Zodiac Academy 3: The Reckoning

DRAGON ORDER ENHANCEMENT was held to the southwest of Fire Territory on an open plain close to the thermal pools which divided it from Water Territory.

The scent of sulphur hung thickly in the air and steam rose from geysers and shallow pools which swept across the plain in coiling tendrils. I eyed The Shimmering Springs with interest, remembering Sofia suggesting we head to them for a swim some time. But I still felt a little trickle of fear at the idea of getting into deep water and I wasn’t convinced the experience would be very relaxing all the time I felt that way. 

Although as I thought about it, I imagined that the hot, thermal water could be a good place for me to work on facing my fear. At least it wouldn’t be cold, reminding me so viscerally of that river I’d crashed into or the pool the Heirs had frozen over. And if I wanted to make sure they couldn’t use that fear against me again in the future then I really needed to work on facing it. Not to mention the fact that if I went into my water Elemental Trial with a deep fear of cold water hanging over my head, I might be setting myself up to fail before I’d even begun.

With that thought in mind, I decided to come back to the pools and see if I could do something to at least stifle the terror I felt when looking at deep water. Perhaps I could desensitise myself enough to make it through the assessment. Although I had to wonder if a few days would be anywhere near enough for that.

Darcy and I walked side by side as we approached the marker on my Atlas to show us where the lesson was going to be held and I wasn’t sure which of us was dragging our feet more. Spending an hour with Darius Acrux wasn’t either of our ideas of fun and I hadn’t even spoken to him about the Nymph attack where we’d fought alongside each other so ferociously. I’d gotten pretty damn up close and personal with his Dragon form then and I wasn’t really sure why Orion thought it was necessary to make us spend even more time with him in lizard form.

There were only six students gathered together when we arrived and five of them were guys. I smiled widely as I spotted Geraldine’s friend, Angelica, who was surrounded by the other four guys while Darius stood separate to them. She extracted herself from the group, much to their disappointment, and moved over to greet us with a wide smile.

“Hey! I didn’t know you were joining us today,” she said, throwing a look at Darius who shrugged dismissively.

“I didn’t realise it mattered,” he said.

“You could have just posted in the group chat,” she complained. “It’s not exactly hard.”

“I keep leaving that group chat for a reason,” he replied irritably.

“And I keep adding you again for a reason too,” Angelica protested. “It’s meant to be a way for the Dragons who attend this academy to bond and as you’re the biggest-”

“It’s just a forum for these assholes to try and land you as a bride,” Darius said, pointing at the four guys who said nothing to correct him. “And I don’t need to read constant updates about the way your scales shimmer with the beauty of all the stars or how your fire is so fucking impressive that they all have wet dreams over it.”

“You just have wet dreams about your own fire power then do you, Darius?” I asked casually.

His gaze slid to me and he didn’t miss a beat in replying. “Well it is a lot more potent so it would be more likely,” he agreed.

I snorted a laugh despite myself and Darcy raised an eyebrow at me. The other Dragons were eyeing the two of us with interest like the idea of two new female Dragon shifters appealed to them. With my knowledge of the Dragons’ preference for breeding with their own kind, I imagined the idea of two new girls emerging in their Order was great freaking news. But even if I did turn out to be a Dragon, I had zero intentions of marrying one. Especially if Darius Acrux was an example of the kind of men their Order produced. Distractingly good looks aside.

“So is the Professor late or something?” Darcy asked, looking around.

“There are no Dragon Professors at the Academy,” Darius said. “So I run these sessions as I’m the biggest and most powerful Dragon here.”

“Could you try to take your head out of your ass the next time you say that?” I asked and Angelica bit down on her lip to stop herself from laughing. The other Dragons didn’t seem inclined to say anything but their eyes swivelled between Darius and us like they were watching a tennis match.

“Can’t do much about the truth, Roxy,” Darius said, sounding every bit the cocky asshole he was. “And I think you know full well how big I am after straddling me during the Nymph fight.”

“When I saved your life you mean? I was wondering when you were going to thank me for that.”

“Well I saved your life in that fight too so we can call it even I think,” he replied. If he was at all grateful to me for what I’d done in that fight he wasn’t showing it now. But I didn’t know what I expected, it was hardly like Mr Full-of-Himself was going to admit that he’d needed me in that moment.

