Chapter 38 Arya

It was the screams that woke me.

At first, they sounded so far away, I thought they were a dream. I was so bone-deep tired and emotionally exhausted from the events of the past few days that I wanted to continue sleeping, even through the threat of a nightmare.

Something inside me triggered, and my eyes snapped open.

The distant screams still sounded beyond the walls, punctuated by an echoing boom every now and then. Just outside my bedroom door, students were throwing their words at each other in haste, their feet scampering up and down the halls.

My eyes found the clock flashing in bright red numbers that it was just after midnight.

What the hell is going on?

I slid out of bed and hurried into my uniform—smart clothing and all—before venturing out the door. The guards that had been assigned to watch me were strangely absent. I was briefly thrilled by the freedom it gave me, until a flock of harpy girls ran past me crying, looking utterly terrified before they disappeared into a room.

In the common room, more students were openly weeping as they clung to each other, while others rushed out of their rooms still in their pajamas.

"Arya!" Ashlyn's voice startled me as she suddenly appeared at my side.

"What's happening?" I asked.

"I was going to ask you the same thing," Ashlyn said, looking over the mayhem that surrounded us. "You'd think the sky was falling or something."

"It's okay, they can't get through," I overheard one of the dragon guys saying to the harpy girl he was attempting to soothe on one of the couches. It was Shawn, the guy Tobias had sparred with that night he got injured, the night I healed him, the first night I...

I blinked the memory away and went up to them. "What's going on out there? Who can't get through?"

Shawn looked up at her, a serious set to his eyes. "Vampires. They're attacking the Dome."

" What? " I gasped. An icy chill shot through my chest and rippled through my entire body.

Ashlyn and I exchanged panicked glances before sprinting out of the avian common room. The Great Hall was a zoo. Students stampeded through each other in a frenzy, some trying to escape the horrors beyond the doors and others trying to get outside to witness the attack for themselves.

We pushed through the hoard, hugging the walls as a sort of shortcut. Finally, after being battered and bruised by countless shoulders and elbows, we made it through the main doors.

What I saw left me frozen in place.

Above our heads, white-faced wraiths rammed down on the Dome from the water that surrounded it, illuminated in flashes by the ultraviolet beams that blasted whenever they got too close. The beams burned the vampires even in water, but that didn't keep them from slamming into the thick glass in attempts to break it. Every few minutes, some sort of projectile weapon fired at the glass from those hiding in the shadows.

A little voice inside my head tried to assure me that the glass couldn't be broken, not from the vampires diving at it. We were going to be fine. In a few hours, the morning sun would shine through the water and scare them away.

But every time the ultraviolet beams flashed, telltale spider veins in the glass caught the light—they were spreading.

"Get out there!" General Dracul's voice barked across the campus. "Fend them off the best you can."

I turned to see a fleet of the oldest mer students and graduates running toward the secret lake outlet to follow the general's orders. They were dressed in thick, water-resistant Kevlar smart tops, strapped with weapons that I hadn't seen before.

Fear tightened every muscle in my body—fear that the glass would shatter, that everyone I cared for would drown in the flood or be slaughtered by the bloodthirsty monsters that waited outside.

"Miss Walker," the general's voice boomed as he approached.

"I need to be out there," I declared, lifting my foot to follow the other mer.

"The hell you do," he barked, planting a firm hand on my shoulder and keeping me from moving. "You're the reason they're here."

I turned to face him, my fear blistering into anger. "That's exactly why I need to help. I won't just stand idly by down here while people die for me out there."

"Yes, you will. The future of all shifterkind depends on you staying safe from those monsters. You are duty-bound to let others make the sacrifices right now."

"That's bull—"

"Sir, let me take her out of the school." The all-too-familiar voice sliced through my heart with a bittersweet sting.

Tobias stepped into view, looking his father straight in the eye with all the confidence of the prince he was. Apparently, his unruly pride had recovered from the staggering blow I dealt him earlier this evening.

The corner of General Dracul's lip twitched with slight amusement. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked down his nose at his son. "And why would I do that?"

"She's not safe here," Tobias argued. "If they keep blasting at the glass, the Dome will give, and she'll be a sitting duck. Sneaking her off campus is our best option."

"How do you know they're not waiting for her at the end of the subway?" Ashlyn snapped, fiery as ever.

"Indeed they are," the general said. "Our soldiers are fighting them as we speak."

My heart thudded at that news. We really were trapped.

