All her life, Rai had never truly been herself. As a babe, she took the place of Andrea Llewellyn, swapped out in the cradle. As a teenager, she had been Rai Corentin, the last storm faerie.
But now, with electricity and Starlight coursing through her veins, Rai knew who she was.
She was the storm. Howling and writhing. Tearing and striking. Destructive and deadly.
Somewhere in the far distance, Rai heard faint shouts of desperation.
"Rai! Control yourself!" Lucan. She knew that was him, because it was an order, spoken in his stern, demanding voice. "Can you restrain her magic?"
"I don't know!" That was Ileana.
Rai felt something trying to tie her down, trying to squeeze her magic into a tight box. She felt Ileana's magic trying its hardest to keep her storm contained, her wind pushing back against every burst of power Rai exuded.
It made her angry. They were trying to stop her. They were trying to keep her down to earth. Rai didn't want to be on earth. She wanted to be a storm.
"I can't!" Ileana cried. "She's lost herself!"
Then Rai heard Lucan's desperate voice, pained and regretful. "I'm sorry, Rai."
It was cold.
So, socold.