Reed stepped into the villa and whistled. The ceiling alone was high enough to make him feel like a bug. Marble floors, glass panels, furniture that looked way too expensive to even breathe on. He tilted his head at her, deadpan.
"You sure you're an officer? Not, like, a cartel boss or something?"
Beatrix's lips curved. "I'm whatever I need to be at the moment. Officer. Neighbor. Teacher. Temptress. Take your pick."
"Right," he muttered, dragging his eyes away from the chandelier that probably cost more than his entire block. "Figures. So… training. How's this supposed to work?"
Instead of answering immediately, she drifted toward the kitchen area, pulling open a massive fridge that looked like it could hold a small army's worth of food. She bent down, rummaging. Her voice carried easily.
"Training starts with knowing what you're dealing with. You can't fight what you don't understand. First you need to understand one thing, all the myths are true." She straightened with two cartons in hand. "They are. All of them. In some way or another."
He raised his brows. "Dragons?"
She gave him a look like he was slow. "Yes."
Reed blinked. "You've got to be shitting me."
She grinned, snapping open a carton. "Nope. Dragons exist. Rare now, but still around. Power just below angels and demons. Scarcity's the only reason they don't dominate."
Reed shook his head. "Great. So the Pokémon roster is real. Got it."
"Hungry?" she asked suddenly, tilting the carton at him.
"Yeah. Got any…" he paused, scanning. "….you know what, orange juice and something not green. Like a sandwich or whatever. Please."
She gave him a sharp little smile but pulled exactly that from the fridge, moving with that unhurried confidence of someone who had no reason to rush for anything.
"Anyway," she continued, sliding him the plate and pouring herself a drink. "Now imagine all of these creatures living beside fragile, short-lived and easy to break humans... You can guess how that went."
Reed took a bite, mouth full. "Discrimination?"
She nodded. "Played with them. Killed them. Enslaved them. Humans were pets at best, cattle at worst. And once upon a time, this was the norm. Until humanity fought back."
Reed swallowed, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "You're saying humans actually stood a chance against… dragons. Angels. Vampires. All that?"
"They bled for centuries to make it happen. And out of that came two answers." She raised two fingers. "Apostles. Shadowhunters."
Reed frowned. "Apostles. You mean like… church apostles?"
Her smile widened, sly. "Not exactly the same. But close. The church worships them. Still does, in whispers. Apostles are the children of angels and human women. Not miracles. Not divine conception. Angels had sex, and their children inherited power. Prophets, saviors, miracle workers. Humanity saw them as signs of hope."
"And shadowhunters?" Reed asked, chewing slower now.
She leaned closer over the counter, eyes gleaming. "Humans who risked everything. Who knew angels weren't the golden saviors the world painted them as, and demons weren't just chaos either. Both sides are flawed. Both selfish. Both… human, in a way. So humans made their own answer. They researched, they bled, they died until they found a ritual."
Reed swallowed hard. "The angel blood and demon blood thing."
"Mixed together in equal potency, consumed in a ritual. Nine out of ten died screaming. But the ones who survived became shadowhunters. They didn't get angelic magic. Didn't get demonic magic. Both natures fused, clashed, created something new entirely. Shadow magic."
She walked around the counter now, circling him like she was savoring every word. "They became the monsters that hunted monsters. Shadows bending to their will. Traveling through them. Shifting into them. Spies, assassins, warriors. They could fight with vampire reflexes, werewolf strength, demon resilience, and yet remain human enough to love what they fought for."
Reed's skin prickled. He stared down at his plate, suddenly not hungry anymore. "So you're telling me I might be one of them."
She stopped, tilted her head. "Shadowhunters are bloodlines. Old families. Ancient names. They don't just… appear. Which is why what happened to you is strange."
He lifted his eyes. "You think whatever ritual they tried with me might have turned me into this?"
Her gaze lingered. "Maybe. Or maybe it unlocked something that should've stayed locked."
Reed felt chills crawl down his arms. His voice came out low. "Do you think… do you think I was the one who killed them? Back in that warehouse. Maybe I lost control and,,,"
"Well…." Her answer cut fast, sharp. "You told me you were still tied up when you woke up. Whatever tore through them wasn't you. That much I know."
Reed exhaled, shaky, running a hand through his hair. He didn't even realize he'd been holding his breath until now.
"Forget about it for now," she said firmly, putting her glass down. "Dwelling won't change what happened. Better to focus on what you can control. Which brings us to training."
She led him out back, to a wide open courtyard lined with trees. The sunlight slanted across the stone floor, shadows stretching everywhere. Reed stood awkwardly, hands in his pockets.
"So… what do I do? Punch the air? Meditate?"
Beatrix snorted. "Magic is intent. Not chanting. Intent. Absolute confidence that what you want is what will happen. The veil between thought and reality is thinner than humans believe. Push hard enough with conviction and the world bends."
"Yeah, sounds easy," Reed muttered.
She smirked. "It isn't. Which is why we start small. Don't think about fireballs. Don't think about teleportation. Look down."
He did. His shadow stretched at his feet, dark against the pale stone.
"Good. Now command it. Tell it to move. Not in your head. Not as a maybe. As a certainty."
Reed frowned at the ground like it had insulted him. "Move."
Nothing.
"Louder," she said.
"Move."
Nothing again.
She folded her arms, watching him with amused patience. "Intent, Reed. Don't say it like you're asking a waitress for extra napkins. Say it like the shadow already belongs to you."
Reed clenched his fists, narrowed his eyes. "Move."
This time, it twitched. Just slightly. A ripple along the edge of the shadow like a breeze had passed, except there was no breeze. Reed staggered back, heart pounding.
"Holy shit."
Beatrix's smile was sharp as knives. "Good. Now you're starting to understand."