"Maya's POV
I jumped out of bed when I heard glass breaking.
"Maya!" The fear in Grandmother Willow's voice was sharp. "Come on down! Now!"
Just as something smashed through our kitchen window, I fell to the ground. There was glass all over the place, and I could hear heavy boots stomping downstairs.
"Where is she?" The voice of a man yelled. "Seek out the girl!"
I thought my heart might burst from the strong pounding. These were not your typical thieves. They were guards from the Academy, and they wanted me.
I tried to keep quiet as I crawled toward my bedroom door. I could see lights moving about downstairs through the gap underneath. Cold blue light glowed from magical flames brought by the guards.
Another voice said, "Search every room! Tonight, Principal Hawthorne wants her found!"
From the kitchen came the voice of Grandmother Willow. "An old woman and her herbs are the only people present. You're doing something wrong."
The first guard said, "We know she's here. The boy told us prior to his escape."
I felt sick to my stomach. Ethan. They were talking Ethan. But hold on, if Ethan had gotten away, it meant he was no longer hired by them. Perhaps he was truly attempting to assist me.
Footsteps came up the stairs. Large, weighty footsteps caused the old wooden steps to groan and creak.
The guard yelled, "Maya Chen! We are aware that you are up there. We won't harm your grandmother if you come out now."
I tried to think while leaning my back against the wall. At least four guards were downstairs, and another was on the way up. I had no weapons, no magic, and no means of fighting.
Then I remembered Ethan's statement regarding my power. About the fact that I wasn't truly magicless. What if he was correct?
Just outside my door, the footsteps stopped.
"Found you," said the guard.
The door slammed against the wall as he kicked it open. There was nowhere to go, so I scurried backward. The guard was huge, with scars all over his face and muscles like tree trunks. His eyes reflected the same icy light as his torch, and he was dressed in the dark blue uniform of Phoenix Academy's security force.
"There you are, little girl," he said, grinning snarkily. "You've caused us a lot of trouble."
"I haven't done anything wrong!" I said, trying to sound more courageous than I actually was.
The guard replied, "That's not what Principal Hawthorne says. You're scary, he says. Claims that for everyone's safety, you must return to the Academy."
"I'm not a threat!" I said. "I have no magic at all!"
The guard chuckled. "Yes, you do not. That's why healing magic is illuminating half the town. The plants surrounding your home are growing three times faster than normal because of this."
I blinked. "What?"
The guard said, "Oh, you didn't know? For weeks, your magic has been leaking out. Every person you have come into contact with, every plant you have irrigated, and every animal you have cared for are all healthier and more robust than they ought to be."
My thoughts were racing. After I helped Mrs. Henderson with carrying groceries, her arthritis had improved. I had watered our garden's dead flowers, and they had come back to life. The stray cat I had been feeding looked more vibrant and shiny than before.
"That's not possible," I mumbled.
"With life magic, nothing is impossible," the guard observed. "Come with me now before I drag you."
Something snapped inside me as he reached for me. I had had enough of fear. I'm sick of being pushed around. I'm fed up with people telling me what I can and cannot do.
"No!" I yelled.
Something amazing happened as soon as I said the word. Like sunshine penetrating clouds, golden light burst from my hands. The guard stumbled back, swore and shielded his eyes.
He began to say, "What the-" but I wasn't finished.
I released all the fear and rage I had been repressing for the past three years. All of that pain was transformed into strength each time I was called worthless, told I was broken, or made to feel foolish and insignificant.
The room was filled with the golden light, which became brighter and brighter. From my heart to my fingers, I could feel energy moving through me like warm honey.
The guard yelled, "Stop! You're going to destroy the entire house!"
However, I was unable to stop. It felt too right, too good, the magic. I was supposed to do this.
Shouting came from downstairs. The other guards, probably curious about what was going on, were running toward the stairs.
"Maya!" Willow, Grandmother, called. "Restrain it, kid! Don't allow it to rule you."
The rushing sound in my ears was broken by her voice. I inhaled deeply and tried to re-establish the magic within myself. After flickering, the golden light surrounded me in a perfect dome. It felt as though you were in a sun-shaped bubble.
The guard screamed and jerked away when his hand touched the light, trying to grab me once more. He yelled, "She's burning me! I'm burning from the light!"
When they saw the magical wall surrounding me, three more guards stormed into the room, but they all stopped.
One of them mumbled, "How is this possible? She should be weak."
Another guard remarked, "Clearly she's not. Make a backup call. The magic suppressors are necessary."
Suppressors of magic? That sounded awful.
The golden dome moved with me as I slowly got to my feet. Fear and confusion filled the guards' faces as they fled.
I said, "I don't want to hurt anyone," and I was taken aback by how calm I sounded. "Please just leave my grandmother alone."
The first guard said, "Can't do that. We have orders."
"Then you'll have to go through me," I answered.
The enchanted barrier surrounding me glowed more strongly. It spread like roots through dirt throughout the house, and I could feel it reaching outward. I heard Grandmother Willow gasp downstairs.
"What are you doing, Maya?"
I wasn't certain. It looked as though the magic had a mind of its own. It was reaching out to everyone in the town, extending past my room and the house.
The guard captain yelled, "Everyone get back! She's going to lose control!"
I wasn't losing control, though. I was at last finding it.
The golden light saturated the floor, the walls, and the very air. Every person in Willowbrook Village was palpable to me, including Mrs. Henderson dozing off in her bed, the baker rising early to make bread, and the kids dozing off in their beds.
I also sensed something else. Something cold and dark is moving like a shadow toward our town.
I muttered, "They're coming," as if from a deep inside of me that I couldn't fully understand. "The real army. This was only the start."
The guards traded anxious glances. One of them questioned, "What's she talking about?"
However, I was already aware. I had a terrible picture of it in my head. Hundreds of soldiers are moving on Willowbrook. And guiding them...
"My parents," I said in a shocked, hollow voice. "Principal Hawthorne's army is coming."
The golden light died and flickered. The guards' faces went white as they gazed at me.
"That's not possible," the captain stated. "Your parents have passed away."
"No," I answered, feeling ill. "They are still very much alive. And they're coming to get me."
I could hear the rumble of magical war machines and the sound of moving feet in the distance. The real conflict was about to start. And they were all fighting for me as the prize.