Page 77 of Rising Out of the Darkness (Divine Guardians Duology #1)
Elena
“ L et’s get this over with, then you and I need to have a long chat.”
“Yes, my lady.” His hand pressed against the small of my back, and he escorted me towards the powerful men near the dais of the room.
“Now that we are all here”—I motioned between Will and I— “perhaps it’s time for the main event? I’m sure we all have more important things to attend to this evening.” I feigned boredom as I crossed my arms in front of me.
Delighted, I watched all the feathers I ruffled ripple around the circle. Lord Alastor snarled with disgust. Creases formed between the king’s brows, his eyes narrowed in slits. If a look could kill, his just might tonight. Edan rolled his eyes and took a long sip of his wine.
Adara strolled over towards Declan, and my palms curled into tight fists. Placing both hands on his shoulders, she rose on her tiptoes and caressed his cheek with her lips, then whispered against his ear before lowering herself back down and strolling away, giving me a wink as she passed.
Just like Will, she was making a last-ditch effort to hold onto something that was never hers to begin with.
Clara rubbed a soothing hand against my back, and I couldn’t help but steal a quick glance in Declan’s direction.
His eyes were wide, pleading with mine to be unaffected by the display.
I silently gestured that I was fine. Shocked and disgusted…
but fine. His lips twitched ever so slightly, and he tilted his head, giving me a questioning look, as I winced.
Did I say that out loud?
Obviously over our shenanigans, the king bellowed out for the attention of the room. The music silenced, while conversations lulled. He stalked towards the throne and stepped up onto the dais before turning to address the room.
“Tonight, we all will witness history in the making. Yet again, the gods have blessed Ehora and gifted us with two powerful weapons. Warriors of light against the darkness of those who choose to rebel against us.” His deep voice boomed against the walls.
Inwardly, I rolled my eyes. Those who rebelled? He wanted to use us against the only group of people in Ehora who were trying to actually help.
Unfortunately, dear king, I have other plans.
A snort burst free beside me, and both Clara and I looked towards Declan inquisitively. A shrug was our only reply as I shifted my focus back to the king.
“These two have become even more powerful than the ‘Blessed’ among us. One has even obtained a dynamis we have not witnessed for centuries, a dynamis that brought us an era of peace, and I’m here to guarantee that she will bring it to our lands once more.”
Cheers and applause thundered within the room’s walls. However, the gasps and whispers from those who didn’t agree didn’t go unheard by my ears. Alastor nodded towards Will, and a space was created around him as he approached the middle of the room.
He rolled his neck in a circle, shaking out his body, preparing it for the dynamis it was about to endure. Will spread his arms wide open and lowered his head, collecting his dynamis from deep within.
Not one sound could be heard, as if we were all holding our breaths with anticipation for what was about to come.
Just as I exhaled, Will’s arms combusted in flames.
My jaw dropped as he conjured long strands of fiery whips. He twirled them in circles, slamming them against the marble floors with enough force to make them crackle. His whips blazed over the heads of the crowd, causing guests to shriek and scatter further away.
Suddenly, Will intertwined both ropes of fire for his last party trick of the night. His blue eyes latched onto mine. He stalked towards me, and I could feel my body leaning away from the threat. Just as my head thumped against the chest behind me, Will launched his fiery whips towards me.
Strong arms tugged me backwards just as the whips crackled against the floor. Precisely where my feet had vacated.
As I clawed my way from Declan’s hold, my dynamis simmered underneath my skin as rage built inside of me against the person I’d once thought I knew so well. With a devious smirk, he snuffed out his flames and stalked back towards Adara.
“You’re next, Light Phoenix,” the king summoned.
“Behave yourself, or there will be consequences,” Alastor sneered beside me.
Declan’s chest rattled with a low growl as he stepped between us, forming a barrier.
“You too, boy,” Alastor huffed, before stalking towards the side of the king.
With a shake of my shoulders, the words rolled off me. If I was going to show everyone how truly powerful I was, I was going to need to regain my control.
Just as I began to make my way towards the middle of the room, a voice whispered next to me.
“Show them all. Let them see how powerful you are. Let your light shine, Lena.”
My pulse quickened inside my chest. For a whisper, the words were so loud.
They felt as though they vibrated inside my head.
Turning, I paused, noticing Declan was nowhere near me.
