Page 41

~Ariana~

No one had perished.

Every single being who’d been present at the time of the attack had survived, thanks to the quick reactions of Pops and the Guardians who’d been in the vicinity at the time.

And thanks to Nyx’s warning, Kai knowing him so well, and being able to react so swiftly with both the Aetherbound Scepter and calling me in.

If Nyx hadn’t picked up on something being off with Caius, there wouldn’t have been those precious seconds needed to evacuate and get most people clear.

Those who hadn’t been so lucky to avoid the blast entirely had sustained Hellfire damage, but thanks to Grandfather being on the scene and him teaching me how to heal that sort of wound with my power alongside him, which required a special approach to what I was used to, they would all be fine.

I was taking a moment outside, breathing in the night air, and trying to calm the adrenaline from earlier.

After Grandfather had laid eyes on Gramps and seen that he was well, the two of them had headed off with Nyx to escort Velra home, where Grandfather was going to erect a ward from his substantial power to ensure her safety after somebody had directly come at her tonight.

Her and the Guardian Movement, with Crossborn specifically in mind as well.

And now I was doing damage control from a different standpoint as I stared out at the forest in the distance while I spoke on the phone with Kai.

“I’m sure. We’re both fine. Everyone is fine. Nyx and I didn’t sustain any damage.”

“What about his magic? After it was compromised?”

“The effects didn’t last long.”

“All right, you said Gabriel is headed up there to take a look at the device?”

“That’s right. I’ll send you a photo of it, don’t worry. I know you didn’t have a chance in all the chaos to get a detailed look at it.”

“Aww, how well you know me.”

“That I do.”

“Listen, Ari, the fact that this Caius was under the influence of coercion is as extremely concerning as the existence of that device.”

I frowned. “He may be part vampire, Kai, but Ancients can coerce vampires.”

“That’s just it. He’s part vampire only.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Hybrids aren’t vulnerable to coercion.”

“What? No, that can’t be—”

“Trust me. Nyx and I investigated the whole situation there years back. They can’t be. Not by vampires, anyway.”

“You’re saying—”

“I’m saying that in order for that hybrid to be a victim of coercion, it had to have come from a Celestial being.”

“That can’t be. Outside of me, the only Celestial beings on this plane are my grandfather, my mom, and my dad. There’s also Cassius, but he came here to help, so he’s not a suspect.”

“Then Puritas has found a way to access Celestial power. Steal it, siphon it, something along those lines.”

“Oh my God,” I breathed.

“Someone needs to read the magical signature and determine the source.”

I shoved my hand through my hair. “Yeah, okay. I’ll… I’ll make sure it’s seen to.”

“Ari.”

“I’m fine. Fine.”

“It would be perfectly understandable and acceptable if you weren’t.”

“I can’t… I have to focus on what needs to be done. Nothing else.”

“Then you’ll need to let it out when you return home. You can’t allow it to fester. Do you hear me, sweetheart?”

“I do. I know.” I sucked in a breath. “I appreciate you holding there with Vorzyr. It’s too dangerous for him to be up here while Cassius is. No one can find out about his special gifts.”

“Well, knowing you’re well made it easier for me to stand down. Plus, I have research to do into the entire situation to keep me occupied.”

And useful.

Kai always had to be useful. It was a form of control to him.

This happening and nobody foreseeing it… it wasn’t something he’d stand for.

“How did you manage to get Vorzyr to turn back around and talk him out of heading up here and raising hell?”

“I didn’t. You’d only just managed to soothe him after what happened in that vault, what he saw. This coming mere hours later really didn’t land well. There was no room for talking.”

“What did you do, Kai?”

“Only what was necessary to prevent a bloodbath and him exposing himself.”

“Kai,” I pushed, my anxiety escalating the more he talked around answering my question.

I heard him blow out a breath, before he then revealed, “I sedated him.”

“A sleeping spell, you mean?”

“In essence.”

“But his magical ability should have been able to cut through that within minutes.”

“Hence me needing to slap Inhibitor cuffs to his wrists before he woke up. And , for extra insurance, enchanted chains I had in my lab that I acquired when he first came into our lives, before he became an ally, and then… much more. They are specifically designed to restrain dragon kind, something that was created centuries ago when the relations between this realm and the Dracoryn Realm weren’t so… peaceable.”

“Shit,” I grunted. “When he wakes up—”

“I know, Ari. I know.”

I could hear the pain in his voice, the regret that he’d had to take it there.