“Orion said that he thinks we’ll be even bigger Dragons than you if his theory about us is correct,” Darcy cut in before I could escalate this little chat into a full on row.

“Well Orion likes to think a lot of things are bigger than they really are,” Darius joked but I didn’t miss the flicker of irritation that had passed through his eyes at Darcy’s comment. “And there’s a lot more to being a Dragon than just size.”

“Such as?” I asked.

“We’re the most powerful Order there is. There might be less of us than there are of other Orders but it would take a whole pack of Werewolves to take on a single Dragon in shifted form. And even then the Dragon would likely win.

The other Dragons all perked up proudly in response to that and I had to admit that I wouldn’t really mind if I found out that I was one of them.

“So how does this go?” Darcy asked. “Are we going to ride you or-”

“No,” Darius said firmly. “Dragons aren’t pack horses, we don’t offer out rides to people. Ever.”

“But I’m sure I saw Orion jump from your back in the fight,” Darcy countered.

“I grabbed him and helped him cross the pitch so that the Nymphs didn’t kill either of you. If they got their hands on a power like yours it would be disastrous. He did not ride me.”

The other Dragons were all nodding firmly and it was clear that this wasn’t actually Darius being a dick but really was a rule they followed.

I tried not to let the disappointment show on my face. Riding a Dragon through the clouds had been the one thing about this lesson that I’d been looking forward to.

“Do you want to try and create that Nymph killing fire with us? See if it can match up to ours?” Darius challenged.

“We can give it a go.” I shrugged. Neither of us had managed to summon the red and blue fire since the Nymph attack but I was willing to try it.

Angelica smiled widely as the six Dragons all moved to stand in a row. Darius beckoned us over to join the end of the line beside him and I positioned myself just out of his reach.

Angelica went first, throwing her hands up towards the sky and releasing a wave of fire which burned so hot that the grass beneath her withered away even though it was in the opposite direction to the flames. The other guys followed suit, each of them managing to throw Dragon Fire up several meters above their heads into the sky.

Darius planted his feet firmly before taking his turn and the strength of his fire almost forced me back a step as it shot into the sky, further than I could measure by eye. I felt the heat of it warming me right down to the pool of magic in my core which seemed to swell in response to the flames. I wondered if that could be a Dragon thing or if his power was just so intense that I couldn’t help but have a physical reaction to it.

My lips parted and I couldn’t deny I was impressed by the display of his power.

Darius turned to me and Darcy with a smirk on his lips, gesturing for us to take our turns.

I exchanged a glance with my sister and she shrugged, raising her hands at the same time as me.

I tried to call on that otherness inside me which had awoken during the battle with the Nymphs. It was like it was hiding behind a glass wall; I knew it was there but I just couldn’t get through to it.

I scrambled with the attempt for several minutes but eventually gave up. Darcy sighed loudly as she stopped trying too.

“Maybe it only works when there’s Nymphs around?” she suggested halfheartedly.

“Or maybe you’re not Dragons at all,” Darius said and I wasn’t really sure if he sounded happy about that or not.

“So what now?” I asked.

“Now, you two might as well go back to your Houses,” Darius suggested as he pulled his shirt off, exposing those muscles to the sun and forcing me to check him out. Which he totally noticed. He smirked at me as he started to unbuckle his belt and the other Dragons began to undress too. “We’re going for a fly.”

“Urgh, then I’m leaving before you flash me your junk again,” I said, turning away from him before he could drop his pants.

“Your loss, Roxy.”

Darcy turned away too and we started walking as the sounds of clothes hitting the ground followed us.

“Catch you later, guys,” Angelica called. “Hopefully you’ll be flying with us soon!”

“See you later,” Darcy called back without turning around and I threw a wave over my shoulder at her.

We kept walking but before we could get any distance, a huge roar tore through the air behind us and a massive fireball blossomed to life above our heads.

We both screamed, dropping to the ground in fright just as an enormous golden dragon swept over our heads, his wings almost clipping us where we cowered on the ground.

I leapt upright as Darius twisted away, throwing my hands out and casting a spray of ice cold water at his scaly ass. He deflected it with a flick of his powerful tail, releasing another roar before turning sharply and soaring towards the clouds.

We watched as he and the other Dragons flew higher and higher. Angelica’s red scales glinted in the sun and the other four Dragons chased around her playfully as they tumbled through the clouds.