Goosebumps pebbled over my skin as I made eye contact with the man still standing amongst the crowd—halfway across the room.
I’m finally losing my ever-loving mind.
“Anytime, Lady Morrigan,” the king grumbled from his throne.
Startled by his booming voice, I turned my back to them all. For what I needed to do tonight, I needed to be free of distraction. Silence blanketed the ballroom as my eyelids fluttered shut.
Over this past month, I had come to understand some of the many intricacies of my dynamis.
The more confident and comfortable I felt with my emotions, the more vibrantly my dynamis flowed.
However, the greatest epiphany I’d had here happened two nights ago when I realized what my strongest emotion was.
Love.
What I had created in that ballroom had taken my breath away, just like it had done the first time I had zephyred or the first time a flame ignited between my fingertips.
The same feeling had flowed through me when I grew an entire plant from nothing and splashed Liam with the Tide dynamis I thought I would never be able to achieve.
That feeling had consumed my body the night Declan and I had somehow managed to combine our dynamis, creating something spectacularly powerful and beautiful.
Every moment I used my dynamis, I pulled on the emotions necessary to wield it. Inevitably, right before I used my power, love enveloped it, allowing me to do things with my dynamis I never thought I’d be capable of.
I supposed that I shouldn’t be surprised that love was my most powerful emotion of all.
It was what had kept me going all these years, given me hope, and provided me with the strength I couldn’t always find within myself.
No matter how difficult my life had been, how far I let myself succumb to the darkness within my mind, I still held onto the faith that love would guide me through it.
The love from those close to me, my family and my small circle of friends. Even the love of a man who had helped me find my true self in more ways than one. For once in my life, I was beginning to love myself.
Fate had taken my life in many directions, but one thing had always remained constant, love .
It was a power in itself to show love and in return be loved by others. Sometimes, opening your heart left you vulnerable, but it was a chance that was worth taking.
Somehow, I’d always known deep down in my soul that love was all that really mattered in this life. So, here I stood, full of hope that love would carry me through.
With one last deep breath, I gathered all my emotions, pulling my dynamis to the surface. I could feel the air around me starting to become more turbulent and static.
My long waves lifted from my shoulders and tangled in the wind that surrounded me.
As I continued to gather more dynamis, I heard whispers and gasps as my body began to glow a golden shade.
The tattoo on my wrist and freckles covering my body pulsed, matching the vibrations of my dynamis within me that waited to be released.
It felt as though fire was consuming my body from the inside out, causing me to wince.
Hurried, I wrapped my dynamis in one final emotion—love.
Once I did, my dynamis erupted out of me.
Blinding white light beamed out of me and over the crowd.
Screams echoed the hall, several ducking from fear my light might hurt them, but I knew it wouldn’t.
I’d learned to bend the light to obey my will.
If I wanted it to be peaceful, it would be.
After the shockwave of my dynamis, the candlelight had been snuffed out leaving the ballroom in complete darkness. Closing my eyes once more, I released another wave of my dynamis.
There were no screams this time, just pure, silent awe as they gazed at the constellations of stars above them.
Golden bursts of light shimmered in the darkness, and I couldn’t help but smile as the crowd innocently reached out to touch them.
Some held them close to their bodies, illuminating them against the darkness of the room.
It looked almost as though they were holding onto the inner light within them.
I let down my ward and was flooded with pure happiness. The feeling washed over me like a tidal wave, filling my soul completely. A tear slipped down my cheek as those around me let the light into their hearts.
A crackle thundered around the room as lightning ripped across the ceiling. My grip on my dynamis floating around snapped. The beautiful golden stars fizzled out with a pop. The candlelight reignited as the darkness of the room disappeared in front of my eyes.
Next to King Alaric stood Alastor, arms still crackling with lightning as he folded them across his chest. His gaze pinned me from across the room, his lips upturning to a dangerous smile. A shudder rumbled through my bones as he broke his gaze to whisper something into the king’s ear.
The king ordered the musicians to play, summoning the room to move on with their evening. Couples filled the floor, sweeping away the last remnants of the events that had just passed.
Once again, I was reminded that I was just a pawn in their malevolent games. Turning on my heel, I stalked out of the doors of the ballroom. I needed fresh air to clear my head before I stepped back into that room.
There was no chance I was going to let them see how they affected me.