"But there's another way out," Tobias intimated, looking only at Ashlyn as he spoke and avoiding eye contact with me. "A secret tunnel along the subway line. For emergencies." He turned back to his father. "And this is an emergency."

The general's stern expression seemed to sober slightly as something passed between them. Another boom shook the ground, deepening the general's frown and prickling the thick black hair on the back of Tobias's neck. But neither of them broke from the staring contest they were having.

"Very well," the general conceded. "I'll send the Candida boy and a few others with you."

"No!" I shouted, cutting into the discussion they were having about my life like I wasn't even here. "I'm not leaving. I'm not going to abandon everyone here just to save my own ass."

Tobias cast pleading eyes in my direction, finally looking me in the eye. "Arya, please." He lifted a hand toward me.

I stepped backward. "I said no, Tobias Dracul. I'm no longer your burden to carry. I freed you from that horrible obligation."

"What is she talking about, Tobias?" the general asked.

"Oh, didn't your son tell you the good news?" I quipped, ignoring the tears that began to sting my eyes over what I had done. "I used my siren voice to rid him of his imprint on me. He's no longer my bound protector."

"What?" the general gasped.

But Tobias didn't acknowledge his father whatsoever. He just stared at me, biting his lip as if debating something.

"Well, you already hate me, so..." Then he swooped down, picked me up around the waist, and threw me over his shoulder.

"Put me down, asshole!" I yelled, slamming my fists against his back as he carried me toward the main building.

But he seemed completely unfazed by my assault. I sent a pleading glance at Ashlyn, but she only gave me a sad nod. What the fuck? She was just going to let him take me against my will without raising a finger?

I was so fucking sick of everyone else making decisions for me. Every single person at this goddamned school had either bullied me, lied to me, tried to control me, or betrayed me—a few of them had done all four. Well I'd had enough!

"Stop," I ordered with my siren voice.

Instantly, Tobias stopped walking, standing in place just feet away from the main doors.

"Put me down." Even in my siren voice, I enunciated each word clearly, injecting the force of my will into every syllable.

Like the robot I always accused him of being, Tobias set me down on my feet, a pained glint in the vacant stare of the eyes I hated to love so much.

Before I knew what was happening, a hand struck me across the face, the force of it knocking me to the ground. Ashlyn ran to my side, clinging to me protectively while I tried to recover from the blow.

"How dare you use your siren powers on my son." The general towered over me, the shadow he cast darker than the murky waters outside the glass. The fury in his eyes was truly terrifying, and right now it was aimed at me. "Is that how you did it? Is that how you tricked him into falling in love with you? Was he ever even imprinted to you, or did you just compel him to believe so?"

Behind him, Tobias blinked hard several times and shook off the spell, horror and anger twisting his face as he saw what was happening.

He stormed toward his dad. "Don't you fucking touch her!"

"Attention Dome students and faculty," a velvety, dark voice spoke over the intercom. Though I had only heard it once before, I knew without a single doubt who it belonged to.

Hadrian.

Everyone under the Dome froze, giving their full attention to the words they heard. The entire space fell eerily silent.

"It is not our intention to kill you all tonight," Hadrian announced. "We are here for one reason and one reason only. You have something that belongs to me, and I want it back. If you hand over Arya Walker, the attack will cease, and we'll leave you in peace. For now. Refuse this request, and we'll slaughter each and every one of you. Is that something you want on your conscience, Arya?"

The intercom cut off, and slowly, the sea of faces under the Dome turned to me. Several students who'd been inside the main building flooded out the doors, filling the silent Dome with their whispers.

I could see the heads of Cora, Letti, and Adina floating in the crowd, staring at me with fear in their eyes. Cora kept her mouth shut, and Letti's brows were creased in indecision.

It was Adina who finally pushed through the crowd and spoke out against me. "What are we waiting for? Give her to them."

"Yeah, she's the one they want," a phoenix girl agreed.

"She's been nothing but trouble since she got here."

"She destroyed the greenhouse."

"She attacked Letti."

"No, she didn't," Letti shouted in my defense.

I had thought I was immune to the denigration of my fellow classmates by now, but seeing how quickly they were willing to sell me out stung like a sword to the belly.

"What is wrong with you people?" Tobias put himself between me and the mob of frightened students. "You would sacrifice an innocent girl for your own safety?"

"She's not innocent," someone called out.

"She's been in league with them from the start!" another shouted.

