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It wasme.

“Very good,” I heard Kai saying. “Now to root yourself, ground yourself further with theAnchor of Earth.”

I remembered those teachings, and he was right about why they hadn’t worked for me before, the massive aspect that had been missing for somebody with my power level.

I focused on my knees in the grass, moving to encompass the rest of my body, my positioning, zoning in on the moment and my body independent of just the surge itself.

“Anchor of Fire,” I spoke this time, before Kai had to say it.

This one involved accessing a memory where I felt strong or even cherished.

For me, it had to be where I was cherished for who I was, with none of that fear that I’d internalized being present.

And I knew in this moment it was key.

I closed my eyes and searched, pushing inward despite the burning of my power through my very being, the chaos of it unleashed in this manner.

And there it was.

The hot springspool last night.

All four of us coming together.

My magic surrounding us.

Me letting go without any of them feeling the need to contain me in any shape or form.

Being wanted for who I was, not what I was.

Them accepting the weight of the Celestial Plane nonsense, being there with me in spite of all the heaviness that it brought along with it.

They weren’t afraid.

Of it.

Nor of me.

They accepted me.

They cherished me.

And with them, in that moment, I’d never felt so free.

So much like my true self.

So hopeful, despite the threat bearing down on me, of living that truth further.

I’d realized in that moment just how far I’d come.

As I heldonto that memory and it rolled through me, I felt the storm within start to calm.

“Amazing,” Kai said. “Now, theAnchor of Water. This is about will.The final one. You focus now on choice and intent.”

They were all things that I hadn’t been able to own properly before.

Because of that, I could feel the strain there.

Unlike the other anchors that I’d been able to employ and master, there was a lot of resistance to being able to do the same with this one.