Kane's Fate Chapter 6

As soon as Pearson let us go, the other shifters hurried to the Medius, but I took my time to gather my things.

I’d figured Renzo would pair us based on the skills we’d shown in class so far, not the dean who had no idea about our feras, fighting abilities, secondaries, or anything.

“Something on your mind, Kane?” the professor interrupted my mental ravings.

“Just a little stressed,” I admitted. “I thought you’d pick who we dueled.”

“Ms. Canmore is the best option because she has no bias,” he said with a shrug. “She could draw names out of a hat for all I know.”

“Yeah, but shouldn’t we be matched by skill level?” I asked.

“You’re all first-years,” he chuckled. “Even though some may brag about a higher skill level, the truth is there is little to no difference among you at this stage in your education. I would say the biggest differences will come out by the time you do the Bellator.”

“So, you think anyone could beat anyone else right now?” I pressed.

“I do.” Pearson nodded and smiled. “Now, go get some lunch. You’ll need your energy to use your light manipulation.”

“Wait, how did you--” I started to ask, but he shook his head, and his wild blonde mane waved around his amused face.

“Good luck,” he said.

With that, he sat at his desk and began to rifle through papers, and I recognized the dismissal, so I sighed and threw my backpack over my shoulder before I headed for the Medius. Then I checked my phone and saw our group text had already lit up with questions about when I’d come eat lunch.

The thought of food twisted my stomach into knots.

Even with the professor’s assurances, I wasn’t convinced I’d be able to do what I needed to do if I wasn’t in another do-or-die situation. And even though I’d love to fight Seth one-on-one, I knew the sanctioned fight wouldn’t make me fear for my life or someone else’s.

I grabbed a tray with a sandwich and a pile of chips, and then I walked over to join my friends at our table. Auden wore a signature band tee with neon yellow Chucks, while Charlotte looked a little more demure in a pale orange V-neck and tight ripped jeans that accentuated her curves.

“Wow, try to decrease your excitement a bit, bro,” Auden said with a note of sarcasm. “You’re really amping me up here.”

“I just didn’t know the dean was picking our partners,” I grumbled. “With my luck, I’m going to end up fighting Seth.”

“So what?” Charlotte asked and arched her eyebrow. “You weren’t scared of him and his friends in Linsville.”

“I’m not scared of him like that,” I said. “I’m worried I’ll make a fool of myself if I can’t shift as well as he can. He stopped mid-shift and changed back the other night. I can’t even promise I’ll go full tiger mode if I’m not in a real fight.”

“Nah, I think you’ll hold your own,” Auden declared. “You haven’t backed down once. It might just have to be in the moment, you know?”

“Yeah, maybe,” I sighed as I took a bite of my sandwich and looked around the cafeteria.

It was curiously quieter than normal, and I wondered if other people were nervous about the duels, too. Then my gaze settled on the familiar gray eyes of the older shifter girl. She stared at me from the third-year table, and she quickly looked away when our eyes met.

Something about her was mesmerizing, and even though I’d had multiple girls on campus flirting with me, I wanted her.

The only problem was I had no idea how to go pick up a girl.

I’d never had the confidence to strike up a conversation with a stranger, let alone one who looked like a Victoria’s Secret model. I’d only had one semi-serious relationship my entire life, and even that floundered once I realized how hard it was to date a human and keep my secrets.

But I wouldn’t have to do that with her.

She finally looked at me again, gave me another half-smile and then turned back to the others at her table, but I was slower to return to my friends’ conversation. I kept thinking about her plump lips and how much I’d like to taste them.

“Earth to Kane,” Auden said as he knocked on the table in front of me. “We’re supposed to head out to the quad now. You ready?”

“Uh, yeah,” I said and shook my head. “Let’s go.”

I dumped my half-eaten sandwich in the trash, and the three of us walked out of the Medius in the crowd of our fellow students. Once we were at the bottom of the stairs, we turned to our left and made our way toward the large gazebo in the corner of the quad, where Ms. Canmore already stood with a tablet in her hand.

