To move matters forward, Hawk asked, “Where are we headed?”
Arad answered, “Your High Lord General told us to follow the trail of the portal, and when we find it, we are to destroy it. I spoke with the dolphins about the plan, unsure about how to go about it. They are leading us to where it is rolling around on the bottom of the ocean. The Dolphins say the marine life will be very happy to see the last of it.”
Adriel frowned. “I am going to guess that the portal is causing trouble for them too.”
Arad nodded, even as he escorted Hawk, Adriel, Caia, and Thea into the bow of the ship so he could show them what was happening in the water. They were several hundred miles from shore and headed for open waters. “From what we understand, we don’t have that far to go to reach its current location. The dolphins will show the way, and if you look into the water, you will see them working to lead us to our goal. They are feeling quite proud of themselves, and they are having fun at the same time.”
Violet walked up to Arad’s side, and as she wound an arm around his waist, she added, “Dolphins tend to make games of most of the things they do. They are happy with their lot in life.”
It was Adriel who figured out what was going to happen. “You intend to sink this ship right into the path of the portal and terminate it, don’t you?”
Arad nodded, “It is the quickest as well as the safest way to get rid of it.”
Caia wondered, “When did Gabriella and you have time to plan this out?”
Arad answered, “The High Lord General Gabriella Eagle Claw’s mind works at a different speed than anyone else’s I know. While she was studying the maps with the rest of you, she was plotting. I know this because Gabriella was in my mind telling me what to do. In the end, Gabriella told me she would have Olyne open a gateway for you to join us and you would soon figure out what was happening through our conversation.
“Gabriella also told me Hawk already knows how to open a gateway on his own, he has the Talent for it, and it will come naturally to him. From what I understand, this is not something every Elf can do. Gabriella also said that letting Hawk know this would allow the plans you need to finish your task and then allow it to take form in the back of your minds.”
Violet added. “I never met this High Lord General Gabriella Eagle Claw, but I got a sense of her in my mind. She talked to me, and told me to let you know that you will need a stronger bond than the one you share with your Life Mates now in order to complete your task. Gabriella also told me to let you know that Lothriel will be sending a taskforce to the orchard to help the girls who live there. Gabriella was insistent that I tell you that you are not to worry about them. The girls will be well cared for.”
Caia mused, “I wonder what the High Lord General Gabriella Eagle Claw meant by that?”
Hawk answered, “Exactly what she said. Gabriella is nothing if not concise about what she plans to do and say. In the back of Gabriella’s mind, she is fighting a war, and this is how she will play the game. Gabriella never loses when she sets her mind to something.”
CHAPTER XVIII
Hawk and Adriel knew what the High Lord General Gabriella Eagle Claw had meant when she sent the message about needing a closer bond. However, by the looks of the bewilderment shown on the faces of those around them, Hawk and Adriel could tell no one else did. Until this moment, Hawk and Adriel had hesitated to share the details of their bonding ceremony when in the company of the merpeople. But when they thought about it, they realized there really wasn’t anything to hide. The words of bonding were said, the connection complete, anything more that the couple wanted to add or share would be done at a later date while they were in private quarters. It was the way things were done in the Elven Empire, and they had nothing to feel ashamed of.
Hawk turned his attention as he spoke. “The High Lord General Gabriel Eagle Claw was talking about our speaking our words of bonding to complete the connection we share with each other. After this is done, there will be nothing we will not share. Our thoughts will be as one, although we can keep our little secrets. It does not mean that we will lose our individuality. We will be little changed from what we are now. The only difference is that we will be more aware of each other and feel less alone. It will be easier for us to share thoughts.”
Adriel added, this time for Thea’s benefit. “It is probably for those reasons that Gabriella suggested we complete our bonds before we venture into danger.”
