He took off his robe and bunched part of it to place under his head then draped himself with the rest. When he closed his eyes, his thoughts ventured back to the village and the woman he couldn’t forget. He could see her in her hut laying down with a blanket of woven vines over her. Even with the blanket and the darkness that encompassed her, he could see she was completely naked underneath. Every curve of her body was visible to him, and he took it all in from her head to her feet. Her bronze skin was smooth and soft, and her hair draped over her shoulders barely covering her bosom.
His eyes shot open, and he blinked several times as though the images were imprinted on the backs of his eyelids not his mind and blinking would rid himself of them somehow. He could not understand his fascination with this woman. He had seen nudity all the time from the spiritual realm, and he had never been affected by it. In fact, he had oft wondered why people bothered covering their body for any reason except to protect themselves from harsh weather conditions. It had always seemed like a large waste of time and resources to bother with clothing. Yet he had been here less than a day, and it consumed his mind. He was making progress on his quest. He was beginning to learn and understand at least where the need for garments was concerned.
Perhaps the naked form would be something he could adjust to seeing regularly as the members of the village were not at all preoccupied by the nudity around them. This was quite truly his first time seeing nudity in the flesh which he hoped was the reasoning behind how it distracted him. In time, it should be no different than admiring the beauty of the trees.
Thinking about the days to come and all he would need to do to prepare helped get his mind off of her. Tools needed to be made to allow him to hunt and trap. He would have to devise a way to gain meat for survival. He invaded the thoughts of the hunters who had come back spying on their weapons and the means they used to secure food. He searched their memories of the hunt for a quick tutorial on how to accomplish their feats. He would need to work fast to gather enough stores for the approaching winter.
No matter what he tried his thoughts always found their way back to her, and he would do his best to stay focused. It was growing more difficult, and he hoped that as time passed, his fascination with her would become stale. As he tried to clear his mind from thoughts of the woman from the village, he heard a deep voice whisper to him inside his head only one word, ‘Marcus.’
Marcus wondered why a name had been given to him at all since his orders were to only observe. He would never need to use it. No one on this plane of existence would ever know who he was or why he was here. The decision was not his to make, and he knew he should not question it. He was Marcus, Air Element, sent by the Divine Spirit to study one of the newest species evolution had created.
Chapter Two
Lilah looked out the passenger window of her mother’s car like she had been doing for countless miles through the Midwest backroads. She longed for something to change. Anything that would break up the monotonous fields she’d been staring at for hours.
“We’ve switched from wheat to corn, Lilah,” her mom teased, reading her mind.
“I hate when you do that,” Lilah glared at her mom.
“I hate when you give me the silent treatment, but yet here we are. Stuck in a car together with hundreds of miles left to go.”
Lilah turned back to the scenery passing by. “It’s not silent treatment,” she thought. “I have nothing to talk about.”
Her mother sighed and switched through radio stations until she found one that was playing a new pop hit. She even turned the volume up.
Lilah felt a twinge of guilt. She knew her mom was trying. She had to be to put on a station that was playing music she hated. Lilah turned her head and looked out the windshield for a moment before closing her eyes. She repeated the mantra to herself she had been saying since they left Florida two days earlier. ‘This is bigger than me. The family needs us. It is only temporary.’
Her mom looked at her. “You can talk to me, you know. Just because I can know your thoughts doesn’t mean you can’t voice them yourself.”
Lilah kept her eyes closed and tried to keep her mind empty. It was a blessing and a curse. Being able to communicate with each other without speaking was great most of the time. Lilah could tell her mom anything she wanted no matter who was around, and no one else would be able to hear. Other times, like this, when she just wanted to be left alone to mope, it enraged her that she hadn’t learned how to shut her mom out yet.
Someday soon her powers would heighten. She would be able to read anyone’s mind not just her own family when they allowed her to, and her ability to see the future would strengthen. That would always be limited however. Whenever someone tried to foresee anything, they couldn’t delve too far. The possible outcomes were almost limitless when you factor in the freewill that every person is afforded. Their visions would branch off, and if they tried to see too far, it could result in unconsciousness and convulsions at best. Her family had learned centuries ago to practice extreme caution when traveling inward through their mind’s eye.
It was probably still years away before she could even attempt to see more than simply what an evening had in store for her. She could only communicate telepathically with her closest family still, and she couldn’t read their minds unless they were intentionally sending messages to her. It frustrated her not because she couldn’t read their minds, but because she couldn’t stop them from reading hers.
“I understand that we have to move. I know we can’t stay in the same place more than a few years because people will become suspicious of us. I understand that we have to move to the middle of nowhere because of something going on with the family. I don’t understand exactly what it is that is going on because you won’t tell me. I get it, mom. I do. But I’m allowed to be unhappy and miserable about it.” Lilah’s voice grew steadily louder and more pointed as she spoke.
Her mother drew a heavy breath. “It’s not that I won’t tell you, Lilah. I can’t tell you what I don’t know myself.”