She directed the students to separate areas, and Auden and Charlotte walked over to join the other pushers. I stood next to Demi, who grabbed my hand and squeezed it, though I wasn’t sure if it was for her benefit or mine. She wore tight black leggings that cupped her round backside as she hopped back and forth from foot to foot.

“I know you’ve all been patiently awaiting the announcement of your duel partners!” the dean bellowed. “We’ll begin with the first-year naturalists.”

Ms. Canmore rattled off the names of two naturalists I didn’t know, and the duels began.

One of them had obviously found his secondary, and I was intrigued by his ability to stretch his arms by about ten feet and pull his opponent to the ground. Then he covered her with layers of grass that grew from underneath the gazebo, and the dean chuckled as she called the victory in his favor.

After the naturalists, the connectors and seers had to rely completely on their secondary abilities since empathy and future-telling weren’t exactly fighting powers.

I didn’t know the two connector guys who dueled first, but I was interested to see their secondary powers. Not many first-year students had found their abilities yet, so it felt like watching a game of Russian roulette to see who had something to use in the timid battle.

However, the guy on my left had apparently found his, and he ran super speed circles around the other connector. He threw in a random punch on each lap, and soon the connector on the right had a split lip and a black eye before he fell to the ground with a groan.

The seers were a slightly different story since Penny and her opponent had both found their secondary abilities. Penny was able to create a sonic scream, and the seer dude she fought had an early version of teleportation. He would disappear from one place and pop up about a foot away, but Penny wasn’t fooled.

She seemed to figure out he didn’t have much range, and as soon as he reappeared, she knocked him to the ground with her magic wail before it tapered off into a screech.

Then the black-haired victor turned to face the crowd with a timid smile, but her baby-blue eyes found mine in the crowd before she stepped down.

The duels went much more quickly than I’d imagined, and I felt a bit of relief at the fact that hardly anyone seemed to have control over their skills.

“Now for our pushers,” Ms. Canmore continued.

The first two girls were only able to push rocks back and forth until finally one of them had the idea to move the other one. She used her telekinesis to yank her opponent’s foot out from under her, and the dean stepped in to declare the victory.

“Great job, ladies,” she said with a forced smile. “Next we have Auden and Charlotte.”

A smile stretched across my face as my two friends grinned at each other before they climbed the stairs to the gazebo. They squared up, and something about the look of determination on Charlotte’s pretty face was incredibly attractive.

Then the match began.

Their practice over the weekend had clearly paid off as they pushed bigger things at each other. One second a chair flew across the gazebo, and the next a backpack until Charlotte narrowed her jade-colored eyes and smiled mischievously.

Suddenly, she held her hands out in front of her, and a shockwave blew across the gazebo and tossed Auden on his ass. He tumbled backward and nearly rolled off the stairs before he looked at her with a mixture of annoyance and awe.

I was definitely in the “awe” category.

Charlotte looked hot as hell kicking ass, even if that ass belonged to my friend. Any woman who could hand out a blast like that was worth noticing, and I looked at her in a whole new light as the dean called the match in her favor.

Charlotte smiled and helped Auden to his feet before they returned into the crowd of pushers.

“The next group will be our shifters,” Ms. Canmore announced. “First up, Kane and Vic.”

Not only was I first, but I was paired with Seth’s best friend. Fantastic.

“Can we switch?” Seth asked with a side-eye in my direction. “I don’t mind going first or facing Kane.”

“Denied, Mr. Weaver,” the dean replied sternly. “You’ll get your turn.”

I made my way up the steps and stood across from Vic. His face was pale but determined, and Ms. Canmore signaled for us to begin.

I took a deep breath and focused on my fera. I felt the familiar rush of predatory desires as the white tiger itched for freedom, and it was almost like opening a cage as I let our thoughts entwine.

