Zodiac Academy 2: Ruthless Fae

MY HEART POUNDED an uneven rhythm as I took in the chaos surrounding me. Throughout the stands students were shredding through their clothes as they shifted into their Order forms to escape the carnage.

Harpies, Griffins, Manticores, Dragons and Pegasuses flew for the open roof, many of them with their friends still in Fae form riding on their backs.

A red Dragon who I recognised as Geraldine’s friend Angelica swooped overhead before blasting a Nymph with fire and destroying it in one precise hit.

A Sphinx and Medusa bolted for the exit and I belatedly recognised Marguerite and Kylie.

I caught sight of Darcy with Orion between the panicking bodies around me and relief spilled through me.

I started to run towards her but a surge of air magic slammed into me and I was tossed aside as a Nymph with stolen power aimed at me again. I tumbled across the mud and threw a wave of water back at my attacker, knocking the creature to the far side of the stadium with its force.

My hands sank into the mud beneath me as I pushed myself upright and a huge roar laced with pain echoed right through my body.

I turned my gaze towards the enormous golden Dragon in the centre of the pitch as eight Nymphs rushed towards him at once. Darius swung his reptilian head around, bearing a row of razor sharp teeth at the creatures as they charged him.

Dragon Fire blasted from his mouth, destroying four of the monsters before the tail end of it blazed overhead, warming me in every way. My own power burned hot within me as one of the Nymphs managed to leap onto him, driving the sharpened probes of its fingers straight into his flank.

Darius bellowed in agony again and I started running towards him as a desperate ache built in my chest. It didn’t matter that I hated him and he hated me, in that moment it was only us and them. And I couldn’t bear to let them take him.

I cried out as my power pooled within me, begging to be set free.

Flames licked their way out of my body, swarming over my flesh until they danced right before my eyes in a mix of blood red and lightning blue. The feel of them on my skin was electrifying and they pulsed with some deep magic which answered my call like it was the most natural thing in the world.

The flames burst from me like a living creature, slamming into the Nymph whose claws were deep in Darius’s flesh before burning it alive. The creature shrieked in an agony so intense that I could feel it echoing back to me through my magic.

Darius roared again, his huge head swinging above mine a moment before his jaws snapped closed on a Nymph who was running up behind me.

The grinding and crunching of bones mixed with the screams of the creature as Darius bit down viciously until it stopped moving. He launched its broken body away from us and it collided with the stands on the far side of the stadium which had almost emptied out as the Starlight students fled in panic.

More of the Nymphs were trying to circle closer to us and Darius swung his golden tail, the huge spikes on the end of it swiping the legs out from beneath one of the creatures.

I blasted it with red and blue flames before it could get up and the fire danced through my veins like pure ecstasy.

Darius released a torrent of Dragon Fire over his shoulder before wheeling around, his wings tucked close to protect them.

I ducked low as he moved, dancing between his feet and shifting beneath his stomach before ending up on the other side of him. Somehow he didn’t step on me even though he was thrashing about, breathing fire and swiping his claws at the monsters who came for us.

A chorus of rumbling growls announced Geraldine approaching in her Cerberus form, all three of her giant dog heads bearing poisonous fangs at a Nymph as it raced to escape her.

She pounced, slamming the creature into the dirt and for a moment my heart leapt in panic as it reached for her with probing fingers. In the next heartbeat, she ripped its head from its body, shattering its skull in her tremendous jaws before bounding after her next target.

Nova’s voice boomed out across the stadium. “All students untrained in combat are commanded to flee to the safety of your Houses! Take to your Order forms and RUN!”

My heart leapt as I realised that meant me and Darcy but I’d lost sight of her in the madness again and we still hadn’t discovered our Order forms even if I’d wanted to try and do as she’d said.

I looked around wildly, trying to locate my sister. Max and Caleb were fighting back to back at the far end of the stadium; Max wielding water in sweeping arcs as his navy scales shone wetly. Caleb darted between his magic as if they’d choreographed their attacks, finding holes in the water the moment they appeared and bursting through them to strike the Nymphs with a combination of physical attacks enhanced by his Vampire abilities and earth magic.

A high pitched scream drew my attention and my heart leapt with panic as I spotted Diego being thrown to the ground before a Nymph who was over eight feet tall. Blood blossomed across his cheek and Sofia dove from the air in her Pegasus form, landing in front of him as she shifted back into Fae form. She stood over Diego, casting a flickering flame between her hands in an attempt to help him.

The Nymph drew in a rattling breath and my chest seized as I sprinted towards them. Sofia fell to her knees beneath the power of its spell.

I screamed a battle cry like a damn Viking warrior as I flung my palms out, aiming for the nightmare creature and sending blue and red fire to consume it on blazing wings. The Nymph shrieked as it burned before bursting apart, leaving a trail of black smoke hanging in the air where it had been.

Diego’s eyes were wild with panic as he stared between the black smoke and me.

“Shift!” I commanded, my voice unintentionally thick with Coercion as my worry for my friends compelled me to make sure they got to safety.

Sofia’s eyes widened a moment before a pale pink Pegasus burst from the confines of her skin once more. I skidded to a halt in the mud beside her, reaching down to heave Diego back to his feet. He swayed unsteadily and I shoved him towards Sofia without wasting time on being gentle.

