Zodiac Academy 2: Ruthless Fae

AS HALF TIME finished, we grouped together and prowled back out onto the pitch like we were the kings of the goddamn world. Rage still coiled in my gut, hot and bitter but I couldn’t let it rule me again; I had to channel it into this match.

We were eighteen points down. Eighteen! I didn’t think we’d ever come into a second half at such a disadvantage before. Hell, I wasn’t sure we’d ever come into a second half at a disadvantage at all.

The other team were already back on the pitch. There was still ten minutes to go before the second half was due to start and they were spending that time riling up the crowd.

To my right, the Starlight students were still bellowing a song about Cal hooking up with a Pegasus and I gritted my teeth as I looked towards my friend.

The moment of weakness he’d caved to in the locker room had given way to cold, hard fury and he glared up at the Starlight stands with venom in his gaze. There were now four huge blow-up Pegasus sex dolls drifting back and forth amongst them, and my scowl deepened as I spotted my own name scrawled across one of them with Seth and Max’s on the other two.

The Zodiac crowd roared yet another chorus of ‘The Heirs don’t care!’ and I wished in that moment that it was the goddamn truth. I’d never really experienced this kind of mocking before. Sure, we’d all had more than one scandalous or scathing story printed about us but we’d never had to stand and listen to this kind of abuse before.

It occurred to me that I’d inflicted this kind of humiliation on people countless times and for half a second, my mind snagged on the Vega Twins and the way they’d looked after Lance had pulled Roxy from that pool. But this wasn’t the same. I’d had to do that. It was for the good of Solaria and I stamped down the little voice in my head which was trying to question that fact with a vengeance.

I turned to look at my teammates but my eyes were really on the other Heirs as I spoke.

“How is your power doing? We need to smash them with our magic this half,” I said, reaching into my core to assess mine. Despite the fact that I’d been using magic since the start of the game, the well of power within me still burned fiercely, especially after sitting with the bag of gold I’d brought to the locker rooms for most of half time.

“I’m three quarters full,” Seth announced. His hands were fisted at his sides as he fought against the urge to scratch again. He was the only one of us who couldn’t replenish his magic during the halftime allowance due to his need for a run beneath the moon to do it but he always held back on using too much in the first half for just this reason.

“I’ll go and get my fix now,” Max announced, striding away towards the Starlight cheer squad as he fought a grimace at the pain of his purple flesh.

“I should top up too,” Caleb added, his gaze drifting over to the edge of the pitch where the Vegas were standing by their seats, talking to their friends. He didn’t actually move though and I got the feeling that he didn’t want Roxy to see him shaken.

“Come on, let’s show these Starlight assholes who they’re dealing with. You’ve got fucking royalty for a Source,” I urged, clapping a hand on his shoulder and guiding him towards them. Orion had already gone ahead of us and was just slipping through the forcefield to take his seat close to the twins. His shoulders were tight with tension and his jaw locked as he glared straight ahead.

We prowled across the pitch and Roxy looked around as she saw us coming. She pursed her full lips but didn’t show any other sign that our arrival bothered her. I gritted my teeth, wishing she’d just flinch so that my father and the other Councillors could see that they were afraid of us at the very least but of course she didn’t. Her sister stood beside her and the look of disdain directed our way sent a wave of anger through me. Who the hell did these girls think they were?

To make matters worse, the Starlight Captain, Quentin, got to them before we could and he offered them a teasing bow and a smile which made me want to knock his teeth out. Which I intended to do as soon as the second half started. The girls both laughed at something he said, smiling like he was the funniest fucking dipshit they’d ever met.

Roxy’s dark eyes moved to mine and I felt a lurch right in the centre of my gut for a half a second as it seemed almost like she was directing that smile at me. She’d made a dress out of an oversized Pitball shirt which skimmed her thighs and made her look like she’d just crawled out of my bed and pulled it on. The idea of that excited me way more than it should have but as she turned to whisper something to her sister, I saw the name printed across the back of her shirt wasn’t Acrux, it was Grus.

Of course it is. Stop thinking with your dick and get your head back in the game!

The Starlight Captain noticed us approaching and made himself scarce but I noted the lingering looks the twins gave him as he jogged away.

“Enjoying the game, sweetheart?” Caleb asked as we drew close enough to speak with them. I didn’t miss the way Roxy’s eyes trailed over him and the fact that there was considerably less hatred in her gaze when she looked his way than what she directed at me. I guessed he hadn’t half drowned her but it still pissed me off.

“We are,” she admitted with a wide smile. “Isn’t Geraldine amazing?”

“Yeah she’s the fucking cat’s pyjamas,” I growled, wishing I could actually aim an insult the Cerberus’s way but that girl was single handedly saving our asses from total annihilation at this point so I couldn’t even pretend to do it. Without her we would have been royally screwed.

“Maybe she should be the Captain,” Gwendalina suggested with a taunting smile.

“Maybe she should,” Lance agreed loudly and I scowled at my friend. There was no way he’d offer me any loyalty when it came to Pitball. If I wasn’t the best then he’d say it to my face. I just wished he’d hold his opinion back in front of the Vegas.

“I just need a quick top up,” Caleb said and Roxy didn’t even fucking flinch at that. She sighed like him biting her was a goddamn inconvenience and pulled her long hair over her shoulder to offer him access to her neck.

