Chapter 45

Aelia

"Are you absolutely certain I can't get you anything from the banquet hall?" Rue stood in the doorway of our chambers with Devin and Symon waiting just outside.

My stomach was in knots after the trial, and the idea of forcing food down only made it grumble in disapproval. "No, I'm not hungry." I slid to the edge of the mattress and tapped my toes against the cool tile.

"You would think after exerting all that rais, you'd be starved."

I released a noncommittal grunt. "No, just exhausted."

"Okay, if you're sure…"

"We could always bring you back some of those honey biscuits you love." Sy waggled his brows.

"No, really I couldn't eat a bite."

"Fine, we'll let you rest." My roommate finally left with the males trailing behind her.

My rais was suddenly all anyone could talk about. The entire academy was abuzz with rumors about the lowly Kin who annihilated the luminous maze. I barely made it back to the dormitories without being rushed by curious students. I wouldn't have if it wasn't for Reign who'd picked me up off the field and whisked me to my chambers in a cloak of shadows.

Then he'd forbidden me from leaving the room until he returned.

It had already been over an hour.

The tapping turned to aggressive bouncing, and before long, the entire mattress was shaking from the force of my nervous twitching. Pushing myself off the bed, I refocused the anxious energy into pacing.

Aelia, those frazzled nerves are interrupting my beauty sleep. The grumpy dragon's voice filtered across my subconscious.

Sorry, Sol. But you know, one would think a creature as ancient and all-knowing as you would have some insight as to that little spectacle of light from this morning.

Yes, one would think that.

My dragon had been uncharacteristically silent since the disaster. More than that, I could feel something different across our bond, as if he were purposely trying to shield something from me.

You're certain you have no idea what happened today?

I already told you I was out hunting when I felt the burst of power. It did not come from me, little Kin. It was all you.

That's not very helpful, Sol.

Believe me, Aelia, if I could provide answers for you, I would. Now, try to relax so that I may rest. My body is still growing and is in need of the respite.

I'll try.

As I sluggishly strolled the length of my room in an effort to slow the rapid flutter of my heart, my feet guided me toward the nightstand. After the trial, I'd secured my dagger in its hiding spot. Well, I suppose it wasn't exactly hidden well, but the lock on the door was spelled shut, according to Reign, so I never thought to worry. The moment my hand closed around the familiar hilt, the lingering unease began to dissipate.

But now… Surely, the headmaster would be curious about my sudden surge of powers. Where could I hide it? Could one even conceal such a powerful weapon? Even with my meager abilities, I could feel the energy pulsating from the artifact.

The door whipped open, slamming against the pale timber, and I nearly jumped right out of my skin. Reign stalked toward me, his shadows rioting in a frenzy of darkness. "Good goddess, Reign!" I shrieked. "Are you trying to scare me out of my wits?"

"No, I am trying to impress upon you the urgency of this situation." His hands were clenched at his sides, his aura a sleek obsidian so dark I could barely see around it.

"What situation?"

"Princess, do you have any idea what you've done?" He signaled out the window toward the field behind the Hall of Ether where the maze once stood. "You demolished an ethereal construct created by the combined efforts of every Light Fae professor at the Conservatory. That sort of prismatic manipulation takes years to master, and you brought it all crumbling down with a flick of your wrist."

"Well, it wasn't just a flick?—"

"Aelia!" he barked. "This changes everything. You will never again be an anonymous Kin female with questionable powers. Everyone is looking at you now. You've caught the attention of the entire academy, not to mention the king."

"King Elian knows?"

He nodded, his face cast in shadows. "I just left the headmaster's office. A number of first-years were pulled from the rubble, one of whom was the son of a dear friend of the king."

"Oh gods…" My limbs began to shake, and I staggered to my bed before my knees gave. "I k-killed other first-years?"

Reign loomed closer, that dark energy pressing into me. "It wasn't your fault."

My head snapped up to meet his weary gaze. "It was my fault." Curses, I should have told him I'd been ingesting the misthorn root. "How many died?"

"Five. Four first-years and one of the groundskeepers who got caught in the blast."

A gasp erupted and I clapped my hand over my mouth. "I—I did this to them."

"What are you speaking of?"

I choked on a sob as vacant eyes filled my vision. The other Light Fae first-years may not have been kind to me, but not all of them were monsters.

"Aelia!" Reign's hands descended upon my shoulders before he gave me a rough shake. "Tell me, now, what you believe you did to cause this."

"I've been ingesting small amounts of the misthorn root since the night of Heaton's party."

