Proven (Daughters of the Sea #1) (13 page)

"Watch and learn, princess," she hissed at me before disappearing in a flash of light. From the corner of my eye I noticed her reappearance high above on the cliff, between Selene and another figure.

"Lavidica, stay here," Naja instructed loudly enough that I could hear, and the poisonous scowl Lavidica shot in my direction made it evident she'd drawn the short end of the stick. The other three witches vanished, only to reappear separately and on opposite sides of the whirlpool. With my curiosity now piqued, I stretched out my legs and waited to see exactly what they intended to do. If they were planning on doing anything to that monster of a whirlpool, I definitely couldn't wait to see them try. With the ability to control the tides, I still wasn't positive I could have taken it on with my full essence intact...which may have been why Selene had them here in the first place. Maybe they weren't just doing her dirty work; maybe they were helping her do her dirty work.

A smile slithered across my lips and I buried my feet in the warm sand; eager to watch this colossal failure unfold. A wave of heat sizzled up into the bottom of my feet and I instantly closed my eyes. The sand beneath them trembled and automatically began to provide energy to my waning essence. Unfortunately, my babysitter was on high alert and caught on immediately to what was happening. She frowned and I watched as her lips moved quickly and silently. Suddenly, my feet were rebound and just as in the glass room, nothing in my surroundings could penetrate the invisible barrier, not even the sand. The replenishing energy drained from my feet and I lost all feeling of the comforting sand beneath my legs, while sun no longer warmed my skin.

"Nice try," Lavidica spewed and refocused her attention to Selene, who was still standing above on the ridge. Her black hair was picked up by the wind and I realized how unsettling it was to see her in full sunlight. I was used to seeing her under the silvery light of the stars and the moon. Under the harsh rays of the sun, her pale skin lost its sheen and her silver eyes were muted by the bright blue sky.

With no warning whatsoever, the entire ring of beach was occupied by more than a hundred teenagers, ranging in age from ten all the way up to high school. Several briefly glanced around before dispersing into a perfect circle around the whirlpool, orchestrated in silence. A knot began to form in my stomach as I realized that what three dead witches couldn't do, several hundred witches possibly could.

Once in their places, they lifted their gazes toward the three standing on the ridgeline. With no visible command, the witches all turned to face the whirlpool once more and raised their arms in unison. Although I couldn't hear them, their mouths began to move rapidly. I observed Selene closely as the girls continued chanting for several more minutes. Just when I wondered if they were actually doing anything, the witches swept their arms down in one swift motion, knelt, and slammed their palms into the sand.

The entire island reverberated with the force and a cloud of dust rained down on my head from the now unstable cliff above. It was immediately followed by a G-force equivalent to an airplane taking off. I drank in several deep breaths and found a spot on the sand to focus on before I threw up all over myself. My body pressed against the cliff wall as the forces increased with ferocity.

"What are they doing?!" I screamed at Lavidica, who was having an equally hard time staying on her feet. She ignored me and continued watching Selene as if anticipating something. She wasn't disappointed. With outstretched arms, silver energy shot out of Selene's hands and into the mouth of the whirlpool. Struggling, her arms seemed to be fighting against unseen forces. As the ground began to shake violently beneath us, I realized exactly what she was attempting to do...and I decided she was most decidedly out of her mind.

I averted my eyes back to the whirlpool and felt them widen as its rotation actually began to slow. My mouth dropped open when the island trembled violently once more, eliciting a ghastly, mournful wail that cried out to the heavens from the depths of the spinning center.  Its magnitude of sorrow ripped my heart apart and I felt tears spring to my eyes.

With an abruptness that made my ears ring, the cry halted as the witches collapsed in exhaustion and Selene's body went limp; caught by the same dark-haired man I'd seen her with before the previous cliff crumbled on top of me and Olivia. He carried her limp body out of sight and in sullen defeat, the witches slowly began to vanish into thin air. Each one blurred ever so slightly before fading and disappearing altogether. Lavidica gave me one last threatening glance before disappearing as well, leaving the binds to act as my babysitter.

"Are you really the Fallon?" a timid, yet clear voice spoke up to my left. I nodded my head and squinted up at her. Her thin body was made more so by the form fitting sundress she wore. Thick blonde hair was pulled back into a French braid, leaving restless strands of gold blowing free in the wind. Her kelly green eyes skimmed over the poor condition I was in and glanced around carefully before kneeling down next to me. Her minty, clean essence poured over me and the open burns on my legs began to tingle and close up before my eyes. This witch I didn't know was reaching out to me through the binds. Healing me.

"She killed us all," she whispered so quickly I almost missed it. "Almost every coven."

Another witch was hovering several yards away; waiting almost patiently for her to finish her visit. She glanced back at her companion and whispered urgently, "White sage will undo Naja's binds." She stood and began to walk away in silence.

"Wait! Who are you?"

She paused and met my gaze evenly before responding. "Arabella," was all she said before fading away into oblivion.

In the glaring absence of Selene and the witches, the whirlpool resumed its powerful velocity and I was left to digest what had just happened on my own. With Naja's binds as strong as ever I could barely move, which I suddenly realized was going to be a tremendous problem. With each inch of sand that disappeared, I realized the whirlpool was not only churning faster, it was growing.

S
TASIA

I stared blankly at the tattered pages of the oldest book I'd ever seen. A tender breeze drifted up from the lagoon, across the soothing sand and onto my skin, but I didn't feel it. The water of the lagoon also called out to me to allow it to hold me and carry me far away from my troubles. But I wasn't listening. Carmen was trying to hand me a fresh mango to eat and a glass of coconut water. I vaguely remembered taking the mango from her, but only to place it in the sand next to me.

