Air {Elements of Power 3}

Chapter 30: Jasmine

"I..." Roxy started, but trailed off.

"Don't worry-even if you're planning to stick around, I'm not sure I will be." I leant back against the wardrobe door and gazed out of the window. "I could do with a change of scenery."

"Jasmine, I didn't mean to-"

"Don't worry about it." I shrugged my shoulders. "Speaking of a change of scenery, I'm planning to go over to my old house. You could come with me if you wanted? I probably have a spare coat over there that you can borrow." I was asking purely out of politeness; I really needed to get going and I didn't think for a second that Roxy would want to come with me.

"Sure, why not," she agreed to my surprise. I did my best to hide my shock and headed for the door.

"Follow me then."

We walked most of the way in silence. There wasn't a lot to talk about and the destruction around us brought on an eerie silence which neither of us seemed to feel should be broken.

When we reached the city centre I paused for a moment, in shock. Had it really only been a few months since we had welcomed Brae back from his first visit to the Brizan Realm? Hundreds of Arcans had gathered together in this very place, dancing, eating and celebrating. Everyone had been so carefree. Laughter and music had floated through the air.

But now, it was a demolition zone. At least three of the buildings lining the huge square had crumpled, spilling brick, glass and metal into the square. Flowers had turned to charcoal and ash in their beds. Lights had exploded in a shower of glass. The very floor we had danced the night away on had a huge chasm running through its centre, splitting the paved floor clean in two.

The worst part though, was the silence; the emptiness the centre now carried. Everyone travelled through this part of the city. Every minute of every day it was full of Arcans with places to go, people to see. Where were they now? Had they escaped to the mountains and smaller towns? Were they cowering in their homes, too afraid to come out? Or were they already dead, crushed beneath the debris I was looking at, or burned by a direct hit of fire, like Devon had been?

I felt the tears fall from my cheeks, down onto the blackened, charred, floor before I even realised I was crying. How had it come to this? How had we let it happen? We should have been out here, constantly, protecting all of them. Wasn't that what we were here for, why we had been given our powers: to protect. Looking round the centre now, it felt like we had failed. We had been too caught up in our own petty problems, our relationships, our heartaches, our own tragedies. We had lost sight of the bigger picture. Sat around in the conference room, we would talk about a personal battle with Cinaer, a need to hurt the Helian who had caused us such individual grief. But what about all the collateral damage? What about the innocent people who had died while Realm leaders fought for power and dominance over one another? Were we really all so selfish? Was this the only way?

Cin didn't care how many innocent Arcans died in his quest to destroy us. When we sat in the conference room we spoke of 'casualties', what did they matter in the greater scheme of our plans? At the end of the day, weren't they only numbers-statistics-to be recorded in a book for posterity to learn about? To be studied. Remembered. That was all their lives were worth. This was what they had been reduced to.

My concern for Caleb and Noni was overwhelming. I heard from them every day but, surveying the damage with my own eyes now, I realised how selfish I had been to let them stay out here while I remained in the better protected castle. I would make them move up at once, today, before it was too late. I would protect them, at least.

I couldn't bear to stand in the centre anymore, but I couldn't go straight home either. I led Roxy the long way round. There was one more place I needed to see. I needed it to still be standing; to survive.

I came to a halt in front of it, breathing heavily.

"Where are we?" Roxy asked. They were the first words either of us had spoken since leaving the castle. She had been content to let me survey the damage in silence back at the centre, but now she felt a need to speak. Perhaps she could sense that this site was important. Personal. It always came back to what mattered most to the individual.

"Messie's." My voice barely came out. "We used to come here all the time, to drink and chat. And now it's..."

Dust. That's what it was, although I couldn't bring myself to say it. Messie's had been obliterated. There was nothing left; not a single brick.

I turned away, unable to look any more.

I was surprised when I felt a hand on my shoulder. "It will be okay, Jazz," she said softly. "We will make him pay for what he's done, to both of us."

{Please vote/comment to let me know what you think. Chapter 31 coming next Friday.}