“Kalin, stop!” Rowan shouted.
No one was getting in my way. Not even Rowan. “I’m done talking.”
“Kalin—”
“Enough!” I shouted, turning around to face Rowan. The anger bubbled in my stomach as heat radiated through my limbs. Sweat pearled on the back of my neck. My insides were burning up. Needing some kind of release, I screamed. Fire ignited at the tips of my fingers. Panicking, I wiggled my hand. The flames shot out of my fingertips, hitting Rowan in the face.
Rowan fell backwards, landing on his backside with a thump. “Holy shit!” he said, laughing.
I stared at my palms. Symbols of the four courts moved over my forearms. A jolt shot through me, knocking me to the ground. I closed my eyes as images whipped through my mind. It was like I was watching the history of the world in fast-forward mode. But it wasn’t a history I remembered from books I read in school. This was the history of the elementals. I saw it through the eyes of the former akashas. I saw their entire lives. When the pictures stopped, I opened my eyes. My senses instantly heightened. All around me, everything came alive.
The elements called to me.
I could feel them. Each element was vastly different from the other. Concentrating on fire was like touching raw passion. It was intense, which explained why the flames released in my fit of anger. When I focused on calm energy, water in a nearby pitcher shot up into the ceiling. I dropped to my knees, pressing my open palms into the floor. The rocks tingled with life. I clenched my fists, flexing the muscles in my arms. The power of the woodland court was summoned through strength. As the knowledge of the akasha settled in my mind, wind blew in from the outside. Logic ignited the power of air.
Now this was cool.
“How did you do that?” Orion asked, helping me off the floor.
“She’s the akasha,” Rowan said, massaging the back of his head.
I cringed, knowing I had been the one to cause him pain. “I’m really sorry.”
Rowan shrugged.
Orion waved his hands in front of him. “But how? Your power just turned on all of a sudden.”
I wasn’t sure myself. I had tried thousands of times to ignite the power and nothing worked. Maybe it just came on when it wanted to. Then, I remembered what Sebastian had told me. “It was the poisoned wine that blocked my akasha powers. Losing so much blood must have cleaned out my system. All the emotion I was feeling broke through the block.”
My words made tears well in Mom’s eyes. The power ignited because of the emotions I felt from Dad’s death. I couldn’t bring him back, but I damn well could avenge him. I had been given this power to balance the elements. To reunite the four courts. But before I could do any of that, I had to reclaim my own court. I reached down, grabbing Rowan’s sword off the floor. I handed it to him, and said, “I won’t be needing this anymore.”
“Where are you going?” Rowan asked.
I glanced out the window, imagining my father’s ashes finding its way to the first wind. The only solace I had, was knowing the peace he must feel. “I’m going to reclaim the throne for my family.”
The coronation ceremony had already begun. Air elementals filled every inch of the throne room. All the members of the air court council stood behind my father’s empty chair, except Jaya. She stood above a kneeling Sebastian, holding the crown over his head. I reached my hand out, pointing at the window closest to them. I called to my element. Thunder crashed in the night sky, and then a bolt of lightning came through the window. It hit Jaya in the hand, knocking my father’s crown to the ground.
The crowd gasped.
“Already crowning a new king, I see!” I yelled, getting the attention of the entire room. Elementals whispered to one another, bowing as I passed by. I made my way toward the throne. Sebastian stood next to Jaya, eyes wide with horror. “Your plan only had one flaw, Sebastian. You got too cocky. Had you waited until I was dead, you’d be a king right now.”
Rowan, Orion, and his knights appeared behind the council with their weapons raised. No one would be going anywhere anytime soon.
Sebastian’s face calmed. “I’m so happy to see you’re alive, Kalin. We all mourned when we heard of your death.”
“Nice try, asshole.” I said, putting up my hand. “Really, I appreciate your effort, but it’s all over.”
Sebastian leaned in to me, speaking in a low voice. “Nothing has changed. We still have our little arrangement.”
“Yeah, see that’s where you’re confused.” I turned to face the crowd. “Sebastian tried to blackmail me into marrying him. He thought that if the council found out my father was weakened, and that I had lost my power, you would no longer want us as your royal family. What he forgot to mention, was that he was poisoning us all along.”
Shouts rang out from several areas of the room. The elementals were outraged. In between the shouting, Sebastian said, “Those are false allegations. You have no proof.”
“I don’t need any.” The shimmery tattoos of the four court symbols appeared on my arms, moving slowly through my body. “I am the akasha and I sentence you to death for the murder of my father, King Taron.”
Two of Orion’s knights held Sebastian in place. He struggled to free himself, but he wasn’t going anywhere. “You can’t do this. There has to be a trial. You need proof.”
“I am the proof,” Mom said, glaring at Sebastian. “I drank the wine you gave Taron. He used the rest of his healing power to save my life.” Then, she addressed the crowd. “Taron is dead because he was poisoned.”
Jaya moved in front of Sebastian. “I won’t allow this. I am a member of this council.”
“You are no longer a member of the council. You see, your son told me the part you played in all of this. You may not have wanted me dead, but you encouraged him to poison me to block my power.” I pointed at her as two more guards took her into custody. “You are just as guilty as Sebastian.”
