Daughter of the Sky, Son of the Earth

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Water

The roaring winds outside my window startled me awake. I had been taken to a room on the other side of the building where all of the boys were. Charles was a grey-haired man. He wasn’t very tall, nor built, but he held a power around him that could make anyone stop in their tracks. Along the way, I had tried asking what his job here was, to which he only responded, “I’m a teacher, Mr. Himmler,” and he remained silent the rest of the way.

As the old-looking teacher led me through the hallway, I could feel the stares of all the boys as we passed. Some eyed me curiously and others with hostility in their eyes. Their eyes scanned me from head to toe and I suddenly felt very self-conscious about the way I looked.

Wrinkled clothes, jeans and a fitted t-shirt, and messy hair. While they wore their most expensive-looking clothes or pajamas, and their hair was neatly pulled out of their face in a short haircut.

I didn't feel comfortable here, especially not since I found out this wasn't an orphanage, but rather a school. A school for preppy sons and daughters of powerful people in the human world. If only they knew how the world actually worked and how their money and power did little against the gods and monsters out there. 

I shook my head and cleared my mind away from any insecurities. Raising my chin up, I walked more confidently down the hallway until we stopped in front of the last room in the hall. 

Charles opened the door for me as he motioned for me to go ahead, and I walked in with him at my heels. "I hope this room is to your liking. It is small but I can assure you that you will be able to find any accommodations you may need. Speaking of," the older man said as he headed towards the closet on the other side of the room. He opened the doors and gently pulled a hanger out and showed me a navy-blue jacket with red details along the borders along with matching dress pants and dark shoes, a white shirt, and a red tie. "This is the uniform you'll be using for the time being. The Himmler family mentioned you were going to be here for a while but, may I ask how long?"

I tried to put on a smile as I looked back at the man. "Only a couple of days, two or three weeks at the most," I said, and the man nodded his head. He started to put everything back in its place neatly and once he was done, he turned to me with a neutral expression on his face.

"Very well, then, I'll leave you to get acquainted with your room and tomorrow with the building. Have a good night, Mr. Himmler. If you need anything, you can ask the other boys to help you out, I’m sure they will be on their best behavior." 

"Thank you, I’ll keep that in mind," I said with a smile and the older man nodded. 

"Good night, Mr. Himmler," he said before walking out of the room and closing the door softly behind him before I could even respond.

Once I was alone, I felt as if I were able to breathe again. My tense muscles relaxed, and I slowly walked towards the twin bed in the room. I sat down on the bed, suddenly feeling very out of place. I needed to take a breath for a moment.

I could not help but shake my head in disbelief as I recalled the man in the suit apologizing for the size of the room.  How could he apologize for that?  What other types of rooms did they have here that he considered this one to be small? Honestly, this was the biggest room I had ever been in. It may not have its own bathroom, but I was sure one could fit in here just fine. It all felt so overwhelming.

How come Kalani had the opportunity to grow up differently than Aileen and me? A part of me didn’t think it was fair, it didn’t seem like she had ever struggled with anything in her life. She even had mortal parents. They were adoptive but they were her parents nonetheless, and she spoke of Zeus as if she knew him. As if she’d actually gotten the chance to spend time with him all these years.

I sighed and shook my head. I wasn’t going to let myself feel envious about this. We had all grown up differently and I guessed being the daughter of the mighty King of Gods had its advantages. That wouldn’t matter in the end, though. Kalani was going to have to learn how to fend off by herself.

She was a naturally born leader, I could feel it, but I doubted she knew how to work as a team. It was going to be a long road to get there, and I could already see Aileen and Kalani clashing.

Taking off my shoes, I laid down on the mattress and wasn’t surprised to find it was the most comfortable bed I had ever been on. A small chuckle escaped my mouth, and I shook my head as I closed my eyes. What was I doing here? Should I have been more stubborn with Kalani? Should I have tried more to stay with her?

I shook my head and let out a sigh. She seemed confident enough, maybe she was right. However she thought she had prepared herself. I doubted it would do much of a difference. The transformation was painful, period. It was that simple. You couldn’t just decide where you want to feel the pain.

…

I hadn’t realized I had fallen asleep until I felt something nudge me awake. Instantly, I reached for my blade and held it out in front of me in an alert position. I looked around the room, the lamp on the nightstand was on and I could see my surroundings. I was alone.

Confusion and adrenaline made me sit straight and run my hands over my face. I guessed I had been more exhausted than I had thought at the beginning if I fell asleep without struggle. I sighed and slowly got to my feet to stretch.

Suddenly, I heard the sound of a stick hitting against the window and I quickly turned around. My eyes widened and my mouth opened in disbelief as I saw what was happening outside. Gusts of wind were roaring outside, moving the trees dangerously back and forth as the breezes crashed with one another.

