Lost Tides: Elemental Seekers Series

by H. M. Sandlin

“Not much,” Abby replied. “This is how Mrs. Newton always teaches, but the tests are pretty hard, so pay attention if you can. Thankfully, she puts notes on each class on the computer so you can check them to study.”

  “Girls, did you have something to say?” Mrs. Newton asked us.

  “I’m sorry, Mrs. Newton. Sally wanted to know what kind of notes she would need to take so she could do her best in your class,” Abby lied.

  “It’s very nice of you to help her, Abby. Anything I say in class has the potential to be on the test, so good note-taking is a must in this class. Ok?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” I responded. She seemed satisfied with me and continued her lesson.

  Abby looked at me and winked. I stifled a laugh and went back to taking notes. I doodled as I listened. I wasn’t sure what to draw, so I let my mind wander while I sketched. When class ended, I looked at my drawing, surprised. I had drawn a picture of the earth being covered in darkness. The picture sent chills down my spine, and my little gasp caught Abby’s attention.

  “What’s wrong?” She saw my picture and turned white. “Sally, why did you draw this?”

  “I don’t know. I was doodling, not trying to draw anything specific. Why? What is it? It gives me the creeps.”

  “It should,” A deep voice said behind me. I spun around and almost slammed the back of my head into Richard’s face. “That is a sign of the darkness that was prophesied a long time ago. Where did you see this?”

  “Nowhere. I drew it.”

  “Put it away now,” he whispered quickly. I grabbed the paper and pushed it into Abby’s backpack as Sean walked up.

  “What do we have here?” he sneered at Abby. “You shouldn’t be hanging out with filth like this,” he said to me. “Come on, I will show you around.” He smiled charmingly at me as he grabbed my arm to lead me away from Abby and Richard.

  “You’re right, I shouldn’t be hanging out with filth. What would my parents say?” I ripped my arm from his grasp. “Thankfully, I have friends who wouldn’t let me hang out with you.” I walked over to Abby and Richard and linked my arms through theirs.

  “What? I am the most important person in this school. You would do well to remember that. You are new, so I will forgive you for not knowing any better. When you are ready to apologize, I will be waiting,” he stalked off after sneering at Abby and Richard again.

  “I won’t be apologizing to him,” I said.

  “Be careful, Sally. You don’t want to mess with him. He can be scary when he doesn’t get what he wants.” Abby said quietly.

  “I don’t care. I’m not going to let a bully boss me around and tell me who I can and can’t hang out with.”

  “Come on,” Richard said.

  We hurried to catch up with him. His strides made him much faster than us. He turned suddenly and held his hand out for me. “We haven’t been properly introduced. My name is Richard.”

  “Hi, Richard, I’m Sally.” I tried to be as dignified as he was, but I burst out laughing.

  He stared at me for a minute, and I could see a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. “I suppose we didn’t really need an introduction,” he smiled at me this time.

  “Why did you have me put the drawing away so fast when Sean was coming?”

  His grin faded, and he gave me a grim look. “If he had seen that, he would have assumed you knew about the prophecy and done anything to make you tell him.”

  “What do you mean? What prophecy and why does he want to know so bad.”

  “There is a prophecy about a child who will destroy the darkness that will come for our world. No one knows the exact prophecy because it’s kept secret. Only a few people in the inner circle of elementals know, and they aren’t telling. Sean has been trying to find out about it since he came to this school.”

  “Why?”

  “His family wants the darkness to come. If they can destroy the child before the darkness comes, they will gain greater power and control the world.”

  “But what about the darkness? What is it? And won’t it destroy them if it’s coming for the world?”

  “No one knows what the darkness is, though there are many theories. They are in league with the darkness, or they hope to be. I’m not exactly sure yet.”

  “Yet?” I questioned.

  “Sean has been trying to get me to join his family in dark magic for years.” Richard’s voice turned grim, “He has tried every tactic he can think of.”

  “Why does he want to get you to use dark magic?”

