On a Razor's Edge (5 page)

“Does this create larger monsters?”
Stefan asked with a smirk. “Because now I’m warmed up.”

“No,” I answered, focusing. “Now I do something a touch more scary. No matter what freaking spell I try, I end up with the same result. I abhor working with white for
this reason. Stefan, get ready to catch some magic—otherwise we might stand and blink for an hour before it drifts away.”

Another huge breath.
I drew power and readied myself, a tear falling down my cheek. I really, really hated this one.

The spell let loose, a blanket of magic so fluffy and white it could have been snow. It solidified onto the ground in front of us, the trees disappearing as if they’d never been there, the sky going blue, the
ground turning from lush brown and green to a hard, cracked plain of dirt. Desert as far as the eye could see. Nothingness. Death to any wayward traveler.

I heard gasps and shrieks, watching
a giant dinosaur walk toward me from the right. Fear gripped me as I noticed its foot long fangs. As I noticed it, noticing me, I turned toward Stefan, reaching out to him. He stepped closer, his eyes wide in shock, his mouth hanging out.

“What is this?” he
asked, his words unsure.

“An illusion.
Everyone lives it with me. We can wander around in this place, thinking we are trapped in the desert, and potentially hurt ourselves in real life, which we can’t see or feel. If we stay still, the dinosaur takes extremely painful bites from us. If we run…”

“
You could die or badly hurt yourself. Why did you never tell me? How did I not know about this?”

“I did it once in class and was forbidden from ever doing it again. Since
then, I’ve tried to work on my own—Charles and Adnan wouldn’t leave my side when they knew—to free up using the white power, but… This happens every time. The illusion goes only as far as my magic reaches, obviously, but that’s plenty far. On a side note, isn’t Toa’s stare really irritating?”

“He can hear you, you know—
”

“The scaled monster is upon us. What happens now?” Toa interrupted, staring at a jaw full of teeth. If he was worried, he hid it behind that angelic face.

“Well, we get
bit. It hurts.”

“Can yo
u get yourself out of here?” Toa watched the T-Rex step toward us on those powerful back feet, the mostly useless hands half curled at its chest.

“Nope.
Not for about an hour. Then I can draw the magic back out.”

“An hour, did you say?” That eyebrow had raised a millimeter again.

“Question: do you change your facial expression during sex?” I asked, sidetracked.

“He does, yes,” Dominicous said, stepping to
Stefan’s and my sides. “Will its bite kill me?”

“No.” I hesitated. “Well, it hasn’t killed anyone else, so I don’t think so.”

Dominicous stepped forward, hands waving, right under the T-Rex.

“What are you—
?ˮ I stared as the huge mouth chomped down on his body, his head completely in the mouth. We heard a muffled scream before the beast straightened up, mouth still closed, leaving Dominicous on the ground.

He looked down at himself and patted his stomach, his face pale. “That was incredibly painful. I am intrigued. How is this possible?”

I pointed, aghast. “Careful, you’re going to—ˮ

The T-Rex went for a side-hold this time, its teeth clamping down on Dominicous’s whole middle half. It ripped its head away, again, as if Dominicous was in his grasp. Being that it wasn’t more than an illusion, he stayed put, painfully.

Toa touched my cheek with his long finger, peered into my eyes, and then looked back at the T-Rex. Taking the opposite direction of most cowards, he felt the bite next.

“Ooouueeee,” he squealed. It wasn’t possible for him to get any paler, but he gave it a try.

“Well, I can’t be the only one left out.” Stefan let go of my hand, next in line for pain.

“A bunch of idiots,” I mumbled, sitting down.

Usually it was an hour of pain. Charles, Adnan, and I took turns, but sometimes, when I snuck out in the middle of the day and tried on my own, I just sat in one place, feeling the bite over and over until the magic dwindled enough that I could get out.

Toa
held up both hands, palms toward the sky. I watched in rapture as his eyebrows dipped down his nose.

“What is it?” Domi
nicous asked, stepping closer.

“It won’t let me unravel and disintegrate it. There is flux in power at work here.
A strange inverse. A crossing in delivery, maybe.”

“Like a frozen computer,” I said, nodding. “Yeah, I’m doing something tragically wrong, but I have no idea what. I can
feel
the wrongness, too. It makes my heart hurt. But…” I shrugged.

The dinosaur chomped down toward
me, distracted at the last minute by Stefan. Stefan took another bite to keep it from me. I wanted to tell him I loved him. To apologize to him for ruining his chance to have a working mate. I wanted him to cure this weird hurt inside me that the magic had caused. I could do none of those things, because the science experiment wasn’t over.

