Page 100 of Whispers of the Water

Dallas wielded the blade, ready to strike Myra, who stood perfectly still with a smirk on her face.

My voice got stuck in my throat, watching in horror as my best friend prepared to fight a woman who clearly believed she was about to win.

Rune suddenly ran toward the two as Dallas’s blade sliced through the air. Flames erupted around Rune’s body, creating a barrier against the ice sword as it swiped at Rune.

Dallas became visibly outraged with Rune now standing between her and her prey.

Scoffing, Dallas roared, “Fine! You want to protect that woman, the enemy to our people? Then I guess you aren’t really on our side after all!”

I sucked in a sharp breath as panic flooded my veins.

Dallas launched herself at Rune. She had the point of her sword aimed at his heart, and although I knew somewhere in the back of my head that Rune could defend himself, I couldn’t stand there and watch.

I had to protect him, and since there were no more secrets to hold me back, I stopped fighting against the whispers of the water. I beckoned them in, and the buzzing in the back of my mind reached a crescendo, sounding like the crashing of waves.

An itch ran along the inside of my skin, leading to a vibration in my fingertips. Sensing my intentions, the water from the lake moved with the flick of my hand. Rushing forward at an alarming speed, the blue wave engulfed Dallas and lifted her off the ground. Her eyes went wide from within the flickering ball of water, and small bubbles drifted up as she tried to speak to me from inside her prison.

Concentrating, I pried the ice sword from her grip, and the water inside did the rest. Shattering the blade, the small crystals dissolved into the rest of the water, leaving Dallas flailing around inside. All eyes were on me as my outstretched arms slowly lowered Dallas back to the ground where she collapsed in a watery puddle.

Dallas’s coughs rang out as I walked forward to stand in front of Rune. Facing my friend, I stared down at her. “Enough.”

She gazed at me, still coughing on her hands and knees. “H-How can you defend him? He, they, are your enemy, the killers of our kind. Of your parents!”

“No. They’re not my enemies. They’re my friends.”

Rance helped Dallas to her feet, and all the Water Fae stared at me with bewildered eyes. Myra took measured steps away. Her eyes, still filled with unmatched venom, scanned both groups like she was waiting and deciding her next move.

I couldn’t focus on her right now. I had to get through to Dallas and the others. Maybe even get through to Myra. I was the Water Fae’s “Princess” as they said, yet here I was, taking the side of someone else. But that was the thing. I didn’t want to pick a side. I didn’t want to choose between my friends. I didn’t want to choose between two worlds that called out to me in their own way.

So, I wouldn’t.

Taking a deep breath, I started, “Are you not tired? Are you all,” I swept my gaze around everyone here before continuing, “not tired? Can you even remember the real reason you started fighting, or has it now just become an act of vengeance for lost loved ones?”

Silence answered me.

“Look, I know there is a century’s worth of tension between Land and Water Fae. Countless Fae had their lives robbed of them, and people you love suffered unimaginable pain. You’ve lost many to gruesome deaths. So have I. My parents …”

I swallowed hard. “I don’t want any more kids to lose their parents the way I did, the way Rune did. I don’t want anyone else to lose their husband or wife the way Myra did.” I glanced at her then, and I was met with a surprisingly blank—yet somehow calculating—stare.

I pushed on. “No more. No more loss, no more death, no more fighting.”

Squaring my shoulders back, I met the eyes of the Water Fae. “I’m your Princess, you say? Then here is my first order to you. Stop your war with Land Fae. I can’t speak for Land Fae, but I can and will speak for us. I want peace. I want this idiotic war to stop. So, the first step will start with us. Stop fighting.”

“Stop fighting?” Dax roared. “They’ll slaughter us all if we don’t fight. Just because you want peace doesn’t mean peace will actually come. Land Fae will never agree to it.”

“Then I’ll talk with them,” I said. “I’ll speak to whomever I must to ensure this ends.”

“I’ll help you.” Rune now stood beside me, and his gaze was firm as it searched mine. “The Land Fae King is a difficult creature to deal with, but I’ll help you. It’s going to be hard to put everything behind us, to forgive all that’s been done, but a fresh start without so much hate sounds really nice.”

“I’ll stand beside you too, Bria!” Akira smiled. He walked over to where we stood, linking his hand with mine. Giving it a small squeeze, he said, “I’m ready to be done fighting.”

Ardley and Avana exchanged a look before they joined us with Bassel and Carlos trailing them. Myra continued to watch us all. Her gaze studied each person as they fell in line beside me.

Ardley clapped a hand on Rune’s back. “To hell with fighting! To be honest, I personally never got the point of this bullshit.”

Marlow watched us with large, round eyes. He fidgeted and looked at the ground. His voice was barely audible as he asked, “May I join you as well?”

We all smiled.

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