Chapter Twenty
GRACE
The angel crown prince’s intentions were clarified once he left with his entourage, and Grace’s grandfather called her and Noah to his office.
Vincent Delacroix crossed his fingers and rested his elbows on his desk. “Prince Aaron’s visit to our academy wasn’t a simple social call with the intent to escort Darren home.”
Grace and Noah sat across his desk, awaiting more information.
His granddaughter was the first to question him. “Are they here to take someone else if they refuse to leave?”
Noah grabbed her hand and squeezed.
“No,” the headmaster replied.
Grace released a sigh of relief and relaxed. Noah’s hold weakened, and he leaned back in his chair.
The headmaster looked from Grace to Noah and back at Grace. He clenched his jaw. “No one would take you away from here without having to deal with me.”
“What do the celestials want?” Grace asked. The suspense was killing her.
“Our best warriors to help with a covert operation. They fear that they have spies among the king’s troops, even among the angel ranks. They requested our help. They want our best warriors. You and Noah are included.”
Grace leaned forward. “We haven’t graduated yet. My classmates aren’t ready for this. They have no field experience.”
“We have the best hunters this academy has seen in a long time. Besides you and Noah, Michael and Darren are our top students. Lori is a great fighter, Andrea could use a bit more concentration, but they are ready to be full-time hunters.”
“Why would you approve something like this?” Grace wondered. “You’re always extremely protective of your students and don’t want them to face unnecessary risks. This assignment seems dangerous. Some of us might not come back.”
“Have they found out the identity of the people behind the bombings? Are they planning a stealth attack on their headquarters?” Noah asked.
“The prince assured me there’s intel that hasn’t been released to the public, but I haven’t been debriefed,” Vincent replied.
“Then why would you want to help them?”
“The king has sanctioned this operation, and the dragon princes have offered their help. All I know is that Aaron will be leading this operation and that you are going to another world. Our enemy isn’t here.”
Grace shot up. “What? How? The portals are guarded. That’s nonsense.”
“There are rumors of the existence of another portal that isn’t controlled by the Celestials.”
“How didn’t they sense it? We were taught that they were the rightful guardians because they were born to sense the portals. Their ancestors created the portals between worlds and united the different people living in worlds millions of light-years apart. Their task is to guard the entries and protect the peace.”
“Grace, sit down,” her grandfather ordered. She obeyed, and he continued, “We know that there are powerful wizards who can create temporary portals. The prince believes a coven of wizards joined forces and opened a new portal. The Celestials had a spy in a new cult that appeared a few years ago. The spy gathered enough information to preoccupy the Celestials and warned them that this new cult was going to take action. Before he could find out their plans, he disappeared. The Celestials believe he was killed. A secret portal to an unknown world is dangerous. They can use it to escape or bring more allies to help them start a war.”
“No one has claimed the attacks or made demands,” Noah said. “Who can say the Celestials aren’t at fault? Wizards are watched closely. More than any other race. They normally strip them of their powers if they can’t recruit them to be their personal guard or make them elite hunters.”
“Celestials only leave them alone if they are from another world like Darren,” Grace added. “And Darren is a prince. They wouldn’t dare touch him.”
“They have a special prison for magical beings who break the law,” Noah reminded them.
“Powerful beings need to learn how to control their powers. The Celestials only want what’s best for our society, so we can all live in peace,” the headmaster said. “Noah, Grace has always spoken her mind and questioned everything. She’s a good person, but her mouth might run her into trouble. You seem to mistrust the Celestials as much as she does. I’m not going to tell you that they are benevolent creatures who do no wrong. No. They can be vicious when they want to be. Heartless, too.” He looked at his granddaughter. “Their blood runs in your veins. You need to remember that. They might be immortal, but they can die, and their safety needs to be protected, so they continue to monitor the portals and stop the evil creatures from crossing over. Helping them is helping us. Your uncle doesn’t want his mother to force them to retreat and stay hidden in the sky cities. He’s determined to fight the ones who are threatening them and have killed his brother. He came here because he needs our help. They don’t know who to trust. He believes he can trust us.”
Grace cast her gaze downward. “I’m sorry, Grandfather. I was worried about my friends’ safety. I don’t wish to blindly follow orders without making sure we’re doing the right thing.”
“Extremists are a threat to our way of life. They don’t want the world to evolve or for the races to live in peace. They pretend to be the saviors when all they want is to take the power and enslave the weaklings after killing the ones who could oppose them. Dictators only favor the rich and prey on the poor.”
“Not all kings are benevolent like the one ruling Sanabria,” Noah reminded the headmaster.