To the Falls

by Heather Renee

  We followed Mathias and entered the room. As we sat around the table opposite of the other Elders, this whole situation really started to sink in.

  Lucas grabbed my hand under the table and gave me a reassuring squeeze. He knew I was freaking out. I needed to have faith in his knowledge and that we’d get through this together.

  “The Elders and I have continued our research and still haven’t found anything that would explain what’s happening with the Falls and in the forest. In our two-thousand-year-old history, we’ve never encountered such a problem.” He rubbed his tired eyes. “Every twenty years when new Guardians come home, the Falls refill and the cycle starts over like clockwork.”

  We already knew all of this. I didn’t understand why the Elders weren’t being more helpful. Lucas had told me they spoke with the Fates and always had a plan. It didn’t make sense why they didn’t now.

  “You’re all stronger together as Meraki’s and each of you will complement the group in your own way.” Mathias continued. “Hopefully your training and bonding these last two days will be enough. Kaliah, I see Strix has claimed you. He’ll be a valuable asset, trust him to guide you.”

  I looked over at Strix on my shoulder and he looked very unhappy. I wasn’t sure what was bothering him, but his feathers were ruffled and he was practically vibrating on my shoulder.

  “There’s been a change in plans. You’ll leave today.” Abram added. “Based on our calculations, there is only four days left before the Falls are depleted completely. Go home, pack your supplies, and leave as soon as possible. We gave you as much time as we could, but we cannot delay any longer. We wish you luck and stay safe.”

  A few more Elders added their well wishes and then we were excused. I was disappointed with the whole meeting. I knew I was new to this whole world and how things worked here, but the meeting was useless besides telling us to leave today.

  Strix didn’t calm down and as soon as we walked outside he flew off. I really wish I could read his mind. He did whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted.

  “Well, that seemed pointless,” Tiana grumbled. “I guess we’re supposed to just walk right into the forest and figure it all out ourselves.”

  “It’s going to be okay,” Oliver said and pulled her to him. “We might not have a lot of information yet, but between all of us, we’ll figure it out.”

  Each of the Merakis always gravitated to their pair, continuously drawing strength from each other and growing stronger. I looked around and even though until a few days ago, I didn’t know most of these people, I couldn’t imagine facing anything like this without them.

  Watching Jordan fall head over heels for Kane made me so happy and I could see Lela and Ryan and Tiana and Oliver going through the same thing. I wasn’t sure I was in love with Lucas yet, but I knew that nothing would ever be stronger than the bond we had already formed and we were well on our way to being in love.

  “Go home,” Lucas said. “Pack what you’ll need for 3 days in the forest and meet back at Kali’s in an hour.”

  We all ported to our own houses. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be the last time we would be going home.

  Chapter Eight

  Jordan helped me pack since I had no idea what to bring or expect in the forest. My hands were shaking and my heart was going a million miles an hour. This was it. I wasn’t sure we were ready, but we didn’t really have a choice. The Fates thought we could do it, so I was going to try and trust in that.

  “Kali,” Jordan placed her hand on my shoulder. “Breathe. It’s going to be okay. I’ve been around a long time and I’ve seen a lot of bad things in my life. We can handle this.”

  She made it sound like this was no big deal. I guess to someone experienced, this wasn’t a big deal, but I wasn’t that someone.

  “I wish I could be calm like you,” I said. “But that’s not happening.”

  “I’ve fought dark spirits for a long time.” Jordan said. “I won’t let anything happen to you. The Fates put us together for a reason. They knew you’d need a kickass best friend to watch your back and I was the perfect person for the job.”

  Jordan gave me her biggest, cocky smile and continued packing. The Fates really did a good job when they assigned her as my protector. She was the best friend a girl could ever have.

  “Let’s get this over with.” I said. “The longer we take to get there, the longer I’m going to keep freaking out. We have food, water and clothes. Do we need anything else?”

