Chapter 7 #2
Percy scowled. “It’s our right to vet anyone the Assembly pushes onto us.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Aiden crossed his arms, with a slight smirk. “The director informed us of the Assembly’s wish for you to become our axis. They want us to choose you because you’re powerful, and the weapon we would become would be invaluable against the bane.”
“The Assembly has no control over which shield I choose to bond with, if any. I’m not even sure I want to become an axis.”
They all scoffed at that, and Draco said, “Of course you do. You have too much power to be contained in one body forever. A shield would balance it out and protect you from yourself.”
Tye and Lydia approached from the sidelines, Tye’s face split in a wide grin.
“That,” he declared loudly, “was absolutely badass. You should’ve seen everyone’s faces when you did that portal thing.”
Lydia elbowed him, but she was smiling too. “What my subtle brother means is that you did well.”
“Thanks,” I said, suddenly aware of how exhausted I was. My muscles ached, and my magic reserves felt dangerously depleted.
Percy’s eyes flickered to Tye, then back to me. “Your boyfriend seems easily impressed.”
I snorted, unable to help myself. “Hey, Tye, did you know we were dating?”
Tye threw an arm around my shoulder and winked. “Am I a good lay?”
“You know all the sweet spots, baby.”
Lydia groaned. “Okay that visual is going to make me gag for nights to come.”
“If we’re done,” Aiden cut in, his eyes cold, “we have training to get back to.”
“Don’t let us keep you,” I replied sweetly. “I’m sure you have important shield business to attend to. Glaring at freshmen, intimidating the cafeteria staff, practicing your resting bitch faces in the mirror.”
Eris’s lips twitched, and for a moment I thought he might actually smile, but Percy’s sharp glance shut that down immediately.
“We’ll see you around, Black,” Percy said.
As they turned to leave, I called after them, “Jealousy isn’t very sexy!”
When they were out of earshot, Tye whistled low. “Well, that was intense. And also kind of hot.”
“Shut up,” I muttered, shoving him playfully.
“He’s not wrong,” Lydia said, linking her arm through mine as we headed toward the exit. “The sexual tension was thicker than oatmeal.”
“There was no sexual tension,” I protested, though I couldn’t quite meet her eyes. “Just regular tension. I’m pretty sure they hate me.”
“Keep telling yourself that,” Tye laughed.
As we walked through the corridors, the whispers continued, but a few students even nodded in acknowledgment as I passed, not hostile at all.
“Looks like your little performance changed some minds,” Lydia observed.
“One battle at a time,” I said, wincing as my muscles protested with each step. “Right now, I need food, a shower, and about twelve…thousand hours of sleep.”
“Lunch first,” Tye insisted. “You need to refuel after using that much magic.”
He was right. Magic depletion was dangerous, especially for designations with higher power levels. The Assembly had drilled that into me after I’d collapsed during my second month of training. I needed calories, and lots of them.
The dining hall was already buzzing with accounts of the morning’s fights when we arrived. Conversations paused briefly as I entered, then resumed at twice the volume. I ignored the stares and loaded my tray with enough food for two people.
We found Vega and the others at our usual table. Vega immediately scooted over to make room for me.
“That was incredible,” she gushed. “The way you moved through freaking nothing. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Thanks,” I said, already shoveling food into my mouth with zero regard for appearances. “It’s not as easy as it looked.”
“You made Percy Whitlock eat dirt,” Rick said, wide-eyed. “Do you know how many people have ever managed that? None. The answer is none people.”
I swallowed my mouthful of pasta. “He’s not invincible.”
“Could have fooled everyone else at Dominion,” Hector said. “The Nightfall Shield has won every combat trial for three years running.”
“Well,” I said, reaching for my water, “there’s a first time for everything.”
The conversation shifted to classes and upcoming assignments, and I was grateful for the normalcy. For a few minutes, I could pretend I was just another student having lunch with friends, not the controversial 13th zodiac who’d just challenged the academy’s power structure.
That illusion shattered when Melissa and her friends walked by our table, deliberately knocking into my chair. “Enjoy your moment,” she said, voice dripping with disdain. “They’re just curious about you because you’re a novelty. It won’t last.”
I turned slowly in my seat, fixing her with a level stare. “Is there something specific you want to say to me, or are you just here to be unpleasant?”
Her eyes narrowed. “Stay away from the Nightfall Shield. They’re not interested in some Assembly experiment.”
