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“That’s true, I just hope she doesn’t give you a hard time about it,” Greyson murmurs, concern shining back at me.
“She’s nothing I can’t handle.” I give him a reassuring smile.
Harper gives me a sidelong glance, clearly holding back what she wants to ask right now because Greyson’s here. It’s something I’ve been stressing about too. Working with Denver would be fine if it wasn’t for my powers. I just have to hope Professor Pierce has figured out a way to siphon off my powers without making it obvious to Denver. I’ll also need to find a time to speak with Carter and Harper alone to tell them about my meeting with Landon. They’ll need to know that he too knows about my magic, and what he revealed.
Greyson nods and smiles back at me, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. I wish I could do more to reassure him that working with Denver will be fine, but I know I can’t. We might still be figuring out how our friendship is supposed to work after all these years and distance, but I know it has to stay firmly in that category. No matter how much I want to reach out and clasp his large palm in mine.
The words we leave unsaid hang between us, the tension only building. I thought some of it would ease after the conversation we had in front of my room on my first night here but it only seems to be growing with each day. We have to actually clear everything up before it implodes in our faces. But we can’t do that, not when I don’t know how many spies Glenda and the headmistress have. We’ll have to lay all our cards on the table too, and I know at least for me that will include some admissions that might just tear my heart in two.
“In order to best learn how to entrap a monster, we first need to learn about the different types of monsters,” Landon says from his place at the front of the classroom. “I’m going to go through the categories of the most common monsters in this area and I’ll project their images onto the screen as we go along.”
He clicks a button on a small remote clasped in his palm and a screen rolls down beside the whiteboard.
“There are more monsters than what you’ll be showing us?” One of the students behind me asks, his voice shaky with a tremor of fear.
“Yes, there are still new species of monsters that are being discovered to this day. The rift isn’t in one stagnant place on earth, it opens up all over the world, but we’ve been able to track what monsters are attracted to what landscapes,” Landon explains as the marker scrawls his words on the visible portion of the board behind him.
A light flickers on the screen beside him revealing a picture of the academy as the start of the slide show.
“In this area for example, we have trees, mountains, and large bodies of water, so the monsters we find here will be attracted to terrains like that,” Landon says, clicking to the next picture in the slideshow.
A picture of a lake appears with large pine trees surrounding the perimeter. They thin out closer to the edge of the glistening blue water, where small pebbles border it.
“Water is an important life source for all creatures including monsters,” Landon says gesturing to the picture on the screen. “Life thrives around a body of water, so most monsters will live somewhere around a lake or a river, while others rest within its watery depths.”
He clicks to the next slide, and some of the students behind me gasp in shock at our first glimpse of a sea monster. Sure, we’d all heard stories and seen vague sketches, but there aren’t any known photographs of these creatures—well unless you’re a monster hunter that is. Most of those who encounter these creatures either don’t have time to snap a picture, or they die as they’re trying to escape.
Its green scales glisten in the sunlight, its lethal frame cutting through the water like a knife. It has to be at least twenty-feet tall judging the height of the trees behind it, and that’s only the portion of its body that’s above the water. My stomach sinks as I stare into the monster’s bright-yellow eyes. The size of them, along with its dagger-like teeth protruding from its mouth, make the reality of what we’re going to be facing even more real. Monster hunting is a dangerous job—some have died on the job, while others rarely stay on after the first five years. There’s a huge difference between knowing monsters exist and seeing them up close—and this is only a picture. I can tell the same thoughts must be running through the rest of the students’ minds since a tension-filled silence settles over the room.
“This is a sea serpent. They’re usually found in the sea, but recently we’ve received reports that they’ve been spotted in lakes as well,” Landon explains, his tone serious yet compassionate, clearly sensing the shift in the room. “There have also been sightings of krakens recently.”
Professor Pierce switches to the next slide. It’s a different lake, with fewer trees surrounding the border, but those details don’t hold my focus for long. Not when a massive tentacle protrudes from the water, reaching towards where the camera would’ve been. The royal blue suckers flash vibrantly in the sun against the blue-grey skin as they reach out for the photographer.
“This is the best photograph we’ve gotten of a kraken so far. They’re extremely dangerous and despite knowing where they are, we haven’t been able to successfully capture one and send it back to its realm yet.”
A shiver runs up my spine at the sight of the tentacle, the only known portion of a kraken so far. Who knows what horrors truly lurk beneath the water?
“These are the most dangerous water monsters that we have in this area, and if you encounter any of them, you’re not to engage,” he says sternly, ensuring to hold each of our gazes to show the severity of his warning. “Advanced teams are sent to handle these monsters. You use whatever means to get away safely but under no circumstance are you to try to use an entrapment spell on them.”
“Are we able to try to entrap them if that’s the only option we have?” Harper asks, her eyes lighting up as if she’s just been challenged.
“The power needed to trap one of these monsters is more than one student can possess, so multiple witches and warlocks are needed to perform a successful spell,” Professor Pierce explains, and I can almost feel the weight of his attention begging to shift to me, but to my relief, it doesn’t.
Landon goes on to explain a few other of the water creatures that are found in our area that are less powerful. But despite the information my pen hurriedly copies down, I can’t take my mind off of the image of the kraken’s tentacle, power and ferocity in its attack.
“The best way to entrap a water monster is to lure it onto land. This will be the best tool you have, as the rest of your team will be able to help,” Landon explains, the information breaking through my thoughts. “Some aren’t able to survive outside of the water though, so the best way to trap them is to contain them in a bubble of water, raise them into the air and then perform the entrapment spell.”
“Won’t it be hard to force the power in two directions?” Luke asks warily.
“That’s why we practice,” Landon says with an understanding smile. “You’re all here because you’re the best of the best and with training you’ll be able to perform the spells with little effort.”
Landon switches the slide to a group of trees, so tall they nearly touch the sky. The sun filters in through the top of them, shining down on them as though they themselves are a mythical being.
“The next monsters we’ll talk about are the most dangerous of them all because of how unsuspecting their forms look,” Landon explains, grimacing as he looks out at the class. “They may seem easy to take care of, but you may not know one is even by your side until it’s too late.”
Landon clicks the button on his remote and the next photo pops up—of a singular tree this time.
“Seriously?” Denver huffs out on a breath of amusement, turning to his friends behind him in confusion.
