Chapter 28
WALLACE
The climb up to the mountain is brutal. Every step feels heavier than the last, the air thinner, biting with a chill that seeps into my bones. But it’s not just the altitude—it’s the tension, the weight of everything unsaid between us. Windy marches ahead, her figure a determined silhouette against the darkening sky, while Willow and Warrick flank her, silent but ever-watchful. I’m trailing behind, my thoughts churning with each step.
Why am I here?
To find a flower that blooms at midnight and dawn, like some twisted fairytale?
No.
This is about something much deeper. The mountain is calling to me. Calling to my magic.
As we ascend, I can feel it—the magic that I thought was lost to me forever, stirring beneath the surface, awakening with each step closer to the summit.
Windy finally stops in a small clearing, the summit just within reach. The moon hangs low in the sky, casting an eerie glow over the rocks and sparse trees. Windy turns to face us, her eyes sharp and determined.
“This is it,” she says, her voice barely more than a whisper. “The fog isn’t here this time for some reason so I thought we were lost, but this is the place almost. The flower blooms at midnight. We’re close.”
Willow steps closer to her, his gaze softening for just a moment as he looks at her. “We’ll find it just like we found it in the first place, Windy.”
Warrick, ever the skeptic, crosses his arms, his eyes narrowing as he surveys the area. “I don’t like this. Something feels off.”
Of course, something feels off. I can feel it too—my magic, the power I lost all those years ago, crackling just beneath the surface, threatening to break free. And for the first time, I’m not sure I can control it.
Could it be because we were approaching Windy’s magical f lower?
Windy suddenly kneels in the dirt, her fingers grazing the cold earth as she closes her eyes as if she’s searching for something only she can sense. The rest of us stand back, watching her, waiting for a sign. But I’m barely paying attention. My focus is inward, on the magic building inside me, growing stronger with every second.
Then, the ground trembles—just a little at first, but enough to make us all freeze.
Windy’s eyes snap open, and she gasps as a small, glowing flower begins to push its way through the soil. It’s delicate, almost ethereal, its petals shimmering in the moonlight. Windy reaches out, her fingers trembling as they brush against the petals. But as she touches it, the magic inside me surges, fierce and wild, like a beast finally freed from its cage.
I grit my teeth, trying to hold it back, but it’s too powerful. It’s been dormant for too long, and now it’s demanding to be unleashed. A sharp pain shoots through me, and I stagger back, clutching at my chest. The magic is tearing me apart, and I can’t hold it back any longer. It explodes out of me in a blinding flash of light, and for a moment, everything goes white.
When the light fades, I’m on my knees, gasping for breath, the magic still crackling around me like static in the air. Windy is staring at me, her face pale with shock. Willow looks like he’s ready to step in, his hands clenched into fists, while Warrick’s eyes narrow, his expression unreadable.
“What the hell was that?” Warrick growls, taking a step toward me.
Windy’s eyes flash with something between anger and fear. “What’s going on, Wallace? What aren’t you telling us?”
I try to stand, but my legs are shaky, the magic still too overwhelming. I’ve spent years chasing this power, searching for a way to bring it back.
Willow steps closer, his voice low and tense. “I know. Tell them, or I will. You’ve been hiding something from Windy.”
I don’t answer, my mind racing.
Warrick’s growl deepens, his patience wearing thin. “Start talking, Wallace, before I make you.”
I swallow hard, my throat dry, but I know I can’t keep this secret any longer. “The magic… my magic. It’s not gone. I’m not a siphoner, not really. I’m able to siphon it like I said and showed, but I did really have magic before. It was taken from me before, I don’t know from who, but it’s been here, under the mountain, all this time. I thought I could control it, but…”
“But you can’t,” Windy finishes, her voice hard. “So all this time, you’ve been lying to us. To me.”
I flinch at her words, the truth of them cutting deeper than I expected. “I didn’t lie,” I say, my voice shaking. “I just… didn’t tell you everything. I didn’t know if I’d ever get my magic back and if I could control it, and now… I can’t.”
Windy takes a step back, her eyes never leaving mine. “We need to leave,” she says, her voice cold. “Before it’s too late.”
But even as she says it, the ground shudders again, more violently this time, and the sky above us darkens, clouds rolling in out of nowhere. The magic is pulling at me, tugging me toward the mountain, and I realize with a sickening dread that it’s not done with me yet.
“No,” I gasp, struggling to stay upright. “It’s not safe to leave now. We have to finish this.”
Willow looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. “Finish what? What the hell are you talking about?”
“The magic… it’s not just mine. It’s tied to this place, to the mountain,” I manage to say, my voice strained. “If we leave now, it could unleash something worse. We have to contain it.”
Warrick’s expression turns grim. “And how do you propose we do that?”
I don’t have an answer, and the truth is, I’m not sure there is one. But I can feel the magic growing stronger, threatening to tear me apart, and I know we don’t have much time.
Windy, her eyes still locked on mine, seems to come to some sort of decision. She takes a deep breath and steps forward, her hand reaching out to me.
“Wallace, I understand why you did what you did,” she says, her voice softer now, almost pleading. “You have the strength, you just have to believe it. You have to try. You have to control it. We’re here with you, but you need to trust us.”