“Time for the stay away from my man speech....” I sighed, and Lydia snickered.
“You don’t belong here,” she hissed. “Everyone knows it.”
“And yet, here I am.” I smiled, all teeth. “If you’re done, I’d like to finish my lunch without the smell of desperation ruining my appetite.”
Tye choked on his drink, and Vega pressed her lips together to suppress a laugh.
Melissa’s face flushed red. For a moment, I thought she might actually try to hit me, which would have been amusing but ultimately more trouble than it was worth.
Instead, she stormed off, her friends trailing behind her like ducklings.
“She’s been after them for years,” Vega explained once they were out of earshot. “Her family is connected to the Whitlocks somehow. I think they expected an arrangement.”
“Arranged bonds went out of style centuries ago,” Lydia said. “Even the most traditional families know they don’t work if there’s no compatibility.”
I poked at my food, suddenly less hungry. “The Assembly wants me to bond with the Nightfall Shield.”
The table went quiet.
“That’s... ambitious,” Hector finally said.
“They hate me. And I’m not particularly fond of them either.”
“But you have to admit,” Lydia said carefully, “the power potential would be unprecedented.”
She wasn’t wrong. The Nightfall Shield was already one of the most formidable teams ever assembled at Dominion. Adding an Ophis as their axis would create something... terrifying.
“Power isn’t everything,” I said, pushing my plate away.
“It kind of is,” Tye muttered.
I spent the rest of the day in the library, diving deeper into the ancient texts.
The more I read about my designation’s abilities, the more questions I had.
There were references to powers I hadn’t even begun to access.
I looked up more information about “darkrending” that sounded similar to my portal manipulation but way more dangerous.
The texts also mentioned that Ophis magic runs the risk of being overused, causing the zodiac to be consumed by their own magic, literally burning out from the inside.
That explained the Assembly’s insistence on finding me a shield.
An axis bond would stabilize my powers, preventing them from overwhelming me.
I hated that Percy was right.
I was so absorbed in my reading that I didn’t notice the sun setting. When I finally looked up, the library was nearly empty, and my stomach was growling again.
As I gathered my books to check out, I sensed someone watching me. I turned to find Draco standing a few shelves away, a book in his hands.
“Research?” he asked, nodding toward my stack of ancient texts.
“Just trying to understand what I am,” I replied honestly.
He approached slowly, scanning the titles. “Those are from the restricted section.”
“I have clearance.”
“Of course you do.”
I studied him curiously. “Are you following me?”
“No,” he said, holding up his book, a dense volume on advanced Scorpio techniques. “Just doing my own research.”
“Right.”
We stood in awkward silence for a moment.
“You performed well today,” he finally said. “Better than expected. Percy’s still fuming about it.”
“Was that a compliment?”
A hint of a smile tugged at his lips. “I am capable of individual thought, you know.”
I tilted my head, running my eyes over him. “You’re different from the others.”
“How so?”
“Less hostile for one thing.”
He considered this. “I prefer to make my own judgments based on evidence.”
“And what evidence have you gathered so far?”
“That you’re powerful, but untrained. Skilled, but reckless. You’re nervous, but determined to show everyone that you can handle the pressure of your designation. And you’re hiding more than you’re showing.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Quite the assessment from a few minutes of combat.”
His eyes held mine for a moment, like he had a whole lot he wanted to say but was keeping it close to the chest. Instead, he asked, “Would you like to have dinner with me tonight? Somewhere quieter than the dining hall.”
The question caught me off guard. I studied his face for signs of a trap, but found only genuine curiosity there.
After a moment’s consideration, I shrugged. “Why not? The dining hall’s social dynamics are fucking exhausting anyway.”
He smirked. “Good. We can grab food first.”
We walked to the dining hall in companionable silence. I was acutely aware of the stares as we entered together. Draco seemed unbothered, efficiently filling two containers with food while I did the same.
“Follow me,” he said once we’d gathered our meals. “I want to show you something.”
He led me through corridors I hadn’t explored yet, up winding staircases that seemed to spiral endlessly. The higher we climbed, the older the architecture became, until we were walking through passages that felt ancient, untouched by modern renovations.
“Where exactly are we going?” I asked, slightly dizzy from the climb. “Please don’t be luring me somewhere secluded so you can murder me and wear my skin as a suit.”
“Patience,” he said in amusement. “Almost there.”