The Bane of the Empire

Chapter 32

He caught her as she fell forward. Her eyes had grown to an unnatural size as she held onto the rocking boat in a vicelike grip. The rapid intake of breath was the only sound she made before falling unconscious. But as he watched her rage an internal battle with herself, the waters calmed. The rapids grew smaller and the boat began to settle into an easy bob. Gavin and Tal removed as much of the water that had splashed in but there was no need.

The water was calm. The tide was low.

"Did she..."

Gavin trailed as he met his gaze. They both had seen this before.

"It seems that Dawn's blood is not entirely human."

He wrapped his arm around her and settled her sleeping form in his lap. The force of her newly unleashed power had rendered her unconscious. But the faint colour on her cheeks and the small puffs of breath were good indications that all she needed was rest.

"She is an elemental," Tal began, looking at the girl soundly sleeping in his arms. And with poorly concealed excitement she added,"Like me?"

Hunter nodded. For Tal's sake and, partly for himself, because he did not know what Dawn was. He had smelled her blood and watched her stumble like a human in the Forest. Nothing about her or her blood suggested she was Fae. This sudden display of magic was a much greater surprise to him than the others.

Who was she? And what had she been doing in Ilaburn?

And how did a human suddenly develop the ability to control water?

"Will she be strong enough to travel?" Gavin asked as he sat near the end of the boat. He held the oars in his hands and guided the boat as they drifted down the dark cave. It would be too much to ask Tal to hold a flame and the torch he had brought was soaked through and useless. The flint he had in his pocket was probably just the same.

"She desperately needs rest. Her powers came in full force and she probably had no idea what was happening."

Gavin looked around, pushing the oars against the narrow cave when the boat drifted to the side. But his eyes came back to his and Hunter raised a brow.

"How did her powers manifest when the lock hasn't been broken yet?"

Hunter heard the silent question Gavin did not asked.

How did her powers manifest when he still could not access his?

But he did not have the answers his friend was looking for.

"Mine showed up after the lock." Tal added, looking at Gavin with a flash of unintended pity and consolation. She knew, but her words would not console his friend. Gavin's entire identity, since the day he walked onto the castle training grounds beside Elias, had been his eagle form. Tal continued,"I was lost in the Forest and it was so cold. I hadn't the faintest idea how to light a fire and all I remember was wishing that a fire would burst forth from the bundle of leaves and sticks I had collected."

Gavin listened intently.

"When I had given up hope I crushed the leaves in my hands and threw them down. And when I did, they were lit."

Gavin gave a solemn nod and went back to guiding the boat. They sat in silence, their faces barely visible as they descended deeper into the narrow cave. The small key hung around his neck, the stone warmed from his body. Pulling on the leather strap he looked at the small object.

It was the length of his forefinger with three prongs of different width jutting out from the side. Running his finger along the smooth onyx stone, his mother's words echoed in his mind.