Darius turned away from them, beating his powerful wings hard and disappearing in the direction of Earth Territory to the north, clearly having no intention of staying with the other Dragons for the rest of the session.

“Well at least if we do turn out to be Dragons we won’t have to worry about spending these lessons hanging out with that jackass,” I said as I watched him fly away. “He clearly prefers his own company over hanging out with his kind.”

“The idea of transforming into that is insane,” Darcy commented, her eyes on the group of Dragons who still chased each other above us. “But it does look like fun too.”

A smile tugged at my lips as I watched them. “Yeah,” I agreed. “Being a Dragon would be pretty badass.”

“Shall we head to The Orb and grab an early lunch before the Hell Week pranksters show up?” Darcy suggested.

“Yeah, I’ll just grab my satchel.” I moved away from her to retrieve my bag from where I’d left it on the far side of the plain but stopped as Darcy gasped behind me.

“Ohmagawd, I’ve got to pee!” she exclaimed.

“Okay hang on we can go as soon as I’ve-”

“No, like right now! I’ll meet you at The Orb!” She turned and sprinted away from me before I could even get another word in and I frowned after her in complete surprise.

“When you gotta go, you gotta go, right?” Max called, stepping out from behind a craggy rock face and spinning an orb of water between his fingers casually.

“Did you do that to her?” I demanded, drawing magic to my own palms as I waited to see what he was going to do.

“Manipulating the water in someone’s body is fairly easy for someone as powerful as me,” he said with a shrug. “She’ll feel better once she gets far enough from my influence.”

“Why the hell would you do that?” I demanded.

“I just need a word with you. I could have actually made her wet herself but I was being nice. I come in peace.” He crossed his finger over his heart, leaving a shining cross made of water hanging in the air before it while he gave me an earnest expression.

“Not interested,” I said coldly, turning my back on him as I made a move to follow my sister.

I bumped into a wall of hard air and turned to glare at Max as he smiled at me. “Just hear me out,” he pressed.

“Why?”

“Because, you and me are in a pickle. You know my secret and you’re keeping it for me. I don’t like being indebted to you.”

“Just make sure you keep your freaky powers away from me and my sister and you can forget about it,” I assured him. I had no intention of blurting out the secrets of his heritage and weakening the Celestial Council while the Nymphs were circling anyway.

“For a debt this big that won’t really cut it. I owe you. And I don’t want to. It makes plotting against you awkward. So I have an offer for you.” He smiled like he thought this offer was irresistible and I pursed my lips.

“Spit it out then.”

“I’m willing to teach you any piece of magic that you want to learn.”

“We’re in a magic school, dude, there are teachers here paid to do that job and I’m guessing they’re better at it than you.” I made a move to walk away from him but he caught my arm.

“Isn’t there something your need help with? Something you wish you didn’t have to be afraid of anymore?” Max asked and he used his Siren gifts to tug an answer from my lips before I could stop him.  

“I don’t want to be afraid of deep water,” I breathed. 

I jerked my arm out of his grip and swung my other fist to punch him. He wasn’t going to be caught out by me fighting dirty a second time though and he caught my fist before I could land the blow, grinning at me like we were playing a game. 

“I can work with that. How about I take away your fear of drowning?” he suggested.

“I don’t want you in my head,” I growled, yanking my fist out of his grip as I stepped back.

“Not like that. Sirens can’t just pluck fear out of you and leave you free of it. That’s moronic. We can’t manipulate you once you’re out of range of our power.”

“Good to know,” I said darkly. “So how are you supposed to take my fear then?”

“You have air and water magic, I can teach you to breathe underwater. You’ll never have to worry about drowning again.” Max smiled widely, waiting for me to accept and I hesitated. It was a damn good offer but I didn’t trust him one bit.

“How do I know this isn’t some trick?” I asked carefully.

“You’ll have to trust me.”

“No deal.” I went to turn away from him again and he closed in on me.

Fire sprang to life in my palms and I glared at him.

“You’re so distrusting, little Vega. You should really work on that. But if you want, I’ll let you take another peek into my head so that you can see I have good intentions.” He offered me his hand and I frowned at him.

“Do you expect me to kiss you again?”

“Not necessary this time. But we can if you want to.” He waggled his eyebrows suggestively and I rolled my eyes.

