“Not all humans without magic are good, just like not all mages are bad. We’ve already seen it in the villages,” I sighed, glancing over at him.
His face changed, from stern to… something I wasn’t able to name; he looked distant, almost broken.
We had both been through a lot, we knew the true colors of mankind.
Once, his house had been attacked by scavengers. Lionel and I had hidden away, but what we witnessed scarred us for life. His dad had been beaten up, trying to protect us and his mother. Lionel’s father was not a fighter, he was a merchant. With no ability to defend himself, the scavengers beat him unconscious during the assault. But that wasn’t all. When they were done, they moved on to his mother. And what followed… well, I would prefer to wipe it clean from my memory.
“Those weren’t humans,” Lionel said low, knowing very well what I meant. “They were demons, cloaked as men.”
Was it my memory that was wrong, or was it simply how he had portrayed it to cope with it?
“I don’t remem—”
“Well, you were young,” Lionel said firmly, his hands curled into fists.
He had beaten himself up ever since, for being too small, weak, for not being able to defend them. What he failed to remember was that he hadn’t acted because he was too scared of them finding me. I remember how he held me tightly, I had barely been able to breathe, because he wanted to silence all of our sounds.
And he had continued to protect me ever since, following me everywhere, not letting me move around alone in that village. That was how we began training together, vowing to protect what mattered. At least, that was how it was, before the last couple of months before the trials. He disappeared without a word, and if I had to guess, he had probably snuck away to train with some Ashen Corps soldiers, before even being allowed, to improve his chances of being accepted.
How was I ever going to tell him that I’d been the real danger all along? One wrong move and I could’ve incinerated their house into nothing but cinders.
I was one of the beings he hated.
“Lionel,” I said, caressing his name in my mouth as I reached my hand out towards him.
“Ethalyn.”
But it wasn’t Lionel’s voice.
A shiver went through my body, electric and unfamiliar at the same time. My eyes darted to the front of the group, where Malakai turned to look at me. He had called me by my name? Malakai never used my name, he called me stupid things, like kitten or sweetie, mocking my mere existence.
“I need you to scout ahead,” He instructed, pointing in the direction. “If you see a mage, you know what to do.”
My mouth opened, but no words came, resulting in me nodding before grabbing my gun and jogging towards the mark. If I saw agifted one, I’d need to prove myself… I had to show that I was one of them to fool them into trusting us. Was I ready for that? I swallowed hard, looking back at the others who waited for me to secure the area. I took a deep breath, and began sneaking ahead. This was what I excelled at; I proved as much during the first trial, yet I had never been trusted to do this until now.
I hunched down, keeping close to trees and bushes for concealment just in case. Each step was on my toes, trying to touch the ground as little as possible to avoid making sounds.
The only thing I heard was my treacherous heart beating. No matter how far I got, no matter how strong I made myself, the fear of revealing my powers to Lionel remained.
All possible outcomes and scenarios flashed before my eyes, almost blinding me in my mission. Would he be quiet and walk away from me, or he would get upset and scream at me? Which was worse?
‘I wish I never met you’… yes, those were probably the words I dreaded most.
“You should never have been born,” I heard Lionel’s voice clear as day and I jolted, my eyes wide. He stepped out from behind a tree to the side, his eyes glaring me down, jaw tensed. “I know what you are, filthy liar.”
“What?” I breathed, panic spreading.
In a swift movement, he lunged at me, his hands circling my throat and slammed me into a tree. I gasped and wriggled in his grip.
“Lionel, wait,” I pleaded. “Let me explain!”
“So you can tailor another lie?” He tilted his head, his impossible brown eyes filled with hatred, gleaming at me. “You lied… you’ve always lied.”
Tears pushed forward in the corners of my eyes. “Lionel, please!”
“I’ll kill you myself,” he said through his teeth, the grip tightening, choking me.
My legs kicked around wildly, but darkness lurked around the edges of my vision. The pain in my lungs pulsated from the lack of air, my throat ached from the pressure.
