Discovering Aether Read online

  “I did not grow up in the system. I lived with my dad and step mom.” Her words come out quickly, coated with anger. Well nevermind, her dad definitely is to blame. Her power buzzes more as her frown changes to a hard line and her eyebrows are lowered. She seems to be contemplating her next words. “Well, recently just my step mom. My dad died three years ago. But he never said anything about this. Why should I believe anything you say? This makes you sound crazy. Both of you.” She points her fingers at us as her eyes scan the room. She’s probably still trying to find a escape route.

  I try again to calm her down. “Look, we’re not crazy, I swear, and I promise I would never hurt you. In fact, I would do anything in my power to never let you come to any harm.” She laughs. I mean she actually starts laughing at that moment.

  “How should I believe you? What proof could you provide for me that will make me believe anything coming out of your mouth is real?” she questions.

  “Kevin, do you mind?” He slowly steps forward and puts out his palm in front of her as she raises her eyebrow in confusion.

  “Are you sure we should do this right now Nolan?” he questions me. All I do is nod in response, my eyes never leaving Adaline. I wish there was another way, an easier way, but I don’t want her to leave.

  My own powers buzz as Kevin propels water from his palms, making them look like a water fountain. With more ease than he’s ever shown, he wills the water to stop and drops his hands to his sides. Either he’s been practicing or having Adaline around is helping him control his powers.

  Adaline’s breathing comes harder, quicker. “He’s a Water elemental,” I explain quietly. “Each of us are born with an elemental power inside.” Her breathing becomes even more labored, he looks me in the eye and then her eyes roll back into her head. I rush forward and catch her before she falls to the ground.

  “I knew we shouldn't have done that,” Kevin berates me. “Hand her to me I‘ll put her down to rest in the room I decorated for her.” I turn to Kevin and just scowl. Does he really think I meant for all this to happen? Is he bringing up the fact that he was still waiting for her when I wasn’t with the mention of the room? Before I can argue with him, he starts barking orders again.

  “Call my sister so she’s here when she wakes up. I don’t want her upset by having one of us in the room.” I slowly transfer her limp body from my arms to his. He lifts one hand up and brushes some of her brown curls behind her ear. He cradles her body and stares as if she’s the most precious metal he has ever held. “My Heart's Center. I’m so sorry that this is how you met us, we should have done better. You deserve better.” He turns his back to me and heads towards the hallway. It’s strange to hear the Alchemist form of endearment said out loud, but it’s nice to think now both of us are able to.

  As my eyes follow their retreating forms, my heart starts breaking. Kevin deserves her more than I do. He’s never once given up on finding her. I did. I bring girls up here every night to fill the void in my life from not having her. When I watched other quads enjoying themselves and leaning on each other, I started to feel empty. Even though I’m so happy she’s here, I think I may have destroyed any chance I had to be one of her partners. I just hope she will want me to at least be in her life. That will be enough for me. At least that’s what I want to tell myself. I pull out my phone to call Naomi. Oh damn, Naomi. She’s going to kick mine and Kevin’s asses for this.

  Man, my head is killing me. Slowly, I crack open one eye and I’m greeted with a wall of white, almost like clouds. Opening both eyes fully, I realize it’s a fluffy white comforter I must have pulled over my head. Shit. Where am I? I pull the blanket down and sit up gingerly. Sitting next to me on a chair is a girl I’ve never seen before, grinning broadly.

  “Hey, I hope you’re feeling okay. My name’s Naomi Stafford, I’m Kevin’s sister,” she says excitedly as I stare at her in confusion. Freckles and straight red hair that you definitely can’t replicate with store bought hair dye, she looks like the female version of the guy that Nolan introduced me to.

  “Yep, it definitely looks like the two of you could be family,” I blurt out.

  “I would hope so, we’re twins.” A big, dumb smile is plastered on her face. Why am I having to wake up to a person I don’t know? What is going on?

  “Look, I’m not planning on running, at least not yet. So if you’re on guard duty, you can go,” I tell her a little annoyed. I probably should be hightailing it out of here, any sane person would. But I still feel drawn to this place.

