Water Girl

Part 5: HARD LESSONS

"Many of the Priests feel that way," Kymrik said. "It isn't just Soukat who thinks fire should rule."

"It is considered the strongest of the elements. You heard Priest Guranse at lecture this morning," Haetrhi said, crossing his arms as he slouched in his chair.

Niri could understand Haetrhi's annoyance. Priest Guranse had also said that air, Haetrhi's element, was the weakest. Water, Niri's element, was the second weakest. Supposedly. After seeing High Priestess' Lyannder's power, Niri doubted that.

Rahnef kept her gaze on the table while Bissyl pushed food around his plate. Both were fire children.

"Do you think one element is stronger than other's?" Niri asked Rahnef.

Rahnef glanced up through her long lashes. Slight red burnished her dark skin. With a sigh, she relaxed her straight back and leaned into her chair. "I don't know about that. But... the first time I saw Solaire, I thought the golden towers lit by the sun looked like flames."

"Fire rules the Temple," Bissyl agreed. "We are told that every day in our afternoon training. Most of the High Priests and Priestesses are Fire Elementals. Only two of the twelve are water, one air, and two earth."

All the students Niri had started her training with had progressed from Priestess Calysthia's brutal class to individual tutoring with a Priestess or Priest of their Element. Possibly including Soukat, who they hadn't seen in a week, not since he'd confessed to burning High Priestess Lyannder's favorite shrub.

Misma glanced at Niri. "Priest Bai never mentions strong or weak elements," she said. "He just teaches us how to control water."

"Probably the best use of your time," Theyoef teased, jostling Misma. The small group of friends giggled.

They split up after that, hurrying from the lunch hall to their afternoon classes. No longer taught by Calysthia, each looked forward now to learning to hone elemental control. Niri relished her time under Priest Bai's gaze as he patiently challenged Niri to push her abilities. Most evenings she felt exhausted, but happy. Water did not feel like an unimportant element to her at all.

As she ate dinner with her friends that night, the room fell silent as the door to the hall creaked open. Soukat limped across the floor, a smirk on his lips despite a fading bruise marring his cheek. All Niri could think was that if fire ruled the Temple of Solaire, it wasn't kind – not even to one of its own.

It took two days, but Rahnef managed to learn what had happened to Soukat.

"Not even his parents could save him. High Priestess Lyannder demanded Soukat be punished," she told them.

Soukat's parents were both powerful Elementals. His mother was a High Priestess of Fire and his father too wielded great authority, though he was not on the High Council. He was an Earth Elemental and kept the records for Solaire. And it was said he obeyed everything his wife asked.

"I'm surprised," Pasir said quietly. "They must know that Soukat doesn't have the ability to create a spark. From High Priestess Lyannder's expression when Soukat confessed, even she knows he has little power."

"With Soukat's confession and High Priest Nezerreth having seen a child running, what choice would they have had?" Theyoef asked. "He wanted to be punished."

"No, he wanted everyone to know he had the power to do it," Kymrik said with distaste.

"What if he did?" Niri asked. "He can hold a spark... sometimes. If he prepared the shrub by pouring something highly flammable over it?"

Rahnef sighed. "That is disturbing... but possible. Maybe he hoped to light it and then save it?"

"And panicked so he couldn't find the power to put out the fire," Bissyl added.