“Then why are we going? Why can’t we move to New York or California instead? Anywhere other than this.” Lilah’s voice filled with disgust, and she motioned to the fields out the window. “Why come here when you don’t even know why?”
Her mom sighed. “We have to come here because Marcus summoned everyone. I don’t know why he wants us all together, but Marcus –“
“Marcus is God,” Lilah rolled her eyes cutting her mom off in the middle of her sentence.
“No. Marcus is not God,” her mom’s voice was stern. “He’s the eldest of us. You know that. That’s why he’s the one who created our code to keep us safe.”
“He’s met God.”
“So to speak,” her mom corrected.
“And we have to drop everything to come running the moment he snaps his fingers,” Lilah didn’t try to hide her irritation.
“You do realize this isn’t something that’s limited to us, don’t you?”
“What do you mean?” Lilah turned to face her mom for a moment holding the belief that more than just their family would be involved.
“I mean people do this all the time for their own families.”
Lilah let out a long exhale and sunk back in her seat. This wasn’t what she thought her mom had meant.
“When someone’s elderly family member is ill or needs help, they come to their aide. It doesn’t have to be someone older either. It could be anyone in need.”
“Yeah,” Lilah nodded looking out the windshield. “And do they sell all of their belongings and move halfway across the country too?” disdain dripped from her mouth.
“Sometimes!” her mom practically yelled then calmed herself. “Sometimes they do, Lilah. Marcus rarely calls us all together. This is the third instance in my lifetime that it’s happened. It’s only if there is something that concerns all of us or that could have a devastating effect on one or more of us.”
Without moving her eyes a
way from the white line running down the side of the two lane highway where she was focusing all of her anger, Lilah’s attitude was in full force, “Maybe he should get with the times. He could just as easily send a group message.”
Her mom gasped and gripped the steering wheel tighter until her knuckles turned white. “We were due to move soon anyway. You know that. This is just a detour on our way to a new location. Why are you acting like this?” her mom hissed.
Lilah didn’t respond. There were a million reasons why she was against this move, any move, but none of them mattered. Moving in general had grown old long ago. It made it impossible to form friendships when you know you’re going to have to leave in a few years without a word. You can’t tell anyone anything that is honest about yourself. Every little detail is a cover story.
“Do you want to stop for the night or push through until we get there?” her mom asked with a sigh not wanting to continue the argument.
“Neither,” Lilah thought.
Her mom gave her a pleading look.
Lilah rubbed her temples with her fingers before answering. “How about we stop to eat then get back on the road till this trip is over? I’d rather see what I’m being moody about instead of only imagining how bad it will be.”
Her mom laughed softly. “Okay. We can do that.”
Almost two hours later, they pulled out of the small café’s parking lot. The large sign on the side of the highway read Fairview - 184 miles. It seemed like every state had a Fairview, but Lilah knew this wasn’t entirely true. Her mom played with the radio until she managed to find yet another talk station. Lilah lay her head against the seat’s head rest and closed her eyes. If she fell asleep now, she could skip some of the dread she’d been feeling for the entirety of the trip.
Lilah’s eyes shot open from a sound sleep, and she leaned forward in her seat.
“You felt it too?” her mom asked with apprehension in her voice.
“What was it?”
“An energy surge near as I can tell. As soon as we came over that ridge back there, it hit.”
“What caused it?” Lilah asked, looking around trying to see if she could tell where they were.
“We’re about ten miles out,” her mother read her mind again. “And I don’t know what caused it.”
“Do you think-?” Lilah saw her mom’s head shake slightly. It was a little cue telling her that her mom was trying to focus. Lilah waited. It would do no use to try to concentrate on the source herself because her powers weren’t matured enough. She was only twenty-one years old in both appearance and years. Her mom easily passed for Lilah’s slightly older sister even though she had lived for almost three centuries before Lilah was born.
Finally her mom relaxed to some extent, “I wasn’t sure at first, but now it would appear we’re not the only ones gathering here.”
“You mean we’re not the first to arrive?”
Her mom shook her head. “No, we’re the first of our kind. Your father and a few others went to help some of the family because we could leave more easily than the rest were able to. They will come later.”
“Then what do you mean?”
Lilah thought her mom wasn’t going to answer her, but finally, as the car’s speed slowed at the entrance of the town, her mom replied, “I mean there are others here as well.”
“What others?” Lilah asked silently, remembering their earlier conversation when she thought this is what her mom had been trying to tell her. There are other Elementals involved.
“Try to feel them.”
“You know I can’t!” Lilah was irritated over how limited she still was in her capabilities.
“You might not be able to pick up everything yet, but you should be able to tell who they are.”
Lilah rolled her shoulders and arched her neck back and forth as though psychic thought required stretching. She closed her eyes and tried her best to focus on any energy she could pick up as they drove down the quiet empty street. She could see one large two story house ahead vibrating with bright light. It was off the main road about a block, but the top eaves peaked over the nearby houses and could be seen through the tree tops. Her eyes flew open.