  Glancing around the room, I realize it doesn’t look like a spare room in a guy’s apartment. It looks like it was designed for a girl, mainly white with a pattern of light green and blue flowers. It’s really quite pretty and well done. There’s even matching throw pillows on the bed. Maybe Nolan’s mom decorated it. Sure, when I walked into the apartment earlier, everything looked clean and well put together, nothing like what a college aged guys’ place should look like. But then again, after what I saw Kevin do, maybe I shouldn’t expect anything normal around here.

  Looking back at this stranger sitting next to me, I announce, again, my temper flaring. “I said you can leave.”

  Her head tilts to the side and one of her well manicured eyebrows raises. “Really, after everything that’s happened today, you have no questions about anything? Like maybe why my stupid brother was able to shoot water out of his hands? Oh and maybe what the hell a Nucleus is?” She hops up on the bed next to me and grabs my hands, surprising me a bit. “Come on, I know you have to have some concerns or questions brewing in your head. Just spit it out.” She looks at me expectantly with that damn smile plastered on her face, waiting for me to take the bait.

  “So, can you do anything weird like your brother?” I ask, trying to appease her. She giggles. I’m so glad my confusion is bringing her so much joy. Why did I follow Nolan inside?

  “Yes, we all can. Every Alchemist is born with the ability to manipulate one element. Earth, Water, Fire, and Air are the common elements. I can manipulate fire even better than Kevin can with water.” She releases one of my hands and snaps her fingers. I suck in a breath as a bright ball of fire appears. She moves her hands and the ball positions itself in between the two of us. It’s so close, I can see the different hues in the fire; orange, red and yellow. But as the fire starts growing bigger, the hues turn darker. Slowly blue appears in it and I’m mesmerized. I can’t seem to look away. The intensity of the fire causes a sheen of sweat to form on my brow. As I swipe the back of my hand against my face, my breathing comes in labored pants. It feels as though all the air in the room is being sucked out. Naomi snaps her fingers again and the ball of fire vanishes. The air returns and I can breathe normally again.

  “I thought I was going to pass out again. Why did your element affect me so much?”

  “Well, we’re not in a quad together, your quads’ elements can make you more powerful, and others, like mine, can literally make you sweat. Since my quad is fully formed, my powers are stronger than yours as well.”

  “Wait. Wait, wait, wait. Are you saying I have powers?” I ask incredulous.

  “Yes. Anyway, I’m guessing the reason you passed out from Kevin’s earlier is because you were in shock.” She grabs my hand again, as if she’s wants to comfort me. “Kevin is one of your partners, so is Nolan. That’s why you felt those shocks go up your arm when you shook their hands. The Nucleus brings the quads together. But from what I can tell of the powers coming off of you, it looks like, well, you’ll be bringing a quint together.”

  “A quint? You mean five people? Why would I have more than everyone else?” Naomi chews on her lip like she’s trying to come up with something to say that I want to hear. I pull the blanket around me and bunch up a corner in my hands to fidget with. “Just spit it out,” I whisper in a panic. Naomi leans her back against the wooden headboard and crosses her arms.

  “Nolan’s right, I can’t believe he’s right,” she says with a bit of exasper
ation. “Look Adaline, I can only hear your power buzzing. When we’re all taught to use our powers when we’re young, we’re also taught how to tell everyone else’s powers as well. We look for powers that can be felt, seen, tasted, smelled and heard. When you’re trained, you can hear my power buzzing because I have a Fire element. But you can also train yourself to feel the heat that comes off me when I’m around. The obvious one is when I use my power you can see it. Fire is heard, felt and seen. But for you, I can only hear your power. I tried to use my power earlier to get yours to come forward. The buzzing got louder, which leaves out Water. You can’t hear water buzzing, that element is silent, inside the Alchemist. I couldn’t feel your power coming off of you, like we can with Air, Fire and Earth. I figure you’re not Earth or Water because Nolan and Kevin are, but you should be Air or Fire because those four together make up a quad. You’re neither.”