Defeat our opponent.

Win the battle.

Crush his bones into dust.

Okay, that last one was a little extreme, but I couldn’t deny the results I was getting from letting my white tiger instincts make their home in my head. I felt wild and free as the snow-colored fur rippled down my arms and legs while claws erupted from the tips of my paws, and I leaped forward with an angry roar that rattled the columns around the gazebo.

Vic was surprisingly fast in his shift, and he met me in the middle of the stage as he gnashed his coyote teeth and growled back, but I was at least double his size and not scared of him in the slightest.

I’d already surpassed my fear of being unable to shift in the duel, and now all I had to do was make sure I came out on top. My secondary ability throbbed with the desire to be utilized, but I couldn’t concentrate on where to draw the light from while we circled around the gazebo to plan our attacks.

Then I had a strange feeling in my left paw, and the static-like feeling of my limb falling asleep trickled across my toes. I glanced down at my paw, and I sensed Vic rather than saw him.

In a flash, I ducked to avoid his leaping attack at my throat, and I swung my still-numb paw around to the side of his head to send him flying across the gazebo. The blow stunned him for a moment, but Vic was back to all fours in a few seconds, and he barked and growled with rage.

“Come on, Vic!” Seth cheered from the crowd. “Hit him with another shock!”

Ah, so that was what had made my paw go numb. Vic had found his secondary, too, but he’d been able to keep his secret.

Well, just like my light manipulation, his power didn’t have much strength or control to it yet, and I knew all I had to do was get the jump on him once.

The only problem was I really didn’t know much about fighting.

As soon as I thought this, my fera came to my rescue, and my brain was bombarded with hunting tactics and how to stalk and catch my prey. I paced back and forth in front of Vic, and with every turn I came closer to him until my next few steps would bring us nose to nose.

Then I crouched down and prepared to pounce.

Vic’s hazel eyes widened as I cleared the gap between us in a single bound, and though I hadn’t intended to cause him serious pain, I dug one set of claws into his shoulder blade as he tried to skitter out from under my strike. I gripped his canine body tightly and whipped him around in a barrel roll until his coyote fera lay shaking beneath my paws.

I towered over him with a triumphant grin, and the crowd erupted with applause.

“We have a winner!” Ms. Canmore yelled above the noise.

I stepped back from Vic’s chest and took a few seconds to calm down so I could shift to my human form. By the time I finished, Seth had already sprinted onstage and helped Vic to his feet.

“You didn’t have to hurt him, Turner!” Seth scowled as he checked Vic’s wounds. “He’s going to need stitches.”

“It’s a duel,” I retorted and rolled my eyes. “The point is to win.”

I turned my back to the pair as I headed back toward my friends, but something made me freeze mid-step. I sensed something change, though I couldn’t put my finger on it.

“Take this, asshole,” Vic muttered just loud enough for me to hear.

Before I could turn around, an odd sensation like a rubber band snapping echoed through me, and then I heard the unmistakable thud of a body hitting the wooden floor. As I spun to see what had happened, Ms. Canmore’s mouth dropped open in shock, and she looked back and forth between me and Vic, who now laid on the ground twitching and writhing.

“Victory deflection?” she asked with wide eyes. “In a shifter?”

“No way, he already has light manipulation!” Seth insisted.

“Be quiet, Mr. Weaver,” the dean said and scowled at my classmate. “Take your friend to the infirmary.”

Seth muttered a few more choice words as he helped Vic stand up and led him away from the gazebo.

“Are you certain?” Renzo asked as he stalked up to the gazebo and looked at me with a half-smile. “A shifter with victory deflection, in addition to his light manipulation secondary, is basically a unicorn.”

“Well, I don’t see any other explanation,” she mused.

“Okay, can I just cut in for a sec?” I held up a finger as I walked closer to the other two. “What in the world is victory deflection?”