  I hoped not because this bag was getting heavy. I pictured myself falling over backwards and flailing around like a turtle on its shell. Not the image I needed in my head. I needed to picture the badass Guardian I was supposed to be and get my head in the game.

  “This should be good.” Jordan said. “Let’s head downstairs and wait for the others.”

  We didn’t have to wait long, Lucas and Kane walked into the kitchen right after we got downstairs. They were both dressed in black cargo pants, military style boots and short sleeve black shirts. Hot damn, my man looked good. I licked my lips and took another look. If I was going to die, then at least I’d have this image engrained into my memory.

  “Enjoying the view?” Lucas grinned.

  “Yup, do you mind?” I asked.

  “Not a bit,” He laughed. “But the two of you should’ve changed too.”

  I looked down at my jeans and tennis shoes and realized it probably wasn’t the best choice for what we were about to do. I was surprised that Jordan hadn’t thought of changing. Clothes were usually never far from her mind. Jordan must have been more nervous than she was letting on if she could forget about our attire.

  “I can’t believe I didn’t think of that,” Jordan said. “We’ll be right back.”

  We put our bags down and ported back upstairs to our rooms. I looked for clothing similar to what the guys were wearing. I needed to get changed before Jordan came in here and tried to dress me again.

  I found black skinny jeans and a gray tank top. Now I just needed some ass kicking boots and I’d be all set.

  “Looking for these?” Jordan walked in my room with a pair of boots hanging from her fingers.

  “Perfect,” I said. “Now we look better than the guys.”

  We went back downstairs and everyone else was there. They looked as fierce as I was pretending to be.

  “Well, don’t we look like a group of vigilantes,” Tiana said. “We doing this?”

  “We’re certainly not getting any younger and I’ve got big plans after this is over that don’t include the rest of you.” Jordan joked. “Let’s get this show on the road and kick some evil’s ass.”

  My parents walked in the door right as we were about to leave and took one look at us and shook their heads.

  “Where are you going?” My dad said.

  “Our timeline was moved up, we have to head into the forest today,” I said. “I was going to leave you a note if we didn’t see you.”

  He rolled his eyes at me and sighed. “You’re not ready. I’m not ready yet.”

  “I’m going to be fine, Dad.” I walked over and gave him a hug. “I have some of the best protectors in Arvata with me, so try not to worry.”

  “Telling your parents not worry is like telling someone not to breathe,” My mom said. “We will always worry about you.”

  I gave my mom hug as well and held on a little tighter and longer to her.

  “I love you both and we will be back in just a couple days, I promise.”

  I really hoped I wasn’t lying, but I didn’t want to make my parents worry even more by letting them know I was uncertain of what might happen.

  “We love you too, baby girl,” My dad said. “Lucas, you bring our daughter back in one piece.”

  Lucas nodded his understanding to my dad and I hugged both of my parents one more time before we left.

  “Okay, let’s port to the edge of the forest and evaluate things from there.” Lucas said while grabbing my hand. “We’ll walk in
together. I don’t want us porting in the forest unless necessary. We don’t know what we might drop in on while there.”

  We arrived at the entrance of the forest and nothing physically seemed out of the ordinary with the edge of the forest, but I could feel a heaviness in the air. Something was pressing down on my body and trying to take my breath away. My vision became fuzzy and I stumbled.

  “Kali, what’s wrong?” Lucas grabbed my arm to catch me.

  “I don’t know. It’s the same as my dreams.” I paused trying to catch my breath. “The last couple days before my birthday, the dreams changed. When I’d get near the forest, I’d be pushed out of my dream and it’d hurt like I was physically pushed. This time I feel it in my chest and my head.”

  I tried to shake off the pressure and level out my breathing, but I was struggling. We had to make it into the forest. I wouldn’t be the reason for us to fail before we even started. I refused to be.

  Strix showed up then and landed on my shoulder as usual. He helped to calm me a little but my knees were still trembling.