I want to trust her, to believe that I can do this, but the magic is so strong, so overwhelming, and I don’t know if I can. But I also know that if I don’t, it could destroy us all.
With a shaky breath, I reach out and take her hand, the warmth of her touch grounding me, giving me something to focus on besides the storm raging inside me. Willow and Warrick move closer, their presence a silent reassurance, and together, we stand against the darkness.
“I’ll try,” I whisper, more to myself than to them. “I’ll try.”
I close my eyes, focusing inward, on the magic still pulsing through my veins, and I dig deep, searching for the strength to control it. It fights me, resisting, but I push back, harder this time, refusing to let it win.
Slowly, the storm begins to calm. The magic settles, the wild energy receding until it’s just a faint hum beneath my skin. I open my eyes, breathing heavily, and see the relief in Windy’s face, the tension in Willow’s shoulders easing just slightly.
Warrick watches me with a wary gaze, still not entirely convinced, but he doesn’t say anything. For now, the immediate danger seems to have passed.
The air crackles with tension as we descend the mountain, the silence between us thick and heavy. Windy walks ahead, sad because she didn’t manage to pull the flower although it was within her reach, while Willow and Warrick stick close, their eyes darting suspiciously in my direction. The ground beneath us is unstable, rocks shifting with every step, but that’s nothing compared to the instability simmering between us.
“It was an accident,” I mutter, knowing full well that’s not going to be enough for him. Or for any of them.
Windy glances back at us, her eyes narrowing as she takes in the confrontation brewing behind her. She slows her pace, letting us catch up, but says nothing, waiting to see how this plays out. Her presence alone makes my chest tighten, my words faltering under her scrutiny.
Warrick, ever the opportunist, steps in, his tone sharp. “You’ve been hiding your magic from us this whole time, haven’t you? What else aren’t you telling us, Wallace?”
I clench my fists, the remnants of the magic still pulsing through my veins, reminding me of the power I can’t fully control. “I didn’t lie,” I say through gritted teeth, trying to keep my temper in check. “It’s… complicated.”
“Complicated?” Willow’s voice drips with sarcasm. “You know what’s complicated, Wallace? Trying to figure out if the guy we’ve been trusting to watch our backs is going to get us killed because he can’t control his damn powers. You are stronger than this. Do you really want to control it?”
“Willow, that’s enough,” Windy interjects, her voice firm but not unkind. She’s trying to defuse the situation, but the damage is already done. I can see the doubt in her eyes, the way she looks at me like I’m a ticking time bomb, ready to go off at any moment.
My jaw tightens as I force myself to meet her gaze. “I never wanted this,” I say, the words feeling hollow even to me.
I glare at them, anger flaring up again. “I’m not hiding anything else.”
But Warrick isn’t convinced. He steps closer, his eyes narrowing dangerously. “You expect us to believe that after what just happened? You could’ve killed Windy—could’ve killed all of us. And for what? Some magic you couldn’t even control?”
“I didn’t ask for this!” I shout the words torn from me in a moment of desperation.
The rocks around us shift ominously, a few smaller ones clattering down the mountainside, but I barely notice. All I can see is the doubt in their eyes, the fear. And worst of all, the look on Windy’s face.
Windy’s expression softens, but there’s still something unreadable in her eyes. “Wallace, we need to understand. What exactly are we dealing with here? What’s going on with your magic?”
I take a deep breath, trying to find the right words, but they seem to slip away, leaving me with nothing but the bitter truth. “The magic… It's tied to this mountain. To something buried deep inside it. I thought I could control it, but I was wrong. And now it’s… it’s waking up.”
“It means,” I start, but before I can explain, the ground beneath us gives a violent lurch, and the sound of cracking rock fills the air.
“Get down!” Warrick yells, shoving Windy aside just as a massive boulder breaks free from the cliff above us, hurtling toward the spot where she is standing. She stumbles but catches herself, eyes wide with shock, and we all dive for cover as the rocks rain down around us.
The world becomes a blur of chaos and noise, the earth shaking under the assault. I’m barely able to keep my footing as I dodge falling debris, my heart pounding in my chest. I can hear Windy calling out, her voice barely audible over the thunderous roar of rocks smashing into the ground.
Warrick grabs my arm, yanking me to safety just as another boulder crashes down where I had been standing. “This is your fault!” he shouts, his face inches from mine, fury etched into every line. “Windy brought us here, and now this mountain is trying to kill us because of you!”
My mind races, panic rising as the rocks keep falling, and I can’t deny it anymore.
This isn’t just some random avalanche. The mountain is reacting to my magic, lashing out at us because of the power I’ve awakened.
But there’s no time to dwell on it. Another rock falls, and this time it’s headed straight for Windy. Without thinking, I reach out, my magic flaring to life, and the boulder stops mid-air, suspended by the raw energy coursing through me. For a moment, there’s silence, everyone staring in shock at the boulder hanging above us.
Then, with a flick of my wrist, I send it flying off the cliff, and it crashes down the mountainside, disappearing into the darkness. The exertion leaves me breathless, but I force myself to stand tall, even as the others continue to stare at me in stunned silence.
Windy is the first to speak, her voice barely above a whisper. “You… you saved me.”
I don’t know what to say. I just nod, the adrenaline still pumping through my veins, my hands trembling from the surge of power.