“It’s a secondary most often seen for more passive fighters,” Ms. Canmore replied. “Seers, connectors, they need something extra to defend themselves, even after a battle has been won. It basically offers a shield of protection from the magic of the person they just defeated. Shifters have never been considered passive, and most I know from the battlefield also don’t leave their opponents alive.”

“Perhaps this discussion should continue at a later time,” Renzo suggested with a glance toward the hushed crowd.

“Ah, yes, of course,” the dean agreed before she turned to face the other students. “We’ll continue with Demi and Madison!”

I watched the rest of the duels, but my mind raced with even more questions than I’d had before, which I would have previously said was impossible. Not only was I a shifter born into a charmer family, but I also had a super rare fera and two secondary abilities, one of which could keep people from attacking me once I won a fight?

Would I ever be normal?

The short answer was no. I was the light of hope, the one to defeat a bringer of dark magic, and a weirdo, so I just had to suck it up, buttercup.

Time to get tougher and work on this whole hero thing.

By the time the duels were finished, it was nearly dinner time, and I started to search the crowd for Auden and Charlotte when a hand closed around my arm.

“Come over here,” Renzo murmured as he yanked me to the back of the gazebo. “I have a little something for you.”

The shifting professor pulled a long leather cord from his pocket, and I soon noticed a small pendant hung from the middle. He gently set it in my hand, and I turned the pendant over and around to try to figure out what it was. It was shaped like an old shield, and the same blue design from the flag above the Medius was engraved onto the silver shell.

“Thanks,” I said as I put on the necklace. “What is it?”

“Just a congratulatory gift,” he chuckled and glanced past me. “And I think you have a few more of those coming. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

The moment Pearson stepped back, I was hit with an onslaught of female students.

“Great job, Kane!”

“You were uh-maz-ing!”

“I’ve never seen a white tiger before, so hot!”

“Thank you, ladies,” I said after a few awkward moments. “Um, I’m going to go get dinner now, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh, we can walk you!” a blonde charmer offered with a wicked grin. “Or I can find something else for you to eat.”

“God, Serena, that wasn’t obvious or anything,” her auburn-haired friend scoffed. “Besides, why have only one taco when you could have two?”

My cheeks warmed with a blush as they discussed the various things I could do to them rather than eat dinner, but I looked up just in time to see the beautiful gray-eyed girl smile and wave before she joined the other third-year shifters to walk toward the Medius.

“Ladies, while every single bit of that is quite appealing, I really need to boost my energy after that duel,” I finally cut them off with a wide smile. “But you’re more than welcome to walk with me.”

“Okay!” Serena squeaked and hooked her arm through my elbow. “So, rumor has it you don’t have a girlfriend.”

“I do not,” I confirmed as I cast another longing look ahead to where the shifter girl had walked into the Medius. “Yet.”

“Well, let us know if you’re taking applications,” the brunette giggled and sashayed inside the building to give me a full view of her plump ass in skintight black leggings. “We could apply together.”

My heart thudded against my chest at the thought, but I shook my head. I had to talk to the shifter girl. Something about her called out to me, even though I didn’t even know her damn name.

“I’ll definitely let you know,” I finally said and cleared my throat. “I’ll see you both around.”

I skipped past the one still shaking her ass at me and jogged into the cafeteria. I didn’t see the girl anywhere, but Auden and Charlotte had already started to wave at me like crazy people.

“I grabbed you a tray, dude,” Auden said once I got closer. “Did you get their numbers?”

“Nah, I have my eye on someone,” I replied as I did one more quick scan of the room and didn’t see her. “But she keeps disappearing.”

“Maybe she likes the air of mystery,” Charlotte suggested with a shrug. “I know it can’t be that she doesn’t find you attractive. All the girls do.”

“I fucking knew it,” Auden grumbled. “You’re going to be my cock block all year.”

“Not on purpose, man,” I laughed and shook my head. “Besides, if I can ever lock that girl down, you won’t have to worry about it.”

