The Last Descendant: The Air Runes

Chapter 2: A Transfer of Power

As the afternoon progressed, the villagers began to populate the square, bringing picnic blankets to sit on. By the time that Cail, Laney and Kadir arrived, the entire square was filled with anxious Elonians. As was tradition, Cail was wearing a purple robe with a white undershirt and had yellow tassels hanging over his neck down to his belly. Laney and Kadir were both wearing the most elegant outfits that they could conjure, neither of them were very fashionable to begin with.

Seeing the large crowd made Cail even more nervous than he already was. As every waning moment passed, the crowds murmurs became louder and louder. At one point, Cail could even distinctly listen to conversations.

Cail paid no more attention to the audience once his father walked onto the stage. Cecil was wearing a robe that matched Cail's, but was cerulean instead of purple. As he walked by, Cecil winked to his son with a smile on his face. Now, Cail sat on one end and his father was on the other, with Laney and Kadir sitting in between. They all sat there silently until a group of trumpeters, just to the right of the stage, started playing a sonorous melody, signaling the begin of the ceremony. Midway into their song, an elderly man, wearing a black robe, walked out onto the stage and stood at the podium, waiting for the trumpets to quiet. Once they had, the man placed a small stack of papers, containing his opening speech, onto the podium and began to read:

"Once in a generation we gather here. Although it would appear that the Tidal Change represents a time of change for us, it also represents a time of continuity. The Ozean family has protected the citizens of Elona for millenia, and they will continue to do so as we welcome young Cailean in as our new leader.

"But before we do, I believe that a brief history lesson is in order. Over three millennia ago, Elona was one of many islands within a community, a nation of islands known as Kordon. At that time, there were hundreds of islands, all connected by giant bridges, allowing us to traverse over the clouds. None of the islands had any lords or leaders, we only answered to the gods. For centuries, all of the Kordonians lived in peaceful anarchy. That is, until the rise of Kalil.

"Kalil was a simple farmer on an island called Irda, located on the far edge of Kordon, a great distance away from Elona. One day, Kalil decided to go hiking into the nearby mountain range, not expecting to change the destiny of Kordon forever.

"Whilst in the mountains he discovered a hidden cave, a cave concealed by the gods from the beginning of time. In the cave Kalil found a dark and powerful magic, magic that was intended to remain hidden from the Kordonians. This magic allowed Kalil to control and manipulate the world around him. He controlled light, water, the wind and was even able to ignite flames. Kalil veiled his newly discovered powers, only using them to produce more and more crops. This allowed him to generate a large fortune, and also generate a substantial amount of unwanted attention. In time, the Irdites discovered the secret to his success and he was greatly resented.

"By this point, Kalil had mastered his magical powers and decided to use them to harm others and assert himself as their tyrant. Island by island, he started to seize control of Kordon and forced those he conquered to bow to his will. Eventually, he ruled over every island, except for one, the island of Elona. Word of the extensive tyranny had reached Elona and an Elonian named Jyro Ozean decided to burn all the bridges, isolating his island from the rest of Kordon.

"With no possible way to traverse the rift between Kordon and Elona, Kalil was left to reign in cruelty and terror over all of Kordon, and Elona thrived in their isolation. The gods saw all of the evil of Kordon and decided to cast the entire nation into an abyss. How the gods did this or where exactly they sent the Kordonians, is a myth. As for Elona, the gods saw Jyro's courage and selflessness that he displayed to protect his people. Therefore Jyro was crowned as the first Lord of Elona because of his compassion.

"As you might have guessed from Jyro's last name, he is Cailean's ancestor and the responsibility of Lordship has been passed down from generation to generation. The citizens of Elona agreed that leadership should not drift away from the noble Ozean family and that when the youngest Ozean turns seventeen, he will be granted with the right to rule over the island of Elona.

"So, without further introduction, Cailean Ozean, would you please stand beside me at the podium?" The speaker asked, turning towards Cail. With all eyes watching him, Cail stood up, feeling the weight of a house on his shoulders, and began to walk towards the front of stage, which felt like walking through water. Cail didn't lock eyes with anyone in the audience, but he could feel their gaze piercing through him like needles.

At long last, Cail arrived to the side of the podium and turned towards the speaker who then said, "Cailean Ozean, we will now swear you into Lordship. Are you ready?" Although his neck was an iron rod, Cail managed to motion a quick nod. The speaker continued, "Very well. Cailean Ozean, do you swear to protect all of Elona, casting yourself aside for your people. If so, answer 'I do.'" Cail responded accordingly. "And do you swear to uphold the morals and teachings of the gods, as your ancestors have?" Once again, Cail agreed to the terms. The speaker then turned towards Cail's father. "Cecil, would you join us for the transfer of the ring?" Cecil walked up to the stage and took his ring off of his index finger. It was a silver ring, gleaming in the sunlight, that bore the family crest, a circle of emeralds bordering a spiral of diamonds.

Cecil handed the ring to the speaker, who then turned to Cail, and placed the ring on his finger. The ring bore a new weight on his hand, as if a little child were tugging on his finger. After a brief pause, the speaker then turned to the audience and said, "It is now my privilege to present to you all, Cailean Ozean, the new Lord of Elona!" The entire village then rose to their feet, in thunderous applause.

For first time, he could feel everyone lifting him up. Throughout his entire life, he had lived in his father's shadow, the son of the Lord of Elona. Cail could feel the independence of starting something new and creating something that was his own. On that day, Cail became his own man, fulfilling his own destiny.