Mortal Enchantment Complete Box Set

by Stacey O'Neale

  “Fine.” I grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the portal.

  Chapter Nine

  Kalin

  The circulating flames sparked as we stepped inside. Intense heat pushed against my skin, unlike anything I’d ever experienced before. I shielded my forearm over my face out of instinct. Rowan put his arm around my shoulders, protecting me from the heat. I clung to his chest, my fingers digging into his shirt. A bright light flashed. We reached the other side of the portal, and the temperature dropped by what seemed like a thousand degrees. I let out a relieved sigh.

  From now on, traveling through fire portals was a hard pass.

  Rowan had taken us to a secluded white sand beach. Salty air floated into my nostrils, and the only noise I heard was the waves crashing against the shore. Sparkling mist lingered over the ocean, appearing to rise into the sky. It was the mystical veil hiding Avalon from the rest of the world. My father told me about the veil during one of our dreamwalks. He said the veil prevented elementals from aging. I wasn’t sure about the exact science of it all, but I knew the oldest elementals aged the fastest.

  Under normal mortal circumstances, this place would’ve seemed heavenly.

  But this was Avalon, the land of ‘crazy-shit-can-happen-at-any-moment.’

  Rowan cleared his throat.

  Glancing down, I realized I was still holding onto him. I let out an odd, anxiety-filled laugh. I released my hold on his shirt, stepped back a few paces, and put some much-needed space between us. “This is awkward.”

  He tried to smooth the creases that my tightly gripped fists had made on his shirt with little success. “Try to be gentler the next time you’re in the mood for a cuddle.”

  I rolled my eyes. “So, where do we begin?”

  “You need to learn how to sense your power.” Rowan slid his leather sheath off his shoulder, placing it on the ground. “Once you can feel it, you’ll know how much you’ve used and when you’re about to run out.”

  “Are you saying there’s a limit?”

  Rowan reached out and opened his palm. A fireball the size of an apple appeared. “Elemental power is strong. Thanks to your bloodline, you’ll have more than most, but everything has its limits.”

  I nodded. “Okay, sounds good. What’s the first step?”

  He closed his fist. The fireball extinguished into a tiny puff of smoke. “Meditation.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “You’re joking, right?”

  “Not at all,” he replied in a serious tone. “Your power is linked with your emotions. If you’re centered, your power will flow evenly. And without control, you’ll use too much energy.” He stepped closer. “Sit down.”

  I glanced around. “Anywhere in particular?”

  He took my hand in his and guided us to the warm sand. We both sat cross-legged, mirroring one another. He placed my hands on top of my knees with his hands resting on top. “I’m going to be your focal point. Keep your eyes on me.”

  This exercise was ridiculous. How was deep breathing going to help me control my power? “Okay, I’m staring into your eyes.”

  His eyes bore into mine like laser beams. “Now, focus on just me and concentrate on my words.”

  I glanced at his lips.

  Smirking, he said, “Eyes up.”

  “Sorry.”

  “Let’s try this again.” His words came out in an even, calm tone. “Clear your mind. Focus on the sound of my voice and let your body relax. Slowly breathe in.” He paused. “Okay, now let it out. Your limbs are loose. You feel safe.”

  My mind wandered. I was no longer staring at Rowan. I was in the forest. My body ached, but I kept running. It was dark, and I couldn’t see what was in front of me. I wasn’t sure where I was, but I knew I was in danger. She was there waiting for me. I could feel her breath on the back of my neck. Leaves rustled, then a twig snapped. I turned around. Malin had her hand clenched on my throat. I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t get away.

  “Kalin.” His voice jolted me out of my thoughts. “You’re tensing. What’s wrong?”

  “It didn’t work.” I shook my head. “I can’t do this.”

  “You’re not taking this seriously.” He leaned forward. “Do you want my help?”

  He knew more than anyone how important this was to me. I narrowed my eyes. “Yes, I want your help. Why else would I be here?”

