The moment I let it fall, the shadows slammed into me and I released the fury of my power, throwing everything I had left into the blow as I willed my flames to devour her and I was thrown away through the burning trees by the tainted power of her shadows.
I hit my back hard as I slammed into a thick trunk, pain echoing through my body from the wound my father had given me and making me curse as I fell to the ground, the last of my magic shivering in my fingertips as I found myself tapped out and bleeding on the forest floor.
“Is that all you’ve got, son of the Dragons?” Lavinia called through the trees and I hissed in pain as I forced myself to my feet again, hating the fact that she’d stood so easily against my attack and knowing in my soul that I had the shadows to thank for that. Her connection to the Shadow Realm made her power endless and with mine tapped out, I was nothing but prey waiting for her to find me.
I wanted to keep up our fight, but with my magic waning and her dark power seeming eternal, I knew I was out of luck with that.
Shadows coiled between the trees before me like snakes slithering across the undergrowth in hunt of something to devour and I spat at my feet before turning from them and taking off into the sky, shifting into my Dragon form with a roar which dared her to follow me.
If I was going to have to run from here then there were things I needed to salvage before I left.
Lavina took chase as I flew away into the sky and I snarled as I pushed myself on faster, heading for the clouds to gain some cover and hoping she’d keep chasing me into them to give Xavier a better chance to escape.
I may have been out of magic, but I had Dragon fire, wrath and claws on my side. So we’d soon find out how well she fared against that.
W e made it to the edge of The Wailing Wood without being noticed, but the long stretch of open ground between here and Jupiter Hall made my throat tighten. Especially when I spotted the Shadow Princess sailing above The Orb in the distance on a cloud of darkness, looking to the clouds and seeming to hunt for something within them.
“How fast can you run?” I asked Tyler.
“Fast enough to outrun that shady bitch,” he said determinedly.
“Shit, we’re really doing this, aren’t we?” I said, shedding my clothes as I stared up at the Shadow Princess, preparing to shift.
“What’s the matter, Xavier? Scared?” Tyler taunted and I snorted indignantly.
“Never,” I said fiercely and we looked to the sky as the Shadow Princess turned her back our way, giving us a tiny window of opportunity.
“Race you there.” He winked, leaping forward and shifting and I shifted in the same instant, the two of us staying on the ground as we galloped as fast as we possibly could towards Jupiter Hall.
I didn’t dare look at Lavinia, my gaze firmly fixed on the entrance ahead of us as our hooves slammed into the grass. I was fuelled by the need to reach Sofia, to get her the hell out of here and to the safety of The Burrows.
Somehow, impossibly, we made it inside and we both shifted back into our Fae forms, naked and panting as we looked around the atrium.
All was quiet, and after a few more seconds I figured we had to chance that no teachers were close and we ran across the tiles and up the stairs in the direction of Orion’s old office.
I made it to the door first, pressing both of my hands to it and bringing a colossal amount of earth magic to my fingertips.
“Stand back, Sofia!” I called.
“Xavier?” she gasped, excitement and fear lacing her tone.
“I’m here,” I said then blasted the door with my power, obliterating it so the whole thing exploded across the room in a hundred pieces.
I ran into the space and Sofia collided with me, wrapping her arms around me as I rested my chin on her golden hair and crushed her to me.
“Are you alright?” I asked as Tyler closed in on her from the other side, nuzzling against her head and I didn’t even have it in me to try and shove him away. I was just relieved to have her in my arms again, her sweet scent filling me up and making me never want to let go.
My eyes met Tyler’s over her head and I saw that very same need in him that lived in me, and for a second I was trapped in his gaze too, so fucking relieved that he hadn’t died at my father’s hands even though I disliked him ninety nine percent of the time.
I released Sofia, frowning as I took in the ash smearing her cheeks. Her brow furrowed then she stepped back and pointed to a pile of burning books on the floor with guilt in her eyes, a bunch more lined up beside it, clearly taken from Orion’s cupboard.