To the Falls

by Heather Renee

  “Not that I know of,” I said. “Strix said we should test the water theory out. He’ll let me know when he finds a water source.”

  “Should we really be postponing getting to Damien and the others?” Jordan asked as she noticed how tense Oliver was.

  “Not really, but if water is my affinity then it’ll be worth the time lost to gain this power,” I said. “We can use it against Damien and hopefully make it that much easier to destroy him and get our friends back.”

  “I agree,” Lucas said. “It’s worth the risk to have this information. We’ll wait here until Kali hears from Strix.”

  While we waited, I took the time to do some more research from the past Arelias and see what else I could learn. When Anastasia had banished Damien, she hadn’t found her Meraki yet and didn’t have a team with her like I did. She had some of the Elders and while I knew they were powerful from what I’d learned so far, they hadn’t been able to channel each other’s powers like the eight of us could.

  “Can you hear me, Kaliah?” Strix asked.

  “Yes,” I said. “How far away are you? Did you find water?”

  “I’m a mile east of you and there is a small pond here, but it should be enough.” Strix replied. “Can you and the others come this way? Everything looked clear on my way here.”

  “Strix said there is a small pond a mile east of us,” I said. “Do you guys mind if we take a detour to test this theory?”

  I asked them all because while I thought this was important, I couldn’t assume the rest of them did, especially Oliver.

  “If you really think this will help,” Oliver said dejectedly. “I won’t object, but be as quick as possible.”

  “How about a race?” Jordan asked. “Whoever makes it to the pond last gets to be Kali’s guinea pig for the water test.”

  I looked at Oliver and he finally cracked a small smile. Jordan always knew how to make a situation less tense.

  “We’ll be there in less than ten minutes,” I mentally called out to Strix.

  The race was just what we needed. For one, we got to the pond in record time and two, it served as a distraction for what was happening today. Jordan was last and I was going to have fun with that. Strix was sitting on the edge of an old wooden boat by the pond when we got there.

  He gave me instructions on what to do and while I was excited to figure this out, my whole body was quivering. The unknown was a scary thing and I had no idea how this new ability was going to change me.

  “Strix wants me to stand in the water barefoot and try to connect with the water,” I said to the others before getting in the water. “He said nothing crazy should happen, but we know my past with these things so Lucas will you stand behind me just in case?”

  “I’ve got you, babe,” Lucas said. “Don’t worry, it’s going to be okay. Strix wouldn’t let you do something that might hurt you.”

  “I know,” I agreed. “It’s just a lot to take in. I’m not used to so many changes and surprises.”

  I missed my schedules and plans. Those things kept me sane and without them I was ready to go insane.

  “I promise you a two-week vacation to any place of your choosing when this is all over,” Lucas said. “You can do this. I love you.”

  He pulled me into his arms and kissed the nerves away. He was really good at that. Then he gently pushed me toward the water and I knew we couldn’t postpone any longer. We had to get Tiana, Lela and Ryan back.

  We stood near the water with Lucas waiting right behind me. Strix flew over, landed on my shoulder and started giving me instructions.

  “You need to clear your mind,” Strix said. “When you’ve centered yourself, call to the water. Speak to it like you would to a friend. The water will be your companion and do things at your request if you treat it with respect.”

  I could do this. I’ve always had great respect for the water. I just hoped this particular bit of water knew that and was going to take it easy on me. I centered myself like I’d done time and time again in yoga and had a one-sided conversation with water. My life keeps getting more and more interesting.

  A few minutes had passed when the water started to swirl around my feet. I had tingles in my toes and they moved upward as the water moved faster around me. I kept my eyes closed and tried to stay centered until Strix gave me the okay.

  The waves kept getting bigger until they were hitting my knees. The tingling sensation had now spread throughout my whole body and I was in heaven. The water soothed any nerves I previously had and a calm swept over me like never before. I wanted to stay here forever.

  “Holy shit,” Jordan said. “She’s like one of those blue people.”

  My eyes flew open and I looked down at my body. I was bathed in an ocean blue glow. I gasped and peered over at Strix.

  “Is this supposed to happen?” I asked him.

  “Only if your affinity is for water,” Strix replied and even though owls didn’t smile, I could hear his happiness in his voice.

  The waves stopped swirling around me and the glowing died down. I’d never been more excited. I turned to the others with a smile on my face.

  “I take it everything went as expected,” Jordan said. “And now you can really kick all our asses?”

  “Now Jordan, you know I would never abuse such a power,” I said with a smirk. “That wouldn’t be proper of me.”

  I owed Jordan some payback and I had just the idea of how to do it.

  “I need to practice a few things with Strix before we get going again to find Damien,” I said. “I’ll be as quick as I can.”

  “Do what you need to do. It’s only going to help us.” Lucas smiled. “At least you didn’t pass out this time.”

  He had a point. This would help and I was glad he didn’t have to stress about me this time around.

  “We don’t have much time, Kaliah,” Strix said. “Let’s get to practicing. Do just as you did in the water, but this time once you feel the water connected to you, tell it what you’d like it to do.”

