The longer I stared at Anya, the more I began to notice the changes, even from one hundred feet away. She was wearing a stunning purple silk dress with sparkling black shoes, not quite battle attire. It was like she wanted to show the world how powerful she'd become. I couldn't look away, and I could almost see the dark magic emanating off her like an aura.
My mother slapped the back of my head. 'Quit gawking, Jake!'
'What was that for?'
My mother scowled, leaning closer to whisper in my ear. 'Get a hold of yourself. Anya, isn't your girlfriend anymore, remember that, come on.'
Every step felt like a hammer hitting the head of a nail, two forces colliding, with neither side knowing what was going to happen next. I kept looking for the reassuring presence of Avrae, but he was nowhere to be found. He was probably off snacking on some helpless cattle knowing him.
The thought distracted me until I realised that I was standing right in front of Anya.
'Hello, Jake.'
I scrunched up my face, not liking her sickly sweet smile one bit. 'You've got some explaining to do.'
She looked amused and not in the least bit sorry as she shifted her gaze to rest on the others. 'Violet, Asher, and the mother of Jake, I presume.'
'Why are you-'
Anya held her hand up, cutting my mother off in mid-sentence. 'The rest of you need not die; my business is with Jake and him alone.'
I couldn't take it anymore. 'What's going on, Anya? One minute we're talking about moving in together, and the next-'
She just glared back at me. 'I'm not moving in anywhere with you.'
I looked back at my mom, lost for words.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Violet poised to strike; it was all happening in slow motion until it wasn't. I tried to grab Violet's arm, but I was too late, and she leapt at Anya with fists swinging wildly like the rotor of a helicopter.
I had to force my eyes shut, fearing the worst. The sound of cackling laughter quickly regained my attention, though. And when I looked back up, I saw that Violet was frozen in place. It must have been some form of a time dilation spell. Then with the clicking of her fingers and fierce determination, Anya started breaking Violet's bones one by one.
'Stop! Please!'
'What? Do you care for this trollop more than you do for me, Jake? I'm hurt.'
Whatever this thing is, it's not Anya; it can't be.
'Don't flatter yourself, Jake; I feel sorry for you now more than anything. I'm only here for that castle and the secrets it's rumoured to hold.'
I massaged my neck, trying to decide what to say. 'No.'
I saw Asher and Violet glance at each other with looks of concern flashing across their faces; even Anya had been taken aback by my blunt reply.
This mess was my fault, all of it. I should have been more careful with what I'd written down during the exam. There was no way to change any of that now, though. I also couldn't help but wonder how Anya knew precisely where to find us. Someone must have told her.
'Don't waste our time. Hand over the keys, and we can avoid any bloodshed.'
I don't think it has keys.
'This is our home Anya, don't you have a world of your own?'
She shook her head in disbelief. 'For the last time, hand them over!'
'Please, let Violet go, and I'll consider it.'
She didn't.
'Come on, the Anya I knew would never do something like this!'
'She's dead, and so are we. No more talking; the next time you see me will be in battle.' And just like that, she was gone.
'I can't believe that bitch was your girlfriend! I'd normally hold my tongue, but this crosses a line.' Asher had always been the quiet one; his anger only made me realise just how far Anya had fallen.
She'd left Violet screaming in agony; it was so loud that her cries could probably have been heard from miles away. I felt sick watching her squirm on the ground; evidently, the spell had been lifted but not reversed.
'H-help me... give me... h-hand.' Violet called, reaching out. Asher scowled at me before leaning in to help her. I joined him, and as soon as we did, our hands started glowing purple, and I knew all too well what was about to happen.
Violet's wounds began to seal back up like the zip on a bag, and jutting bones started popping back into place, causing her to squirm and cry out even more.
'Did we heal you?'
'You should remember, there's magic inside all of us, Jake; I just tapped into yours is all.'
'Amazing!'
There was a flicker of a smile, but it quickly disappeared. 'Stop trying to cheer me up! That bitch is going to die, so you'd better not even try to defend her!'
I can't do right from wrong here.
My mom guided me away, ignoring the sour looks that Violet and Asher were giving. 'Let's get back inside.'
I couldn't help but stare back over my shoulder at the blurring figure of Anya in the distance; I felt betrayed, sad, sick, but above all else, I felt utterly confused.
I stopped my mom, causing her to frown as Asher and Violet carried on walking. 'There's something that I don't get.'
'What's that, sweetie?'
'Even if all of the students who participated in that exam were to include each other in their worlds, fifty magical rifts wouldn't cause too much damage, would they? Surely, the school board must have accounted for that?'
My mother didn't sound convinced. 'I'd hope so. There seems to be a bigger picture here, though, one that we can't see yet.'
I sighed. 'Melia and Anya could even be working together; the Professor did come and warn us of "a student's plans to manipulate the realms", what do you think?'
She nodded. 'It could be both of them. Perhaps by coming to your aid, Professor Melia might have sought to throw off suspicion. They are both self-interested. They-'
Our enemies' battle cries began to carry across the grassy plain, causing us both to dive for cover. 'It doesn't matter who is orchestrating this mess; now is not the time to think about it, Jake.'
War was upon us, and these next few hours, days or even weeks were going to be horrific.