Reincarnated As Kai In The Magicians

Back in the freezing dark of the warehouse, Julia and Marina rummaged through every container and scrap in the meat locker. Julia's eyes darted to the impaled body.

"Fat," she muttered while looking at the dead body for the last ingredient. "We need fat."

Marina's eyes widened in horror getting the idea. "Oh no. No, no. I can't"

Julia grabbed a pair of rusty scissors from a shelf, stood over the body, and started cutting in.

Marina gagged. "Oh my god, you're just going for it!"

After a few tense, grisly minutes, Julia pulled free a chunk of what she needed. She mixed it with the other ingredients they'd scrounged, her hands shaking, and with a swift gesture the mixture transformed into a thick, creamy salve.

"Magic ho-go," Marina breathed, relief flooding her as they rubbed the warmth cream onto their faces.

Julia exhaled hard. "Let's find a way out of this shithole."

Meanwhile, at Brakebills...

Kai watched the brewing drama from a distance, arms crossed. Quentin was in Penny's face, shoving him.

Penny smirked darkly. "Ho ho ho, you littlee piece of shit," and shoved Q back, harder.

Quentin reeled, ready to charge again, but Penny's open-palm smack caught him clean, dropping him to the ground.

Kai muttered under his breath, "Well, that escalated from toddler slap-fight to WWE real quick."

"You ratted me out!" Q yelled from the floor.

Kai listened, vamp hearing on point, thinking,

'Oh boy, this'll make for great gossip fodder.'

Penny scowled. "I told the truth."

"Not all of it!" Q fired back.

"Oh, am I a fool? Apparently not."

Kai decided that was his cue. He strolled over as Q scrambled up. Calmly, Kai grabbed Penny's shoulder and squeezed just enough to make him wince.

"Argh! Let me go!" Penny hissed.

Kai lifted him slightly, separating the two. Penny glared and tried to shoved at him. Kai chuckled. "Oh? Are you challenging me now?"

For a fraction of a second, dark veins flashed beneath Kai's eyes. Penny froze.

"What the fuck was that...?"

Quentin, back on his feet, panicked and fired off a battle spell he copied from Kady, the spell she had used against the beast.

But it rebounded off Penny's pendant which had protection magic on it. The deflection ricocheted toward Kai, who sidestepped inhumanly fast though to a few watching students, it seemed as if he dodged the impossible. The blast sent Quentin flying backward, groaning in pain.

Penny started toward Q, but Kai blocked him with a firm look. "Don't even try it."

"What the fuck, Kai?!" Penny barked. Then to Q, "What the hell was that, you maniac?!"

Kai, spotting Sunderland approaching, muttered, "Great. This scene really says 'we're well-adjusted future magicians.'"

Sunderland's voice cut through the tension. "Hey! Step back! Who fired off that magic?!"

Penny pointed. "He did."

Q groaned. "I did."

Kai shrugged and says, "Well, there you have it. The rat and the squirrel confess their unspeakable crimes."

Sunderland snapped, "Infirmary. Both of you. Now."

Kai made to walk off. "Well, that's my cue"

"No. You too, Kai. I saw that spell. Concussive force like that could've affected you."

Kai internally groaned, "Fantastic. Because what I really wanted today was a thorough exam for injuries I don't have."

---

Back at the warehouse...

Outside the freezer, James watched a a guy walk infront of him. Suddenly, the door blasted off its hinges.

Julia and Marina emerged, faces smeared with warmth salve.

"Figured it out," Julia snapped. "The spell. Or, you know, the whole point that there isn't one. Not to keep the door locked, not to get out. Cute, Pete."

Pete gave her a mocking slow clap, leaning against a crate.

"Oh, and FYI?" Julia added, tossing the bent scissors aside. "Scissors make a shitty screwdriver."

Marina stayed silent, glaring at Pete as he rose to his feet.

"Good for you," Pete said. "Now you know why it's important."

"To almost die for no reason?" Julia fired back.

"No. To figure out that not everything's solved by magic. Key fact if you wanna last the month."

Julia glared. "You're not still debating if you're gonna let me into your little club, are you?"

"Hey, I invited you."

"No. You attacked me. In a bathroom. On my birthday."

Pete smirked. "And then your angry psycho boyfriend nearly popped my head off for it with a weird magic."

Julia blinked. "James?"

"No, Not that ordinary one. I mean the other one."

Her breath hitched. "Kai?!"

"Oh yeah. Gotta say, he caught me off guard. But next time?" Pete stepped closer, voice low. "He definitely wouldn't."

Julia shook her head. "You know what, I'm done proving myself to you."

"You weren't proving yourself to him. You were proving yourself to me."

Marina finally spoke, rolling up her sleeve to reveal five stars tattooed along her arm.

Pete grinned. "And that means… level 50."

Julia squinted. "Uh… wait, so you were?"

"Top bitch in New York. For starters." Marina said it with pride.

Julia crossed her arms. "And this was…?"

"Me discovering how much I like you. Smart. Passionate. And you can definitely toss a guy around and question things."

Julia scoffed. "You messed with my head."

"Think of how much you learned. Useful for when you're level 50."

As Julia rolled her eyes, Pete chimed in. "Hey, don't be mad."

"Mn, don't be mad," Marina echoed.

Julia frowned. "How am I supposed to trust you?"

Marina's grin softened. "Why would you trust anyone? But I'm willing to teach the right people everything I know. And I know a lot. Connections in… certain places."

Julia narrowed her eyes. "Brakebills?"

"Oh yeah," Pete said, smirking. "The one your psycho boyfriend attends."

Julia bristled. "He's not…"

"Come on," Marina interrupted. "Besides, that could be… useful For you and for us."

Pete gestured to a corner. "You want a drink?"

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