Page 47 of The Discovered
With a flick of my wrist, I intercepted this force and sent it hurdling back at him, colliding with his body in a violent jolt. His fall backward sent the others deeper into their frenzy.
The only woman of the group licked her lips. “She’s strong. She’s going to taste delicious.”
Um,ew.
I wrinkled my nose in disgust. Her words seemed to excite them, and I wondered how long it would take for that excitement to transform into fear.
She chanted something under her breath, and a jolt of fiery electricity shot through the air in a crackling white orb.
In that instant, Daelon’s words flashed in my mind:You were made for this.
They triggered something deep within me, like the flip of a switch, and I tuned into my power in a way I’d never done before. I entered a deeply natural, instinctive state, and time seemed to slow down as I connected all of my experiences together. They lay out before me like a web, each a connecting thread of who I was. I felt the guidance of my mothers, the elements, the oceans’ tides, all witches who had come before me, the oppressed and the suffering, and even Daelon, all of this intertwining to weave a tapestry of who I was and why I was here.
I didn’t need spells for my magick. Iwasmagick.
I held out my hands and absorbed the orb sent to hurt me, neutralizing its aggression and carrying it into my palms. I watched the incredulity pass over the energy vampires’ faces, scrambling to make sense of this action. I strained as the electricity bubbled over my skin, yelling out as I hurled it back at them.
It slammed into a short man next to the woman, sending him into a fit of spasms as it stunned and then electrocuted him, like a military grade taser. I stepped toward the group, and they began to hurl their attacks.
But I could feel their fear now. It tasted raw and wild like a cornered animal facing a predator.
I deflected what they sent my way, moving on autopilot in this heightened state of alignment. A man with a bag over his shoulder stepped forward and hurled what seemed to be a dagger my way, and at the same time the woman cast another ball of electricity. I heard Daelon utter a low growl from behind me. I caught the dagger in front of my face, where it hung suspended, and then sent a gust of wind to deflect the orb into the snow where it crackled and snuffed out. I frowned at the dagger, realizing it was charmed somehow. I could nearly taste the torture it had inflicted on others as it dropped to the ground. The thought of all those victims’ suffering sent me into a fury.
This was almost too easy. Whatever power they’d stolen from others was no match for mine.
“End them, Áine.”
I hesitated. I knew I could, easily. I glared at the man who threw the dagger, lifting him up into the air and throwing him sideways. He landed awkwardly on the snow and his body stilled. The bag he’d been carrying spilled out its contents, which appeared to be shackles. I could sense their painful, stifling magick from here.
“Were those for me?” I asked sweetly, cocking my head at the girl, who was now backing away.
The red-headed man ran forward to his fallen friend, grasping his arm just before they both vanished. I submitted to the power that coursed through my veins, sending a jolt at the woman who stayed to attack me. She screamed as I sent her flying into a nearby tree with a loud crack.
“Good, Áine. Use the anger constructively.”
The other four started chanting, and soon a high-pitched wailing overwhelmed my eardrums. I cried out in pain, momentarily stunned. I couldn’t concentrate. Daelon doubled over next to me, also overcome by the assault.
Seeing his face contort in pain sent me straight back into my power. I shouted out again as I channeled an intense force of natural chaos, moving through me like a storm. The snow in front of me lifted off the ground and formed a shimmering white cyclone, and on my command, it moved to attack. I heard screams as it drew bodies into the tempest, jerking them in all directions before throwing them back out onto the earth.
Daelon stared at me in awe, and as the arctic wind dispersed, I could make out a lone vampire remaining. He knelt on the ground with his hands planted firmly into the earth. He’d somehow avoided the cyclone.
When he rose, he looked ravenous. “You’ve deceived us,” he snarled. “Are you the one they speak of only in whispers?”
I had no idea what the hell that meant, but considering everything, the answer was probablyyes. Before I could respond I felt a force sneaking toward me, catching me off guard. It blew into me like the wind, knocking the air out of me. I tumbled back onto my backside, gasping for breath. In this lapse of concentration, he sent what appeared to be a storm of glass shards toward us.
In a panic I went off instinct, leaping to my feet to stand firmly in front of Daelon. I channeled fire, feeling its heat rush through my blood. The shards melted above us, showering us with warm water. It was ice, not glass, which my power intuitively understood on a level my conscious mind couldn’t.
I let the fire continue to move through me, and a burst of crackling flames spread out along the earth from me to the man, who scrambled back. But the fire was too fast, engulfing his body within seconds. I watched him roll around in the snow, steam and smoke rising from his body. I frowned, realizing this would kill him. I looked back to Daelon, who looked fierce and determined. The flames in front of us reflected in his eyes.
I turned back to the man who was yelling out in agony, feeling the fear rolling off his body. I shuddered, and in a split decision I waved away the flames.
“No, Áine. Finish him.”
I walked forward, following the trail of charred earth. I stopped to hover over the man as he writhed around on the ground, his skin badly burned. A lump grew in my throat, and I recoiled from the smell of burning flesh.
He stared at me in both terror and rabid rage. “He won’t allow you to live,” he spat.
I heard Daelon approach. He reached for the base of my neck again, his grasp firm.
