Elementalist: The New Inheritance

by Seever, Tyler

  “I do not envy what you must endure as a Shadow Elementalist. Every Elementalist must meet the god they represent at some point, unfortunately for you… The God of Shadows speaks through nightmares to you.”

  Valdorath got to his feet, looking down at Lenthean.

  “Every Elementalist has to. There is no way around it.” He outstretched a hand to him, suggesting he would help Lenthean to his feet. Lenthean did not take Valdorath’s offer and rose to his feet on his own. Lenthean spoke to him: “I will not be this agent of darkness.”

  “Not now.”

  “Not ever. I will not use fear to manipulate others,” he continued. “Not ever.” Tears welling up in his eyes, he walked away into the morning sunlight.

  10: Training Day

  “What do you mean you won’t use it?!” Valdorath exclaimed.

  “It means that I will not use fear to manipulate others. I never want to put anyone through what I just went through.”

  “But to deny this about yourself is to deny the very powers you possess!” Valdorath countered.

  “I don’t care,” the boy replied. “This world doesn’t need someone manipulating others through fear.”

  “But—” Valdorath started.

  “You once told Kethar that no one owned me, not even the God of Shadows. Am I right?” Lenthean challenged.

  “Yes! But that’s different from denying the powers you possess…”

  “I won’t be this Elementalist the God of Shadows wants me to be. And I will not be this Elementalist the world thinks I would be.”

  “I hate to break this to you, Shadowling—you don’t have much of a choice,” Valdorath retorted.

  Lenthean began to walk off in the rolling green hills.

  “Valdorath,” Lenthean pressed. “All I need from you is to teach me how to keep myself safe. Then you are free to go. Free yourself from this debt my father has placed on you.”

  Valdorath stared at the boy, perplexed.

  “All right,” he finally said. “So be it.”

  ---

  “First things first, Lenthean. The world knows about you and always will. Always be ready on a moment’s notice.”

  The two stood squared off in the grass field. The green came and went in waves across the rolling fields. Distant mountain ranges watched down on them from afar.

  “Tell me, Shadowling, what did you feel during your nightmare?”

  “Fear.”

  “Yes—and?”

  “Sadness. I had an overwhelming feeling of sadness.”

  Valdorath was visibly troubled by the youth’s words. “This is the feeling you must manifest if you wish to use your abilities. You can use them to manipulate the real world around you,” Valdorath said, lowering his arm and pulling a blade of grass from the surface of the earth. “For me, as the Elementalist of Light, I must envision a world full of knowledge. Light, transparency, righteousness. Vengeance.” Valdorath placed his palms together and shut his eyes.

  Lenthean said, “That’s what the God of Shadows claimed too.”

  “Okay. Firstly,” Valdorath interrupted, “the God of Shadows has a name. He’ll never tell you that, but he does.”

  “Well, spit it out!” Lenthean exclaimed. “What’s his name?”

  “His name is Arrogan. The more you understand about the shadows or the god that manifests it, the less control they have over you and your actions.”

  Valdorath continued with eyes shut. “The Goddess of Light and the God of Shadows have been in an eternal debate, Shadowling. Since the dawn of time, they disagree greatly on how they should have things operate here on the continent of Zanvia. The goddess voices to me that we should see the better in all things, even when things are not good.”

  Lenthean looked down at his feet. “That’s how I wish to see things.”

  Valdorath opened his eyes, palms still together. “You need to let that go, boy.”

  Lenthean looked up to Valdorath as the old man closed his eyes again. “If you want to use your powers, you need to operate like the god that manifests you. Close your eyes, Shadowling.”

  Lenthean let out a deep breath. He could feel the grass blades brushing against his calves. He then followed orders.

  “Place your hands together, like mine.”

  Lenthean placed his palms together.

  Valdorath continued, “Envision last night, your nightmare. What do you see?”

  “Agony.”

  “Good.” Valdorath assured. “Tell me more.”

  “Suffering. Pain. Terror.”

  “Keep going.” Valdorath pressed.

  “Sleeplessness. Tiresome sleeplessness, anguish,” Lenthean continued.

  “Do you feel that, Shadowling?” Valdorath asked.

  “What?” Lenthean asked with his eyes still closed.

  “The blades of grass brushing on you.”

  “Yes.” Lenthean confirmed.

  “I do too, but I feel something more,” Valdorath said.

  “What? What are you feeling?”

  “You’ve got a grip on my ankles with their shadows.”

  “I do?!” Lenthean exclaimed, opening his eyes.

  Valdorath fumbled backward. “Shadowling! Resume your stance! You just lost your grip on the shadows!”

  “Agh, sorry!” Lenthean apologized and assumed his stance once again.

  “Ugh,” Valdorath grunted, gaining his footing again.

  “Picture all you just pictured.”

  “Okay. I am.”

  “More.” Valdorath pressed.

  “I am.”

  “Shadowling, I can see you here even with my eyes shut. You need to dig deeper. Think about the horror.”

