Zodiac Academy: Origins of an Academy Bully (Supernatural Bullies and Beasts Book 0) Read online

  Zodiac Academy: Origins of an Academy Bully

  (A Supernatural Bullies and Beasts Novella)

  This is a prequel novella, set five years before the Supernatural Bullies and Beasts Series.

  Zodiac Academy: The Awakening releases August 2nd 2019 and is on sale for just 0.99 before release!

  Contents

  Zodiac Academy: Origins of an Academy Bully

  (A Supernatural Bullies and Beasts Novella)

  Welcome to Zodiac Academy, here is your campus map.

  Darius Acrux

  Lance Orion

  Darius Acrux

  Lance Orion

  Darius Acrux

  Lance Orion

  Darius Acrux

  Lance Orion

  Want more from Darius Acrux and Lance Orion?

  Darcy

  Tory

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  Welcome to Zodiac Academy, here is your campus map.

  Note to all students: Vampire bites, loss of limbs or getting lost in the wailing wood will not count as a valid excuse for being late to class.

  Click on the map to explore it more closely.

  Darius Acrux

  The silvery light of the moon pooled on the water which gathered at the end of our property, making the horizon seem to shimmer silver as I waited on my father. I kept my gaze on the lake, my face still, hands in my pockets as I reined in the fierce excitement that was burning its way through me.

  It was finally time for my powers to be Awakened. At just fifteen, I was going to be gaining my magic three years before my peers but even so, this moment couldn’t come soon enough.

  I couldn’t imagine the torment of waiting until my official enrolment at Zodiac Academy for my magic to be set free and for the first time in a long time, I was glad to be an Heir to the Celestial Council. As the eldest son of one of the four ruling families, I was afforded certain privileges that the rest of the Fae could only dream of and this was one of them.

  Alongside the other three Heirs, Caleb, Seth and Max, I was about to embrace my birthright and feel the kiss of the Elements beneath my skin. We would spend one week sampling what was on offer at Zodiac Academy as temporary students before being privately tutored for the three years until our official enrolment.

  By the time we attended we would be so far into our magical education that we were certain to be able to claim our positions at the top of the social order. As was only right for the sons of the four most powerful families in the kingdom.

  No doubt some of the other students would see this advantage as unfair but in all honesty I couldn’t care less what they’d think. I just wanted to gain control of my own power. Perhaps if I learned to wield it well enough, I’d feel a little like I was in control of my own life more too. Although that would only ever be an illusion. My path had been mapped out from the moment my parents had gotten married.

  Everything in my life had been planned, right down to the date of my conception. My parents were both of the Dragon Order from a long line of pure blood on either side. They’d done everything they could to ensure a strong Heir, right down to deciding that I should be born a Leo. A Dragon Shifter with the Element of fire was always going to be one of the most powerful creatures on campus. And anywhere else after that too.

  As a child, I’d often been concerned about emerging as some other Order when my shifting abilities finally surfaced and having to face the shame and disappointment of my entire family if not the entire population of Solaria. The Acrux family were Dragons. If I’d ended up shifting into a Werewolf or a Griffin because of some wayward recessive gene then I knew I’d never have lived it down.

  Thankfully, on my eleventh birthday, my friend Seth had gotten a little too exuberant while dancing and had managed to knock my entire birthday cake to the ground. My anger and disappointment had been punctuated by me turning into a thirteen foot golden Dragon right in the middle of my parent’s banquet hall.

  Amidst my memories of people scrambling to get out of my way as I destroyed the furniture and set the curtains alight, one image always stood out to me from that day. My father’s eyes had shone with more pride than I think I’d ever realised he was capable of as he’d looked upon my transformed state. His lips had hooked into a smile and he’d run his hands along my glimmering scales in a touch that was as close to an embrace as I’d ever gotten from him.

  He’d never looked at me like that before. Or since. But for several long seconds, I knew what it felt like to earn his approval instead of his ire.

  And even though my Dragon form had now doubled in size and I’d mastered the art of flying and breathing fire in every way imaginable, he’d still never looked at me like that again. My transformed body was almost the size of his green Dragon form now and I was almost positive that I would be bigger than him in the end. It was likely I would be a larger man in my Far form too.

  At almost six foot I was still growing and given four more inches, I’d be the one looking down on him. I was determined to see that day come to pass. Even if the only thing it earned me was his quiet mood swings. That was better than his rage any day of the week anyway.

  The sharp tap of high heels approached down the marble staircase behind me but I didn’t turn from my silent vigil in the doorway. A cool breeze blew in around me but I didn’t feel a chill from it. My blood ran hot with the fire in my veins even without my magic being woken yet and the cold rarely bothered me.

  “Your shirt is untucked,” Mother commented as she came to stand beside me.

  I made a noise of agreement in the back of my throat and she tutted as she began to push the material beneath my waistband when I made no attempt to. Her black hair, which I'd inherited, was pulled up in an elaborate style on the back of her head and her makeup was painted on to perfection. Not a hair out of place. The day I saw her ruffled would be a strange day indeed. Something as trivial as her eldest son’s Awakening certainly wouldn’t cause the facade to slip.

