Once Forgotten 1.92

They stopped at the borders of the two kingdoms, resting there for the night. Rya sat at the fire, staring at the small stone in her hand. She frowned as she turned it over, inspecting every angle of it. She sighed at her master's lack of details. He had simply told her to "move" it. Most would have thought he meant that she had to move it with her mind, but that usually involves "lifting". And he had not told her to "lift" the stone, but to move it. She let out a small, "Humph!" and laid it down on the ground. "'Move the stone' he says! Don't use any of those so-called 'spells' he says! I wish he would just be direct for once!" She stared at the stone for several more minutes. "Ugh!!"

She stood and paced furiously around the fire. Out of pure frustration, she threw out her hand. She was nearly blown away as a powerful gust of wind roared past her, leaving her hair askew and her jaw dropped. She stared about wildly before raising her hand to look at it. Puzzlement and wonder crossed her face. It had always been fire that she used whenever she was angry, but that had been wind. A smile came to her lips. She sat before the stone and held out her hand, palm outward. She closed her eyes and thought only of her task. Thoughts of the sylphs, wild and untamed, flashed across her mind. A wild energy filled her, making her feel as though she were no longer bound by anything. So much more power than she needed surged through her, but she kept it at bay. Imagining a small whirlwind beneath the stone, she released only the amount of power she required. A small breeze batted her face, and her eyes opened while she retained her focus. The stone hovered a few inches off the ground, a small whirlwind beneath it. She laughed and tried moving the whirlwind, but it dissipated and the stone fell back to the earth with a loud CLAK. She sighed and went through the process again, keeping her eyes open this time. It didn't take nearly as long as the previous time, and she was so surprised by that that her stone went hurtling through the air. With all her focus, she reached with the wind and caught it, bringing it back to her. In a minute, the stone was once again hovering. This time, she pictured the whirlwind moving in her mind before willing it to do so. She pictured it moving three inches to the left and willed it to do so. In a blink of her eyes, it was there, a fine line in the dirt where it had moved. Within moments, she had it going all about the fire. She laughed as the whirlwind tossed the stone into the air, and she reached out and caught it in her hand. She had expected herself to be drained, and she realized that she was. A yawn escaped her, and she nibbled on a piece of bread she had in her back.

Her master chuckled as he stepped back into the firelight. "I go off for just a little while, and I return to see you playing about with the wind."

Rya blushed and tucked the stone into her pack. "I only did what you told me, Master. You said to move the stone, so I moved the stone."

"And how easy was it?" Kadrin asked, poking the fire and adding another log.

Rya thought a moment. "It was really easy, once I figure it out. Much easier than any of the other elements. I tried to use them earlier, but they were so much more distant."

Kadrin nodded. "Yes, I suppose they would be. It takes someone tremendously gifted to have easy control of all four. Remember, from the basic four comes all the others. Although, earth comes naturally to most humans. For there is a legend that says that man was created from dust."

Rya frowned. "You talk as though you were never human...what race were you?"

"Ah, now that's a question. You aren't quite ready for a true answer, and I won't even bother to apologize. However, I will say this. You are correct in saying that I was never human. I did grow up in Salcar, or at least, the land that would become it."

"Has it changed much since you grew up here?" She asked, curious about the past.

"It's barely changed at all. Humans were always the dominant race in this land. We came after." Kadrin said. He fell silent, signaling the end of that discussion. Rya pulled out her blanket and settled on her mat. In moments, her breathing slowed into the steady rhythm that came with sleep. Kadrin looked up into the night sky. "Yes, we always came after. Someone had to watch over your race, your nations. We did our best to keep you safe. And that perhaps was dangerous, for you taught us much as well. You taught us what it was like to be obsessed with glittering rocks and metals. You taught us to hate and take advantage of others. You taught us to lie and steal. You taught us what it was like to kill. And yet...you taught us to love. You taught us what it was like to experience the joys and sorrows of caring and being cared for. You taught us compassion and devotion." He fell back into silence and simply watched the sky.