The amulet looked exactly as Talise remembered it.
Taking a deep breath, Claye pinched harder on the metal. He reached one hand out. Soon, one of the large boulders near them lifted into the air. A crazed look entered Claye’s eyes right as the boulder shook. A moment later, it started to fall. If it continued on its same path, it would soon fall right on top of Talise and Aaden.
It only took one gasp before she reacted. With the boulder falling straight for her, she had to move fast. At nearly the same moment, she and Aaden lifted their hands and sent enormous blasts of wind at the boulder. The stone jiggled in the air, but a force seemed to be propelling it toward them no matter how much wind they used to divert its fall.
While shaping with all her might, Talise jerked her head. “Claye, stop! You’re going to hurt us.”
The moment her voice cut through the air, Claye blinked and shook his head. The crazed look in his eye pulsed as he released his pinch on the amulet. With a soft plunk, the amulet fell into his palm.
Now the boulder lacked the force behind it, but that didn’t stop it from falling. It still took strong bursts of wind from her and Aaden to push the boulder away before it landed on top of them.
When a cloud of dust lifted around the fallen boulder, Claye let out an audible gulp. His feet shuffled as he reached an arm over his stomach. When he spoke, his voice wavered. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to hurt you. I could just feel so much power in my veins and…” He glanced up for a single breath before his eyes fell again. “I don’t know what came over me.”
After a deliberate step closer to Talise, Aaden narrowed his eyes at Claye. Aaden’s gaze never wavered as he reached for his sword, gripping it with more purpose than before.
Even though Claye glared back, it didn’t hold as much hate. Too much guilt painted his features to wear a true glare.
Talise’s mind wandered back to Eben’s garden back when Kessoku soldiers had stolen the amulet from her. She could see the memory with perfect clarity. A Kessoku woman had grabbed the amulet. When she used it, her eyes turned black and her smile wicked. She too had been overcome by the power of the amulet. It wasn’t until a fellow Kessoku had punched the woman on the shoulder that she had been broken from the trance.
Biting into her bottom lip, Talise glanced toward Claye. “What did it feel like?”
For a moment, the shame in his eyes vanished, only to be replaced with awe. “It felt like I could control anything. Everything. I could sense every piece of earth around me for miles. I wanted to move all of it at once.”
Aaden took a step forward. One shoulder edged in front of Talise the slightest bit, as if distancing her from Claye. Aaden’s eyes narrowed. “Are you claiming that you weren’t trying to kill me?”
The glare that had been so persistent before completely vanished from Claye’s face now. His eyes drooped as he shook his head. “I wasn’t trying to hurt you, I swear on Kamdaria. I just… I don’t know what came over me.”
Talise nodded. “That’s the power of the amulet. You have to learn how to draw on its power without letting it control you.”
River licked her lips as she greedily stared at the amulet. “You had a chance.” Her eyes went ablaze. “Now it’s my turn.”
FIVE
TENSION TWISTED THROUGH THE AIR AS RIVER reached for the amulet. Terror seized in Talise’s heart. Despite everything she had been through, the sight of River reaching for the amulet caused Talise to step back. At the same moment, Aaden edged himself in front of her.
As protective as ever.
Still, the way her heart pounded in her chest, she couldn’t be annoyed by it. Maybe if she stood taller, she could trick herself into brushing the fear away. After a few deep breaths, she forced out a steady voice. “Maybe I should try it next.”
The chuckle that left River’s mouth had as much bite as it had humor. With a pointed look, the woman said a deliberate, “No.”
Fear continued to work its way through Talise’s veins, but a slice of anger managed to cut through it. “You saw what just happened with Claye.”
River threw her head back with a short chuckle. “Yes, but I have self-control.”
“No, you don’t.” Aaden stood with his same even expression. But again, he spoke in such a way that no argument could touch his words.
A grunt left River’s lips as she drew her eyebrows together. “Why are you even here?”
Aaden maintained direct eye contact with River as he pulled his sword halfway out of its sheath. “You know why.”
The woman rolled her eyes as she turned away from the rest of them. “It won’t be like Claye. I’ve already used the amulet twice.”
Claye dug a toe into the dirt as he spoke under his breath. “And you almost died both times.”
She turned on him with a fury worse than any storm. “I might respect your parents, but that doesn’t mean you deserve the same.” Now she graced him with a smirk of her own. “What if there happened to be an accident with the amulet and you died? What could your parents even do?”
“Really?” Aaden casually drew the sword from its sheath and examined the blade. “I’ve seen your shaping skills. I know the amulet gives incredible power, but Princess Talise and I are both Master Shapers.” He twisted the sword through the air in a subtle jab. “And you know how skilled I am with a sword.” When his gaze fell on her again, the air crackled with energy. “I’ll do whatever is necessary if you happen to accidentally lose control.”
With a hiss, she turned away. But even the snarl on her face demonstrated a surprising truth. Though she might have hated Aaden, she clearly respected him more than Claye. Even more important, she feared him too.
She snatched the amulet from Claye’s hand and took a careful stance on the frozen earth. “I’ll start with something small.” Now she gave the slightest glance toward Talise. “And I’ll focus on keeping my mind in control like you said.”
Her fingers tightened around the amulet as she shot her other arm out in front of her. After a breath, she brought her arm back and then punched her hand forward.
A gust of wind with the force of a tornado burst from her palm. The air shook through the branches of nearby tree. The trunk immediately began jerking from the force of the wind. After a few seconds, the trunk tipped to the side with roots rising out of the ground.
The wind continued for a few more seconds until the tree was halfway uprooted. River let out a slow, steady breath as she released her grip on the amulet and dropped it onto her opposite palm.
She tipped one eyebrow upward. “See? I do have control when I choose to.” Both her eyebrows raised as a smile stretched across her face. “I bet you’ve never seen anyone uproot a tree with shaping before.”
Letting out a snort, Claye ran a hand through his hair. “I’ve seen Talise uproot an entire tree, which she then proceeded to destroy an entire dam with.” He gave a pointed stare in River’s direction. “And she did it without an amulet.”
A tight scowl broke across River’s face.
But Talise’s gaze turned back to the halfway uprooted tree. Turning slowly, she glanced toward the woman. “Your primary is air? Not water?”