46. Electric Charge
46
ELECTRIC CHARGE
*Raven*
The next day, Mother guides me through a few more exercises to help me master my powers. It’s not much harder than controlling animals, but the feeling ripples through me like an electric charge. I still just think something and watch it happen, but the elements seem to shift around me and inside of me. It’s like nature and I am one being, communicating with each other. It’s profound and a little shocking.
When she’s satisfied with what I can do, she heads back down to the tunnels for some lunch. She invites me to join her, but I’m not ready to go back into the darkness just yet. It’s like the sun is calling to me, telling me to take every opportunity to hone my skills. She promises to bring me something in an hour if she doesn’t see me and starts walking back to the hidden entrance.
I stand in the field and will a cloud to start pouring rain next to me. A solitary black cloud gathers and big, fat raindrops fall rapidly in a small, contained circle. I walk around it, marveling at how well contained it is. I stick my hand into the downpour, the icy cold water feeling like a treat in the heat of the day.
I splash some of the water on my face and will the cloud to stop raining and cover the sun. The cloud moves, growing slightly bigger to accommodate to block all the beams, and the earth around me becomes darker and cooler. I imagine a gentle breeze again, remembering how nice it felt earlier, and the wind starts to blow.
None of this makes any sense to me, but I don’t question it. There’s no doubt that I’m the one controlling this. Mother told me earlier that only a handful of people from Escuro could control the weather since the beginning of our history. It was a gift that would skip generations and generations with no rhyme or reason.
“But it chose you,” she’d told me, her eyes shining with unshed tears. “My brave, darling girl, you are special.”
My heart swells now as I think of her words. Queen Rowena would have called me a “freak” or a “witch.” She probably would have arranged to burn me at the stake if she thought she could get away with it without the villagers asking questions. But then, King Gavin wanted me for my potential powers, so he probably wouldn’t have let her.
My mind drifts to Kieran, and I feel guilty that I’ve barely spared him a thought all day. The electricity inside of me has been the only thing I could focus on for hours.
I miss him terribly now, though, and I notice the wind picks up a biting edge.
“Stop,” I say out loud, almost involuntarily.
The wind stops altogether, the air deathly still around me.
I’ll have to get used to this, I know. Mother told me that a lot of this power is attached to my emotions, and I’ll have to find a way to control them so that I don’t accidentally cause a natural disaster. Still, I can’t help but wonder how far these powers extend. Could I create a blizzard all the way down in Dun’s Crossing? Could I cause a tornado to wipe the kingdom away the way King Gavin tried to wipe all of my people away?
No, I’m nothing like him. I’ll never be like him, and I realize with delight that I’m much stronger than he is. His fear will be his downfall, and that’s enough to lift my spirits. I send the cloud away so that the sun can shine on the field again, but I keep a calm breeze blowing to cool off the day.
I’m not sure how much time has passed when I hear a voice. I turn around, thinking my mother has come to bring me lunch, but it’s Sybil, much to my annoyance. Melany is a few paces behind her, shouting something to Sybil that I can’t hear.
“Leave it alone, Syb,” I finally hear Melany call.
Sybil stops and turns around, whispering something in her face. Then, she turns on her heel and starts marching toward me, a scowl on her face.
“It isn’t fair!” she screams, stopping just a few paces in front of me. I see her chest rise and fall with quick, angry breaths.
Melany comes to stand next to me, pulling on my arm to get me out of Sybil’s clutches, but I’m not afraid of her.
“What isn’t fair?” I ask, raising an eyebrow in challenge.
“You don’t get to steal my crown and my gift!” she whines. “My mother told me those powers run in our bloodline. They should have come to me!”
“You know that’s not how the Goddess works,” Melany tells her in a soothing manner. “She bestows gifts how She sees fit.”
“Then she’s blind,” Sybil screeches. “You are nothing but a spoiled princess from a kingdom that tried to destroy us. You’re the last person in the world who should have received those powers!”
The laughter escapes me before I can stop it. She thinks I’m spoiled? She has no idea what I’ve escaped from. She wouldn’t last a day with Queen Rowena.
“That’s enough,” Melany shouts back to her. “You’re out of order, Sybil. Raven hasn’t done anything wrong, and if you tried to get to know her instead of letting your jealousy cloud your judgment, you might actually like her.”
“I could never like you,” Sybil spits as if I’m the one who suggested it. “You were raised by filth, and you deserve to rot in that kingdom like the filth that you are.”
Anger boils up inside me with such a blinding flash, I don’t realize at first that there actually is a blinding flash of lightning happening in front of my face until I hear Sybil scream in horror.
“You bitch!” she screams, putting distance between us. “You could have killed me! You’re a psychopathic bitch!” Her dress is burned, and her hair stands on end. Thankfully, I didn’t hit her directly enough to kill her. I would feel bad about that.
She turns to run, but I’m still blinking at the spot on the ground where the lightning struck–mere inches away from where she’d been standing. My anger is replaced by guilt. I had no intention of doing that. I bury my face in my hands and groan before I feel arms wrap around me.
“That was the funniest thing I’ve ever seen,” Melany whispers conspiratorially in my ear. “Don’t tell her I said so, but her face went as white as a sheet!”
“Melany,” I squeak. “That was horrible! I could have really hurt her!”
I uncover my face and look her in the eye, trying to convey that I’m truly sorry for what I just did.
“You could’ve,” she agrees. “But you didn’t!”
“I wasn’t even in control,” I confess, taking a step back from her in case I accidentally strike her too. “She just made me so angry and I . . .”
“Nearly electrocuted her?” She laughs.
I shoot her an admonishing look.
“I’m sorry, but that was incredible!” She giggles, grabbing my hand and squeezing tightly. “I’ve heard legends about people with the gift, but we’ve never seen it in person! It’s been nearly a hundred years since the last weather bender died.”
I shake my head as I digest this information. King Gavin must have never heard this legend, or he would have killed me as a baby just to be safe. He was scared enough of our ability to communicate with animals.
“Raven?” Melany calls, and I realize I’ve not been listening. My heart beats so loudly it’s all I can hear. “Raven, it’s really okay! Her pride is hurt more than anything. She’s going to be fine.”
I turn toward my new friend and pull her into a hug, feeling overwhelmed and a little afraid of myself. She rubs my back as my breathing starts to slow, and my heart rate returns to normal. She stays quiet for a long time, but she must sense I’m feeling better because she pulls away from me and starts speaking.
“You are amazing, Raven,” she tells me firmly. “You have a power that other people in Escuro only dream about. It’s why Sybil is so angry. But you were chosen by the Goddess, and She chose you for a reason.”
“What do you think that reason is?” I whisper, feeling completely unworthy of it.
She smiles brightly at me, pride etched in her features. “Because the Goddess believes in restoration,” she answers reverently. “She’s seen us suffering all these years and heard our prayers. Now you’re here, and you’re the strongest of all of us. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. You have the power to free us. Literally.”
The electricity surges within me, mixed with a feeling of hope.
“And I bet there are some other people you could use that skill against,” she says with a gleam in her eye.
I picture King Gavin in my head, and I know she’s right. Kieran’s gone home to finish the job, but if he somehow fails, I’ll be able to step up and end this once and for all.