  Sounded easy enough. I started off with small stuff like making waves and parting the water. The connection I had with the water intensified as I continued working with it. Strix encouraged me to try something harder so I tried to freeze the water.

  The water settled and did nothing. I watched it, disappointed I couldn’t do that yet. I was trying to think of something else to do when my toes got a whole lot colder suddenly. The water below the surface was freezing. I’d actually done it, and within a few more minutes the whole pond was frozen over.

  “That’s impressive, Kali,” Kane said. “You’re picking this up really fast.”

  “Come on Kali,” Jordan taunted. “Do something really awesome like make it snow.”

  Time for payback. I knew water was always in the sky from the precipitation, so I called on it. Water vapor created a cloud over Jordan and I asked it for rain. This is fantastic.

  “What the hell?” Jordan wailed. “Make it stop!”

  I turned the rain into snow. Jordan had it coming and she knew it. She just didn’t know the extent of my new found power and now she knew a little more about it.

  “Oops,” I said innocently. “That was supposed to be a little snow flurry for you. Plus, you were the last one here, so you needed to be my guinea pig.”

  “Liar,” Jordan spat out while wiping the water from her face. “I’ll get you back for that. Just because you’re the Arelia doesn’t mean you’ll have one up on me all the time. You wait, because it’ll be epic when it happens.”

  “You know I love you, don’t be mad at me,” I said. “I’ll even give you my extra change of clothes to prove it.”

  “Thanks but no thanks, shorty,” She said. “I’ll use my own change of clothes, but you’re welcome to carry the wet ones and then I might forgive you.”

  “I’d be happy to.” I smiled sweetly at her.

  She didn’t know that Strix had told me I could remove all the water from her clothes so I surpris
ed her once again as she was walking away. I pulled the water out and it left a trail behind her. She got to the edge of the forest and turned around to glare at me.

  “Show off,” She growled out and walked back over to Kane.

  “So, after that show, I take it you know how to use your water affinity, Kali?” Oliver asked. “Do you need to practice anything else or can we leave now?”

  “Yes,” I said. “Strix feels like I should be fine and if I need to use it later when we face Damien, I’m now connected with the water so everything will come easier.”

  “Let’s head out then,” Lucas said. “As long as we don’t run into any obstacles, we should be there in under an hour.”

  We headed away from the pond and back into the forest. I was so much happier being connected to the water. It’d been that my way my whole life and now I knew why. I’d been feeling overwhelmed, but this new information went a long way to make things better. I couldn’t wait to get back to my parents’ house and dig deeper into what I could now do.

  “You did well,” Strix said. “I know it’s been a lot of change for you, but the hard part is almost over.”

  “Thank you, I couldn’t have done it without you and I’m so grateful for you.” I rubbed his back again. “When I found out this world was real, I had hoped more than anything that you and the tree would be real. I don’t think I would’ve handled it all as well otherwise.”

  “You would have, because you have Lucas and he’ll always be there to lift you up as you will for him.” Strix said. “That’s why I left you alone for the first few days. I knew he could protect you and you needed to bond. You two will be powerful Merakis.”

  I went back to searching for any information about Damien. So far, I knew he was the most powerful Guardian in our history. We only had a chance to beat him if our powers were connected. He had a bone to pick with Arvata because even though he was the most powerful at the time, he was not granted a spot as an Elder.

  The entries that come in our books are the only ones that the Elders follow and it was not in the books for Damien to be Elder. The Fates that write our books must have known he was going to be evil and had hoped Anastasia could put a stop to it. She had until Abram came along.

  “You hanging in there?” Lucas asked.

  “Yes, just going over what we know about Damien and doing some more research to see if I can find any last-minute details that might help us,” I said. “I have to say, it’s really weird having a library of information in my head.”

  “I can imagine, but you were chosen because the Fates knew you could handle it,” Lucas said. “There will be bad days where you feel like you can’t, but there will also be good days that make it all worth it.” He gave my hand a squeeze. “Just remember that you always have me to count on when you feel like it’s too much.”

  I squeezed his hand back and continued researching. We only had another twenty or so minutes before we needed to stop and go over the plan.

  “Strix, can you do another fly-over just to double check everything is clear at the spot we need to stop and connect our powers?” I asked out loud so everyone would know what he was doing.

  He nodded and took off toward the Falls. I went back to looking through the history in my head. I still hadn’t found anything new, but I had a feeling we were missing something big that would either make or break us. If only I had known about being the Arelia before, I’d have had more time to prepare. I guess Abram had succeeded in that part, but hopefully he didn’t know the plan ultimately failed when we entered the forest.

  “Anything new yet, Kali?” Jordan asked.

  “Not yet, but I feel like we’re missing something besides connecting our powers,” I said. “There has to be something else to it. When we stop, we should all get our books out one last time and make sure there hasn’t been anything added. I’ll keep digging in the meantime with what little time we have left.”

  “Maybe try talking about it out loud while you’re going over everything,” Kane said. “It might be easier for Lucas, Oliver or Jordan to catch something since they know more about our history than you and I do.”

