“You won’t be losing me today, just as I will not be losing you. Life did not tell us to do this only so we could lose one another. I know you don’t get along with your family, but surely they wouldn’t be callous enough to hurt you so badly,” she said.
I did not have the faith in my family that she had. My mother had wanted a daughter. When she found out there were six babies in her, she was positive that one would be female. There was no doubt in my mind she was disappointed with the result of all boys. I hoped that bringing her a daughter through my bond would appease her in some way.
“Keep that attitude, Love. This will get worse before it gets better.” I kissed her and walked away. I couldn’t drag out my farewell.
Don’t ever leave again without saying you love me, Cal, she reprimanded gently in my mind.
You’re right, Love. I’m sorry. I love you with all my heart.
And I love you.
Every step away from my love was harder and harder to take. I had to keep reminding myself that soon I would be the one staying still and she would be coming to me, and when she did, her goal was to find me. I would also be able to taste her sweet blood again when we were reunited. That thought was the driving force behind each step.
It wasn’t long before I had a clear view of the palace that belonged to the Warlock. It was made of white marble and looked elegant. It was not what I expected to find in the mountains. Especially these mountains. Other mountain ranges had trees or grass, but these mountains contained nothing but orange rock and a random tree every mile or so. I almost considered it dessert conditions except it rained more, but that made it more dangerous. We were lucky to be having such good weather, but I swept that thought away so as not to ruin our luck, even though weather had nothing to do with luck.
I still couldn’t see the waterways that Nate had mentioned, but even from the distance I was away, I could feel the water there. I hoped the water would alert me when Sylee was in it. I’d never thought to try it before.
I decided on a direct approach as the palace walls grew larger and larger. I could start to feel the magic of the Harbor Witches a mile from the walls, and it rolled over me like oil, dousing me in unending amounts of invisible, evil slime. I never felt this from Nathaniel. I felt his magic, but it never felt evil, or oily like others of his kind. In fact, I no longer noticed the magic around me when Nate was in my presence. I’d gotten used to it.
I knew the moment the witches could sense my power. In my mind, I could see them gathering together at the front wall with the help of my Life element. I could also see the hundreds of witches that were gathered all over the palace. In the center was a life force stronger than all the others. He seemed to be drawing life and power from the witches within the walls of his palace. How could he harm his people like that? Witches have very long life spans, but he was drawing life out of his people, shortening their lives.
The audacity of this man angered and insulted me. Even if Life had not given me permission to enact the Accords, I would have had the right to dethrone him based on this sinful act alone. I may have once been a monster, and part of that person still lurked beneath the surface, but I would never have considered doing this horrendous crime.
I put my shoulders back and strode to the edge of the wall. Looking up, I found several sets of eyes looking down on me, laughing.
“Are you sure you want to be here, kid?” a man yelled down to me. It was a little anticlimactic, but I guessed they probably didn’t realize who was standing below them.
“Pretty sure I’m supposed to be here,” I called up. “My name is Carmon Lanshay, and I heard the Warlock is looking for me.”
That stunned them into silence. Then a dozen of the previously laughing witches jumped from the wall to land next to me. It was a long jump, but I could feel them using their magic to land without injury. Immediately upon their landing, fists started flying. All my punches landed. None of theirs did. All the witches were dead in minutes. My fists were almost as deadly as Drew’s today. I wasn’t playing games, and I was going to take as many of them out before my mate arrived as I could.
When their comrades were defeated, the witches at the top of the wall began throwing magic at me. I used my elemental power as a shield, and started climbing the wall. I refused to use my Water element and bring attention to it. I was about a dozen feet up when the wall changed from marble blocks to a sheet of flat marble. There was no place to set my hands and feet, so I fell. It was reassuring that Nate had a plan to slip them in. There was no good frontal attack.
