Descending Into Darkness (Moonlight Academy Book 2)

This whole thing was very surreal. I had to calm down and pull my magic away. Other supernaturals were staring at me, probably sensing my overwhelming energy.

Many of them looked shaken and exhausted. There weren’t many of us left.

I was worried about Marco, Judas and Karina. If they weren’t here, then that could only mean that they didn’t pass the first task. I could only hope that nothing had happened to them and they were okay.

All the windows were still shaded, but the torches around this huge gathering room were warming the place.Content property of NôvelDra/ma.Org.

There was a table by the south facing wall with refreshments. My throat was dry, I needed a drink.

“Come on let’s split up and mingle with the others. Maybe we can find something concrete,” Lachlan whispered to me. I nodded and then headed over to get some water.

I had to find a vampire that matched the description of Leonidas’ supernatural, but so far, I wasn’t seeing anyone here with some kind of mark on their neck.

Besides, it was going to be very difficult to see in here. I counted several vampires and there were two fae standing by the table with refreshments. Their auras were very faint.

They must have just completed their first task. Both girls had bruises on their faces and their clothes were filthy.

I smiled to them and grabbed a cup. Drinking water helped a little. For some reason, Ripley’s presence was affecting me much more than before.

He was part of Moonlight’s teaching staff and I had no idea what he was doing here.

How did he even have access to the trials? Had Oldman influenced Holland to bring him here?

More questions were mounting in my head as I was walking around and watching everyone. The tension was paramount and I wasn’t sure what else to expect. We all knew that there were going to be more deaths as the trials progressed further.

My magic was bothering me too much, my fingers were stiff and I felt tingles around my whole body. I was struggling to understand what was going on.

On top of that, the smell of blood was very potent even when the other room was cleared. The one-eyed monster was removed from the premises, but his scent remained. There was a mixture of supernaturals around here, some fae, a few vampires and shifters.

There was a strong current of energy vibrating around here. I felt under pressure to track down the vampire that was here under Leonidas’ orders.

“You were supposed to watch out for her,” a hushed voice spoke. I stopped by the pillar and took a deep breath.

I glanced towards my right, seeing Ripley. He was talking to Lachlan and I didn’t dare to move.

“She’s not here and she’s not important,” pretty boy answered. What the hell was this about?

Did Ripley know about Alexa or the fact that he was actually speaking to Lachlan under the disguise?

He wasn’t even supposed to be part of this investigation.

“She has always been important Lachlan. The second part of the trial will begin shortly. You need to watch out for Adrian Brooks. He’s our guy,” Ripley continued.

I didn’t even have to look at them to see Lachlan’s face. I felt his anger rising like a wildfire.

He hated Ripley and now it seemed that none of us had been kept in the loop.

“How are you even involved in this? Jaymin is not your concern and who the hell is Adrian Brooks?” Lachlan was barking now.

I had a feeling that he was ready to throw himself at Ripley. This was very bad.

“He’s the threat to the Academy. From all the people here, you should be the one to understand that,” Ripley snapped back, sending a cold shiver over my spine.

He didn’t know who I was otherwise, he wouldn’t be talking to Lachlan in here.

“Why are you interested in her so much? Just point me in the direction of that Brooks. Is he the one that we have to eliminate?” Lachlan asked. He was annoyed and confused like me.

Ripley was my teacher in Moonlight, he was supposed to be helping me to tame my energy. At least that’s what Oldman told me after I told her about the night in Moscow.

I had a feeling that Leonidas was very tightly connected with many other supernaturals that were high up in the council and within Elite. I just knew that he was aware of everything that was going on here because of the vampire with the mark on his neck. He was succeeding for now, but his plan could still backfire.

“He’s the vampire with the black scarf. He’s the one that killed the two girls. Better hurry up and do something before it’s too late,” Ripley added and then he must have walked away because his energy faded.

I quickly walked away, looking around for the vampire with a black scarf.

I spotted him with another ancient vampire by the pillar. He had a dark aura, so that made sense, but I wasn’t entirely convinced that he was the person that we were searching for.

Lachlan came back shortly after. He was still fuming and his scent was driving me absolutely insane. We only had a few minutes before the second part of the trials would start. I truly wasn’t looking forward to this.

The vampire with the scarf fit the profile of the killer, but he seemed too relaxed.

“Judas and Marco didn’t pass the first task. They are injured but they are all right. I have no idea what happened to Karina. No one has heard from her,” Lachlan explained.

“I truly hope she is all right,” I said, swallowing hard.

Shortly afterwards, announcements were being made and my name was called along with three others, including Adrian Brooks. This was definitely not a coincidence.

“Take care Jaymin. You’re on your own this time,” pretty boy whispered right before I walked away.

Great, this was going to be fun, I thought – not.

“The next task is upon you. Each one of you needs to find a diamond that has been hidden in a maze created purposely for the trials. Obviously, there will be some obstacles within the maze to determine your magical strength, intelligence and power. This way, we will be able to assess if you are good enough to become a student of the Elite Academy,” the older professor explained, handing me an image of the shiny stone. “See you on the other side.”

It seemed that we just had to get on with it because a few seconds later the door opened up. A bright red light blinded us all. I heard a loud click and when I glanced behind me, the other room was gone. We were all standing right outside the entrance to the maze. There were three ways inside, Adrian Brooks and the fae with shaking hands were part of my team if I could call it that.

“Goodbye ladies. You might as well fight over second place, because that diamond is mine,” the vampire sneered and then quickly disappeared into the middle entrance before I could even respond.

