“How did you do in the maze?”
“We did ok,” I answered her, handing over my bottle.
“I did it,” Elizabeth said and then blushed. “Sorry I’m just really excited. I was so scared to go in there, but Sally was a great partner,” she turned in her bottle too and then it was time for lunch.
I went to the cafeteria and saw Abby and Tider.
“Tider, that was amazing when you did the first challenge. I didn’t know you could make such cool stuff with magic.”
“It takes a lot of practice, but I’ve been working on it for a while.”
“Hey guys,” Richard said from behind us. “How’s everyone doing so far?” he sat down at the table with us and started eating.
“Good,” we told him.
“Sally, how are you handling this? I know you have to keep your power hidden, and I haven’t heard anything, so I’m guessing you are pretending to be a beginner.”
“Yep, I’ve been trying to be careful, but I already screwed up. I only moved one feather during the first test.”
“You have to be careful, Sally or the Pulhu will find out about you,” Tider said.
“I wish they would leave me alone. I haven’t even gotten to talk to my parents yet. Mrs. Sullivan said she was going to have someone magically erase my phone so no one can track it if I call them, but she hasn’t done it yet.”
“We can go talk to her tomorrow or Saturday,” Richard said. “Then you can call your parents and tell them about your first week here.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“Come on,” Tider said, “we need to get back outside.” We all followed him back to Felan field. When we stepped outside, the field looked completely different. Now four large buildings stood at each corner, and in the center was one massive building. The teachers were all standing near the center building. Mr. Magni was waiting and immediately sent Abby to another part of the field.
“Sally, you will be doing an obstacle course where you have to make your way to the end. You need to use your element to get through it. The obstacle course changes depending on what level your powers are. The air obstacle course is over by Mr. Connor. you can head there now.”
“Thanks, Mr. Magni.” I headed over to the corner Mr. Connor was in and waited for him to call me up.
“Sally, you’re up next,” he walked me over to a door and leaned down, “Only use air inside. No students can see what you are doing but all the teachers will know how you do. We don’t want anyone else finding out about you. You may have to use your full powers but try not to. The course will get harder each time you use your power. If you feel like you can’t complete it, you can step off the course and say I give up. The course will return to normal, and you will be able to leave. Good luck.”
He opened the door, and I stepped inside. I waited for my eyes to adjust. It was darker in here than outside. I looked at the course and was surprised to see that it looked like an ordinary obstacle course, so I wasn’t sure why I would need to use my power.
I moved to the first obstacle, a bunch of swinging tires that I would have to cross to get to the next obstacle. As soon as I stepped on the first tire, I realized why this course would be different. The wind began to pick up around me, and the tires started swinging. Trying to get to the next one would require me to use my power, or be very, very lucky.
I used a tiny amount of power to slow the tires and leaped to the next one. Only four more to go. Again, I tried using only a small bit of power to slow the tire as it passed me, and I was able to get to the next one. The wind picked up and moved the tires even faster. Now they were spinning too.
I didn’t want to risk using too much magic, so I slowed the tire a bit and jumped. I misjudged and slammed into the spinning tire, but I was able to hold on. I repeated this for the last two tires and finally stepped off them, breathing hard. The tires immediately stopped spinning and swinging.
I looked at the next obstacle and realized this one was going to be a lot harder. It was a balance beam. I only had to cross it, but I knew it wasn’t going to be that easy. I took a few more deep breaths before stepping on it. The first few steps were fine, but then the wind howled through the room. I knew it was going to knock me off if I stayed upright, so I fell to the beam and grabbed on.
The wind tore at my clothes as I inched along the beam. The air continued to try and rip me off. I had to use my magic a few times to keep from falling. It was only a small push against the wind so I could move a little further, but it was like the wind knew I had more power and became more ferocious every time I used my magic.
When I finally got to the other side, I looked like I had been in a tornado. My hair had come undone, and my clothes were starting to rip at the seams, but I made it to the other side without using a lot of magic. I was beginning to feel like I could get through this. The next obstacle changed that.
It was a set of hanging rings. I would have to grab one and swing to the next one multiple times to cross. With the wind blowing around me, I didn’t think I stood a chance of succeeding without magic. I reached for the first ring and swung myself to the next one.
As I was reaching for the next ring, a burst of wind pushed me off course, and I had nothing to grab. I used some magic to push the next ring closer to me and caught it. I tried to use this method again, but the wind pushed the ring back even farther. It definitely seemed like the course wanted me to use my full magic power.
My arms were beginning to feel like lead, and I didn’t think I would be able to hang on much longer when the wind died down a little. I managed to grab the next ring, and soon I was on the other side. There was only one obstacle left, and it took my breath away.
It was a zip-line, but it only had a place to hold on. There were no safety ropes. I peered out over the edge. It looked like I was at least one hundred feet in the air, even though I hadn’t climbed up anything. Without a safety harness, I was sure the wind would rip me right off if I tried it.