His outstretched palm hung between us and I eyed it warily. On the one hand I wanted to tell him to fuck off, leave him squirming over the fact that he felt like he was in my debt. But on the other, his offer sounded so damn good I wanted to bite his hand off.

With a sigh that let him know I still wasn’t sure about this, I reached out and took his hand.

It wasn’t anywhere near as intense as kissing him when I was Song-Spelled but for a moment I felt his mind opening up to me. He let me feel the honesty in this offer and I was quickly convinced that it wasn’t some plot before he pushed me back out again.

I moved to release his hand but he held on for a second, a wicked glint in his eye. “Do you wanna screw Darius?” he asked quickly, catching me off guard.

“What?” I snapped, snatching my hand back. “Of course I don’t.”

“There was a lot of hate there, little Vega,” Max said. “But there was lust too. Maybe you should just do it to work through your frustration with him.”

“I’ve warned you about messing with my head,” I snarled at him.

“I didn’t mess with anything,” Max replied innocently. “I just felt what you felt.”

“Are you going to teach me this water shit or not? There are a thousand places I’d rather be than hanging out with you. Like falling from a cliff into a pit full of shit,” I snapped.

“Nice. Maybe we should work through this frustration too?” he suggested with a smirk. I narrowed my eyes at him and he held his hands up in surrender. “No more Siren gifts,” he promised. “Come on, I’ll show you what you need to know.”

Max took off down a path towards The Shimmering Springs and I only hesitated for a moment before following him.

The smell of sulphur grew stronger as we approached the springs and steam rose up all around us as little pools of bright blue water appeared between the rocks. It was beautiful, the sound of burbling water drowning out all else the further we went.

Max finally stopped by a wide pool big enough for around ten people to sit in it and dropped down to his knees before the water. He gestured for me to do the same and I did, intrigued despite my reservations.

“You don’t get taught this until Junior year but as I’m ahead of my class, I already have it mastered and I’m sure with your power, you’ll be able for it too. The easiest way is using your magic to create a pocket of air around your mouth and nose and hold it in place. It’s a little harder to do than creating a shield around you on land because the water is pushing back against you all the time. But you can use your water magic to help with that too. And because you’re strong you should be able to maintain it for a good hour or more once you’ve got the hang of it.”

“Really?” I asked. Now that he explained it, it seemed kinda obvious but I’d never even considered the idea of creating my own air supply when I’d been trapped beneath the ice in that pool.

“Simple as that. Watch me then try it yourself.” Max swiped a hand across his mouth and nose for a moment, creating a bubble of air around his face before leaning forward and pushing his head beneath the surface of the hot spring.

The clear water made it easy for me to see the pocket of air that remained in place around his face and I grinned to myself at the thought of being able to do that.

Max sat up again and gestured for me to give it a try.

I took a deep breath then ran a hand down my face the same way he had, working to create a bubble of air not unlike the shields that Professor Perseus had taught us in our Air Elemental class, just a lot smaller. Once I was pretty confident that it was in place, I leaned down and pushed my head beneath the water.

I half expected Max to shove me in but he didn’t lay a hand on me and I was able to concentrate on maintaining the pocket of air.

The first breath I took was beyond strange. Water pressed against my eyes and neck but I managed to breathe just fine in the pocket I’d created for myself.

I could feel the water in the pool weighing in on my bubble of air and I worked on guiding it away with my water magic until the pressure eased off. It took a fair bit of concentration to wield the two powers at once but after a few minutes I felt confident that I had the hang of it.

When I finally drew back, I found myself alone beside the pool. I looked around in confusion but Max was gone.

As I stood up, I heard my Atlas ping in my satchel and pulled it out, expecting a message from Darcy wondering where I was. Instead I found a message from Max Rigel. Apparently waiting two minutes to speak in person was too much effort for the Water Heir.

Max:

Now we’re even, little Vega. Let’s get back to being enemies.

I rolled my eyes and didn’t even bother to respond. I was more than happy to have mastered that skill so I wasn’t going to complain about the fact that he’d felt the need to teach it to me. I’d be keeping his secret either way, just so long as he kept his Siren manipulations to himself too.

My Atlas pinged again and this time it was Darcy, wondering where the hell I was. I sent a quick reply, letting her know I was on my way and started jogging back to The Orb. I’d had more than my fill of Heirs for today but somehow, I’d come out unscathed. So maybe my luck was finally changing.