Nocturne

II

Nocturne lies at the cliff's edge. The sound of rolling waves is a constant backdrop to every movement, every conversation. They used to say that it was built at the very edge of the world until someone braved the waters to the east. Not that I have ever seen anything beyond the fortress. I have heard of deserts, of forests, of rivers and waterfalls, but I have always been confined to stone. To stare at an endless stretch of water.

I can still feel the itch underneath my skin, the way that my body is now all too aware of the ability that I possess. I left the library, the heart, almost as soon as I had seen it. The familiar waves of nausea turned in my stomach, a dryness had settled at the back of my throat, and it took everything I had not to heave as I fled down the steps, to our quarters, and to one of the balconies set into the cliffside.

For miles, all I can see is the darkness of water and the smattering of white foam where treacherous rocks lie below. The wind is strong tonight, and my face stings as my hair whips across my cheeks time and time again.

They expected something different. They wanted me to finally become the version of myself they had crafted as I accepted the power that had lay dormant in my blood for far too long. None of them expected me to almost throw up and flee. So much for their weapon.

I hear the footsteps echoing before I feel the presence of someone behind me. I already know it's Cassius from the way he always seems to hurl himself down the stairs. Each step rushes into the next. How he is not panting when he reaches the bottom, I do not know, as his voice is crystal clear.

"That went well." A smile tugs at my lips, and I let out a small scoff of laughter. He continues. "We have all wondered if, by restraining the power in your blood, it will wither away. Either that or fester, building up against the pressure, until it explodes."

I turn my head to him, noticing the way he is smiling in that care-free way that seems to be a permanent feature on his lips, his bright blue eyes almost sparkling with seemingly innocent youth. Cassius has his demons. I was the one who raised him, and I have borne witness to them, but he has an art of keeping them hidden.

"I can still feel it. Biting away at me."

"You never attempted to harness it."

My eyes narrowed. Something about my youngest brother being the one to admonish me didn't sit right. Of course, he was the only one I would allow to get away with it, but the role-reversal caused a different kind of stirring under my skin.

"Try this," he spoke again, and moved his hand, placing his middle finger and thumb together he seemed to pull on the air, as if tugging at an invisible thread, twisting his hand around.

A line of water hung where his hand had been for a fraction of a second before it fell to the stone below our feet. I stared at the blackened mark for a moment, at the way it had splattered, before I realised he was waiting.

I took a deep breath, brought up my hand, and mimicked his movement. I felt a weight to my hand, my fingers felt like stone, but nothing was conjured from my fingertips. I frowned, trying again, but still nothing came to me.

"Wither and die it is," I muttered.

"No, there is something there. You just don't know what you are creating. Empty your mind. Let your instincts guide you."

"Tell me what to do one more time and I will throw you off this cliff."

He grinned, kicking a wayward stone, and we both watched as it flew through the gap in the balustrade and into the blackness of the night. We wouldn't hear the sound as it hit the waves below, the crashing of the water against the cliff's edge was too loud for such a thing.