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Flooding with light emotions was much easier than doing so with dark ones. It took much more concentration, mostly because I had to feel the emotion to deliver it. My power lay in the intensity of my own emotions, and I hated when Zuriel asked me to make him feel physical pain, because it was so raw, so real for both of us that it made me sick. I gritted my teeth as he writhed on the floor, breathing sharply through my nose as I fought off my own sensation. I released him when I could no longer maintain it myself, panting with my hands on my knees as I grounded myself into reality.
“I am safe here. There is no pain. I am not in danger. I can breathe. I can relax,” I whispered to myself under my breath.
“That was the best you’ve ever done, Izidora.” I lifted my head, meeting Zuriel’s relaxed smile. How the Angel couldreceive everything I gave him and not break a sweat, I would never understand.
I straightened, wiping my brow and releasing a long breath. “What’s next?”
Zuriel glanced over my shoulder, his eyes hardening, and that familiar thread hummed with life. Whipping around, I discovered Ruslan, Rares, and King Azim had entered the cavernous room. I stiffened, my body on high alert as I laid eyes on King Azim for the first time. He looked exactly the same twenty-one years later as he did in my mother’s memories. His eyes were razor sharp and cunning, and I knew this was not a male who could be easily fooled. Where Ruslan had the bulk and strength of youth, it was apparent that his father excelled at strategy and foresight by the way he assessed the whole room with a single sweep of his eyes.
Ruslan’s smoky eyes were darker than normal, and as our gazes collided, they held a warning I didn't quite understand.
“King Azim.” Zuriel bowed in greeting, and I hastily mimicked them, my shock overriding my ability to move.
“Please, continue, we are merely here to observe progress,” he boomed, his voice both bored and commanding authority.
Zuriel wore a mask of indifference, much like the first time we met. “We were working up to Izidora’s ability to influence the emotions of many instead of one. She could use another volunteer.”
The king snapped his fingers. “Rares, retrieve a few more of our guests for our dear princess to practice on.”
Guests? Is that really what he called them?Bile threatened to choke my throat, but instead I reached out mentally to Zuriel, needing to know he had a plan.
“Please don’t make me torture them,” I begged.
“I will only ask you to apply light emotions. Your well is deep, butthey do not need to know that. We must give them enough to show progress without rousing suspicion that you are holding back.”
“Got it.”
Rares returned with three others, all Shifters if I had to guess by their looks. The two females' skin was deeply tanned, their eyes golden and hair black as midnight. Wolves. The male was tall and broad with dark skin, two horns jutting from his long brown hair. Centaur. They nodded to Zuriel, joining us in the middle of the cavernous space.
“Konsteon,” Zuriel gestured to the Centaur. “Please stand here.”
“Rixis, Thalia, if you will head over there,” he pointed to the opposite side of the mats, and the Wolves took their places.
“Now, Izidora, I want you to infuse the females with happiness first, then see if you can extend it to us,” Zuriel instructed.
I made a big show of closing my eyes, tapping into my magic, appearing focused and effortful. A wave of joy emanated from me, and the Wolves' glowing eyes softened and their barked laughter echoed in the dome. Rixis began howling as Thalia said something I could not quite hear, and I wanted to howl with them, their joy doubling, tripling as I reabsorbed the positive energy into myself.
The magic was slipping out of my control, so I drew a long breath and centered myself before extending my reach. My attention landed on Zuriel and the Centaur, and I imagined the wave spreading from the Wolves to them. Konsteon’s neigh filled the air almost instantly, and I chewed my lip as I focused on simmering the emotion instead of boiling it. Zuriel gave me an encouraging nod as the intensity covering them lessened. Sweat dripped down my temple as I held the cover of happiness over them, and as my breath fled my lungs, so too did the magic. My ass hit the floor, dramatizing the act of magic-wielding as I covered the fact that I had been holding back.
A slow clap sounded behind me, and I craned my neck to see who it was. King Azim sat with a smug smirk, and I instantly knew that he did not believe my acting.Shit.
“Quite impressive, I must say. But definitely not the best. Show me something better. Something darker,” he challenged.
I gulped, looking to Zuriel for instruction.
“Rixis, Thalia, would you mind shifting?” the Angel asked.
“Make them howl with sadness.”
“Not a problem,” they replied, stripping out of their clothes, completely unashamed in front of the crowd. Two brown wolves the size of horses appeared moments later, and I gasped. It was the first time I had seen a full shift, and their Wolf forms were beautiful and deadly. Their long fangs peeked out from beneath their muzzles, and their golden eyes glowed even brighter against the outlines of their fur. They eyed me like I was nothing more than a snack they were patiently waiting to eat, and I pressed my lips together and refocused on the task at hand.
Zuriel swept out his hand, indicating I should proceed. I drew upon the sadness that some days filled me like an endless sea, then drowned the wolves in it. Thalia released a mournful howl, one that sent chills straight to my bones. It spoke of a home lost to her, a family who desperately loved her, and a freedom to run under the moon she had not tasted in too long. Rixis simply collapsed to the ground, curled in a tight ball, and hid her face under her fluffy tail, a sharp whine releasing with a slow breath. My heart sank, constricted, and collapsed under the weight of our combined sadness. A lone tear trickled down my cheek, mixing with salty sweat, and I could hold no longer.
“You will be happy again, Izidora,”Zuriel spoke in my mind, and I emptied my lungs of air as exhaustion pulled at my limbs.
The king of the Iron Realm appeared more impressed, but he was not satisfied. Tension radiated off Ruslan, though he and Rares sat quietly, watching the demonstration. “You can dobetter than that. Ruslan,” he snapped, “hold the Centaur down while Izidora tortures him.”
No.I closed my eyes, willing this moment to be a nightmare, but when I tried to wake myself up, I only saw Ruslan striding toward me. He grasped my arm, spinning me and forcing me toward Konsteon. His face was hard and grim, and his emotions were violent, stormy like the blizzard that swept through the Iron Realm the previous night. But he held no hatred toward me when I scanned his emotions.
