The Elementals: Return Of Creation

Chapter 1: Familiar Shackles

 "In time, you will," said Trode. "You'll grow to be as strong as I am. You'll go from one place to another in an instant,"

  Jack gave a curious stare, silently begging Trode to tell him more. His glittering eyes sparked a warm feeling in Trode. "I can run that fast?"

 Trode smiled. “Only if you put effort to make it so,”

 They strolled down stairs, Trode listened to Jack chattered about his day and enjoy the serenity of the very living mountain atmosphere. They weren’t too far up, but the robust bushes and wide range of trees did help provide the serene mood.

 Nearly an hour came around when they finally reached the foot of the mountain, replacing the tamer environment with miles and miles of dense pine forest. Darkness reached through every corner of the land, marking the end of the day. Trode had no issue with the lack of light. His eyes easily adjusted to the change, much better than any human could, yet not as well as a nocturnal creature. Still, it granted him enough to walk through the thick forest without problem if he so wanted to. But Jack had yet to develop such eyesight.

"Night has fallen," he muttered, indicating the boy to stop just as they reached the woodland edge. "It would be unwise to let you walk through that forest in the dark,"

"But Master!" protested Jack, wiping his face onto his ragged tunic. "I ran all the way through there from home. I can help us get back,"

"I'm afraid you can't, Jack," said Trode. His eyes gazed ahead of the path they followed, into the dense forest. "It is difficult to explain. But simply, there are bad people who come out in the night,"

"I can fight," he pouted. He proceeded to show Trode a few sloppy punches and kicks. It almost sent him chuckling.

"These people, are really bad. They had a lot of more time to practice their punching, they will see you coming, no matter how fast you are now,"

 "But," said Jack. "Can't you bzzz from your hands?"

 "I may be able to defend us from harm," said Trode as he turned to the boy. "But there is a much quicker way to get back,"

 A very large grin sprouted from the boy's face. "Are we gonna fly?"

 "No Jack, we are going to go really fast,"

 Jack squeezed Trode's hand tightly, yet Trode didn't flinch. He smiled wider, exposing his new grown denticles.

 Trode closed his eyes and expanded his mind. Though still much more limited than it was before; his senses had a stronger grasp on all the energy of the world, as though all he was watching over at the back of his mind were shown right to him. He focused his mind on himself and Jack; on every cell and particle that built their bodies.

 He then begun working on the most dangerous part: transforming both of their physicals forms. Of course, having done it countless times, he felt no worries concerning himself. It was The Boy he was cautious about. This was about to be the first time Jack ever went through such an event, and with his new grown abilities, it might not be as simple as it should be. Once there were no longer any vessels to latch onto, their minds would only exist in a different plane of reality, unable to be processed by any natural senses.

 In less than half a fraction of a second, Trode had succeeded. The boy's mind was now an imperfect bright orb of sky-like light, floating just where his head would be, and surrounded by thin mist reflecting a tinge of its color.

 Jack's mind had no time to react to such a sudden change. As far as The Boy could notice, he was still clutching Trode's hand tightly, preparing for what was to come. Meanwhile, Trode's own mind was very much aware of the current state they were in. He could see it all, much like how he saw the world in his celestial form, however at a much smaller scale. He was relieved  His mind moved as if it were swimming through calm water, floating wherever and however fast he desired.

 Trode flew up and glided through the clouds above the forest in a hurry. Jack may have been mortal, however there was a chance that his own potential would allow him to gain consciousness in that state if they stayed for too long. Now he seemed fine, but Trode had no intentions of chasing the boy's mind if it panicked away.

 Not long passed when he saw that the trees below had changed, seemingly all containing nearly as much energy as  a bolt of lightning. It was a sign they were nearing Jack’s home.

 Sure enough, he soon saw six bright orbs of light, each brilliantly varying in shades of green, scattered around walls built in a wide open field amongst the new trees. The mist surrounding the orbs seemed denser and almost luminescent, and they were incased in glowing silhouettes of humanoid bodies. It was no surprise, as Trode recognized that every one of those minds were elven.

 He quickly lowered to the ground and hovered behind a  circle of trees seperating the forest and the wide grass field surrounding the building. These particular trees were different from the rest of the woods, containing much less energy in the rest of their parts but faintly more in the orbs around the top. While he rarely visited, he recognized them as the apple trees Jack was so proud to care for and harvest.

 The elves running around the building radiated a sense of distress- even reaching into fear. Pity grabbed a hold of him for a moment, he decided that perhaps it was time his visits became frequent as to help Jack better understand his abilities. He begun reversing their transformation and rematerialized their bodies. This time he made sure that the light shinning as they did was dim as can be, trying not to alert the elves. Just as their bodies were about to take form. He quickly summoned a small amount of his power and temporarily turned himself and The Boy transparent. He wanted to hide them from the elves long enough  to exchange farewells and for him to return to his celestial form unnoticed. He wasn't too keen on the usual attention smothering the elves did whenever they saw him. While it was understandable why they insisted on behaving so, it was never ideal for him, and he hoped Jack would grow to realize that as well. 

 Once again, his mental senses shrunk while his physical senses grew, feeling the slightly warmer atmosphere and the robes resting on his skin. He opened his eyes, seeing two of the four elves running in the field in front of them, carrying oil lamps that bounced along as they checked between the trees, awaiting The Boy’s return.

 Jack still had his eyes shut and his hand griped tight, shivering for a second.

 Trode was mixed. The Boy clearly felt their journey but didn’t seem too aware of it, meaning there was a chance he might use his abilities without knowing. It firmed his decision to stop by more often.

 But those thoughts drowned in warmer feelings when Jack opened his eyes, beaming bright while jumping in place and said, “Wow! How’d you do that?”