31 #2
The blue hue faded from the dagger as the remaining energy sapped from Kora. She swayed and Raiden rushed to her in an instant. Yet, his hands didn’t touch her. Instead, invisible currents of wind supported her legs, holding her upright.
“You need to rest, now.” Raiden glared at his brother. “Aerion, you pushed her too hard.”
“Stop mothering her.” Aerion rolled his eyes, dangling his chakrams from his hands as though it were a simple toy. They twirled on a single finger, a small wrap of black leather protecting his skin from the lethal edges.
“Mothering?” Raiden bristled.
“Always fussing over her. Making sure she sleeps. Making sure no one hurts her in training and always coo—”
Raiden raised a hand, cutting Aerion off. “There’s less than five weeks till her deal with Father runs out. We both know how those go.”
“I do hate it when males talk about me like I’m not here,” Kora grumbled.
Raiden’s mouth twitched, his stare softening. The sun had fully set, the lanterns in the arena bathing his face in a sultry glow and Kora glanced away, her toes curling. “I best return to my room. Do you mind . . . accompanying me?”
Kora tried to mind-speak to Raiden in this instance, but once again failed. There were still endless mercenaries in the arena training and sparring, and she didn’t want to admit she wasn’t sure if she could walk out of here.
“Need some assistance, Huntress?”
Kora bit her lip, and a small current of wind circled her body in response.
“Of course,” Raiden spoke casually. Aerion’s stare darted between the two of them as Kora hesitantly stepped forward, and relief flooded her as those phantom hands supported her stride through the arena.
A sea of eyes followed her, and in the far corner, Skylar’s sneer practically beamed from where she bested male after male.
Stood behind her was Cassidy, observing the arena with minimal interest, her lasso permanently attached to her hip.
Kora’s scar heated, and she rubbed where it now expanded to her neck, strange vulnerability creeping across her flushed skin.
They all saw her as a parasite. She could tell from their twisted lips and judgemental stares. They’d expected a lady, a previous member of their king’s court, and known leader of the Galenite War to return. But instead received their enemy, a weakened replica, a tainted hunter.
“Tell me about the powers between your siblings.” Kora rushed as they neared the heavy doors. “Why do elementals’ powers manifest differently?”
Raiden arched a brow. “Unlike the other factions, where you’re granted a singular gift, elemental magic can manifest in a variety of sub-powers for each person.
It’s not as simple as wielding air, water or fire.
Nuances of the wielder’s personality entwine with the power.
But despite that, you’re classed as a singular wielder.
There’s never been a record of anyone having more than one faction. ”
They passed through the doors, and Kora already felt lighter as the weight of the arena’s stares faded away. Raiden slowed as they crossed the foyer towards the double stairwell.
“As you know, I can speak into someone’s mind with the wind.
It’s a first for any elemental. I can also fly pretty well.
” Raiden shrugged as Kora gaped. “Every elemental has the basic level of wielding their element, so we can all control the wind. I can also connect with the weather, and pull lightning from the sky.”
Kora stumbled on the first step and his magic gripped harder. Her cheeks flamed as a gentle caress brushed up her inner thigh, and she pretended it was just her imagination.
“You created a cyclone on the ship from thin air,” she recalled. “A storm on a clear day.”
“Creation is harder than manipulation, something my siblings cannot do. Skylar can’t fly like us, and depends on her flight suit to do so. Aerion can make anything float, no matter how heavy it is. His gift is connected to his movements, and he has powerful deflection—a perfect shield.”
They rounded the top of the staircase and followed the warm hallways down to the west wing. Kora paused at another dark table shoved to the side, a dead plant wilting within a terracotta pot.
“All the vegetation died in the Mist. There was no sunlight.” Raiden’s breath brushed the back of her neck as he hovered behind her.
The leaves crumbled beneath her fingertips as she touched it.
Aerion had mentioned how dark and cold it’d been .
. . she’d never imagined this island suffering the past decade.
“There’re flowers on my balcony. A forest and green gardens just outside.” Kora turned to face him. Gods, his warmth seared her.
