Watchtowers : Water

by Lucynda Storey

“Bind the prisoners!”

  A cadre of men rushed to do as their master ordered.

  “Bring them forward.”

  Keely’s eyes widened at the revelation. She strained to look at Michael. Perhaps he would aid Zion now that his own punishment had been decreed.

  “Only water can cleanse the impure!

  “No!” Keely screamed as much for the disgusting Michael as for an opportunity to provide a distraction for Zion. “You can’t do this. People don’t deserve to die because they don’t measure up to your standards.”

  Amidurah turned to her, hatred in his eyes. “This is my world, not yours!”

  Keely turned once again to look at Zion. Immense sadness resided in his being. His shoulders slumped with defeat and his lips turned down in seeming disappointment. Had she misinterpreted his earlier sign?

  She shouted the words of her heart, reluctant to begin her assault with the words left unspoken. “I love you!”

  His head snapped up and she saw a glint of his former self in his face.

  “Bind her!” Amidurah yelled, and then lifted his hands over his head.

  Members of his guard rushed toward her.

  Amidurah threw his arms forward, the arching motion reminiscent of a sportsman casting a fishing line.

  Behind her, Keely heard the flow of the river water shift.

  Keely took a deep breath and looked once more at the man she loved. Now. Now was the time to act.

  She spun toward the river where Amidurah had begun creating a river tsunami. A mighty wave rose, gathering the waters as far as she could see in either direction.

  She rounded on Amidurah and lifted her arms to stop the advance of the water. “You will not hurt these men!

  The wave crashed upon them all, its intensity barely reduced, the sound unlike anything she’d ever heard. She threw her hands in front of her face in a protective gesture. For the first time, she was truly thankful Zion had the gills inserted into her body.

  The water slammed into her, but not before her own effort, a stream of water, wrapped about Amidurah’s feet like a rope and sent him flying toward his followers.

  The power of the water closed around her, a furious lashing that slammed her against the rail of the dock. Her last sight was of Zion raising his hand in apparent triumph, a huge smile on his face.

  Men and women screamed in panic. Keely saw Mercy fall under the crest of the strong wave. The deluge, several meters tall, began to recede.

  “Mercy!” Keely jumped to her feet and rushed down the sodden steps in the cascading flood of river water. Fish jumped and flopped in the powerful onslaught. The golden gown stuck to her torso like skin. The long skirt wrapped around her legs. Keely shoved the material between her thighs where it hindered her less.

  The target of her quest pushed up through the water and struggled to gasp air. Keely reached her, and dragged her to an area where the river was beginning to recede. “Stay here.”

  Mercy didn’t move but looked at Keely as if she were insane.

  “Zion!” Where had he gone? She sloshed through the waist deep water, summoning a wave to knock down a man trying to grab her. “Zion!”

  Cold touched her skin. It wasn’t the water chilling her though. Domnu, no, she couldn’t lose him, not when they’d come this far. “Zion!”

  “Over here.”

  She turned toward the sound of Zion’s strong voice. He wasn’t far from the dock. The carnage Amidurah visited on his followers, strewn about the green grasses, amazed her. Their enemies were down, many no doubt dead. She scanned the destruction, unable to locate the evil sorcerer.

  “Where is he?” She shuddered at the thought that Amidurah had escaped. They couldn’t let him continue to wreak havoc on the population of the world.

  Zion pointed to an area just past the land side of the dock. “There!”

  Keely spun around to look in the direction Zion pointed. Amidurah floundered in the water returning to the river, trying to reach a hold on the dock.

  The sorcerer grasped a support beam from the dock and glared directly at Keely. With a flourish, he twisted his hand and summoned another wall of water, directing it at them.

  Intuitively, Keely threw her hands forward in protection. Power surged through her as if she’d been wired directly into a hydrogen generator. The flow of energy forced the hair of her body to stand on end and even lifted the loose wisps around her face. She inhaled deeply, renewed in her resolve to defeat Amidurah once and for all. She could beat him at his own game!

