If so, he can tell I’m serious about this. I’m not talking a big game just to sound brave or whatever. I really want to give this my all.
“We can’t let you go into this alone,” he finally says. He looks at the other three. “We know who the two mages trying to sabotage her are. Can we distract them or subdue them somehow while she’s in the final competition?”
“We’d have to be careful.” Roman narrows his eyes thoughtfully. “If we’re seen—it’ll look like we started something, instigated a fight, and that could backfire on us badly. They’ll spin it so we look like the cheaters.”
Ah, the irony.
“You guys don’t have to do anything—”
My words are immediately cut off by all four men, who make it clear, in no uncertain terms, that they will absolutely be helping me, and I’m crazy if I think otherwise.
A warm, gooey feeling blooms in my chest as I relent with a small nod.
We’re all a stubborn bunch of idiots, really.
“Two mages, four of us,” Cam says, flexing his fingers like he’s itching for a good fight, “So we’ll team up, and two of us’ll each take a mage.”
“That still leaves the third man,” Roman points out, his voice heavy. “Someone Adelson and Merrimer answer to, by the sound of it. We may not know who it is yet, but it sounds like he’s the one orchestrating all of this.”
Fuck, he’s right. We can’t keep an eye on someone if we don’t know who that someone is.
“I can try to track down who that third player is,” Roman says. “I’m a professor, so it’ll be less obvious if I make… inquiries. And I’ll keep an eye out for any suspicious looking spectators during the last challenge.”
“Yeah, but then who can help us with the mages we do know about?” Cam grimaces.
Oh, great. I hate that I’m about to say this, but… what goddamn choice do we have?
“Kendal.”
The guys all turn to me. Dmitri scoffs, but Asher looks intrigued.
“She’s already helping me,” I add. “She’s not very confrontational, but I think we could persuade her to get a little feisty for something like this. She’s got a stake in all of this too. If the school fails, she’ll have nothing else.”
Nobody is thrilled with this plan, but the guys agree we should talk to her. So I take Asher and Roman with me—Dmitri would scare her, and I think Cam would overwhelm her—and we track Kendal down near the dining hall.
To my surprise, she agrees quickly.
“I started to suspect something too,” she admits. “I don’t think anyone else does, but I’ve been to a lot of competitions like these, and the odds seem unusually stacked against you. Of course, you’re so powerful, and in the heat of the moment with everyone competing at once, I don’t think anybody can really tell…”
I have to hold in a snort. Me, powerful. Right. Everyone seems to keep saying that. I think they’re overestimating my sonic boom, honestly. It’s all I’ve got going for me.
Almost as soon as I have the thought, that weird burble of magic pops up inside me again.
It hasn’t happened for a while, long enough that I’d almost forgotten about it.
What the hell is it? And more importantly, if it’s some weird new magic that sparks during the last competition of the Trials, is it likelier to help me or get me killed?
The strange feeling settles back down almost immediately, and I blink a few times, clearing my head as I tune back into the conversation.
“…but if you lose or get hurt, then the whole school looks bad,” Kendal is saying. “And my parents have never stood for cheating. They’d be ashamed to learn I knew something was going on and didn’t help you.”
“You can work with me to keep Elliot safe,” Asher says, smiling at her. He’s got a good way with people, putting them instantly at ease. Hell, he managed to draw me out of my shell without me even realizing it was happening.
Kendal looks surprised that Ash is being so nice to her, probably because she knows we’re a… well, we’re something, anyway, and Kendal and her friends haven’t exactly been kind to me.
“And don’t worry, I won’t let you get in trouble for this,” Roman adds. “If any of you are caught, tell them I made you do it. I’m a professor; I’ll take the blame.”
I don’t think that’s fair to him at all, but I know I’d do the same if