“Why is she on the floor?” Flint asked, by her side in a flash.

“Tell me the prophecy again,” I asked weakly, ignoring his question. “What happens after us four?”

Cam frowned but recited it nonetheless.

“He’s got Lightning. It must be. He doesn’t have you, you’re safe. I’m so glad you’re safe. Please stay, don’t go away again,” she mumbled, noticing too late that her filter had apparently switched off.

“You broke her!” Flint growled at the other two accusingly. “What the fuck did you do to her?”

“Nothing, she fainted, then she left the bed, then screamed and collapsed.”

Flint growled again. “I wouldn’t call that nothing. She looks like she’s half-dead and her eyes are flickering. Why aren’t you two more concerned?”

“You weren’t here, you didn’t see it,” Jared replied, raising his voice. “She looked like she was having a fit, she was thrashing, mumbling weird things. It was scary, alright? We’re concerned, we’re very concerned! I was fucking frightened, hell, I’m still—”

She groaned as his loud voice was making her head pound in pain. “Silence,” she whispered and they all shut up. “He’s got Lightning. We need to find him. Or her.”

“What are you talking about?” Cam asked gently. “Who’s got Lightning?”

“The Voice. He was talking to me. He... touched my mind. He hurt me.” Macey shuddered, and suddenly she had three pairs of hands holding her tight as the memory of his darkness threatened to overwhelm her. Now that the pain had receded, she realised how much of a violation this had been. How he had entered her mind, attacking her. And she hadn’t been able to fight him off. A whimper escaped her.

“Shhhh...” Cam whispered soothingly, stroking her hair. “Don’t think about it. Tell us what you know about Lightning.”

“He said he’s got one of us. I thought it was Flint, but you’re here now.” Macey squeezed his hand and he smiled reassuringly. “If the prophecy is true, Lightning is trapped. It makes sense that it’s the Voice who’s got him. And... he said that it’ll be me next.”

“No way!” Jared jumped up and the floor shook slightly. His hands were trembling at the same pace as the earth was. He was losing control of his powers. “Nobody is going to get you, I will make sure of that!”.

“Calm down, mate,” Flint said, releasing Macey’s hand to get up. He gripped Jared by the shoulders, shaking him. “You need to snap out of it or we won’t have a house anymore.”

“I’m still here. He’s not going to get me without a fight,” she said, trying to fake bravery. She had seen his power. She was no match for him. Waves, none of them were

“So what do we do?” Cam asked, still by her side. “Do we stay here, barricade ourselves in this place, or do we search out whoever wants to harm her?”

Flint sighed. “I think it’s time to visit Malan.”

“Malan?” she repeated, looking at him with disbelieving eyes, trying to marry up what he was saying now, with what they’d told her before. “But you said that Malan lived centuries ago?” She ended on a short squeak and berated herself inwardly for it. They didn’t seem like the type that would be running away now, but she didn’t want to take that chance.

“We also told you we’d lived for centuries too,” Cam said with a slight laugh. “Is it too far-fetched to think that a prophet’s still around too?” She frowned and cocked her head to the side slightly. He had a point, and she wasn’t sure she liked that. She really needed to make sure they knew they could be wrong sometimes, it wasn’t good to let them know they could be right so often, otherwise she’d end up on the back foot for the rest of her life. Huh, the rest of her life? She glanced at the three men before nodding to herself. The rest of her life didn’t seem too bad really. Damn it, Macey, pull yourself together, she berated herself. She hadn’t known them long enough to be thinking or acting in this way, no matter how right it felt.

“Well, no...”

“And Malan’s not exactly around like we are either,” Jared added thoughtful, receiving a whack on the arm from Flint.

“Don’t spoil the surprise!”

Jared chuckled deeply. “You just want to see her reaction.”

“Your point?” Flint smirked and Macey glared at him.

“My reaction to what exactly?” She crossed her arms across her chest, no mean feat considering her position, pushing up her boobs and drawing three sets of eyes. Not her intention admittedly, but she’d take it.

Cam cleared his throat. “To Malan.” His voice was husky and he licked his lips, probably subconsciously, but she enjoyed the reaction she got from him. If only now was the time to do something about it.

“What are you hiding?” She narrowed her eyes at Cam, already figuring that he was the one likely to crack first. He looked a little uncomfortable, and couldn’t quite meet her gaze, only proving her point more. “Tell me,” she hissed. The three men exchanged glances, only worrying her further.