I glanced at the fae who seemed scared and gave her an encouraging smile. There was no point wasting any time, I just had to get on with it. I walked towards the tunnel to my right. I needed to get close to Adrian somehow.

I walked through the narrow tunnel for about ten minutes, sensing strong magic everywhere. A simple maze didn’t intimidate me. I had gone through a lot in the past and I was ready to kick some serious butt. I picked up my pace after a few minutes turning right then left.

My breathing was a little erratic, my fingertips were sparkling like crazy, and that was never a good sign. I was expecting to see another strange creature appearing right on my path at any given moment.

I knew that sooner or later, I would face Adrian Brooks. Ten minutes later, the tunnel ended and I stepped into a large open space full of plants and decorative ornaments. My energy shifted once again, growing calmer, yet stronger.

Moment later I saw something shiny on one of the ornaments, so I headed over there.

I thought that this was just too easy. The diamond that I was supposed to find was bigger and had an odd shape.

Then, a terrifying scream echoed through the space. It was the fae that was with us in the maze.

When I glanced back at the diamond, the stone was just there, sitting on the top of the ornament. I reached for it without hesitation, mesmerised by its beauty. Its energy was radiating so much that I was somehow afraid to take it.

“No this is mine Jaymin, you weren’t even supposed to be here,” someone said, appearing right in front of me.

I jumped away, thinking that this was just dark magic, an illusion. My heart was thumping loudly in my chest as I was staring at my own mother.

She was so beautiful and she was standing in front of me. I swallowed hard and closed my eyes for a moment, telling myself that this was just a trick. She wasn’t really there.

However, she still hadn’t vanished when I opened my eyes again. I stared at her for a long time, reminding myself to breathe.

“I need to get this diamond and you’re not here. You’re not real,” I told her, taking the knife out of my boot. She smiled at me, she was very pretty and she wore a white floral-patterned dress.

“I have been watching you for a very long time. I had to stay away because Ripley threatened to kill you. Please believe me Jaymin,” she said, grabbing my hands.

My fingers released the knife and it fell on the ground. My heart had never beat so loudly inside my chest. She was touching me and her eyes were genuine.

This was truly happening. It couldn’t have been an illusion.

“What happened to me? A few years ago, I woke up on the streets with no recollection of who I was, craving blood,” I started asking her, trying to keep my emotions at bay, but it was almost impossible.

I suddenly forgot about my task and about why I was here. The diamond wasn’t important anymore.

She touched my cheek. Her hand was warm.

“I had to release you my darling. I had no other choice. I made a promise to that vampire when he spared my life that I would give you up. I’m so sorry. This wasn’t meant to happen,” she kept saying.

“Why are you here now? How did you even get here?” I asked her, looking around.

“Ripley let me in. He’s on our side Jaymin and you must do what you have to. The master is coming for you. He wants to control you, because your magic is powerful. The transformation was a success after all,” she explained

This wasn’t making much sense, but she was the second person that had spoken about this master. Was the vampire that had sold me to the fae court the same one from my memories?

Another loud scream distracted me for a few seconds. When I glanced back at my mother, she was gone.

Then the female fae that had entered the maze with us appeared. She grabbed my hands, laughing like crazy. I tried to pull away from her, but then she stabbed me right in my gut.

This happened so quickly that I didn’t even react. The excruciating pain exploded, knocking the air out of my lungs.

She backed away, still smiling at me, holding a bloodied knife in her hand. Her eyes were strange; they were filled with smoke like she had been spellbound. Was my mother only a distraction?

I fell to the ground as blood was pouring out of me. The whole place was so bright all of a sudden and filled with so much light.

“Well done Jess, she shouldn’t be a problem anymore,” Adrian said, as he appeared next to the fae. He took the knife from her and then started licking the blood off the blade. The fae walked away, disappearing into the maze. She had obviously been compelled.

Adrian must have removed his scarf earlier on because now his neck was exposed.

Only then did I realise that there was no apparent mark anywhere on his neck. Lachlan had been wrong, or he had been tricked by Ripley. Adrian wasn’t our guy.

I kept trying to regulate my breathing, pressing my hand tightly over my stomach. If Adrian wasn’t one of Leonidas’ men then who was?

Panting a little, I tried to lift myself off the ground and grab the knife that was in my side pocket. The dizziness hit me hard. I could barely move.

“You were never supposed to get as far as this, lovely. I was going to be the person that would pass all the tasks. This was arranged by certain members of the Council. Unfortunately, now I have to kill you,” Adrian said. His eyes widened as soon as he swallowed my blood, he must have recognised the fae inside me, because he moved closer. “What are you? Your blood tastes divine.”

“Leave her be Adrian, she’s not important anymore. We must eliminate her before anyone realises that I’ve entered the maze,” another very familiar voice said.

Ripley appeared and he smiled down at me. Alexa’s potion was working well. He shouldn’t have known who I was, but then I saw that his shirt was unbuttoned.

My breath caught in my chest when I noticed a mark or some sort of tattoo on his collarbone.

Obviously I had never seen him like this, his shirt was always buttoned up tightly, but right now, he seemed like he wanted to be exposed.

The mark reminded me of something that I had seen before. From the distance it looked like a snake consuming something; a rat or a lizard maybe.

“It’s you!” I roared, pointing at him. “You’re one of Leonidas’ supernaturals. The vampire that killed those two students several weeks ago!”