by Regan Claire
“She’s right, Della. They need to know about my father. Stopping him is more — “
“I’m not going to let them kill you because you have an ability that scares them! You aren’t your father, and if you —”
“They are not going to kill Ezra. We have not done that type of thing for millennia,” Aahana said in such a way that made me feel stupid, even though there was nothing in her inflection that was mean. “At worst, they will imprison him for life. It’s most likely that he will be forbidden to marry or father any children in order to end the taint with him. But it is doubtful they will do even that now.”
I stopped pacing, “Oh, okay. So, why won’t they do anything now?”
“In small part because of how he nearly spent himself saving our people yesterday, but mostly because of you.” Aahana finally moved, adjusting her seat to more comfortably look at me since I was still standing.
“Me? They don’t even like me! Is it because they’re afraid of me now?” I could live with that, if it meant freedom and protection for those I cared about.
“Did they teach you nothing of our history in Eurybis? Nothing of the Runes?” She finally displayed a little emotion in her voice; exasperation. Like mother, like son. I remembered the rune the people had created when I walked past them before, and racked my brain trying to remember a lesson that had included its meaning and came up with squat.
“Uh, no?” They taught me plenty, or so I’d thought at the time. A flicker of worry again entered my mind for the Elfennol. They seemed so learned, but were missing very important chunks in their education system. Between that and the prejudices they held against the Clades, I wasn’t sure their way of life could continue for much longer… or should continue.
“The people have chosen you as our protector. You have saved us all, and they have placed their futures in your hands in the hope that you will continue to keep them safe. The Clades are yours now. It is how the rulers of the Ethnos were all chosen long ago, and sometimes still are among the Clades.”
My knees buckled, so I fell on the bed next to Ezra, and it was my turn to cut the circulation from his hand.
“The Elders would do nothing to your mate, even if they had the inclination.” Aahana smirked when I dropped Ezra’s hand like a hot potato.
“He’s not my mate! I mean —”
She smiled and even though I couldn’t see his face, I knew Ezra was very pleased with himself.
“Your second-in-command, then. It is clear you favor him and your abilities complete each other. Together you have full control over all the energy in this, and every, world. It gives our people hope to see you together in the face of the evil that Kaylus can bring down on this realm if he so desires.”
My head was spinning, so I leaned over and put it between my knees. How was I going to explain this to my father, the leader of the Elfennol? The same Elfennol who hated everything about the Clades because they didn’t understand them. But I remembered Cash, and the fact that I’d come to the Clades and not my own people for help. I came because they could help me, and if what Aahana said was true then I didn’t need to bargain or fight to get them to do so.
If it meant losing my place among the Elfennol and never seeing my dad again, it would hurt, but not more than having Cash slip away. Cash taught me what family meant, what having a home was like. He taught me to feel, to hope, to be happy. He was more than my cousin. He was my brother in all the ways that counted.
I’d sacrifice a lot if it meant keeping him alive.
I sat back up, then stood, determined to follow whatever path my destiny pushed me down.
“Aahana, if you would, find the rest of the Elders for me. I’d like to meet them in my room. C’mon, Number Two, let’s go furnish the new digs before our guests arrive,” I announced.
After a nod from Aahana I pulled Ezra up by the hand and dragged him out the door.
“So, do you want me to grab a few more people to help us make the new place?” he asked.
“I already built one. It’s the gigantic black place filled with my energy.” It was just too cool not to use. This time there was no crowd to walk through, but I kept my chin held high and tried to remember the faces of every person that respectfully nodded their head at me as I walked past.
Once we got inside, we made a simple round table with plenty of room for a dozen or so stools. Chairs would have been better, but I wasn’t the best at that level of detail yet, and apparently Ezra didn’t care to make them. Instead, he worked on creating sconces built into the walls and had the Loa fill them with fire.
“Would it be easier to make a light rune instead?”
“Yes, but you are master of more elements than Spirit. I am too. I don’t want anyone to forget.”
“Do you think you’re in danger?” I asked, searching his face for the worry I was feeling.
“No more than I’ve always been. But I’m afraid my father still has allies here. A lot of our people left shortly after the eruption settled — people who were more like my father. We have a lot of factions here because freedom is prized. There have always been a few, luckily the minority, whose beliefs aligned more with my fathers than that of common sense. My father was an Elder, and I don’t know who left is trustworthy.”
“How many Elders are there? Is it like the Elfennol Council?”
“The number of Elders changes. It’s usually people from the oldest families, but not always. Sometimes a person will be elected by the people, some are chosen by the other council members. We aren’t governed as strictly as the Elfennol, so there has been little need for the type of political structure they have. Our Elders are mostly a hodge-podge to fulfill what we need at the time, and we haven’t needed much of anything for a while, until now.”
I’d sat down on the edge of the black table while he spoke. I knew there was something else he wanted to add by how his shoulders stiffened before he turned to face me.