“The forest reaches the top of the Mist, it can pull sunlight from there. As for the gardens,” Raiden smiled, “magic does wonderful things.”
It was so . . . insightful, seeing it from the other side. Raiden’s nearness ricocheted from delightful warmth to a damning inferno, and Kora carried forward. “What about Skylar’s powers?”
“She’s always been more interested in combat than wielding. She can project her voice if needed, which is handy when you need to lead an army.” As they stopped outside her door, Kora suddenly realised she didn’t want this conversation to end.
“So . . . you’re the most powerful?” She glanced up at him through lowered lashes and Raiden audibly swallowed.
“My father is the most gifted. You need to be careful around him. He may have disappeared for now, but he’s always watching. Hunters forget to watch their own backs.” Raiden’s gaze darkened, and Kora couldn’t resist the squeeze of her thighs. What was this male doing to her?
Zephyr hadn’t shown his face since their agreed parley, and Kora assumed he’d possessed some lavish quarters somewhere in this spiralling castle.
She was all too aware of her looming deadline, of every second that passed whilst Erick still slept in his coma.
Every sunset and sunrise Samuel, Theron, and Ivar spent in Barron’s clutches.
“My daggers protect my back.” Kora opened the door. “What were my previous powers like?”
A sad smile tugged at Raiden’s lips and Kora’s chest panged.
“Honestly? Something similar to a kraken. Your preferred technique was tentacles of water from your back. It was . . . unusual.”
Kora stilled, the connection to the kraken in the Black Abyss ringing at her.
She’d resigned herself to believing Davy Jones was dead.
Erick had assumed the same. She’d implored with Aerion her first night here about it; whether he knew of any history in his collection of surviving the trench and the creatures within.
He’d assured her Barron was taunting her, that Davy had passed away that day, sent to his death by Erick.
It was a confusing conundrum, fiercely protecting someone who’d caused so much loss.
“Where do you go, little Huntress?” Raiden’s head was cocked as he studied her, with his hands casually shoved in his pockets. His jaw was slightly clenched, and a small sheen of sweat glistened from his forehead. In fact, he was a little pale.
Kora shook her head, ignoring how the nickname no longer irritated her, but caused her skin to pimple. A small caress of wind brushed the shell of her ear. “It’s been a long day. And once again, no answers on my past.”
“Well, once you have me pinned under you, you’ll find out,” Raiden murmured, leaning forward slightly. Kora’s breath caught as the inferno in her core ignited, consuming her entirely. She could hardly breathe.
“Or you could just tell me something.” She did her best impression of Conan’s sad eyes, pouting her bottom lip.
Raiden’s stare trailed to her lips, then back to her eyes as he rested one arm against the doorframe. His entire presence slammed into her, and Kora inhaled his scent like a drug. She wobbled as imaginary bands of wind clenched tighter around her thighs, her hips, even her waist.
Raiden raised his other hand, flexing his fingers. Another moment later, a single stemmed hydrangea floated down the hall from nowhere. He held the white flower between them, spinning the stem between two fingers.
“This was your favourite flower,” he spoke softly.
“Your favourite colour was the darkest of blues, as dark as the deep of Shaurock Sea. You feared heights, and never ventured higher than half-mast. Davy was your favourite person in the world, and no one ever came close to him. Not even me. You look so much like him.”
Kora gasped, taking the flower from Raiden. An offering. A token of truth. She bit her lip harder and his other hand cupped her jaw, his thumb dragging her bottom lip from between her teeth.
“Some of those things are still true.” She smiled with gratitude, and Raiden’s thumb swept across her cheek, leaving a blazing trail of embers before pulling away.
“Thank you, Raiden.” Her heart filled as her fantasies of family members with her sea-foam hair and blue eyes now possessed a tinge of truth.
As Raiden bid her goodnight, Kora staggered over to the bed, collapsing on top without the support of his phantom winds. Hands brushed over her thighs that felt strangely warm and she closed her eyes, inhaling a scent that reminded her of fortitude.