Zodiac Academy 4: Shadow Princess

The campus was alive with music, laughter and parties. I could hear it all from my room way up in Aer Tower. I’d decided not to join in with the fun tonight. New Year’s Eve had an entirely different agenda for me and I wasn’t going to let Orion down when he needed me most.

I’d stupidly told Geraldine I was sick and she’d offered to bring me all kinds of potions and remedies to heal me. I’d had to admit I wasn’t feeling up for partying tonight instead and made a mental note that being sick didn’t qualify as an excuse amongst Fae. Not when they could heal ninety percent of illnesses.

At nine o’clock I was going stir crazy and by ten, I was losing my mind. I paced my room, started some cheesy romance series on Faeflix then returned to pacing again.

Darkness kept creeping into my mind and dragging at my thoughts. I had to fight it back, breathing deeply and focusing on the anchor of love that kept me from falling into its clutches. My sister, Orion. Between them, I was unbreakable. The shadows couldn’t have me. And they couldn’t have Orion’s sister much longer either.

“Come to me…” Clara’s voice sounded and I swallowed thickly.

“We’re coming,” I promised. “We’re going to save you.”

Anxiety swirled in my gut as I checked my messages. Tory was in her room too, waiting for me to give her the green light. From the sounds of it, she was as anxious as me.

I checked FaeBook just for something to do, dropping down onto my bed and drawing my knees to my chest. There were pictures of the Heirs spread all over the newsfeed. There was one of Max being held upside down in The Orb, his face entirely covered with a bubble of water while he drank from a keg through a long straw.

There was another of Caleb shirtless with a girl taking a shot out of his belly button and another of Seth standing on a table, lifting a naked girl above his head with nothing but air magic. It looked like things were getting seriously wild tonight, especially when I spotted a photo of the faculty looking like they were in the middle of a game of strip poker. Washer was fully nude, his back to the camera (thank you stars) but Principal Nova sat in front of him, her eyes wide and trained on his junk. Gross.

I decided to head down to the beach a bit earlier than we’d planned to meet, getting too nervous to wait any longer. I was already dressed to go in jeans and a tank top, so I pulled on my coat and pushed my feet into my snow boots.

My pulse spiked as I mentally prepared myself for what I had to do tonight. I didn’t know what to expect except that we had to go into the shadows again. I had to hope the training we’d had with Orion would be enough to keep us all safe, because the pull of the shadows was stronger than I’d ever experienced them before. Their allure was stronger, winding through my limbs and caressing my veins. I could almost hear the whispers calling to me, urging me into their endless depths.

I headed out of my room, the sound of a heavy bass pounding up in the common room as I hurried to the staircase.

“Hat boy, hat boy, hat boy!” a group of people were chanting and I relaxed when Diego’s laughter followed. Whatever was happening up there, it sounded like he was onboard with it.

“Save me…” Clara’s voice brushed against my ears.

I shivered as I headed downstairs, pulling up the hood of my coat to try and remain as invisible as possible.

I slipped outside past a group of giggling girls wearing fake wolf ears and made my way along the path in the direction of Air Cove. Snow was falling thickly before me, but the paths were lit by fires which blazed all across campus to help people find their way.

I kept the cold at bay by flooding heat into my veins, but I couldn’t do much about my racing heart.

What if this doesn’t work? Or what if it does but Clara’s been lost to the shadows too long to make the journey back?

My spine tingled with worries as I rushed along, but as I closed in on the cliff, those thoughts were replaced by hope. Orion had been broken by the loss of his sister; if there was anything I could do to place her back at his side, I’d do it. Maybe the shadows were a gift in this sense. And maybe the stars were shining kindly on us for once. I just had to focus on my training and give him all the power I could to make this happen.

But what then? Could Clara really return to normal life amongst the Fae? Wasn’t the press going to go mad when they found out she’d seemingly come back from nowhere?

Orion and I hadn’t spoken about anything beyond bringing her safely back to the Fae realm. But if we were questioned, we couldn’t admit to using the shadows. And what would Lionel do when he discovered the truth?

My mouth grew dry and I realised the only way we could get away with this was by keeping her a secret. She’d have to stay hidden from the world so no one ever looked into her return. Because if the FIB started looking into it, I imagined Orion would be the first to go under investigation. I didn’t know what the punishment was for using dark magic, but I didn’t imagine it was a light slap on the wrists.

I reached the top of the narrow path which cut down the side of the cliff to the beach. The world was loud out here, the roar of the waves and howl of the wind making my pulse elevate as snow tumbled down around me. I could almost feel the change in the atmosphere as midnight drew nearer, the magic in the air making the veils between worlds thinner. And it was time to use it to our advantage.

“Can’t we just talk about it, Sethy?” Kylie’s voice reached me out in the mist and I darted down onto the path, dropping into a crouch in the darkness.

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Seth replied, their footsteps drawing closer.

“You have to pick a mate one day, why not me? We have a connection,” Kylie said, her tone giving away that she was bordering on drunk.

“I can’t just pick a mate, that’s not how it works for Werewolves. I’m sorry it’s not you, babe, but you’ve gotta get over it.”