“Malan is...”

“Different?” Jared suggested.

“Dead,” Cam supplied.

“How can we talk to him if he’s dead?” Macey asked, pulling a confused expression that seemed to have even Flint’s expression softening.

“His body is dead, his spirit, not so much. We can still talk to him.”

“Cause that makes any sense,” Macey muttered, already confused out of her mind.

“So a house in the mists and the Voice in your head are both perfectly acceptable, but talking to someone dead, isn’t? Good to know where the boundaries are.” Flint’s eyes danced with amusement as she looked up into them, and she found she liked this side of him, he seemed a little more angry and serious the rest of the time.

“Talking to the dead does seem a little more extreme,” she said, pushing herself up so that she was more upright, and grasping her head as the dull thudding intensified.

“It’s really not. We’ll visit where his spirit lives, ask him what we want to know, and that’s that.”

“That’s that?!” she half-shouted despite the pain that brought. “Oh hi Macey, what did you do today? Well, I talked to the fucking dead. By the waves, you’re all insane.” She stood up, swaying slightly with the effort.

“Any more insane than being able to turn into a water horse?” Jared asked, also rising to his feet, with Cam doing the same. The three of them were stood in a circle, with her in the middle. Until she stepped towards Jared that was. She was sure her hair had already begun to turn green, and if the men were to be believed, then her eyes would be glowing too. Miraculously, the headache seemed to have vanished along with her partial shift.

“Call me a water horse again,” she challenged Jared, almost feeling her eyes flare and a weird burning sensation on her upper back, but she pushed it all away, not caring what it meant.

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry. You’re a kelpie,” Jared said, holding up his hands, but still smiling slightly.

“Don’t forget it.” Her eyes bored into him, and then she fixed an equally stern glare on the other two.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Cam said, shaking his head.

“Not worth it at all,” Flint added. “But you need to calm down, Macey. Getting angry isn’t going to solve anything.”

“Says you!” The laugh she gave sounded a little manic, even to her ears, but that wasn’t going to stop her. “You’ve been nothing but angry since I got here.”

“That’s not true,” Flint said, stepping forward.

“Okay, fine, you’ve been sixty percent angry since I got here.”

Flint laughed, moving closer still so that their bodies were almost touching. “Who counts angry in percentages?” he asked, his voice low and rumbly and tempting. It soothed out some of her anger, and despite herself, she began to calm down, the magic bubbling through her blood almost vanishing completely.

“I do,” she insisted, pouting at him.

“It’s adorable.”

“It is not,” she said, putting her hands on her hips and attempting to look stern. Though that was well and truly undermined by the effect his closeness was having on her. Really, all she wanted was to press her body against his and let him kiss her. Maybe Jared’s magic had taken hold of her again, that could explain why she was suddenly thinking with parts a lot lower down than her brain. Stupid men, distracting her with their sexiness.

“Oh, it is Macey.” He cupped her cheek in his hand in a surprisingly gentle gesture, before leaning down and pressing a swift kiss to her lips. He pulled back, his eyes meeting hers, and while she could see the desire burning within them, she knew he wouldn’t go any further right now. He’d decided on the next step, and she suspected that nothing she could say or do would change that.

“Let me just break this sexual tension by saying that we should really leave if we want to see Malan today,” Jared said and Macey was tempted to strangle him. Not just because he mentioned sexual tension. Also because he was right.

“How do we get there?” she asked, stepping out of the circle and rummaging through the clothes Flint must have brought with him. What did someone wear when they went to visit a ghost? Black? Or would that be too morbid?

“The Staran, if they let us leave,” Cam explained, looking a little doubtful. If it hadn’t let him leave earlier, it might not now. But this time, it was important.

Macey put on a black hoodie over her top - just to be on the safe side - and slipped on her boots. “I’m ready. Shall we go?”

She strode out of the room, the guys’ chuckles following her. She didn’t quite understand what they found so funny, but they were guys, so she didn’t even try to. They rarely made sense; it had been the same thing underwater. The number of times she had struggled to grasp why her brothers did things... no, she didn’t want to think about her brothers. They were either victims, or evil bastards, and somehow nobody could tell her which option was correct. Maybe the dead guy could tell them. Malan.

She waited by the door until the three men joined her. Flint was wearing a big backpack. When he saw her questioning glance, he shrugged. “Malan likes gifts, and he likely won’t talk if we don’t bring him anything.”