The moment that name spilled from my lips, Reign gritted his teeth, a tendon fluttering beneath his stubbled jaw. "You've been doing what?" he roared.

"I was simply testing a theory."

"Aelia, that was so incredibly reckless!" He dropped to his knees in front of me, the rapid rise and fall of his chest so violent, I was scared for him. "You had no idea what that could have done to you. What if you'd been killed?"

"But I wasn't," I hissed. "It worked. It dulled the spell bottling up my rais."

"And nearly destroyed the academy."

"Don't exaggerate. It was only one field…"

"And now Draven is going to be on me—" He dragged his hands through his hair.

"On you?"

"To keep an eye on you," he growled. "You know how he is. I'm his lapdog, right? This vast flux of rais is inexplicable, and he will want answers. That task will fall on me, Aelia."

A chill skittered up my spine as memories of the Light Fae Reign so brutally murdered in the Hall of Luminescence my first week at the academy rose to the forefront of my mind. Draven had forced his hand. Would the headmaster call for my life? Would Reign deliver?

"Misthorn root," he mumbled before he leapt to his feet and paced a quick circle, his footfalls so heavy one would think he'd been the one to take all those lives. His jaw ticked with every loop, the tension radiating from his entire form, suffocating.

He finally stopped his manic pacing and whirled toward me. "You do understand how rais and nox work, right? They are a balance of each other, where one harms, one heals, one destroys and the other salvages."

"Right."

"Misthorn root is toxic to Light Fae but can serve as an amplifier to Shadow Fae."

I swallowed hard. "An amplifier?"

"Of nox."

"But I don't have nox."

"That we know of," he whispered.

"How could I be Shadow Fae? I'm barely Light Fae…" I tugged at the collar of my tunic, revealing the glittering engraving that appeared the day Reign appeared at my doorstep.

He inched closer and lifted a finger, pausing as if to wait for my approval. When I didn't utter a sound, he gingerly traced the pattern of swirls along my skin. I held my breath as pops of energy ricocheted between our flesh.

"Do you feel that?" The question whooshed out, along with the remaining air in my lungs. I'd asked him at least once before, but he'd always denied it.

"Mmm, I feel it princess." His eyes chased to mine and the fire of a thousand flames burned through those starlit orbs. He inched closer, still, until our bodies were flush. "I feel it constantly when I'm near you now."

The air thickened between us, tension crackling in the minute space between our lips. "What is it?" I breathed.

"I'm not certain…"

"But you have theories?"

A wicked grin split the perfect bow of his lips. "I always have theories, princess." His finger drew lazy circles across my chest and goosebumps rippled in its wake. My entire body was alight with a mere touch. How was it possible?

Shaking my head free of the lusty thoughts, I tried to focus. There was a reason he'd come, and it wasn't just to fondle the Light Fae symbol on my chest. "Where is your Shadow Fae mark?" I finally managed.

His expression turned absolutely feral as he took my hand with his free one and slid it down his torso, across the rippling abs I could feel, even over his tunic, and descended farther still. I tried to jerk away when he reached his belt buckle, but he kept my hand pressed against his unyielding form until I skimmed his hipbone.

"Here," he murmured, his voice husky and laced with desire.

I'd been so flustered at the sight of his bare form at the pond, I'd missed it altogether. My hand still rested just south of his hip bone, my fingers itching to explore the clear outline of his breeches. The ties of his leathers were only an inch away, and I knew with certainty if I dared to unlace one, he would allow it. We'd been dancing around this overwhelming attraction, each of us on a dagger's edge. It would only be a matter of time before we fell. It was as inevitable as the incessant sun breaking over the horizon, a certainty that could not be denied.

But I wouldn't fall today. There was too much at risk, too much unknown.

Reluctantly, I removed my hand from his smooth breeches and took a step back. I hated that he let me. "If I see anything unusual pop up on my skin, I'll let you know."

"Please do." His eyes narrowed and he loosed a deep breath. "If we weren't in the middle of the trials, I would take you to Shadow Fae lands to test your powers more thoroughly. But for now, we must simply wait. And you must stop taking the misthorn root."

"But then I won't be able to access my rais."

"The lingering effects should remain for another day or two if you've been ingesting it for this long. Regardless, the Dusk and Dawn Duel is next, and you can win that one without your rais."

I eyed the dagger I'd dropped on my bed at Reign's unexpected appearance. I was proficient with my blade, but a duel with a broadsword was trickier. Especially if I drew an opponent larger than me. "I'm surprised you have such faith in me."

His hand slowly skimmed down my arm then strong fingers entangled with my own. "I've always had faith in you, princess. I told you from the beginning, I do not pick losers."