CHAPTER ONE
“You’re going to regret this, Bryn Morrow,” Dani said. She planted her feet shoulder-width apart and glared at the water witch.
Bryn smirked. “Am I? We all know water trumps fire. It’s like the rock, paper, scissors of the magical world.”
Two rows of Spellslingers Fourth Years faced each other, ready for battle. Bryn had shared the details of a Terrene game called dodgeball and the instructors thought it would be fun to create a magical version as part of our training. So here we were.
I was on Bryn’s team. Cerys was on Dani’s. We were allowed to throw any object we could conjure as long as it was in the shape of a sphere. That was the main rule.
Oh, and don’t die.
Warden Armitage blew a whistle and signaled the start of the game. Gray Mappleworth, Bryn’s vampire boyfriend, had originally been in charge of the whistle, but his fangs kept getting in the way, so the other warden took over referee duties. Like Armitage, Gray served as a clinical instructor at Spellslingers and as a Warden of the West. As busy as the vampire was, he always made time for Bryn. They were looking forward to moving in together after graduation so that they could see each other as much as possible in their downtime. I tried not to give it too much thought. Although I was happy for Bryn, graduation would also signal the end of our time together. I had mixed feelings on the subject.
A fireball shot past me and I twisted away in time to avoid getting scorched. I summoned my magic and conjured a concentrated ball of air. I pushed the ball forward and it pelted Oliver in the chest before bursting. The impact blew him backward.
“Wizard down!” someone yelled.
“Lucy, duck!” I called, but Lucy didn’t hear me. Cerys’s ball of dirt landed smack in her face. The pinched-face witch sputtered, appalled that she failed to react in time.
Warden Armitage blew the whistle, using the shrill sound to encourage Lucy off the field. She seemed unwilling to acknowledge defeat.
“It’s okay, Lucy,” I said. “It’s partially down to luck.” My attention remained pinned on the magical objects being hurled in my direction. I couldn’t afford to look away.
“I’m the better player. You could’ve done us both a favor and thrown yourself in front of me,” Lucy barked before marching off the field. I ignored the comment.
“It’s not fair that I need a wand to conjure my spheres,” Priscilla Peacock complained. “It takes me longer.”
Dani responded to the complaint by flinging a fireball over to set Priscilla’s wand ablaze. Bryn quickly doused it with water and extinguished the fire, but Priscilla was out of the game. The wand was appurtenant to her, and, thus, was deemed part of her. She complained about that, too.
“Do you think it will be fair on a mission when you’re up against someone more powerful than you are?” Warden Armitage asked.
Priscilla walked off the field in a huff. “It seems to me that certain trainees have an advantage.”
“Someone always has an advantage over you,” Gray said. “Always. Remembering that critical fact might help keep you alive in the field…The actual field.”
My advantage in this game appeared to be that no one noticed me, therefore, no one targeted me. I threw air ball after air ball, and no one retaliated. Everyone seemed to share identical goals—knock out the perceived threats like Bryn, Dani, and Cerys. I was simply background noise.
Bryn lobbed a water ball straight over Wilcox’s head and it splashed over him before he could conjure a shield. Timing was crucial in this game. I understood why the wardens thought it would be a useful exercise for us.
A tightly bound ball of leaves came flying toward me and I blocked the hit with a short burst of wind. The leaves drifted to the ground.
“This game is stupid,” Madge declared. She stomped off the field after one of Dani’s fireballs nearly disintegrated her ponytail.
“This game is genius!” Dani called after her. No surprise that she loved it. The fire witch thrived on competition. She was going to make an amazing Sentry of the South and she knew it. I loved that about her. She didn’t downplay her strengths like females through the ages had been conditioned to do by society. Danielle Montrose Degraff owned her talents. After three years roommates, I hoped a fraction of her confidence managed to rub off on me.
The whistle blew again, this time to signal a timeout when one of Bryn’s balls of ice crunched against a wizard’s nose. Blood trickled from his nostrils and he was escorted off the field and sent to the healer’s office.
“Sorry,” Bryn called after him. “It was an accident!”
The casualties continued. Trainees were picked off one by one until only my roommates and I remained. Cerys and Dani were so focused on tag-teaming Bryn that I swooped in and nailed Dani with an air ball to her feet. The small explosion knocked her flat on her bottom. Bryn used the momentary distraction to hit Cerys in the stomach with a ball of water.
“Bullseye!” Bryn cried. “Winner, winner, let’s eat dinner!” She slapped my hand in victory.
“It’s two o’clock,” I said.
“Mealtimes are merely a construct,” Bryn said. “If we’re hungry, we should eat.”
