There was something in the way she told him that she had seen terrible things, too, that made Jester believe she was telling the truth. And it made him wonder, not for the first time, what other secrets Alisa Vega had.
And strangely, a small part of him wanted to know more than just her secrets as well.
This small part of him was telling him that there would be more to benefit him if he befriended her. Her looks aside, her power and the resources available to her could prove useful in accomplishing his goals. He didn't know what she had in mind, but before the night is through he was confident he'd find out. If what she wanted from him was his power, he could definitely find a way to use the situation to his advantage.
And if she asked for something he couldn't or wouldn't give, well, then he could deal with that as well.
"What are you planning to do next?" Jester asked directly. He could tell from the light in her eyes
"Get down!"Freya d'Or heard the warning almost a second too late. She hit the floor just as an enormous silver streak of metallic fur leapt at the equally enormous tentacled Anomaly that she had been grappling with a moment ago. The silver beast's claws and gleaming teeth ripped into the creature like a knife through butter, severed body parts flying through the air around them. Freya would have felt pity for the Anomaly, if the thing hadn't nearly torn her limb from limb just a moment ago.Certain that the Summoned Beast could handle the Anomaly, Freya turned to her saviour. He sat on the edge of a rock a few feet above, black coat flying in the breeze, with a disinterested expression on his irritatingly handsome face.Jester Lee.Master Necromancer.Rookie of the Year.Every woman's unattainable fantasy.Arrogant prick."You're late," Frey said, making her way up the slope tow
I would like to state, for the record, that my being in Jester's apartment with his mother that day was purely coincidence. I did not plan for her to invite me into her home and help her cook chicken pesto and meat stew for dinner. I did not plan for her to walk back with me to the apartment when I ran into her at the convenience store while she was buying laundry detergent and I was there for some iced coffee. And I most certainly did not plan for Jester Lee to walk in just as I was carrying the said pasta dish, all decked out in his mother's apron with my hair up and my face all shiny with excitement since this was the first time I have ever helped cook anything in my entire life.I swear on the honourable name of my house, all of this was fate.Bea pointed out that I helped fate quite a lot by buying the entire building where Jester and his family lived and moving into the apartment exactly opposite theirs, thus making such 'fated' en
"Neighbor...?" Jester echoed, as if it were the first time he heard of the word."Yes, dear. Alisa just moved in next door," Ms. Lee told her son, apparently oblivious to his inner turmoil. "I ran into her outside and I invited her over for dinner. I hope you don't mind."It wasn't a question. It was clear to him that his mother wasn't asking for his opinion. The fact that she was calling her by her first name, and that she was inside their home, meant his mother had already formed a favourable opinion of the actress. He wondered if it had anything to do with the fact that his mother had watched every episode of all three seasons of Bonecastle Life.The good mood he had when he boarded the Portal Pod home had disappeared the moment he saw Alisa standing behind his mother. The fatigue and frustration that had built up over the past three days in the Wildlands resurfaced, and he could feel the beginnings of a headache form
The answer to Jester's question came in the form of Alisa's PA.They had all just settled down, Alisa sitting beside Jester (to his utter dismay) and Ms. Lee and Rigel opposite them, when the bell rang.Visitor Bea is at the door, the cool tones of the housekeeper system announced. Visitor Bea is looking for Guest Alisa. Will the visitor be allowed entry?"Oh, damn, I'm sorry," Alisa said, getting up from her seat. "Bea is my PA. It's her day off, so I didn't expect her to come by…""It's alright, dear," said Ms. Lee. "If it's not too urgent, why don't you invite her to join us?""I don't think so," Jester cut in, sensing an opportunity. "I'm sure Alisa is really busy, and her PA won't come looking for her if it wasn't important. I'm sure you need to go--""Not really. Bea is probably just--""Why don't we go and make sure?" Jester said, making him
I would have continued pondering in silence if Bea didn't tap my shoulder to get my attention. "You're still offline, Alisa. Sirel just messaged me, he said he needs to talk to you. Important stuff." Bea rolled her eyes, knowing as well as I do, that if it's Sirel who needs me, then it means it has something to do with Jester Lee.I checked my messages, and saw that half the missed calls were from my father, and the other half was divided between Sirel and Bea."Miss Vega! I've been trying to call you--""Sorry," I said, hearing the nervous excitement in his tone. I switched off video since I was driving--I don't need the distraction of double vision, especially if I want to make a point about safe driving to Bea. "I was pretty busy this afternoon. What's up?""We finalized the search for Jester Lee's possible love interests. I'm happy to say that we haven't found anyone that could possibly be considered