Distantly, I could hear loud snaps before a couple of trees fell down. Kalani, I thought to myself as I quickly made my way out of the room.

To my surprise, the doors in the hallway were lit and I saw a couple of adults rushing from one room to the other, knocking before barging in and telling the others to wake up. Their faces were covered with worry as howls of wind echoed in the building.

One by one, everyone started to rush out of their rooms looking groggy at first, but that was quickly replaced by fear as they realized what was happening outside.

A woman wearing a pajama and a slightly fluffy bathrobe appeared in front of me. “Mr. Himmler, we need to get down to the basement. You probably already saw what is happening outside. We need to make sure everyone is safe. Please follow the others to the basement,” she said quickly as she pointed to a group that was forming at the end of the hallway.

Before I could respond, the woman rushed away, and I clenched my jaw. The group was already moving in the opposite direction of where Kalani was. I was sure she was the one causing all this, not intentionally, but she was. I needed to go help her.

Quickly, I turned and headed towards the girls’ section of the building. A couple of girls eyed me in surprise and curiosity as I rushed past them towards their dorms, but thankfully, no one stopped me. What I did notice was that with each group of girls that I passed, Kalani wasn’t with them.

I got to Kalani’s room just as a big gust of wind broke the big window at the end of the hall, pushing me back and making me fall. I hit the ground with brute force, and I groaned as I tried to lift myself to my feet. The floor was spinning slightly, and I had to hold onto the wall to keep from falling again.

Placing my hands on my head, I tried to calm myself and regain my focus.

Once I could see the floor more clearly again, I took a deep breath and headed into Kalani’s room.

My eyes widened when I saw the windows in her room shattered as the curtains moved with the wind that was pouring inside. Placing my arm in front of my face, I tried to make my way to where Kalani was. Her lamp was on, but it was on the floor, barely illuminating anything.

Softly, I could hear Kalani’s small whimpers as I walked closer. She had her arms wrapped tightly around her torso as she coughed raggedly as if it were hard to breathe. Her tear-filled eyes landed on me, but it took her a second for her to realize who was standing in front of her.

“Help me,” she whispered, her voice cracking with pain.

Hesitantly, I walked closer as I thought about what to do. When Aileen had gone through her transformation, I had just held onto her, but that had been different. Everyone knew water put out a fire, a part of me had believed I could take some of her pain away by using my powers.

But Kalani wasn’t fire. She was wind, and I didn’t know how I could help her.

Kalani’s cough caught my attention as she choked and began to turn purple. She quickly placed her arms on her neck as if trying to break free of someone’s invisible grip. Her fearful eyes met mine as she pleaded for me to do something. Anything.

Cursing in a low voice, I closed the distance between us and quickly placed my hands over her ears. “Try to stay calm. It hurts less if you calm yourself. Focus on the sound of my voice. I’m here. You’re not alone,” I said encouragingly. The picture of the ocean filled my mind, it was where I felt the calmest, where I felt like I belonged. I wanted to transmit that same feeling to Kalani. I didn’t know if it’d help but I had to try something.

I had closed my eyes so I couldn’t see what Kalani’s expression was like, but after a couple of moments, I felt her body let go of some of the tension and her breathing slowed down slightly. When I opened my eyes, they met hers and it was like we were no longer in the destroyed room in the school, we were somewhere else, somewhere no one could see us or hurt us. Something about this feeling felt… intimate and exciting. But the moment was brief and as soon as Kalani closed her eyes, the moment was gone. Her head fell to the side and her arms fell limp to her sides.

Outside, the wind had stopped swaying and destroying everything in its path. It was like nothing had happened. But it had, and now that the worst was over, I looked at Kalani with concern, thinking she hadn’t been able to make it through her transformation. That she was dead.

My breath hitched in my throat as I waited for some sort of sign to tell me that wasn’t the case. To assure me she had just fallen unconscious. It wasn’t until I saw her take a deep breath that I relaxed. A loud sigh escaped my lips as I let my head fall forward and a chuckle left my lips.

Somehow, this had seemed easier and faster than when Aileen went through her transformation.

As quickly as the thought had appeared in my mind, my body stiffened as I thought about her and about what had just happened between Kalani and me. I didn’t know what that feeling had been nor I wanted to find out. It was odd and I was left very confused. I knew what I felt for Aileen, every time I thought about her, my heart would swell with joy and relief, and I wanted nothing more than to hold her in my arms. But this other feeling rose something inside of me. Guilt maybe, I didn’t know.

Shaking my head, I got to my feet and took a couple of deep breaths. I knew my work here was done, at least for now. Kalani would remain unconscious for a while before she woke up again, a new person. Well, a more powerful person.

Once that happened, I would come back. For now, I wanted to place a bit of distance between us. I was still confused as to what had happened. So, I made my way to the door and without looking back, I left the room. Once she woke up, we would leave and I would be closer to reuniting with Aileen.