In the infirmary we learn that Jacklyn, the Laima, and Olif, the elf, have already been sent back to their rooms. The two seem to be feeling better and since the nurses can't do anything else for them, they were given something to help them sleep and were to spend the night in their own beds.

This means my chance to help them discreetly has passed.

If I pay them a visit in their rooms, it's very reminiscent of stalking, says Alivia.

So we decide to go back too. On the way we meet a few night owls, including some first-years who can't sleep because they're so excited.

We try to encourage them and get them to bed so they'll have a good night's sleep tomorrow. Finally we reach the second-years' huts.

The rooms of the academy's students are behind a hill, about eight minutes' walk from the main building. Hundreds of huts are set up in neat rows on a large, wide area.

Each hut has two bedrooms for two girls or two boys. They also all have two bathrooms, a small kitchenette, a dining area and a living room.

As a first-grader, the school administration puts you in a room with others from your people. If possible, a hut is filled with four members of the same people, but if that is not possible, at least the elements are not mixed together.

So someone who comes from a people of fire will not live with someone from the people of water. Only those of us with the element of energy, i.e. the star warriors, Laimas and angels of death, should they ever come to the academy, are often put with the other four elements to fill gaps.

Supposedly we should get along with everyone, since part of our element can also be found in the others. Proof of the opposite could be seen today in the cafeteria.

As a second-grader, you can then choose who you want to share a room and hut with, of course still boys and girls separated.

It is only in the third school phase that the cabins can be mixed, meaning that two girls and two boys can share a cabin.

After the school management has gotten to know us for two phases, they are of the opinion that we are responsible enough to live in mixed cabins.

Alivia and I are looking forward to that. We have been living in the same room since the beginning and in the next school phase we will go to a cabin together with Jaxon and Levi. We agreed on that at the beginning of this school phase.

We enter the cabin and the light goes on. That means that Addison and Joyce are not here yet.

The Wila and the fairy are probably still hanging out with their friends. Ironically, they live in Jaxon and Levi's cabin. So in the next phase we will just swap cabin partners.

»I'm totally exhausted. Do you mind if I go to bed now?« Alivia asks me.

»Of course not. I'll be right there with you.«

She nods, wishes me goodnight and disappears into the hallway.

The cabins all have the same floor plan. On the ground floor there is the small kitchen, the dining area and the inviting living room, which is dominated by a huge seating area. There are bookshelves and candle holders on the walls, which also provide the light. In addition, one wall is made entirely of windows and offers a view of the veranda that surrounds the entire cabin.

A staircase in the hallway leads to the first floor, where there is a bathroom and a room on each side. Alivia and I live on the right side, while Addison and Joyce live on the left side.

I go into the kitchen and boil some water over a fire. I pour two tea leaves into a cup with the bubbling water. The sweet smell of apricots and cinnamon immediately fills the kitchen. I carefully take a sip from the cup, only to burn my tongue.

Damn, that hurts.

With my teacup in my hand, I carefully walk to the seating area. Now don't spill anything. I manage to sit down without anything spilling out of the cup.

For a princess, I'm pretty clumsy sometimes. Above me, I hear Alivia leave the bathroom and go into the room. There she walks up and down a few more times. I listen carefully to her footsteps while I drink my tea.

She's always processing something like that and it's best to leave her alone. I wonder what's bothering her and am tempted to send my powers to her. But my promise stops me. When we met and I was still using my powers to arbitrarily feel for other people's feelings, I had to promise her that I would never do that to her without her consent. And I plan to keep that promise.

So I give up on using my powers and continue to listen to her restless footsteps. Sometimes they get quieter and I think that she's now got herself together, but the next moment they're as loud as they were at the beginning. My teacup is now empty and I consider making another one.

The front door opens and Addison and Joyce come in, giggling and fooling around. They are startled when they see me on the sofa, but they pull themselves together again immediately.

»Hello Micah. We weren't expecting you,« Joyce tells me bluntly.

»What are you doing here?« Addison asks me.

»I live here,« I answer with a joking undertone.

They start giggling like crazy.

What's wrong with those two? They don't usually start giggling at every little thing.

I watch carefully as they support each other to make their way to the sofa without falling over. They sink heavily into the pillows.

»We had an absolutely breathtaking night,« Joyce enthuses.

Addison gasps and gently slaps Joyce on the upper arm. »Joy Joy, you can't tell Micah something like that, I'm sure she doesn't want to know.«

»Why not?« Joyce asks innocently.

»She's our princess, silly,« Addison reminds her.

Even though we've shared a cabin for a while now, Addison still only sees me as her princess. And yet I try so hard to be more to her. I try to show my classmates that I can be more than their princess, that I can be their friend too, that I want to be their friend.

For most of them, my efforts bear fruit. Especially those I have classes with and those who are older than me. Joyce also sees me more often as her friend than her princess. But I don't stand a chance with Addison. She rejects any approach from me as if it were a deadly attack on her life.

The two of them have already burst into wild giggles again and are rolling around on the sofa. Luckily it is big enough that they don't fall off. I'm starting to suspect that they have taken something, but there are no drugs at Phoenix Academy and the alcohol is safely locked away with the teachers.

I'm already considering using my powers when both of them suddenly become very quiet. They sit up and look at me seriously. There is clearly something wrong here.