  “Okay, then you have to trust me and do what I ask.” He rubbed his hand over his jawline. “Let’s try another way. This time close your eyes.”

  I did as he asked. “Okay, my eyes are closed.”

  “I need you to turn off your mind,” he instructed. “Listen to the sounds of the waves pounding against the shore. Focus on only that noise.”

  I pictured myself sitting on the sand, staring out into the ocean. I breathed in the thick, salty air as I honed in on the sound of the waves thrashing against the shore. Everything else around me faded away.

  “Let your body relax.” His voice remained calm. “Feel each of your limbs getting loose. Don’t be afraid to let go. There’s nothing left to fear. There’s only you and the ocean waves.”

  Only me? The words echoed in my head. Could my father be dead? Was I too late to save him? The council seemed eager to elect another king. Would they send me back to the mortal world? Would the new royal family have me killed?

  My eyes flashed opened. The meditations were making all my fears float to the surface. “We have to try something else.”

  “This will work,” he insisted. “You just need to shut off your mind.”

  My life had become one life-altering train wreck after another. I’d barely slept last night, which left me exhausted, agitated, and riddled with tension. This whole exercise was a waste of time. “Turn off my mind? No one can turn it off.”

  “You’re not giving it a chance to work,” he insisted with a bit of agitation in his tone.

  Maybe this method worked for him, but I needed something different. “There has to be an alternative way to train.”

  “I’m sorry to disappoint you, but this is the best way. If it helps, no one gets it the first time around. I trained for years before I fully understood my element.” He crossed his arms. “You need to trust the process.”

  Years? There was no hope for me. How was he going to squeeze multiple years of training into a few days? I was setting myself up for humiliating failure. As my insecurities grew, so did my anger. “I don’t have years, Rowan. I have an impossible task, a group of council members who don’t think I’m fit to rule, a missing father, and a secretive trainer who refuses to tell me anything. Oh, and let’s not forget the assassin who tried to kill me before I set one foot inside Avalon.” I stood and peered down at him. “That’s what I have.”

  His voice softened. “I understand why you’re upset—”

  “No, you couldn’t possibly understand.” Tears welled in my eyes. “I left my friends, my mother, my life, to be here. That was the deal my parents made. They decided what was best for me before I was born. Can you imagine that? Having all your choices taken away.” I forced the tears back, refusing to let them go. “And then I get here and find out that everything my father ever told me was a lie.”

  He stood. “It wasn’t all a lie.”

  “How would you know?” I screamed in frustration.

  “Because you told me,” he replied just as loud, then he closed his eyes for a few seconds and took a breath. When he spoke again, his voice calmed. “You said you dreamwalked throughout your childhood. He also sent you books and told you all about the courts and our history.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Okay, yes, he led you to believe that everything was wonderful. That’s what parents do. Even if you think he was wrong, he thought he was protecting you.”

  “If he had trained me like any other elemental, I wouldn’t be in this nightmare.” The wind coming off of the ocean pushed my hair into my face. I tucked most of the strands behind my ears. “I could’ve defended myself against my attacker, I could�
��ve handled the power display at the ball with ease, and most of all, I could’ve led my court until my father returned.”

  “Yeah, but you forget one thing.”

  “What’s that?”

  “If you had trained like everyone else, then there would be no reason for you to be here with me.” He clasped his hands together. “Imagine how sad and boring your life would be without me.”

  I laughed hard. A genuine laugh that made me hurt just a little less. “You’re right. Where would I be without you?”

  “Exactly,” he chuckled. “Now, if you don’t mind, can we please get back to the training?”

  We sat back down, and I closed my eyes. I attempted to focus once more. Random thoughts popped into my head, but I managed to push them out—each time I had to start over again.

  “You’re doing a good job,” he said, breaking the silence. “Let’s try taking the next step. I want you to turn off the sounds you hear and only visualize yourself. Start at the top of your head, and don’t stop until you are at your toes. Can you see yourself?”