I was considering quitting when a thought came into my head. I didn’t need to use a lot of air magic to do this. I just needed to wrap a little around my hands like a piece of rope so I couldn’t let go of the handle. I reached up and grabbed it, and the wind started screaming towards me.
I pulled a small bit of magic from the air and twirled it around my hands so they would be bound to the handle. I tried pulling them off, but the air kept them firmly grasping the handle. I took a deep breath and jumped.
The wind grabbed me and pulled me back and forth. I concentrated on the air surrounding my hands so I wouldn’t let go. I looked out and saw the ground coming up way too fast, and was about to use my magic to stop myself when I started to slow down. The wind stopped trying to pull me off the handle, and instead pushed against me. I knew I wasn’t doing it, and I didn’t know who was helping me, but I was grateful.
As I came to a stop, I unwound the air from my hands and fell to my knees, happy to be finished with the course. I started to straighten up when the door in front of me opened, and Mr. Connor and Mrs. Sullivan came in. She took in my appearance and then looked at Mr. Connor angrily.
“She could have been hurt. Why did you tell her not to use her magic?”
“Because they will find out if she shows her power.”
“Yes, but she could have been hurt badly if you hadn’t stopped her in time.”
“I wouldn’t have let anything happen. You know these trials are recorded, and the council would have every right to request the tapes to see her powers. I wasn’t going to take that chance,” he glared at her.
“I felt like the wind knew I wasn’t using my full power and was trying to make me,” I said.
“That’s how it’s supposed to work. The wind would keep getting stronger until you failed an obstacle and then it would get weaker again. It is supposed to test you to your limits,” she said.
“What am I supposed to do? I can’t go out there looking like this.”
“Come with me, I
can glamor you until you get to your room to change,” Mrs. Sullivan said.
“Glamour?”
“Yes, people will see you looking the way you did when you went in.”
“Awesome,” I was excited to see this. Maybe I could learn to do it. It sounded like it would be a neat trick.
We had walked through the halls and stopped in front of my room without anyone noticing. I went into my room and put on a new pair of clothes. I didn’t have much time, so I grabbed my hair and put it up in a ponytail, hoping no one would notice how tangled it was. As I went to walk out the door, something on the side of my pillowcase caught my eye. I walked over and picked it up. It was a folded piece of paper. I opened it up and started reading when Mrs. Sullivan called out.
“Almost ready, Sally? We need to get back.”
“One minute,” I called back to her. I looked at the paper. Find The Water Sprites. That was all it said. I had no idea what it meant or why it was in my room. I went to put it in my pocket, but it burst into flame and was gone in an instant. There was no smell and no ashes to tell it had even been here.
I shook my head, wondering if I was going crazy. Paper didn’t burn itself up, did it? Maybe I could find some information in the library. I didn’t want to tell my friends in case they thought I was crazy too.
Mrs. Sullivan knocked on the door, “Come on, Sally,” she said impatiently.
I opened the door and walked out into the hall.
“Are you ok?” she asked.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“You look very pale right now. Is something wrong? Is everything ok in your room?”
Something told me not to tell her what happened, so I started walking down the hallway. “Everything’s fine. I’m still a little shook up about that last challenge.”
“I understand,” said Mrs. Sullivan, “your classmates will be performing the last test now. When we get down to the field, Mr. Magni will tell you where you need to go to complete your last challenge. It shouldn’t be too hard.”
“What is the last challenge?”
“For the last challenge, you will have to rescue a water sprite.”
“What is a water sprite? And how do I rescue it?” I asked, thinking about the paper I had read in my room.
“It is a creature that looks similar to a small fairy, and the only way to rescue it is to use your magic. Again I will caution you to use only a small amount of power. You are grouped with the beginners, so it shouldn’t be a tough task for you. When you rescue it, don’t try to capture it. Sprites do not like to be touched very often, and they will get mad at you if you try and touch them. Ok?”
“So I leave it there?”
“Yes, she has come to help us. She isn’t really aren’t trapped and can get free at any time.”
We walked out onto the field, and I made my way to Mr. Magni, who sent me towards a small tent.
“Wait in line, Sally, and they will call you when it is your turn,” he said.
As I got to the tent, I saw Mrs. Newton standing in front of me, “Hi dear, it’s almost your turn. Someone’s in there right now finishing up, and then you can go. Do you know what you’re supposed to do?”
“I’m supposed to save a water sprite, right?”
“Yes, this task is tough for some people. I hope that it will be easy for you.”
A boy came strolling out of the tent with a big smile on his face. “I did it.” He started whistling as he headed back towards the center of the field.
“It’s your turn,” Mrs. Newton said. “Good luck.”
“Thanks, Mrs. Newton,” I replied. I walked into the tent and immediately saw what looked like a little fairy stuck in the middle of a swirling ball of air. I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to get it out. I closed my eyes to look at the ball of wind and realized that the ball was not complete, there were gaps and holes in it. I slowly pushed a little air towards one of the holes to widen it. The water sprite’s eyes widened. It knew what I was doing.
