Chapter 5
five
I took my time leaving the darkness of The Forest. I stayed close enough to the edge of it to keep an eye on the sunlight. When I reached the castle, I emerged and crossed to the East side of The Isle.
But instead of following the path home, I made my way to the sandy edge of the riverbank and walked as long as I could downstream before the rocky edge took over.
As I walked barefoot, carrying my sandals, I thought long and hard about Liza’s point—that sometimes it wasn’t about being smart, it was about being perceptive.
I studied the water curling along the river, remembering the way the waters had amplified my powers last night when we’d faced the lycanthrope.
When I’d defeated the Furies, I had also been directly over the river on the Upper Bridge, and I wondered now if the close proximity to the water had boosted my magic.
And wasn’t it from these very waters that the castle had risen to its final resting place?
What was it about these waters connected to my magic?
“You’re glowing,” Lily called down from the walking path. She held a burlap sack full of green-leafed herbs. “Everything okay?”
I turned to face her, my toes still dipped in the edges of the stream. “It’s been a rough morning.”
“Walk with me,” Lily said. “You can tell me about it.”
As I walked beside Lily on the path leading to the Lower Bridge, I explained about the mixed bag that had been court hours, and the downright disastrous Seer training that never happened. She winced as I finished.
“Like I said, Gus pretty much hated me when I arrived,” Lily said. “You need to give these old guys time to get used to us new gals.”
I gave her a half-hearted smile, hoping she was right.
“Ranger X told me about the court hours. He actually thought they were quite promising, all things considered,” Lily offered. “He said it could’ve been a lot worse.”
“He didn’t tell you about the guy who called me the Cursed Queen, then, did he?”
“Look, we all know there are people who don’t agree with you being queen. Fen made a council about it.”
“I’m worried that he’s right.”
“Who, Fenlon?”
“Power without trust leads to ruin,” I parroted. “I don’t totally disagree with that sentiment. Yet here I am, with a bunch of power that I don’t understand, and very little trust from the locals.”
“I trust you. Lots of people trust you. The ones who don’t just haven’t gotten to know you.”
I reached out, squeezed Lily’s wrist in silent thanks. We’d reached the Lower Bridge.
“I should get back,” I said with a sigh. “I need to tell Silas about my big failure with Seer Goddard and see if he has any ideas about how I can prove myself worthy. How did you prove yourself worthy to Gus?”
Lily considered for a long moment. “I’m just stubborn. I worked hard and stuck around, much to his dismay. Eventually, I wore him down.”
“I’m just not sure I have that much time.”
“You’ll get there. I have full faith in you.”
“I have one more question before you go. I’ve noticed that my magic seems stronger when I’m physically connected to the water in the river.
Do you know why it might amplify my powers?
” Fittingly, we paused on the Lower Bridge as we watched the koi fish in the river slink in and out of view. “Are they enchanted?”
“Most everything on this island is enchanted. As to why the water specifically enhances your powers, I don’t know about that. Is it all water? Are you glowing when you shower?”
I let out a real laugh this time, shook my head. “From what I can tell, it’s just the river.”
“Huh,” she said. “Let me talk to Gus. He’s got lots of books and random knowledge. He might have an idea.”
“Would you mind asking him if he has any texts on the ancient Fae dynasties? From what Silas said, the information is quite rare and hard to find.”
Lily agreed to ask him for me, then she gave me a hug before parting ways.
I made my way back across the Lower Bridge, but instead of turning north to return to Wisteria Cottage, I turned south.
I walked further south until I was almost at the location where the island’s river spilled out into Lake Superior.
Here, the water formed into a swimming hole, the deepest location of the river.
A little pool at the mouth where the regular water from the Great Lake met the enchanted stream.
It was deep enough to dive into; I knew this as I’d seen several teenagers jumping off the rocks, doing neat little cannonballs into the darkest areas of the azure lagoon.
I perched on the edge of a sun-warmed rock and let my toes dangle in the water. I tossed my sandals down next to me, threw my head back, and let the rays of sunlight wash over my face.
Liza had been right about one thing. Slowing down and noticing things was important. Especially for me, someone completely unfamiliar with these lands and ways of life. The devil was in the details, after all, and if I never paused to breathe, I’d never be able to see the little things.