  “This doesn’t make sense. Anyway, how can I have none of those elements if I’m an Alchemist like you say? I thought I was supposed to have one inside me.” I throw myself back on the bed with the blanket still pulled around me, trying to grasp all her words that are now swimming around in my head. Why am I even entertaining all this crazy? “If I don’t have those elements, why can you still hear a buzzing?”

  She turns her head towards me and a slow smile spreads across her face. “You’re an Aether. You can only hear an Aether’s power and they are very rare. When Aether is added to the four elements they become even more powerful than a quad. Quints are really rare. We only have one, and they’ve been voted into our government and are in charge of the council. Nolan doesn’t want to tell anyone yet, at least until you can complete the quint. I don’t blame him. Everyone is going to want to be around you. I can even imagine Osiris trying to steal you away.”

  Again with an Osiris comment. Nolan mentioned them earlier, as well as Horus. I guess he wasn’t talking about Egyptian Gods then. I’m going to save those questions for later though. I thought Aether was an element that was proven wrong, that they changed it to gravity or something. But then again, nobody really treats elements like Alchemists used to, at least from what I read from history books. I thought alchemy wasn’t really done anymore it was replaced with chemistry and science. Hmm, maybe it seems that way because the Alchemists disappeared when they figured everything out. At least that’s what I’ve gathered so far. It seems there are still Alchemists everywhere, just no one knows about them.

  Sitting up, I turn my body and face Naomi. Smirking, she crosses her arms and I notice how well defined they are. Now that I’m actually looking at her, I realize she works out. Her black tank top shows off her well defined muscles. Her straight hair is cut off at her shoulders but still manages to make her look badass along with the dark green combat boots she has on.

  “I didn’t realize Aether existed and now you tell me I have the power of what, the universe inside me? That can’t be possible. I mean, can it?” Again, she smirks at me. Ugh, her freaking smirks are driving me insane. What does she think, I’m dumb or something? I don’t know this shit, why would I? “Stop smirking and answer my question, already!” Her mouth drops open. At least her smirk is gone.

  “Hey, relax, calm yourself down. Your power is buzzing again.”

  What does that even mean? This is all too much; too confusing, too overwhelming.

  “Look, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean anything with my faces I’ve been making. It’s just crazy to meet one of us who has no idea about themselves. I’m happy that you’re here. Kevin has been waiting so long for you and here you are. It’s incredible. Not only that, but you have this rare gift inside you. Aether comes from the universe when all other elemental power is from the Earth. Aether gives you the power to create portals,” she says with slight jealousy.

  “Portals?” I question, incredulously. “Portals are real? How does it work?” She scoots closer to me, still leaving some distance between us.

  “Well, from what I’ve learned from books and heard from others, since I’ve never actually seen it done before, you have the ability to create a tear in the universe and from that a portal is created to send you wherever you want to go. You have the power to travel anywhere on Earth in just a few seconds. They even say you have the ability to travel to other worlds. But I’ve never actually heard of anyone doing that,” she informs me with a far away look.

  “This is seriously a lot to process.” I drop my head into my hands but she quickly pulls them away from my face and squeezes them.

  “It is a lot, I know. But everyone here wants to help you; Nolan, Kevin, even my guys. We’re all here for you and we’ll help you figure all this out. Trust us to do that for you,” she finishes with sincerity.

  I feel like I should trust her, I haven’t felt uncomfortable around her like I do with almost everyone I encounter. Even when she had that smirk on her face, it was more annoyance from that, than actually feeling like she was making fun of me. The only person who ever felt sincere to me was my dad. Well, now after everything that’s happened today, maybe he never really was. Unless he didn’t know who he was either... or maybe it was my mom. Yeah I don’t want to think about the women that left us.

  “So, your guys?” I have to admit, I’m intrigued at the idea of being in a relationship with more than one guy. A huge, shit eating grin lights her face. Hmm, perhaps we could end up becoming friends.

  “Lincoln, Parker, and Cooper. We’ve been a complete group since I was twelve.”