“Witches?” Lilah whipped her head to the side and faced her mom.
“Yes. Lots of them. There are many in that house alone.”
“Is it a coven gathering?” It would make sense with Halloween approaching. She didn’t know all the ins and outs of Earth, but she did know Halloween was the equivalent of their New Year which meant traditions and celebrating.
“No. They’re familial.”
Lilah was puzzled. She could sense these witches were young. The oldest was in her early twenties. No, there could possibly be an older one, but it was hard for her to tell. How could there be so many from the same family in one house? Unless they were using aging spells. Or it could be possible their grandmother had a lot of children. That would explain it. Witches skip a generation, and only one is given the calling in each family.
“In times of trouble, more witches will be spawned,” her mom explained. “Something big is coming for there to be five so young in that home. It’s no wonder Marcus summoned us.”
Lilah thought she could hear just a faint tremble of fear in her mom’s voice. “Unless none of them are siblings,” Lilah pointed out.
Her mom continued to watch the road with a distant look, “If I’ve learned one thing in all my years, it’s that coincidences are rarely ever just that.”
They made the rest of the drive in silence into the country just on the other side of town. The inconvenience over moving to the middle of nowhere that Lilah had been feeling gave way to anxiety and alarm. She had thought this only affected her people. She thought it only affected Air. Her mom was right. The large amount of new witches in the same area her family had been summoned to couldn’t be a coincidence. She realized whatever was happening must affect all the Elementals. This was a lot bigger than she had anticipated.
Her mom turned down a long gravel road a few miles west of Fairview that went uphill to a very large old farmhouse. “It belongs to an uncle,” Lilah could hear her mom answer before she could ask.
They pulled up and sat still in the car a moment before either one of them attempted to get out. Lilah stared at the house through the windshield for several moments thinking about how isolated she would be here. It was a far cry from the bright and loud cities where she was used to living. Safety in numbers. A large population meant they could go unnoticed easier and longer.
A small smile broke on Lilah’s face, and she squealed, “It’s my turn to pick!”
Lilah closed her eyes concentrating on her image. Her blonde locks slowly changed to black. Her deep Florida tan lightened to a much paler tone, and when she opened her eyes, they were emerald green instead of hazel.
Her mom laughed. “Snow White? Is that the look you’re going for? I believe her eyes were blue.”
Lilah looked in the mirror on the visor. “I love it! Mock all you want. We’re sisters,” she emphasized. “You have to match me close enough to at least look like we’re related.”
“Or…I could claim I found you lost and alone. Maybe I’ll just tell everyone I took you in out of pity.”
Lilah scowled. Their agreement had always been they would rotate who got to choose their new appearance until she was on her own. It was bad enough that day wouldn’t be until after she learned to control all of the capabilities that she didn’t even have yet, but now her mom was fighting her on this look when it was up to her to decide.
“Change back,” her mom ordered. “We already have our new identification,” she said, patting her purse which contained a large manila envelope sticking out that held everything they would need to start over including new names.
“But it’s my turn!” Lilah pouted.
“I know it is, and you can choose when we move on from here. We left in such a hurry that I just told your Uncle Todd to surprise me.”
“Well,” Lilah said defiantly, “just call him up and have him redo everything.”
“Lilah! He has to create new identities for the whole family.”
Lilah wasn’t moved by that statement. It wasn’t her fault she wasn’t consulted in this, and she should have been if it’s the image she is expected to portray as her own.
“Plus he has his own affairs to get in order before he can join us,” her mom added. “You get to keep the name though.”
“I do?”
“Yeah, it simplified things. Our first names didn’t change.”
It wasn’t much of a consolation prize. “There will come a day, mom.”
“When what? You don’t have to listen to me anymore? I’m well aware. You remind me of it almost constantly.”
“No, I was going to say when I will be able to turn into a bird and poop on your head.” Lilah smarted off the first thing that popped into her head.
To Lilah’s surprise, her mom broke out into a large grin and began laughing. She joined her. It would be comical, and now that she had the thought, she wondered if it was a threat she could ever be able to carry through.
“It’s not,” Abby said, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye. “I believe I had the exact thought about my mom once myself, but once I had the ability to do it, I no longer wanted to.”
Lilah sighed. She took a deep breath and allowed her skin tone to change back to the deep Florida tan she had sported the last few years.
“Your hair too,” her mom sounded annoyed.
“We can always say I dyed it, mom.”
Her mom sighed in defeat. “It’s late. Let’s unload the car and go to bed. We can grab breakfast in the morning on the way to the store.”
They had packed light. Moving was nothing new to them. This was Lilah’s ninth move although she barely remembered half of them. Lilah carried the boxes to the porch while her mom grabbed their suitcases. That was it. Their whole lives tucked away in two boxes and three suitcases. Halfway up the steps, Lilah froze.
Her mom bumped into her back. “What-?” she started to ask.
Air: The Elementals: Book One Page 2
