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I slash through another wisp,but ten more pile onto my back and legs, their piranha-like teeth tearing into me. White-hot pain blooms all over as I send another wave of mania through Limbo to stun the rabid horde I'm battling.
I haven't seen this many wisps in one place for quite some time, and they're abnormally riled. They're acting nearly as savage as shades, which I'm sure have also gathered in this part of Limbo to lay in wait for me.
That thought pisses me off further, and I was already in a rotten mood after learning thatCranegets to whisper sweet nothings straight to my darling obsession's pretty mind whenever he pleases.
I've never experienced jealousy, let alone to this degree.
It's fucking unpleasant.
Still, at least one good thing came out of today: despite getting run through and the two full-blown heart attacks from practically losing my keepertwicewithin an hour, Somnus DeLune is finally, blessedly dead—and may he rot in eternal misery because that monster deserves no semblance of peace. Anything less than utter hell for him would be unacceptable.
Speaking of unacceptable things, Maven has been out of my sight for over thirty minutes.
I finish dispersing the remaining wisps and step into the mortal world to better survey my surroundings, ignoring the searing sensation in my limbs from switching planes. I'm in the grand entry hall of Everbound, where several legacy corpses lay. Bloodcurdling screams echo elsewhere in the castle, along with echoing shrieks that can only belong to shadow fiends. It sounds like several someones are getting brutally slaughtered.
From Limbo, I've observed the university go to shit. Whatever students survived First Placement are fleeing the school or fighting each other, more out of fear and confusion than for any other reason. The faculty is all but gone.
Lifting my sword arm, I watch my skin struggle and fail to close the thousands of tiny puncture wounds the riled wisps left behind. I'm not strong enough to heal at the moment. Although I grabbed a simple black T-shirt and jeans from the apartment before taking on the horde, everything is ripped to threads now.
Lucky for me, one of the nearby legacy corpses looks to be about my size. I only wish the poor sap was wearing a leather jacket when he bit the dust.
I've just dressed in the conveniently bloodstain-less clothes when the massive double doors of Everbound University burst open behind me, and a deafening snarl rips through the air. I drop into Limbo on instinct—which is fortunate because if I'd hesitated a moment longer, my head would have wound up down the throat of the massive hellhound that leaps through the air where I was just standing.
"Fuck. Pretty sure that was the Nightmare Prince," a voice grits.
I turn to observe the newcomers, pocketing my sword, which has shrunk to a lighter once more. The one who just spoke is a redhead almost the size of Decimus. He has the LegacyCouncil's bounty hunter tattoo on his jugular, while the others have it visible on the backs of their hands. From the looks of determination and distaste on their faces, the guns they're brandishing, and the trained hellhounds prowling into the room, it's clear they're not here for an alumni reunion.
One of the bounty hunters glances at the redhead. "You must've imagined it. Why the hell would the Nightmare Prince be here?"
The redhead uses his boot to turn over the corpse who just very kindly donated my new ensemble, minus his shoes and underwear.
"They didn't say in the official assignment, but my uncle was working here for the I.Q. and got a front-row seat when shit hit the fan. Just got a call from him warning me to watch out for the so-called 'lottery quintet,' which has the DeLune bastard in it, along with a bunch of other hotshots. He said their keeper is atelum, whatever the fuck that means."
I was just about to leave unseen to see why it's gone so hauntingly quiet in the castle. All the screams have mysteriously died out. But the mention of Maven makes me pause.
One of the other bounty hunters, a fae girl with pointed ears, snaps to attention with wide eyes. "What? That's impossible. Are you sure you heard him right, Asher?"
Asher. Hmm. Why does that name sound familiar?
"Yup."
"Oh, gods. Prophets have been warning us about thetelumfor centuries. My family used to say it was just a bit to scare legacies into behaving, but…" The fae swallows. "Thetelumis here?"
"Asher" pets one of the hellhounds as if it's a puppy instead of a monster with a strong taste for legacies. The Council has been selectively breeding them for decades to make them freakishly obedient to their bounty hunter masters. All they need is onetaste of someone's blood, and they can track them within a thousand miles.
While he's petting the beast, I notice his green eyes are glowing as he scans the room.
Ah. This must be the AsherDouglasI've heard of—a bounty hunter notorious for his ability to track magic usage from great distances. A magic bloodhound, so to speak, who tracks down his targets based on their magic signatures. I must say, he doesn't resemble the other Douglas legacies much.
If he samples Maven's unique magic, he'll be able to hunt her easily.
"Relax. I'm sure thisMaven Oakleychick will die just like any other legacy convict," he drawls. "And if she doesn't, we'll capture her and let the higher-ups deal with her. Dead or alive, there's one hell of a bounty on her head. And if any of you see the Nightmare Prince again, he'smine, got it? Now move in."
I watch from Limbo as they take formation to sweep through the school. On the one hand, I'm tempted to snap Douglas's neck for daring to speak my keeper's name in that tone. But on the other hand, slowly unraveling his psyche would be much more satisfying.
