“The Hydra as in the mythological creature?” he asks. “Six heads? You cut one off and two grow back? Hercules killed it as his second labor, but only because he cauterized the necks with fire, which prevented regeneration?—”
The ground shakes, like something huge rolled over in its sleep beneath us, cutting him off mid-sentence. Thunder rumbles overhead, and I swear the air tastes like copper and lightning.
“Time to see what you’re made of.” Kieran’s voice is calm. Too calm. The kind of calm serial killers have in documentaries right before they smile at the camera. “Survive... or don’t. We’ll be watching.”
Logan’s eyes burn into mine for one last second. “Try not to die, Harrington,” he says, and there’s something almost disappointed in his tone, like he’s already written me off.
Then, he and Kieran burst into flames.
I scream and stumble back, heat searing across my skin. But when the light vanishes as quickly as it appeared, there’s nothing. No ash. No scorch marks. Just empty ground where they stood.
“What the hell?—”
“Relax.” Evie tucks one of the pencils deeper into her bun. “They fire traveled. And don’t freak out about the trial—we can’t actually die. It’s just an opportunity for us to demonstrate our raw talent before we reach the academy.”
“Can’t die?” The words rip out strangled, my chest tightening. “Super comforting when we’re apparently about to fight a mythological?—”
The roar that erupts from the nearby cave makes my bones vibrate.
“Just remember,” Sam says quickly, his words tumbling over each other, “cauterize the necks or the heads grow back, that’s the most important?—”
Before he can finish, the cave explodes, and everything erupts into chaos.
JADE
What I’m seeing can’t bereal. It justcan’t.
Because six massive heads are whipping and thrashing from a body the size of a house, its scales black and glistening, dripping foul sludge that hits the ground with a hiss and burns through the grass. The smell is sharp, like acid and rot, stinging my nose and throat. And all I can do is stare up at it as if I’m watching a movie, praying I’ll wake up and this will have been one very strange, very vivid dream.
Unfortunately, the heat on my skin and the smoke in my lungs feel sickeningly real.
The others, on the other hand, aren’t nearly as shocked as I am. No—they’relocked in,as if they’ve spent their lives preparing for this.
Evie’s standing behind a perfect heat shield, her flames forming a shimmering dome. Nina’s fire flickers in small, exact lines, quiet but lethal, her expression terrifyingly calm.
I claw for my own magic, reaching for the flicker I’ve always known, praying it will answer me with some badass display. But nothing comes. Just weak sparks crawling across my fingers like dying embers.
They sputter out, and my chest tightens with shame.
“Please,” I whisper, my hands shaking as I try again. “Not now. Come on.”
But there’s nothing. Just silence where my magic should be.
My throat tightens, because this is it. I’m going to die here because my stupid fire picked today to ghost me.
Garrett notices, because of course he does. “Told you! Dead bloodline.”
I want to hurl something at him. Maybe the useless spark sputtering in my hand. But then every head of the Hydra turns toward us, golden eyes taking us in one by one like a buffet line.
The air in the clearing stills.
Then one of the heads strikes at Evie, who reinforces her shield, slamming it into the monster’s face before darting back. Another head dives for Nina, who moves like she’s done this a thousand times—smooth, precise, and terrifying.
Vera lights up a branch and hurls it like a spear. Sam’s running in circles around the clearing, screaming something that sounds way too enthusiastic for someone who might die in five seconds.
As for me… I’m just glad the Hydra’s too focused on the crazy behavior of the others to notice me. Which is good—really good—since I seem to be the only one who cares about staying alive.
And I thoroughly intend onstayingalive.