I stepped in front of Sebastian. “I trusted you. I thought you were my friend. You could have had a nice life. I would have rewarded you for helping me as you promised. Instead, you got greedy.” Closing my eyes, I calmed my energy. I envisioned water leaving the nearby fountain, forming a thin stream.
“No!” Sebastian screamed. He must have realized what I was doing.
“Please don’t do this,” Jaya cried.
When I opened my eyes, the stream of water shot over to us and entered Sebastian through his nostrils. He tried to break free from Orion’s knights, but that wasn’t going to happen. Once he stopped struggling, he tried to speak. His voice was muffled from the liquid. “You weren’t the only one paying attention during our little talks, Sebastian. I seem to remember you saying your greatest fear was being drowned.” I put my hand over his lips, encouraging the water to spread deep into his lungs. “This is for my father,” I said, punching him in the ribcage.
His body jolted several times, then the life left his eyes. The guards let his body crumble to the ground. Jaya dropped to her knees, crying over his dead body. “Take her to the dungeons,” I told them. She begged to stay with her son, but I would not allow it. I thought about killing her, but that was too easy. She needed time to think. Time to suffer for the decisions she made. And the surrounding elementals needed to see that she was punished.
I stared out into the crowd. “If anyone else would like to challenge me for the crown, come forward now.”
Elementals looked at one another, but no one stepped forward. Instead, they fell to their knees and bowed.
Orion came to stand behind me, placing the crown on my head. “Hail Queen Kalin of House Paralda!” he shouted. “Long may she reign.”
And the elementals repeated, “Queen Kalin!”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Rowan
I spent the night with my girlfriend.
Really, I spent the night snuggling with the floor of my girlfriend’s bedroom. It was the only way her Mom would be okay with me being there. Understandable, I gue
ss. Kalin was technically still a teenager in the mortal world. I tried to argue that it didn’t work the same for elementals. Kalin was considered an adult, and now, a queen. But her Mom wasn’t having any of that. I ultimately gave in. No point in pissing off her Mom. So that was how I ended up on the floor with a major cramp in my back. But I wouldn’t tell Kalin any of that. She didn’t want to be alone last night and that’s all I needed to hear.
In a very short time, Kalin became the most powerful elemental among all the courts. The one meant to balance the elements and potentially save the world. It was a lot for one person to handle, especially considering that she spent the bulk of her life in the mortal world. Not to mention, she also lost her father. He was someone who had been there for her all of her life. Someone she loved. I envied how it must have felt to love a parent so much. Not knowing who my father was made it hard for me to understand. But I could be there for her and comfort her.
Even if it meant that I may end up needing back surgery.
After I attempted to work out the kink in my back, I peeked over at her. She was all tangled up in a mountain of covers. I made my way over to the bed and crawled in behind her. I had promised her Mom that I wouldn’t sleep in her bed. But I never said I wouldn’t get in it. Sneaky way around that, I thought. Kalin wiggled a bit. I wrapped my arm around her waist, closing the space between us.
She laughed. “If my mother saw you right now, she’d kill you.”
From this angle, I got a good look at her tiny tank top and cupcake pajama pants. I have no idea how I managed to keep myself out of her bed all night. The girl was tempting without even trying. I ran my finger along her bare arm. “Oh, there are ways around that, Jelly Bean.”
“Ways?” she repeated, turning around to face me.
“Sure.” I winked. “If she walked in, I’d hide behind a glamour. She’d never know.”
Kalin wrapped her arm around me, burying her face in my chest. “Very clever.”
“It’s a gift.” I smirked.
The door to her bedroom flung open. Kalin leaped up and I fell onto the floor with a loud thump. Yeah, this back thing wasn’t getting any better any time soon. “What the hell?” I said, massaging my lower back with my palm.
“Are you okay?” Kalin asked.
“Yeah,” I said. Bruised ego mostly.
When I helped myself off the floor, I noticed Ariel standing by the door hiding her eyes. “I cannot even express how sorry I am right now. I swear, I had no idea you had company.”
Kalin chuckled. “It’s all right, Ariel. You can open your eyes. There’s nothing to see. Rowan was a complete gentleman last night.”
If Ariel had been five minutes later, I wasn’t sure gentleman would have been the best word to describe me. The moment Kalin nuzzled into my chest, my intentions took a turn into the R rating category. “Care to tell us why you busted in here?” I asked.
Ariel’s eyes widened as if a light bulb had just turned on in her brain. “I’m actually glad you’re both here. Queen Brita has called an emergency meeting in the throne room. All members of the high council have been summoned.”
Kalin glanced at me, looking confused. “But there is no high council. Has no one told her about my father?”
Since I had slept on the cold floor, I left most of my clothes on. I sat down on her bed, pulling out my boots from beneath. As I slipped my shoes on, I said, “Whatever it is, it can’t be good.” I slid my sword and sheath over my shoulder. “Let’s get down there as quickly as possible.”