Caia and Thea didn’t need to be told what the advantages were, and none of them had much to do with the physical aspects of their unions. By fulfilling their bonds at this time rather than waiting, they would be able to tell if their Life Mates were in trouble. This was doubly true for the men. A male Elf whose Life Mate was being threatened, or who was feeling fearful, could be dangerous to those who they felt might mean harm to her.
The merpeople gathered around Hawk, Caia, Thea, and Adriel as the Elves turned to face each other. The ambience of expectation in the air signaled to everyone that something momentous was about to happen, and no one wanted to miss a moment of what was happening.
Hawk and Adriel chose to ignore the crowed that now surrounded them. As far as they were concerned this was more than an order from the Emperor, this was bigger than the task they had been left behind to take care of. This was the moment they were born for, their gift from the Fates.
Even as Hawk reached out to take Caia’s hands into his, he looked deeply into her eyes and began to speak. “Caia, my own. You challenge me, your spirit calls out to mine, you make me into something more than what I was. Tell me you want this bonding as much as I do.”
Caia smiled up into Hawk’s face and replied. “I never knew I could want anything as much as I do you in my life. Hawk, I am yours.”
Hawk returned Caia’s smile and replied, “Caia, I am yours.”
Caia was quick to follow up. “Hawk, you are mine.”
With pent-up emotion, Hawk responded. “Caia, you are mine.”
The moment Hawk finished speaking, he pulled Caia into his arms to kiss her even as they finished the words to complete their bonding. “We are one.”
Adriel and Thea smiled happily as they watched Hawk and Caia speak their words of bonding. As their friends parted, Adriel pulled Thea into his arms and spoke. “You will always come first to me. You are my world, my reason for breathing. Thea, I am yours.”
Thea replied, “From the moment I saw you, I knew we were meant to be. Adriel, I am yours.”
Adriel continued, “Thea, you are mine to have and hold. From this moment on I will never let you go, for you are my equal, my love, and your place is by my side. You are my gift from the Fates and will be treasured above all else.”
Thea actually laughed gleefully as she answered. “Adriel, you are mine, and I will never tire of reminding you of your promise.”
As their eyes continued to look into each other’s, Adriel and Thea spoke the final words of their bonding as they felt it suited them. “Heart, soul, mind, and body, we are one.”
A great cheer sounded from the merpeople who surrounded Hawk, Caia, Adriel, and Thea. A moment later they were all laughing and talking as the newly bonded Elves were congratulated. When the noise died down, Arad asked. “So now what happens?”
Hawk answered, “Now it is time for us to part ways for the short term. You and your people are to continue to look for the rogue portal, while we return to the land. When we find what we have been sent for, we will return to see if you have found the gateway. If you haven’t, we will see if there is anything we can to do help. Know that we understand that there are limits to what anyone can do, but we will want to be here when the portal is destroyed.”
Arad nodded and answered, “We understand.”
Hawk turned and concentrated on what he was about to do. Olyne had told him how to create a gateway earlier, although he hadn’t known the reason then. Now Hawk understood the reasons, even if he was finding it difficult to really believe it could be p
ossible. However, if both Olyne and Gabriella Eagle Claw thought it was, then it must be so. In Hawk’s experience, magic of this type was frowned on in the Elven Empire. Even Elven Wizards were only allowed to use their Talents in moderation, although they were trained vigorously. All Hawk could hope for under the circumstances was that Olyne’s faith in his strength and ability proved to be right.
In the end, Hawk was surprised at how easy conjuring the passageway turned out to be. And as Adriel, Thea, and Caia walked through to the other side, Hawk turned to Arad and gave him a slight wave of farewell before he followed the others onto shore, and then closing the gate behind him.
As Caia, Thea, Adriel, and Hawk walked together towards the house they had been using earlier, Caia asked. “What is the plan?”
Hawk replied, “Tonight we will rest. Tomorrow I want you to lead us to where those books are. When we have them safely in our possession, we will return to the schooner. I am hoping none of this takes too much time. It isn’t a good thing for the portal to wander the way it is.”