  The wall of water halted at its apex. Fish jumped in and out of the life-giving liquid as if they were behind a clear plexiwall.

  Force continued to rush through Keely and out her hands, pushing back the swell. Little by little she advanced against the sorcerer, reclaiming Irish soil from the horror.

  The hatred in Amidurah’s eyes seemed to intensify his strength. He called the sluggish water back; brought it to a great peak. An evil smile covered the lower portion of his face. With a snap of his wrist, the wall crashed down, directly at them.

  Keely mentally shoved back harder than she thought possible. The water froze in a cresting arc above the manor house. Keeping her eyes trained on Amidurah, she leaned down and grabbed Mercy by the hand. “This house is going to fall!”

  They rushed toward the gateway, Keely dragging Mercy. Adrenaline poured through Keely’s body, fueling her movements. The boost wouldn’t last long. In seconds, the water she held back would furiously crash upon the house, knocking it loose from its foundation, with the walls sure to collapse.

  Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Zion followed. She exhaled a shaky breath and whirled to face the weakening wall of water. The effort to hold back the onslaught cost her. Her legs trembled and it was tiring to keep her arms extended. Keely dropped to her knees fighting the attacking surge. Disappointment swamped her. How could she have failed, now, at the most critical juncture of her fight with Amidurah?

  As if he’d heard her thoughts the sorcerer laughed. “You have no business determining the fate of the world. You are nothing but a weak woman.”

  Indignation at his taunt renewed her determination. She wasn’t weak and she could help determine Earth’s fate. No way would she leave the future in the hands of a madman. Keely pushed back to her feet and raised her arms, willing the ache to subside and strength to flow through her limbs.

  She was too late. The swell descended upon the house, rained down upon the living and dead in the yard. Windows shattered, the stones, bricks, and mortar collapsed upon one another like blocks of dominoes.

  The roar assaulted her ears, the wave threatening to push her back toward the river. Keely cocked back her arm and pushed against the water with all she had.

  The laughter of Amidurah faded as he attempted to stop the rage of river returning to him. He shoved the water back toward her.

  She pushed against it once again. They wouldn’t be able to keep up this tennis match of nature indefinitely. She needed some extra help before her energy totally dissipated. She needed someone who drew strength from the water. Zion.

  She turned again and saw Zion nearing. She grabbed his hand. “Together. Maybe our strength together...”

  In unison, they lifted their hands, a silent plea calling the water to strike the sorcerer. Energy unlike any she’d yet experienced filled her. Her nerves hummed with the force coursing through them. Intense vibrations sang through her skin, radiating the imposing strength overcoming her.

  The river swirled around him and he pushed it back at them, making their efforts seem puny in comparison.

  “Love, Keely. We can defeat him with the power of our love.”

  She shook her head. A warmth stole over her, replaced the cold fear that enveloped her earlier. Our love. He said it, the words that were a powerful balm to her grieving heart. Whatever had happened before they could resolve given enough time. He’d physically made a choice, standing with her in the fight against Amidurah. She inhaled the scent o
f wet soil, clothing, and Zion’s hair. She looked at him, love pouring from her very soul. “I love you!”

  Zion lifted Keely’s arms. More power coursed through her body and lodged in her hands. She felt as if the potency she contained would make her explode into thousands of tiny pieces. “The world is about love, Amidurah! Begone!”

  The water rose in response once more. It whirled around Amidurah with a velocity Keely had never seen. The speed and force lifted him high above the ground and wrapped him tightly in a wall of heavy water.

  “Not again!” Amidurah’s voice echoed through the air like a bad loudspeaker announcing a football game. “This isn’t over, Keely Shane. I’ll destroy you and the others.”

  The air shimmered. Keely blinked and refocused on the area she’d last seen the sorcerer. He was gone. Fear trailed over her skin. The battle was over, but the war wasn’t. “Amidurah must know about Jade. We have to contact her, warn her he’s looking.”

  “It’s more than Jade.” Zion pushed off Keely’s cheek a strand of wet hair and continued. “Didn’t Denton mention something about ‘Watchtowers’? If he’s already manipulated air and water, Amidurah may be looking at controlling earth and fire too.”