“Climb on,” I said. “And fly as far from here as you can get!”

I tried to turn away as Diego clambered onto her back but he caught my wrist.

“Come with us, chica, it’s not safe for you here either-”

“I’m not leaving Darcy,” I replied dismissively, pulling my arm back. “But the two of you need to go.”

Sofia flapped her sparkling wings as my Coercion gripped her and my heart twisted at the concern in their eyes.

“Don’t worry about me,” I added as they took flight. I watched for a moment as they sped towards the sky then turned back to my hunt for Darcy.

Darius roared behind me as his flames took out another Nymph but a second leapt around the blaze and onto his back. I sucked in a sharp breath, drawing on the well of power within me as I started running back towards him.

Darius spun around, the razor sharp spines on his tail swiping within inches of my face as he tried to dislodge the creature but it clambered all the way up until it was lodged between his wings. He swung his head around, snapping at it as he tried to rip it off of him but he couldn’t twist his head into that position.

The Nymph released its rattling breath and my knees buckled as it weakened me.

I staggered forward, my hand landing on Darius’s front leg as I tried to steady myself.

The Nymph shrieked excitedly and drove its probes into the flesh between Darius’s shoulder blades. A roar filled with pure agony escaped him and he fell forward onto his chest as pain wracked through his body.

Where my hand still rested against him it was like I could feel that pain within myself. I felt like I was tearing in two, my soul ripping free of my body and the deepest sense of dread filled me.

Darius swung his head around to look at me, one huge, golden eye reflecting back the image of a girl who was breaking in half.

He snarled at me, striking his nose against my chest to knock me back a step. As I stumbled away from him, he struck me again, a deep growl echoing from his throat as he urged me to run.

I stared at him in shock for a moment and he trembled as more pain tore through him.

“So fucking bossy,” I snapped, shoving his big Dragon face aside as I moved closer to him instead. “You probably are stubborn enough to die here rather than let me help you.”

Darius growled at me but I ignored him as I leapt up onto his leg and started climbing up the side of his big ass Dragon body.

His scales were smooth and hot beneath my palms but I managed to gain purchase by grabbing hold of his wing and hoisting myself higher.

His body was trembling beneath me and he bellowed in pain again, urging me on faster.

I reached up, grabbing a thick spine which ran down the centre of his neck before coming face to face with the creature from my nightmares.

The Nymph shrieked, lunging at me faster than should have been possible and I almost lost my grip on Darius as I fell back.

My heart lurched violently but I managed to catch the top of his wing, swinging myself around as that paralysing rattle juddered through my core, halting my magic in its tracks and stealing my energy from me.

Fear shot through me as the Nymph pounced, its probes aimed right for my chest.

I screamed, throwing my fist out even though I knew it was no good. As my knuckles connected with the bony ridges of its face, pain exploded through my hand swiftly followed by a flood of red and blue flames.

The Nymph shrieked so loudly that I threw my hands over my ears as the flames consumed it, a wisp of black smoke sweeping up towards the sky where it had been moments before.

I fell forwards, my palms meeting the warmth of Darius’s blood as I braced myself against him.

More Nymphs were running straight for us and with an echoing roar which vibrated right through my body, Darius destroyed all five of them with a torrent of Dragon Fire.

His head fell forward as he used the last of his energy and I cried out, grabbing hold of his wing as he tilted sideways beneath me. He crashed to the ground on his side and through some miracle, I managed to keep hold of his wing before falling against his neck. I wrapped my arms around him, scrunching my eyes closed as a tremor tore through his body and the golden colour of his scales seemed to shine with inner power and heat.

My stomach lurched and I released a scream as I found myself falling over ten foot down to the ground as Darius retreated into his Fae form.

I kept hold of him as I fell, crashing down into the mud of the Pitball pitch on top of him with a cry of fear.

All around us the fight raged on but beneath my hands, blood was pulsing from his chest and he was lying deathly still.

“Darius?” I demanded, shaking him while still trying to press down on his wounds. It wouldn’t be enough though, his back and legs were bleeding too. A bloody gouge shone wetly on his neck and his breaths were far too shallow.

“Help!” I shouted, though my eyes stayed fixed on Darius’s face and my heart was pounding the rhythm of a war drum in my chest.

The hairs were rising along the back of my neck, a strange sensation prickling in my chest. This moment felt eternal and fleeting all at once, like we were hanging between two great points and everything could change on the turn of a coin.

“Wake up!” I demanded, pushing my magic towards him in hopes of being able to do something.

Instead of stopping the blood or healing him, my magic spilled into his body, merging with his in the reverse of what we’d been doing when he helped me with my fire magic.

His power welcomed mine instantly, drawing it in, blending with it completely like it had been waiting for this moment. The feeling took my breath away and though it didn’t slow the blood, I felt the tension ease from his muscles and the fear loosen its grip on his heart.

My hands were shaking as they ran slick with Darius’s blood and silent tears tracked down my cheeks.

His heart was slowing down, his power flickering like a candle in a breeze. If someone didn’t get to us soon, Darius Acrux was going to die.

And though it seemed like he should have been the last person in the world for me to care about after everything he’d done to me, I wasn’t sure I could bear it if I lost him here.