I barely heard the chosen teachers for the other except for kaliegh and ryan. Kaliegh got Colette Gunderson and Ryan was assigned cassius bryan. despite his girlfriend's wishes, Azune accepted to be my mentor this had to be some kind of sick joke. Azune’s eyes glanced my way from beside me, and I could see the hint of a smile playing at the corners of his lips.
Fuck, that’s right—Torence Stone’s bloodline ability was reading the thoughts of any person his skin touched, and I had let Azune touch my hand.. What had I thought in those brief moments of contact? I didn't think I even wanted to know.
I tried to mask my thoughts, focusing on the surroundings, but his eyes constantly meeting mine made it almost impossible. As the realization settled in, I forced myself to stand tall, squaring my shoulders. Yet, I couldn’t shake the tingling sensation of his touch lingering on my skin. I glanced back at him, my expression carefully neutral, though inside there was a storm of emotions churning. “What’s so funny?” I shot back, trying to regain some semblance of control over the moment. His smile widened, and for a heartbeat, I felt a flicker of connection.
Parker stormed over with fury etched on her face, practically shoving a blindfold into Azune's hands. It was very rude. He sighed, rolling his eyes. It was clear her attitude did not impress him. He smiled at me one last time before tying the blindfold around my head “You will follow me into the darkness as we find our way by moonlight to the academy. I will be your guide, and you will be my light,” he echoed, this was all part of the initiating ritual. How dull.
I walked in my line blind lead by my hand by Azune, enveloped in darkness, I felt the chaotic energy of the cavern fade into a haunting quiet. The vibrant colors of the others now washed away.. The world became a blend of sensations—the cool fabric against my skin, the sounds of whispered excitement fading into the background, and the subtle but strong presence of Azune beside me. The blistering cold on my skin forced its way in between the crevices of my uniform. My teeth chattered. I get the whole secrecy thing about these tests but did they have to choose a place colder than my mothers soul?
I could sense his frustration. This clearly was a stressful event for him just as it was for me, it made me wonder…did he have a choice to be here today or was it an order he was given? Some obligation he had to fulfill…probably an order, he did not seem like someone who would sign up for this, especially if being paired with his enemy was a possibility.
“Trust me,” he instructed, his voice low and steady. “I know the way.”
There was something comforting in his tone, a steady anchor as we moved forward. With each careful step guided by Azune, I focused on my breathing, on the rhythm of my heart, and the feeling of the cool ground beneath my feet. My heart raced. The further away from the cavern we got the more my anxiety and fear rose to claim me, he could kill me here and now. He could kill me at any time on this trek to wherever we were going. No one would know he could say i was eaten by wolves or something.
“This darkness doesn’t define you,” he added softly. “You have the power to shine where others may falter, you are the tamer of the demon within.” he spoke as if he were talking to himself as he pulled me by my hand. I could barely keep up, tripping over every stone or rise beneath my feet. I could only imagine how annoying that was
Though I could not see beyond the blindfold, I turned my head up in the direction I heard his voice speak from . That quote was directly from my father's journal, always kept under lock and key. How did he know that? The realization sent a chill down my spine, intertwining curiosity with a deep-seated fear. My father had always guarded those journals closely, as if they held the secrets of our family's past. The thought that someone else had access to those private musings made my heart race. I was the only person the door to his study would even permit to cross its thresholds back home, same with his bedroom. It was rather odd that my grandfather was banished from these rooms in his own house.
I felt an unsettling mix of emotions—betrayal, confusion, and a hint of intrigue. Who was this person that could breach the barriers of my father’s magic? Did they understand the weight of those words? Did Azune have any idea what kind kind of meaning lay between the lines of that riddle?
grappling with the revelation, I couldn't help but wonder what other secrets were hidden in the pages I had never dared to explore. What else had he written that could change everything I thought I knew? At that moment, I realized that perhaps the answers I sought were hidden within his own writing...I would have to collect his things from my grandfather's home once I was able to find the time to return. I dreaded the idea of returning to that place, the tomb in which he encased me and used to hide me from the world like a princess in her tower.