  When she was finished with me, she moved away again. Smalltalk wasn’t her thing. Neither was long talk or meaningful anything really. She was kind of like a ghost who just floated around the house in designer clothes and a push up bra. I hadn’t even seen her in her Dragon form for years. The transformation didn’t tend to mesh well with carefully planned hairstyles and she’d decided that if she had to sacrifice one of the two things it’d be the Dragon. Who needed to turn into the most powerful creature in existence and fly through the clouds when you could enjoy the feeling of a tightly coiled quaff of hair on the back of your head anyway? Safe to say, aside from my dark hair and eyes, I hadn’t inherited much from my mother.

  “Please can I come?” Xavier’s begging reached my ears and an amused smile tugged at the corner of my lips as my younger brother tried to convince our Father to bring him along for the ride. “Perhaps being around so many students will encourage my Dragon form to break free at last,” he urged, knowing that that was the only thing which might persuade Father to change his mind.

  “If spending time amongst your own kind has done nothing to tempt the Dragon from your flesh then why would mixing with Harpies and Griffins make a difference?” Father replied, the sneer on his face clear from his tone without me needing to confirm it by looking his way.

  Xavier relented with a dramatic sigh, quickly followed by a yelp as Father clipped him around the ear for the disrespectful noise. br />
  I turned to look at Father, inclining my head an inch in deference to save my own ear from the taste of his knuckles. His yellow hair and green eyes were a stark contrast to my own but I had his muscular build and strong jaw. I liked to think I had nothing more of his but I knew his temper lay coiled within me. Though I was better than him at keeping it in check. Of course, he had no one to reprimand him when he unleashed his foul moods so I supposed he didn’t feel the need to stifle himself. As one of the four most powerful Fae in Solaria, no one could stand against him. Only the other three Councillors were his equal in magic and might and they were the only ones safe from his rages. At least most of the time.

  “Come, Darius,” he snapped. “We don’t want to be late.”

  I moved towards him as he pulled a silk bag from his pocket, biting my tongue against pointing out the fact that I’d been waiting here for half an hour and he was the one we were waiting for.

  Mother reappeared, suppressing a sigh as her gaze fell on Xavier’s wayward black curls which were once again sticking up all over the place. I offered my brother an amused smirk as he backed up a few steps, disappointment shining in his green eyes. He wanted to come and I’d have liked nothing more than to have him along with us. In fact I’d happily have traded his attendance for Mother and Father’s and taken a car to the academy as well if I’d had the choice.

  But of course that wasn’t an option. The Acrux family would arrive by stardust just to prove a point. It didn’t matter that the stuff cost a fortune or that the journey would take little more than half an hour by car. The point was that we could afford it and to remind the other families that without Dragon Fire there would be no stardust for anyone to use regardless of cost.

  I stood shoulder to shoulder with Mother as Father tipped the glimmering black stardust into his hand and held it up between us.

  My eyes caught Xavier’s and I offered him a silent goodbye just as the glittering stardust was blown in my face.

  The world tipped and spun, stars exploding into view around us and capturing us in their silvery light before spitting us back out again in the midst of a field within the Zodiac Academy grounds.

  “I was beginning to think you weren’t coming,” Seth said, a grin lighting his features as he ran forward to greet me. His chestnut hair was getting longer, hanging around his chin as he grew it out. He’d lost a bet to Caleb a few months ago and had agreed not to cut it for a year. The longer style weirdly suited him, enhancing the wildness that moved within his eyes. I could only imagine Mother’s horror if I were to decide to try the style for myself.

  Seth threw his arms around me, his fingers reaching up to brush against the back of my neck for a moment before he drew away again. Ever since he’d started transforming into a Werewolf, he’d been becoming more and more tactile and I accepted his familiar hugs with an air of understanding which I knew he appreciated.

  It was hard for him to hold back on his innate behaviour, especially around those he considered part of his pack and as his best friends, the other Heirs and I were prime targets for his affectionate embraces and even the occasional nuzzle. Dragons tended to be a lot more reserved with our affections but something about Seth’s wolfy ways always seemed weirdly liberating to me.

  The tight press of Mother’s lips let me know she didn’t agree with my take on it but she’d never speak out against a member of one of the other houses over something so trivial.

  Caleb moved forward to greet me next and I gave him a wide smile as we exchanged a brief hug. Though his Order hadn’t emerged yet, we were all fairly sure it would tonight. His family were all Vampires and to replenish their magic, they had to feed on the blood and power of other Fae. They were the one Order whose emergence was predictable; as soon as their magic was Awakened, they’d develop their Vampire abilities too. As his family bloodline was almost as pure as mine, it was fairly certain his fangs would emerge alongside his magic.

  Max joined us last, his dark skin covered with navy blue scales which marked him as a Siren.

