A Flawed Alliance

Chapter 21- Chaos Unfurls

Logan and I sat in silence, watching the people slowly amble out of the auditorium after Malanthe. They made sure to keep a respectful distance from Malanthe, though still trying to inch close to her in order to have more words with her.

Malanthe greeted each one with a smile or nod, even shaking hands with some of them. I waited for all the members to completely exit the amphitheater after Malanthe and was about to stand up when I noticed Logan's face.

His countenance was chalk-white and he began to sweat profusely. HIs hands that were clutching the sword in his lap tightened to a sturdy fist. He sighed deeply, running a hand through his sweaty hair.

"Logan," I said firmly. "What is it?"

"If it isn't for the Phoenix Auxiliary and her Undefined," a voice echoed.

I turned my head slowly around. Standing a few feet away from us was Felidae. Behind him, his whole pack was standing, snarling at us. Their panthers were scratching their claws on the dirt. Felidae's voice sounded hushed amongst the expanse of the amphitheater.

Wyntarina was standing next to Felidae with her hand already wrapped around her whip. Her face was hidden behind a silver mask that only showed her lips and striking eyes. I could see the beginnings of an intense scar right near her cheek, but didn't see much of it when it began to disappear underneath the mask. I did not know Nix had done so much permanence to warrant a mask over her face. Other than that, there was no Malanthe in sight.

I jumped up from my spot, sliding my hand to produce my sword. My Phluid must have staggered somewhat because it was harder to summon my sword than before. My skirt twirled as I stepped back. Logan brandished his sword from his lap in one motion, glaring at the ambush before him.

"What did she mean by Undefined?" Logan demanded. "Who was she talking about?"

"Is it not you?" Felidae mocked.

I had remembered the term Undefined back in training. Aaron had mentioned it in passing. An Undefined was a person who had no animal bound to them. Though, it didn't seem possible. There were infinitely more animals than humans. One must have been bound with one person. Logan could not have been an Undefined. He had Ember.

"He has an animal," I told him. "Ember," I repeated, looking over at Logan. Under his lips, I could see a hint of his teeth gritting together.

"If you say it like that," Felidae drawled. "Then any person can pick up a stray animal and call it theirs. The Phluid is the most important part. His Phluid isn't strong enough or capable enough to bond with any animal. The question you should be asking is, what damaged his Phluid so much as to make him Undefined. Or maybe he was born Undefined? Either way, he's an Undefined."

"Not having an animal doesn't mean you're useless," I countered.

"When did I say useless?" he said. "They're just at a huge disadvantage to those who do."

I grinded my sandals against the dirt. "Iona never said that."

"Certainly not," Felidae agreed. "She never really imagined a world this divided. She never would have even believed Undefineds existed."

Logan finally started to speak, his words placid and steel. "Who gave me my phoenix?"

Felidae's head slowly turned to him. "Malanthe of course. She created two phoenixes and gave one to you. The raid's purpose was to find an Undefined to give the phoenix to and then all Aaron and Mr. Hrodvitnir had to do was assign the animal to you. Though, there's no true bond between you and your so-called Ember."

The rest of Felidae's words were a slur. My memories jogged back to the quill in the Archives, Logan's symbol and the cut on his back this morning. Then, back to the Alvnite Caves where he could not hear any signal from Ember. Also, I could never forget Ember's initial reaction to him. He was the only one who wasn't able to conjure his weapon at will. It was not pure coincidence. His Phluid had been extremely weak this whole time.