Page 68 of Tempest of Wrath and Vengeance

And Tessa was staring at him, eyes wide, but her shields had also dropped and he could feel her. There wasn't a trickle of fear. No, all he could feel was...want? That couldn't be right. But that was awe that stared back at him, as entranced as her magic seemed to be. Tendrils of light reached for his darkness. He let his power rise to meet hers, taunting and teasing. Her magic wanted as much as she did, and he wasn't surprised. Power would always be drawn to power, and despite her presence in this realm, he was still one of the most powerful Legacy in Devram. This was the first time he'd ever let her see the full extent of that.

“Like what you see, beautiful?” he asked knowingly, her power still seeking him out.

“No.” But it came out breathy. Her eyes were still wandering, raking slowly over his body and lingering. That was definitely want and need coming down the bond. Her magic was in a vibrating frenzy he could feel.

“You were lying to me the other night, weren’t you?”

“What?” she asked, enthralled by the magic all around her, and he realized if he didn’t pull her out of it soon, he’d have bigger problems on his hands. Her magic would overtake her, and according to Luka, she still hadn’t learned how to control it in the slightest.

He took a step towards her as he said, “No one else has touched you since me. There was no one between your thighs, no hands on your flesh, or lips on yours?—”

“You’re wrong,” she said, and he felt the tug as she tried to pull her magic back to her.

“Am I?”

“Yes,” she snapped, her eyes finally connecting with his. “Just last night I was kissing another. Isn’t that what yousenthim to me for?”

He went still. Luka had kissed her?

Her smile grew, and he felt her power surge in response.

And then he felt the yank on his power.

He tsked, sinking his darkness into her magic. “You think it will be that easy, clever tempest?”

She scowled, her magic surging again and her brow furrowing in concentration. She was so focused on trying to take his magic, she didn’t feel his dark power winding around her. Not until it brushed along her throat like fingers.

“You might be stronger, Tessa. Your power might be greater, but make no mistake, this will not be easy for you,” he said, his voice low and menacing. “But I willalwaysgive you what you need.”

With those words, his power tightened around her throat, giving her just that— an outlet for that fury and desperation and need. Someone to challenge her because he’d come to realize that was what he needed too. He craved her defiance, pushing her to rebel, and then he’d punished her for it. It was dark and twisted, but it fed his need for control. He was seeing that now.How he’d forced her to become what he needed her to be. She wasn’t wrong. They’d made her into this, and if he was too late to bring her back, he’d make sure to give her what she needed now, no matter the cost.

With a shriek of rage, her light sank its teeth into his power, and he ground his molars as a growl sounded from his chest. He wouldn’t intentionally hurt her, but his power would still protect him. Andgods,shewasstrong. If only she’d learn how to leverage that strength. She couldn’t control it. She just let her power do what it wanted, letting it loose and hoping it would do what she needed it to. Sure, she’d held control for small increments of time, but she’d never hold it long enough to win a fight. She’d destroy everyone, allies and enemies. No one would be left standing if that chaos came to reign.

The power around her arms had wound along her chest and torso now, her hair a mess of chaos floating around her. With lightning at her fingertips, she dug them into the darkness at her neck, somehowgrabbingit and ripping it from her throat.

She shoved hard at the air, and it hit him square in the chest, as if she’d physically struck him. The thing was, she’d flung hisownpower at him, and it sent him flying backwards. His wings kept him upright, but the burst of power flared wide, sending an end table crashing into the wall. It shattered, wood splinters going in all directions. Theon barely had time to get a shield up before another burst of magic was coming at him. This washerpower though, and the charge of energy that slammed into his darkness didn’t dissipate. It bounced around as if trapped inside, content to stay there, and he felt it vibrating throughout his being. Sharp jolts of power that stung, but those stings made his power angry.

A whip of lightning shot for him, and with a hand coated in inky power, he grabbed it the same way she’d grabbed his power. He tugged, and Tessa stumbled forward, her torso hittingthe desk she still stood behind. He heard her soft grunt across the room, and when her eyes found his, he knew that fury was only growing. He pulled harder, and she scrambled atop the desk so it wasn’t digging into her stomach, but she threw out a hand, forcing him to dodge another burst of light flecked with whatever-the-fuck those gold and silver embers were.

Keeping a firm hold on the light, he conjured a thicker shield around himself, hoping it would be enough for her magic to bounce off of rather than forcing him to go entirely on the defensive. It’d been a long time since he’d had to call on the full strength of his gifts like this because usually?—

Black flames erupted between them. He heard Tessa’s scream of surprise, but Theon took the moment to take a breath and readjust his grip on her magic. Luka was exactly the reason he rarely needed the full strength of his gifts. The Guardian bond always drove him to intervene.

The flames receded, Luka standing between him and Tessa, where she was still standing on the desk.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Luka demanded, gaze scanning Tessa before he turned to Theon.

“Just having a conversation,” Theon answered, breathing hard. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“I figured with the two of you in one place?—”

He was cut off by Theon’s darkness shoving him to the side to avoid yet another onslaught from Tessa, and she didn’t stop this time. Apparently Luka’s appearance had given her a moment to regain her composure too because light was followed by a burst of wind, and then came a streak of lightning that skittered along the floor, spearing out to the walls. It kept coming, and while he was busy getting Luka out of the way, he took a hit to the ribs.

“Motherfucker!” he growled, his power already converging and clawing at the power that was sinking into his bones.

She struck again, and he lifted a hand, a shield propelling her magic to the side. A window cracked and shattered, glass shards somehow spraying inward rather than outward.

“Tessa!” Luka barked, fire wreathing his hands as he took a step towards her.

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