“What happens if nobody moves?” Dominicous asked, analyzing
Stefan’s resolute face.

“I get bit a lot,” I explained.

“May I see?”

“No,”
Stefan interjected reflexively.

“It’s fine.” I winked at
Stefan. “This isn’t my first dance. Clear away and let the miracle that is my suckery happen.”

Just like when I was alone, the mystical dinosaur bent to me in a rush, jagged teeth bared. All went dark as its head engulfed me, its teeth clamping down on my waist.
Like knives digging into my sides, chest and back simultaneously, I gritted my teeth against the sharp, dizzying pain. When it lifted away, I took a steadying breath. Automatically, I said, “One.”

“How many have you taken?”

“Between fifty and sixty in a sitting. About one a minute for an hour. It helps keep time.”

“You’ve endured that pain for—
ˮ Stefan cut off as the image cleared away, Toa having disbanded the spell.

“Yeah, but, let’s be honest, guys—there is no way that hurts more than childbirth, and it’s only an hour.
Right?”

To
a wavered, reaching for Dominicous to brace him. “I will need to think on that. That severely taxed my energy levels. I had not realized it was so dangerous.”

“B
et your magic tests never went like this before.” I jumped up and rubbed my hands together. “I’m a professional at strange paranoia. Okay, on to black, finally.”

I drew once again, sucking in deep, curing the failure
of white with the bliss and glory of black. I sighed in relief and eased a protective box into existence, the only spell I’d tried in black lately, knowing that it actually worked. As I’d hoped, a large black box, almost solid, materialized in front of me, capturing air.

“Alas, the one I can do right.”

The spectators gasped, leaning forward to look at a square.

“It isn’t much, but at least it won’t try to kill me.” I was tired. I wanted to go
lie down, mocking smirk from Toa or no.

To
a and Dominicous approached the box slowly, probably terrified it would grow arms and bite. Dominicous walked around the outside, his arms crossed over his chest. I used the stare-free time to lean against Stefan, closing my eyes when his arms came around my waist. He kissed me on the head and squeezed.

Dominicous
reached out a hand to touch the box.

“Don’t,
” I warned. “The shock is worse than when Toa touched me earlier.”

He continued reaching.

Like a bug zapper, a life-sized buzzing blared, flinging Dominicous flat on his back. He lay with his arms out, eyes open in shock. Charles wheezed out a laugh he couldn’t stop in time.

“Can you get rid of this?” Toa
asked, still analyzing the box, easing a dagger from his pocket.

“I think so. Or I can blow it up.”

Toa pushed the very tip of a glowing white blade toward the box. As soon as it touched a lesser buzz sounded, having Toa flinching back with a, “Eeeeah!”

“Let’s move back into the house, shall we?” Dominicous
suggested, hauling himself up slowly. “As men, we love an explosion, but maybe just disengage it, if you can.”

I
got to work unraveling, something I could do easily with black. If I wasn’t terrified of what would happen when the spells went wrong, I’d use black way more often.

Chapter 4

The procession entered the same room we’d been in earlier, but this time Charles was allowed to sit in the corner. I think Stefan and Dominicous had had enough with pain, monsters, and workouts. Not that they would admit it. The way they went about it, Charles was there for moral support.

“We now need to test your human vulnerabilities,” Dominicous started, sitting gratefully. “If you are to be mage, like
Stefan hopes, you have to withstand our influences. Our pheromones.”

Stefan
tensed slightly but said nothing. I just nodded. I’d been through this with Luke, the clan’s best at mental manipulation. I’d gotten turned on for a second, I’d gotten a quick dose of fear, and I’d gotten pissed when he touched my boob. He hadn’t been expecting the slap.

To
a drifted in front of me, his appearance like one fresh out of the powder room. If I hadn’t just seen him electrocuted, thrown around the dirt, chased in a clearing, and shocked, I would’ve suspected he’d just arrived at the mansion. Amazing.

“You can close your eyes or keep t
hem open, as it befits you.” Toa waited for me to nod.

He knew humans.

A tingling erupted at the bottom of my sternum. The flight reflex. He was trying fear first.

My limbs got jittery and my breath shallow. My body tensed.

My first impulse was to reach for my dagger. A huge smile erupted on my face and I stared at Toa manically, daring him to try anything. I even had my rape whistle handy—he didn’t know what he was messing with!

Then I took a big breath and forced it all away.
Stefan could do that with just a look, usually when he wasn’t even trying. Something would irritate him, or I would put myself in danger somehow, and his face would contort into a severe mask that had my heart beating and my butt tingling. He didn’t need the pheromones. Through stubborn practice, I’d gotten used to ignoring it.

