Water Blessed

by Stone, Leia

  He turned and looked at me with longing.

  “Thank you. Take care of Lake.”

  He nodded.

  Seth sheathed the sword and led me the opposite direction of Kyler.

  “Can we go back to Wheat Valley?” I asked him.

  Seth shook his head as we hiked up some stairs. “Not with Coal and Jewel Mountain working together.”

  “But if the king kills me and he has given Seraphina away, then who will fill his water?”

  We reached the top. “I think he intends to kill us and steal Seraphina back,” Seth exclaimed.

  Anger boiled up inside of me. “Then we are going out in grand fashion.” Thunder echoed off the stone wall. I was going to make it pour. Fill every underground aquifer, every well, and every crevice.

  Seth opened the door and I could hear the rain pelting the ground. We were at ground level, around the back side of the castle. The servants’ entrance. Seth grabbed my hand and we ran. The heavy rain gave us low visibility but it also hid our escape. Seth reached the castle wall and hoisted me up over it. Then I helped pull him up. We looked out and I could see, 100 paces away, the outer wall that encircled the realm had fallen down. Beyond that was the Salt Flats. Flat white crusted land for as far as the eye could see. Small braided rivers ran from the realm and out into the Salt Flats, watering the greedy earth. Seth helped me down and I heard shouting behind us.

  “Run!” Seth screamed and we took off. Running races was the only thing a water wife had in my village to pass time. I was pretty fast, but nothing compared to running for your life. A threat at your back gave you extra speed.

  “Let’s go to my village,” I said between huffs as the rain pelted, making visibility hard.

  Seth dismissed it. “They will look there. You will bring trouble to your people.”

  We had reached the braided river. It was racing down the embankment out into the Salt Flats. The dry, brittle salt was crushing and giving way. Something tingled inside my head, like a butterfly flapping its wings. I felt dizzy and grabbed Seth’s arm for balance.

  All of a sudden, thick, dark grey clouds rolled in from beyond the Salt Flats. Right before my eyes, they opened and poured buckets of water across the Salt Flats. It was like the clouds held an entire lake full of water. It poured and poured like a river from the sky. The rain around me eased up, but the dark foreboding clouds over the Salt Flats continued to pour. My tongue was swollen and parched.

  “Seth, water.” I breathed. He was staring at the sight, in shock.

  He knelt down and reached into the braided river, coming up with a scoop full of water. I drank greedily from his hands and he looked behind me with a touch of fear. Then he looked in my eyes with sadness. I turned to see Jewel Mountain’s army ride our way on horseback.

  “Seraphina warned me in her note this might not end well,” he said and looked the other way, toward Silk Valley, as if waiting for something.

  I nodded and I knew then that we didn’t have enough time to run and there was nowhere to go. I grabbed the sides of his face, his stubble tickling my palms. I kissed him, knowing it may be the last time. He greedily returned the kiss and when hoof beats got closer, we pulled away.

  The Jewel king was leading the army with Kyler riding next to him. The braided river was raging, but Seth grabbed my hand and we tried to cross it anyway. The water came up to mid-thigh. When I looked up, hope bubbled up inside of me for the first time. Coming toward us was Silk and Wheat Valley army. Twice the size of Jewel Mountain.

  But the hoof beats were loud at our backs and the braided river slowed us down. It was like ten small rivers crisscrossing to the Salt Flats, seeking open space to spread out and be free. We had crossed two rivers and were halfway through another one when pain sliced through my shoulder. The impact spun me around to face the advancing Jewel Mountain army. A cry flew from my lips as thunder and lightning shook the sky. An arrow was stuck in my left shoulder. I looked down, Instead of blood, water oozed from the wound. Looking up I saw the Jewel Mountain king at the end of the bow. Another arrow loosened and struck me in the stomach.

  Kyler leapt off his horse and tackled his father to the ground. But it was too late. My stomach had been torn open like a freshly caught rabbit before supper. I fell back into the river, bleeding precious water. The sounds of Seth’s despair would be forever etched into my memory as the raging river took me out to sea. It hit me, in the final moments, this was my purpose. To help the Fates create a colossal and remarkable thing. The Ocean. When the blackness took me, I smiled. For the first time in my life I was experiencing what it felt like to float and submerge in water. It was everything I thought it would be. Lake, Seth, my mother, they would never thirst again.

  Floating

  They said that when the Fates took you, you would feel no pain. You would float up into the clouds and join them for eternity in a state of bliss. My shoulder and stomach burned with intensity. Maybe the Fates had forgotten to take my pain.

  “Ocean!” Seth’s voice echoed. My eyes flew open. I was floating in the middle of the largest body of water I had ever seen. Two arrows stuck out of my body. I raised my arm.

  “Seth!” I could barely muster the strength to shout. Something slithered across my foot and then again across my palm. Fear gripped me. I was not alone in the water.

  I tried to right myself, but the arrows made it too hard. Then I saw him. Seth was navigating the waters in a wooden caravan type of thing. He had two large wooden sticks. I raised my arm again and he made his way over to me faster.

  He reached over the side and pulled me up as I groaned.

  “You’re alive!” He peppered my face and neck with kisses. I wasn’t sure I could talk. I needed water. I had never been so parched in all my life. I took my frail shaking hand over the side of the floating caravan and scooped water to drink. Before it reached my lips, Seth smacked it away and produced a travel canteen.