  Richard sighed, “Because if I’m on his side, I won’t be fighting him.”

  Abby interrupted, “Richard is the strongest air elemental at school. He is also strong in fire and has a little earth magic.”

  “That’s awesome. If you are that strong, he can’t make you do anything.”

  “At least not for another year,” he said sadly.

  “Why only for a year?”

  “My sister comes next year. She is young and foolish. He might try to use her to get leverage over me. My sister is incredibly willful and won’t listen if I tell her to stay away from him. I’m trying to get my parents to send her to a different school, but they don’t understand. Most families don’t realize how bad things are getting. I wouldn’t know either, but Sean wants me on his side, so he brags about all the things they have done to get power. It’s disgusting.”

  “Can’t you tell anyone?”

  “I have. There is nothing that can be done without proof, which they are too smart to leave out for people like me to find. Sean is their weakest link, and even he is pretty smart. He only talks about it when no one is around to listen and never writes anything down that I could use as proof. For now, we are at a stalemate.”

  “I’m sorry, Richard. We will do anything we can to help you out. Right, Abby?”

  “Of course. I didn’t even realize Sean was in that deep. He really does hide it well, but next time I’m home, I will see if I can find anything to use as proof.”

  “Don’t do anything to get hurt though, Abby,” Richard cautioned.

  “I won’t,” she said.

  We had almost made it to the common area when Tider came barreling around the corner and knocked me over. I let out a yell as I fell backward. Richard caught me before I went sprawling onto the floor. As Richard’s arms came around me, I felt a spark jump between us and flinched away from him. “What was that?” he looked at me, confused but shook his head, warning me to keep quiet.

  “Johnathon,” he barked out. “What are you doing?”

  Tider stepped back quickly, looking worried. “I’m sorry,” he stammered.

  “It’s ok,” I stepped between Tider and Richard. “He didn’t mean it, Richard. He’s my friend. I’m sure he has a good reason for trying to run me over.” I arched an eyebrow at him, “Right?”

  “I do. Mrs. Sullivan sent me to get you,” he said hurriedly. “I didn’t realize you were around the corner, or I would have slowed down,” he looked at Richard, waiting to see his reaction.

  Richard calmed down and looked over at me, “Are you sure you’re ok?”

  “Yes. Why did Mrs. Sullivan want me? Did she say?”

  “She didn’t say, but I overheard her calling Natasha, so I think she is sending you to see your parents.”

  “Your parents are here?” asked Richard.

  “They are in the hospital, office, whatever you call it. Dad was hurt by some people looking for me, so they are sending them away. I have to say goodbye before they go,” I started moving quickly down the hall. “I will see you when I get back. Since I am going earlier than expected, we should have no trouble going to see Mr. Conner tonight after dinner.”

  I had to keep reminding myself not to run, and within a few minutes, I was outside Mrs. Sullivan’s door. She told me to come in before I had even raised my hand to knock. I was going to have to ask her how she did that.

  “Natasha should be here any minute. She will take you to the doctor’s offi
ce, so you can say goodbye to your parents. You must listen to whatever Natasha tells you to do. If she thinks there is any danger, she needs to know that you will obey her so she can protect you. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, but why would there be any trouble? I thought the town was protected.”

  “It is, but there are some Pulhu who can slip in through our protections. We need to know where you are at all times, so don’t try to leave and visit the town. Head out front and wait for Natasha to pull up. Behave,” she gave me one last look.

  Natasha was already waiting for me, and I walked down the stairs to meet her. I got into the same car as last time and buckled my seat belt before she took off. Again I got the feeling she didn’t like me, but I didn’t know what to do about it, so I sat quietly. Soon we were pulling up to the doctor’s office.

  “I will be waiting here when you finish,” Natasha said as I got out of the car.

  I walked into the office and immediately arms wrapped around me. I recognized my mom before she was pulled away from me, so my dad could give me a hug.

  “Sally,” he said, “we have been so worried about you. Are you ok?”

  “Of course I am, dad. I’ve been more worried about you. How are you feeling?”