The chill of the breeze stung my face as I kept my hand in Azune's, grounding myself against the encroaching panic. My surroundings were shrouded in darkness, everything obscured and uncertain, a labyrinth I couldn't even begin to navigate. When he finally removed the blindfold, my heart raced as the eerie forest revealed itself—a place choked by trees, their skeletal branches reaching toward the sky, and a murky swamp exuding an unsettling aroma, must have been close because i could hear the croaking of frogs despite being mostly blind save for the patches of moonlight that sifted through the thick trees.
Suddenly, he shoved me, and I stumbled backward, catching myself on the palms of my hands. The sharp bite of dead pine needles and jagged rocks cut into my skin, sending a jolt of pain through me. “What the hell are you doing here, Kiri?” His voice was harsh, laced with confusion and anger, echoing between the trees. I glanced up at him, my heart pounding in my chest, a mix of fear and frustration bubbling within. The forest loomed over us, an oppressive force in the darkness concealing monsters we often read about in children's stories. I struggled to find my voice, the words tangled in my throat.
“ What are you talking about? If you’re going to kill me, just do it!” His glare pierced through the dim light, eyes narrowed with clear annoyance. He sucked air between his teeth. “If I wanted you dead, this wouldn’t be the place. If i was going to kill you I'd want everyone to know I did it.” he shot back, his voice low and intense. “I mean, why are you entering the Shadow Briar Academy? Why are you choosing to be a Shade?”
I scoffed, the words tumbling out before I could hold them back. “Tynon didn’t exactly give me a choice! That’s why!”
His expression softened momentarily, surprise flickering in his eyes. “You think Tynon can force you? Tell him to kick rocks! Be your own fucking human You don’t have to wear the shadows if you don’t want to. In fact most of us would prefer it”
I narrowed my eyes at him, frustration bubbling beneath the surface. “You don’t understand. It’s not just about me. Tynon has a reputation, and I’m just… stuck in his shadow.”
"Then step the hell out of it, do whatever you want, but so help me God, stay the hell away from me!" he sneered.
I sprang to my feet, my face flushed with rage that didn't entirely belong to me. My mouth moved, spilling out showing Abraxas anger. "You act as if it's so goddamn easy, boy! If I don’t do as he ordered, then he will kill me for you. And news flash, you got paired with me, I'm your problem now."
I could see his face stiffen at my words,.tension heavy between us, the air crackling with the unspoken truth that neither of us wanted to confront. This wasn’t just about us anymore; we were caught in a web neither of us had chosen,
He opened his mouth, probably to shoot back, but I was done with the back and forth. The anger surged within me like a wildfire, fueled by the urgency of our situation. "You think I want this? You think I wanted to be thrown into this mess? I begged and pleaded with my grandfather not to send me here! I tried my absolute hardest and I pleaded with him till I was blue in the face! It did not matter. His word is absolute.” I said my shoulders sagging never breaking eye contact. The words hung between us, raw and unfiltered, revealing a glimpse of the vulnerability I had been trying so hard to hide. "Look," I continued, my voice softer now, "I don’t want to be here but if you keep pushing me away; we will both be executed especially if my evil grandfather doesn't get his way… he is the head of the shade council. His word is law." I stared at him, his eyes only narrowed
"Fine, whatever. Let’s just get to the academy," he replied. I nodded, falling into step behind him, my footfalls soft against the forest floor. For hours, we navigated the winding paths through the trees, the only sounds being the rustling leaves and our steady breaths. It felt like we were tracing invisible steps laid down by previous travelers.
Eventually, we emerged into a clearing, and the outline of the academy came into view. It loomed before us, a grand castle seemingly woven from the very fabric of the woods. Its towering spires reached up toward the sky, cloaked in ivy and mystery. My heart raced at the sight; it was both breathtaking and intimidating. What in the actual hell was I getting myself into?
A lantern flickered in the window above the imposing door, casting a warm glow that illuminated the path ahead. It was our beacon, a guiding light against the encroaching darkness of the forest. This was supposed to be a school?! I thought myself, yet they were trying to be inconspicuous and hide from the world beyond this forest. So they build a giant castle in the center and expect it not to draw attention. Fools.