“I’m not hungry for dinner,” I replied. “I just had lunch an hour ago.”
“Good game, witches,” Warden Armitage said, and blew the final whistle. “Way to maximize your advantage, Holmes.”
Bryn looked at me and frowned. “And what advantage was that?”
“She doesn’t feel the need to be a showboat,” Warden Armitage replied. “She watched, waited, and chose her moments carefully. The strategy worked.”
“Sounds more like the strategy for a serial killer,” Bryn said. “Besides, I won, too. I guess being a showboat pays dividends after all.”
“They both have their strengths,” Gray agreed. “If I’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that there’s no single path to success.”
“Tell that to Chancellor Tilkin,” I grumbled.
“Try to see your early assignment as a positive,” Gray said. “On that note, are you ready for your big evening tonight? I’m happy to give you a few pointers if you’re nervous.”
“Ha!” Bryn said. “A few pointers. Get it?” She tapped her teeth. “I’m jealous. I wish they’d give me an early assignment. I’m ready to get out there. I’d rather answer to the bigwigs at the AMF than the Board of Rejects.”
“The Board of Regents are just doing their job,” Warden Armitage said. “You haven’t made it easy for them.”
“You shouldn’t be jealous, Bryn,” I said. “They’re only giving me an early assignment because they’re undecided about me.” It had been a humiliating meeting with Chancellor Tilkin, where I’d been informed that, although my academic work was above average, they were uncertain about my fieldwork. As a result, they assigned me to work with two wardens on a basic mission and we started tonight. I’d be attending a fundraising event sponsored by the Vampire Alliance, hence Gray’s offer of assistance.
“I wish I could be there to keep an eye on you,” Gray said, “but I’ll be on an assignment of my own.”
“Nothing too dangerous, I hope,” Cerys said, joining our small circle. “I’ve already given Mia a luck rune to carry with her tonight. Do I need to give one to you, too?”
Gray chuckled. “I’ll be fine. Mine is intel only. Mia has a more interesting assignment.”
“Tell us about Nick and Lucille,” Cerys said to the vampire. “Are they good agents?”
Dani poked her head into the conversation. “Are they the types that will force Mia to fetch them coffee while they do all the fun stuff?”
“Everybody, relax,” I said. “I already told you I like them both.” We’d met a couple times at the headquarters for the Agency of Magical Forces to discuss the assignment and bring Nick and Lucille up to speed on my training so far.
“They’re both excellent wardens and it’ll be a worthwhile experience for Mia to shadow them,” Gray assured us. “They make a great team. I think that’s half the reason they were chosen to work with Mia, so she can see how a solid team operates.”
Bryn bumped her hip against his. “Is that why they didn’t set her up with you?”
“They might have considered it if my assignment had been different,” Gray said. He patted my back. “Mia’s going to have fun tonight. I’m sure she’ll give you a full report when she gets home at about three in the morning, exhausted yet exhilarated.”
“You’ll be terrific,” Cerys said.
“You look a little green, Mia,” Gray said with a laugh.
“She’s probably frightened half to death,” Dani said. “Mia’s used to working with the four of us. It’s a big step to get out there with real agents she doesn’t know. Totally out of her comfort zone.”
“That’s definitely part of it,” I said. I was accustomed to Dani speaking for me. “I’m also looking forward to the opportunity to prove myself, though. I want the Keepers of the North to know that quiet doesn’t equal incompetence.” There was no reason you had to be an extrovert or a golden child to succeed.
“I’m looking forward to proving myself in the cafeteria right now,” Bryn interjected. “Anyone else?”
Gray circled an arm around her waist. “How about a juicy burger over at Stake-n-Shake instead?”
“You know me so well,” Bryn said.
“I’m staying here to prepare for later,” I said. “I need to meet Nick and Lucille at headquarters to get changed and glamoured before the event.”
Dani shivered with excitement. “I can’t wait to start my shadow assignment next term. This year is going to be incredible.”
“The only downside is spending less time together,” Cerys said. “We’ll all be doing separate independent projects instead of sitting next to each other in classes.”
Dani slung an arm across the earth witch’s shoulders. “We’re not quite there yet, and, in the meantime, we get to live vicariously through Mia.”
“She’ll share every last detail,” Bryn said. “Won’t you, Mia?”
“If I can remember them all,” I replied.
“You’ll remember,” Gray said. “You never forget your first real assignment. You’ll either come away scarred for life or raring to go again tomorrow.”
Naturally, my brain clung to the phrase scarred for life. I managed an anxious smile. “Well, I’ll let you know which one it is at about three in the morning.”
I knew which one I hoped it would be.
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