The Elements-Prologue

Prologue

 

“Be careful with that, foolish child!”

Cato winced and then glanced momentarily at his father before he continued. “The stone appears to be encoded…if I could just…” he twisted the top, but a little too quickly. The intricate engravings that snaked around and up the stoned container began to glow a brilliant blue and Cato’s father knew exactly what that meant. Cato also knew…it meant he had failed. He could feel his father’s rage seeping through the air, coating him and his siblings around him with a blanket of fury.

The blue mist seemed to whip and curl out of the celestial stone that was once its home. He tried to grab at it, but knew there was no use. If the element was extracted incorrectly, it would escape and be given a new and unknown structure to inhabit. That structure was always extremely difficult to locate. In fact, it had taken over one hundred years to find the one he just screwed up.

“Cato, just go!” his brother called to him. “Begin your search again and do not return until you have possession of the element.”

Cato hated that his father favored his oldest brother over him. It was as if he couldn’t do anything right. He gave a quick bow of his head and took off, trying to get away from his father as quickly as possible. “I will not fail you father.” It was the last thing he said before disappearing into the darkness.

“You just did,” his father growled in anger as he began to pace, fuming more and more with each step he took. After coming to an abrupt halt with his wife at his side, he turned to his remaining six children. Sage began to sit at her throne, gathering her burgundy gown and sweeping it to the side with all the grace of a queen, before settling in the onyx chair. She was, hands down, the only thing that could calm the king in any way. Their father acknowledged her with a glance and then turned his attention back to his children. “Your brother has failed me,” he began, his tone harsh and unforgiving.

“This is a very delicate and tedious process my love,” their mother interjected. She never stopped giving her opinion, no matter how intimidating their father was, he didn’t seem to faze her the same way he did everyone else. “Cato is a good son, he does what you ask of him and I will not have your unrealistic expectations be a reason for severe punishment.” By severe punishment, she meant the whip of fire. It was just what the name implied.   

“Woman!” He turned to her slowly and their eyes met. She held his stare and did not relent in her gaze. She was the only one that could do that as well. His returning glare was always menacing and cold. It would make anyone else want to hide inside themselves and disappear. “These children of ours need to understand all that I-”

“Hush now!” She stood to her feet and their father’s lips pressed into a thin line as he glared at his wife. “This is ridiculous. The longer you keep them here, the longer it will take them to find the rest of the elements again. If the pretty little containers are not here, how can you destroy them, hmm?”

“You speak too boldly.” He barked.

“Too boldly? Ha!” The Queen waved her hand in the air as if she were shooing a fly away. She made her way back to her husband’s side to address their children together. Her raven black hair looked like blackened flames surrounding her delicate looking face. She walked with such grace it was as if she were floating, her gown rippling like liquid against the stone floor beneath her.

The remaining six children took a knee in the presence of their mother and father standing together before them. Their mother had full lips, the color of a deep red rose and her cat-like eyes had a smoldering black look to them that intimidated the strongest of men. She looked at her husband fiercely and everyone knew she would have the final say today. “I say what I want, when I want my love.” She spoke calmly and tilted her head to the side watching her husband struggle to harness his tongue. “I will not be controlled by you or any other…it is why I am your queen, is it not?” She lifted her chin and waited for a response.

“But we are stuck here…bound to this land until they,” he thrust his hand out gesturing towards their children, “decide to do what is asked of them.” They could all hear his struggle in maintaining control of himself.

“And they will.”

Their father rolled his eyes, an inherent trait. “How many opportunities do they need to fail me? I tell them, find the element, bring me the element and I will destroy it.” His voice began to gradually elevate. “I am thorough when I explain the process and they all know that if the celestial containers which preserve the elements are not…opened correctly, the element itself escapes to some other place and I must begin at square one again! I should have done it myself. I told you, let me do it and you insisted they learn something by doing it themselves, well look where that has gotten us!”

“Not so they would learn. You know that they must be the ones to destroy the element they find my love. You cannot do it for any of them, no matter how much you may want to.”

“But I will succeed!”

“Impossible!” Both of their onyx colored eyes flashed with flames of anger.

“Their lack of completion is unacceptable; maybe they need a better reason to renew their determination to complete their task at hand!”

Their mother didn’t even flinch, but she turned her attention to them and again spoke calmly. “Did you hear that my children?” They each began to nod slowly. “Your father and I are very disappointed. You have all been searching for a very long time and what do we have to show for it my loves? All of the elements, yet again, out there waiting to be destroyed during the Annular eclipse…now I understand when you are here, you are not there,” she pointed towards outside. “I also know if you are not out there, you are not able to search, the way we so desperately need you to…do you understand?”

“Yes mother,” they called out in unison.

“Now then, it has taken a very long time for this entire search-and-destroy mission and I am growing tired of your father not having what he wants. I can only protect you from his wrath for so long…not only is this powerful being your father, but he is also king, you all have a duty to please both.”

They each began to rise slowly to their feet in anticipation of the lecture coming to a close. “Go now my children-locate the elements so that we may destroy them and expand our kingdom to its rightful size…bigger, than anyone else’s. Do not disappoint me.” A wicked grin curled their mother’s lips upward and they bowed obediently to her before leaving to search their territories tirelessly until they could bring her what she wanted.

“It will be done,” they heard her saying to their father in the distance. The oldest glanced back at them over his shoulder, in time to see his father reward her with a lustful kiss. He averted his eyes forward and ran with the others until they were out of sight.