  “Do we need to go back?” Lela asked concerned.

  “No, I can do this.” I pulled my shoulders back and gave them a forced smile. “We need to keep going, I’m sure it will pass.”

  I would be fine. We would not fail. Evil would not win. If I said it enough, hopefully it would become the truth.

  “Stay right next to me.” Lucas said. “If you get worse, you need to tell me. We’ll come back later after we reevaluate things if need be. There’s no sense rushing in if it’s going to hurt you.”

  “I can do this,” I rubbed my chest. “This is the right thing to do.”

  Jordan came over to stand on the other side of me and Kane followed her. I tried to draw on their strength as we walked closer to the forest, but the pressure was building again. I pulled my hand from Lucas’s and grabbed my head as we entered the forest.

  Blinding pain started in my head and went down through the rest of my body. I closed my eyes and tried to push the pressure back, but it kept building. I was certain something in my head was cracking open as the agony reached its high point.

  “I don’t think I’m going to make it,” I mumbled right before the lights went out.

  What the hell was happening to me? I felt like someone was trying to peel layers from my brain until there was nothing left. Images kept flashing in my mind like what happened on my birthday only this time they were clearer. The images seemed like memories but they weren’t my memories.

  I didn’t know how long this had been happening, but I relived life after life of memories. I saw a lot of things that I didn’t understand, but I knew that everyone and everything I saw had something to do with Arvata.

  I finally felt the pain recede and the memories stopped coming at me so fast. I came back to the real world and saw piercing teal-blue eyes staring down at me. Lucas’s face was creased in worry lines. I leaned up from the ground on my elbows, taking it slow so I didn’t overdo it.

  “Thank the Fates, you’re awake.” Lucas growled.

  He was not happy about my passing out. My man was a little overprotective. I gave him a smile and finished sitting up.

  “I was about to go crazy.” He said. “You were out for almost fifteen minutes. What happened to you?”

  “I don’t know.” I said. “The pressure in my head got stronger and then I was out. I started getting these memories flashing through my head, but they weren’t my memories. I’m not sure whose they were. Seemed like it was several different people from different time periods.” I rubbed my temples. “Do any of you know why that would have happened?”

  I really hoped someone knew what was going on with me.

  “It can’t be,” Jordan said astounded. “Lucas, do you think she’s an Arelia? We haven’t had one in almost a hundred years, since the Dark Spirit War.”

  Arelia? I didn’t like the way the conversation was headed especially since Lucas’s parents died in the Dark Spirit War.

  “We need to get her to Lorelle,” Lucas said. “She’ll know what’s going on. We should have done that when you guys arrived. Kali, do you feel well enough to port?”

  “I should be fine. Help me stand up and let’s hurry.” I said. “Whatever has been causing the pressure in my chest and head this whole time is gone and I know we need to be in that forest.”

  Everything was so much clearer now. I could feel my magic pulsing and throbbing in my blood. It was as if I was being smothered by a blanket before and now I was powerful. Stronger than the magic I felt when Jordan tried to merge with me.

  We arrived at a small cottage and I could feel heavy magic in the area, but I instinctively knew it was good magic. Whatever had happened to me was definitely positive. I couldn’t believe how much I was missing before.

  The small house was covered in plant life. Vines grew up the sides of the house and on to the wooden roof. Tree limbs framed the door and windows and flowers grew randomly around everything. The house was doused in life and goodness.

  Jordan walked up and knocked on the door. We all waited behind her and a small, older woman answered the door. She took in the sight of all of us and when her eyes landed on me, she gasped.

  “Get inside now.” She ordered and everyone followed.

  I assumed this was Lorelle or at least I hoped so. We didn’t have time for anything else right now.

  Lucas pulled me closer. He was completely freaked out whereas I finally felt calm. I gave his hand an extra squeeze and a reassuring smile. He gave me a grunt in response and my smile got bigger. I felt a little bad but I was also enjoying this side of him.