Just as I had that thought, two wooden doors appeared in the marble wall in front of me. I moved into a defensive position as the doors opened into an inner courtyard filled with a hundred or so witches. A grin crossed my lips. This was going to be the fight I’d been dying for the last few weeks. I stretched my neck side to side, loosening the muscles. Adrenalin coursed through me. Then we charged toward each other. The witches thought they had the advantage having more numbers, but they had never fought an elemental whose main goal in life was the protection of his mate.
Half of them were unmoving before I took a magical blow to the chest. It was a painful attacking spell, but it had nothing on the venom dump or Kade’s searing restraint. I took more magical hits after that, which continued to slow me down, and eventually, the hits added up and a strong A level witch got a good restraint on me. I only struggled against it for show. I needed to save my strength for later.
“You’ll pay for the lives you took today,” the witch who held my restraint growled.
I didn’t even bother with a reply. Their day was about to get worse in a few hours. They hauled me up and down hallways and stairs. I could tell they were trying to confuse me so that in the unlikely event that I broke free, I wouldn’t know where to go. It was pointless. I wasn’t planning to leave. I had an appointment with the Warlock.
Thirty long, annoying, dragging - literally he was dragging me along marble floors - minutes later I was finally thrown in a holding cell in the basement of the palace. It was too nice to be considered a dungeon with its white marble walls and exquisite door.
“Wait until the Warlock knows you’re here, boy. He wants your head on a silver platter, but I’m sure he will be just as happy with copper.” The witch released my restraints and a new one was placed on. Now all I had to do was sit and wait.
I’m in, I sent to my brothers. To my mate, I wanted to send something more than two words. Love, I’m in and I’m okay. How are you doing?
Carmon! I’m so glad you’re okay. I’m just fine. We’re on our way again. I’ll see you in a few hours. Hang tight. It’s my turn to save you, she spoke back through the link. I loved having her in my head. I leaned back against the wall.
Save away, Love. I smiled inwardly. It was important to keep my outside appearance blank, and I was an expert at that.
I closed my eyes. I wanted to talk with her more, but that would distract her, and I needed her aware of her surroundings. I sat for a long time before I heard movement and voices in the hall.
“Any disturbances down here?” a female asked.
“Nothing. All’s quiet. The boy hasn’t even moved. Think he’s resigned to his fate?” a male asked. He was the one who now held my restraint.
“I think he’s got a plan. Don’t take the restraint off him. We’ve searched the entire palace, but haven’t found any allies. Security has been doubled, so if anyone does come after him, they’ll meet with an unhappy end,” the female laughed.
I passed the information on to my brothers, and then decided to take a short nap. There was nothing else better to do besides relive my memories with Sylee, but that only made me miss her more.
When I woke, it was dark and everything was silent except that the guard outside my door was snoring so loudly I couldn’t figure out why no one from upstairs had come down to wake him up yet. Maybe they were used to the building shaking when he slept, or maybe they had magic blocking the noise from ente
ring the other levels of the palace. I listened hard for noises in the hall, but I couldn’t hear anything over the guard. Then he stopped snoring, and within moments my restraints disappeared. Finally, help had arrived.
“What took you guys so long?” I asked when Chris’s head popped into view past the open door.
“We planned a really big party in your honor, oh powerful Commander,” Chris quipped back. “We even brought you some delicious drinks all the way from Mount Pickett.”
“Would you just be quiet?” Drew growled out. He stepped up to me. “Take a few big gulps and move to the next person.”
I did as he told me. It was the plan after all. Drew’s blood always had an earthy taste. Adam’s had a kick to it. Probably the Fire elemental part of him. After drinking Chris’s blood, I always felt hyper and more energetic. It was like a sugar rush without the sugar. Dalton’s blood was the most human tasting, but with a hint of lemon. And lastly, Jeff’s had been the sweetest blood I had ever tasted, until I met my mate. Her blood put my brother’s blood to shame, and I saved it until last. It covered the bitter, metallic taste of Nathaniel.