“You’d better hurry up,” she added. “Only two minutes of half time left.”

I glanced around at the board to confirm what she’d said and by the time I looked back, Caleb had her in his arms and his teeth were in her throat.

She didn’t even have the decency to look horrified, her fingers twisting into his hair as he held her in place. His fucking hand was on her thigh, skimming the hem of that shirt and for a moment I actually wanted to rip his arm off.

I shook my head and turned away from them. This anger with Milton was spilling into everything I did today. I just couldn’t believe that he’d done such a thing to me. He was one of my most loyal followers, I’d never even sensed an inch of defiance in him let alone a betrayal of this magnitude and I couldn’t get it out of my head. If I couldn’t trust someone as devoted as him then who the hell could I trust? 

My gaze skimmed over the box above the twins where my parents were sitting but I didn’t let it linger there. If I saw the look of frustration and disappointment I knew would be on my father’s face then I really would lose the plot.

Caleb released Roxy, leaning close to whisper something in her ear which made her fucking laugh while I ground my teeth. He spared a moment to heal the bite on her neck and we turned back to the pitch.

“I hope you do better this half!” Gwen called after us.

“You can’t do any worse, right?” Roxy added and I clenched my fists to stop myself from rounding on them.

Max was approaching from the other side of the pitch, jittery with the excited energy he’d just drained from the Starlight cheer squad who were now all cheering in a less than enthusiastic way. A dark smile filled my face at the sight of that and I imagined the Starlight fans hadn’t loved watching their cheer squad paw at our Waterguard while he drained all of the pep from them.

The team lined up on either side of me as the final minute started counting down and Prestos appeared with a metal Starter Ball.

Quentin stood opposite me and I snarled in his smirking face. I’d happily teach him a lesson in why we were destined to rule over Solaria and he was headed toward a middle ranking position in some backwater town.

The crowd were counting down the seconds but I blocked them out, my whole world zeroing in on the Team Captain opposite me. He tried to hold my gaze but his smirk slipped and his eyes flickered with concern a moment before the whistle blew.

I bellowed as I charged straight towards him, wrapping my fist in ice half a beat before slamming it into his face. Teeth met with my knuckles and he was thrown back into the mud to a huge ooooh from the crowd.

I snatched the twenty pound ball into my arms and started running, throwing fire magic out in an arc before me as I sprinted straight for the Pit.

Every member of the opposing team leapt into my path but I battered them aside with the strength of my charge and the heat of my fire.

The two Starlight Pit Keepers were waiting for me as I made it to the bronze plate surrounding the Pit and my magic spluttered out as I crossed the no-magic zone. I was running with the charge of a stampeding elephant though and they didn’t stand a chance as I collided with them, knocking one of them to the floor on my left and knocking the other straight back into the Pit just as I slammed the ball down on top of him.

I turned back to the Zodiac crowd, pumping my fist triumphantly as they went wild.

To add to my victory Prestos yelled, “Parker, you’re Out!”, as the Pit Keeper I’d knocked into the Pit failed to get himself back out of it in time.

We were two points up already and I was determined to claw back every point we needed plus some. I wasn’t going to lose this fucking match.

The next round started up immediately and I grinned as the flaming ball shot out of the hole in my zone. Damian, our backup Fireside who’d taken Milton’s place when I banned him from playing, raced forward to grab the ball and I charged at the two fire players from Starlight.

Their Fireshield tried to intercept me but I slammed into her full-force, knocking her to her ass in the mud. Their Waterback shot Damian with a blast of water and the ball was thrown from his arms before being snatched by their Earthraider Quentin.

Seth was sprinting into position ahead of me close to the Pit and Max made it to my side as we charged towards the ball.

A wave of earth magic tore across the ground before us, throwing Max into me and sending us both crashing to the ground. Max screamed as the pressure of my weight on him increased the burning in his skin. These Starlight assholes are going to pay for sabotaging him like this!

Lance was bellowing obscenities at me and I leapt to my feet, racing after the ball again but it was too late. Starlight scored and to make matters worse, Prestos announced Max Out again.

My lips parted in horror as he hobbled away and I scrambled back to the Fire Quarter in anticipation of the next ball.

Typically the ice ball shot out of the Water Hole where we were one player down. Our Waterback was instantly tackled by their Waterguard who pinned her to the ground long enough to knock her Out. Meanwhile their Waterback managed to surround herself with their Airsentry and Earthbacker as she raced for the Pit.

I threw a blast of fire at them, knocking all three to their asses but somehow the Waterback managed to hook the ball into the hands of their Fireside as she fell and he slammed the ball home in the next breath.

I shook my head, unable to believe what was happening as we resumed our positions and my rage built into a tangible thing.

The next ball shot out of the Air Hole but Seth was scratching his damn ass and missed the play. Caleb ran to intercept Starlight’s Airstriker who instantly started glowing a sparkling yellow as he ran.

“Look he’s after some Pegasus ass again!” someone shouted.

The Starlight crowd started up a new chant at Cal’s expense. Altair loves Pegasex! He’s horny for the horn! Over and over the words came from the crowd and Caleb stumbled as it got to him, missing his chance to tackle the Airstriker and giving him the opportunity to score again.

My heart was pounding out of rhythm, I was losing a grip on my anger and I was filled with the awful fucking possibility that we might actually lose this game.