By the time we reached the throne room, several members of the former high council had arrived. Brita stood in the corner with various members of her court. It was impossible to tell if they were talking since they only communicated telepathically. Although I couldn’t read her mind, the worried expression across her face spoke volumes. Orion and Marlena were already seated in the circle of marble chairs. They wore their ceremonial green robes. I looked down at my jeans, feeling even more out of place than when I first walked into the room. Last time the high council met, Liana represented the fire court.
Now, it was me.
Glancing around, I saw no other fire elementals. I would stand alone. I sat in the circle, keeping my posture straight. I could not let my insecurities get the best of me. It was important they recognized that I belonged here with them. They needed to believe I was the elemental who could rebuild the fire court. We had to trust in each other if we had any hope of putting the high council back together. The elementals in this room would be responsible for bringing the four elements back in balance. It sounded cliché, but the planet would not survive without our success. The fate of the world depended on us.
Yeah, no pressure there.
Kalin entered the room a minute after I did wearing casual clothes so I wouldn’t feel out of place. Each council member watched her in awe as she made her way toward the circle. Clearly, they all knew about her akasha power. Most elementals believed the akashas were extinct. There had not been a new one in over one hundred years. The power of the akasha was something special, but Kalin was more than that. She was the first halfling in our history to inherit the akasha abilities. It was pretty ironic considering that many elementals frowned upon the existence of halflings. Now, they would be forced to give her the respect she had always deserved.
Once we were all seated in the circle of marble chairs, Brita stood. She turned her attention to Kalin. Although she spoke to her telepathically, we could all hear what she was saying. Brita’s expression turned somber. “I am so sorry for your loss, Queen Kalin. I did not foresee your father’s death until it was too late.”
“How is that possible?” Kalin asked. “I thought you could see everything.”
“The future is always changing, young Queen. When a decision is made, it can shift the outcome for one individual or even thousands of others. It would be impossible to see everything happening all at once.” Brita pressed her lips together as if she were contemplating what she would say next. “During the time of Taron’s death, there was a block on my powers.”
Orion said Brita had left the engagement party in a hurry. It must have been when she sensed the block. Who had the power to stop an elemental queen? The question niggled inside me. Something about her words felt personal, as if I were somehow connected. But how? I didn’t possess any kind of power capable of challenging her. If my mother had the ability to block other elementals’ power, she never used it in front of me. I had never even heard of anything or anyone gifted with such abilities. Not even an akasha.
Orion leaned forward in his chair. “A block? Has that ever happened before.” he asked.
Brita stepped toward Orion. “Yes, Woodland King. Once, long ago, my power was hindered by an ancient, magical object. An object that has since been hidden away. Guarded by the leader of the fire court.”
All eyes turned to me. “What?” This was all I needed. I finally started to rebuild the fire court and now they thought I caused Brita to momentarily lose her psychic abilities. I waved my palms in front of me. “I can assure you, I don’t have that kind of power.”
Brita spoke directly to me. “Each court leader protects one of the four sacred objects. The knowledge of their whereabouts is known only to the king and queen. You should feel its presence, young King.” An intense calm came over me as she tried to reach my mind. “Concentrate. Try to sense its power.”
“If I had this powerful object, wouldn’t I know about it?” I asked.
“The knowledge should have been passed to you at the beginning of your reign. The fact that you know nothing of it only adds to the mystery.” Brita placed her hands on top of mine. “I will attempt to join our powers. Perhaps together, we will find the answers you seek.”
Kalin reached over. When she put her hand over top of our joined hands, I crashed against the back of my chair. The combination of our powers was unlike anything I had ever felt. Waves of power sizzled within my skin. It was like I had just become Godzilla or th
e Incredible Hulk. Power like this seemed impossible. If this was how Kalin felt all the time, I don’t know how it didn’t overtake her. Brita and Kalin stared at me as if they were waiting on something. Oh, I had totally forgotten I was supposed to be helping them find some ancient object.
I closed my eyes. In the darkness, I felt as if I were moving. It was the same sensation I had when I was flying. This had to be Brita searching inside my mind. A warm, loving energy surrounded me—similar to a physical embrace. Somehow, I knew that was Kalin. Something in the distance came into focus. It was the caverns beneath the fire court castle. We traveled through the caves, entering a small hole next to the chambers of the eternal flame. Inside, there was a box sitting on a massive tree stump. The container was empty. As I got closer, I felt its strange energy. Instantly, the strongest migraine I had ever felt burst into my head. But it wasn’t a normal headache. Pictures raced through my mind along with enough information to fill a tome.
The Ring of Dispel.
All at once, I knew everything about the artifacts history. It was as if I was reading from a book. Elemental magic could not be used against the wearer of the ring. It was one of the four sacred objects. Each item so powerful they had to be kept in secret. Only the kings and queens of each court knew of their existence. That’s why I had never heard of them. It all made total sense now. Another image flashed in my head. It was Valac. The ring was showing me the vision as it happened. Valac stole the ring when he challenged me for the leadership of our court. He used the fighting as a decoy. Mother must have told him about the ring.
Fragile Reign (Mortal Enchantment Book 2) Page 19
