“You know,” Aylia said as we walked back to our spots. “We spent weeks at the academy, and they didn’t even let us touch a bow and arrow. Yet you’re only here for a couple days, and already, we’re going to learn to shoot.”
She wasn’t wrong about that. I kept my mouth shut and worked to hold the bow. It was harder than I thought, and I didn’t quite have the strength to pull the string back and hold it like the instructor was trying to show us.
“Let your strength trainer know you need more in your arms and shoulders,” the instructor said briefly as she corrected my posture.
“Yes, Ma’am,” I responded.
After she was happy with how I was positioned, she continued to move down the lane, fixing postures, sharing tips, and overall being gentle, kind, and patient.
The rest of the class was spent trying to shoot arrows. I managed to release some, but I couldn’t quite reach the target. I needed more muscles, more power in my arrows.
I focused on that as I pulled on my magic. I just wanted to give myself the strength I needed to pull back. Yet, when I released the arrow, and it whistled through the air, I knew I did more. It slammed into the bullseye set up further down, nearly going through the target. It wasn’t a bullseye, not even close. But I did hit the target and managed to send half of the arrow through it.
“Now, I was not expecting that,” the instructor said, looking impressed.
“That seems to be the theme these days,” I whispered, staring at it and wondering how I was able to do that. That was me,all me. I destroyed that target with my own hands. As I stared at the bow and my hands, I felt my magic coursing through me. It had become more active lately as I used it more frequently. I could feel myself becoming stronger because of it.
To think, it took me getting abducted and stuck in enemy territory for me to start feeling stronger and more confident about myself.
“Using your magic will work for now,” our teacher said. “But you will want to eventually be strong enough to do without, that way you can save your magic for something more effective. Continue to shoot like that, and we’ll try to get you consistent.”
The next half an hour was spent going through a bunch of arrows as I kept trying to replicate what I did. I only succeeded about half the time.
I blew out a breath when my arrow came up short once again, the ground before my target becoming littered with arrows that seemed to mock me. Wondering how Aylia was doing, I glanced over at her target and tried to bite down my annoyance. She had a few bullseyes, her target dotted with a bunch of arrows. Only a handful were on the ground just shy of the target, and one of them poked through the right leg of the target.
“You’re good,” I said, hating to admit it.
“Practice.” She grinned at me. “You’ll get it too. You just need to keep at it.”
But how long would it take? I had only a couple of days left before the solstice, and then I was going to be gone. That hadn’t changed. I still wanted to return to my mates. I was simply making use of my time here.
Knowing better than to tell Aylia that, I went back to shooting more arrows.
11
Irolled my shoulders as I walked to the dining hall after morning practice, trying to work out the kinks. This whole week had been brutal in training but wealthy in knowledge. Even my brain felt sore. Yet, I liked it. I liked learning, digging deep into the knowledge and understanding behind all of it. It felt like nothing was hidden; for once, all the information was right there at my fingertips.
Did I want to lose this?
I glanced out the window, noting the brightness of the sun and the clear blue skies. Tomorrow was going to be the longest night of the year. The Winter Solstice. After that, I was finally going to be free and able to return to my mates.
Anticipation to see them was there, but so was something else that felt too unsettling in my stomach. The need I had felt previously wasn’t there, not anymore. I did want to see them, but that longing didn’t keep me up at night. I missed them, but the ache in my chest had grown softer. I wanted them around, but it wasn’t an all-consuming thought threatening to drive me insane.
I wanted them back desperately, I knew that, but I was quickly learning that I didn’t need to rely on them. When I get back to them, I could stand by their side on equal footing now. That thought felt too real.
Biting at my lip, I tried to straighten my thoughts. This place was messing with what I knew to be right and wrong, made me question too much. The academy wasn’t perfect, and this place acted in comparison to make me realize how flawed the Fyre Academy truly had been, especially in regards to how they trained the riders.
But this perfection was only cosmetic to me. I still stood by my initial thoughts. This place was too dangerous. Instead of using fear to rule us, the Fae compound felt more like it was wooing us into feeling safe.
I rubbed at my skin as I turned the corner but came to a stop as I realized that the humming sound just beneath my conscious attention was Neyil arguing with another male Fae. I froze, taking in the scene. Neyil seemed like he grew taller, and from my view, I got a good look at his face, practically staring at him as he scowled at the man before him.
But what set me on edge were his eyes.Red. Fire red. Not the violet warmth I was used to seeing. It was like I was looking at a completely different Fae, but I’d only known him as calming Neyil so far. Slowly, my hearing filtered what he was saying, and I was able to make out the words.
“If he no longer believes in our mission and refuses my orders again, then he is useless, and we do not need useless men in my ranks. Tell him this is his last chance before I end his very existence, including his family line.”
“Sir—”
The iciness in his voice sent tendrils of fear through me as he continued to speak, seeming not to care how the man before him practically cowered in fear. “And if you do not leave my sight right now, I will take it you are being rebellious too. I heard you recently had a son. Looks like the Fae will lose out on two family lines soon.”