Queen of Darkness WATTPAD VERSION [Inter-Universal Protectors: Book 3]

42

Whoever was attacking the Academy knew exactly where to strike. That much became painfully obvious to Jay. The glass window in front of him had shattered in the shock wave from the latest explosion but the tower a few metres below was in pieces. The roof itself was gone. The walls hung out like a blooming flower's petals. He covered his mouth as the wind changed, smoke flying into his face and making the already blaring alarms go crazy.

Jay spotted movement below. There were still people down there! But there was no easy way down and he couldn't fly . . . 

"Aww, fuck it."

Moving a few steps back, Jay took a flying leap from the window, wind whistling past as he plummeted to the level below. Seeing he was close, he prepared for the landing, bending his knees to absorb the impact.

He hit, rolling to the floor and jumping to his now-aching feet. Nothing was broken, just bruised. 

All thoughts off his own injury subsided as Jay took in the sight up close. There was multi-coloured blood everywhere, along with pieces of both students and teachers who had been unlucky enough to take the brunt of the explosion. Those who survived were helping others who were trapped or injured. Some used their powers to help. Others were using their bare hands.

One teacher was trapped under a bookshelf which had since been covered by rubble. Five winged students were trying to lift the shelf but failing. There was too much weight on it. The teacher waved them off, saying she would be fine and that they should go somewhere safe. 

Jay approached the group. "I'm going to need you lot to pull her out once I get that up, cool?" 

They nodded.

He braced his hands on the shelf. With a roar, he managed to get it to move. "Come on!" he yelled. "Move!" 

Three of the students - two boys and a girl - came to his sides. The four pushed all their weight against the bookshelf. It rose by barely to centimetres. The other two students - a boy and girl - took the opportunity. They grabbed the teacher by her arms and dragged her away before Jay and his helpers dropped the shelf. It crashed to the floor, the four panting. 

"Right," Jay said, standing straight. "Get the fuck out of here." 

Two of the students carried their teacher between them, spreading their dusted feather wings and taking to the sky. The other three each took an injured person before doing the same. Jay looked around. No one else looked to be trapped and the rest had fairly minor injuries. Those with wings grabbed those without and flew. 

One came toward Jay but he shook his head. "Go," he told the student. "Find somewhere safe. I'm going to go down the long way."

The student seemed to want to protest the idea, but did as he was told.

Jay looked toward the only door that hadn't been covered. "Right," he said to himself. "This will be a walk in the park."

He ran through it, wooden beams falling to block the entrance. There was no going back now.

* * * * * * * * 

At the same time Jay was navigating his way down the tower, Hathor and Troy had reached the top floor of the Vivus dorm. By now, the smoke was affecting them. Troy had it worse. Hathor wondered how long her immortality abilities would last before she, too, was struggling. She had tried to convince him to find a way out and let her search the top floor alone but he refused to leave her side, arguing that she would need help if she got trapped. Point taken.

Troy took a step forward only for Hathor to grab and pull him back as the floor beneath collapsed. The two stumbled to the floor. Troy crawled over to the hole, looking down. "Fucking hell!" he cried. "As if this couldn't get any worse!"

Hathor pushed herself to her feet, wiping soot from her face. "I told you you should have gone back out," she said, giving him an irritated glare. "I have wings. You have paws. Only one of us can fly."

"I'm not leaving you alone up here," he told her, the tone of his voice making it clear his mind wouldn't be changed.

She let out a half-hearted laugh. "Why must you be so stubborn."

He grinned. "We can figure that out when we're not in a collapsing burning building."

She pulled him to his feet. "Come on. There's not much left of this place to check."

"And how, exactly, do you suggest we get around that?" he asked, gesturing to the hole.

"Easy." 

Hathor spread her wings, grabbing her friend from behind. He yelped as she flew over the hole, grasping her arms to keep from falling. She flinched as his nails dug into her skin. After reaching what she considered to be a safe distance from the hole, Hathor put him down.

She rubbed her arms, gawking at the deep cuts. "Okay, you are so getting a manicure."

Troy rolled his eyes. "I'm not a girl, Hath. Focus. I think I hear someone up ahead."

They ran down the hallway, around a corner, and stopped. There was someone still left up ahead. Someone they knew. Trapped on the other side of the flaming beams with no other exit in sight was Dex.