She looked good, but her clothes were still damp from her swim. I used my water element to dry her. She didn’t need to catch a cold on this mission. Not that Jeff couldn’t fix that. I just wanted to make sure she was constantly happy.
When I had my fill of red liquid, I felt power I had never experienced before, running through my veins. I had never thought to drink from each of my brothers one after the other. It was a rush and I thought no one should ever be granted this much power. It could probably corrupt the most angelic of creatures. Luckily for the world, I had experience in the corruption department, and I did not want to go down that road again. I had a very good reason not to, now.
“Whew! Let’s go bag ourselves a Warlock,” I exclaimed as the power in me continued to build. “Though, we do need to get as many people out of this building as possible. He is stealing their power and life force.”
We were walking in the hallway that led toward the throne room when Drew stopped rather abruptly. It worried me until he put his hand on the marble wall.
“Keep going. I’ll get everyone out of the palace and build a wall they can’t penetrate or climb. It should at least diminish the Warlock’s pull on them a little,” Drew said, closing his eyes. “Chris stay with me and watch my back.”
“Yes, sir,” Chris said, but with a lot less bravado. Drew and Chris fought a lot, but at moments like this, I knew they would be there for the other.
There were cries of shock and amazement as well as pain and frustration as we ventured toward the throne room. I knew Drew caused them all. He was making the tile move his victims to the outside of the building. Once there, he would push them out of the courtyard, and his earthen wall would arise. I had watched Drew make mountains and valleys. He was a forced to be reckoned with. I was sure, if he wanted to, he could change the entire layout of our world.
In my mind, I watched the inhabitants of the palace being pushed out of it, and the farther they went from the Warlock, the less he could pull. Drew had been right. I hoped the Warlock could pull even less with a rock wall in the way. No wonder he never left his palace. He was guaranteed a long life by living there constantly. It made me wonder how old this Warlock was. I would have to ask Nate later.
As we reached the throne room doors, I hesitated. This was it. I placed my hand on the door to push it open, but instead, I felt like my soul was being pulled from my body. The Warlock was doing black magic. Even amongst the witches this was considered an evil above all other evils. The magic was roving over, under, and around my skin. Black magic stole souls, not life forces, the thing that kept a being alive. I fought to keep my soul within me. This Warlock was very strong indeed, but as the magic coursed through me, I could feel my power continuing to rise. I knew without a doubt I was stronger.
“Don’t touch him!” I heard Adam yell.
I felt for my elemental power. Both of my elements responded to me, and I knew that when my eyes opened, they were glowing like the sun, another physical trait from my mom’s side. I heard a female gasp behind me, my mate. I would protect her, and make this world safe for our children. Power, anger, and justice coursed through me as I pushed the black magic from me at the same time I pushed open the doors to the throne room. It was time to take my place with my family, and not hide my true identity anymore.
Chapter Fourteen
Sylee
I hadn’t actually realized that my hand had reached out for Carmon. I finally had him back and there was black fog threatening to take him away from me again. I might have been being a little dramatic, but I had missed him so much.
After Carmon had left us to go to the Warlock’s Palace I had felt so empty. I watched him climb over boulders and shimmy between them until I could no longer see him. He hadn’t looked back at me. I knew it was hard for him to leave, probably harder than being the one left behind, but it wouldn’t be for long. I had to be patient for about five hours. I could do that, right?
I headed back to Nathaniel and my brothers-in-law. They were still sitting where Carmon and I had left them. I didn’t know what to say. The man I had loathed and then grown to love was willingly giving himself over to Harbor Witches. What happened if we could not break through the wall to save him? What if they killed him straightway?
“Sylee,” Adam called my name. It probably wasn’t the first time he had called to me. I looked at him. “When you’ve been worrying, has Carmon ever asked you if you were doing okay, through your mental link?”
“Yes.”