Why are they behaving so strangely?

»What's wrong with you two?« I decide to get to the bottom of the cause.

They don't answer me, just stare silently straight ahead. I follow their gaze directly out onto our veranda, but don't see anything in the dark night. My gaze wanders back to Addison and Joyce. They are still sitting exactly the same way.

»What do you see? What's out there?« I try again.

But I get no answer. I get up and go to the windows. I'm standing right in Addison and Joyce's line of sight, but my eyes can't break through the darkness and so I can't see what they see.

I turn around to ask them again. But they're gone.

A cool breeze blows in through the front door. The candles flicker. I quickly decide to follow them. I stop briefly at the stairs and consider looking for Alivia, but that would only waste precious time.

I run the last few steps to the door and stop on the porch. What I see there freezes me.

They all come out of their huts with empty looks and walk stiffly along the path to the lake. Hardly anyone is properly dressed. Many girls are barefoot and wrapped in thin nightgowns and most of the boys are bare-chested.

It looks like they're all under a spell, but I've never heard of one strong enough to enchant them all at once. There are some spells that let someone control all of one element, but here the elements are so mixed together that they must all be under the same spell.

I see Levi and Jaxon step out of their hut and join the crowd. I quickly join them and try to talk to them, but it's as if they can't hear me. None of the others react to my attempts to wake them up either.

Carefully, so as not to attract unnecessary attention, I push my way forward. That's easier said than done. They're all running so close together that I can hardly find any gaps to slip through.

Our path leads us further to the lake.

When will they stop running?

They won't go straight into the water and drown, will they?

I have to stop them first.

Carelessly paying attention to my own cover, I pushed my way forward. Let them try to stop me. But no one reacts when I roughly pull them out of the way. They just keep going towards the lake.

Panic begins to spread within me. If I can't stop them, they'll all die.

Who would do something like that?

Shadow warriors, it immediately flashes through my mind.

Of course they are the only ones who could benefit from hundreds of dead Lux.

I'm now running away from the group. I know a shortcut to the lake. If that's really their goal, I'll get there before them thanks to her, hopefully.

Dark clouds stretch across the sky, smothering every spark of light that tries to light my way. Nevertheless, I manage to get to the lake without tripping over roots.

It lies quietly and beguiling in front of me, stretching out into the darkness into endless expanses. Normally the water is clear and you can guess the bottom. Tonight it is pitch black and will mercilessly swallow up everything that dares to go in, including my classmates.

The first ones are already coming down the path from the huts. Their glassy eyes are looking directly at the dark water that they are about to enter and drown in. I start running and get to the water in time before them.

The front students are still about thirty steps away from me and are coming closer and closer.

»Stop. Wake up. You have to stop,« I shout at them.

My voice reaches them, but they show no reaction, they just keep coming closer.

Twenty steps separate them from me and the water behind me. I have no choice but to use my powers against them. This may be breaking the school rules, but it is the only way to save them.

Fifteen more steps. I close my eyes and concentrate on the fire inside me. I won't get very far with just one thread this time. I channel a large portion of my magic to the students.

It simply bounces off them. A black veil envelops each one and repels my magic like a protective shield. That must be what controls them. If I break through this armor, they should come to.

I first concentrate on the student who is closest to me. His soul is hidden from me under the black. I try to get through with a magic thread.

No chance.

My thread wraps around him, but he cannot break through the armor. Ten steps separate him from the water. I am running out of time. I cannot free everyone individually.

I take a little more of my magic and let it waft over the floor like mist. More and more black figures appear in the silvery blue mist of my magic. I let them slowly crawl up each enchanted classmate.

The magic that encases them is strong. A spell that I have never experienced before. It is not just a single person saying this.

My magic envelops the black cocoons. Death and my classmates are still five steps apart.

I breathe out.

What I am planning now could kill them, me or all of us. But there is also a chance that I can save them with it.

I let my magic strike the armor, let it attack my classmates from all sides. It has no effect. The cocoons remain and lead them into the lake.

The water surrounds the feet of the first and threatens to tear them away from me. I can't let that happen. I have to save them.

My magic strikes them incessantly. It works on the shells without ceasing, trying to break them. A single crack is enough and she can free them.

No chance, this spell is too strong for me.

Micah, help us, I hear Levi calling inside me.

I don't know how.

My magic isn't strong enough.

Sweat beads from my forehead and connects with the ground beneath me. The water already surrounds the first up to their hips and they aren't slowing down. I also take the last of my magic from inside me and distribute it to the Lux.

Come on, defend yourselves, please. I can't do it alone.

They pause.

It was only a brief moment, but they heard me. They are still there. I can still save them.

I concentrate even harder, see them clearly in front of my closed eyes, black figures covered in silver-blue veils. I can feel where each of them is, now I just have to make sure they stay where they are. I take a deep breath and let my voice glide on my magic. That way it will reach their souls.

»My name is Micah Andriana Devin Arien, I am a direct descendant of the Phoenix Queen Aurora, who united us all. You are a part of me, as I am a part of you. Together, no one can destroy us. Together, we can face all dangers. As your princess and future queen, I command you to listen to your heart, to your soul. It will show you the truth. Your princess commands you to stop. Now!« I put all my fear, my anger, my sadness, but also my hope into the last word.