None of us were surprised that Dad had chosen Conrad as his successor. We were surprised though, by the fact that Dad chose to tell us NOW.I was especially worried, because I could tell that although this succession announcement was important for him, there was something else he really wanted to talk about. Anxiety and guilt flew like sparks around him and because Dad is one of those naturally confident types, seeing him like this was... disturbing. The others, though, thought that his retirement was the biggest news they were going to hear tonight. After a few seconds of stunned silence, everyone began talking at once--congratulating Conrad and making jokes.It was only Conrad who was protesting. Beneath his surprise was a thick current of worry and uncertainty. No one in the family would ever contest his claim as the most qualified to step into Dad's shoes, so the uncertainty was more about his own assessment of himself. My eldest bro
It was Marcus who first figured out I had a special power. He was the one who told the adults that I did something strange that day.It was a few weeks after the butterfly incident. We were in my bedroom, sitting on the carpeted floor, playing with Nanny's old dog Corgi (who was actually a beagle, and not a corgi at all). Corgi was a sweet dog, with dull grey fur that blended with the pavement, but had beautiful brown eyes that made you want to give him every scrap of food you could spare. Needless to say, Corgi was fat and arthritic and couldn't move very fast. This made him the prime target of a six year old girl who had just learned how to tie ribbons. There were already five ribbons haphazardly tied to his tail, in almost every shade of the rainbow. Marcus handed me a black ribbon to tie around his floppy ears when we heard a faint thump, like something heavy had been dropped. Corgi stood up, suddenly tense and alert, and a second later he dashed out o
Morning came bright and sunny. I woke up too late to join the others for breakfast, but Bea assured me there was nothing to worry about. According to her, everyone was pretending I hadn't dramatically walked out of the dining room after a short, emotional outburst that would have gotten me a scolding if Grandma Susana had been present. In fact, no one seemed to want to talk about Dad's decision to retire and work with the AG, or my decision to...well, I actually hadn't decided yet.That talk with Dad hit me harder than I thought it would. Maybe it's because ever since meeting Madam Josefa, I had been thinking about my current situation from different perspectives: the perspective of my family, for one, and the perspective of the Tower, for another.In all honesty, I wouldn't be having this problem at all if I hadn't been a Vega. The TWMO has full authority when it comes to the Gifted--from evaluating and training them, to policing and de
Jester swiped his hand to the left. The wall before him tore itself up and crumbled to dust before being sucked into a void known as Jorus, exposing the figures inside.Only two people remained standing. One was a familiar figure, tall and broad, with a white mask covering his face. The other was leaner, smaller than the masked man, with a handsome face and cold, dead eyes. This man held in his arms a woman with golden hair in a fancy red dress. The features of her beautiful face were obscured by the blood seeping from her head, and around her slender neck was a fiery tattoo, like a necklace of thorns painted on her skin.A curse mark, in its most potent form.Alisa. His Alisa.Everything in Jester fell still, and whatever rationality he had left was burned away by fear and fury.*****An explosion of black—an oppressive, all-consuming darkness surrounded them in the blink of an eye. This darkness was unnatural. It wasn’t a darkness born from a lack of light, rather, it felt to him li
Jester had several misgivings about attending the Finale as Alisa’s date. He had to dress fancy. He had to listen to a rabid crowd scream his name and fight the urge to run away. He had to let the paparazzi take pictures without breaking their limbs. He even had to stop scowling.But the Finale was important to Alisa. She had asked him to come, and he knew if he did, it would mean the world to her, so how could he refuse her?At first, it wasn’t so bad. The suit was surprisingly comfortable, and though it was fancier than what he was used to wearing (it had a cape, for crying out loud) at least it was in black and grey, and not—gods forbid—egg-yolk yellow or neon green (like what he saw some of the other guests were wearing). Their red-carpet entrance was also quickly over with, and like what Aisha had said, all that was left to endure was the small-talk.It only took a few minutes after Alisa left, though, for Jester to realize he could only bear with this situation in her presence.