I continued letting a small amount of magic into the ball of air, making the hole bigger and bigger. After another minute or two, the gap was big enough for the sprite to fly out. It flew over the top of me, and I watched it with awe. It hovered in front of me. I put my hand out, and she landed in it. Her wings stopped moving, and I could see right through them they were so sheer.
“Hi there,” I said. “How are you?”
She turned her head but didn’t respond.
My face fell. Maybe she couldn’t speak to me. “I’m Sally. This is only my first week here, and I have no idea what I’m doing so I’m glad that I was able to rescue you without you getting hurt. It’s awfully brave of you to volunteer to do this for the school,” I told her. She flew up around me again and touched my cheek before flying away.
I walked out of the tent and told Mrs. Newton what happened.
“You are very fortunate,” Mrs. Newton said. “Very rarely will a sprite actually land on a person. She must think you are special.”
“Really?” I asked Mrs. Newton.
“Really,” she said. “Now run along to Mr. Magni. He will be waiting for you.”
I left Mrs. Newton and went to find Mr. Magni. All the students were waiting, and I quickly got in line near the front where Mr. Magni had placed me earlier in the morning. All around us, the other kids were telling their friends how they thought they did. When Elizabeth asked me, I told her I thought I did fine. She thought she did good too. When Mrs. Sullivan came to the center of the field, everyone began to quiet down.
“This completes the end of the challenges for everyone. You are free for the rest of the day.”
Chapter Nine
As I walked into my room, I remembered the piece of paper someone had left for me. Find the Water Sprites. I still had no idea what it meant, and I didn’t know who to tell. I didn’t even have the paper.
I walked to the library and started looking at the different titles. There was no librarian to help me find anything. I wasn’t sure what I needed, but I figured the water sprites would probably be around the water elementals. If I could find the water elementals, I would find the sprites.
I had about thirty minutes before Richard was going to meet me, and I hoped to look through a couple of books. I needed to find out where the water sprites lived. I sat at one of the tables and opened the first book, skimming through the pages. Mostly it was about what the water elementals did. There were different waterways the elementals explored, and the kingdom of the water elementals was the main gathering place for all the sprites. Humans without elemental powers couldn’t get there though.
There was no mention of where the kingdom was besides in the water. I moved on to the next book. I learned that the water elementals tried to stay out of the fighting between all the elementals, but eventually had to take sides when fire elementals tried to destroy their followers. It said they were banned from having followers by the shadow king.
The book also said that water elementals were given a lesser punishment because they tried to stay out of the fighting. They were still allowed to roam the waters and the shores next to the waters, as long as no humans saw them. None of the elementals were permitted contact with the humans after the fighting.
“What are you looking at?”
I jumped up, startled, and slammed the book closed. Richard was standing behind me, looking at the book in my hands.
“Don’t sneak up on me like that,” I told him. “You scared me.”
“Sorry, I wasn’t trying to sneak up on you. You were very absorbed in the book. I think an elephant could have walked through the library, and you wouldn’t have even noticed,” he smirked at me. “Why are you reading about elementals?”
“Trying to understand more about this world I’ve been thrust into,” I lied.
“If you have any questions, ask. I should be able to answer most of the things you want to know.”
I thought about confiding in him about the note but still wasn’t sure how
he would react. Maybe I could get some information from him without telling him. “The books say that the water elementals weren’t punished as harshly as the rest of the elementals. They were allowed to roam the waters as long as they weren’t seen, so are they still here?”
“I would assume so. Obviously, no one has seen them for centuries, but elementals live a very long time.”
“But wouldn’t they have a city or palace, somewhere they could all live together?”
“I’m sure they do.”
“Then why hasn’t it been found yet? People have been all over the world, researching and mapping our oceans. Wouldn’t they have stumbled upon something like that?”
“Not if it was glamoured. They could have towns under the water, and no one would ever know. Think about how you didn’t want to walk towards the practice area yesterday. It’s the same thing only on a bigger scale. There are plenty of areas that people don’t go to because of a feeling they get from it. Most of those places are glamoured. It would make sense that the water elementals also use glamour to hide their cities.”
It did make sense, but that didn’t help me at all. I needed to know if anyone had an idea where the water spirits lived. “Have you ever come across anything saying where their cities might be?”
“It sounds like you have a reason for learning this and not an intellectual one.”
I hesitated, but Richard knew a lot more than I did, and I was going to need help. “When Mrs. Sullivan took me up to my room to change, there was a note on my pillow. It said to find the water sprites. After I read it, the note burst into flame.”
“And you have no idea who left it for you?”
“None.”
“Why haven’t you told anyone about it?”
“I don’t know who I can trust, and I was worried people would think I’m losing my mind. Paper doesn’t burst into flame.”
Lost Tides: Elemental Seekers Series Page 10