Toa
blinked twice, straightening up. If I looked really hard, I swear I could see a faint flush.
Swear
I could.

“Next,” Dominicous prompted.

A haze swept over me, clouding my awareness and almost my vision. I hated it. It made me feel lost and dizzy, and I hated both of those sensations. It’s why I never took up smoking.

I drew in a blast of power and wiped the thought away, finding a lingering presence at t
he outside of my skull where Toa lurked. I soaked into it, and then applied fire, blasting it open.

Toa
staggered back, his eyes wide.

“I gave him an expression!” I giggled. It was the small things.

“What happened?” Dominicous said, appearing on the edge of his seat without his body actually moving. Eyes like the gleaming edge of a blade, he was ready to fight, but still seemingly lounging in the chair. Neat.

Also, awful.
And scary. He didn’t need the pheromones to manipulate fear, either.

“She broke my attempt.
Like shattering the overlay on her mind. Full of surprises, this one. She shouldn’t have been allowed to exist so long without training. But then, she has developed some truly spectacular defenses. I’d like to see her in a foreign place. I have a feeling she could develop many lost treasures.”

“Try to cut off my magic,” I blurted. I wanted to see if the little ditty I’d just done would work on that.

“All in due time,” Toa replied noncommittally.

My body erupted in g
oose bumps, shivers of delight working up from my groin. My face flushed and my skin started to tingle. Wow, it felt
good
. Like I wanted to reach out and touch the smooth sex trap in front of me. It reminded me of when I’d first met Charles and my brain went on complete hiatus despite the setting. That level of coercion I’d long since been able to block. But Mr. Toa-man had some tricks up his sleeve. He gave it to me much harder, breaking through my already practiced blocks.

It wasn’t him I wanted, though.

My gaze slid across his almost too perfect face and sought those deep, dark eyes of the man I loved. I wanted to rip his clothes off and take him right now, these people be damned. He sat across the room, a twinkle in his eyes, his bulge pronounced and ready. Fire shot through our link, fizzling up my body and nearly overtaking me. I focused on that earth-shattering face, rugged and handsome, an appearance to give any fabled vampire a run for their money.

I heard a throat clear.

“I think she has gotten off track,” Dominicous said lightly. “What an unusual smell. Like…fallen leaves on the lush forest floor. Vibrant and alive.”

Stefan
winked, pride welling up in our link. I’d still chosen him even though the pheromones were supposed to direct me toward Toa.

Silly man.
Of
course
I’d choose him! Who wouldn’t?

“I’d like to see this overflow you two
speak of,” Dominicous said as I pulled my gaze away from Stefan.

“Until I pass out, or just enough to stay conscious?” I clarified.
“I’m no stranger to magic shock, but I’m also no stranger to nearly dying from it. So…”

“Conscious would be best, if at all possible.” Dominicous hid a smirk.

Hmph.

I drew in, filled up, and felt the warning prickles.
Here we go.
I kept on going, letting more gush in. Past a healthy dose and on, to the red line. More still. When my vision got hazy I opened the link and let Stefan siphon off whatever he could hold. A lovely white-gold sparkling arch of magic bloomed in the room. It’s use? I had no idea, but it sure was pretty.

Obviously I didn’t create it. Otherwise it might have tried to eat somebody.

“Again, Sasha, but steal the magic this time. Not all, but enough to get your point across and stay on your feet,” Stefan commanded lightly.

Right
y-o. He apparently thought I was a master at this stuff.

I tried
to remember how I did it the first time—I didn’t just pull elements; I focused on the others in the room. Then, because I couldn’t grasp the magic they held—since they held it within themselves—I envisioned them trying to hurt Stefan. Trying to direct an attack as Trek had done. As if I pulled a string from their bodies, I slowly emptied not only the room, but them, of magic.

The warning came in a rush this time, threatening to overwhelm me. Pain lanced my body, my inner alarm blaring. I felt
Stefan tug on the link, taking magic from my body, trying to balance me, but there was too much. Toa could hold a bit more than Trek. Dominicous could hold as much as Stefan. All in all, too much!

The flood drowned me, dumped over my head and suffocated me. I felt consciousness leaving, like I had at that battle.
More magic siphoned out, but even more dumped in.

I threw my palms out. Black exploded into the room, turned the air sluggish,
and then thick. Then solid. Everyone froze, not because they wanted to, but because I’d just—somehow—successfully executed the thickening spell.
Really
executed it, too. The only person that could move was me.

Alarm pulsed through the link.
Stefan stared at me, unable to even talk because he couldn’t move his jaw.

