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I nearly shrank back, musing on the humiliation that she could cause me. If I wouldn’t use my fire, then how was I going to fend her off?
If I ducked behind Axel, it would make me look bad. Plus I might lose respect from the Demigod of War, who was all about charging into and hacking at your enemies without an ounce of fear.
I didn’t like to admit it, but fear had always been rooted deeply in me, even in my hunter years. I just didn’t allow it to paralyze me.
Axel snapped his head at the gawking students. “Don’t you have anything better to do than stare at Marigold like idiots?”
The students, including their tutors, immediately resumed their activities. Fire, water, rocks, and metal rose into the air again.
The tutors started barking their instructions loud and clear to make amends for getting distracted by the drama between the sea demigod and me.
“Focus! Call your center power gifted by the gods.”
“The harder you train, the stronger your power grows. Prove that you’re made of steel.”
“Harness your power. Now. You control your magic; your magic doesn’t control you.”
The instructions all sounded well-placed. The third years knew their shit. They were experienced at training, unlike the demigods who were good at the battlefield but not at coaching a first-year.
The demigods’ method was to toss any non-swimmer into the waves and let her figure out how to swim.
Since I had no house to go to, I was stuck with them.
But I eavesdropped on the other instructors’ advice and borrowed a few techniques.
I shut my eyes, calling my power to me—whatever I had that wasn’t fire. But only the fire responded, raging through a dark, barren landscape in my mental realm. When I looked closer, I staggered back.
Just as the elemental had warned me, my flame didn’t come from the light magic possessed by the Olympian gods.
I dove into the dark realm, tracking down the source of my own magic, until I stood on the bank of a sea of burning coals.
This was the realm of Hell, the core of the inferno.
How did I know that? I couldn’t have travelled to Hell, could I?
I wasn’t a Hell spawn!
My fire surged across the sea of burning coals, inhaling as if feeding.
Fuck! Itwashellfire.
I had found my magic’s origin and understood its nature.
It raged at having been forgotten for so long.
It needed to hunt and feed on life and living energy.
It wanted to hurt and destroy.
In the inferno, all I felt was ice clogging my every vein. I tried to escape the mental realm and felt my physical body nearly drop backward on my ass.
I wouldn’t let my hellfire out. I must keep this dirty secret of mine forever.
I snapped open my eyes, only to find Axel gazing at me with dark hunger.
He didn’t know who I was. None of them knew, but his longing for me was the last straw.
“Axel,” I whimpered.