  “It’s too salty. You will get ill,” he told me as I gulped from the canteen. My wounds were gushing water, filling the boat.

  “Mustard cherries!” Seth shouted and ripped the arrow from my shoulder. My scream ended in laughter at the old memory of him tending to my elbow wound. Seth looked at my shoulder with an open mouth and his skin paled to a white sheet. Now that the arrow was out, it felt so much better.

  “What? I thought Kyler was the one afraid of blood,” I said, feeling better after the fresh water. I followed his gaze and yelped when I saw my shoulder wound was completely sealed with a small star-shaped scar.

  “Thank the Fates,” I whispered, unsure of what else to say or think. How was it possible?

  Seth unceremoniously took out the arrow from my stomach. I was watching closely. We both were. My wrap dress was torn to expose my belly flesh. It stitched together before our eyes, small electric lightning bolts could be seen dancing on my skin as it healed.

  I had nearly consumed the entire canteen of water. To busy myself, I filled it with fresh water from my left hand. I glanced at Seth who watched me in awe.

  “You’re incredible.” Seth breathed.

  I laughed nervously. Honestly the whole thought of bleeding water unnerved me. Then, healing. It … it made me magical, unhuman. I didn’t like it.

  “What is this?” I changed the subject, pointing to the floating vessel.

  Seth grinned. “A boat.” He reached inside a small storage compartment and produced a book. The same book Seraphina had given him.

  “Navigating the seas,” Seth read aloud.

  I creased my eyebrows and really took a look around. I could barely see the realm in the distance. People looked like specks of pepper in a stew. I turned and looked ahead, blue rippling water for as far as the eye can see.

  “How is this possible?” I gestured.

  Seth shrugged. “The sky opened up and dropped so much water I thought the whole realm would float away. Wheat Valley brought the boat, like I had asked them to before we left.”

  I smiled. “
You knew.”

  “Seraphina,” he told me.

  I hoped everyone back in the realm were going to be okay. Seth reached into the storage compartment again and produced another book, handing it to me.

  “For you, from Seraphina.”

  I shyly handed it back. “Writing short letters is manageable, but I cannot read a full book,” I said in embarrassment. My village didn’t have many books or schooling.

  Seth frowned. “Oh, that’s okay. I can read it to you.” He ran his finger along the cover. “Magic, a tale of many gifts and many worlds,” he read.

  I frowned. “Is it a fantasy book?”

  Seth shook his head and pointed to the bottom.

  “A doctrine of truth,” he read.

  I sucked in a shocked breath. All of a sudden, a noise banged against the boat. Seth produced a spear and eagerly hung over the edge.

  “What is it?” I asked in fear.

  He thrust his spear into the water and pulled it up, grinning. “A fish, according to the book.”

  A slender, spiny thing with scales was flopping about. My eyes were wide. I had never seen a fish before. How odd. It was frightening to think of different animals existing. Creatures you never knew about. Seth quickly ended the fish’s life.

  “Is it edible?” I queried. I knew we had enough water, but I was worried about food. I was starving!

  Seth took a small pink chunk of meat between his fingers. “According to the book, it is not only edible but delicious, even raw.” He popped it in his mouth.

  Raw! I recoiled in shock. But Seth moaned. My curiosity piqued and Seth fed me a piece. It broke apart easily in my mouth, tender with a mild flavor. It was good.

  “So what now?” I asked in-between mouthfuls.

  Seth seemed to consider my words. “According to legend, before the water disappeared it was easy to travel in boats to other places. There were many, many realms and lands. There still are, if they have managed to survive. We will seek safety there.”

  It sounded impossible, but I didn’t want to worry him. I got up and sat on his lap. “Or we can live in this boat, drinking water and eating fish.”

  He smiled touching the bracelet at my wrist. “I could think of worse things than to be stranded on a boat with a beautiful lady.”

  I returned his smile. The boat was about two oxen long and one oxen wide. Half of it had a covering to keep out the sun. We could stay here for a while. Not forever.

  I kissed him and when I broke away, something in the distance caught my eye. A rainbow! Out here in the middle of the ocean, no rain or clouds, but there was a rainbow. The air turned chilly.

  Seth turned in the direction of my gaze. But as we neared, it didn’t look like the typical arched rainbow, it was more of a blob shape and beyond it was white stuff. I creased my brow as I shivered. Seth looked alarmed as the water current took us near the rainbow blob. He quickly pulled out his paddles.

  “Seth, what’s wrong? Why is it so cold?”

  We were closer to it and I could see white fluff coming out of the rainbow. It looked like a tear in the fabric of reality. Like someone had cut open the landscape and beyond it was another world. I dug my arms into the water and tried to help Seth paddle away, but there was no use, we were being sucked right into it. Seth quickly pulled the paddles inside the boat and tucked me under his chest. We went right into the tear and came out on the other side. Bone chilling cold smacked into me.

  Fog came out of Seth’s mouth when he spoke. “Your hair, it’s white,” he said in shock.

  I held a chunk of hair in my hands and looked down. He was right. I knew then my world would never be the same.

  Also by Leia Stone:

  Matefinder Book 1

  Devi: Matefinder Book 2

  Balance: Matefinder Book 3 (2016)

  This book will be a series. Visit www.leiastone.com for more information.

  Special Thanks

  To my family for always encouraging me to follow my dreams and passion. To Patti Geesey for her wonderful editing. To Fiction Writers Group for their continued support.