“I figured,” she said, but she wasn’t sad.
“I’m training you myself. No one else can do it better.”
“I figured that too.”
“Is there anything you haven’t figured, Love?” I laughed.
“Yeah,” she replied. I arched an eyebrow at her. She laughed and continued. “Why aren’t we eating the bacon before it gets cold?”
I laughed harder, and she rolled to reach for more food that sat on the nightstand on her side of the bed.
“How did you know?” she asked between bites of food.
“Know about what, Love?”
“About my elemental power,” she answered, “That still seems so weird. Me, an elemental. Okay, a lower elemental, but that’s still a huge hurdle to get my mind over.”
“I didn’t know for sure until you discovered your power and heated the fountain’s water, but I hoped I understood Aunt Mercy’s words to me. My core is where my elemental power lies. It never clicked before when you said you had a new feeling in your head and chest. I was slow on the draw there,” I admitted.
“Was I made a lower elemental because I’m your mate?”
“I don’t know. I know little of what the elementals do and their reasons for doing it, but Life found you worthy of the job, or she would never have allowed you to become what you are now,” I finished off a piece of toast.
“When are we going home?” she asked me a few minutes later.
“As soon as we can, but I promised Nate I’d help him put the witches in order first. Is that okay with you?” I needed to make sure she was okay with that choice. If she wanted to go home sooner, I’d take her in a heartbeat.
“That’s fine. Nate needs our help.” She rolled out of bed and retrieved her pack which had magically, or unmagically, appeared in our room while we slept.
“I’m assuming you know not to tell anyone about your new identity.” I didn’t want her to feel like I doubted her intelligence, but the Commander in me needed to confirm she indeed knew not to say anything.
“Yeah, Cal. Not a word will slip from these lips,” she teased.
“That’s cause those lips will be too busy to speak,” I rushed to her before she could escape into the bathroom. I captured her lips, and she didn’t speak again for quite a while.
******
I stood in the throne room with Nate. It had been two days since he became the Warlock. He’d called his people together to speak to them. Most of the closest witches had arrived, but there were still hundreds of witches that had not come. All who were in attendance accepted Nate as their Warlock, but they were hesitant of my brothers and I. I had Sylee stay in our room upstairs away from the numerous amounts of Harbor Witches.
Before going to the meeting with the witches, I decided the boys and I would have to dress formally in our elemental clothing, which included jeweled crowns that sat upon our heads and floor length robes and capes. In my elemental dress clothes, I thought I looked more like a king or prince than an elemental.
Each brother’s robe, cape, and crown matched the color that represented their element, or in Jeff and my case, elements. My clothes were silver and blue, Adam’s were orange, Drew’s were green and brown, Chris’s were yellow, Jeff’s were red, and Dalton’s were light gray.
Sylee loved my elemental clothes. One day, she too would have clothes that represented her element. She’d been working with her power since discovering it to see what else she could do. So far, it seemed we were opposites. She could boil water and I could only freeze it. She could breathe underwater and I could not. I could pull water out of the air around me, but Sylee was not able to.
I brought my mind back to the moment. Nate was just about to start addressing the gathering of witches. I was surprised not to feel the oily touch of their magic, but it was like Nathaniel’s now. Weird.
“Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Nathaniel Turnclaw, your new Warlock. Most of you already know who I am. For those who don’t, I’ve been around a while, and I know most of the tricks in the book. I am also a AAA level witch,” that shocked me, but I hid it well, as did my brothers who stood beside me. Finally, we had found the most powerful Harbor Witch. He rightfully belonged as Warlock, not Manuel Jursey. Nathaniel continued, “Do not disrespect me, go behind my back, or disobey me.
“The main reason I’ve called you all here today is to talk about something a past Warlock signed. It’s called the Accords. These elementals here,” he indicated my brothers and I, “have charged me with following this document. They will be checking in on us, and I would hate to lose any of you because you chose not to follow its commands. So, as of this moment, all jobs against the Light will cease. The Light have not been read into the Accords yet, and some may hold grudges and attack you. You may defend yourselves. Try not to kill them. The other races have also not been contacted, and until they adhere to the terms of the Accords, they are free game.
“Some of you may also know our last Warlock tried to free a creature called the Mindolin. This creature is dark and evil. He cannot be controlled and will destroy us if he is freed. Do not be deceived by him. Anyone caught trying to free him will be punished.
“Also, the hit on Lord Carmon’s head has been abolished. Anyone caught trying to kill him will deal with me. He is my friend and I will take it as a personal offense if he is injured by my people. Thank you all for coming. The details of the Accords will be shared soon, but I wanted to give you a heads up so you know to be expecting more news from me. Thank you.”
There were murmurings from several of the witches, and Nate spoke to many of them before they left for the mess hall where they would eat lunch. Having the other races be fair game when the Light were off limits wasn’t my first choice, but Nate needed to protect his people, and I wasn’t going to argue with him. I knew a thing or two about protecting the people you cared about. It just didn’t seem fair humans were off the list and others weren’t, but Nate knew more about witches than I did.
