Reckless Magic (Star-Crossed #1)

The man I hit was not expecting an attack from me, and I realized they did not comprehend where the first tree I dropped on them came from. I hit him directly in the temple, causing a sickening skull-crushing thud. He lost his balance and fell over, letting out a scream of frustration.

For just a second Kiran had the upper hand and brought another tree branch down on him. Momentarily he was trapped, until the other standing figure reached out his arms sending Kiran flying through the air in the opposite direction and isolating him from the rest of the mêlée.

I decided to try the same effect, and it was my turn to send the other attacker flying. I was more than angry, I was furious. All of the energy building up inside of me had come to an alarming climax, I let it loose on this one man, sending him thirty feet away and head first into a thick tree. I expected the energy to dissipate after releasing so much at one time, but it rushed back through my blood stronger and more powerful, sanctioning me to do more damage.

I saw the battle clearly, more clearly than I had seen anything else in my life. It was as if I was created specifically for that moment. The deathly encounter made me more alive than I had ever felt. I could no longer fight against my ingrained electricity, but worked with it to wield the destruction I saw all around me. The energy rushing through my body set me on a war path, my blood turning to an uncontrollable fire, and I found that I was willing to fight at any cost to win the battle.

I took a moment to assess the situation around me. Lilly, although in the form of a tiger had her back to the cliff wall, trapped by both the leopard and the mountain lion. She was a capable fighter, but the two animals were closing in on her and I knew it wouldn’t be long.

Kiran had come face to face with the very man I threw and they were circling each other, both waiting for the other to make the first move. Talbott was in a wrestling match with the bobcat and had barely escaped his throat being ripped out twice. It was only a matter of time.

The man I trapped underneath the tree branch had thrown it off and was standing, ready to attack me. I took this all in, in a single breath, but understood with certainty that this fight could not last any longer. We were outnumbered and they would not stop until each one of us was dead.

I gathered the energy inside of me, letting it build and build. The man who had intended to attack me slowed to a stop and tried his attack at a distance. The electricity in my blood became a sort of energy field around me, blocking the attacks from the cloaked man standing only a few feet away.

I felt myself growing stronger with every small molecule of electricity in my veins. I took energy from everything around me; borrowing from the trees, the ground, the stars, the moon, the very breeze that remained soft despite our deathly battle. I sensed myself becoming an unstoppable force. Even my enemies couldn’t hold on to their own energy as I took it from them and added it to my own.

My body was nearly bursting. I had created such a force of energy, I could barely contain it. I looked around again and saw all of my friends in imminent danger, unaware of the oncoming storm I was about to rain down.

With controlled thoughts and determined power, I let loose my building tempest. Every cloaked being was sent flying through the air, all coming to rest in one final heap on the ground. I felt their energies dissipate quickly and their lifeless bodies move no more.

Four bodies, piled carelessly on top of each other in the middle of our destruction were the evidence of what I was capable of. One of the attackers however was able to escape. He did not wait around to be certain of his friend’s fate, but fled through the woods; his energy growing fainter and fainter the farther away he ran.

Only one of them escaped through the forest, only one of the five. I could sense each of his feet hit the hard ground and his body panic from the terrifying image I ingrained into his mind until eventually he faded away completely.

There was no way I could catch him now, my body had no more strength to move. I collapsed onto the ground, shaking in violent tremors. I lifted my head to see Kiran, Talbott and Lilly back in her human form, were all alive. I rejoiced silently, unable to even say anything. They stared at me with the strangest mix of emotions on their face, all hesitating to move.

Chapter Sixteen

I might as well have been drained of all life. The strength I expelled to put an end to the fighting was more than I knew I was capable of; not to mention all of the other crazy stuff that I didn’t know anyone was capable of. I lay on the hard ground, barely able to lift my head, let alone my limp limbs.

I was aware of what just happened; a small part of me accepted that the events that occurred were in fact real. But the fight I partook in only moments ago felt more like a distant memory than reality: like a dream I just woke up from and could barely remember. The exact details of everything were fading from my mind quickly and I wasn't sure I cared.

“One got away,” my voice came out hoarse and shaky. I pointed in the direction I felt him run in before he disappeared from the tracking device I knew was my mind.

“Talbott, go,” Kiran demanded, rushing over to my side and kneeling down. He leaned in close to my face, seemingly examining my pupils, although I had a hard time believing he really knew what he was doing. He took my hand into his and held it tightly in his grasp.

“I can’t leave you. Damn it. We should have brought the entire Guard, damn it Kiran,” Talbott yelled. “I knew this was a bad idea. Damn it,” he repeated over and over and started to walk in circles. “Kiran are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” Kiran looked down at me concerned. He inspected me again by lifting up my arms and head, looking for, well I didn’t really know what he was looking for, but he eventually seemed satisfied. All the while, he never let go of my hand.