  “Don’t say a word,” he muttered, a trace of embarrassment colouring his deep voice. He still hadn’t quite gained control of his transformations and whenever he experienced heightened emotions, he got overwhelmed and his scales appeared.

  “Wouldn’t dream of it,” I replied, throwing an arm around him so that he could draw some of my amusement into himself with his Siren power.

  Max offered me a grin as I felt my joy transferring into him for a moment but I withdrew my hand from his shoulders as I felt Father’s gaze landing on me. He’d made his feelings clear on feeding the parasitic Orders more than once: he believed that allowing a Siren or Vampire to feed on my magic would make me look weak. They were supposed to overpower their sources and offering myself up could be construed as admitting that Max or Caleb were more powerful than me. I didn’t agree with him though; why shouldn’t I offer my friends some of my power when they needed it? I could replenish my own easily enough and if it made them happy then I saw no harm in it.

  Despite my personal feelings on the subject, I stepped away from Max as I knew Father wanted. It wasn’t worth the headache when I returned home just to prove a point.

  “We can begin when you’re ready,” a woman called and I looked beyond the other Heirs to find her waiting for us at the top of the hill. “I’m Professor Zenith and it’s my absolute pleasure to awaken your powers tonight,” she cooed, her eyes roaming over us hungrily as we moved to form a circle around her.

  My heart began to pound a little harder with anticipation. This was it. The moment I’d find out just what power I held within me. I already knew I’d be able to harness fire as my star sign was linked to that Element but I was harbouring the hope that I might hold another Element in my grasp. Perhaps even two. It was wildly uncommon but my great grandfather had held fire, earth and air and Father had been mentioning the fact frequently enough for me to know he hoped for that too. I wondered vaguely if he’d look at me the same way as he had when I’d revealed my Dragon form if I managed to harness three Elements.

  The Professor began calling out in Latin and I turned my head to the sky as she asked the stars to unleash our gifts.

  I fixed my gaze on the North Star as my heart thumped a wild tune against my ribs. Raindrops spilled against my cheeks and I blinked as the water splattered through my eyelashes. A heaviness built in my chest and it felt as though the water was filling me up, slipping beneath my skin and making a home for itself there.

  I didn’t realise what that meant until Max released a breath of laughter from my left. I let my attention slip to him and noticed the water shining on his face too despite the fact that there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Caleb’s mouth had hooked into an amused grin as he surveyed the two of us and the rain finally slowed.

  “Congratulations, Max and Darius,” Professor Zenith said encouragingly. “You both hold the power of water.”

  Before I could get my head around that nugget of information, she began calling out in Latin again and I waited to see if I might hold the power of air too.

  Seth’s bark of laughter drew my attention to him as his hair billowed around him in a wind I couldn’t feel and I pushed aside the moment of disappointment in favour of being pleased for my friend.

  “Congratulations Seth and Max, you have both harnessed the gift of air,” the Professor said.

  Max was grinning like a Cheshire Cat and I couldn’t blame him. Two gifts under his belt already. His father couldn’t help but clap in excitement and I found myself staring at the overt disposal of enthusiasm for his son. The Professor was calling on the stars once more as I watched him, unable to tear my gaze away.

  “Congratulations, Caleb and Seth, you both hold the power of earth.”

  I finally looked away from Max’s father to find my two friends entwined in the trailing embrace of vines and grass which hadn’t been there a moment ago. It dawned on me that I hadn’t managed to match my great grandfather’s ability of holdi
ng three powers as my Father sighed just loud enough to let me know he was disappointed.

  I swallowed down his displeasure without allowing my face to show I’d noticed it let alone cared about it.

  Heat suddenly flared around my legs and a ring of fire scorched the ground as the warmth spread right through my limbs and into my soul.

  “Well this is delightful!” the Professor cried. “Each of you holds two Elements!”

  I dragged my attention away from the writhing magic within my body to see that the grass around Caleb’s legs had been burned away too.

  He grinned at me in excitement, his fangs appearing in the starlight and confirming his Vampire Order. Seth made a show of pretending to be afraid of getting bitten and I couldn’t help but laugh.

  Caleb’s mother burst into tears of joy as she raced forward and flung her arms around him and an uncomfortable feeling twisted my insides.

  I turned to my family with a smile on my face which dropped away as I found my Mother inspecting her makeup in a compact mirror while Father looked decidedly bored.

  “Oh well,” he said, keeping his voice level in light of our company. “Perhaps your brother will be the one to harness three then.”

  I bit my tongue against any response to that and turned away from him once more as I returned my features to their usual bored expression. My friends were all enjoying the excitement and approval of their families and I tried not to stare at the overt displays of affection. My family didn’t do affection. Overtly or privately. We were strong, solid, immovable. A Dragon had no need of others. We could look after ourselves.

  Seth had made it into the midst of his family and his parents and three younger sisters were all caressing and petting him as they shared in his excitement. Everyone else’s siblings were here and I couldn’t help but wish Xavier had been permitted to join us too. He’d have shared in my excitement even if my parents didn’t.