“Then I need you to sit back, relax your muscles, and clear your head. He will worry about you if he feels your strong emotions through the link. We’ll sit here and meditate with you. It’s going to be a long five hours, and we are just as worried about him as you are. We know he’s strong, but there are so many things that could happen. Just spend the next hour or so going over our plan in your head, and come up with some ideas you can do in case we have to change the plan up a bit.”
“Yes, Lieutenant.” I nodded in his direction. He nodded back to me, and then he closed his eyes with the rest of his brothers and Nathaniel, and there was silence. Honestly, I don’t think I’d heard Chris that quiet ever.
Before I closed my eyes like everyone else, I decided to stretch my muscles. They’d been used a lot over the last couple of weeks, and I hadn’t stretched them properly. Plus, I did my best thinking and calming while stretching. If Adam wanted me calm and thoughtful, this was the best way. He looked up at me a few minutes after I had started my stretching, gave me a little smile, and then went back to his meditating. I figured that was my go ahead to keep doing what I was doing and skip actual meditation. Whatever worked, I supposed.
I thought back to all the changes I had been through since meeting these men. I was a strong woman then, but never would I have dreamed I could endure days of walking through a forest, being kidnapped, and then volunteering to help crush the most powerful witch in the world! If I had been told when I first met Carmon Lanshay that I would fall in love with him, I would have laughed myself silly. No woman would ever find that plausible. But, I had fallen in love with him. My world revolved around him. We had a future together that contained so many possibilities.
After an hour of stretching every muscle I knew how to stretch, the boys came out of their meditations. Oh goody, I thought, four more hours left. This was going to take forever. Adam had a plan, though. Training. He had Dalton stay with me while he, his brothers, and Nathaniel went to hide. My job was to find them in under five minutes. Oh, and I also had to watch my back because they were going to attack me, too, if they felt so inclined.
It was a little hard on my nerves, but Dalton was behind me, and I knew the boys would not hurt me. They were trying to help my nerves become used to these stressful circumstances. It would be just as bad when I was on my own, swimming through the water, and finding the correct door t
o open.
I closed my eyes and breathed in and then out. I drew on my Light blood power. It enhanced my senses. I could hear pebbles moving to my right, and I took a step that direction. Just as I took the step I had a gut feeling not to go that way, so I stopped.
“Do you guys even use your Light blood, or is it always your elements you use?” I asked Dalton. They knew where I was, so it wasn’t any use being quiet.
“We use both, and most of the time we use them together, so we never differentiate between which one we use.”
I could hear very light breathing to my left. I was running out of time. I at least needed to bring down one Lanshay, but I needed to know which brother was my target before I attacked. I sniffed, and the smell of dirt met my nose. I wasn’t surprised, and a bit disappointed, until my brain realized that the dirt I smelled wasn’t the same as the dirt around me. I groaned. Dalton laughed silently behind me. He knew which brother I had found.
“I just have to find them, right?” I dared a glance at Dalton, who shrugged his shoulders.
Nice. Great to have an answer there, boy. I took another sniff, and listened. The pebbles still moved to my right, moving closer, but I knew it wasn’t a person moving now. It was Drew. The brick wall. I had to move to him quickly before he discovered I knew where he hid. I took a step backwards and to my right, accidently backing into Dalton who was standing there.
“Sorry,” I mouthed to him. He nodded to me, with a smile in his eyes. I hoped he found a good woman. He was sweet.
I looked to my left. There was a humongous boulder that Drew must have been hiding behind. There was no way to tell if he was crouching, sitting, or standing a few feet behind it. If I could climb to the top, I would have less than a second to calculate how far I should jump to tackle him. I noticed there were varying sized boulders in front of the large one. I dug deeply into my Light blood power, and before I knew it, I was jumping to the top of the huge boulder. I reached the top within a second. Drew was right below me, squatting. His eyes flashed up to me as I rapidly descended. His eyes were smiling evilly. He’d been expecting me.
Life and Water: The Elementals: Book One Page 21
