“Yes, that suits the crime, indeed,” she agreed, a note of admiration in her voice. “Care to do the honors?”
“I do.” He shifted forward, hands still behind him but gaze focused on the three bowing females. “As I said, consider this an introduction, for I will not be so lenient on a second offense.”
Swirls of energy laced through his words, stringing through the air and wrapping around the women in wispy vines of magic. Their mouths opened on soundless shrieks at the contact, tears streaming from their eyes as Exos weaved the power through them and over them and around them.
Can you see that? I asked Titus, then remembered he couldn’t look up.
No, but I feel it.
What is he doing?
Binding their elements, he whispered back to me. He’s essentially making them human.
I flinched. Fae can do that?
Spirit Fae, yes.
Which meant I could do that to someone. Take away their will. Control them. Which, of course, made sense. Spirit represented life and death, and apparently, that included a fae’s essence as well.
The girls collapsed as he finished, their tear-streaked faces leaving me slightly unsettled. Not that they didn’t deserve it. With their little tricks, they’d almost sentenced me to an entire existence alone. And they’d tried to hurt Exos and Titus.
Yes, they more than earned this fate.
“Mmm, I believe justice is to be served, then,” Elana murmured, calling on her pixies again. “Take them to the house. I’ll escort them personally to the Spirit Kingdom later.” She flicked her fingers with the words, and the horde of little fairy things took hold of the trio. They practically dragged the three fae from the room by their hair and clothes while Ignis pleaded after them with her eyes. When she met mine, there was a note of urgency in them that I didn’t understand.
Panic that she’d been caught?
Frustration?
A hint of revenge?
But it was too quick for me to study, the girls yanked from the gym with a vengeance.
Elana sighed dramatically. “Well, now that we’ve settled that, I believe apologies are in order. Claire has been wrongly accused and should actually be commended for her efforts in stopping the dangerous elements. I witnessed each account with my mind now, through the eyes of the guilty, and I must say, I’m impressed with your control.” She smiled at me. “You’ve come a very long way in such a short time. I suspect there will be great things in your future, young one.” She cocked her head to the side, then peered at Exos. “I have an idea.”
“Yes?” he prompted, his expression one of deep admiration. This woman was clearly well loved by the fae. It seemed appropriate. From what little I’d observed of her, she’d earned her status.
“How would you feel about me helping with some of her instruction? Given your recent bond and her attraction to all five elements, she has the potential to help—if not lead—our elemental peace initiatives. Thoughts?”
Gasps filled the room, including one from Vox.
But I was too busy trying to figure out what she meant by peace initiatives to comprehend the entirety of that statement.
“I think it’s up to Claire,” Exos replied. “But I agree that it would be an excellent—and very generous—opportunity.”
“Might help make up for her rocky start as well,” she mused before grinning at me again. “I’ll touch base with you next week on what a tutelage beneath me would require, then you can decide for yourself if you’re interested. Yes?”
I swallowed. “Um, thank you. Yes, I would be interested.” I think…? This was not at all how I expected the day to go. But I couldn’t necessarily complain about the turn of events, and from the awed noises in the room, she’d just offered me a status of some kind. I only wished I understood what.
“Excellent.” Elana clapped her hands once more, eliciting several sighs of relief throughout the gymnasium. “Well, it’s been lovely, my beautiful children. I hope we all learned great things today. Should anyone require an audience with me to discuss today’s events, you know where to find me.”
She left with a flourish of vitality, the ground sprouting wildfires in her trail and a clutter of those pixies forming around her like a guard.
Vape smiled and followed, but not before nodding once at Exos.
And Mortus merely slinked back into the shadows, his presence an ominous shade in the back of the room as everyone seemed to bounce back to life.
I met his dark gaze, felt a chill of ill intention traverse my spine, and suddenly found myself wrapped up in Titus’s arms. “You did it,” he whispered, his lips at my ear.