Embrace the Dark

20

I hastily pushed my chair back and stood. “We have company.”

There were about twelve of them, and they didn’t have any weapons. Then again, we’d left most of ours behind too. But we had magic.

“We are the Unseen, and we reject the rule of the Dragons,” one of them said, wearing a black mask. Then she—I think it was a she, anyway—opened her hand and shot a ball of fire at us. We jumped out of the way, hitting the dirty, sticky floor as the flames engulfed the table where we’d been sitting. I could only gape at it, and at the person who must be their leader.

“Believe me now?” I asked the guys, as we all scrambled to our feet and summoned our elemental powers. Carth dumped a bucketful of water on the table, dousing the flames, just as the woman sent another burst of fire at us. This time Zain managed to gain control of it and throw it back at her, but then one of the other masked people used water to stop it.

That meant more of them had powers. Maybe all of them. How?

I didn’t have time to find out, not when the elemental attacks came quickly. Floorboards ripped up and flew toward us in sharp, pointed stakes. Chairs and tables were blown into us, along with tankards and other glasses. Shards of ice shot toward us, along with balls of fire. The attack came from all sides, and we were totally surrounded and outnumbered.

“Shift into a dragon!” Zain called to Erroh, as he melted a shard of ice midair.

Erroh used his air magic to toss a chair out of the way. “I can’t—there’s not enough room in here!”

I tried to use my air magic to blast someone back, but I only made a light breeze. Damn, I needed more practice. Instead, I kicked one of the Unseen in the chest, then knocked them out with a quick move Reven taught me. One down. Many to go.

It was a good reminder that I didn’t need elemental magic or weapons to take people down. I’d been trained by the best, after all. I moved through the pub room, using my combat and parkour skills to avoid attacks and knock the attackers down, while my mates handled the magic flying all around us.

Suddenly the tavern door burst open, and Varek stood in the doorway. He grabbed the nearest cultist by the throat and the life drained out of the screaming man, turning his skin black.

“Leave this place, or death will find you too,” his voice boomed out, making everyone pause. I couldn’t help but stare at him too. Darkness surrounded Varek like a cloak, and he looked absolutely terrifying.

And devastatingly handsome.

He wore a shirt that showed off his muscular, inked arms, and with his hands clenched he stalked forward toward another cultist. The masked person stepped back quickly, but they were too slow, and Varek grabbed them next. As death took the cultist, the other Unseen all stumbled and tripped and forced their way out of the building. By the time the cultist’s body hit the ground, the tavern was empty of everyone except us, along with the people we’d already taken down.

Varek ripped the mask off the dead cultist and tossed it aside, then shook his head in disgust.

“What did you do?” I asked. “You killed those people!”

“I’m not the only one.” He gestured at some other cultists we’d taken out in the battle.

I set my hands on my hips. “That was self-defense. And many of them are unconscious, not dead. You didn’t have to kill them!”

“I was defending you,” he snapped. “I’m the champion of Death. This is my way.”

“I didn’t need defending!”

“How did you know we were here?” Parin asked, as he stepped over a broken chair to approach us.

“I heard there would be an attack from my informants.” Varek shot me an arrogant look. “Aren’t you glad I have a criminal organization now?”

“We had it under control,” I snapped.

“I’m not so sure about that.” Erroh glanced down at his arm and winced at the burn there.

“You were right about the human with fire powers,” Zain said. “We shouldn’t have dismissed your concerns. It was just hard to believe without seeing it with my own eyes.”

“And they had not only fire, but all the elements,” Parin added.

“The Unseen are getting elemental magic somehow.” I moved across the room and took Erroh’s arm in my hands, then let out some of my healing life magic. The burn vanished and the skin repaired itself in seconds. “We need to find out how.”

“We need to head to the Water Temple,” Carth said, his voice serious for once. “We were outnumbered today. We need to finish bonding with Sora so we’re all at full strength for the next attack.”

I wished my parents were in Soulspire so I could talk to them about what happened tonight. With them gone, it was even more reason to become dragons quickly so we could defend ourselves and the city. Mother had told me not to rush, but what other choice did I have?

I sighed. “We’ll leave first thing in the morning, though it might take longer without a ride from one of my dads.”

"I'll fly you,” Erroh said. "I just need a good night's rest first."

“I’ll see what my people can learn about the Unseen and how they’re getting magic,” Varek said.

I bit my lip, but then forced out, “Thank you.”

Varek moved close and looked down at me with smoldering intensity. My breath caught when it seemed as though he might kiss me, and try as I might to ignore the attraction between us, I couldn’t. His very presence tugged at me and made me want to step into his arms and embrace his darkness.

“Try not to get killed before our bonding,” he growled, and all the desire vanished.

Or so I told myself.