  I pictured myself as if I were watching from above. I was so focused on the image I hadn’t realized I was tingling all over. It was as if my senses were alive. I was aware of everything around me. Each grain of sand, the ardent sun, every gust of wind; they felt like they were part of me like we were all connected somehow—what a total mind trip. I focused myself again, except this time, a soft golden yellow light swirled around my body. “Yes.”

  “Can you see an aura of energy around you?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Excellent,” he clapped. “Your power is focused and controlled. Remaining centered will allow you to use more energy for longer periods. As you lose control of your emotions, the color will darken. The power will become impossible to control and will drain you, potentially even kill you.”

  I lost my focus completely as the panic brewed in my stomach.

  “Kill me?” My eyes opened wide. “I don’t know if I’m ready for this.” Dad had told me the power was part of me, but I never thought using it could weaken or kill me. I tried to meditate once more. My eyes were closed for only a few seconds when I was shocked to see that my aura had darkened to burnt orange.

  “You’re ready,” he tried to assure me. “Don’t break your concentration.”

  My heart pounded against my chest. “All right, but if I die, I’m haunting you for eternity.”

  He chuckled under his breath. “I look forward to that.” Although my eyes were still closed, I was sure he was grinning.

  When I concentrated again, my aura was a light orange. I focused on the briny gusts of cool air blowing off the ocean. Slowly, a warm yellow light poked through the orange. I fixated on my slow breaths. Eventually, the color returned to a creamy yellow hue.

  I was shocked to see my skin glowed from the inside. “I can see it with my eyes opened.”

  “Very good,” he praised. “You’re picking this up faster than I anticipated.”

  Some of the pressure I felt between my shoulder blades released. “I was a bit terrified back there when you first started talking about the dangers, but now I get it. It feels like the power is part of me.” Rowan had given me hope. I didn’t completely trust him, but I appreciated what he was doing for me. I surprised myself by pulling him into a hug.

  He jolted.

  I released him and stood there. Embarrassed, I’d practically leaped into his lap. It seemed as if I was going for the world record in mortification. Without looking, I was sure my cheeks were red. Too bad invisibility cloaks weren’t a real thing.

  If he noticed my embarrassment, he never acknowledged it as he rose to his feet. “You managed to find your center, but do you think you can focus while distracted?”

  “What kind of a distraction?” I didn’t know what he meant, but I was sure I wasn’t ready. Today was only my first day of training. No one ever tested on the first day.

  Leaping backward, he landed a good distance away. “Let’s move on to something a bit more physical,” he shouted.

  “Physical?” I tensed, wondering what he had in mind. “I’m not sure how I feel about this.”

  Reaching down, he pulled his sword from its sheath. The iron weapon gleamed in the sunlight. I had no idea what he was about to do. A second later, he answered my question by running toward me with his sword aimed at my head.

  There was no time to think with only seconds to move.

  An uncomfortable rush of heat ran from my shoulders to my fingertips. It pulsated like a heartbeat, urging to be released. I pointed at Rowan. The burning sensation discharged out of my hands. An explosion of wind caught him in mid-air, thrusting him backward. He landed on a trio of boulders I hadn’t even noticed until now. He laid on his back, motionless.

  “Rowan!” I shrieked. I wanted to help him, but all of the energy had drained out of me. There was no way I could go to him. I could barely stand on my own feet. The weight of my body made me wobble, and I fell to my knees. This weakness was what he meant. Using my powers for only a moment had left me completely helpless.

  It took several long, agonizing minutes before I could stand. When the weakness finally subsided, I ran to Rowan. I stood over him as he stared aimlessly into the sky. Was he in shock? In the bright sunlight, his eyes lightened to a pale blue. I bent down and brushed the sand off of his face and neck. A strand of sweaty wavy hair clung to his forehead. Without any hesitation, I tucked it behind his ear.

