Blood of Water and Light

𝔼𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥: ℂ𝕪𝕣a

We reached the shore and I stepped along the ramp. The men looked at me curiously as I made my way. I glanced back and the other two were right there along with other crew members. In the crowd I caught a brown haired girl who looked a lot like Achelios except where he was thin she had muscles. I looked away and followed the other two boys who'd passed me. 

Achelios grabbed my shoulder for a moment to lead me to a carriage. I was truly getting sick of those. There was no palace in this sea village though. Cobblestone the color of white sand ran through every street and the buildings were the same minus a terracotta shade roof.

I sat down and moved a curtain to look outside. I felt trapped once more with my thoughts. I looked down at my hands wondering what power lurked there. 

Was that why I felt so okay here? 

"Your powers will be figured out here" Achelios voice rattled my brain.

"Why is that the ability to make or break this world?" I asked.

"I don't believe it is I just think that you will help us to save the other kingdoms the world" he said fixing his coat.

Achleios never seemed to care much about anything not even his title. He suddenly cared for the well being of another place and that seemed odd.

The carriage stopped and I got up as someone opened the door. Achleios pulled me back just as a sword stabbed at me hitting the roof. I tumbled to the floor my knife already out. Sam was looking to the other side to see it was surrounded and all the men who'd been guarding Achelios were dead behind the carriage. 

The carriage door rattled and Sam held it shut. I glanced back at Achleios to see he was struggling to keep a man out. The sword was pointed at his throat and he looked like he could careless about such matters.

"Settle down we want the girl that's all" the bearded man said with the sword.

I wanted to say something sassy, but I figured that was the last thing the situation needed. Instead I sat there quietly as panic started to flood my body. 

"Alright fine just leave us be and she's all yours" Achelios said.

I wanted to hit him across the face. The man let go of him and climbed inside and grabbed my ankles. Achelios just let him take me while Sam held onto me trying to keep me in place, but the other man beat him in the tug of war.

My body thumped onto the dirt road. I stood up quickly my knife still tight in my hand. The carriage door shut with the two boys inside and I wanted to beat all these people minus Sam. Rage flooded my emotions and I wanted to explode. 

"Prove you are the Grandrea" the man said holding a knife to my throat.

"I will I need you to back up though" I said nervously.

"Fine make it quick" he said keeping a close distance.

He allowed me space and I placed my knife back into my pocket. Clearly they weren't afraid of me with it. I had been too scared to use it before for some reason. 

My eyes trailed to the corpses that lay just behind the carriage. I looked down at my hands trying to feel for something. I moved them once and an energy took place. I kept moving them and waving them until I felt an energy. I could feel everything around me. I took the energy bringing it from one of the men into me. It felt like touching a raw telephone wire. Purple light erupted around me and all the men. 

The man collapsed and I knew that his heart had stopped beating instantly. I also felt the sky and the water in the area and the people. I used it all and two other men fell to the ground coughing. The other men ran off scared. I stopped suddenly realizing the horror of what I did. I killed a man.

The bearded man had been standing by me the whole time. He smiled once before the point of a blade stuck through his neck. When he fell Achelios was standing there a bloodied knife in his hands. 

I felt more realization hit me. My breath left my control. I'd killed someone. I was having a panic attack.

"Hey look at me" Sam said moving in front of me.

"I- I" I tried to explain.

"Breathe with me okay in" he inhaled, "Out" he exhaled.

He repeated it and this time I tried to copy it. I struggled at first as the thoughts kept pouring out of some part of my brain. He kept up with me and I followed him until it was over. I felt exhausted and dizzy and crumpled to the ground. At the moment I now felt numb, but I knew it would come back to haunt me.

I turned back to Achelios and charged for him and tried to slap him. He grabbed my wrist with ease. I cursed under my breath and again he looked like he was more interested in a lot of other things. 

"I was never going to let them hurt you I just needed the space to find a plan" Achleios said.

"It's true" Sam added.

I looked at him like he'd just grown a new head. In disbelief.

 *   *   *

At the palace maids had rushed me into a room to change and bathe. They ripped through my hair after washing it. I felt horribly bare in front of four women. I wanted to scream at them, but I held back the urge. 

They allowed me to sit for a bit as my hair dried. I took the moment to try and relax, but the thoughts haunted me. The man I killed. 

I suddenly started screaming as I kept seeing him over and over. I didn't even here the door open let alone see Achelios barreling into the room. He stopped in front of me when he saw I was alive and okay. I was breaking apart. 

"I- well we can uhm meet about the plans when you are uhm ready I was just coming to tell you" he struggled to get the words out. 

I nodded, "Let's go".