“Enough talk!” He spat and held up both his hands.
“Morgan, watch out!” Tammer cried, slamming against the glass as it held him away.
Limus’ hands glowed white as the brilliant arch of energy shot toward me. I held up both of my hands and when it hit them, I absorbed it, feeling the energy wash over me, trying to pull me apart. Closing my eyes, my life began to play as if I was watching a video. Images of my childhood flew through my mind – growing up with my father, riding horses in the mountains, the trip to Florida, falling in love with Thayde, marrying him. My life was just beginning.
I could hear Limus chanting out loud, trying to summon other powers. Tammer screamed as he pounded on the glass. My body felt consumed but not out of control. I didn’t feel the need to push back, rather, I wanted to accept the powers from Limus. Instead of feeling depleted and weak, I was filling with energy and I knew I could certainly handle a lot more.
I opened my eyes to the look of fear in Limus’ face. As I walked toward him, his eyes grew wide and he broke his stare. The arch shrank as I neared and I closed the arch off by linking my fingers through his and holding both of his hands. A smile crept upon my face as I realized that this was the extent of Limus’ powers and they in no way could rival mine.
The look of anger and horror on his face was hideous and Limus tried to pull away. I held on tight, forcing him to look into my eyes. I felt connected to him, as if we were briefly one, and I knew what I had to do.
“I forgive you,” I whispered, only, my voice sounded magnified.
His mouth dropped open in surprise and disgust. Seconds later, he fell to his knees, mouth agape and eyes wide as if he were being electrocuted. When I released my grip, he fell back, unconscious.
The energy continued to vibrate in my body and I felt myself being lifted into the air. The golden glow had turned amber and then a deep red. I barely noticed Ezen and Tammer standing in front of me, in pure confusion as to what to do. Slowly, my arms raised themselves from my sides and stretched outward as if trying to embrace the world. Strange words escaped my lips and I listened as my voice, now unrecognizable even to me, repeated a phrase:
“Elentha bac tol. Sanala rapt oft. Sanala rapt lept.”
The phrase kept repeating until I relaxed into the power and moments later, it burst through me, bowling Ezen and Tammer over in its wake.
As quickly as it happened, it stopped and I was lowered to the ground. Tammer was back on his feet in no time and rushed to me, his voice filled with panic.
“Are you all right? Is he dead? How do you feel? Are you hurt?”
No, I feel at peace, I thought.
“Is he dead?”
No, I’ve taken away his powers. He has nothing now. He won’t even be able to phase.
Rubbing the back of his head, Ezen looked me up and down in awe. “Guess you’ve passed the test then, huh?”
Test?
Tammer coughed lightly. “Each Link has a final test to master. Aletheia told me yours was to decide whether he should live or die. You chose life and forgiveness for him. You passed the test. What just happened was that your body finally accepted the powers and welcomed them.”
“What was I saying?”
“You were speaking Sanserian,” Ezen said.
“How? I don’t know the language!”
Tammer grinned. “There are many things you’ll discover you can now do. Welcome to being The Link.”
“But what did I say?”
“You said: The Blessing is complete. The power be with me. The power be one.”
None of us said a word for a moment. It was done and now I was truly The Link. I felt whole, strong and in control.
“Now what happens?” I asked.
“Now? Now the real work begins.” His arms were around me, pulling me close in a fatherly embrace. “I’m proud of you. You’re ready now to reign over our kind. You will know everything when you want to know it. The amount of power you possess is awesome. And remember the quote ‘With great power comes great responsibility’.”
I’d heard that line before. “Where did it come from?”
He stifled a smile. “Spiderman.”
Ezen prodded Limus’s arm with the toes of his boot. “What should we do with Limus?” The arm looked like a drowned worm in a puddle. “I mean, we can’t exactly leave him here.”
“Morgan?” Tammer looked to me for direction.
“Take him home. His servants will take care of him.” I bent down and laid my hand on his forehead. His memories flooded my mind and I began to pull all of them that involved merpeople. I left him with a life filled with his family and the limited amount of kindness he had encountered and shown to others. When I was finished, he had no recollection of merpeople in any way. Sadly, it left a lot of holes in his memory. However, for the protection of our species and to guard against any type of revenge, it was a sacrifice I had to make.