“So, shit. Lemm
e…shit!” I thought really hard. I’d never been able to do it, so I didn’t know how to undo it.

I sprinted for the door
, but couldn’t rip it open because of the damn air. “Crap!”

I sprinted
in the other direction, diving through the open window like James Bond, and then running so fast around the giant mansion that my legs didn’t feel like my own. I hammered down the hallway, burst through two doors, straight armed a naked dude advancing on a waiting woman wearing a blindfold, and catapulted into the correct corridor. A team of attack-dog looking men waited outside of the room I was just in. Harsh and well-trained, they were supposed to be guarding against any foul play.

They weren’t
doing a real bang-up job!

“Anybody
know how to break or stop a thickening spell?” I gasped, my sides heaving as I gulped air.

A whole defense team of eyes turned my way. There was an awkward beat while they placed my face and comprehended my words, and then they were active. Just not in the
way I had hoped.

Three g
uys reached for me immediately. I dodged out of the way and ducked under another pair of giant, groping hands. I backed against the wall and threw a protective spell around myself, not knowing any other way to keep them off while getting very important information.

Three sets of hands kept reaching for me, apparently overconfident in their invincibility. A loud buzzing flung them away from my self-made cage.

“So, anyway, I need help undoing a spell…” I said in a rush.

A six-and-a-half foot block of muscle stepped in front of me. “Where is the Regional?”

“He’s in the room still, locked in place because I turned the air solid. I need to undo that.
Quickly.
I’m pretty sure they can breathe, but if they can’t, we don’t have much time!”

The man stared at me for a secon
d. If I hadn’t grown used to Toa, it would have disconcerted me. He turned to someone behind him. “Break open the door.”

“Best to try and rip it out.
Air’s solid. It’s not going in…” I reminded, and then shrank against the wall as the flat-eyed stare of the large guy turned back to me.

“How did you turn the air solid?” he asked, his deep voice thundering out of his chest.

“Uh…with a spell…” I grimaced in a hopeful sort of way.

Through the link,
Stefan’s alarm had turned into bemused patience. The man dealt with a lot where it concerned me, and when in private, it tickled him to no end. I had no idea why, because I even flabbergasted myself. But at least he could breathe. That was the main thing.

“Show me,” the guard said.

“You’ve
got
to be kidding.” I shook my head as the first guard tried to bust down the door. Obviously it didn’t go into the room, but it did splinter. The wooden shards were pulled away, revealing a room with three men as still as the grave, all except their eyes. Charles, probably wishing he
hadn’t
been put in the room, was most probably still in his corner, and out of view.

I waited behind my shield, watching each man try to force their way into the room. “Good spell, though,” I mused. “
Kind of tiring, though. That one could definitely come in handy down the road, I think.”

“Undo this,
” the head guard said to me. Not too bright, this guy.

“Yeah, I would love to.
Which is exactly why I had to go through the window and come around here. I have no idea how.”

“Undo what you did. Reverse it!
”

To
a started to loudly hum in that way a person does when their mouth was gagged but they had important information to impart. I moved to the end of my protective bubble and peered in the room, just making out his wide eyes.

“I don
’t think that’s a good idea. Toa seems perturbed.”

“Then how do we undo it?” the head guard asked.

It was like I hadn’t run up in a dead sprint a few minutes ago asking that very same question. “Possibly find a teacher of mine to lend a hand?”

To
a started to do his communicatory hum again.

“Maybe not.
He’s probably afraid I’ll blow them up.”

An hour later I sat in my bubble, cross-legged on the ground, my chin on my fists, watching as white power zipped around the room. My magic had receded, and while the men couldn’t move much, they could move enough for Toa to get his palms and magic active. I was plenty able to suck the residual magic out of the room now, and I suspected Stefan could’ve as well, using that weird balancing thing he did, but the humor dancing in his eyes as Toa stubbornly tried to undo whatever I had done, kept me from mentioning it.

Finally, in a bright flare, I felt a tug on my chest. All captured men took a huge, lung-filling breath.

“Okay, come out of there.” The head guard, whose name was Bernie, jerked his hand in the air to facilitate my removal.

“Nope.
I think I’ll just hang on to see if they’re angry.”

“Your magic fades. You’ll have to come out sometime.”

“Wrong again. I keep replenishing this spell. Or charm. You know, I have no idea what the difference is. At any rate, this baby is as strong as strong can be. I’m good in here for a little longer.”

Unfortunately, a little longer wasn’t long at all.

One very serious-looking Regional strolled up to my self-made cage and looked down on me. His perfectly blank face still managed to communicate his complete lack of humor at that moment. “Care to enlighten us on what happened?”