24. Arim Guardian of Storm

Darius frowned at me, but I was doing my best to remain calm. While I engaged Marcus in conversation, his brother scowled like the sun.

I'd seen the impatience on my nephew's face growing. By the Light, it wasn't easy for me either. It was all I could do to wait around when two of my nephews had become secretive while dealing with the Dark side of creation.

We were all now dealing not only with the Aellei but the Djinn as well.

Darius scowled. "I was two seconds away from convincing Samantha to leave well enough alone with our defensive perimeter when you ripped me out of there. Do you have any idea what that woman gets up to without me?" He threw up his hands.

Marcus lifted an arrogant brow that had Darius curling his fingers around a fireball. With a smirk, Marcus said, "Perhaps if her mate had any semblance of understanding when it came to women, she wouldn't feel such a need to interfere with her prince's work just to get his attention."

Snarling, Darius aimed a fireball at Marcus, who countered it with a wave of his hand. Water doused the fireball and managed to drench Darius as well.

My patience had worn thin an hour ago, and the worries these two carried weren't helping. I knew neither liked leaving their brides while the Netharat circled Tanselm, just waiting to strike. But I needed all four Storm Lords together.

All four brothers had to work together if Tanselm had any hope of surviving this Dark influx of invaders. They'd already been separated for too long. I didn't like it.

"Ah, Arim? Your eyes are doing that weird thing again." Darius coughed and grudgingly backed down.

"Then distract me before I turn one of you to stone," I snapped then changed the subject. "What do you think of Alandra?"

I'd told them what I knew of her and her kind, reminding them of her participation in their recent battle with Sin Garu. And of course how Aerolus had nearly killed himself trying to save her from me.

After she'd put herself in harm's way trying to save him.

"I don't know," Marcus said thoughtfully. His blue eyes darkened, and his words sounded fair and not at all like the man who'd once considered himself better than everyone else. His affai had softened his edges. "I kind of liked her. She snapped at Darius quick enough."

"She did." Darius grinned.

"And looking at her is no hardship," Marcus added.

Darius snorted. "Trust you to go straight to a woman's looks."

"I'm married, not dead, and my heart belongs to Tessa. What, like you didn't notice her appeal? Please." Marcus snorted. "She's preternaturally beautiful. I still can't believe Aerolus, of all people, snagged her."

"Yeah, I didn't even realize Mr. Oblivious knew women existed." He snickered, and Marcus joined in. "Oh, wait. That's not right. Didn't he see Tessa naked once?"

"You're such an asshole." Marcus sneered at his brother. "Who told you about that?"

Darius shrugged. "I know everything, little brother." Despite being born identical quadruplets, Darius never let his brothers forget he'd been born first.

"Not that again."

I didn't bother to hide my amusement. The familiar squabbling eased the tension. "If I didn't know you two were brothers, I'd think you were married."

"Ha, ha," Marcus muttered.

"But getting back to Alandra, I'm not sure how I feel about her." I thought about the mischievous beauty who'd enthralled Aerolus. "She's a creature of Shadow, and though she's done much for your brother, I still don't understand why she left her world in the first place."

Darius shrugged. "Didn't she say she didn't like her aunt messing with Tanselm?"

"Yes, but why?" That still bothered me. I knew I was missing something, but what? "She's an Aellei — a race known for their devious nature. I don't know if you noticed, but she's pure magic."

"Pure?" Marcus frowned. "I thought you said she was of Shadow?"

"She is. But Shadow isn't bad, and Light and Dark aren't necessarily the flip sides of good and evil. I'm beginning to wonder if being aligned with Shadow might not be necessary in some way." Though suspicious of her motives, I couldn't justify reproaching Alandra for saving my nephews. Just like I couldn't condemn all the Djinn since they'd apparently done much to help Cadmus.

To hear Aerolus and Tessa tell it, in the last battle with Sin Garu, Jonas Chase—a Djinn and Marcus' old boss—had saved Tessa, Marcus, and Cadmus and Aerolus as well. Which was to say nothing of what Ellie, Cadmus' coworker and secret Djinn, had supposedly already done to help him.

I needed more information on that, but of course, Cadmus was nowhere to be found.

"The Aellei differ from us," I said slowly, sounding it out. "We Light Bringers are people who wield magic, in tune with our land and the elements. But at our core, we are fae."

"And Alandra?" Darius prodded, standing with his arms crossed.

"She's not fae." I shot him a grim smile. "Oh, thousands of years ago her ancestors might have been, but in the interim, the Shadow dwellers, or Shadren, changed."

"I thought the Shadren and Aellei were two different races." Marcus looked puzzled.

"Actually, the Aellei are Shadren, but not all Shadren are Aellei," I explained. "The Aellei refuse to acknowledge closer ties to other Shadow denizens because of their curious penchant for being surrounded by beauty."

Marcus cringed. "Which most of the Shadren are not, beautiful that is. Especially that red gooey Nocumat."

Darius shook his head. "I can't believe I missed out on you all nearly being turned to red jelly by that thing."

"I don't like thinking about it."

I interrupted, not wanting to make Marcus more uncomfortable than he seemed. "I'm sure Alandra can explain it better. But now, what you need to know is that in the beginning, Tanselm was home to many of the Dark Lords, the Djinn, and the Shadren. When the Dark Tribes split, they grew apart in more than just distance. We noticed how different they'd all become, not only from each other, but from the Light Bringers as well.