“Why do you say that?” Charlotte wondered.

“Well, because they usually quit trying when the guy isn’t available anymore,” I said with a frown. “Right?”

“I don’t think so,” she giggled. “I told you… uhhh… I’m like… super into you.”

“Ohh.” I cleared my throat. “I think you are really cute, too, and I really liked how you won your duel, and--”

“Really?” She smiled super wide. “That’s great, I mean… well… something keeps pulling me toward you, and I feel like… I dunno…”

“You guys know I’m sitting right here?” Auden eye rolled.

“I just… like…” Charlotte took a deep breath, and her cheeks turned as red as a tomato. “I kind of want to watch you… with another girl. Maybe even if we shared you? Oh, my god, I can’t believe I just said that out loud.”

“What?” My eyes opened as big as dinner plates.

“I can’t believe I said that,” she sighed as she bit her lower lip. “Just… uhhh… when ever I see these other girls look at you, I--”

“Okay!” Auden interjected and rubbed his temples. “Let’s talk about literally anything else besides Kane’s virility.”

“How about his new necklace?” Charlotte quickly pointed to the shield that now hung from my neck, but her face was still cherry red. “What is it?”

“I don’t know,” I answered. “A gift from Professor Pearson, I guess. He said it was for winning my first duel.”

They both examined the pendant while I threw fries in my mouth until they were done, and then I ate at least half of a sloppy joe in one bite. I mauled the rest of my food and polished off Charlotte’s before I finally felt somewhat renewed. I had used a lot of energy in my duel against Vic, and I’d have to figure out a way to conserve some of it for when I got in bigger fights.

Then I caught myself and realized I’d used the word “when” not “if.” It seemed I’d already been convinced the Divinity was real, so I had some pretty big fights ahead of me, and I couldn’t be the guy who needed a nap after one opponent.

Somehow, I knew my fera agreed with me, and we made a solemn vow to get stronger together.

Several other female students made their way to our table to congratulate me on my win while Auden scowled and shook his head. I wasn’t sure how to take Charlotte’s threesome statement, but I’d never been in a relationship that had even been close to comfortable enough for that conversation. I was surprised to see how many of the girls around here seemed totally fine with hitting on me together, and it further supported her theory they wouldn’t care if I went after the gray-eyed girl or not.

This had to be some shifter thing, right?

Then again, no one was flocking to Seth and Vic.

But that could just be because they were assholes.

“I think we probably ought to get some rest,” Charlotte said as my attention snapped back to the present. “It’s been a long day for all of us… even if we didn’t all win our duels.”

She nudged Auden playfully and threw her head back to laugh at his pouty face, and I remembered how turned on I’d been by her victory. It was a purely animalistic desire to take her, and I shook my head to clear the feral images that flooded my mind.

“Good idea,” I agreed with a grin. “Now that I have a full belly, I think I’ll veg out in bed for a while.”

We headed to our dorms, said goodnight, and split off to our separate buildings. I strode through the empty common room and was surprised Vic and Seth weren’t waiting around to talk more shit, but maybe getting his arm stitched up was taking longer than expected.

I thought I’d feel bad about the injury, but the truth was I felt more powerful knowing I’d left a mark to remind him who was the apex predator on campus. The thought seemed both foreign and natural, and I knew it was my fera and how comfortable I was getting with being a shifter.

I flopped onto my bed, picked up the remote, and flipped through the channels until I found one of my favorite action movies. Then I settled in and found myself playing with the pendant around my neck. My fingers traced along the blue lines etched into the metal, and I realized I’d never even looked close enough to see what the design was.

Upon closer inspection, I still had no idea what I was looking at.

Blue lines crisscrossed at what seemed like random intervals, though it looked like the seven boxes they made could represent each class of magic. The boxes had one small blue dot inside them, and I touched each one and wondered which one represented shifters.

Suddenly, the metal clicked beneath my finger, and the back of the pendant popped open.

