I opened my eyes, glaring at him. “I want to be free of all of you.”
He grinned. “Good. Now make them listen.”
Phoenix's grin didn’t fade. If anything, it widened, like my defiance thrilled him. He crouched beside me, firelight dancing across his sharp features.
“Freedom,” he said softly, “is forged in the fire of will. Yours is strong, but it’s scattered. Like a storm without a centre.”
I wanted to snap something back—but I didn’t. Because even though I hated the way they threw me into this, I wanted this too. Power. Control. A way to stop being the one running, surviving, breaking. I was done bleeding for everyone else’s choices.
I closed my eyes again.
This time, I didn’t claw for the shadows.
I invited them.
Come to me.
They answered.
A hush settled over the air. Coolness swept in like a tide. Shadows pooled around my feet—no longer just tricks of light, but thick, velvet tendrils. They curled up my legs, coiling around my fingers like a lover's touch. Not threatening. Curious.
“Good,” Phoenix whispered. “Now… shape them.”
My breath trembled, but I didn’t look away. I reached deeper—not with force, but with purpose. I thought about Kyra’s smug face. The shifter’s fist connecting with my ribs. The way Slade had left me crawling. I didn’t want revenge.
I wantedto never be powerless again.
The shadows reacted like theyheardme.
They rose—arching from the ground in ribbons that spun lazily through the air. One coiled around my wrist like armour. Another drifted to my shoulder like a mantle.
Phoenix exhaled, a sound between awe and laughter. “There she is.”
But the moment cracked—like glass under a strain too long held. My concentration faltered. A sliver of doubt wedged its way in.
The shadows twitched.
And then they were gone.
Vanished like smoke in wind.
I stumbled, dizzy from the sudden emptiness.
Phoenix didn’t say anything for a moment. When I finally looked at him, his expression was thoughtful—not disappointed. More like he’d just watched a glimpse of something rare and half-legendary.
“You touched it,” he said. “That’s more than most ever do. But if you want to wield shadow,reallywield it, you’ll have to know the darkness inside yourself. Accept it. Trust it.”
I crossed my arms, suddenly cold without them. “That sounds suspiciously like therapy.”
He laughed outright. “Shadow magicistherapy, Elira. But with higher stakes.”
He stepped back, the flame in his palm dying to embers.
“Same time tomorrow. Eat something. Sleep. Then come ready tobleedfor it.”
He turned and left me standing in the arena’s dying light—aching, shaking, but for the first time since arriving…
Alive.
