Page 19

KNOX

A buzz of excitement is in the air with the upcoming war games. Before they start, all Shadows take part in small trials to find the strongest among the academies. Those who win will end up in the games against the other academy in a few weeks.

There are Shadows that stay here all year round, and the entire camp is usually a place that brings me comfort and peace, calming the darkness inside me. But all I can think about is how my mate is angry with us when she has no right to be.

She blocked us out. Ignored us and then disappeared for two days without a word.

Being closer to the Hollow usually helps the madness, but instead I’m slowly unraveling the more she’s away from us.

I don’t want to depend on her or anyone else. I’ve fought long and hard to get here—we all have—but it looks like that’s all about to change.

“Why are you so fucking angry with us?” I ask her, ready to shake the answer out of her if I have to.

She came in last night, looking like we had ripped her world apart and betrayed her. And has ignored us ever since. Even Cyrus, who was making headway with her.

The four of us have to head out in a few minutes to the main sector to help push back a group of terrigons and beasts that slipped through the Hollow—something we all usually look forward to—but I can’t figure out why she would be acting like this toward us when we did nothing fucking wrong.

Something happened. It’s usually not the first thought that comes to me when it comes to Sena. But this last month, she has been different.

Not a lot gets to this Sena. She’s feisty and willing to give as much as she gets. But I can tell something is off. She’s not just ignoring us; she’s downright pissed.

And I haven’t a clue why.

She ignores my question, acting like I’m not even standing right beside her. I’m about to reach out and fucking throttle her when Theon comes up beside me.

“We need to leave,” he says while glancing at Sena with a frown.

Sena continues to ignore us both and then heads into the bathroom and locks the door.

I take a step toward it, ready to break it down, when Malakai moves in front of me.

“We’ll deal with her when we get back. Let’s go.”

Glaring at the door, I scrub a hand down my face and follow the others with a heavy sigh.

We head through the portal and come straight out into something close to Hell.

Shadow warriors from all sectors span out across the colossal area with a huge backdrop of darkness behind them, seeping outward.

Beasts and creatures I’ve never seen before and hundreds of terrigons young and old all rush out of the long, dark crack, heading straight for the Shadows.

But the lure is no longer there. We’ve been working hard to get here, training our bodies and abilities to make it through to the war games. All so we could be closer to the small measure of peace being in this place brings.

“Anyone else feel it?” I ask them, wondering what it means.

Theon glares at the Hollow as if it’s the thing that has personally offended him instead of a certain blonde beauty.

“We’re more drawn to Sena than the Hollow now,” he admits out loud.

The four of us stare at it for another minute. As if we’re trying to understand how our entire world just shifted on its axis. With Sena now at the center of it.

More terrigons slip out of the Hollow, snapping us out of our little moment, and we dive right into the thick of the fray, cutting a path through to the center of the mayhem.

I let myself go, let every thought and worry disappear and slice through anything that comes within a few feet of me. I drown out the screams and grunts around me and get lost in the bloodshed and fight. In the chaos and havoc.

My dark shadows consume me, and I disappear, slipping among the violence while driving my blade into everything I mark.

Spotting a large terrigon, I make a move toward it when a strange energy jolts through me making me pause. I release my shadow ability and glance over at the Theon and Cyrus, but they’re both finishing off the beasts around them.

I look to Malakai when he stills and narrows his eyes. His eyes veer to mine, and my heart nearly fucking stops when I see the glint of fear in them.

“Where is she?” I move over to him as I try to reach her, slamming against her damn barriers over and over. There’s no one else that brings us this much worry and heartache at the same time.

“She’s in the red zone,” he grits out, and my heart actually does stop before kicking up speed.

Fuck . I’m going to kill her when I get ahold of her.

If I find her in time.

SENA

“ S ENA!!”

I wince, blinking awake with a groan, hearing Knox scream my name in my mind.

“God, do you have to be so loud,” I tell him as my head throbs in pain.

“Fuck…” Knox says with a hint of relief in his voice. “What the hell are you doing in the red zone?” he bites out, making me wince at his sharp, cutting tone.

I blink and clear the blurriness from my eyes and glance around to see nothing but sand and rock. How the hell did I end up here?

“What’s the red zone?” I ask him.

“It’s an inhabitable area. Every couple of hours, the weather shifts and solar rain burns everything in touches. Get out of there. Now!”