“Are you all ready? We might run into trouble,” Cam said. Jared grinned and opened his jacket wide, exposing a row of throwing stars attached to the lining. Flint produced a silver lighter from his breast pocket and flicked it on, smiling at the flame.

“Why do you need a lighter?” Macey asked, and he winked.

“Because it looks cool.”

She rolled her eyes and turned to Cam. “Do I need anything? And if you ask if I have a trident, I’m going to kill you, slowly.”

“I wasn’t going to ask that... But I’m sure you’d look hot with it,” he smirked and left the house, disappearing into the mists.

She followed, flanked by the other two guys. The fog was thick, almost touchable. Macey had never seen anything like it before - if she ignored the night of her kidnapping. It was unnatural, no, it was supernatural.

“It’s just a two-minute walk to the Staran,” Cam called from in front of her, but it came as a whisper, the mist swallowing every sound. Following his voice, she walked slowly, careful not to trip. She couldn’t even see her feet, but it felt like she was walking on gravel.

“How about a stopover on Earth?” Jared shouted. “Malan likes those Belgian waffles, we should probably get him some.”

“I want some too!” Flint chimed in. Macey noticed how hungry she was. Waffles sounded like a great idea. Much more appealing than walking through this strange mist.

She bumped into Cam with a yelp. Why couldn’t he have warned her that he stopped walking? That wasn’t an unreasonable request in this weather, was it?

“We’re here,” he explained, taking her hand.

She looked around, but all she could see was fog. This spot wasn’t any less misty than the last couple hundred yards.

“How do you know?” she asked and he sighed.

“I don’t know. Jared’s been asking me for years, but I... just know. Same as Flint. We can always feel where the doorways to the Staran are. And this one here is a good one. That’s probably why they built the house here.”

She frowned. “They? Isn’t it your house?”

“Oh no, it’s been here for millenia. No idea who built it originally. It changes over time, and sometimes new rooms appear when we need them. Our entertainment room only appeared two years ago, but I guess the game consoles weren’t as good before that.”

“So your house is magical?”

“I guess.” He shrugged as if it wasn’t a big deal, while Macey was having trouble getting her head around it. A house that added new rooms. Maybe she could ask it for a hot tub? Or a painting studio? She’d always loved to paint, even though the techniques underwater were very different from those humans used.

“You need to hold onto me and don’t let go no matter what happens,” Cam explained. “Flint will take Jared.”

“But I wanted to take Macey!” Flint complained. “She’s much more fun than Earth guy.”

“Then you should have claimed her first,” Cam snarled, his humour suddenly gone. Macey stared at him wide-eyed, not quite sure whether he was only talking about travelling through the Mists. It didn’t seem like it... and in her mind, she had already claimed them. Not just Cam. All of them. They were hers. She grimaced at the thought of anyone else taking them. No way. She just hoped the other three elements wouldn’t turn out to be girls. Unless they weren’t into men, of course.

“Could we get out of this mist?” She tried to diffuse the tension. “This stuff is getting my clothes wet.”

Cam pulled her close and wrapped her into his arms. She didn’t mind travelling through the Staran. They should do this more often. She liked being in his arms, warm and cosy. Although it would be more fun if they weren’t wearing as many clothes...

“Ready?” Cam called and the others all confirmed.

Macey was getting a little jitterish. The last time Cam had transported her on the Staran, she’d been unconscious. Would it hurt? Be uncomfortable?

A tight squeeze was all the warning she got before they plunged into nothingness.

Darkness.

No, not darkness.

Nothing.

No light.

No dark.

No shadows.

Just her and Cam, their bodies united, being thrown through the universe.

It was hard to focus, but she tried to think about however Cam would know where to stop. Where to get out of this vacuum. If they could get out of it. Maybe it had all gone terribly wrong? Maybe this wasn’t the Staran?

A pain around her navel area made her scream as they were pulled backwards as if ropes were attached to their bellies. Suddenly there was darkness, and pain, so much pain, agony, never-ending agon-

Solid ground appeared beneath their feet and they stumbled forwards before collapsing on the ground. Shaking from top to feet, Macey looked around. They were in the Mists again. She couldn’t see the house, so wasn’t sure if they’d returned to the place they’d started from.

“Guess we still can’t get to Earth,” Cam groaned, releasing her from his grip. A second later, Jared and Flint appeared out of nowhere, falling before they could get their balance. “And neither can they.”