  “Do you know what’s happening with Kali?” Jordan asked Lorelle. “She passed out as soon as we entered the forest and didn’t wake up for fifteen minutes. She said while she was unconscious she was seeing other people’s memories.”

  “Come here, dear.” Lorelle said to me.

  I pried Lucas’s fingers from my hand and shook my head at him. When I walked closer to Lorelle, she grabbed my hands and started to hum softly. Her magic surrounded me in a hazy fog and tickled my skin.

  “You’re the next Arelia.” She said reverently. “Do you know what that means, child?”

  “No, but as soon as I woke up in the forest, I knew something was different inside me,” I said.

  “There’s heavy magic in the forest that’s trying to keep people out,” Lorelle said. “You had a shield on your magic that was keeping you from having access to all of it. The shield in the forest and the one in your body collided, and whatever magic is in the forest broke what was keeping yours suppressed. Someone didn’t want you to know that you’re an Arelia.”

  I knew we needed to stop whatever was happening in the forest, but I also wondered if this new information meant we had two different problems to deal with. Maybe they were the same problem and whoever was causing the issues weren’t as smart as they thought they were.

  I turned around and looked at the others. Lela looked worried and Jordan seemed ready to kick some ass.

  “What’s an Arelia and what does it mean for Kali?” Tiana asked.

  I was glad she asked because we needed to get this information and figure out how to use it to our advantage quickly.

  “An Arelia is the highest holder of magic in our history.” Lorelle said. “You can wield more magic than ten Guardians combined. Past Arelias have also led the Elders and helped lead our people. You’ll have great responsibilities ahead of you.” She put her hand on my shoulder. “I’m not surprised that you were chosen by the Fates to go to the forest and find the evil within. Those chosen to go with you will only help increase your strength so that you can save Arvata. Trust your instincts. Now that the shield over your magic has been lifted, you’ll start to gain the knowledge of past Arelias and that’ll help you with your journey now and all in the future.”

  “I was unconscious when I arrived in Arvata and had weird images in my head, but they came too fast to understand any o
f them,” I said. “Today when I passed out I had similar images but they came slower. Is that what you mean by the knowledge I will gain?”

  “Yes dear, these images will keep coming to you and though you may not feel like it now, your brain will be retaining that information to use at a future date.” Lorelle said. “Be careful. Until this evil is eradicated from the forest, don’t share this information with anyone outside of this room. Someone does not want you to succeed and you can’t trust anyone until you do. I wish you luck on your journey as all our lives depend on it. Listen to what the Fates say in your book and trust yourself as well as those around you. I can feel the goodness from all of you in this room and if you can succeed in this challenge, you all will be rewarded.”

  This was so much bigger than we had been led to believe. I couldn’t believe someone had messed with my head. I had so many questions, but we didn’t have enough time to sit here and analyze them. It was time to put my big girl pants on and kick some evil ass.

  “Thank you for the information,” I said. “It’s greatly appreciated. If you don’t mind, I’ll be back to see you when this is all over and maybe you can teach me more about the history of Arelias?”

  “Of course Kaliah, you’re welcome in my home any day,” Lorelle said. “Now you must go and everyone must stay aware. Many blessings to you on this journey.”

  With that, we all filed out of Lorelle’s house and ported back to the forest. Time to try again. We wouldn’t be turning back until we defeated whatever had decided to mess with my head. I didn’t know if it was the new power I felt within me or the fact I was seriously pissed someone had been in my head, but I now knew we would win. Nobody messed with me or my family and got away with it.

  “You ready for this?” Lucas asked as he grabbed my hand.

  I noticed he had an even harder time staying away from me. Poor guy had seen me unconscious one too many times in the short time he’d known me. No more of that. Everything in me was vibrating, waiting to be released, and the bastard messing with my new home was going to be on the receiving end of my fury.