They genuinely believe they were doing the right thing. That's somehow worse than if they were just cruel. At least cruelty is honest. This is corruption wrapped in righteousness, murder dressed up as mercy.
Students are celebrating around us, but I can barely process it. The adrenaline is draining away, leaving me shaky and exhausted. My legs feel like they're going to give out any second. My phoenix wings are still manifested, massive white-gold flames extending from my shoulder blades, and I can't quite figure out how to dismiss them. The fire feels unstable, like I'm holding too much power and it wants to burst free, wants to keep burning until there's nothing left.
"Stellan." Skye's hands cup my face, his power flowing into me like cool water over burns. "You need to shift back. You're burning too hot."
I look down and realize he's right. My skin is glowing orange, heat radiating off me in visible waves that make the air shimmer. Small flames dance along my arms. My shirt is starting to smoke at the edges. But I don't know how to stop it. The phoenix is too close to the surface, too activated by the demonstration and the confrontation and the sheer terror of almost losing everything.
"I can't," I gasp, my voice coming out rough and scared. "I don't know how to pull it back in. It's too much, it's—"
Jade is there immediately, his demon form pressing against me from behind. His horns catch the light as he leans in close, his hunger pulling at my excess fire. "Feed me," he orders, his voice layered with that dual demon quality. "Let me take it. All of it."
I do, releasing the fire into Jade's waiting hunger. He consumes it eagerly, his purple aura glowing brighter as he filters and transforms my power. I can feel him drinking it down in great gulps, taking more than he usually does, taking everything I'm willing to give. Slowly, degree by degree, my temperature drops. The wings fade back into nothing. My skin returns to its normal color instead of glowing orange.
I collapse into Skye's arms, completely drained. My legs finally give out, and if he wasn't holding me up I'd be on the ground.
"I've got you," Skye murmurs, supporting my weight while my body refuses to cooperate. "You did it. You passed every test. You proved them wrong about everything."
"They were going to strip my essence anyway," I point out, my voice weak. "Even after I proved control. Even after I did everything they asked. It didn't matter."
"But they didn't," Harlow interrupts, phasing solid beside us. His death-touched eyes are glowing faintly white, probably seeing futures we can't. "Because Skye stopped them. Because we all stopped them. Together."
He's right. I can feel it through our bonds, all six of us connected in ways that go deeper than romance or friendship. All six of us working as one, supporting each other, being stronger together than we could ever be apart.
Vera Chen approaches with her camera crew, and I tense automatically. But her expression is kind, understanding in a way that speaks of personal experience with this kind of trauma. "That was incredible. All of it. The demonstration, the revelation about the hunters, Skye's declaration as Praestes. We're broadcasting everything live, and the response has been overwhelming."
She shows us her tablet, pulling up a live feed of Magila social networks. They're exploding with activity. Millions of comments, shares, reactions. The numbers are climbing faster than I can process. Most of them are supportive, calling for Council reform, demanding investigations into the hunters' practices and how many others have been wrongfully stripped. But there are also plenty of people defending the seven-element system, insisting that we're dangerous rebels who need to be stopped before we destroy everything.
"You've started something that can't be stopped now," Vera says, her voice carrying both pride and warning. "For better or worse, the entire Magila world is talking about what happened here today. The Council will have to respond. They can't ignore this."
The celebration continues throughout the day. Students who've been suppressing their true natures for years are finally letting their essence show.
The academy transforms from a prison into something else, something freer, something hopeful. I watch students who've been walking with their heads down for years suddenly standing tall, manifesting powers they were told were wrong or broken or dangerous.
My mates' underlying tension bleeds into me despite the celebration. We won this battle, proved my control and exposed the corruption. But we've also made enemies. Powerful enemies who won't take this lying down.
Students keep approaching me throughout the day, thanking me, telling me their stories. A water-spirit hybrid who was told her essence was unstable. A boy who can manipulate time in small ways, labeled as too dangerous to exist. A girl whose power connects to dreams, sent to Grimrose after the Council decided dream-walking was a form of mental invasion.
All of them had been rejected and suppressed, and all of them were grateful that someone finally stood up and proved the system wrong.
By the time evening falls, I'm emotionally exhausted on top of physically drained. All six of us collapse in Skye's quarters, too tired to even properly celebrate. The bonds between us are glowing brighter than ever, visible even without my phoenix sight. They pulse with relief and victory and lingering fear.
"What happens now?" I ask into the darkness. We're all tangled together on the bed again, seeking comfort in proximity and touch.
"Now we deal with the consequences," Ambrose says grimly. His voice is rough with exhaustion, and I know he's been monitoring contracts all day, keeping track of every thread he wove to protect us. "The Council will have to respond. They can'tignore what happened today, not with millions of witnesses. And Dmitri..."
He trails off, but we all understand. Dmitri will retaliate. It's just a question of when and how. The vampire who corrupted the entire Praestes system won't accept being exposed without striking back.
"Let him come," Rumi says, his divine voice resonating with certainty. His wings are partially manifested, golden feathers visible even in the darkness. "We're not the scared, rejected Magila we were two weeks ago. We know what we are now. We have each other. And we're not backing down."
Everyone's agreement pulses through me. We've crossed a line today. We've declared ourselves publicly, challenged the Council's authority, proven that Dmitri's system is corrupt and murderous.
There's no going back to hiding now. No returning to the days when we suppressed ourselves to make others comfortable. No pretending we're anything other than what we are.
"I'm scared," I admit quietly. "Not of my fire anymore. Not of being a phoenix. But of what comes next. Of what Dmitri might do to us."
Skye's hand finds mine in the darkness, his fingers intertwining with mine. "Being scared is okay. Being afraid doesn't make you weak. It makes you smart enough to understand the danger we're in."
"But we face it together," Jade adds, his demon warmth surrounding me from where he's pressed against my side. "That's what being mates means. We don't face things alone anymore."
