King Hall (Forever Evermore 1)

Too bad that wasn’t what Benedict did. He arched, his shout flaying the air.

Ezra stepped forward, not letting his hand leave Benedict’s forehead and, in turn, Jack, Pearl, and I had to move with him to keep connected, even as the guy dropped to his knees, screaming bloody murder, all of us having to bend at the waist.

The Kings gave no further instruction.

Ezra knew he was supposed to pull until Benedict’s power touched his Core, so that was, seemingly, what he was doing as his massive body began trembling.

At least, I assumed that was what it was. Not me. Not my nature pulling him down.

The key was four powers. Always four. Add another one in and it screws things up. But, like with funneling, I could feel my Vampire side — my weaker side — dormant, like it was hibernating for this and letting the stronger magic overrun my body. I seriously hoped it was enough.

King Venclaire covertly glanced at his watch.

I could have told him it had been a minute and a half. I was counting in my head as the guy continued to scream. He had begun writhing on the ground in torment, but Ezra was keeping his head steady while we squatted around him, keeping our raw power at max.

At two minutes and twenty-three seconds, I felt Ezra’s trembling body jolt.

He exhaled harshly, his muscles instantly relaxed…motionless.

“Let it go,” King Venclaire ordered swiftly, dipping in Ezra’s line of sight. “Let it go!”

Ezra sucked air, nodding languidly.

Abruptly, Benedict stopped screaming, his mouth still open from his last round of agony-induced shouts, so I got a close-up view as a pair of fangs magically grew from his normally flat, white teeth, and when he blinked, his eyes were glowing bright brown and his power charged the air.

I stared as a showcase of emotions swirled through my mind too quickly to process.

Holy shit! I had done it.

My vision went blurry…I fainted.

I woke to a Vampire’s hiss.

Pearl and Jack yelling.

The Kings shouting. The loudest was King Kincaid. I had never heard his wolf growl as viciously between bellows as his wolf was now.

Heat bathed my front, but I was lying flat on my back on a hard, cold surface.

Rapidly blinking my eyes open, I stared in a daze at black material as more shouts erupted around me. The heat on my front intensified as the black blurred at me, then warm, massive arms were wrapping around me and lifting me off the ground I lay on, my feet dangling in the air. I sniffed, still in a stupor. The scent was familiar. It was Ezra, who was crushing me to his chest, his Vampire hissing violently.

“Pearl!” King Fergus shouted behind, and above, me. “Stop this! Right now!”

“No!” Pearl retorted, her voice cracking.

“Jack, let us through!” King Nelson roared. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Screw off!” Jack shouted instantly, his voice strained.

King Kincaid’s wolf growled so loudly it hurt my ears.

Ezra’s Vampire hissed just as fiercely.

Sluggishly, I lifted my hand, unable to see anything except Ezra’s chest, and pulled lightly on his ear. “What’s going on?”

Silence.

All shouting and growling and hissing stopped dead.

Ezra gently drew my face away from his chest, his glowing gaze on my face.

I blinked hazy eyes across the room.

Jack had a ring of translucent, blue water surrounding King Nelson, who looked furious, and King Venclaire, who was merely standing in the middle of it with his arms crossed.

Pearl had King Fergus inside a golden bubble suspended about ten yards in the air, who didn’t appear too happy, either.

King Kincaid was in shifted wolf form about five yards from us with his teeth bared at Ezra and me…or, maybe, just Ezra, since his Vampire had been hissing.

“What’s going on?” I asked again, blinking, peering farther back in the gym, and saw Antonio sitting on the bleachers, appearing amused as hell, recording whatever had happened, but below him on the gym’s floor level were four freaked out Mys volunteers. One of them sporting fangs and glowing brown eyes. “Oh! Oh my God!” Memories bombarded me.

The Awakening! I had done it!

I peered up at Ezra, whose fangs were also showing, and grinned hugely. “I did it!”

His face was slowly turning from scary-furious to normal. “You were unconscious.” He might now look like he was fine, but his voice held a very real worry.

I blushed brightly, mumbling, “I just fainted.” I picked at his robe, embarrassed, pulling at it a few times. “I was…overwhelmed.” A quick thought to the Kings listening in, and I added, “The Awakening’s huge. I was nervous.” Truth.

Jack’s hands lowered, and the ring of water disappeared. “You fainted? Like a girl?”

Pearl had already lowered King Fergus, and she was wiping tears off her face as she grumbled hotly, “She is a girl, you moron.” She stomped in my direction, and shoved my shoulder hard, blubbering, “You scared me.” Another shove of my shoulder, then she was hugging me around Ezra’s hold on me, bawling like a babe.

I patted her shoulder awkwardly, because of Ezra, but I hushed her, worrying a smidge about our “no touching” policy, and, ever so slowly, it dawned on me. My friends had thought my unconscious state had been because of my hybrid nature. From what had been happening, it appeared as if they had been protecting me. Keeping the Kings away from me. As Jack pulled Pearl away, comforting her, I muttered quickly, “I really did just faint. That’s all.”

Still in wolf form, King Kincaid took another lurking step forward, his teeth bared.

Ezra completely ignored him to shake me in his hold, all but shouting, “When was the last time you ate? You don’t just faint like that! I know you didn’t eat lunch, so when was your last meal?”

That stopped me, as I rubbed my ear closest to his mouth. I hadn’t eaten breakfast because my stomach had been in knots. Dinner last night…nope, too busy and too nervous, but I had drank from Jack. I had skipped lunch the day before, dealing with one of my touch-friendly subjects. “It’s been awhile.” No wonder every time I had puked today it had been…unpleasant.

His Vampire growled, but he sat me on my feet gently. He was unexpectedly gone. A second later the gym door banged open and closed.

Stunned, I gawked at his speed.

Swiftly, King Kincaid was rubbing against me, his furred body warm as he circled me, growling a little with the movement. Protective and pissed, he was marking his territory. I guess I should have been happy he wasn’t peeing on me. He was my King, and I was his subject. Not only that, his wolf considered me as part of his family. I really was surprised he hadn’t attacked Ezra.