  Lenthean had flashbacks of his nightmare. The floor sinking, Zuthar, his mother, all of it. His heart was racing.

  “Good, more.” Valdorath pressed.

  Lenthean pictured that dark cave with the God of Shadows.

  He began to hear the god’s voice whispering to him. “Yes… Listen to the Light One… even he is fond of me and my ways… They all are… hehehahaha. . . ”

  Lenthean gasped and trembled violently.

  “Embrace it, Shadowling. You can do this.”

  “AH!” Lenthean screamed with fear in his voice.

  “NOW STRIKE TO YOUR LEFT, BOY!”

  With a heeya!, Lenthean threw his fist leftward and opened his eyes. From the earth, a water-like wave of blackness erupted from the ground, then crashed back down into the grass, staining it all black like an ink stain. The wave had become taller than him. Then it all slithered back to his feet where it belonged, in his shadow. Lenthean turned to Valdorath in amazement.

  “STRIKE RIGHT!” Valdorath commanded.

  Lenthean punched right, and the black wave shot from the ground in that direction, with the same behavior as his first strike.

  “Woah.” Lenthean was amazed. It was like make-believe, only it wasn’t. He was actually controlling the shadows around him.

  Valdorath walked to the boy, saying, “You cannot abandon fear, Shadowling. It is your ultimate defense. The more you feel it in your heart, the more you see it, the safer you will become.”

  Lenthean looked down at his forearm. His tattoo was smoking black smog as if it had recently been on fire; the eye was wreathed in it.

  “I admire you for one thing, Shadowling. Your aspiration. But you cannot deny what you are. That is, if you want to remain safe.” Valdorath placed a hand on Lenthean’s shoulder. “At least use it when you have no other choice.”

  Lenthean wanted to say no, but he continued to listen to the old man’s words.

  “Your father told me a tidbit that may help you,” he said, trudging away and loading his tobacco pipe. Lighting it, he said, “You will be able to see what people fear the most if you dig deep enough into your thoughts. That’s when you can control other people’s shadows. And when you can pull from the fears of those of the fallen that have died before you—you know, the dead—you can open portals an
d summon demons. There is an extra step or so involved, but you get the idea.”

  “Where do demons come from?”

  “They’re from the shadow dimension, only visible to those in the underworld, you, the God of Shadows, and ofttimes children.”

  “Why children?”

  “Children are afraid of the dark… Have you ever wondered why, Lenthean? The monsters in the dark. They are closer to their pre-mortal bodies than we. They have visions of what they remember of the dark. And those monsters are in fact demons.”

  Lenthean remembered the God of Shadows mentioning this exact thing. Valdorath puffed smoke from his pipe. “That’s what Quynn told me, but no matter.” Valdorath smiled. “Try some more strikes,” he said. “Those moves alone will save you, so practice.”

  Lenthean eyed his tattoo; it was no longer smoking. He nodded to Valdorath, shut his eyes, and continued his practice.

  11: Onward to the City of Darthia

  The next morning, Lenthean readied early, before Valdorath awoke. The sun was still rising as he readied. He put on his brown robe and placed a small pack on Lucy’s saddle. The buckles clacked with noise as he tightened the straps of the pack and the laces on his shoes.

  Valdorath grumbled and sat up from his blanket, which was embedded in the grass. “Where are you going?” he asked.

  “I bid you farewell, Valdorath.” Lenthean extended a hand to shake.

  “What—why?” Valdorath asked, confused.

  “I’m headed for the City of Darthia. Which way is it?”

  “You’re doing what?!” Valdorath exclaimed.

  “I’ve heard all about it in my classes, and some from you too. It sounds a lot better than Der’ Tanel. Everyone seems so traumatized by the place. I want to go speak with the king of Darthia and ask him to end the war with peace negotiations. I’ll be able to now with my new abilities. I’m sure I could leverage a deal.”

  Valdorath burst into hysterical laughter. “First off, it’s the Queen of Darthia. Second, you’re joking, are you not?”

  “No. Darthia once accepted my father, until he made a mistake with the portal. I’m someone different—therefore, they will accept me as a different individual from my father.”

  Valdorath laughed more. “No, no they will not, Shadowling. That demon killed hundreds, if not thousands, in that city. They will not be fond of another Shadow Elementalist marching in demanding to speak to the queen. Especially one of the heritage of Quynn Argerod.”

  “I’m going to stop this fighting with Der’ Tanel, Valdorath. After what I saw in that nightmare, I will be the carrier of the world’s fear, but I will never use it on anyone. I want everyone to be at peace, and not to go through things like that.”

  “Lenthean, you’re being unrealistic…”

  “I’m so sick of people telling me I can’t do something, Valdorath. That was my entire life in Fredrickstown. And now, I have the power to do something about this problem in the world. And I’m going to fix it!”