As we approached the castle, the vibrant colors of the surrounding foliage seemed to fade into the background, the focus shifting to the formidable structure before us. I could hear the distant sounds of laughter and chatter echoing within its stone walls. The school felt alive almost with an abundance of activity vibrating from the inside. Azune did not waste a single moment; he just shoved himself right passed and disappeared behind the giant black oak doors.
Once I entered I was told to head to the west wing to my assigned room so I did. It was an order from a professor I couldn't technically refuse, not even if every part of me wanted to explore this palace. Once I got to my room, I instantly realized it wasn't chosen by coincidence. A four-poster bed stood next to a tower window, draped in navy blue curtains, while a canopy of blue silk hung overhead, casting a serene ambiance. The bed itself was adorned with a blanket emblazoned with the Darksbane family crest, a symbol of my lineage that felt both comforting and heavy.
As I glanced around, the dust covering the desk across the room signified that nobody had been up here in a very long time. It was a stillness steeped in silence, I reached out and grabbed a worn book from the surface, blowing off the dust that had settled like a memory long forgotten. When I read the title, my breath caught in my throat—it was my dad's lost journal. How was it here the entire time, hidden away, while no one ever knew?
I sat down on the cold stone floor, relishing the privacy of my sanctuary, and began pouring over its pages. I had to reread certain sections, my eyes darting back and forth, as I flipped the page. Each sentence pulled me deeper into his thoughts and experiences, revealing fragments of a life I had only heard about in whispers.
His first mission had been a devastating success. Fifteen lives extinguished with nothing more than a cup of hemlock and sage tea. In the margins of the old, tattered pages where he recorded the details of his deadly work, a note caught my eye. It was as if Dad had been keeping tabs even from beyond the classroom.
*Hemlock: a neat little plant useful in many things, but my favorite is killing. It can help with sleep or even aid in pain in small amounts, but God forbid you have more than three leaves.*
Reading that line, I felt a chill race down my spine. botany had always been my refuge, my solace—a world away from violence and killing it seemed so far away now. Yet here it was in my hands my father's own twisted version of that knowledge, a juxtaposition that seemed to go against everything I believed in. alchemy was both deadly and healing, though I preferred its medicinal uses
I couldn’t help but think he left this behind for the next darksbane to find whether it be me or another, wisdom he aimed to pass down. It wasn’t just about the plants. It was about knowledge,and what you chose to do with that wisdom. In his words, I sensed both a challenge and a warning, a glimpse into the darker side of this world.
It felt as if he too sought this to be my path. Under different circumstances, it could have been a choice of my own, if my parents had been alive to guide me here. Maybe he wanted to teach me these things himself and left them here just in case he never got the chance. As I lay on the floor, the world around me faded, and I fell asleep holding tight to my father’s last words—words that felt like a lifeline—and the most precious thing I owned now, a testament to his love and hopes for me.
In that quiet space, I allowed myself to dream of a way that i could accept this life even if I hated everything that it meant, honoring him and the legacy he left behind. The storm within me began to settle, replaced by a tender comfort yet still infused with the lessons he imparted within this journal i now clutched in my hands.
The deliciously sweet dreams soon faded into the muddled blackness they always did, leaving me staring into the glow of fire and the roar of a dragon as it burned the world before it to the ground. My mother approached me, sword raised, ready to kill me.
Her figure was a striking silhouette against the inferno, eyes glinting with a mix of wrath and sorrow. I could feel the heat radiating from the destruction surrounding us, the ground trembling beneath my feet. My heart raced as I attempted to navigate the chaos swirling around me.
“Why?” I wanted to scream, but the words caught in my throat. The flames roared louder, their crackling consuming everything it touches, the dragon let out a deafening roar flying past shimmering as its white scales reflected the flames below, demanding answers to questions I couldn’t even articulate.
In that moment, standing at the crossroads of my past and an uncertain future, I felt the world crumble around me—not just in flames, but in the loss of everything I believed I was. My mother’s sword shone in the firelight, and as she took a step closer, time slipped away from me. The choice between fight or flight loomed large, and yet all I could do was stare into the abyss of her fury.
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