TEN MINUTES BEFORE EVERYTHING WENT TO HELL, VIP SECTIONAn intense tremor shook the Stadium, accompanied by alarmed yelling and swearing and the sound of shattering glasses as surprised guests dropped to the floor or crawled under the tables. Before the shaking even stopped, an alarm ripped through the air. Colin felt a foreboding sense of deja vu when he recognized what it meant.CODE BLACK: ANOMALY BREACH DETECTEDLOCKDOWN PROTOCOL IN EFFECT. THIS EVENT IS HEREBY CANCELLED. ALL GUESTS AND RESIDENTS ARE ADVISED TO REMAIN WITHIN THE BORDER. PLEASE REMAIN CALM AND FOLLOW EVACUATION PROTOCOL.The last time M’lonia had a Breach was nearly fifty years ago. Not only were there fewer active Faults in Ellenis as a whole (when you compare it to Earth or Oren), but the Elven capital of M’lonia was literally in the middle of nowhere, and under miles of sand and bedrock to boot. Some studies have claimed that the possibility of a new Breach forming in an area without a history of a Fault decreas
I suddenly stopped feeling bad for my PA when I realized why she was so on edge.They were hiding things from me again. They knew—Bea, Dad, Jester, they all knew—how much I hated that.“Give me my earpiece,” I said to Freya, pointing at the tiny purse on the couch beside her.“You have to focus on the Finale.” Bea said, snatching it away before Freya could even reach for it. “Forget what I said about New York. Right now, focus on the show, and when everything’s done, you can go and cuddle up to Jester as much as you like and have that talk.”“And if I say, ‘No, I don’t want to go to New York?’”Bea wouldn’t meet my eyes. “Come on. Be reasonable. It’s just a health break…”I narrowed my eyes at her, focusing on Bea’s emotions.How suspicious. There was concern for my health, certainly. But strangely, Bea seems to be more focused on my safety rather than the possibility of me relapsing into anorexia. Then, there’s the thing about Sir Merrion following me around on the orders of the King
It was Jester who first stepped out of the car.Broad-shouldered, long and lean, he wore the dark grey suit Alisa had picked out for him, and it fit him like a dream. Unbeknownst to the stylists, the white shirt he was wearing underneath was actually his AG suit, which he had adjusted to copy its appearance. He told Alisa it just felt wrong for him to wear normal clothes when out in public, and convinced her to let him use the suit. Draped over his shoulders was the luxurious cape trimmed with black fur and embroidered in gold that Holly had waved under his nose, and in the flashing lights, the gold thread shimmered.From LeBlanc’s position on the balcony, and with the help of his favorite camera, he could see very clearly why Alisa Vega had fallen for the AG rookie. Had he been into men, LeBlanc himself would have fallen head-over-heels and off of a cliff for him. The build, the figure—there was no angle from which you could take a photograph that wouldn’t flatter him. And that face-
LeBlanc thought that West Park Stadium had never looked more like a treasure chest than it did tonight. It was bright, and shiny, and loud—and the people inside it were equally so.For most of the normal people in the three worlds, the Fashion Week Finale was a show you watch on your holo-screens. But now, LeBlanc was a part of it. He was there in the flesh.He had been fortunate enough to be invited to the Finale as a guest by his editor, and though he was not strictly required to work during the event, the photographer in him could not resist slinging his favorite camera over his shoulder. Fashion Week was like an all-you-can-eat buffet for him—there was no way he was passing up an opportunity to photograph the elite of the elite of the fashion world, in all their splendor. Of course, he would not be allowed to publicize any of his photographs unless he gains consent from his subjects. But he didn’t mind. He didn’t pursue photography for the money or the potential connections he cou
It didn’t take very long for someone to knock on the door and remind them that Alisa had things to do, and places to be.In reality, it had only been about three hours since they left the others in the drawing room. Emotionally though, to Jester it felt like an entire day had gone by. In a mere three hours, Alisa had gone from ‘angry-girlfriend’ to ‘sweet seductress’ to ‘vulnerable, guilt-ridden, accidental murderess’ and finally, now she was ‘the-show-must-go-on, high-fashion supermodel with a probable eating disorder’, and he sat in bed watching her reapplying her makeup and slipping on those icepick heels.As if she hadn’t been crying her eyes out and dripping snot over his shirt a few minutes ago.Alisa is more than just a pretty face, strutting around in glamorous outfits and smiling for the cameras. She was more than just the Vega name and the influence that goes with it. She’s also more than just a girl with a powerful Gift.Alisa—his Alisa—is lovely, complicated, and unique. S
Things went back to normal almost immediately after that. That mugging incident never happened again, and it was easy to forget about something horrible if it’s not happening directly to you. Marcus was his usual possessive self, and I should have had no expectations otherwise. He changed my memories, so of course I don’t have a proper recollection of what happened. There shouldn’t be any reason for me to feel uneasy with him.But I did. I guess somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew what was really going on. I think Marcus could tell, too. He became even more obsessed with keeping me by his side. There was even a rumor at school going around that he and I were dating secretly, because he’s always holding my hand.I’m sure that Aisha told you Marcus needed physical contact to reinforce his Gift, right? I think at that time Marcus was still testing the limits of his Gift. He was afraid of being apart from me because he wanted to make sure that I wouldn’t remember things I shouldn’t.
We found ourselves in bed again…though not in the same way as we were a few hours ago.For one thing, we were dressed. Jester now had on a pair of pants and a new shirt, though it was mostly unbuttoned—I hadn’t realized that when he pulled off the first one, it had ripped a little from our eagerness. He said normal clothes were just built too fragile, and he was used to it.“Wow,” I said drily, “How many girls got you ripping your shirt off for them to say you’re used to that?”Jester kissed my forehead. “Just one.”“Really.”“I have the physical strength equal to a hundred humans, Ali. That’s what I meant.”“I know. I was just teasing,” I said.“Huh. Stop trying to distract me.”Resigning myself to the inevitable, I cuddled up to him as I thought about how to begin.Half my hesitation comes from the fact that I still couldn’t wrap my head around what just happened a few hours ago. I’ve always wanted to know how it would feel to kiss someone and touch someone and be so intimate—withou