Panic shutters though me. I try to move but realize my hands are practically numb. I glance down to find them tied together with thick black rope. It’s looped and nailed with a thick metal bar into the ground.

I start pulling, trying to loosen it. But it’s like pulling against a steel ton. The metal bar must be dug in a lot deeper than it looks.

I try loosening the rope, pulling it against the bar at different angles. Getting on my knees, I use my body weight to pull harder and harder, pulling until the skin on my hands and wrists are red and raw and starting to bleed.

But nothing works.

Panting, I glance back up at the sky as the clouds start growing gray.

“I can’t,” I finally admit to Knox, realizing just how bad this is.

“ If you don’t get moving, I’m going to ? — ”

“I think it’s going to rain soon,” I tell him and almost feel his panic. But it’s quickly overshadowed by my own.

“Sena. This isn’t fucking funny ? —”

“I’m tied up... I can’t get out.” I swallow hard trying to think of something else.

“Stop blocking us and let us in,” Knox says, a little quieter this time, like he knows I’m panicking and needs to be the one that’s calm and patient for once.

Swallowing my pride, I drop the rest of my barriers and instantly feel Theon’s shock and anger.

“Look around and show us where you are,” Knox says, and I slowly glance around at the sand and rocks before looking up at the darkening sky and down at my tied hands.

“I’m going to gut whoever did this.” The vehemence in Knox’s shocks me silent. “Cyrus says you’re in pain.”

I glance down at the ropes and pull again with no luck. “I tried loosening the ropes, but they’re too tight, and I think whoever dragged me out here hit me in the head. I don’t remember even being knocked out.”

A low rumble groans from above quickly followed by a crackle.

The rain.

Fuck. “Knox… I think ? —”

“No. We’re not going there. Keep looking around you for anything. We’re already on our way.”

I start pulling at the rope again, harder and harder, but nothing I do makes it budge.

If only I had a blade or something sharp.

I glance around for a rock, anything . But there’s nothing but sand, and the only rocks I can see are too far to reach.

They’re way too big to use to break the rope anyway.

I squeeze my eyes shut and try calling on one of their weapons, but I must be too far away or too panicked for it to work because nothing happens.

“I need you to keep talking to me,” Knox says, his tone sounding almost vulnerable.

Thunder rolls out above me, and the heavens open as rain starts to fall.

“SENA!” Knox screams in my head making me wince.

“I’m not ready to die,” I tell him before squeezing my eyes shut, and waiting for the onslaught of pain… But nothing happens. Nor doesn’t anything touch my skin.

“Talk to me! Say something. Anything!” Knox begs.

I open my eyes, and they widen when I see the red rain—almost like blood—pour down around me, followed by a sizzling hiss.

But none of it touches me. Only the small shadowy shield that’s now completely surrounding me and protecting me from the blood rain.

“I’m okay,” I blurt out in a release of harsh breath. “Just… stay away until it passes.” I glance through the shadowy shield and watch as the red rain scorches the ground and starts small fires around me.

“We can see the rain from here,” Knox say in shock and relief. “How are you okay?”

“I don’t know how to explain it. But I’m somehow… shielded from it.”

“What do you mean by shielded ? —”

“How long does the rain last?” I glance around, hoping this dark shield holds up.

“Not long. Usually a few minutes,” Knox says, and I nod and grow quiet, trying to think of anything but the sizzling sound the rain makes as it hits the ground and how much heavier it is now.

“I need you to keep talking to me, Sena,” Knox whispers in my mind. “Malakai can’t see what you’re seeing.”

“I’m not trying to block him out,” I bite out, not in the humor for him to tell me off for another thing that’s out of my control right now.

“I know,” he says softly, surprising me. “Theon feels your panic. Just keep talking to me.”

“You want me to tell you how much of an asshole you and everyone else are?”

“Sure.” I hear the smile in his voice. “Let’s go with that.”

I grow quiet again, getting lost in my thoughts. In everything that’s happened since I came here.

“Sena—”

“Why didn’t you tell me about the test?” I ask, needing to know. He sounds like he actually cares. Like they all do. But that doesn’t make any sense. None of them even gave me a heads up about it.

“What test?” he asks, sounding baffled.