“Damn it Kiran, are you all right?” Talbott shouted at him louder. I watched Talbott continue to pace back and forth from my peripheral. I could tell that he wanted to pursue the attacker, chase him down. I could also tell by the way he glanced at Kiran every other second he was not going to leave his friend alone.

“Yes, I’m fine, I’m really fine,” Kiran spoke louder and with confidence. I saw Talbott relax his shoulders a little, but continue to pace. “Lilly go back to camp and tell Mr. Lawly that we have to leave now!” Kiran demanded of the human-again Lilly. She did not speak a word, but obediently took off running through the forest, her bright red hair disappearing into the darkness.

The logical part of me objected to Lilly trying to make it back to camp by herself. The attacker could still be out there, he could have easily circled around to our other side to finish the job and I was too exhausted to pick him up with my new found powers. After what just happened, somebody should go with her, whether he was out there or not. I was too weak to contest. I tried to verbalize my concerns, but only a moan came out.

“She will be fine,” Kiran looked into my eyes intensely and I saw his passion and concern. “Lilly can take care of herself it turns out. She will have no problem making it back to camp.” Kiran’s voice was soothing and calm; it felt like medicine to my fried nerves.

“I don’t think you should be so close to her,” Talbott stood over us, gruffly assessing our position.

“She just saved our lives,” Kiran growled.

“And look at what she did to everyone else,” Talbott was calm, but I heard the tension back in his voice. Kiran looked around and let go of my hand to stand up. I began fading in and out of consciousness, fighting to stay awake, but the fatigue was making it impossible.

“Have you ever seen this before?” Kiran asked Talbott, and I knew they were talking about me. My eyes had closed and I was breathing evenly, I was not even sure if I was conscious anymore.

“No, never. I had no idea she was capable of this. I had no idea anyone was capable of this. Four Immortals at once…… it doesn’t make sense,” Talbott replied.

“I thought you said that she wasn’t one of your kind?” Kiran asked softly.

“She’s not. She’s not….” Talbott repeated. “We must tell your father immediately, she is clearly a security threat. Kiran, she did not even realize she had this kind of power. What else is she capable of?” Talbott sounded almost scared, and I began to lose awareness completely.

“No, that is the last thing we are going to do. You will tell him nothing of her power. Do you understand?” Kiran’s voice started to fade, “That is an order Talbott.”

I knew they were talking about me, and talking about what I did, but I didn’t understand what they were saying. Clearly I wasn’t as much of a freak as I thought I was, because they were capable of the same things. I was just lucky enough to be overlooked at first. Surely any one of them would have been able to do what I did with more power and quicker.

I began to regain lucidness as reality set in. I tried to process what just happened, but I could not wrap my mind around it. I saw human beings, real human beings, turn into animals. I saw Lilly turn into an animal. And these were no ordinary mammals; they turned into dangerous creatures thirsty for blood. Human beings posed as animals trying to rip each other apart.

I saw men move things with their minds. I saw them try to kill each other without ever touching the other. Their strength being one thousand times more dangerous without ever physically coming into contact with one another than any other human being I had ever seen. The power these men wielded was beyond comprehension; but these were not just strangers, Kiran and Talbott were capable of the same feats of extraordinary. Kiran and Talbott, only teenagers, were capable of murder, even if it was self-defense.

And then I realized that it wasn’t just them that did those things, it was me. I moved things with my mind. I hurt people. I killed people. I was capable of everything the others were, if not more. And I finished it all.

A rock seemed to drop in my stomach and I was suddenly sick. I sat up quickly and emptied everything I had eaten that day on the ground next to me. My body shook violently as it tried to rid my mind of the crimes I just committed. The electricity in me was not only powerful, it was evil.

What had I done? How could I have killed anyone? And not just one person, but four? I pulled my knees to my chest and began to cry, fully awake, but fully unaware of what was happening around me. I drowned out any sound nearby with my sobs. I wanted it so badly to be a dream that I could wake up from, but there was the terrifying fact that I just lived through a real life nightmare I would never be able to forget.

Somehow I made it back to camp, either Kiran or Talbott carried me, I wasn’t sure who. Between sobbing and blacking out I didn’t remember much. My body was so weak that I was barely able to lift my hands, let alone walk or sit up. My voice was hoarse and my throat on fire. When I was conscious I either cried or puked. Unconsciousness was a sweet black hole of nothingness my body and mind longed for.

Mr. Lawly already had the campsite cleaned up before we arrived back at camp. All of the tents and equipment had been packed up and the students organized to leave. I heard people talking around me, but I couldn’t understand their words. I was unable to comprehend anything; the only sounds I truly understood were that of my own uncontrollable sobbing.