All Chapters of A Kingdom of Corruption and Chaos: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

A jarring, jostling sensation pulled a groan from my lips. It pulled at every searing cut and scrape on my aching body. My arm was screaming in pain, and I slowly blinked my eyes open, having to blink several times to be able to comprehend the fact that I was currently moving through a dense, snowy forest. Slowly, I looked down to see that I was on the back of a large chestnut horse, instantly having a fairly good idea of what was happening at least. I took a moment to look down at myself. I couldn't see much, considering I had a heavy cloak around my shoulders, but I did see the strong arm that was banded around my waist. It was the only thing holding me upright as I leaned back against a strong, warm body that I was getting rather used to being in the arms of. Taking a breath, I closed my eyes once more, thankful that I was far warmer now, too. My fingers and toes tingled from the cold, but they weren't numb like they had been up on that cliff, and they didn't hurt as badly as they

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a very special showing for you today. Take notes, recruits, this isn't something you see every day. Xavier Knight is not only going to take on one challenger for you, but two at the same time." The General called over the crowd as two of the other professors walked out of the tunnel on the other side of the arena. One had an amphithere snaked around his shoulders, while the other had that big drake that had landed on the wall the first day. "With that being said, let's not delay." With that, the General walked out of the arena, and Bane jumped from Xavier's shoulders, shifting to his full size as he let out a roar that shook the stands as his head swiveled back and forth in an eerie, serpentine way, as his wings flared and his tail whipped from side to side, throwing up clouds of dirt in his anger. Xavier didn't waste a single second, mounting the pissed-off dragon with an ease that I didn't even know someone could possess. Bane didn't eve

It seemed like every passing hour, I was just starting to feel worse and worse. My whole body felt weak and heavy, my arm throbbed something fierce, and I couldn't focus on a single one of my classes to save my life. I couldn't help but to feel like something just wasn't right. I should be feeling better by now, not worse. The healing I had gotten should have taken care of any infection or anything like that with my wounds, and if I was sick, they would have told me. By the time I was sitting in the dining hall with Lexi and Genie for dinner, I had no desire to even eat. I mostly just pushed my food around my plate, occasionally picking at its contents. 'You haven't been acting right all day.' Nova commented as she blinked up at me. 'I don't know, Nova, something just isn't right. I should be feeling better by now, not worse. Do you think Xavier will be in the gym right now?' 'Probably, but you should go rest tonight, Ari.' 'Not for training, Nova. I was thinking that maybe he wou

There was a light knock on the door, instantly killing the moment between us as he moved away to allow Devon back into the room. He held a steaming mug of what smelled like medicinal tea along with a vial of some kind of herb mix and a bag full of bandaging supplies. Xavier carefully helped me ease up into a sitting position, propping me up to where I could lean back against the headboard before Devon handed me the steaming mug. "Drink this. It should help with the fever, along with any nausea or dizziness, for tonight, and this is for tomorrow." He set the vial of the herb mixture on the dark wooden nightstand beside the bed before turning to Xavier. "Alright, now it's your turn. I'm already here, so I might as well take care of that shoulder now rather than waiting until later, so let's see it." Xavier rolled his eyes, but didn't fight him as I took a sip of the tea. It was quite bitter, but even just one sip had my head steadying out already, and I just

Ari was still completely out as I stepped back into my room. She clutched the pillow I had replaced myself with to her chest as she snored softly. I couldn't help but to let my eyes wander over the perfect curve of her body as she curled in around the pillow just as tightly as she had me. 'I'm going to head out to pick up my paperwork, and before you ask, yes, I'll bring back breakfast. Will you stay here with them for now, just in case she needs something?' I asked as I quietly popped the door open and walked out, being sure to lock it behind me. I made quick work of heading down the hall to my office. Pulling the file of paperwork off the surface of my desk. I quickly thumbed through its contents, making sure nothing was out of place. It was a precaution I had taken to, considering one time one of the General's phoenix's feathers had landed in the stack, and when I opened it on my desk, it nearly burnt the whole damn room down. This one was just documents, though, simple busy work