Chapter 2

White smoke filled the dungeon, burning Julian's eyes.

Gideon let out a sharp cry. He clutched his right hand. A single drop of the green acid had splashed onto his knuckles, eating through the skin and turning the flesh a sickly black.

He ignored the pain and flipped onto his knees, crawling toward Julian's boots.

"Headmaster! Forgive me!" Gideon's voice cracked in terror. "I was only trying to share your burden!"

Julian stared down at the boy. This was the idiot who constantly pushed Kamari past the breaking point in the novel. This was the idiot who would get them both killed.

A dry, scraping sound came from the cross.

Kamari was laughing. It wasn't a real laugh. It was a broken, wet sound that scraped against the back of his throat.

"What new psychological game is this?" Kamari rasped. His golden eyes locked onto Julian, burning with fresh venom. "You disgust me, Benedict."

Julian's heart skipped a beat. The protagonist just used his first name. That was practically a death sentence.

He couldn't apologize. If he showed weakness, if he broke character now, the magical world would sense the shift. Kamari would just think it was a sicker, more twisted trap.

He had to play the monster to survive.

Julian looked down at Gideon. He tapped into the foreign memories sitting in the back of his brain, trying to recall the exact feeling described in his own manuscript. He mimicked the mental focus required. Instantly, a cold, stagnant force crashed against his chest, violently expanding in his veins and nearly suffocating him. Panic flared as the unfamiliar sensation overwhelmed his senses. He jerked his right hand up in a desperate bid to release the pressure. An unstable wave of dark purple energy shot out wildly from his fingertips. The magic spiraled out of control, accidentally forming a crushing weight.

A wave of heavy gravity magic slammed down onto Gideon's back.

A loud crack echoed in the room. Gideon screamed. His chest hit the stone floor so hard the breath was knocked out of his lungs. He lay pinned, unable to move a single muscle.

Kamari's breath hitched. His jaw ticked. He stared at Gideon's crushed form, unable to process what he was seeing. Benedict never punished his own dogs.

Julian forced his face to remain completely blank. His stomach churned violently at the sound of the breaking bone.

He turned his attention to the whip still clutched in his right hand. He walked over to the iron brazier burning in the corner. He tossed the leather whip directly into the flames.

The fire flared a sickly green. The leather curled and turned to ash in seconds.

Kamari watched the whip burn. His chest rose and fell in rapid, shallow jerks.

Julian turned his back to the fire. He walked slowly toward the obsidian cross. He stopped exactly one step out of Kamari's reach. He clasped his hands tightly behind his back so Kamari wouldn't see them trembling.

Julian pushed magic into his vocal cords, amplifying his voice so it would bleed through the heavy oak doors to the guards outside.

"From this day forward," Julian commanded, his voice vibrating in the small room. He looked at Gideon, then brought his eyes back to Kamari. "No one steps foot in this dungeon without my direct order. And no one touches a single hair on his head."

Gideon whimpered against the floor, his eyes bulging in disbelief.

Kamari clenched his teeth. Blood loss was making his head loll, but he fought to keep his eyes open. He stared at Julian, searching for the lie.

"If you're going to kill me... just do it," Kamari whispered. "Stop playing these sick games."

His chin dropped to his chest. His body went entirely limp against the silver chains. He was out cold.