Eventually, the throne room cleared and Nate and I spoke briefly once we were alone. My brothers were in the mess hall mingling with the witches. Some brothers were better than others with socializing, but all were improving.
“You’re ready to head home, aren’t you?” Nate asked me.
“Yeah. Sylee’s family is safe to go back to their estate. She called them this morning and they’ll be heading there tomorrow, so she and I will have some time alone to get to know each other better. We’ve been through so much since we met and I want to know what it’s like not to have to look over my shoulder when I’m with her.”
“I appreciate that you stayed to help me. If there is anything I can do for you in the future, please let me know,” Nate shook my hand.
Love, please grab our bags and come downstairs. We’re going home, I spoke to my mate’s link. I heard her squeal in my head. I jumped and grabbed my ears, but there was really no way to lessen the noise since it was in my head. Nathaniel laughed at me as I rubbed one ear and then the other as we left the throne room behind.
On my way to meet her, I used my elemental power to change from formal robes back to my black mission garb, as Sylee liked to call my clothing color and style. She was a rainbow in my rain shower, and she was bringing out the sun in my life.
It only took a few minutes for Sylee to reach the front door of the palace. I grabbed both of our bags from her, and took her hand. We walked out of the palace together and to the sedan Nate was letting us borrow to go home. One of my brothers would eventually return it. Nate wasn’t in a hurry to have it back, which was good because I had plans before we made it home.
“Let’s get out of here, Love,” I told Sylee as I started the car.
“I can’t wait. Where are we headed?”
“Anywhere that doesn’t have action and adventure,” I replied.
She laughed at me and we were off.
Chapter Sixteen
Sylee
I would never get used to Carmon calling m
e Lady Sylee. I got after him for calling me that in the car when he never called Bard, Lord Bard. He asked me if he should start, so I slugged him. He laughed at my antics.
I had no idea where we were going. I had thought we were going straight home, but Carmon insisted on a little trip to Cambria and a few other cities he wanted to show me. It still amazed me what he had never experienced. We walked through an art museum one day so he could see how many different types of art there were, and I almost had to leave him there he loved it so much. Then we went to book shops and he had to drag me away.
It was the best vacation I’d ever experienced. When it was time to go home, Carmon said we were going to take the scenic route. I found it funny he knew what a scenic route was. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I woke up the next morning, after riding in the car all night, to find we were at my parent’s house.
“I love you!” I screamed at him before kissing him soundly. I bolted from the car and ran up the stairs before he even had his door open. Slow poke.
I was greeted by the new head of security as I entered the house. Finally, my father got rid of the other guy. He had been worthless in securing my family. Carmon would have remained safely at Mount Pickett had that other man done his job correctly. Then again, I would never have met Carmon, and the Mindolin would be free to roam our world. Maybe the other guy wasn’t so bad after all.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Lanshay. My name is Walter.” He shook my hand. Carmon was suddenly right behind me, and he introduced himself to Walter.
“If you ever have need of assistance, please give me a call,” Carmon told Walter.
“I will do that, Commander.” Walter smiled and accepted Carmon’s offer graciously.
My mom came scurrying down the stairs when she heard our voices. She wrapped us both in big hugs and sent us to the back patio with orders to relax while she informed the kitchen staff of our arrival and need for more food.
It was a beautiful, sunny day and I found a reclining chair to sit in. The sun warmed me, and by the time food arrived, I was almost asleep again. It reminded me of my childhood. That time was now over, but my adult years were starting out great. I wouldn’t change the past for all the power and money in the world.
Our food arrived and so did my parents. Isla and Paul were training and their trainer was against letting them out early. That was fine. I wanted to talk to just my parents for a while. Carmon had given me permission to tell them what I was. They just had to keep it from my siblings and the world.
“You’re really sure about this?” my mom asked when I’d told her I was now a lower elemental.
“Yeah, Mom. I can breathe underwater. Pretty big sign.”
“What will happen with her now?” Dad asked Carmon.
“Nothing will change. She will train with my brothers and I instead of at Mount Pickett, but there is a class or two I want her to take there still. When we’re on missions she can’t go on, she’ll be at the academy or our house for safety, but we’re planning on taking her whenever we can. She’s really good,” Carmon told my parents.
I could tell mom wasn’t thrilled with the news, but what mother is happy to send her daughter out into the field to fight and kill? My mom loved to shop and cook. She and I had never quite understood each other, but we’d grown closer over the last few years.
My father, on the other hand, always pushed me to follow my dream of being an extractor. It was nice to have my mate along on that dream now. He’d informed his mother and Aunt Mercy of their career change plan while we were on the road, and they had accepted the change without argument. Apparently, it was still a worthy job for them. The council had also accepted the change after Carmon had called Councilman Borgman.
It was so nice to be home. We spent the day playing games with my family, swimming in the pond behind the house, and catching up on the latest gossip. I had to make sure I didn’t use any of my new abilities when we were in and around water. My siblings weren’t going to be in on my secret for a long time.
