kippurbird | Call of the Champion

Title: Call of the Champion
Type: Original Fiction
Rating: general
Summary: Sela takes Alec to get tested to see which element he is able to use.

Sela watched as her youngest played with the blocks in the testing room. At five years old, Alexander –or Alec- as he was called by his siblings him, was almost normal looking. He was a bit thinner than a normal five-year-old would be, and his ears were pointed and then there was his hair. It used to be blond, and parts of it still were, but parts of it were brown and the roots were dark and black. His eyes were no longer gray, but hazel as well. No one could figure out the reason for the change, it just was. But he was perfectly healthy in every other sense, so Sela didn’t worry about it.

A tester came in carrying a wooden box about the length of her arm. She smiled at Sela as she put the box down on the floor near where Alec played. Alec looked up at her curiously as she did so. From the box, four large crystals, about the size of a loaf of bread, were removed and placed in front of the tower of blocks that Alec had built.

“Hello Alexander, I’m Cylina.”

He stared at her, one block in his hand. ”’lo…” he said finally, after glancing at his mother for reassurance.

“Do you see these crystals?”

Alec nodded.

“They’re going to tell me what element you’re good with.”

Another nod.

She smiled at him encouragingly. “So, if you would, please touch each of the crystals for me?”

He looked over at his mother again. She smiled and gestured for him to do as Cylina asked. Hesitantly Alec reached out and touched the first crystal; it had swirls of brown in it. Nothing happened for a second and then it pulsed brightly.

“Good, good. Well, for record’s sake, I need for you to try the other three, alright?”

“Alright.” He reached out for the second crystal, white and gray. This too responded to his touch. The third and fourth crystals; blue and orange swirls respectively, also responded to him.

Cylina frowned. “I need… I’ll be right back.” She stood up hastily, “Please wait here.”

Sela watched her go, a frown on her face. Alec went back to playing with the blocks. He managed to get the tower quite high before he knocked it down and started to rebuild it again. He did this twice before Cylina came back. She had another woman with her. Sela stood up as she saw the new woman.

“Zaladine,” Sela said.

The woman smiled at her. “Sela, it’s good to see you again.”

“What brings the leader of the council down to the testing of a child?” Sela asked.

“Cylina, you may go, I can take it from here.”

The tester looked confused, but left. Zaladine walked over to where Alec still played, unconcerned. She sat down in front of him and picked up the brown crystal. “Did you know that one in every ten has an affinity for a second element?”

“I heard that once, before, yes,” Sela said. She sat down next to Alec and pulled him into her lap. He gave a small squeak of surprise but as she was sitting near the blocks he settled and went back to playing with them.

“The second element always atrophies and never comes near any sort of power that a person can use,” Zaladine said. “But four elements…” And she looked at Sela significantly. “That hasn’t been seen in a thousand years, since Pentarch was destroyed.”

“And we all know how that happened,” she stroked Alec’s patchwork hair. “What do we do?”

“This is mentioned to no one. We train him in one element and hope that his affinity for the others atrophied.”

“Do you think it will?”

“No. But to reveal his ability now – he’d be bound for sure.”

Sela clutched at Alec, “But he’s only a child!”

“Better to do it now than when he’s an adult and can do harm.” She said, “And he’ll be able to adjust to the change, less likely to suicide.”

“But you aren’t going to do that, hand him over” Sela said flatly, “Why?”

“Because I don’t think he’s a threat, or ever will be a threat. And because I think we will need someone with his talents. Having an affinity to four elements isn’t necessarily evil; our people lived for thousand years with Element wizards without a flood. It was just one bad one that turned things sour.”

“I always wondered about that,” She said and then shook her head, “So we train him in one element, which?”

“Fire, like a proper Troven. Bad enough that your other two children are air and water,” Zaladine said, though without malice. “You, yourself, are earth as well. Not proper at all.”

Sela laughed, “It will make Raven happy to hear. He fretted so when the children deviated like me.”

“He’ll start classes tomorrow. Do make sure he’s here on time.”

“Of course.”

Zaladine started to stand up when Sela reached out to her. “Zaladine, my friend, promise me something,” she said, her voice quavering. The other woman sat back down, letting her arm be clutched.

“What?”

Sela didn’t look at her for a moment, stroking Alec, who ignored the conversation. “If” but there was something about the “if” that meant “when”, “If something happens to me, watch over him for me.”

“Sela…” She began, but stopped herself. Something about the woman’s desperate look made her stop, “Of course I will.”

She relaxed, looking greatly relieved. “Thank you.”