  Valdorath shook his head with jaw dropped in disbelief. “What in the name of the goddess drove Arrogan to pick you as his new elementalist? This is not at all how he operates…”

  Lenthean answered, “Probably to further harass me, the bullied boy from Fredrickstown. To get his little enjoyment out of corrupting even those who want to be good in this world. But do you know what? I’m going to act while I still can, before I turn into that twisted being he probably has in store for me.”

  “I mean, you’re not going in with a plan? You just intend to march in there without any backup route? A Plan B? Plan C? You can’t seriously expect to waltz in and have everything go smoothly, you know…”

  Lenthean retaliated, “That’s not important. I just need to speak with her. And Arrogan the God of Shadows can’t stop me.”

  “You know he can hear anything you say, right? Even your thoughts?”

  “I don’t care. Tell me which way to Darthia.”

  “It’s southeast, but—”

  “Thank you for your training. Goodbye.” Lenthean shook Valdorath’s hand then stormed off as the early morning sun rose.

  The sun’s warmth met Lenthean’s face. He would miss Lucy—he would even miss Valdorath, the stubborn old man. But this was his destiny. He could feel it in his bones. Never had he felt such drive to be somewhere, to do something, and this was not something he could ignore. He had spent his entire life wanting to make a difference in the world. For the first time ever, he felt he could.

  “WAIT!” Lenthean heard. He stopped. Valdorath rode up on Lucy.

  “I’ll take you there on Lucy. It’ll take at least five days if you walk.”

  “You won’t stop me from speaking to the queen?”

  “I would not advise speaking to her, Lenthean; it could get you imprisoned—or executed. But I won’t stop you. I have warned you plenty regarding this decision, so I have no guilt if you fail in your quest.”

  Lenthean looked up at Valdorath momentarily before climbing aboard Lucy. Clicking his heels into the mane, Valdorath traveled southeast toward the City of Darthia, capital of the allied forces in the war.

  ---

  An entire day had passed, and the landscape had progressively become more mountainous and green. The horizon was orange as the sun began to slip behind the snow-dipped mountain ranges. Shortly ahead, no more than one hour on horseback, was what looked like a massive city at the bottom of the rolling, green hills. It was much much bigger than Denduthal, the city Lenthean had seen just a week earlier.

  “There she lay, Lenthean. Darthia is much more elegant than I remember it.”

  The rooftops were an array of colors like a rainbow, structures tall, wide, short, big, you name it. The walls were thick with a massive front gate and towers with streaming flags atop them, glimmering in the light of the setting sun. It was a magnificent sight indeed.

  They pressed forward, and as that long-traveled hour passed, they approached the massive wooden gates of the city at slightly past dusk.

  Lucy neighed and reversed from the gates, which were shut. Hoods on, the two men peered upward to the wall, only to find armored guards gazing downward to them. “Who goes there?!” they shouted.

  Valdorath paused. Too long. He hesitated to speak. “Uhm…” he stammered. Lenthean threw his hood back and climbed off Lucy.

  “I need to speak to your queen!” Lenthean shouted. More soldiers gathered at the top of the wall, muttering and whispering things to one another.

  “What is your business?!” they demanded.

  “It is in regard to the war!” Lenthean shouted at them. They continued to murmur to one another. Lenthean could make out only a word here and there. He assumed his black hair and eye marking would reveal his identity to them. It proved to be doing so.

  “Are you the New Inheritance?!”

  Valdorath sat on Lucy and watched. His grey eyes almost glowed under his dark hood.

  “Yes! And I have with me The Old Inheritance too!”

  “BOY!” Valdorath barked.

  The armor was clanking as various guards were scurrying on top of the wall. The wooden gates began to open.

  “You’re going to get us both imprisoned!” Valdorath warned. Hundreds of guards pulled the gate open by chains and pullies. The civilians walking the cobblestone streets turned their attention to the three standing at the entrance of their home city. The bustling night metropolis stopped all trades and conversations, looking at Lenthean’s black hair and eye marking. Guards flooded the three with polearms to surround Lenthean, Valdorath, and Lucy.

  “Off your horse!” a guard ordered. Valdorath tossed his hood back and stepped off Lucy, revealing his white eye marking. The audience began to talk among themselves, the volume increased with dialogue and concern.

  A soldier hastily stepped through the soldiers surrounding them. He removed his helmet, silver with a white feather. What was unveiled was a sandy-colored man with a friendly face. His hair was auburn, and his eyes were green.
“I am Prince Gael. Prince of this fine City of Darthia. We’re glad to have you, New Inheritance.” He motioned to walk with Lenthean. Valdorath watched in disbelief.

  Lenthean looked to Valdorath and said, “Perhaps this will work after all.” He began to walk with Prince Gael down the city streets as the audience watched in silence. Valdorath pulled Lucy along too. Lenthean looked around; they were city folk. Their dress was nicer than that in Fredrickstown—much nicer. There were larger families, too. Mothers held onto their children’s hands, or fathers stepped in front of their children, unsure of what to make of the situation.