"Alandra's roots may have started out fae, but over the years, her people became more and more fused with both the Light and the Dark, creating a new race of beings, a people of magic."

"I don't get it." Darius frowned. "Aerolus' affai isn't fae? She looked fae enough to me."

"Let me put it this way. I wield magic, as do your brothers. Each of you has touched a spell or two in your time, but the elemental magic you control is a part of you. In that sense, you're like Alandra. Being a Storm Lord is not just a calling but an existence apart from other Light Bringers.

"The Aellei, on the other hand, are magic. I call it forth in spells. She herself commands it as an extension of herself, like breathing."

"Interesting." Marcus sat up straighter. "Which leads me to something I've been thinking about for some time. The magic of our affai. Both Samantha and Tessa are powerful humans with an exceptional call to magic. Their essence calls to the elemental in Darius and myself. Even in Tanselm, our affai stand out more for their powerful energies than their foreign birth."

"This is so," Darius agreed. "Samantha's powers have grown significantly since arriving in Tanselm. Believe it or not, I've taught her a few useful spells. Just basic stuff we learned when young, but she casts them like a sorcerer."

"Spells?" I didn't like the sound of that, especially coming from Darius. Aerolus was the only one of the Royal Four with the capacity to wield mage energy properly.

Darius shrugged, appearing uncomfortable. "Uncle, if I could show you?" He tapped his temple.

I nodded and allowed him to share a brief mental projection.

"Ah, spells." Relieved, I smiled. "As in, a speedy way to dispense clothing, increased stamina for lovemaking, the ability to do what with wax, exactly?"

"You get the picture," Darius growled, his cheeks flushing. He glared at me and said to Marcus, "I don't know what the hell you're laughing about. Samantha talks to Tessa daily, so I know you've taught her the same things."

I raised a brow at the guilty look on Marcus' face.

"Now hold on," Marcus said. "Tessa's a siphon. I didn't teach her the spells."

"No, you used them around her enough that she eventually absorbed them from you," I said drily, secretly pleased they'd been sharing their magic. Boosting it with the love and affection they felt for their affai. Still, they deserved a little needling. "It's good to know the Storm Lords are making good use of their time preparing for the enemy."

Both brothers scowled, their energy in tune and growing as they turned their hostility from each other toward me.

Such growth, such power. And all on the heels of falling in love. I hoped Alandra wouldn't disappoint Aerolus. With her magic and love, I could only imagine the strength Aerolus might one day wield. And that edge might be the push the Royal Four needed to oust the Dark Lords from Tanselm once and for all.

"Relax, you two. Your affai do you credit. I'm pleased you both found exactly what you needed."

Marcus nodded. "Tessa is perfection. I couldn't agree more."

"Yeah, she's the only woman who can stand your attitude," Darius muttered and gave his brother a rude hand gesture he'd learned in this mundane plane.

"Back at you. It's no wonder a woman who looks like Samantha can be such a pain in the ass. You found someone just like you."

Darius brightened. "She is a hot handful."

Marcus rolled his eyes.

"So back to your original question, Uncle." Darius ignored his brother's muttering. "I like Alandra. I know what the Aellei are capable of. But in my opinion, a woman who risked her life to save Tanselm and my brother can't be too terrible. From the way she looked at Aerolus, I'd say she's got it bad." His red eyes glowed with approval.

"Much as it distresses me, I have to agree with the fire-breather." Marcus arched a thumb at Darius. "From what you've said, she saved my life and Tessa's. I have no doubt the Nocumat we encountered would have devoured me whole. And if she's been here for an entire year watching us, she could have done us harm, yet she didn't. I'm glad she's here, helping us. And to have captured Aerolus' heart, that is no mean feat."

"True enough. And yet," I paused, unable to put into words the feeling that wouldn't go away. When I'd attacked Alandra, I'd felt her vast magic, had sensed something familiar about it. The woman was of Shadow. This I knew. But why would an Aellei fight to save Tanselm?

Aelle, though beautiful, spacious, and full of interesting areas where Light met Darkness, couldn't compare to the majesty of Tanselm. Had I been in the queen's position, I might very well have schemed for our land.

Drawing from Tanselm would be like exchanging pale moonlight for burning sunlight. So why would Alandra willingly leave her world of beauty to come to Seattle — a mundane plane of existence filled with dreary days, which the Aellei would categorize as unsightly? And she'd also volunteered to babysit an enemy Light Bringer. One of the Royal Four, no less.

My instincts were never wrong. Almost never wrong, my conscience prodded as an image of Lexa intruded. Frowning the thought away, I focused on the here and now.

I weighed my words carefully. "Since your brother has never before failed us when we most needed him, we should support him by giving Alandra the same loyalty he gives her."

Marcus smiled. "Nicely said."

"Not bad for an old man," Darius chimed in, grinning when I narrowed my eyes.

Old man?

"I can't say I've ever met a sorcerer who's older," Cadmus added from the hallway, staring without surprise at his brothers.

I glared at him, simultaneously relieved and angry that the wayward Earth Lord had returned home. "Well, well. Leave the door open and see what comes wandering in."