  Rowan startled me when he swatted my hand away. “I’m fine, okay?”

  As he tried to sit up, I wondered what I should do. Would he have wanted my help after I knocked him on his ass? I doubted it. I cracked my knuckles in my lap. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened.”

  “You tapped into your wind magic.” He stood, shaking his head. Grains of sand fell from his hair. “That’s what happened.”

  I rose and wiped the sand off of the bottom of my dress. “I had no idea what I was doing. You came at me, and I felt this urgency rushing through me, and I just let it go. It was awesome. I mean, I feel really bad for hurting you, obviously, but it was so cool. What should we do now?”

  I reached out for him, and he recoiled. “This seems like a good time to end the training. You did well today.”

  “But, Rowan—” I whined.

  “You can practice your meditation on your own. For now, let’s get back to the castle.”

  My shoulders hunched as I watched as Rowan strode toward his half-buried sword. Had I embarrassed him by knocking him down? It was an accident. Was he mad at me? I couldn’t understand any of this. The whole point of this training was to unlock my power, and we did, so what was the problem? I kicked at several tan seashells with the tip of my shoe.

  “Another fun-filled day in Avalon,” I said aloud to myself.

  Chapter Ten

  Rowan

  I needed some space. Actually, what I needed was an ice pack or a strong serum for the beating I just took. I hadn’t seen it coming. Kalin’s got some serious power in her, that’s for sure. Curious as it was, it should’ve been impossible for her to produce so much power with so little training. After spending her entire life in the mortal world, I expected her connection to the element to be weak.

  But her power was enough to throw me at least thirty yards.

  It made me wonder if my mother’s theories weren’t as farfetched as I’d assumed. If Kalin were meant to be the next akasha, it would certainly explain why Taron had kept her hidden for so long. Other elementals might be jealous of her power or try to destroy her like Prisma. Once Taron was found, I’d get the answers for myself. For now, she needed to learn to control it before someone got hurt.

  “Rowan?” A soft voice broke me out of my thoughts. I shifted around and saw Ariel coming toward me. “Can you tell me where I can find the princess? I need to get her ready for dinner.”

  She had all of the typical features of an air elemental, but somehow she managed to stand out
among her peers. It was her smile. Her presence seemed to brighten everything around her. It was easy to see why Marcus was so smitten. After everything that happened, I was glad he had someone like her to lean on.

  Instead of answering her, I asked the question that’s been too painful to speak aloud. “How is Marcus?”

  Her eyes lit up at the mention of his name. “He’s doing much better. I don’t get to see him as much as I’d like. He’s been in the mortal world for much of the last few months.”

  Relief spilled over my shoulders. “Does he ever mention me?”

  “He loves you, Rowan. Nothing will ever change that.” Her eyes lowered as a tear fell down her cheek. “But after what happened, he needed time alone to heal. Doing what he did to you. It broke him.”

  I wanted more than anything to have just a few minutes to talk to him. What happened wasn’t his fault. He needed to know that I never blamed him for any of it. He needed to know that he would always be my best friend, my brother, if he would only give me a chance to explain. “Will you give him a message for me?”

  “Of course.”

  “Please tell him I’m here. Make him aware of everything that’s happened.” A lump swelled in my throat, and I swallowed hard. “Tell him…I miss him.”

  Ariel put her hand on my cheek. It was a kind gesture meant to comfort me, but all it did was make me feel worse. I didn’t want anyone’s pity. Without saying another word, I turned and headed back toward the castle.

  Chapter Eleven

  Kalin

  Practicing my meditation was as boring as it sounded. I ended up in a meadow close to the castle walls. I had been there for a few minutes when I noticed two air court knights. Had they been looking for me since I left with Rowan this morning? They never approached. Instead, they stood beneath the stone archway like two statues. They had likely been sent by Jarrod to watch over me. After my attack in the woods, I didn’t mind the added protection, but I felt weird knowing they were staring at me.