My girlfriends, Shawna and Elise came over in the afternoon when I called to let them know I was home. We spent hours on my bedroom floor eating cookies and candy while I gave them every detail of my time away. When they had first entered the house, without knocking, they had caught Carmon and I in the midst of a heated make out session. I wasn’t super happy when they could hardly take their eyes off of him and focus on me and what I was saying. I hadn’t seen them in forever and they were drooling all over my mate. He was not oblivious either, but did he try to help me out and leave? Of course not. He was still a little arrogant in the looks department.
Both of my friends were attending the same academy, but it wasn’t Mount Pickett. They wanted to be safely behind the scenes of the action, not in it. Their mothers were much happier with their career choices than mine was with me. They had come home for the weekend after learning my family was back, but had been disappointed to learn I was not with them. Their happiness grew when I called and surprised them.
Archer was the only one of my family missing. He had stayed at Mount Pickett to start at the Academy when my parents came home. He called me that evening after dinner, which had been delicious. Syble, the cook, was amazing, and I would miss her meals the most. Anyway, Archer called to tell me that he had already found a girl he fancied and needed advice. I spent most of the phone call laughing at him as he described the new love of his life. I wished him all the best with her when I finally hung up.
I was happy to pick up a few of my things while I was there, and Carmon finally got to see my room since he didn’t pay attention to it when he was picking my family up.
“I’m glad you still have a door, Love,” he commented when I opened my door to let us in when it was time for bed.
“Thank you for not breaking it down,” I told him. I now knew how close I’d been to losing my door. If I had known then what I knew just hours later, I probably would have hurried a little faster. On second thought, no. I probably would have slowed down a little more.
My room was bigger like ours back home, but I shared a bathroom with Isla. It was located between our rooms. My walls were lavender colored and so were my bedsheets. The curtains were an even lighter purple, which did little to keep the sun out, but they looked nice in the room. I was excited to bring more of my clothes with me.
Carmon stared at everything in my room. He had no idea people owned so much stuff. He had nothing in his room. I had jewelry, makeup, perfume, and other accessories littering my dresser. The bathroom was even more full of the stuff. My closet was full of clothes, thanks to my mother and her love of shopping, and there were about a dozen throw pillows on the bed.
It was definitely a new experience for Carmon, and I heard him talking to himself about how much stuff was coming back with us. I didn’t plan to take it all back, yet.
We stayed with my parents, Isla, and Paul for a few days. It was nice to be home, but I was beginning to long for my own home soon. I found I wanted to start making it mine, and I couldn’t do that when I wasn’t there.
On our last night at my childhood home, I slept badly. I tossed and turned a lot, so in the early hours of morning, I ventured downstairs to the kitchen for a drink of water and a snack. I was not prepared to see a woman standing on the other side of the huge island in my parent’s gigantic kitchen. She wore robes like Carmon had worn at the Harbor Witch palace, and the color of her robes was silver. Carmon had told me the silver coloring had represented his Life element. I guessed that this meant the lady standing across from me was his Aunt Mercy, or Lady Life.
“Hello, Lady Sylee.” She smiled at me. She looked young, her skin free of wrinkles, but her hair was silver to match her robes. She was tall like her nephews and skinny as a twig. Her skin was pale and she had freckles on her nose.
I could hardly form the words I needed to say, but finally stuttered out, “Hi, Lady Life.”
She giggled and walked around the island to me. As she drew closer, I gav
e a small curtsy. In return, Life gave me a small nod of her head.
“I am glad to see you are well after helping my nephew defeat the former Warlock,” she told me.
“Thank you, I am well.” It was lame, but I didn’t know what else to say. What do you say to an elemental?
“Thank you for helping him keep the Mindolin in its prison.” She took my hands in hers and closed her eyes. “You are growing in strength with your new powers. Keep up the good work. Trust your mate to help you. He knows a thing or two about water,” she said with a wink.
“I’m sure he does.” Okay that was even more lame.
“I’m afraid I do not have much time left to talk with you. I came here for two things.” She indicated we sit on the bar stools at the short end of the island. After we were seated, she continued. “First, I want to thank you for giving him a chance,” I knew she spoke of Carmon, “I’ve looked forward to the day he would meet you since the moment he was born. I’m sorry it was not the experience you deserved when he bonded with you, but it needed to happen for the Warlock to be defeated and the Mindolin to remain contained.”
“Did you have him bond with me?” I asked.
“Not directly, but I made sure that the importance of duty was drilled into his mind while he was growing up. That was the only thing that would force him to bond with you.”
“I understand,” I replied. I wasn’t as upset anymore about the way we had bonded. I hadn’t been upset about it for a long time. I loved Carmon, and that’s all that mattered. We’d have a fun story to tell our kids someday. A story neither of us wanted them to duplicate.
“The second item I wanted to talk to you about are Carmon’s brothers.” I perked up more at this. “They will be finding their mates very soon. As you know, some of the boys are a little rough around the edges. Please do what you can to help the girls transition to a life with an elemental. When they bond with their elemental mate, they will receive powers like you have,” Mercy told me.
Life and Water: The Elementals: Book One Page 24