I let the water wash over my feet. I hiked my dress up to my thighs so I could dangle my legs up to my knees.
The cool of the water combined with the warmth of the sun to lull me into a sense of relaxed peace I hadn’t felt in ages.
I lay back on the rock, feeling myself start to doze in and out of consciousness as fatigue caught up with me, and my eyes begged for a nap.
I must have dozed off for a few minutes at least, but when I woke it was abrupt—violent. Slimey. Something viscous wrapped around my ankle.
My eyes flashed open at the cold intrusion to my warm nap. A beat later, my body was dragged over the rocks, the sharp edges scraping at my skin as I was pulled into the water.
I flailed as I was yanked completely underwater. I tried to swim upward, but whatever had me by the foot was very powerful. I kicked, thrashed, hit something. Several somethings.
Was there more than one of these creatures? It felt like I was surrounded. Something circled my wrist. I freed my arm just as another arm wrapped itself around my neck.
I used my other foot to slide my captured ankle out of the sticky arm.
Were those tentacles? With a kick upward, I broke through the surface of the water and inhaled a blissful breath of air, felt the beat of sunshine on my face.
I tried to yell for help, but I couldn’t get it out of my throat before I plunged underwater again.
The creature had a better grip on me this time. Something had wrapped around my neck, my arm, and my leg. There was no way to escape from this, at least not the way I’d been fighting. I needed a new plan, one last-ditch plan before I had no more oxygen left.
I closed my eyes tight. Liza’s face flashed before me. You just need to pay attention, I heard her saying.
Maybe there was something I could use if I just paid attention. I blinked my eyes open in the murky waters, and even through the darkness, I saw it. The halo glowing around my body. My powers were here, and they were active. They were waiting for direction from me.
I blinked my eyes shut and focused on feeling for my powers. As I sank deeper into the depths of the swimming hole, I could feel them growing stronger, begging to be released.
I focused on the fury I felt at this attack. I wanted to help the people on this island, the people who had already put their faith in me. I couldn’t do that if I was dead.
Then one arm was free. My anger was funneling my magic into venomous fire. I was burning tentacled arms off me, one after another. I reached for the one around my neck, and the second I put my hands on it, the arm recoiled like it had been blistered.
I shot upward, realizing I still had half a tentacled arm in my hand. I had burned it, severed it and not let go. I scrambled up the rocks, tossed the tentacled arm onto the ground, and watched it thrash for a moment before it went still.
I looked down into the water and saw a blub of bubbles in the center of the swimming hole before the thing eventually retreated, and the surface of the water went still.
I glanced up to see several folks strolling in the distance. Islanders, two men slightly older than me, looked shocked as I sloshed up to them in a sopping-wet dress.
“Help,” I gasped. “I need Silas. Or a Ranger. I’ve been attacked.”
One of the men nodded and, without hesitation, rushed toward the nearest shop presumably to call for help. The second man waited with me, not saying much of anything, just watching me carefully like whatever I had experienced might be contagious.
“Ranger X is on his way,” the first man said upon his return. “He’ll be here shortly. Can I help you with anything? Are you all right?”
“Fine,” I gasped. “I just need to rest.”
I returned to the edge of the cliff and waited until Ranger X showed up soon after.
I thanked the two islanders for waiting with me.
They’d kept a safe distance from me until help had arrived, probably because I looked like a woman from a horror movie—stringy hair, clingy white dress, red marks on my arms and legs and neck.
My back still stung from where I’d been dragged off the rock.
It probably looked like I had claw marks down my skin.
They looked more than happy to be dismissed at X’s arrival. I didn’t blame them. I didn’t want to be here either.
“Alessia.” Ranger X scanned my sopping wet body head to toe. “Are you all right? What happened?”
I nodded at the rapidly shriveling tentacle that was on the ground. “That happened.”
“What the hell?” Ranger X crouched beside it, careful not to touch any part of it. “It can’t be.”
I crouched next to him. I shivered at the close proximity to the terrible thing that had just about killed me. At its mutilated arm that looked kind of like an octopus, but it couldn’t be. Octopuses weren’t so… aggressive.
“I think it’s a miniature kraken.”
“A kraken,” I deadpanned. “Because those are real?”
“As real as lycanthropes.”