  “I’m doing much better, thanks to Dr. Griffith. I swear that man is a miracle worker. I can’t believe I’m up and walking today.”

  I took a minute to look my dad over and noticed he didn’t look anywhere near as bad as I expected. “You look great. I’m glad you are feeling better.”

  “Me too, kiddo,” he ruffled my hair and then pulled me in for another hug. “You better call us and keep us up to date on everything. I hate that we have to leave you, but Dr. Griffith is sure this is the only way to keep you safe from the Pulhu.”

  “Are you all right mom? You are very quiet,” I asked her.

  “I don’t want to leave you either. I’m so sorry, Sally. Maybe if I had listened to my aunt, I would have known about this earlier. Then we wouldn’t be going through all this now. You would have control, and we could stay together.”

  “Mom, this isn’t your fault. How were you supposed to know? I never had anything happen that could have prepared you for this.” I tried to make her feel better about what was happening but couldn’t tell if it worked. “I love you, mom. We will talk as much as possible. You can look at it like a vacation, right?”

  She finally smiled at me, “You always put a good spin on everything. Don’t worry about me, honey. Your father and I will be fine. We just hate having to leave you alone.”

  “I’m not alone, mom. I have Abby, Tider, Richard, Dr. Griffith, and Mrs. Sullivan.”

  “Wow, you met a lot of people in one day, sweetheart. I’m glad you have already started to make friends. You will have to tell me all about them.”

  “One day you will meet them. I think you will really like Tider. He’s like the younger brother I never had.”

  Mom looked surprised for a minute and then laughed, “I didn’t know you wanted a little brother.”

  “Neither did I until I met him.”

  We continued to talk about the school and the people I had met so far. Mom and dad seemed surprised by everything I told them, and they laughed when I spoke about Tider’s behavior. I didn’t want them to leave and was hoping I could stay here and keep talking to them when Dr. Griffith cleared his throat.

  “I’m sorry, but it is time.”

  I threw myself into my parent’s arms, “Please stay safe. I don’t want anything to happen to you.” I tried not to cry, but I couldn’t help myself, and a few tears leaked out of my tightly closed eyes.

  Mom wiped them away and gave me a sad smile, “We will be fine. Promise me you will do as you’re told and that you will stay safe.”

  “Of course, mom. I will be on my best behavior.”

  I gave both my parents one last hug and walked them to the door. The sun was starting to go down, and I knew this was what Dr. Griffith had been waiting for. This was why he let me talk so long. He wanted it to be darker out so it would be easier for my mom and dad to slip away unnoticed. I felt like my heart was being ripped from my chest as I watched the car get smaller, but I didn’t cry. When the car went around a turn, Dr. Griffith put his arm around me, and I leaned into his chest and let the tears fall.

  “Come on, Sally. Let’s go inside and get you some tea.” I followed him into the office, and slowly my tears subsided. Nana made me a cup of tea and brought out a small plate of cookies.

  “Here, dear, eat something. It will make you feel better.” I did as Nana said even though I knew it wouldn’t help. I was going to miss my parents.

  “The time will go by quickly, Sally. You’ll see. You will be so busy learning new things that before you know it, you will be seeing your parents again. We will try to bring them here for Christmas break or send you to them if things have settled down.” Dr. Griffith said.

  “Do you think my parents will be safe?” I asked Dr. Griffith.

  “Yes. It won’t take them long to get to the airport. Then they will be on their way to a safe area. I don’t think anyone will be looking for them at the airport. Especially without you.”

  “I still don’t understand why they are after me, Dr. Griffith.”

  “It’s because of the amount of power you used when you broke your ankle. The Pulhu know you are very powerful though they don’t know you have more than one element yet. We will try to keep that a secret, or they will really try to get to you. They only want the most powerful elementals, so they don’t go after the kids whose power appears weak when it is first used. And they never try to take kids that are from prominent elemental families. That would start a war, and they aren’t ready for that.”

  “Why can’t you stop them. Put them in jail or something?”