Thea wondered, “Would it matter to anyone if the portal winked out on its own?”
Adriel answered. “That depends on many things. Mostly the force of its destruction comes into play. I realize the gateway is supposed to be weak, but that can’t always be counted on.”
Caia wondered, “What would happen if it is destroyed through an explosion instead of suddenly ceasing to exist?”
Adriel replied, “That also depends on what forces are used to cause the portal’s termination.”
Thea frowned, “You are telling us this while saying that you plan to destroy the portal by sinking the ship and guiding it through?”
Hawk smiled and explained. “That is why I told Arad to wait for us to return from our expedition to get the books. Those books are the key to doing this in a safe manner. It will be important for you and Caia to be holding it while it passes through and into the Elven Empire. This possession will act like a dampening feature for its reaction. It is one of the things that were programmed into the matrix of all of the portals, and the reason it still exists when none of the others do.
Caia asked, “You are sure of this?”
Adriel answered with certainty, “We are sure.”
CHAPTER XIX
Caia and Thea awoke to the smell of cooking, and they knew Hawk and Adriel were already up and preparing the things they would need for the day. It was early, but Caia and Thea knew they needed to get up if they had any hope of getting anything accomplished. On a more personal note, the two women would have rather stayed in bed lost in a haze of loving, lust, and caring. Caia and Thea had to admit that despite all of their prior misgivings about being bonded, they had never felt so complete.
With quickly spoken words of cleansing, Caia and Thea prepared for the day, then joined Hawk and Adriel. Adriel was quick to pass over a few of the foods that they had made for Caia and Thea upon their arrival, and as they ate, they talked, beginning with Adriel. “We assumed we were going to be starting early, so we began to prepare for what we are about to do the moment we noticed the first signs of the new day.”
Thea gave a light giggle as she pointed out, “Not even the birds are up yet.”
Hawk looked at Caia and asked, “Are we being precipitous?”
Caia shook her head and replied. “Not at all, we need to get mobile as soon as possible to get to where we are going in time.”
Adriel turned his attention to Caia as he looked for instructions, “What are the plans?”
Caia began. “It will take two days for us to get to where we are heading. The travel time is not so long, but there are time locks that are set at different steps in the passage and that has to be taken in consideration. As you undoubtedly are aware, the earth moves at its own speed, and we must learn to recognize the signals it sends, it is no different with where we are going. Anyone who doesn’t heed the rules will end up paying the price for their actions.”
Hawk and Adriel nodded to indicate their understanding. What they were hearing were things they had always considered a part of life. None of this was news to them. Despite this, Adriel was the one with the most questions. “So when does this journey start? Also, have we packed enough food to last?”
Thea did a quick examination of their supplies and nodded, as Caia answered. “If we leave now, we will arrive at the entrance to the tunnels that lead to our ultimate destination just in time to get through the first lock.”
While Caia and Thea tidied up the house, Hawk and Adriel divided the items that they would be carrying. A few moments later, the four Elves were on their way. It was still dark, but they could tell the dawn was approaching. Because of this, Caia and Thea were in a rush to get to the cliffs that hugged the edge of the ocean. At this time of day, the water wasn’t high enough to do much more than lap against the cliffs they were heading for, but they knew it wouldn’t take long before over fifteen feet of water would cover the spot.
As the first rays of the sun appeared upon the horizon, Caia and Thea reached the side of the cliffs that faced the ocean. They led Hawk and Adriel to a spot approximately five hundred meters from the edge, faced the rocks, and then placed their hands upon the face of the rocks. As Caia and Thea did this, they spoke a short incantation. The moment they finished a doorway began to open, and Caia warned. “We have exactly one minute to enter before the doorway will begin to close. By then the tide will be coming in. When it does we have ten minutes to climb to the upper level inside of the cliff walls. You don’t want to be caught in the water when it begins to come in from the sea. We might have Water Elf blood in our family, but even those who are purebloods would tell you not to tempt the spirits of the ocean.”