"You're supposed to eat it." She eyed me suspiciously before leaning over to see what I was staring intently at. "Is it all in Greek?" she inquired; squinting at the pages as if she may be able to find an inkling of the English language somehow.

"Looks that way." I snapped the book closed and looked at her with more aggression than I intended. The Greek lettering had promptly changed to English once my eyes hit them, but until then I didn't realize that wasn't the norm. She tucked a flyaway hair behind her ear and tried to take the book from me, but I held onto it like grim death.

"I think I need to send it back up to the castle," I muttered and climbed to my feet absently. She watched me walk up the beach with a confused frown. The weather was sunny and warm, so we had decided to have lunch down on the beach behind the castle, which I was grateful for. Although I loved Atlantis, I felt too far from the ocean while I was there. I longed for Bald Head Island where the waves were just feet outside my front door. I vowed to take a swim later that night after First Practice.

I lugged the Book, heavy with the weight of thousands of souls, up the beach where everyone else was gathered around on the sand, devouring their lunch and discussing the upcoming practice and the newly erected Arena. I walked past Finn, who gave me a brilliant smile and tried to grab my ankles playfully. I couldn't see his blue eyes behind his sunglasses, but I knew they were smiling too. 

"Please ensure this makes it back up to the castle safely," I instructed one of Maera's guards quietly. He nodded and began the long trek back up the cliff to the castle.

After hearing Selene had a message for me in the form of a branded symbol on Olivia's arm, I still insisted on scouring the Book's contents in search of anything hidden she may have placed in there for me as well. I found a message, alright - and more. I just didn't know what it meant. But one glaringly obvious explanation was making me nauseous.

Although my prophecy had always felt like an invisible foe, always one step ahead of me, there was nothing about dying a horrible death at the hands of a moon Goddess. After Finn presented me with my full prophecy last year, I had read it hundreds of times. Its words were etched into my mind, right next to the soothing face of my mother.

Our salient leader she shall be

From our shore, wind, and bastion sea

The calling of a newborn child

Laid to rest for now, resides.

Her tendered soul from whence will grow

Aft brazen chains a heart of woe

If province warns of hallowed screams

Her gifts revealed amongst her dreams

When scornful deeds of power lies

Death shall burn in Thetis's eyes

Her Fortunate Isle in slumber deep

Lest Anastasia wake her keep

From sea and brine thy secrets flow

Setting ablaze her eyes to glow

Her journey awaits, precluded by need

Thy destiny weaving our Goddess to bleed

Bred wholly to lead an army of men

Thy warrior claims great destiny within

Her sacrifice, forevermore

Binds her soul, to thine paramour

Relics lost of proper hands

Amidst the games of ancient lands

As crimson sows a woeful dream

A tainted mind, her kin unseen

From earth and tree, an essence renews

Brings rivaled power, her wisdom eludes

Of tenet and moor, a Paladin bleeds

Securing her fate, shielded by creed

In heart and soul, a Nereid supreme

Amidst a gathering, their loyalty pristine

In the land of ambrosia, where nectar grows

Her will breathes freely, her destiny sown.

Was that really my prophecy in its entirety? I had always assumed so, but I was beginning to think otherwise. Its task of foretelling my life would appear to end soon, but there was nothing sinister within it. I assumed that meant the rest would be up to me. I would finally have my free will back. But maybe there was more. Maybe free will wasn't in my future, after all.

As I strolled back down the beach, still deep in thought, Finn easily captured my ankle and I fell into him as he wrapped his arms around me and kissed my neck. His warm, dark essence wiped away my chaotic thoughts momentarily and I allowed it to filter into mine with contentment. I watched our hands intertwine and smiled at the sparkle of the stone perched on my left ring finger. The weight of it was a constant reminder that I was no longer alone. I would no longer be without a family; I would be creating my own family.  At least, I thought so. My world darkened as reality crashed down around me and my thoughts went back to the Book. My hands began to shake in response to my thoughts and Finn squeezed me tighter.

"Sometimes people just lose their way, Pasha. We'll get this figured out," he reassured me with a light whisper that tickled my ear. His breath smelled of pineapple and his skin was already turning darker under the sun's light. I nodded my head in silence and decided it was better he thought I was just worried about Fallon and Liam. Although I was definitely worried about them, things had gotten much more complicated in the last ten minutes. There was one thing I was sure of, however. I needed to get my hands on my full prophecy, if in fact there was more to it. That glaring possibility was suddenly extremely important.

Was it feasible that Fallon knew more than I thought? She seemed to know more things about me than I did. Would she be able to tell me if there was more to my prophecy? Even if she'd betrayed me and lied to me, she was still my cousin. Despite what Olivia said I couldn't accept that she had conspired with Selene this entire time. Only a couple nights ago, Selene was going to use her as a sacrificial lamb to steal our essence! But at the same time, Fallon was technically an Aura. She had helped heal me in the treehouses, but to what end? For Selene to take my mind and lure me in? Was Fallon sent to ensure I found my way to the beach that night? If I could find her, would she tell me the truth?

The sand beneath me trembled in a frenzy of energy at the same time a soothing wave of crystal clear essence crashed over me in earnest. I closed my eyes as my mother's smiling face appeared in my mind's eye, quickly followed by my father's. Something in me...recognized the essence. His essence. All other thoughts dissipated as I stood to face him.

Holding hands with Olivia, Sebastian met my angry gaze with surprise. My breath caught in my throat as I really saw him for the first time. Elaborate traces swept across his shoulders, arms, and chest in the shape of a piece of chest armor. The sun glinted off of his suddenly bright turquoise eyes and his blond hair moved in the breeze. I had the odd sensation of looking into a mirror, which was enhanced when I saw the familiar trace shining on his forearm.