  “Then we have to find them all.”

  Zion crushed her to him, lay claim to her mouth with his lips. “We’ll do that Keely. Soon, I promise, once we clear the air between us.”

  Chapter Twenty-four

  Once they dealt with the arrival of the Sentries and given their statements, Keely allowed Zion to hustle her away from the rubble caused by the Doonbeg River manipulations. Was it possible they were finished with Amidurah, that somehow she’d truly bested him with the addition of Zion’s power and the sorcerer had been annihilated? Domnu, let it be so she prayed, but in her heart she feared it was otherwise. Amidurah’s last screech had been about destroying the others and Zion reminded her there were other elements the sorcerer might try to control.

  It took effort to put one foot in front of the other. Keely’s shoulders slumped as if the combined weight of the thirty confirmed dead pushed her toward a tailored personal version of Hades. Would she go to the hall of heroes, or that of evil doers? Her very soul felt world weary. Fighting Amidurah had taken a lot out of her. “Where are we going?”

  “I thought we’d get away from the scarring that has taken place here today, find a calmer locale, and then we’d talk and I’d take you home.”

  A long, soft sigh escaped Keely’s lips. A short distance from Amidurah’s manor, she smelled the dying river life, an odor it would take a lifetime to forget.

  Home. She believed it to be Kilkee, the Castle, and Ireland. The importance of the past several days crashed around her as hard as the violent wave Amidurah created. Her parents were gone and she still had yet to properly say good-bye to them and mourn their loss to Crobdh Dearg, the ancient goddess of death.

  The Castle was beyond repair. Zion would return to his undersea home and lover when he could no longer stay on land. She’d store the moments of happiness they shared together until he left for Atlantis. Once he was gone all she’d have left was her pod of Rossi’s. While many people were polyamorous, and Zion’s father exhibited those qualities in abundance, and despite Zion’s declaration of love, she couldn’t picture being a part of such a relationship. Unable to bear the thought of sharing Zion with another woman, a bleak, depressing future stretched out before her.

  “Penny for your thoughts?”

  Keely ruefully smiled. “I doubt you want to go where they are taking me.” She continued to place one foot in front of the other as if she’d become an automaton.

  Zion laid an arm on her shoulder and halted her. “That’s where you’re wrong, Keely Shane.”

  She gave a brittle laugh. “You want to know about those cheap thoughts? I was thinking about how desolate my life is going to be without my family...” she paused and looked into his face, “...and my friends. I was thinking about no longer having a home.”

  He lifted a loose strand of her long hair, brushing it against her cheek. “You have a home, love.”

  The tender words drew a gasp from her. “Please don’t call me that.”

  “Call you what? Love? This is one area I won’t give in to your will with. You are my love.”

  “No.” The word tore from her heart in a quiet whisper. “You have another.”

  She hung her head and allowed her hair to hide her face from Zion. “I heard you with her while I was in Atlantis. I know I was a tool, a method for saving Atlantis. I hope in that regard I’ve helped you succeed.”

  Tenderly, he lifted her chin. Keely was forced to look him directly in his eyes. They seemed full of emotion but which one? She prayed it wasn’t pity.

  “Keely, I’ve been with you since you were three. Doesn’t that mean anything to you? Doesn’t that tell you something about me?”

  She managed a nod, her throat thickening with sorrow. “You’re a sea prince, hundreds of years old. I’ve been an amusement for better than twenty-five years. Now it’s time for you to return to your undersea kingdom. We were never meant to be together permanently. I can accept that.”

  His thumb grazed her cheek. Why did he have to be so tender, right now, when the cut in her heart would be so much cleaner if he just left her?

  “What if I can’t?”

  The beat of her heart stopped for a moment and her breath caught in her lungs. What did he mean by his question? “If you can’t what?”

  “If I can’t accept your statement. Keely, I’ve stayed with you all these years because you fascinated me, because I fell in love with you. There’s only been you for nearly three decades.”

