Of Dreams and Sorcery (Royal Fae Guardians #1) - Heather Renee Page 0,38

had ever been. Euphoria filled me. Sure, I didn’t want to look like or be a princess, but having control over the power within me filled me with a completely different kind of joy I’d yet to experience.

Then, I remembered something Lorelle had said. “What did she mean about me accepting who I am? Does this have something to do with the Arelia thing Jordan mentioned before?”

Stryx narrowed his eyes at her, and she shrugged. “Hey, I was just guessing. If you didn’t want her to know, then you should have let the rest of us know.”

“It is what it is. Not that it makes any difference, but yes, you are the next Arelia. Your grandmother was the last one, and it appears you’ve inherited more than just her eyes,” Stryx answered.

“It sounds like it should be a big deal if there hasn’t been one alive in a couple of centuries,” I said, hoping he would expand.

Stryx flew to me, and I held out my hand for him. “Listen, Kaliah. You need to focus on one thing at a time right now. If you try to take on too much, it will only hinder your growth. Being an Arelia doesn’t change anything about what we’re doing, but I promise when the time comes, I will make sure you know more.”

My mind wanted to argue with him, but my heart was at peace with the answer. I trusted Stryx with my life, and he was right. There were a lot of other things going on, and I was okay with circling back to the Arelia subject later.

“Now, if that’s all, you two port home and I’ll find you later. We’ll work on funneling your abilities through the crown now that Lorelle has provided it. Once you get a real handle on your magic, we’ll take a trip to the Otherworld.”

“Is that wise?” Ryland questioned.

“We have to show Alaryk we’re not afraid, and our allies need to know Kali is capable of doing what needs to be done or they won’t stand behind us. It’s the only option we have,” Stryx answered.

Once again, the pressure was on, but just maybe with this crown and access to my magic, there was a chance I wouldn’t fail at everything that was asked of me.

I wasn’t ready to give up, even if I was beginning to realize I was in over my head.

Chapter Fourteen

A week later, the crown had become almost a permanent part of my body and had changed me in more ways than one.

My skin was brighter and firmer, my eyes even more vibrant than before, and my hair was now rocking some interesting blonde highlights that appeared purple whenever I had the crown on. Though, the most obvious change to me was the new points at the tips of my ears. They weren’t sharp, but there was a definitive alteration that had left me in freak-out mode for a solid forty-eight hours.

There was no denying what I was any longer. I was fae.

Along with the physical changes came the mental and magical ones. I was no expert, by any means, but my affinity for water had my skin constantly feeling like I had goosebumps no matter where I went. Water was everywhere, and until I had a real handle on everything, Stryx said I would be on constant overload with my senses, but the crown would keep it from being completely overwhelming.

Unfortunately, he was right.

The only time I took the crown off was when I slept and only because Stryx sealed me in my room. As mad as I wanted to be at him for doing so, he only started locking me in when I ended up accidentally calling water to me in my sleep from the fountain on my parents’ porch and flooded the guest house.

Later that afternoon, I had my last test before we headed to the Otherworld, which was scheduled for the following day. I was nervous, but also eager. While the books hadn’t done crap to help me understand my erratic powers, they were useful in understanding the other races and history.

“You know, I’m going to have to stop calling you Chuck if you begin reading more than you train. It’s ruining your cred,” Jordan teased as she plopped down next to me on the couch, making me lose my place. “The crown isn’t helping much, either.”

Glaring at her, I reached a hand up to touch the titanium metal, but in my attempt to look cool, I ended