by Lela Grayce
Wincing, I cradled my wrist against my chest and considered going home, but I didn’t trust myself to traverse the mud puddle of doom so soon. Instead, I took a couple of deep, steadying breaths and continued on toward my spot. My haven.
By the time I stumbled into the small clearing by the water, my wrist had gone from a dull throbbing to a searing pain. With tears in my eyes, I rolled up the sleeve of my VFU sweatshirt and extended my arm. My wrist was noticeably swollen and discolored.
Slumping to the ground, I curled up and sobbed. Like most cries, once I started I couldn’t stop until I had let out all of my built-up anguish. It rushed out in torrents of tears, releasing the weight of the emotions. I had needed this alone time to let go of more than I’d thought. It was satisfying, but at the same time painful.
Once the ugly crying subsided and only lingering tears escaped from my eyes, I decided to wipe my nose on my sweatshirt sleeve, disgusting myself with the act. When I jostled my wrist a bit, it twinged with pain, sending a fresh wave of tears cascading down my cheeks. I gathered as much strength as I could muster and awkwardly crawled to the edge of my spot closest to the water. I reached my uninjured hand to test the water’s temperature and shivered a bit at the cold shock. I gently put my other arm into the icy water, hoping the coolness would ease the throbbing in my wrist.
The first touch of the frigid water made me hiss through my teeth as a mix of shooting pain and relief sent more tears to my eyes. I didn’t bother wiping them, instead letting them fall into the water. My emotionally burdened tears joined the rushing water and were swept away. I wished that I could let my emotions flow from my shattered heart down my arm and into the water to be swept away, never to bother me again.
Unfortunately it doesn't work like that, I thought bitterly, leaning over the bank until I was gazing at my own reflection. My blonde hair was fluttering in the silent breeze and my grey eyes, which appeared dark like rain clouds about to dump their watery cargo, were strangely fitting.
A ripple in the water’s surface pulled me from my gazing reverie. I blinked a couple times and wiped my nose on my already-disgusting sleeve. I flexed my hand in the water, biting my lip as a pulsing pain raced up my arm. I relaxed it immediately, hoping the icy cold of the water would finally numb it completely.
The hair on the back of my neck stood up and I shivered with the distinct feeling of being watched. I froze, listening to the sounds of the world around me. I heard the trickle of water, the pounding of the falls, birds chirping softly nearby, but no footsteps approaching. I did my best to shake the feeling as I cautiously looked over my shoulder, slightly relieved when I saw no one there. I chalked it up to my overly emotional state. Turning back to the water and my wrist, I jumped and squealed at what was before me.
A beautiful, shirtless man stared at me from the water. He had shoulder-length, dark hair that dripped wet. His face was all sharp angles with high, prominent cheekbones that looked like they would cut anyone who dared to touch him. It was his eyes, however, that unnerved me. They were a yellowish-green, like sun beams through water, and they observed me with a frightening intensity.
Stunned silent by his sudden appearance, I stared dumbfounded at the half-naked man as he studied me. Studied wasn’t the right word, though. It was more like he was assessing me. He watched me intently like a scientist who’d discovered a new species of bug, waiting to see what it could do. It was completely unnerving, but before I could calm down enough to realize I should run, he moved.
He shifted slowly onto his hands and knees, doing a type of predatory crawl through the shallow water toward me. Before I could do anything more than panic, he spoke. “Water never lies.” His voice was smooth and beautiful. It rolled out of him like a caress, causing me to shiver involuntarily.
He stopped a couple feet from the bank and gazed at me expectantly. I tried desperately to come up with something intelligent to say, but coherent thoughts escaped me. I fell back on my butt with my wrist still in the water and finally spoke. “Uh, hi?” I groaned, mentally kicking myself.
“You are injured,” he stated, his tone even like he was commenting on the weather.
“It’s nothing,” I replied hurriedly. “I just slipped in some mud coming down here.”