“We’ll deal with it together. It will be okay, Kai,” I assured him. “And I’ll be back soon, all right?”

“I’ll hold you to it. Just… be careful with Cassius up there. Be smart. Don’t let your guard down just because your family is up there.”

“I’ll be careful. I promise.”

“Call me if you need anything.”

“I will. See you soon, Kai.”

“Soon, sweet Ari.”

With that, we hung up and I stuffed my phone in my coat pocket and breathed out a heavy sigh.

Not a moment later, voices reached me, and then I was looking over my shoulder in surprise to see Papa and Pops bursting out of the rear of the Compound, Papa looking none too happy. They didn’t see me from where I was over by the trees and a little rockery.

“You rushed headlong into the path of a Hellfire attack!” Papa was shouting, pulling at his hair and pacing up and down in front of Pops. “Ryker! After what happened the last time you came into contact with that… despicable substance!”

“I don’t need reminding. You know it still haunts me.”

“I’m well aware. You wake up screaming to this day.”

“Fuck, what would you have had me do? Ari was right there, two of the kids from Crossborn, Kai, and tens of Guardians in the immediate vicinity, too. Even Warlow was just down the way. Thankfully, he was spirited out by Branok Vire just in time, along with the lingering members of Crossborn still in the Great Hall. There was no fucking teleporting because that device knocked out everyone’s magic. ”

“All but yours and Ariana’s.”

“Obviously.”

“You should have reacted from a distance.”

“I didn’t know what we were dealing with. I reacted based off no intel whatsoever.”

Papa blew out a breath, took a moment, then acknowledged, “I know. I know, my beloved.”

Pops went to him and stroked his cheek, gazing up at him. “My love, I am fine. Ari is fine. Please focus on that. Please. I need to deal with the fallout and run this debriefing in a few moments. But you know I don’t do well when we’re not good.”

“As you wish. I’ll have to forgo telling Mia and Jaxon how close you were to the path of Hellfire when they arrive then, or you won’t be good with them.”

“Thank you.”

I smiled to myself as I watched them head back inside.

I needed to go as well. I needed to be part of that debriefing. I couldn’t just head back to the Academy like nothing had happened.

But, as I turned to follow, a voice pulled me up short.

“You did well.”

I spun back to see Cassius strolling along seemingly casually, but his power rolling off him. He appeared to be letting me know he was going for a gentle and peaceful approach, while also wishing to remind me of the might he possessed.

That he could be a friend or an enemy depending on how I reacted.

He wasn’t in his golden armor, and he hadn’t been when he’d blown in earlier either.

A fitted white linen shirt stretched across his broad, musclebound form, tucked neatly into a pair of tailored black pants, giving off an effortless and elegant air. His long, wavy, white-blond hair whipped in the wind.

“I felt you before you showed. But even when you made yourself visible, you didn’t intervene.” In fact, he’d just stood there at the tail end of the spell that I’d been seeing to with Grandfather’s help, observing quietly.

“You felt me? Very good. You are far more in tune with your power now then. As for why I didn’t intervene, you clearly did not need me to.

” He drew closer and stopped a couple of feet in front of me.

“Although, you should know that there is a way for you to extinguish Hellfire without the need for feathers. It is an advanced method, however, which is why Cornelius didn’t mention it.

Nor can he employ it any longer, being a Fallen.

Only we can. As such, it would be difficult for him to walk you through it. ”

“Will you teach me?”

“Certainly. We will incorporate it into our sessions if you wish.”

“Wow, that was… easy.”

“Like I said, you did well tonight. You have assumed control of your full power like I asked, and you have agreed to my teachings.”

“Do not mistake my cooperation for submission.”

Our eyes locked.

Intensity, challenge, and a whole lot of sizing up flared between us.

And then the corner of his mouth turned up, as he told me, “I don’t desire your submission, Ariana.” He added pointedly, “ I don’t. Far from it, in fact.”

What the—

A pained grunt from him drew my focus, and I watched as he stumbled forward a step, then grasped at his chest—digging his fingers into a spot just above his heart.

“Curses,” I heard him exclaim on a whisper of anguish as he jerked his shirt aside.

I choked as I saw a mark being burned into his flesh right there, golden heat raging, a few moments before it dissipated and then something else was left in its wake.

Something definitive.

A brand of some sort.

Two jagged lines intersecting, one a glowing white, the other a luminous purple with black specks.

“What is that?” I asked.

His gaze flicked to mine and he blinked, the pain seemingly having now left him and enabling him to think clearly once again.