Water {Elements of Power 2}

Chapter 30: Jasmine

I opened my eyes to intense, intermittent flashes of light, which were coming from outside the window. My vision was too blurry to make out any more than that, but my wrists and ankles burned with pain and when I tried to move them, I met with resistance; I had been tied to something. A chair? I blinked hard, bringing my eyes back into focus. Before I had a chance to take in my surroundings, a cold, Brizan voice cut across my thoughts.

"Oh, thank the Water God, you've finally woken up. Maybe now you can stop the lightning?" Emmanuel's voice was impatient. He was stood in front of me, his arms crossed and his face lit up brilliantly by a fork of violet lightning.

"Huh?" What in the air was going on? There had been beautiful sunshine when I had left my room earlier.

"The lightning! You've been making it flash outside for ten minutes now with your mutant powers."

My head was throbbing, like it had taken a pretty big hit. What was Emmanuel trying to do? He had threatened to kill me, but instead he had tied me up and was ranting about my powers. I definitely wasn't going to complain about still being alive, but why was I? Before I could ask, Emmanuel explained.

"While you are putting on your little light show, I can't get anywhere near you without the risk of getting fried!" He glared, as though this was something I should be trying to rectify. "I got burnt badly enough getting you tied up and when I tried to go near you with metal..." He rolled his eyes and gestured to something on the floor. A lump of misshapen metal. It probably used to be a dagger, I realised with a shudder.

"I can't stop the lightning," I told him honestly. I had a hard enough time with the water and fire elements of my powers; I had no control at all over the lightning.

"I had a feeling you would say that. And that's precisely why you should be killed-you have powers which you don't have the ability to stop; powers which no one can teach you to use safely. You are a danger to the Realms. In killing you, I will be doing them all a great service."

"Why don't you deposit me in the Helian Realm instead, so that I'm their problem?"

"Because they've already let you escape once. Besides, they might try and harness your powers to turn you into a weapon against us. Electricity and water make a dangerous combination; I will not expose my people to that risk."

I had to kill time. Brae would know that something was wrong as soon as he saw the lightning. I needed to keep Emmanuel talking to give Brae long enough to find me. "What are you going to do then?" I asked. I fought to keep the tremor from my voice, so that he wouldn't realise how afraid I was.

"I'm content to wait a little while longer. I've been waiting sixteen years after all, another few minutes won't hurt me." He smiled. "If you could produce your lightning inside, I would have a problem, but since it seems confined to the skies, I think I'm safe. It's not really a useful power is it?"

"It had quite an effect when we were escaping from the Helian Realm."

"Well, Helians are Helians. They were probably concerned because it was something they had never seen before, something even hotter than their own flames. The Helians don't like being made to feel inadequate."

He sighed. "This is growing tedious. How about you stop the fireworks so that we can get down to business?"

I opened my mouth, desperately trying to think of something else to say, something that would stall him for just a little bit longer. But, at that moment, the door to the room burst open. I looked towards it gratefully, expecting to see Brae.

Instead, the Queen's dainty frame was visible in the doorway. She wore a flowing aqua dress and her hair, which had been braided down her back, had come loose and disarrayed.