“What the hell?” I murmured as I took the cord off my neck to get a better look.

I flipped the pendant over and gently pried back the thin piece of silver that had opened like a book. Inside the pendant was another series of lines, but this one seemed familiar somehow. I stared at the lines and boxes, and then it hit me.

It was a map of the Meloria Academy campus.

I saw the square of the Medius surrounded by the lines of sidewalks, but I didn’t recognize one building off to the eastern edge of campus. In fact, I was fairly certain beyond the dorm buildings was a line of bushes that cut off the end of the campus.

So, what building would that square be?

My curiosity won out, and I decided to go have a look. I still had a couple hours until curfew, and it couldn’t hurt to see what it was about. Surely, Renzo didn’t give me this just to show me how to get around campus.

I pulled on my sneakers, tucked my phone into my pocket, and put the necklace back on. Then I headed out the door and down the sidewalk toward the naturalists’ dorm. The map appeared to show a path that continued past the campus border behind their building, and as I got closer, my heart sank.

Just like I’d thought, the bushes stood in a firm line to signal the campus boundary, but then something caught my eye.

The tiniest glimpse of light through the bushes seemed to call out to me, and I stepped closer to discover a narrow gap in the bushes, so I walked through the opening and checked the pendant again. The path continued straight ahead, and I kept my eyes on the small stones that seemed to indicate its journey.

There were quite a few trees out here, and I wasn’t sure if I was still technically on the campus anymore since my surroundings became more indicative of a small forest. I continued through the woods until I reached a narrow stream with the salty smell of the ocean resonating in the air. Small yellow and red fish flitted underneath the surface of the water, and though there was no bridge, it looked like an easy jump to get across.

I hopped over the stream and continued along the stone path until it jutted to the left and then curved back to the right and stopped. I frowned as I squatted to touch the stones, and I reached out to the grass just beyond the end of the path.

Then my hand disappeared.

“Fuck!” I gasped as I stumbled backward and checked to make sure my hand was still attached.

It was still there, but it seemed it had passed through some kind of invisible barrier. I took a deep breath, stood up, and stuck my hand out again. This time I was a little more prepared for my hand to disappear behind a magical curtain of sorts, and then I walked through it.

A big breath of air whooshed out of my mouth as I looked around me in complete awe. Flowers of all shapes and sizes and colors sprouted from the ground and the brick walls that surrounded me. The rainbow of plants was amazing, even for a guy who didn’t care much about flowers, and I reached out to touch a large yellow petal with curiosity.

It was smooth and silky, and I walked forward to check out what else was hidden away here. The stone path continued for a few more feet, but then it branched off in two directions, and I chose the one on the right. As I walked further, the secret garden began to resemble more of a labyrinth, and I found myself backtracking and retrying different paths to find the right one.

I had no idea what I was looking for, but I knew there was a reason Renzo made sure I found this place. There had to be something at the end of one of these paths. I just needed to find the right one.

Then I heard the crunch of a footstep around the corner ahead of me, and I jogged forward to check it out.

“Hello?” I called out.

There was only the whisper of the forest and a few birds in the trees, and I frowned as another crunch sounded from further down the path. I sped up to try to catch whoever else was in the secret garden maze, but it felt like they kept disappearing around every corner just as I was about to catch up.

“Come on!” I growled. “Who’s out there?”

Before I knew it, I was deep into the labyrinth, and I couldn’t remember which turns I’d taken while following what seemed like a ghost at this point. I hadn’t even caught a glimpse of a person, only the slightest sounds of movement just out of view.

I stopped to catch my breath and figure out if I should keep going or turn back, but then I saw movement out of the corner of my eye.

Without a second thought, I sprinted after it.

I was going to figure out who had led me here and demand an explanation.

They weren’t getting away this time.

My feet pounded across the dirt for several steps, but then the ground fell out from underneath me, and I plummeted into the darkness.