Lucas (Book Two of The Guardians series)

Elves of Wood, Storm, and Plain

The huge building was silent when Lucas stepped through the front doors. He looked around warily searching for some group of guardians waiting to capture him, but no one was in sight. Lucas slipped through the dark halls heading for his room, now that he had entered the second stage of his training he no longer had to share his living space with several recruits.

Lucas jogged up several sets of stairs, feet lifting high at each step. Though not the most efficient way to ascend the wooden steps Lucas took every opportunity he could do build up just a little more muscle. His door, at the end of a long hall, was silent when he pushed it open. No one waited for him inside either, not Trisha, not any guardian. So Lucas undressed, removing the garments that signified he was training to be a guardian and instead donned the cotton clothes he slept in.

His bed was softer than the one he slept in as a new recruit, but it was still relatively solid. Though he had heard others complain about it Lucas enjoyed the hard wood beneath the thin straw pad. As he lay on the small bed Lucas thought about that day, and wondered how it would affect his future. Slowly his eyes fluttered and Lucas began to drift off to sleep, dreaming about the relationship he had kept secret for years, and the secret he had kept for years that made its way to the surface.
*~*~*~*
He wasn't sent for in the morning. No one came to summon him to training or to arrest him, which he supposed was a good sign. But Trisha's failure to continue his training was worrying, Lucas paced the small confines of his room for several hours until he could not stand the suspense any longer. In full gear he headed out into the hallway, glancing around for some waiting elf. Again there was no one, so he walked down the hall heading for the library.

As his favorite room in the Academy he was sure Trisha would know where he went if she ever did come looking for him, but he was beginning to suspect that she wouldn't. So he walked through the building, the silent passages growing ever louder as he neared the main sections. Guardians and recruits swarmed the hallways performing one task after another, none seemed to notice him passing through their midst giving Lucas hope that Trisha had not revealed his confession, yet.

The library was as silent as always, though it held more elves than normal. Lucas retreated to the back of the huge chamber, selecting a large anthropological book he settled in a comfortable chair and flipped it open to a random page. A quick glance revealed that it spoke of the different origins of elves. Interest peaked Lucas settled in to read the text in more detail.

Before the conglomeration of the elven nations there were many groups. Some wandered across the land, others lived peacefully in a single territory. Every group had physical differences, some tall, some short. Some dark, some pale. Many other characteristics differed as well, but the one that truly divided the groups was the ability to access magic. Traditionally those who wandered had greater control over the other-worldly force, though it was not uncommon for the sedentary tribes to have a magic user in their midst. The magic was used for good, a binding force among all the different fair-folk in the land.

However after millennium of living this way there was a single tribe of elves who wished for more. The Storm Elves wandered all across the land, their link to magic was the strongest. And many argue that it was this link to power that corrupted them. As they journeyed through the lands of peaceful elves, such as The Woods, and The Ocean-Faring, they demanded boons. And when these demands were not met the Storm Elves would summon their name sake, wild and powerful winds and rains pummeled the tribes destroying supplies and buildings. Then, seemingly remorseless, the Storm Elves moved on.

It was those who lived on the plains that finally challenged them. Tall, lanky, and often blond the Plain elves stood face to face with the Storm Elves. Thought to be closely related as only hair and eye color differed between the two groups the Plain Elves hoped those of the Storm would back down. But no such luck. With eyes the color of thunder clouds and hair as dark as night the Storm elves combined their might and summed a terrible storm, greater than had ever been seen.

But it was not a singular event, often the storm would return making the plains a difficult place to live as it had once been known for its mild weather and plentiful food. With the onset of the storm fields of food were destroyed, shelters were torn apart in wailing cyclones of wind. Very few Plain Elves survived, their destruction is still one of the greatest tragedies in the history of this elven land.

Nearly all the Storm elves escaped into the woods, lending fear to all who lived their. But only one was ever seen again, the rest of the nation simply disappeared.

The single Storm Elf was captured by a patrol of elves composed of nearly all the different nations, these elves would go on to form the Guardians, and was taken back to their camp. When questioned the elf revealed that his tribe could not help themselves, they were influenced by some beast created from magic. The Storm Elf refused to say anything further, closing his ears to all questions and his lips to all answers. But the idea of a magical beast leading elves to destroy, and magic doing the destruction. It pulled the elves together, all the nations united against those of the Storm and founded The Academy.

In the beginning they attempted to teach elves to control the magic, and in the beginning it worked. Centuries passed and there was no incidents with magic, then one day there was an attack off a cliff near the ocean. Killing many of those who lived there, a week later a second attack this one killing ice dwellers. The inhabitants of the unified elven nation begged The Academy to do something about the violent magic, and with much difficulty they decided to ban its use.

From that day any who engage in the use of magic was prosecuted.

Though those behind the attacks were never caught it is widely accepted that it was Storm Elves, acting on the inner desire to kill implanted by the beast they had created so many generations ago.

Lucas stopped reading and stared at the last sentance. Storm Elves with a desire to kill, a magical beast they created. Though the labels had not been applied to any elf in centuries Lucas labeled himself, he was a Storm Elf. The tribe must still live in the forest, that was how the village found him. And being a Storm Elf would explain his killing spree, and his magic. He looked up and was stunned to see Trisha watching him, hip braced against a shelf.

"Lucas of the Northern Storms. Murderer, magic-user, deserver of death." Her voice was cold, hard, and as sharp as a freshly honed blade. Lucas set his book aside, standing slowly. "Yes Trisha, yet you haven't killed me yet. Why?" She looked at him coldly, "Tell me Lucas, are you capable of emotion? How many have you killed? How long have you born that mark on your chest? Do you still feel?" Lucas looked away considering how he should respond, "No, I didn't feel. Not at first, then I met you. You Trisha brought my empathy to the surface. You Trish, you saved my soul."

His sincere tone faded to silence as she digested his comments, measuring him, trying to decide if he was being truthful. Lucas could see her internal conflict, she had always know when he was being honest in the past but she had never seen the murder inside. Now she no longer knew if she understood him, how he reacted, how he looked when telling truth and when practicing deceit.

Finally she decided to trust her instincts, "Lucas, I will not report you. But I must ask, your choice of study shunned all weapons. Why?" Lucas sighed, "When I take a blade my mind slows and it is . . . difficult . . . to control myself." She nodded in understanding, "Then if I have saved your soul, perhaps I can aid you with the blade as well." Lucas looked back at her surprised, "With the blade? But . . ." She interrupted him, "I know Lucas, but the Academy, the Guardians, could use you. There is a war brewing."

Lucas attempted to question her about the coming conflict but she refused to say anything more, saying she should not have said as much as she did. Instead she beckoned him and headed down to the training fields to begin the new phase in Lucas's training.