Submerged in Water

Jonathan's arms left my shoulders. He moved them to wrap them around my waist. He rested his shoulder on my chin and he pressed his chest up against my back. His heat was nice to feel along with the cool air coming from the ocean.

I couldn't believe I was staring at a rising tsunami.

There was a flaw. Somewhere along the line it had never occured to me that I wouldn't be able to handle that much power. But now that I was holding onto it. Marveling in the fact that I could sense the ocean until it reached Japan and Australia. I knew that if I were to stop this tsunami, I might not be able to handle it. It would leave me weak and then the souls would invade and take over my body.

Then the real havoc would begin.

But I had to try.

"Tell me something." I asked him. "Who is my soul mate?"

He gasped, like he just realized that I was seperated from the souls now. He pressed his hand up against the exposed skin of my waist and he was silent. I waited for his answer.

"I'll tell you after you survive this."

"Not fair."

"Fate is never fair." I heard him lick his lips against my ear. "Now, show me what you got, water princess."

"With pleasure." My voice was strong now.

I held up my spear in the air and then faced it out towards the incoming tsunami that would hit less than a minute from now.

My insides screamed as I pushed against the power. The souls waited anxiously for the chance to strike. The internal war insued and I fought to concentrate on completing what I needed to.

The image that played out in front of me was something to capture on camera. The tsunami rose and rose until it towered over us. As it grew near, I let the calm and peace that I had built up explode out of me.

Ice swept across the water freezing past the tsunami and over the entire ocean in every direction. I pulled harder, stretching to the end and pushing until there was nothing left of my abilities. This was the hardest I could push. This was my limit.

My body screamed. The tsunami had stopped, frozen in motion. The force that had pushed it to this point was spent. The power behind it was gone. Even when the tsunami would unfreeze, it would just fall back into the ocean, like it had never gotten close enough to almost destroying my town.

I let go of the abilties and the souls came.

I fell limplessly against Jonathan. My body felt weak and my mind was exhausted. I wanted to close my eyes and let them take over. It would be so easy to just close my eyes and hope that they wouldn't cause too much damage.

"Emele!" Jonathan's voice came. "Come on, Emele. You can do it. Hold on."

I heard the sound of flapping. Images of wings flittered across my eyes coming in between me and the sun that faded in the distance. Color started to blur and my vision became hazy.

I was scared, so scared.

"Is she okay?" Rune came up and asked Jonathan.

He shook his head. "Her life force is fading. It's like her soul is collapsing in on itself."

I couldn't see them anymore. My eyes were blurry like the same time I had been hit with the dose hydrangea, except there wasn't anyone I could focus on to see. It was becoming darker. I pushed against it. I willed myself to try. I needed to. For Jonathan, Aubrey, my parents and the Oros. They needed me as much as I needed them.

I fought. My body spasmed and shook. I thrashed against Jonathan and Rune, who had taken it upon themselves to try and hold me together as I screamed through the war that raged within me.

My arms came loose and I slammed my bunched up fists against the sand. It shattered the ice around me. It began to melt and then boil all in the matter of a few seconds. I tried to fight, but my body was weak. I was so weak.

"They're taking control." Jonathan said. "We need to help her."

"What do we do?" It was Robyn speaking now.

I let out a piercing scream as I lost my sense of touch in a well fought battle with the souls. I couldn't feel Jonathan, Rune or Robyn anymore. They all disappeared. I lost my eyesight. The darkness was frightening and I felt trapped. All I could do was hear them and that was the only reassurance I was still in control.

I couldn't rely on Jonathan this time to be my anchor. Whatever amount of strength I needed to stop this from happening had to come from somewhere within. That in itself, was frightening. My strength was useless. My strength came from my will to protect my family, friends and the people I loved.

I wondered if I had enough will to keep it together by myself.

Memories of the first time I had connected with the water washed over me in gentle relaxing waves. I breathed in the salty smell of the ocean and it reminded me of the river. The cove. The month I had spent with all my friends, training. Training for what, I wondered? For this? Nobody could train for something like this.

If I let them in a little maybe I could still...

"No, Emele, no!" Jonathan screamed at me. "Your future depends on the choices you make now. Don't do that to yourself."

"What is happening?" Robyn was confused.

"I can see it, her future is constantly shifting around her. I can feel it. Theres paths, so many of them for her to take that it's hard to make out..." His voice faded and then came back. "The souls are coming into the visions now. I don't know what's happening."

"We need to get her some help." Rune suggested.

The anger came and with it the darkness. The overriding madness and sadness that could overtake me in an instant. The last time I had been this far gone into it was when I was fighting Rune for the first time. It had unlocked a little bit of my power but it was in exchange for my sense of right and wrong.

It happened fast. Once I made my decision, my body settled into a rhythm and my body relaxed into it. Falling until I couldn't go back anymore.

Jonathan pressed his face to my neck. He breathed in. "It is done."