Bret had caught up to them after a few miles much to Duke’s aggravation.  Rose could feel his gaze boring into her as they kept up a punishing pace to Harbortown.

They arrived at the town gates just as night was falling. Jeb showed the Harbortown’s guards paperwork that Rose was a member of Greenly’s coven and they were let into the city without incident. 

“I want to go down to the docks,” she said.

“I’ll secure us lodging and meet you there.”  Jeb rode out ahead of them.

“Why don’t you go with him?” Rose said as Bret pulled alongside her.

“Do I look like an idiot?” he drawled.

“A little,” she said, refusing to be charmed when he laughed and stroked his hand down her wind tousled hair.

“I love you too,” he said.

Rose had to blink tears back that she blamed from the wind.  The damnable thing was she didn’t know if that was a sarcastic comment about being called an idiot or if he was responding with what he should have said this afternoon.

However when they rounded the corner to the road that led to the docks, all thought of her love life fled at what she saw.

“Holy shit,” she whispered.

The waves splashed over the docks and flooded the warehouses.  She slid off Atalanta.  “You need to get the horses to safety.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” he said, his eyes fixed at the enormous water geyser just off the coast.

There was no way she was going to grab her sword without giving herself away.  It was the dagger then.

“Where the hell are you going?”

“To get wet,” she said.

“Get your ass back here,” Bret growled.

But she was already making her way through the mud to get to the first circle of mages.  They were knee deep in water, holding hands and chanting.  Glancing over her shoulder, she locked eyes with Bret.  His hands were white knuckled on the reins and he looked grimmer than she ever saw him.

“Be careful,” he said.

She nodded and released a long breath.  It felt good that he trusted her.  Not wanting to disturb the protection spell the thirteen mages were holding to keep the waves contained to the ocean, Rose sloshed by them.

She wasn’t prepared to be grabbed around the waist by a watery arm and dragged off her feet.

“Rose.”  Bret moved the horses closer, but checked himself when she broke free.

Cold and wet, she glared at the waves before moving forward.  She saw the second group of mages casting blasts of power at a wall of water by the farthest dock.  Ships were being tossed about and several were wrecked against the rocks.  If she squinted, she could see the elementalist inside the wall of water.  Of course, bodies floated all around him too.  The mundanes had tried to rush him and were drowned before they got to him.

“Stay there,” she shouted at Bret.  But the wind howled up and she wasn’t sure he heard her. 

More townspeople fired arrows into the water, but the wall of water just absorbed it.  Behind a stone wall, she found a few mages.

“I’m here to help,” she said.

“We’re waiting to swap in when someone gets tired.”  A scared looking man said, pointing at the chanting circle.

“Unless you’ve got some fire power in you to bust through that barrier?” an older woman, who looked more angry than frightened, asked.

Rose shook her head.  “I might be able to cloak myself and fly over the barrier.”

“You’re crazy,” an acolyte said.  “He’ll swat you out of the sky.”

“If he sees me,” she said.  “I’m hoping to be invisible.”

“He’s too powerful,” another acolyte said, hugging herself tight and rocking back and forth.  “So much death.”

Rose looked up and saw the city’s militia standing helplessly.  They were powerless to do anything to stop this menace.  How did you stab water?  How could you arrest the sea?

“My brother’s name is Robert.  He’s a ship’s captain from Demerest.  The Lady Blade is his ship.  If I don’t come back, can you tell him what happened to me?”

The older woman nodded.  “Gods watch over you.”

Casting the invisibility spell, she took one last look at Bret.  Duke was dancing because his hooves were getting wet and Bret was having a hell of a time controlling him.  This situation with the elementalist was partly her fault.  She freed the bastard, after all.  It was only right she was the one to stop him. Casting her fly spell, she took to the air.  The wind buffeted her and almost slammed her into the rock wall the city’s militia stood on, but Rose was able to compensate.  She flew up as high as she could, until all she saw of the town was the rooftops.  Then she flew towards the water barrier.  The spray from the sea drenched her and she swallowed salt water when she eased over the top.  Keeping a hold on her stomach, Rose peered down and saw the elementalist.  He was on his knees on the weathered dock. His eyes were rolled back in his head and his mouth was open in a silent scream.

The elementalist was locked into a power struggle with the water elemental out at sea.  Dropping down behind him, Rose pulled her dagger and using mage sight saw the taught line that connected the two beings.  She struck at it with the dagger and felt the power sing up her arm.  It was heady and wild.  She bared her teeth and roared with the elements before shaking herself out of it.  Drowning in water or drowning in power was still a terrible way to die.

But she tried to sever the line once more.  This time the mage lashed out with a power bolt that slammed her into the water barrier.  The water grabbed her greedily and engulfed her.  Gagging up salt water, Rose slammed her shields tight and pushed her way out of the barrier.  She landed on the deck behind the elementalist, gasping for breath.

“Why are you doing this?” she coughed out.

But he was beyond speech.  Rose wasn’t sure he even had much of a mind left.  The water elemental was too powerful.  Too inhuman to be in contact with for so long.  This wasn’t a fire that would eventually die.  Water was eternal.  The sea would never stop coming.

Rising to her feet, Rose steadied herself on the mage’s shoulder and then without flinching, cut the mage’s throat.  Blood sprayed against the barrier and it fell, soaking Rose and carrying the elementalist’s body out to sea.  There was a terrible roaring sound as the water elemental felt the backlash of the mage’s death.  It plunged under the water and the sea became still.  Horribly still.

She was visible.  The violence of her actions burned through the invisibility spell.  Rose hadn’t been strong enough to hold it together, nor did she care to once the mage was dead.

A weak and ragged cheer started up.  Bret was shouting something at her.  She waved to show him she was all right. And then a great wave, twice as tall as the tallest building rose up and headed for the town.