Moving faster than I had expected, he closed the distance between us, stopping mere inches from me. I gasped at his sudden closeness and tried to withdraw my wrist from the water, but I was stopped by his hand gently touching my injured one. His hand was warm yet cool, like hot water being added into a cold bath. Frightened, I froze, but couldn't bring myself to pull away.
“Water never lies, child,” he repeated while studying my wrist. His fingers caressed my swollen wrist. As he wrapped his hand around mine, the heat from his hand seeps into my cold, numb skin and then deeper into my ligaments.
I gazed at the strange man who held my wrist so tenderly and realized I wasn’t afraid. I was surprised and maybe frightened of his intensity, but something deep in my soul wouldn’t let me be afraid of him.
“Who are you?” I whispered, watching as he slowly lifted his gaze from my arm to my face.
His other hand gently wiped some of the tears still on my cheek onto his finger. I watched as he studied the small drop of moisture on his finger before his eyes shifted to mine. Looking me in the eye, he said, “My name is Nuri of the Regar clan.” Then he licked my tears off his finger. I tried to jerk my hand away, but suddenly his nostrils flared and his eyes flashed dark with anger. “I need to call for Eian and you need to tell me who hurt you, Elara.”
Who the hell was Eian and how did this guy know my name? I needed to get out of here. Now.
Chapter 3
*~ Eian ~*
* * *
The Gaain sun was hot on my neck, but the scouting had to be done and I was one of only a few capable men in the small village. I needed to stay vigilant to protect them. I had been taught to scout at a young age, before The Great War that brought our world to its knees. Before the darkness. I lost my brothers in that battle. Now all that was left was my Father, Mother, and my little sister Avva. Father escaped the battle that claimed his two eldest sons and he took my mother, me, and my sister to safety. We fled into the wetlands that made up a good portion of the kingdom.
The wetlands were uninhabitable to most, but our people knew water. We had kept ourselves hidden from our enemies for years, thanks to our exemplary water skills. We’d covered our tracks thoroughly making it almost impossible to be followed, but there was always a chance that we missed something which was why good scouts like me were needed.
I rubbed my neck, trying to relieve the burn as I scanned the tall grass and looked for even the slightest movement. All was still except for the hot breeze that blew periodically through the stalks causing them to wave erratically, making it difficult to spot movement if you were untrained. The water folk had always kept their abilities hidden from outsiders, but they passed the secrets down from generation to generation. One day, I hoped to pass my knowledge and experience on to my children, as is our way. A small voice in the back of my mind reminded me that change was coming. Whispers of our savior’s return had drifted across the mainland.
They’re just rumors, I chided myself. However, I couldn’t quiet that small part of me that hoped the rumors were true, that soon a day would come when light would overtake the dark. All it takes is a spark.
I dug my bare feet into the wet earth. Closing my eyes, I searched with my other senses before delving deeper. The secrets of the water folk were once common knowledge to all. At its core, magic is simply energy manipulation. We could bend energy to our will, and water contained the most powerful energy. Water could be found in everything from the air to the earth, and even in our bodies. All we had to do was connect the water we are made of to the water that surrounded us, then tap into that energy. The possibilities were endless. I connected to water then and explored the energy of the earth and then the air. My awareness was amplified when I wa
s connected to water like this.
Nothing in the immediate area caught my attention, so I withdrew from the connection slightly and opened my eyes to the bright sun. A quick dip to cool off would be wonderful. Keeping my mind connected to water, I strolled to the east until I came to a clear pool and dived in. The water was cool and felt great on my overheated skin.
A fluttering on the edge of my awareness caught my attention. I mentally reached for it, drawing it to the forefront of my mind. The connection was faint, but I recognized it immediately. Drawing it closer, I strained to hear, but nothing came through. Either Nuri was too far away or he was on the other side. If he was on the other side and trying to contact me, it had to be important.
Nuri? I said mentally, while pushing the thought along the connection that I had with him.
