First Magic by Raven Steele (ebook reader screen txt) 📖

I forced my legs to push faster with longer strides until I thought they’d collapse from exertion. It wasn’t until I reached complete exhaustion that I felt a burst of Light explode throughout my body. My muscles filled with its energy; the same energy I felt on a full moon, if not more. Air moved more freely into my lungs and my vision became clear. Even my hearing became more focused. I could hear Christian’s footsteps not far off. I was not as behind as I thought.

I raced after him, fully sprinting now. Soon, I was right on his tail. He turned around, grinned, and then started running faster. He’d been holding back.

I adjusted my speed to keep up with him making me a little winded but not much. Without warning, he darted off the trail and straight into thick underbrush, still traveling at the same speed. I followed, but quickly found I had to adjust the way I’d been running. Not only did I have to concentrate on blocking out the cold and rain, but now I had to concentrate on where I stepped and moved. The uneven ground was never the same and at every turn, branches reached out as if to grab me.

At first I was really nervous as I ran through the forest, trying to avoid disaster with every step, but without being aware of it, my mind begun to take visual snapshots of the surroundings. This gave me the ability to know exactly where I was going to step next. Several steps ahead, in fact. It was as if I was able to see into the future just enough to know my next move. The moment I realized this, I started having fun. I felt like a free runner again, but this time I didn’t have to worry about who may be watching.

I caught up to Christian quickly and beamed when I saw the surprise in his face. This time it was my turn to grin. I kept pace with him even though I felt I could pass him if I really wanted to.

I continued to follow him up the mountain. The closer we came to the top, rocky terrain and huge boulders replaced the once dense forest. I was completely soaked by this time and every time I turned sharply, my wet hair slapped me in the face, stinging my cold skin.

“Just up ahead,” he called.

I couldn’t imagine where he was taking me. All I could see were more rocks and what looked like a steep drop off up ahead.

Christian stopped abruptly on a flat slate-like rock formation just before the edge of a cliff. “We’re here.”

I came to a stop next to him. “Where exactly is here?”

“The place where we’re training today.” Lightning cracked overhead. I looked up into the rain. “I’m glad I wore rubber shoes.”

“I’ve been waiting for a day like this for a long time,” he said while stretching his legs.

“One that can kill you?” I walked over to the cliff’s edge and stared down. It must’ve been at least a hundred feet to the bottom.

“You’ve been fighting really well, but you need a more realistic environment. Where I’ve been teaching you is too easy and too safe. It’s not like the real world.”

I turned around. “And this is?”

He ignored my question. “You did well keeping up with me. I thought it would take a lot longer for you to figure out how to work Light on your off days.”

I pushed the hair away from my face again. “Me too. I wish I would’ve known about that sooner. It sure would’ve saved me a ton of embarrassing moments.”

“But you needed those moments.”

“For what? To feel even more like an outcast?”

“It’s through hardship that greatness is born. You don’t know how different you are from other Auras. Most of them have lived a privileged life, never knowing how to work hard or sacrifice for others. They’ve been surrounded by a wall at Lucent, pampered and treated like royalty. I used to think that’s where they belonged because of their sacred nature, but after meeting you and seeing what you’re capable of, I realize there’s a whole other side to Auras that’s being ignored. You guys could do so much good if given the opportunity. Of course, if I were to ever mention any of this to anyone, it would be considered blasphemy.”

“Maybe we could change their minds?” I offered.

Christian stared into the distance. His face and eyes looked strangely dark beneath the shadows of the storm clouds. “Maybe.”

“You ready to fight?”

I rolled back my shoulders and cocked my head side to side. “I’ll go easy on you.”

I was going to trash talk more, but before I could, Christian swung his right fist at my jaw. I easily ducked and returned the blow. He sidestepped it and did a backwards kick to my head. I caught the kick midair and flipped him hard backwards, forcing him into a somersaulting flip. He landed expertly into a crouched position.

“Good,” he said, voice low. “Now faster.”

We fought against each other: two warriors pushing each other faster and harder with every step. Neither one of us could overcome the other. That is until thunder exploded, shaking the whole mountain. For a split second, I became distracted, giving him just enough time to swipe my legs out from under me. I fell hard against the rock beneath us.

In a mock pro wrestling move, Christian slapped his elbow and fell down upon me with a huge grin. “You’re mine!”

“Now what are you going to do with me?” I teased.

“Nothing I want to.” He stood and helped me up. “Let’s cool down.”

Following his lead, I maintained various yoga positions, while the storm above gradually subsided. It was oddly empowering being on top of a mountain in the middle of a storm. My heart beat from within my chest, yet my mind was as clear as the sky on a cloudless day. I felt at one with the world.

After our bizarre, yet invigorating meditation session, I sat down on the ledge, my legs dangling over.

“Do you have to sit so close?” Christian asked

I stared down into the gully below. “I guess not.”

I slid back several feet. Christian sat next to me and stared into the overcast sky. I decided this was the perfect time to ask him about May, indiscreetly of course.

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“Have you ever heard of a human who has the ability to use fire?”

I expected him to give me a strange look, but he didn’t. Instead, he said, “They’re called Furies. How do you know of them?”

“Something I heard once,” I said, telling a half-truth. “Where do they come from?”

“I don’t know their history too well, but like Light, fire has become a part of certain humans. Furies aren’t too popular among the Auras, though.”

“Why?”

“It’s the fire within them. It craves power and domination. Eventually the lust becomes too great to control and their hearts turn black like Vykens.”

“So they’re bad?”

“Not all of them. In fact, there’s a Fury who sits on the Council with your aunt. He’s a mean sucker, but he knows the line between right and wrong.”

The rain had finally stopped, and in the distance the sun began to push through the clouds. I could feel its warmth against my skin.

“I was going to tell you that night,” Christian blurted.

“Huh?”

“That night I was late. I was going to tell you everything about me.”

“What happened?”

“When you left your house, I followed you up the trail, but we weren’t alone. There was someone else there that night. I turned directions and pursued them to make sure whoever it was, wasn’t a threat. At the time, I didn’t think it was a Vyken.”

“Why wouldn’t you?”

“Honestly, when the Council assigned me to you, they said it was ‘for precautionary measures only’ and it was also at your aunt’s insistence. They said Vykens don’t prey on young Auras. They like the blood of a stronger, more experienced, Aura. Supposedly it gives Vykens more power.” He paused. “I’m telling you this because I’m beginning to doubt a lot of what the Council has taught me.”

“Why?”

He stared off into the horizon. The deep lines in his forehead told me how conflicted he was. “I’ve been taught all my life that Auras couldn’t fight, but you proved that wrong. I was told Vykens can’t change their appearance multiple times but obviously they can. I was told Vykens are super strong and fast and that’s it—no other abilities, but that isn’t the case. One touched you from a distance and somehow took control of you. It’s like they’re getting stronger. And all this after they told me the chances of a Vyken coming for you were slim, but now one is hunting you, torturing you. I feel like I’ve been lied to. And there’s something else.”

“What?”

“After the second murder, I spoke to the head of the Auran Council. I told him about what was happening and he said not to worry. He said the murders were a coincidence. A coincidence? If the same thing were to happen to an older Aura, they would’ve moved her far away. This whole thing just doesn’t feel right.”

Because I didn’t know what to say, I asked, “So when you asked me to meet you in the woods that night, why didn’t you tell me the next day who you were?”

“I was going to, but when I showed up at your house the next morning, you were mad or sad—I couldn’t