"You're all idiots!" Ashlyn roared, planting herself beside Tobias. "Arya is the sweetest person at this godforsaken school, and you've never given her a chance."

"A chance to what, turn on us?" Adina retorted.

The general stepped forward. "Arya stays, and that's final. The simple fact is that her life is worth more than any of yours. She's the best chance we have against the vampires."

"Then let her go out there and fight them," someone yelled.

I wanted to. I looked up to the lake beyond the Dome where the mer were battling the vampires. Some shot guns with special bullets that left trails of green all through the faces and arms of the vampires they hit. Some were the recipients of bullets fired by the vampires. Other shifters were locked in a morbid dance for survival, many of them losing and getting their throats bitten. All around the Dome, the water was stained with blood, flashing red every time the beams lit.

I wanted to go out there and fight. The prophecy said I was destined to end this war. I could go into the water and use all the skills I'd learned, all the techniques Caesar, Celeste, and Ms. Heather had taught me.

If I could unleash my ursa, I might be able to take out a few handfuls of vampires. But I doubted my ursa would do well underwater, unless I could somehow figure out how to combine it with my mermaid like I had with my harpy a few days ago. No, I couldn't bet on that happening. In the water, I was limited to my weakest form.

I realized with a sad finality that I wouldn't be much help if I joined the fight now. Whatever the prophecy said, it couldn't have been referring to this moment. If I went out there, I would ultimately lose, and many would still die. It would all be in vain.

Another boom rocked the Dome, and this time, a long crack spiked through the outer layer of glass at the top. The crowd in front of me continued to argue. It was only a matter of time before the vampires got through and killed them all. As much as I hated to admit it, I cared very much for Tobias's safety, maybe even more so than Ashlyn's. Surely more than my own.

There was only one course of action I could take.

Goodbye, friends.

As Tobias, Ashlyn, and the general had their backs turned to me, yelling at the mob, I snuck around them as fast as I could, rushing toward the escape hatch that led into the lake. The last time I'd gone into this small, dark room had been with Kendall. I let the memory of our last swim together fill my mind and distract me as I stripped down to my smart top and dropped into the water, surrendering to the transformation.

My heart pounded a war cadence as I swam upward. One of the attacking vampires saw me and dove toward me, then stopped short, recognition shining in his dark eyes. I sent a current through the water toward him nonetheless, blasting him away from me. Then I willed a sphere to form around me, a constantly spinning orb of pure current that would protect me should one of them get any bright ideas.

"Hadrian," I called out, manipulating the water to carry my voice. "I have accepted your terms. I will go with you, but first, you must send your vamps away, or the deal's off."

The pale bodies floated around me, waiting, the water still and silent as death.

At last, they began to ascend, swimming toward the surface with their weapons, letting the bodies of the mer they defeated sink into the depths.

I stayed in place, wanting to make sure that no vampire stayed behind. If Hadrian broke his word and sent them back, as I expected, I would fight to the death for my friends.

The water around the Dome was empty and dark. They really had gone.

Except for one.

A figure swam toward me from the shadows. I tensed from the top of my scalp to the tip of my tail, preparing to fight. As the murk cleared and the figure became more visible, I instantly recognized the face behind the diving mask.

"You made the right choice," Hadrian said. "It's time to come home, my child."

I swallowed, the water in my throat rendering the gesture useless. "How do I know you won't send your people back to the Dome once I'm gone?"

Hadrian waved his hands through the water. "You don't. But I give you my word—as the father who's been searching for you all your life—that I do not wish to kill your friends tonight. I have plans for them. Plans for you."

The loving father bit felt like a lie, like sickly-sweet sugar poured into the water I inhaled. I couldn't stand that I was the daughter of this monster. But I believed the rest.

"Alright."

Even though his face was covered by the diving mask, I could sense his smile. "Now, come home." He extended a hand in invitation.

I took one last look down at the Dome. On the grass, Tobias was being held back by students as he tried to get to the escape hatch to stop me. He looked up at me as I looked down at him, our eyes meeting for one last moment. His mouth shouted words I didn't hear, but his eyes begged me not to go, to turn around and go back inside.

I closed my eyes and turned away from him. Without any further hesitation, I took Hadrian's hand and let him guide me to the surface. I didn't know what awaited me up there, but at least Tobias and Ashlyn—and all my classmates who were probably glad to be rid of me—would live to fight another day.

So much for prophecies and fairytales.

~The End~

Stay tuned for Dark Shifter Academy Book 5, Deadly Alliances.