Eian, the connection is…. if you can…. be back… moon rises… must talk… I found her.
Elara
* * *
“What?” I asked bewildered while trying to scoot back and put some much needed space between us.
“Someone hurt you.” Nuri’s faced twisted in anger.
“How do you know that?” I stuttered nervously.
“Water does not lie. I felt your pain. Your sorrow, it called to me. When I tasted your tears, I felt your heartache, too,” he said slowly, like he was talking to a child.
My temper spiked and my apprehension drifted away. I might be short, but I was not a child and one thing that always made my blood boil was when someone talked down to me. I dealt with Brayson's condescension and snide derogatory comments for a year. I had let that happen to me once, but never again. I knew my worth. I did not deserve that kind of treatment. Not from my ex and definitely not from this strange man who liked to swim in freezing cold water.
“I am not a child,” I seethed through gritted teeth and tried harder to yank my wrist away from his grip. Bad idea! Waves of agony bombarded me and I cried out, tears filling my eyes once more.
“I can fix this, but you must stay still,” Nuri said while running his fingers gently along my wrist. Warmth was once again seeping into me from his touch.
“What are you doing?” I asked, quivering from the most recent wave of pain.
“I'm doing what I can, but I'm not the greatest.” He shrugged nonchalantly and studied my wrist once more.
“Not great at what?” I was getting confused by both his short answers and by why I hadn’t run screaming yet.
“I am of water like you, so I can heal you to a point, but my powers are dulled here, so it could take some time,” he replied, rearranging his legs so he was sitting in the water cross-legged still holding my wrist.
“Who knew such a small statement could muster so many questions,” I muttered, more to myself than him. He was of water? Like me? I couldn’t even process that.
“You have questions?” he asked genuinely. His eyes sparked with something. Delight, maybe.
“That’s a given.” I rolled my eyes. “What do you mean by powers? You said you can heal me? What does ‘I am of water like you’ mean? And why are you so warm?” I asked my questions rapid fire in case I didn’t get another chance.
Nuri’s eyes glazed over and his body went completely still like a statue. The heat coming from his hand heated up a few degrees and I couldn’t help but shiver. The water was still frigid, except for where his hand was touching my skin.
Nuri suddenly slumped forward and instinctively put my hand on his shoulder, steadying him as he swayed back and forth. His pale skin had gone a bluish-green, which set off warning bells inside my head. I desperately tried to remember the first aid training I had back when I was babysitting. Blue skin means sick, right? No, that was green skin. Crap, what did blue mean?
A warm hand covered the one on his shoulder, “I’m alright, Elara,” he said, slurring my name just a bit.
“Are you sure? What happened?” I asked, concerned for reasons I hadn’t figured out yet.
“I was trying to contact someone and it took more out of me than I realized,” he replied, breathing deeply.
“You have to know that makes absolutely no sense to me, right?”
He frowned at me before opening his mouth and closing it just as quickly.
“Just spit it out!” I said, exasperated.
He looked at me blankly, seeming to be confused. “Spit what out?”
I couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled at my lips. Apparently, he was a very literal person. “Whatever you were about to say.”
“Oh. Usually when I contact someone through water, it comes naturally to me if the distance is short. Communicating becomes seemingly difficult when I’m this far away, dangerous even.”
“Why the hell would you do it if it was dangerous?” Truly mad now, I pushed his shoulders with my hands to increase the distance between us, noticing that the pressure that movement had caused on my wrist didn’t bother it. I’d have to process that later.
“It had to be done,” he said matter-of-factly. “I had to tell him I found you.”
“That Eian guy you mentioned earlier?” I asked, dreading the answer. “Did you tell him?”
“I told my friend that I had found you at last.” He was beaming, clearly proud of himself.
“Great, now I can never come here again.” Sadness hung over me like my own personal rain cloud.
“You can come here anytime you want. Why are you sad?” The concerned look on his face seemed sincere, but I couldn’t trust it. Even though I was certain he was crazy and scared that he’d told his friend about this place, something deeper down told me it wasn’t time to run yet.
