Order of the Alpha #2

35

I straitened, "Well, try it on. The suit is made to fit every condition and work together with your fire abilities. These games, I feel they have changed. There are whispers amongst the people of the high court. Each year provides harsher tournaments and a greater number of deaths. I know you'll find what you've been searching for, but remember to only reveal yourself at the precise moment." I heard her words over and over again when I changed out of my normal clothes into the suit that could read my vitals.

I turned around to see her eyes on the view outside. I'd probably been in this room for at least half an hour, talking to her about the High court and its people. Along with its King. An elemental born with the element of fire, before mastering all elements, including spirit. The fifth element, the element no other has touched in several thousands of years. To speak with ghosts and ask for favours, it made me more intrigued than freaked out.

I opened the door after some time and faces turned slowly to me. Genevieve's eyes bug out of their sockets, I moved with precision down the middle. Credence raises an eyebrow at me, "It took an hour to get that on? Creed helped her with the design, you know." He decided to mention. I face the man, his ember eyes engulfed me. Not missing one dip or crevice. He gestured to Hayden then, who sighs next to him, gets up and moves to sit beside Genevieve, to drop a pair of folders on the table. I drop in the seat next to Creed.

He makes a turn gesture with his index finger, so I turn my back to him and he begins cleaning up my hair, plaiting it down my back for me. When he was finished, I rotated around, "Thanks," I mumbled under my breath. His massive arm brushed my shoulder, "You're tense. Three guesses as to why." I muttered, knowing he had been distant since the very night he told me I might have second thoughts about the connection I had with him.

He moved his hand to my thigh and rested it there like he owned it, he did own me in a way, because for the first time, I was falling in love. It sounds cliché and I'm only waiting for that bomb to drop. you're waiting for him to jump out with jazz hands and laugh in my face, fooled a fourth time.

I looked into his memories, no other man has let me do that, and his memories were agonizing at times. The academy isn't coloured in heavenly golden silk with white pillars and a never-ending walk into a new world with no war and no pain. It's a death sentence in the form of an enrolment and an acceptance. The second those doors close, you realise that it was hell disguised as heaven. It wasn't eternal flames, but eternal misery and its a reason as to why he left.

"I can't watch you enter these games," He whispered.

I blinked in pause, "Creed, you achieved..." I trailed off when he turned to face me and cupped my cheek in his large, heated hand. Callous strokes of his survival on the skin's surface and his indecipherable look floored me.

"It doesn't matter if I fucking passed it or not, I would have to stand there and watch whatever happens to you and let it happen. Doing that, I might as well be another fucking screwed up mate you got when fate glitched and screwed you over when you should have only ever been mine. I don't like this, in fact, I fucking hate this and the moment we get there, the moment you see and make up your mind about me, I don't care what happens, but you're not entering those games. Everyone here, but you knows that. They will do everything in their power to stop that because if there is one thing guaranteed here, its that you have people who have your back. That is who we are, that is the elemental vow in ancient times and now." His speech crawled down deep into my heart. I slowly traipsed my eyes to the seniors opposite us, to the rest of Legion, to my friend...

Genevieve gives me a soft smile and nods as she stood up to look at me. So, the armour and the gear was to show strength, to do what I needed to do.

But I knew fate and destiny played the worst of tricks on me.

I returned my gaze back to Creed, he pursed his lips, "I dare you to tell me I'm wrong."

"I'm telling you that I won't have a choice if the High King or Pearl, or anyone else who has met me decided a challenge was set just by hearing my first word or seeing the first action I took. That if it doesn't work out as planned, then your help will be the next best thing to your protectiveness of me. But don't mistake me for not loving that protectiveness." I whispered that last part, my eyes burning into his.

He stares me dead in the eyes.

"We're here." Hale says slowly behind us, and Creed stands like a titan rising out of the sea, like a creature the gods couldn't even replicate. I moved out before the golden city of the High Kingdom stunned every student to silent stones. They stepped off their buses, but instead of sizing up the rest of us, it was the sky high pillars made of rings of the elemental gems and stones. I'd seen pictures in school textbooks, but nothing like this.

Creed led us forward, but he was so far ahead of me, we had to maintain ranking position. juniors at the back, but Melian was behind me. Drums banged and ricocheted boisterously against the white and beige brick walls filled with elemental creatures. Waterfalls fell down charcoal rocks with citizens of the kingdom flying over stone railing and brick alleys that had no dark corners. It was like walking straight into paradise with meadows and the sun beaming a thousand rays of golden symphony on top of us all. Children threw flowers at our feet with smiles so wide, not a single thing to shut out how happy they were.

The king wasn't in sight, but each student from each elemental academy was given their own set of rooms. We were instructed to wait there until the proper announcement and court gathering was to be named. I kept on my black attire, sharing a room with Genevieve and Serenity, we waited with our bags unpacked and our belongings in decorative hangers.

Cheers and screams of excitement echoed outside, Genevieve gripped my hand. The seniors led us outside onto the large, wide stone path to a building structure in plant life, in flames, in icicles dripping across the castle before us...I stilled like an ashen statue.

Standing on a podium was a man I never thought I would see.

The High King sat down, but this man stood.

My world plummeted.

Emberflame.