Page 10 of Cleansed By Water (The Nature Hunters Academy 3)

“Was there something funny in the orange juice this morning, or did everyone else just witness what could only be described as an acid-tripping event?” Shelly whispered.

Gabby mentally shrugged. To be fair, if you’d never met a royal elemental, you probably would think you were high on something.

“The orange juice was on the up and up,” Tara said.

“Good to know. Please, proceed with the strangeness.” Shelly held out her hand as if telling the royals they once again had the floor.

Gabby liked both her and Tara more and more. Which really made her want to run away. Far, far away.

Chapter 3

Liam couldn’t take his eyes off of her. It didn’t matter that three royals had just entered the room in spectacular fashion. It didn’t matter that everyone had been introducing themselves, and he probably should have been paying attention. He only had eyes for Gabby. Did that make him a little bit of a creeper? Probably. Was he only going to get creepier from this moment on if she didn’t begin to realize she was his soul bonded? Absolutely.

He was stunned by her confidence as she stood with her shoulders back and her chin lifted high. None of the professors had said anything about her uniform being altered. Liam supposed that the end of the world trumped being non-compliant with the dress code. He had a feeling if they had said something to her, then she would have told them to go pound sand. She was perfect. And she was his. But he probably shouldn’t say either of those things out loud to her … yet.

“We are going to be assigning elementals to places around the globe that need to keep functioning. Power plants, satellite towers, water plants, and the like.” Aviur’s words and the tone of his voice forced Liam to take his eyes off of Gabby and actually listen to the conversation.

Aviur stood in the center of the room. Though he was looking at the group of headmasters and headmistresses, it was clear he was speaking to everyone present.

“I made contact with as many of the soul bonded pairs that I could, as well as some of my strongest warriors. They all arrived last night,” he explained. He turned to face the rest of the room as he continued. “Both Nasima and Kairi did the same with their own elementalists. And Terrick and Iterra took it upon themselves to do the same for the earth elementalists since both royals are unable to be here with us.”

Liam thought that was all well and good, but what on earth did it have to do with the students present in the meeting? “Why are we here?” He spoke up, motioning to the students. “If you have warriors who have much more experience, then why do you need us?”

Kairi, the water queen, turned to him. Her face, which was usually gentle and serene, was serious, her eyes full of worry. “You and the three other males who have been working together in secret over the years have learned to use your powers in tandem. We wanted you to help train more students, but things have changed. The situation has grown more urgent. Some of the professors”—she pointed to the group—“will continue to work with the established teams. Others will be assisting out in the field, including you eight students.” The water queen walked toward him, and those between them parted. When she was standing toe-to-toe with him, she smiled gently and leaned even a little closer. Liam saw the familiar, caring woman he’d known over the past two years. Despite how young she appeared, her demeanor with him and other students was always that of a mother to her children.

“We also need as many soul-bonded as possible,” she told him.

“I’m not—” Liam began, but she held up a hand to stop him.

“You are many things, Liam, but dumb is not one of them. No matter how your friends might tease you.”

There were chuckles from those standing close to him.

“In your heart and soul, what do you feel? What do you know to be true because your magic feels it as well?”

Liam didn’t want to say it out loud. What if he was wrong? What if he made a fool out of himself because he was just making up something in his mind that he wanted to be true?

“You’re also not a coward,” Kairi continued. "Tell me.”

“She’s here,” Liam finally answered.

Kairi nodded. “That she is. And without her, you are both incomplete. The power you both wield is only half as strong as it could be if you were joined.”

Liam leaned closer to the queen and dropped his eyes. “I don’t know what to do,” he admitted. “Usually, I know exactly how to proceed. But with her…” He drew in a breath. “I’m terrified I’m going to mess it up.” Liam had to swallow a lot of pride in order to make the admission to Kairi, but he understood, from everything he’d learned over the past couple of weeks, just how important the soul bonded were. Not to mention, what would happen to Gabby if he didn’t share his soul with hers? The thought of her going dark nearly drove him to his knees. Despite the walls he knew she put up with her tough-girl persona, he could see the vulnerability in her eyes. Liam wanted to take that look and replace it with something else. He wanted to offer her the security she seemed to require.

“You don't have to worry about messing it up,” Kairi said. “You are meant for each other. She is yours and you are hers. That doesn’t mean you won’t have to work for it. All relationships take effort, whether they are soul mates or not. You have to give more of yourself than you take of her. Be willing to do that and be willing to compromise. These things will help. And be prepared to fight for your relationship when it comes under attack, because it will.”

Liam nodded. “Thank you.”

“It is I and the other royals who need to thank each of you. You will be putting your lives on the line for millions of people who you do not know and who will most likely never know that you did it.”

Liam shrugged. “What’s life without a little risk?”

She smiled at him and then walked back to the center of the room.

Liam's eyes went back to Gabby. His heart beat a little faster when he saw she was staring at him. He winked at her, partly because he didn’t know what else to do and partly because he couldn’t help himself. Her face reddened, but whether from anger or embarrassment, Liam wasn’t sure. He didn’t know her well enough to tell the difference. Yet. But he would. Soon, he would know her very well.

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