“You told your ‘friend’ that you found me. I assume he’ll want to come here and I’d rather not meet any other people with ‘powers’ today. I’m also sure if I leave now and come back, I won’t be able to enjoy this place alone again.” That last part made it hard to keep the sniffle from my voice.
“Elara,” he said, bending down to catch my eye, “I don’t understand why you are upset.”
“I'm upset, Nuri, because you found this place and you’ve told your friend. It was my special place to get away from Brayson. To hide away and feel safe. I needed it and you’ve taken it from me!” Tears came unbidden to my eyes.
“Who is this Brayson you’re so afraid of? Is this who hurt you?” Nuri asked angrily.
“Brayson is my ex-boyfriend and he's… not a nice person.”
“Is he the one who hurt you?” he repeated his earlier question that I had purposely avoided. I could see the spark of anger in his yellow-green eyes.
I squirmed under his intense gaze, but after a few seconds of wrestling with myself, I nodded.
“Well, you don't have to worry about him anymore,” Nuri said with conviction. “I won't let him hurt you again, and when my friend comes, he won't let that happen either.”
I laughed, because he obviously had no idea how far Brayson’s reach was. I was pretty sure he had ties of the unsavory sort who could make very bad things happen. I was still surprised that nothing unexpected had happened to me yet. You couldn’t cross Brayson without feeling a world of hurt later on.
“Nothing stops Brayson when he's got his mind set on something, and for whatever reason, he set his sights on me,” I whispered the last part.
“I don't see any eyes on you except for the ones on your face,” Nuri said, a puzzled expression on his features.
“Are you always so literal?” I asked, smiling. “You aren't from around here, are you?” At his head shake, I continued, “It's just an expression we say when someone is watching another person.”
“So you think this Brayson is watching you?” Nuri asked. Seeming alarmed at my nod of confirmation, he tugged on my hands. “Get in the water.”
“What? Nuri, no. It's cold!” I exclaimed as his tugging brought me right to the edge of the water.
“I'll keep you warm, but it's easier for me to hide you if you're in the water,” he stated with determination in his ey
es.
“What do you mean, ‘hide me’?”
“You said someone was watching you. I can hide you, but you have to be in water.” He tugged on my hands again, impatiently.
“Wait! Back the truck up,” I said while extracting my hand from his. I was suddenly reminded that my wrist no longer ached. “It doesn't hurt anymore.” Awestruck, I flexed my fingers and rolled my wrist. There was a small ache when I rolled it, but the agonizing pain was gone.
“I healed you.” Nuri smiled kindly. “You called to the water in need and the water answered.”
“But how?” I asked, staring down at my non-swollen wrist.
At his continued silence, I searched his handsome face, trying to understand, hoping the answers would be written there. When our eyes met, Nuri smiled and said one word.
“Magic.”
Hearing Nuri drop the M word shocked me out of whatever spell had been cast over us. I was suddenly aware of how much time had passed and knew I needed to get home before Kaelyn started to worry. Nuri begged me to stay, but he understood my reasons for leaving. After I vowed to return tomorrow, I followed the short trail back to my car.
Only when I was safely inside my car did I start to freak out. What just happened? On one hand, I couldn’t deny that Nuri was real. The warmth of his hand on mine was proof that he hadn’t been a figment of my imagination. On the other hand, how could any of it have been real? I mean, Nuri himself was unreal, from his bluish-green-tinged pale skin to his yellow-green eyes and alluringly beautiful features.
I placed my hands on the steering wheel and that simple act reminded me of my injured wrist. That was probably the biggest piece of undeniable proof that Nuri was real. The lack of pain could not be imagined. While I couldn’t wrap my mind around the M word, my healed wrist left no other option. Did this all make me crazy? Or maybe I'd be crazy to NOT believe. A memory floated to my mind’s surface of my Dad tucking me into bed and telling me stories.