  “We do when we catch them, but the people who run the Pulhu are cautious, and they never leave any trace back to themselves. For now, we are trying to keep everyone safe and keep people from joining their side.” Dr. Griffith finished his tea and stood up. “It’s time to head back to the school, Sally. Find Mrs. Sullivan. She will tell you what to do next.”

  Chapter Six

  Before I had a chance to get up, Natasha walked into the room. She went to Dr. Griffith and spoke into his ear. I saw Dr. Griffith’s shoulders tense up before he turned to me. “You need to get back to the school, Sally.”

  He pushed me towards the door. “Hurry, Natasha. You should be able to get inside the ward before they get here.”

  “What’s going on?” I tried to ask Dr. Griffith, but he kept moving me out the door and towards the car. I tried again, “What happened?”

  He finally looked down at me as I got into the passenger seat. “There has been a breach in our protection around the town. We don’t know why, but we need to get you to the school where it is safer.”

  “What about my parents?” I cried. “Are they safe?”

  “I don’t know, but the sooner you get moving, the sooner I can get out there and check on them.” I hurriedly buckled my seatbelt, and Natasha got into the driver’s side.

  “Please let me know as soon as you can,” I yelled to him as we started to pull away. Natasha hit the gas as soon as we were on the road and sped as fast as she dared. I didn’t try to speak to her. I was consumed with thoughts of my mom and dad.

  “Sally,” Natasha finally spoke to me. “You are to do exactly what I say, remember.”

  “I remember. Why?” I felt a lurch in my stomach as I saw how tight her hands were gripping the steering wheel. Something was wrong.

  “We have company,” I followed her gaze out in front of us and could see something up on the hill that we had to go over. She must have excellent eyesight to see that far away. I could barely make out the shapes.

  “What do we need to do?” I tried to keep the fear out of my voice.

  “I am going to slow the car down. Not a lot. I don’t want them to realize I’m slowing down for you to jump out. I
t’s dark enough out that they won’t see you if I keep the lights inside the car off.”

  “I’m sorry, what? Have you lost your mind? I’m not jumping out of a moving car?”

  “Sally,” Natasha pulled me out of my rant. “You need to jump and then head west. She pointed to a clump of trees on the side of the road that we were approaching. On the other side of those trees is the school. You must run as fast as you can, and be quiet so they don’t find you,” she looked at me, and I thought I saw compassion, but it was gone so quick I wondered if I had imagined it. Her jaw tensed. “There is no arguing this. It is the only chance we have to keep them from getting you. Somehow they knew you would be at the office today.”

  “But what about you?” I wasn’t sure what her plan was, but if she was going to let me jump out of a car, our options couldn’t be great.

  “I will be fine. Once they see it is only me, they will leave me alone. They have no reason to cause me any trouble, and they don’t want to mess with my family,” she said hurriedly. “I’m going to turn the lights off and count to three, then you jump and run. It will hurt, but you will heal. You must keep moving, and don’t stop for anyone.”

  I straightened my shoulders, and she started to slow the car down. I could do this I repeated over and over in my head. Natasha turned the lights off in the car. “Make sure you roll when you land, it will hurt less.” She gave me one last look, “One, two, three. Jump, Sally,” she yelled at me.

  I took a deep breath and jumped from the car. I tried to roll like she told me, but I had no idea how to do that. I did end up rolling a couple of times, but the landing was so painful that I couldn’t get up right away. My arm was in excruciating pain, and it hurt to take a breath. I looked back at the road and saw Natasha driving up the hill. Another car came flying up behind her, and I hunkered down even closer to the ground so they wouldn’t see me.

  After they passed, I tried to push myself into a standing position but got dizzy and thought I was going to pass out, so I stayed down. I crawled on my hands and knees for a few minutes and made it into the trees before resting again. I could hear shouts coming from up on the hill. They had stopped Natasha’s car and realized I wasn’t in it. Their voices echoed down the hill, and I heard them yelling to find someone. I’m guessing they were talking about me.