“Della, we need you. So many people were lost yesterday either because of the catastrophe, or because they left to join my father. Nearly a quarter of our population is gone.” He sounded so desperate, I reached forward and grabbed his arm to pull him closer and wrap my arms around him. My head rested against his chest, and his fingers tangled in my hair. He continued, “I didn’t tell anyone else this, but when my father escaped he tried to take me. The men who left with him could have killed me. He could have killed me but he wanted me alive, and I don’t think it was because of his paternal instincts. He has always treated my abilities with the Loa as a tool in his arsenal, and it makes me sick to think what he might use them for — and that he’s ready to use them now. Father has always had a way of making people do things, Della. What if he can make me—”
“Stop.” I pulled away enough to slide off the table and stand in front of him. He didn’t move back, so we were pressed against each other and I had to strain my neck back to meet his eyes. The light in the obsidian room was just bright enough for me to see the golden flecks in his green eyes.
“Kaylus will not take you. He will not make you do anything, and he will not do anything to you.” It was my turn to feel desperate as the memory of my first Reading came back to me in vivid detail. My family could Read things in the elements, a bit of the past, present, or future. I’d only just learned how and had only done it successfully one time. I’d seen Kaylus plunge a knife into his son’s body. I had watched the light fade from his eyes as he died.
I needed to wash the image from my mind, had to assure myself that he was alive, so I reached with both my hands and held his face. I let my thumbs rest on his temples, wrapped my fingers through his short hair, and pulled him down to me.
Our mouths met with a fierce hunger. It wasn’t gentle, but it was right. Ezra lifted me back onto the table, and instantly I hooked my legs around his, pulling him close enough that I could feel his heart beating against my chest. Ezra’s arms wrapped around me, hugging me just as tightly as I held him. His mouth left mine, and
I think I growled until I felt it latch onto my neck, teeth grazing that sensitive spot right above my pulse, and the growl turned into a low moan of pleasure. I threw my head back, before I felt a small tug on my hair, not hard enough to hurt, just enough to direct my face back to his. One of my hands found its way under his shirt to touch his bare back, and the feel of the scars under my hand that his father had given him fueled my determination to keep him safe. Our urgency seemed to ease at the same time, and our kissing slowed. Still we held each other, forehead to forehead, until I felt something brush against my hand. We pulled apart just enough to look up to see a cyclone of small white flowers rain upon us. What was even more incredible, at least to me, were the veins of energy from every element pulsing through the tornado-shaped structure. I only saw it because I was Tempering Fire at the time, and it let me see energy.
“Did you do that?” I asked, referring to the still-swirling flowers. Ezra had done the same thing on a few occasions, mostly to let me know when he was thinking about me, or to let me know he was close.
“No. The Loa did that on their own.”
I let Ezra pull me back against him and rested my head against his heart again. we stayed that way silently watching the flowers rain down for what seemed like forever, which wasn’t long enough.
“Aahana and the Elders will probably be here soon,” he said, finally.
“They’ll be here any minute, actually,” Aahana’s voice said from the doorway, eyes sparkling with a very “I-told-you-so” type of look. Ezra pulled himself away quickly and I slid down from my perch. I met her eyes, refusing to feel embarrassed, then walked to stand behind the stool furthest from the doorway. Ezra stood behind the seat to my right, and we watched as she walked into the room followed silently by a person I knew only too well.
“Alexander! What are you doing here?” If either of us were the hugging type, we’d be doing that. Instead we stood stiffly apart from each other in comfortable awkwardness.
“Making sure you are safe,” he said blandly.
“Did Uncle Connor tell my father where I went? Have you heard anything about Cash? Is he okay?” I asked, worried that I had brought more trouble upon my families’ heads.
“Your Uncle has kept your secret. Cash is still the same as before. The girl, Clara, is keeping him anchored for now. I knew you wouldn’t leave Cash in his condition, and that you didn’t search for help among the Elfennol. Your father suspects that you are here as well, though he thinks you were captured. The earthquake in Bermuda made worldwide news and the cause was obvious among our people. Even now your father is planning how to rescue you, and he has summoned the other Council members to Eurybis for help.”
“I left a note! Why didn’t Connor and Ellis tell him that I went voluntarily?” I did not want to be responsible for some misguided rescue attempt which would lead to the deaths of way too many people.
“I doubt Dux Neale would inform any among the Elfennol that you came here willingly. He knows it would mean exile. I am sure he is hoping you will come home before it is too late.”
That sounded like Uncle Connor. My family had always been allied to the Elfennol, but there was little trust between the two peoples. I think the discovery of Derek being my father did more to hurt that relationship, since Connor had seen it as a betrayal to be kept in the dark. Connor would want to talk to me before he talked to the Elfennol. My family put blood before all else, even centuries-old alliances.
Loyalty was a good thing to have.
“Alexander, you have to get my father to stop before it’s too late. You know I came here by choice, and you know the Clades aren’t what the Elfennol believe they are! Besides, all the evil twisted ones left with Kaylus yesterday. They should be the enemies!”
“She is right, Son. Kaylus is Thanatos. Leoht should be warned,” Aahana said, referring to my father by using the name of our house, before taking a seat.
Alexander’s eyes widened a fraction and flickered quickly to Ezra before he regained control. Good ‘ole Alexander was master at control.
