” Zane says pointing at the male with the gray eyes and half shaved head.
“You’re not going to the Hollow,” Theon grits out.
“I’m afraid that’s not up to you,” Zane says. “Commander Levington has made a deal with Sena. She passes our test and then another he has for her, and she will be granted a spot on the team.”
“Sena, you can’t—”
Knox’s words are cut off as a group of four men show up, walking into the clearing like they own it.
All are built like warriors, but these four feel more imposing and overbearing than any I’ve met.
Zane dips his head to them. “This is Striker,” he points to the blue-eyed tall male with matching blue tips on his choppy white hair.
“Lucas,” he says pointing to the tallest of the five with shoulder length deep gray and violet hair.
“Nash,” he points to the smallest of the group with short curly brown hair.
“And Finn,” he points to the male with auburn hair.
Zane introduces us to them, but four pairs of eyes pause on me. They all assess me for a moment—just like Zane and his group did— but unlike Zane and his group, this one quickly dismissing me before focusing on my mates and eyeing them like they’re their only threat.
Idiots.
Zane glances between the men and my mates. “Only one team between you all will go with us to the Hollow.” He looks between two groups. “If you can’t pass this little test, you sure as hell can’t last in the Hollow and will be no use to us.”
Finn clenches his jaw. “Those spots were supposed to be ours, Zane. We passed the other trials.”
“And what the fuck is a human doing here?” Lucas asks before narrowing his eyes. “Don’t tell me she’s actually trying out for this.”
“That’s none of your concern,” Theon says, his voice sharp and commanding.
“It is if I end up having to babysit her,” he scoffs, and my mates whip their heads in his direction.
“The only thing you’re going to babysit is a damn brain injury when I fuck you up,” Knox grits out.
“Stay the hell away from her if you don’t want to die a slow and painful death,” Malakai snarls.
I narrow my eyes on my mates but they’re too busy squaring off against the other Shadow males to realize they just fucked up.
They just announced that I’m their damn weakness. And from the looks on the new group’s faces, I can tell they’re only too happy to find out how they can use that to their advantage.
The only thing I have going for me is their foolish assumption that I’m the weakest link.
I guess it’s time to prove them all wrong.