Serafine POV
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Killian steadies himself against a tree. He pulls a twig from his hair with an exaggerated scowl. “Alright, my Luna,” he says with a smirk as he straightens. “You’ve proven you can throw me around like a sack of flour, what else can you do?”
I lift a brow, is he serious right now? “You’re honestly volunteering yourself again?”
Grinning, he flashes his teeth. “Might as well, I mean, I’m already bruised, not just my body but my ego as well.”
I see the humor in his eyes and I feel a flicker of amusement building my chest, but I focus so it doesn’t distract me. The magic is still active, still humming through me. It’s not trying to break free, it’s waiting for my next order and I notice, the longer I hold it, the more I feel it sharpening and clearing. It’s not slipping through my fingers like smoke now, it’s solid and responsive.
Okay, something else, I need to do something else. Closing my eyes again, I draw the magic deeper, and the threads rise. When I look slightly, I notice they aren’t silver now, they’re more pale blue. I close my eyes and feel them curling around my fingers, it’s almost cold as they weave through my palm.
I don’t think, all I do is direct it toward Killian. A thin stream of magic snaps forward, and frost climbs up Killian’s boots, I watch as it rises up over her calves in an instant making his eyes widen.
“Oh, come on,” he mutters, glancing down. “Seriously?”
I give a small shrug. “You said keep going.” He did, and he didn’t give me specifications, only not to kill him, which I haven’t.
“Yeah, I didn’t say turn me into an icicle.” He chuckles. “Damn this is cold.”
Flicking ym fingers the frost recedes and he sighs in relief, just in time for my hand to move again.
This time, the air shifts behind him, and threads twist outward, slamming forward. It’s like invisible hands, pinning him against the tree, is firm and unrelenting. His arms are spread slightly, and the magic holds him by the wrists, there’s nothing there, except the shimmering coils of magic that pulse in time with my breathing..
He glares at me. “I feel very attacked right now, Serafine.”
“You are,” I say with a wink, and don’t release him.
I watch him trying to shift, but the magic holds him, it’s not harsh, it’s just ensuring he can’t move.
Stepping closer, I watch as he struggles. “You’re not actually trying to break it,” I say.
“Should I be?” he asks, looking at me confused.
“You’re supposed to be testing the limits,” I remind him. If he doesn’t test it how do I know if it holds up against him?
His eyes roll. “I am, Serafine. And my limit is getting pinned to a tree like I’m on trial for something, I probably didn’t do, what next? A firey steak to burn me while I’m here?”
I can’t help it, I laugh, a soft sound and it’s the first time in hours that I’ve felt light enough to laugh so freely. “Poor you,” I mock, winking at him.
“I’m being abused,” he mutters dramatically. “Absolutely abused.”
Exhaling, I release the hold and the magic lets him go like it was never there. He has a lot of limits, been thrown is one, turned to ice is another, been pinned still, is another. Is there anything that isn’t a limit?
I don’t give him a chance to say anything, I call the magic again, the threads come once again, but different this time. I twist them closer together, into a spiral and send them silently toward him.
1/3
09:10 Tue, 24 Jun
Chapter 141
87%
He opens his mouth, no doubt to complain, but nothing comes out. Just silence. Maybe I could train all the time like this? It would stop his smart ass
comments.
I watch as he frowns and touches his throat, then he tries to talk again, but nothing comes out. He begins to gesture wildly, mouthing words, and I fold my arms, while giving him a mock thoughtful look.
“What’s that? You want to practice more?”
I laugh as he throws me a look that promises revenge. Smiling, I drop the silence I locked him in with a flick of my wrist.
“Was that necessary?” he asks. He begins to rub his throat as if the silence has done something to his throat.
“No,” I admit. “But it was satisfying.”
It was, for a moment he couldn’t talk and call me a witch. The threads gather again before I even finish calling them. This time, they don’t flow from my hands, I watch as they rise from the earth and reach out. They climb through the air, shimmering fainting before flickering toward Killian’s eyes.
He blinks and suddenly stiffens.
“Serafine,” he says carefully. “What… what did you just—”
“What do you see?” I ask while smiling, and waiting.
He blinsk over and over, like he’s trying to get rid of whatever he is seeing. He rubs his eyes now, frantically.
“I’m waiting, Killian,” I say.
“What the actual hell?” he whispers. “I thought you were standing right in front of me? Now you’re over there, wait.. no. You’re both… you–what the hell is this? I’m so damn confused right now.”
Chuckling, I lower my hands and the illusion melts away. I watch his shoulders drop and him huff out aggressively.
“It’s a blinding spell, but can be used to show illusions or give misdirections,” I murmur. “It’s just threads of perception. It Hollow’s mirror effect. You couldn’t see us, but we were there.”
He stares at me for a long moment, his breath catching. “You’re getting faster, better and maybe even stronger.”
“I know,” I reply, with a small smile. I need to be faster because I’ve no idea what’s waiting for us.
“And calmer,” he says after a moment.
oo different from the
He’s not wrong there, I nod in agreement. My heartbeat is still steady, it’s not chaotic or wild like it was before. “It’s starting to feel like instinct,” I explain while focusing on how my magic feels.
He lets out a long breath before running a hand through his hair. He’s still shaken up from the illusion. “Remind me, never, ever, to piss you off, please.”
“Probably a smart move not to do that,” I joke with a small laugh.
Shaking his head, his lips twitch into a faint smile. “You’ve got no idea how dangerous that is, do you? You really don’t see it.”
“I’m starting to,” I say quietly! “But more than that.. I’m starting to understand why I have it.” I am, because this isn’t just about giving me magic to be different. It’s about ensuring I have the magic needed to fight whatever we might face.
Veyrathi and threadborns are unknown and many people fear them, fear us, so my magic is the only thing that I have that can protect me and keep me and Eryx safe.
“Let’s call time,” I say. “We should eat, get some rest as no doubt Xander will have me testing my skills again before we get there. I don’t want to push too hard right now when I’m needing the energy once we reach where ever we’re going.
2/3
09:10 Tue, 24 Jun
Chapter 141
87%
+25)
Turning, I head back to the camp, Killian stays beside me, silent but watching me with interest that is odly comforting. If he can do this with me, and still see me as good, still trust me enough to walk beside me, and smile, then maybe others can?
If anyone should freak out and think this is bad, it should be him after I used the magic on him. As we get closer to the camp, I see the faint glow of the firelight in the distance. I can see the shadows of people moving, and everything else.
“Hey, you know if you need to test anything, just ask me,” Killian says with a small smile. “I meant it, I’ll be the one you test it on, I’m not about to freak out and demand you stop, as long as I don’t die, everything is okay.”
Smiling I nod. “Thanks Killian,” I say softly, and I mean that, because I used to be terrified of this magic, of what it might take from me. Now though, with Killians help, I can feel it settling more inside me, like it was always there. It doesn’t feel like a burden anymore, but like a part of me that is needed in order for me to live.