“You’re right, I must tell Lord Derek. Della, you do realize that if I tell him everything, we may both be exiled because of it. It is not too late for you to remain Epiklayra. No one among the Elfennol would suspect you came here willingly.”
“If I do that, Alexander, I’d be betraying these people.”
“They are not your people, Della. You are not responsible for them,” he said softly, surprising me because Alexander always acted as if I were responsible for everything.
“They are Ethnos just as the Elfennol are. Betraying them is betraying my people. Plus, I need them to help Cash.” I shrugged a shoulder. To me the point was moot until Cash was well again.
“Besides, she was declared Guardian. Where Della goes, the people here will follow,” Ezra said, then sat in his chair as well, leaving only Alexander and myself standing.
Alexander nodded his head, and I realized I had answered exactly how he wanted me to. He was testing me, because he was a sneaky little sneak-tester.
“I will inform Lord Derek of everything. He is at the base right now and I know he will want to speak with you before he does anything. Either way, we are in the same ship now.” Then Alexander made the same symbol, the “Guardian” one, in between us, then very casually looked around the obsidian room. “I like your new place, Della. The sconces were a nice touch.”
“You can thank Ezra for those. It was his idea to have something of the other elements in here.”
“It was smart, and adds a certain flair that I rather like. But your table could use something, as well.” He placed both hands on the table in front of him, and tuned it up a bit, smoothing the rough edges, adding embellishment to the legs. The really fancy bit was stretched across the entire surface of the table-top — the symbol that had been made in my armlets. It was the equal-armed cross, for my father’s family, with trinity knots that matched my brand new tattoo from my mother’s family making up the four arms, and the entire thing was set in a circle, the symbol for the Ethnos. “You can never have too many reminders,” Alexander said, then took a seat to the left of me.
I was the only one still standing now, and glad of it, because the Clade Elders took that moment to pour into the room.
Chapter Four
Journal,
I’ve just had the most insane night, ever. I guess night and morning, since I just watched the sunrise before coming home. My stomach hurts from laughing so hard, and my face from smiling. I really want to crash, but don’t want to forget this feeling. The details can come later, after some sleep and caffeine. But this feeling? Ah. Like flying. I wonder if I’d be smiling so much right now if I could share this with anyone else. It doesn’t matter. I’ll have to keep it locked in my memory forever, because goodness knows there’s no chance it will happen again. Maybe one day, when I’m old and wrinkled, I’ll tell my children this secret of mine. They’ll never believe me, of course. It’s one thing to ally ourselves with them, but to spend an evening laughing and talking, and walking the beach to watch the sunrise? No, of course they wouldn’t believe me. I hardly believe it happened.
But when I close my eyes, I can still see the light of his aura framed by the orange glow of daybreak. I can still feel his hand in mine, and taste his breath on my lips. Maybe it was only a dream, because reality has never felt this real to me.
If it was, let me sleep forever and dream it again.
*****
“Thank you for coming,” I said formally when the last Elder walked through the door and sat. We had extra spots at the table, and I thought it was interesting no one sat next to Ezra.
“Of course, Della. May we call you Della?” Elder Peyton asked. He sat directly opposite me.
“Please.” Hello, manners.
“We want to thank you for what you did yesterday when you had little reason to save us.” He had that same look on his face as he had earlier when he’d made the symbol for “Guardian.”
&n
bsp; “Let’s just agree that we got off on the wrong foot and put it behind us. I think we have more pressing matters than saying ‘I’m sorry’ over and over. I’m sure you already know Ezra and Aahana. This is Alexander to my left.”
The woman sitting on Peyton’s right stood up suddenly. “He is an Elfennol, trusted servant of Derek Leoht!”
“That’s right, he is a trusted friend of my father’s.”
“How can you let him sit here? It is an insult —”
Peyton cut her off for me. “Be quiet, Lena. It will be much easier if the Elfennol know what has happened. Kaylus is a threat to them, as well.”
Lena said something under her breath that sounded an awful lot like “they can have each other,” but I chose to ignore it since she also took her seat.
“Della, forgive our rudeness. This is Lena. To her right is Bach, and then Galen. To my left is Susan, and this is Ian. We are all that is left of the Elders now.” Peyton offered introductions, and then seconds ticked by in awkward silence.
“I need your help,” I said it fast, like ripping off a Band-Aid.
“We will gladly help you with anything you need. We serve you now.” Peyton bowed his head slightly.
“Uh, right.” I wasn’t exactly comfortable with being “served,” but I’d take advantage of it. “I need your help to save my cousin. Cash was injured in our fight the other day. His Spirit was Gathered and he isn’t healing. He’s being anchored by a friend, but she can only do that for so long.” I had no idea what Clara was doing to anchor him. I hadn’t stuck around long enough to find out, too intent on fixing him.
“If he had more than half of his Spirit Gathered, he won’t have enough to rebuild on his own. You said that he is being anchored? Someone is preventing the rest of his Spirit from crumbling away?” the man on Peyton’s left asked, but I’d already forgotten his name.