Hawk and Adriel nodded their understanding. They knew what Caia was saying was the truth, they had heard it from others in the past. There were no secrets amongst the Elves in the Elven Empire. What one Elf knew, they all eventually got to learn. The Water Elves were no different than any of the others about sharing their knowledge. The ocean tides could be very dangerous, especially when they came in high and fast.
Rushing the main entrance of the tunnel wasn’t as easy to do as Hawk and Adriel first thought it would be. To begin with there was only enough room enough for one person to enter at a time. To allow another person entry, the first needed to climb what seemed like a ladder built into the stone that led to a ledge overhead. As Caia and Thea knew what to expect, they moved quickly, but Hawk and Adriel were slightly slower because they needed to get the measure of things. As it was, the seam of the closing door almost caught a piece of Hawk’s tunic when he didn’t move quite fast enough.
As the doorway closed, the darkness was complete around the climbers for all of two seconds before the tunnel lit up to guide their steps. The moment they all reached the top of the stone ladder, the light was extinguished, once again leaving them in total darkness. Hawk immediately reached for his power to conjure more, but Caia’s voice warned him from acting on his impulse. “Do nothing, Hawk.”
In the inkiness that seemed to close in around them, Hawk asked, “Why not?”
Caia answered, “I warned you beforehand that the guardian would test us many times during this journey. This is only the first of many.”
“Do all of the tests involve light?” Adriel wondered.
Thea shook her head, despite knowing no one could see the movement, and answered. “No. I suggest you do nothing that might cause trouble. We are the Sentinels, and the guardian trusts our judgment when it comes to leading others through the passage. It will, however, still test us to make sure we continue to be true to our calling. It recognizes our signature, it will know if we are being forced, or if we have been corrupted. Our auras show the guardian everything.”
Out of curiosity, Adriel asked, “What would happen if someone was to try to follow us without our knowledge through the passageway?”
Caia answered, “As you were told, this is only the first of many tests. No one who doesn
’t know the drill can follow with any degree of safety. Even we must wait for the next gate to open to guarantee that. The next possible time for anyone to enter the passageway from the cliff will be ten minutes before the tide comes in again. No one can change that, not even us. This is the rhythm of the land in this part of the world, and one of the main reasons we had to enter through the opening when we did this morning.”
Hawk thought about what Caia said, and then asked, “The door only opens just before the tide comes in, and not just because the waters have receded?”
“That is right,” Caia replied.
Adriel wondered. “What would happen if someone managed to get as far as we have and brought light with them?”
A small chuckle came from Thea as she replied. “I would not want to be the person to have to face the guardian if I didn’t belong here. I suppose it is possible, but whoever tried would have to move fast or die.”
Adriel followed his one question up with a more serious one. “Is it possible to kill the guardian?”
A sudden glow of bright light coming from what seemed like everywhere blinded them all for a moment, even as Caia answered. “I have no idea. I never gave that matter much thought before.”
Hawk asked, “If we posed the question to the guardian, would we get an answer?”
Caia shrugged, then turning to the expanse before them, she asked, “Guardian, can you be bested in battle?”
The response came back in the form of an echo. “No being is totally invincible.”
Caia smiled and commented, “We have an answer, although I doubt if it explains much. I have a feeling the battle our Guardian would put up would be of epic proportions, and the fight wouldn’t be the same type as you are thinking of.”
Thea, as her eyes finished adjusting to the light, warned, “Watch where you step. It is easier to get past this next part of the passageway if you face the wall and keep your hands spread and pressed against the rocks that make it up. For the next two hundred yards we must follow a three-inch ledge. It is the only safe foothold available to us. I wish you good luck and remember to move with caution. If you fail, there is no telling how far you will fall before you reach the bottom.”
Water Bonded Page 8