  Her words came out in choked syllables. “That’s not true. What of the woman who helped you through your dark years?”

  Frustration tinged his words. “What are you talking about?

  “The one who wanted to know if you succeeded in seducing me to win my aid?”

  His eyes widened. “That’s what you heard? You threw me out of your life for drugs and hot fudge sauce. The dark years were those when you were on those damnable drugs. You heard Evadne, and I’ve never loved her as anything more than a friend; like a sister.”

  She jerked her head from his hand. “Like that’s supposed to mean something? The Olympians aren’t known for their capacity for fidelity or caution in who they sleep with.”

  He ran a hand through his drying blond locks. “Yeah. I know. You have no idea what it’s like to not know who your mother is, much less know her.”

  The pain in his words lanced her heart. No, she didn’t know what it was like. Her entire life both her parents had been there for her, maybe not in the best way possible, but they had both supported her to the best of their abilities. “I’m sorry, Zion.”

  He gave her a wan smile and continued walking. “It’s not your fault. You don’t have anything to be sorry for because dear ol’ dad can’t keep it in his proverbial trousers.”

  “You’re wrong. While I’m sorry about you not knowing your mother, I do regret painting you with the same brush as your father. It wasn’t fair.”

  “No, it wasn’t. But I can’t blame you for the attitude. The overall reputation is well deserved. I do have over forty brothers and sisters that I know of and more on the way.”

  Keely’s eyes grew wide and she laid a hand on his arm. Zion turned toward her and looking into his blue gaze, she could see he told the truth. Over forty siblings? Dear Domnu! “I don’t know if that’s good or bad?”

  He shrugged.

  She reached for his hand and held it. Tanned and large, hers looked tiny in comparison. This moment was important. Zion carried his own burdens regarding family.

  The road they walked down grew drier the further they traveled away from Amidurah’s lodging. The grasses grew tall and Zion led them off the road and onto a well-hidden path. In the distance, Keely heard the faint gurgling of water.

  She stifled a yawn. The encounter with Amidurah tire
d her more than she realized. “Could we rest a bit?”

  He turned and swept her up into his arms. “By Poseidon’s trident, I’m sorry Keely. I should have secured transportation.”

  She wanted to shout, ‘Put me down,’ but didn’t. The fact of the matter was she enjoyed the feeling of safety, hearing the thump of his heart, and letting the heat of his body warm her. She loved being in his arms. If there was some way to figure out a solution to their impasse, Keely was all for it.

  She squirmed in his arms. “Don’t carry me too far. You’ve got to be exhausted too.”

  Zion bestowed on her a bright smile. “The water rejuvenated me. I’m ready for anything.”

  He stopped moving and for a heartbeat, Keely didn’t know his intensions. Then his lips came down on hers in a kiss so possessive and sensual she thought she’d melt into a puddle of wanton desire on the spot.

  The kiss went on forever, at least it seemed that way. Her concerns vanished like a cosmic event blotting out the stars in a single moment. Trying to catch her breath and understand what this kiss meant, she slightly pulled away from his lips and sought out the answer in his eyes.

  “In all the time I’ve watched you, communed with you, made love to you in your mind, I’ve never been unfaithful. It’s abhorrent to me.”

  Keely gasped. Is that what he’d been referring to when Michael and the thugs with him attacked? She’d forgotten his lovemaking? Oh Domnu, have mercy on me.

  Then another thing hit. Of course, the concept of infidelity would disgust him. He’d seen, experienced first hand the results of planting his father planting his seed in any receptacle. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back trying to put all the love she felt in that meeting of lips.

  She must have done something right because he groaned, a primitive sound that left no doubt as to what he was thinking at that very moment.

  “Yes,” Keely murmured against his mouth.

  No further words were spoken. Zion set her on her feet and slipped his hands beneath the shoulders of her ruined gown. Keely sighed, the touch of his hands on her skin soothing away her unvoiced concerns. With soft caresses, the material fell down Keely’s arms and toward the grassy ground.