Their shadows fell over the path as they walked by in the direction of The Wailing Wood and my heart ticked faster as I caught sight of the back of Seth’s head. He was guiding the snow away from them with air magic so it bent around them in a dome.

They moved away and I released a slow breath, heading down the path and picking up my pace again. I stepped onto the beach and started walking to the cave, casting an air shield to keep the heavy snowfall at bay.

A figure stepped out from behind a boulder and Orion smiled hopefully as he spotted me. I increased my pace, jogging to his side and clutching his hand. “Are you ready?”

He pulled me toward the hidden cave. “I have everything we need, but I’m not sure I’ll ever be ready for this really.”

I squeezed his fingers then released him as he took a shining draining dagger from his pocket and traced it over the cliff wall in ritualised movements. The illusion fell away and my heart thrashed against my ribs as I followed him into the dark cave.

I lit a fire in my palm, letting it grow and grow and releasing it to burn at the heart of the cave floor. Orion cast an air shield around the edges of the space, keeping the wind and snow out so the place had a chance to warm up in the heat of my fire.

He dropped a pack from his shoulders, moving to kneel on the ground and I lowered down in front of him. He laid out the jar of dark stardust we’d stolen from his mother along with his draining dagger, a cloth filled with dry herbs and a silver leaf which looked as delicate as glass.

A thrumming energy in the air made me shiver and I found my eyes slipping closed as the shadows called to me again. Orion rested a hand on my knee and I blinked them away, taking a slow breath as I looked at him.

“They’re close tonight,” I breathed and he nodded, a serious expression pulling at his features.

“Are you sure you want to do this, Blue?”

“Yes, I want to help,” I said firmly. “But Lance, what are you going to do once she’s here? The world can’t know she’s back, people will ask too many questions. The FIB could find out what we did. Or what if Lionel comes for her?”

His brow creased and a look of distress entered his eyes. “I know,” he sighed. “I’ll hide her. I own a place on the outskirts of Tucana where she can stay.”

“But what if someone sees her?” I breathed. “She can’t stay there forever, she’ll need a new identity, a new life.”

“Once her magic is restored, she’ll be able to change her appearance with an illusion.”

“She’s going to need you,” I said gently. “Who knows what effect this has had on her…”

“I’ll look after her,” he swore, his jaw ticking. “I’ll do whatever it takes to protect her. I owe her that and so much more.”

“You did everything you could to save her,” I said softly as my heart tugged apart for him.

His eyes dropped to the ground and darkness consumed his features. “Not enough.”

I could almost see the shadows twisting around him and shifted closer with concern. “Let’s get her back.”

His eyes brightened and he glanced up at me with a desperate hope shining from them. It hurt me to think of him being torn away from his sister. If I’d lost Tory like that, I’d be doing everything I could to bring her back too.

“If the shadows become too much, I want you to pull yourself out of them,” Orion said in a low tone. “Leave me if you have to and get out of here.”

“No,” I growled. “I’m not going anywhere, I can handle it.”

“I know you can.” He brushed his knuckles over my cheek. “But I won’t risk you for anything.”

“If it gets dangerous, we can stop,” I said. “But I’m not leaving you.”

He frowned, but gave in with a small nod, seeing that I wasn’t going to back down. He took out his Atlas and his forehead furrowed. “Darius hasn’t replied.”

“Neither has Tory,” I sighed as my brows pulled together, taking out my own Atlas. I pressed call on her name and lifted the device to my ear as I waited for her to answer. It rang on and on, but she didn’t pick up and my stomach knotted with concern. Orion tried to call Darius but received the same response.

He checked the time, cursing under his breath. “There’s only a small window of opportunity for this,” he said furiously. “We have to start soon.”

“They’ll come,” I promised, knowing Tory wouldn’t let him down.

“They’d better,” Orion growled.

The fire flickered before me and darkness seemed to seep into its depths, turning it to a dusky purple colour. I inhaled slowly, the power of the shadows closing in on me once more. They were here, winding through our bodies and pulling at our souls. I could feel them trying to guide me away again on dark wings, but I clenched my hands into fists until my nails nearly broke the skin, forcing myself out of their clutches.

Orion released a low groan as they affected him too and I shifted closer to him so we could fight them united, gripping his hand tightly. I felt them withdraw as I let the barriers of my magic down and our power washed together like a singular, powerful entity.

I checked the time once more and my worry started to escalate.

“Where the fuck are they?” Orion snarled, fury bleeding from his expression.

“They’ll be here,” I encouraged, looking to the cave entrance, expecting to see them at any moment.

Come on Tory, where the hell are you?

“We have to start soon, there’s no other chance for this,” Orion snapped.

“Get everything ready,” I said, trying not to let the anxiety into my voice, but I wasn’t sure I managed it.

Orion frowned darkly as he spread out the materials before him. “I don’t understand why Darius would let me down like this tonight of all fucking nights.”

I glanced toward the cave entrance again, my pulse thundering in my ears. We didn’t have long left and I had no idea if the two of us would be strong enough to do this alone.

Please hurry, Tory.