I roll my eyes, wondering if he’s going to try pretend he doesn’t know. “The one where I was sent to a horrible place with monstrous worms that shoot up from the ground and vicious beasts that look like huge wolves.”

“You were in the Wastelands?” he growls, his voice doing a one-eighty. “Who brought you there? Is that where you were the last couple of days?” he grits out.

There’s no way they couldn’t have known. “ You’re telling me you didn’t know? ”

“No, I didn’t fucking—” he releases a harsh breath. “Just… tell us who brought you there.”

I pause and then for some reason tell him. “A couple of Shadows. They said all females had to do it to cull the weak.”

“Cull the ? —”

“A girl died. One of the beasts ripped her apart.” My chest grows tight remembering Cora’s scream as she fell.

“I’m sorry,” he says, and it actually sounds like he means it too.

“You really didn’t know?” I ask, still not ready to believe him.

He grows quiet. “I know we’re assholes. But none of us would ever put you in danger like that.”

I scoff. “You left me in a pit in the rain.”

“The mud wouldn’t have killed you,” he points out. “You were safe. And you got us back with the Vims.”

True. But I never got them back for the forest incident. “You left me in the forest with the terrigons. You knew I was exhausted and still ? —”

“We didn’t know there were terrigons there,” he sighs, sounding as exhausted as I feel. “We would never have left you alone if we had of known.”

“I don’t know if I believe you,” I tell him, honestly.

“I know…” he sighs, a sadness to his tone. “The rain has stopped. We’re nearly there.”

Dark shadows slide across my vision, and I glance up, finding the four guys around me.

“Sena what is this?” Cyrus asks inspecting the shield. He touches it but it doesn’t let him past it.

“I don’t know,” I tell him. “Are you sure none of you created it?”

Cyrus shakes his head. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Malakai bends down and frowns at it. “Can you dissolve it?”

“I didn’t even know I could create it,” I tell him.

His eyes find mine. “You created it so you can undo it. Focus and bring it down.”

I narrow my eyes on his little demand but focus on the shield and think of how I no longer need it, while trying to calm my mind and remind myself over and over that I’m safe.

After a couple of minutes, I feel a wave of energy, and the shield slowly becomes translucent before disappearing completely.

Malakai snarls at the rope before ripping it apart. Once I’m free, he lifts me up and starts walking, healing me as we move.

“I can walk.” I try to get down, but his grip tightens on me.

“You nearly died,” he glares at me. “I don’t fucking care what you think you can do right now.”

I roll my eyes at him but give in and let him carry me, too exhausted right now to fight him on it.

We head back to the camps in silence, but the entire way back, their eyes are on me, watching me as if I’m about to disappear in front of them.

Once we’re inside the tent, Malakai places me gently on my bed and then shares a look with the others.

Cyrus nods, agreeing to whatever silent command he’s giving them. “I’ll stay with her.” The other three head out without another word.

“Cyrus?” I ask and glance at the guys’ retreating backs.

“I didn’t know,” he says, and I pause to look at him. He takes my hand in his and stares into my eyes. “I didn’t know. None of us did. But I promise you, they will pay.”

“Who will—” Screams of terror sound out from outside. I get up and quickly head out of the tent with Cyrus right behind me. But stop short when I see the scene in front of me.

In a matter of minutes, Theon, Malakai, and Knox have ripped through the camp, destroying it and anyone who looks to have gotten in their way.

Theon has a mass of thick shadows coiling from his body, spreading out to anyone that gets near him or the others.

A Shadow male attempts to catch him off guard, and Theon’s long dark shadows whip out and curls around his arm.

The minute his shadows touch him, the male drops to the ground, screaming out in agony, begging and pleading to make the pain stop.

The rest of the male Shadows back away after that.

“Found them,” Knox says with glee in his voice.

I glance over to find him dragging the two males that brought me and the other girls to the Wasteland out by his own dark shadows.

Malakai walks up to them, and yanks them forward, whispering something vicious to both that make their eyes widen in fear.

Malakai steps back and before I realize what he’s doing, he slams his fists straight into their chests.

A gasp and gurgle hit my ears as the two men drop to the ground with a thump.

Malakai turns and walks straight over to me with nothing but rage and violence in his eyes and blood on his hands.

He places the two males’ hearts in my hands and steps back. “We’re the only ones that get to piss you off.”