  “That’s a really good idea,” I said. “A fresh perspective never hurts.”

  Strix had come back then and said everything was clear up ahead.

  “I’ll start from the top. Tell me when you need me to repeat something or to stop if you hear something worth expanding on,” I said.

  I went over everything I had already learned pretty quickly and started going through some new stuff. I decided to just highlight over everything that I saw as I passed it by in my mental filing cabinet. The filing cabinet was amazing and would be even better once I had it organized.

  “Wait, go back to the last one,” Jordan called out.

  “The one about Clara and Samuel?” I asked.

  “Yes, that one.” Jordan turned to Lucas and Oliver. “Do you guys remember learning about them before?”

  “Have no idea who they are,” Oliver said. “Then again, it’s been a long time since I took history lessons.”

  “I vaguely remember something,” Lucas said. “Clara was another Arelia, right? But I don’t know who Samuel is.”

  “You two are going back to history class when the rest of the new Guardians go. Your memory is crap and you’d be lost without me,” Jordan teased. “Yes, Clara was another Arelia and Samuel was comparable to Damien, though I can’t be certain of how exactly. It happened so long ago that there weren’t a lot of records on it, but Samuel tried to take over the Elders at some point because he deemed himself the most powerful. He was close, but not close enough. Clara had a Meraki at that time, as well as most of the Elders. They connected their powers and were able to do something to Samuel to destroy him, but I don’t know what. I forgot about that until I heard their names. I bet if you read into that file or whatever you have in that head of yours, you’ll find what you’re looking for.”

  “I’ll dig deeper into that one. Great catch, Jordan,” I said. “I doubt we have much time left, but should be enough to read it over really quick. Once we arrive at the spot Strix picked I’ll let everyone know what I found.”

  We continued walking while I went through that particular section. Nothing stood out to me at first, a lot of the information was things we already knew. Clara also had the water affinity, so I would definitely be going back and reading about anything she may have learned about it. That was something no one else could really teach me about.

  There it was, I finally found what we needed. It was a journal entry and I read the passage very carefully to make sure I didn’t misread it the first time.

  Samuel is using more dark magic than we thought. This would be both a blessing and a curse. While the dark magic made him stronger, it also gave him a weakness. I would need the strongest Merakis available to stop him. If we each connected with our Merakis and disabled him from all angles, I could overwhelm him with light magic from my water affinity and he would not survive. His soul was too dark now to handle such goodness. Today I will call on the others and Samuel will be destroyed.

  We didn’t have to connect as eight, but we needed to connect with our Meraki’s instead. That made sense since we were stronger together. Having four pairs going at Damien instead of just one single force was going to be helpful. He wouldn’t be able to take us all out at once that way.

  We would be the ones taking him out today.

  Chapter Fourteen

  We made it to the stopping point Strix told me about and took our bags off to get our books out and something to eat. We needed to eat something to get our energy levels up.

  “Let’s eat first and then read our books so we can go over a strategy plan one more time,” Lucas said. “We need to all agree and be on the same page or this won’t work, and we can’t afford for it not to.”

  “It’s going to work, because I didn’t get all the way here to just have it all ripped away from me,” I said. “I plan on having many years here get
ting to know my family and my heritage.”

  I realized that I could never leave this all behind and return to Earth. Even if Lucas came with me, I’d be leaving behind way too much. The people around me had become my family in a short time and I’d do whatever I could to protect them.

  “I couldn’t agree more,” Jordan said.

  “Damien is going down and it will be his own dark magic that brings him down,” I said.

  Lucas gave me a curious look, but didn’t question my statement.

  “You doing okay, blue eyes?” Lucas asked as he handed me food and water.

  “I’m doing better than I thought I would be,” I said. “All of this happened really fast, but I am finally seeing this is how it was all meant to be. Everything is going to be okay.”

  “You’re right, it is going be okay,” Lucas said. “I don’t believe the Fates would have asked this of us if we couldn’t do it. We will succeed in destroying Damien.”

  We finished our food and gathered around with our books. I had to admit, while I was beginning to trust the Fates, I was still nervous to see if they had given us any new information. Hopefully they’d confirm what I’d already found and then some.

  “Check our books first or hear what Kali learned first?” Oliver asked.

  “It’s hard to say,” Jordan shrugged. “One might not have crap to do with the other so let’s flip a coin and see which one wins.”

  “Nicely put, Jordan,” Lucas joked. “We all have our books out and the entries from the Fates normally aren’t that long, so let’s go with the book first.”

  “Sounds good to me,” I said. “I love using magic to open the book and seeing new entries from the Fates. Still blows my mind that it’s even possible.”

  “HA! Just wait until the book tells you that you need to head to the Otherworld, contend with a fire-breathing dragon, and choose between light and dark magic.” Jordan shuddered. “You won’t find it so fascinating then. I still have nightmares from that.”

  “Fire-breathing dragon? Seriously?” I gaped. “What else exists in the Otherworld?”