The Rise of Exile Coven: Fractured

CHAPTER TEN:

SAGE'S POV

Waking up every morning is beginning to feel more and more like a nightmare. I am not sure how much longer I can keep myself from going insane. Tabitha has been out of commission for almost a week now; and with everything going on classes seem like such a waste of time. Meeting only after curfew is not enough. We should be training, spending every hour on honing our magic so we can fight whatever we need to protect one another from. I stare at the ceiling as my alarm blares to get ready for class. "Sage! Get up! You'll be late to class." Dahlia pulls my ear trying to get me out of bed, but I just lay, and lay, and lay. It isn't until Maeve storms over to my side of the room shutting the alarm off and yanking me covers off of me that I groan and roll to my side so that my back faces her. "Get up! Stop being such a sack." She shoves me roughly. "I didn't know it was possible for something to be more annoying than you." She refers to my alarm clock, "But I guess I was wrong. Whatever the hell you got going on, leaving outside of this room. It's insufferable." Just by the sound of her movements I can tell she had crossed her arms and huffed. "I didn't sleep until three thirty in the morning." It's six now, like I said...class is a waste of time and so is sleep. I've been up all night for the past week practicing more and more everyday. I sneak into the training rooms at the gym and shoot off spells into nothingness.

She yanks my pillow from underneath me. "Get up!" Her high pitched voice makes me sit up and glare at her. "If you're going to be so annoying, and try to get me out of bed, at least have coffee next time." I snatch my pillow from her freshly pink polished nails and she shakes her hand. I bet she's about to cry about how I almost made her chip it or whatever the fuck. I slide out of bed, and pass on the shower since I took one before laying down. I change slowly into whatever clothes I find first. If I am being completely honest with myself I am just a ball of anxiety and depression as of lately. When I slid on my booties, Maeve had just finished curling her hair. She rolls her eyes as she grabs her books for class and her purse before leaving. I gave my own and follow closely behind her. When she notices she slows down and walks next to me. "Obsessed with me or what Dalca? Can't walk yourself to class?" Now it's my turn to roll my eyes. "You're the one that doesn't have any friends." She opens her mouth to reply then closes it again. Her face turns red and the glow of her golden eyes seems to falter for a moment causing me to instantly regret my words. I didn't think it would be a true shot at her ego. "I didn't mean that-" If she were nicer she would have some though. She stands proudly as she sniffles as she wishes the pink from her nose and cheeks would disappear. "I have friends Dalca. Just not losers like you." She holds her books closer to her chest. Despite our bickering we continue to walk to our class together. Today is chilly as it were the days prior, but the ground is wet from all of the rain and it is cloudy. There will be no rain today though. I have no idea how Maeve is able to wear a skirt and a sweater. My legs would be covered in goosebumps right about now. We reach the center courtyard when I notice Kai wave to me. We haven't exactly made up since our last fight. He tried to talk to me and apologize after we've dealt with Tabitha. But I didn't want to hear any of it. Part of that was me being stubborn and another part is that it wasn't the time or place to focus on something like that. Tabitha was ill and I wanted to make sure her and uncle D were okay before heading back to my dorm.

I flash him a small smile, and it looks as if he is about to walk over to me. "Your boyfriend is going to walk you the rest of the way?" Maeve stops in her tracks as she asks me. I hadn't noticed I had stopped walking to wait for him. I look over at her as the ground vibrates beneath my feet. Oh no...not again... "Sage!" I hear Kai calling for me and Maeve's open wide as she looks from me to her own feet. Is it happening? Is this it, the thing we should be running from? It's coming, the thing dad was trying to protect us from. "You feel that too?" I ask her in surprise. "Everyone does!" She says as she looks around at everyone. When suddenly a loud shriek rips through the air, and kids begin to scatter like cockroaches. No, this is not right...this is not the time. The coven isn't here. Tabitha is not here–where is Celeste? Kai, Maeve and I are the only ones who did not run. "Kai! Sage!" I look up to see Celeste and Leo on the balcony of the building. They're five floors up. They won't make it here in time. Where is Ronan? He's sick, he's still in his dorm room. Kai infiltrates my mind. God, the world is ending and all I can think about is how much I had missed that. Maeve drops her books and stares up into the sky. The four of us follow her gaze as four dragons dip in and out of clouds blowing a breath of fire.