  “Twelve?” I ask, my voice rising. “You been in a relationship with three guys since you were twelve?” I couldn’t imagine loving someone that young, let alone with more than one guy.

  “I know it might sound strange, Adaline but this is normal for us. It’s not like we get physical that young. I didn’t start having sex till I was sixteen. We stayed in a dorm together when we found each other but we didn’t start anything till we were all ready. Each guy brings something different to the table as far as personality and opinions. It’s hard to really explain it, but I can’t imagine my life without them. We’re stronger together. They protect me and I them.”

  Naomi takes a breath as she seems to gather her thoughts. “Look, you may not realize it but each of your guys brings with them a piece of your soul. You’re destined to be together. I know you didn’t expect this but please give Nolan and Kevin a chance. They won’t try to push you into anything, I’ll make sure of that, I swear, but please try. They could be your family if you let them. Nolan told me you said your dad died and it was just you and your step mom.” Her words are soft, said with sympathy. Sympathy that isn’t needed.

  “No, she’s not anything to me,” I grit out. Naomi drapes her arm over my shoulders, comforting me.

  “Then if there’s nothing holding you back there, please stay. If not for them, stay for me. I would like to get to know you.” Genuine. That’s what it is, she sounds genuine. Sincere. I stare up at the white ceiling, my mind reeling. Gosh, this room is so bland. Yeah, whoever decorated it added a nice touch with the pillows and girly curtains, but it looks like a guest room that no one comes into. No personality whatsoever. I pull my thoughts away from the room and focus back on everything Naomi told me. She’s right. I have nothing to go back to and I did come here to start over. I mean, why not?

  “Okay, I’ll stay.” I whisper, my mind made up.

  “Yes!” Naomi screams into my ear and grabs ahold of me tight. The door bangs open and I look over and there stands the gorgeous redhead I met earlier.

  “Everything okay?” he asks shifting his head around, as if looking for anything that might harm us.

  “Yes, yes,” Naomi says quickly. “Sorry I just got excited. Adaline is going to stay.” Kevin’s mouth turns up into a grin and his eyes turn to me.

  “Do you mind if I talk to you for a second?” he asks in a quiet voice. I nod my head. Naomi bounces off of the bed, hugs Kevin and skips out the door. Before she closes the door, she gives me a thumbs up. I can’t believe I actua
lly thought she looked like a badass earlier.

  “Looks like you and Nao hit it off. Everyone always likes her,” he says coming closer. There’s relief in his tone and I smirk up at him.

  “Yeah, she won me over with her charm.” Or lack thereof. Basically, she kinda grew on me towards the end, her energy was very taxing when I first woke up. “What’s up?” I ask him.

  “Well, I wanted to apologize for earlier. I had no idea that you knew nothing about us. I was so angry that Nolan didn’t think of who he still had up here. I’m sorry that he disrespected you like that.”

  Does Kevin think I’m supposed to care about a guy I just met today? Yes, he’s hot but it’s not like we kissed, or even have a relationship at this point.

  “It’s fine. I’ve gathered from Naomi that I mean something to you guys. But I had no idea that I had guys waiting for me. So, it really doesn’t bother me what he did before I got here. I mean, he could probably keep doing it. I don’t know what to do here. I’ve never even had a boyfriend. I was kissed once but I found out later the guy was just being nice because my dad disappeared and he was actually interested in someone else.” I frown at the memory and he places a hand over my own in comfort.

  “Your dad disappeared. I thought you said he died?” Confusion is clear on his handsome face, mouth slightly open, eyebrows pulled together. How can he still look that attractive with his features all scrunched up? It’s pretty adorable, actually.

  “Well, we’re pretty sure he’s dead. He was in a car crash, but his body was missing. The other person’s body was still in the other car. They didn’t find the scene for days, it was off an embankment on a back road. They assume that an animal dragged his body off.” He pulls my head towards him and kisses me on the forehead. I melt into his body. Even with the little shocks I receive when I first feel his body wrap around me, it feels so nice to have someone comfort me. I haven’t received that from anyone since my dad’s death. Maybe I should just let my defenses down for one night.