Page 32 of Midnight Reign
Aww, don’t be like that. You won’t be nothing, little bitch. You will be all powerful.
She shapes the stolen power into a burst of blinding light. The remaining shadow creatures dissipate on contact, leaving Zephyr momentarily exposed.
She presses our advantage, sending a barrage of shadow bolts his way, each one fuelled by the power I've syphoned from him. Zephyr weaves and dodges, his movements fluid and graceful. He retaliates with more shadow constructs, but each one only serves to feed her attacks as she drains them of energy.
As we trade blows, I become aware of a growing silence around us. The other students have stopped their own duels to watch us. I can hear whispers rippling through the crowd.
I can feel the power of this creature building inside me, a wellspring of energy begging to be released. It's exhilarating and scary. Part of me wants to let go, to see just how far I can push this ability.
But another part, the part that remembers the vision of war and destruction, holds back. I can't lose control. I can’t letherlose control. Not here. Not now.
Zephyr seems to sense my internal struggle. His attacks become more focused, pushing me to concentrate on defence rather than offence. It's a clever tactic, forcing me to channel the energy in a controlled manner.
"Time!" Professor Waldron calls out, his voice cutting through the tension in the room. "Excellent work, both of you. That was unexpected of Black. Well done."
I lower my hands, suddenly aware of how hard I'm breathing. The borrowed power fades, leaving me feeling drained. Zephyr gives me a small nod. He knows without me even saying a word what that was. Orwhothat was.
As the class disperses, whispers following in our wake, Professor Waldron approaches us. "Black, Nethershade, a word."
We follow him to a corner of the room, away from the prying ears of our classmates.
"That was quite a display," he says, his scarred face unreadable. "Particularly you, Black. I was under the impression that you didn't have offensive magickal capabilities."
I grimace, unsure how to explain, So I lie. “Me either, but there you go. Guess no one really knows a Vesper’s abilities, huh?” To my utter mortification, I punch him lightly on the arm. Zephyr stifles his snicker, badly, I might add, as Waldron glares at me in something akin to horror that I dared to be so casual.
He grunts, clearly deciding whether to believe me or not. "Right. Well, whatever you're doing, be careful. A power we know nothing about is dangerous. We should speak to Blackthorn about this.”
“He already knows,” I say quickly. “He has been mentoring me.” So, it’s not a massive lie. He has, in a way.
“Hmm.” I know he is thinking that he will go to Blackthorn and confirm all this. I just have to hope that Blackthorn covers for me. I suspect he will. Whatever his deal is, it’s a bit more than he’s letting on.
It’s just another thing to figure out.
As we leave the classroom, Zephyr pulls me into an alcove, his purple eyes intense. “You okay?”
I take a shaky breath, the adrenaline wearing off. "Yeah. It felt amazing, Zeph. Like I could do anything. But also... scary. She has got some fucking kick."
“No fucking kidding,” he mutters.
"How'd it go?" Corvus asks, coming up to us and leaning against the wall in a casual pose that is sexy as fuck, his blue eyes searching mine.
I glance between Zephyr and Corvus, unsure how much to reveal. "It was a bit wild," I say finally. "She took over. Used my abilities to amplify Zephyr's power and turn it back on him."
Corvus's eyes narrow. "She? You mean the voice in your head?"
I nod, suddenly feeling exhausted. "Yeah. She's getting stronger, I think. Or maybe I'm just getting better at channelling her power. Either way, it's..."
"Dangerous," Zephyr finishes for me, his voice low.
"I think we need to hit up the map book tonight and see if we can find anything out about her. Unless she is chatty enough for you to ask?”
“Doubt it. She is… irritating.”
He snorts. “Then it’s ditch time.”
“I have three more classes,” I point out, feeling like a giant nerd, as Zephyr seems to agree with Corvus.
“Oh, Addy,” Corvus says, taking my hand and leading me away from my next class. “We are going to corrupt you from the smallest act to the biggest. You are going to become a very bad girl.”
