by Ali House
When her mothers were finally ready, the three of them left the house. Normally one or both of them would walk Kendra to school, but she wasn’t going there today. There wasn’t going to be any school today and probably not tomorrow or the next day, or the day after. Her classmates would be staying at home or going to a neighbour’s house with other kids, while their parents left to protect the island. Some of her classmates were happy to not have classes, but Kendra didn’t mind school. Sometimes it was boring, but she never felt bad about going there. Normally she wouldn’t feel bad about visiting Pitor, but today she knew that once they reached his house her mothers would go away, and she didn’t want that to happen.
Her mothers had spent days trying to explain what would happen today, but they weren’t very good at it. They knew when they’d be meeting up with the rest of the army, but they couldn’t tell her when they’d be back. They knew that they’d be protecting the part of the island where the bridge to Stanton used to be, but didn’t know if they’d have to actually fight. They didn’t know how much fighting Fitz would have to do once he reached Stanton or when he’d come back, or how long the fighting would last or if they’d win. All this uncertainty was making Kendra more nervous than she’d ever felt before.
The short walk to her uncles’ house was usually pleasant, but today it felt like there was a dark shadow over everything. The streets were quieter, and there were large tents around the island that rose higher than the houses and made her feel like she was in some kind of box. Even the bright blue sky didn’t look the same.
Pitor and Fitz were waiting for them outside their home. Pitor was dressed casually in a button-up shirt and jeans, but Fitz was wearing the same dark blue uniform as her mothers, and his green hair had been neatly combed back. They walked down the front steps to greet Kendra, and their footsteps seemed heavier than usual. Kendra didn’t pay attention as the four of them talked. She just wanted this fight to be over and her mothers and Fitz to be home and for everything to go back to the way it was.
“Be a brave girl for Mommy,” Alix said, kneeling down and kissing Kendra on her cheek.
Kendra promised she would, but the unhappy look never left her face. She didn’t want to be brave -- she wanted everything to go back to normal.
“You always have to be up at the front...” Pitor said quietly, entwining his fingers with Fitz’s.
“You always say you love my strength of conviction,” Fitz replied.
Pitor smiled in spite of himself. “You always know the wrong thing to say.”
Fitz returned the smile and kissed him. “I’ll be back soon.”
“You’d better.”
Jaya playfully mussed up Kendra’s hair. “Keep Uncle Pitor company until we get back, sweetie. We don’t want him to be sad that he can’t join us, so you have to take care of him, okay?”
Kendra fought hard to keep the frown on her face. “Yes, Mama.”
“Good girl,” Jaya said, kissing her on top of her head.
Alix gave Kendra once last hug before standing up. “We’ll be back as soon as possible.”
Pitor held onto his husband’s hand until Fitz finally had to leave, their arms stretching out so that they could maintain contact for as long as possible. He watched them walk away, and only after they had disappeared from sight did he swallow his fears.
“Would you like to play a game?” he asked Kendra, keeping his voice light and playful.
Kendra shook her head. She was still staring down the street, where her mothers had been. “When will they be back?”
“I don’t know.”
“I want them back now.”
He put his hand on her shoulder. “Your mothers have gone away many times before. This is no different.”
“But it is,” she said, her voice shaking.
Pitor knelt down in front of Kendra. “I know that this is scary, but I’m not worried. Do you know why?”
She shook her head again.
“I know that they’re going to be okay, because our side has a secret weapon.” He smiled brightly, pushing away all his doubts and fears. “Do you remember the story we read about the Six-Elemental, and how strong he was and how he could use all six elements and not just one?”
She nodded. “But I thought he wasn’t real.”
“That’s what we all thought. But then we found someone just like him, who can control all six elements. The good news is that she’s on our side. She’s going to fight for us and make sure that all of our families and friends come home safe.”
Kendra’s grey eyes widened. “Really? She’s going to protect my Mama and Mommy and Fizy?”
He nodded. “So, you don’t have to worry. Magnus Erikson has been preparing for this battle for a long time, and with the Six-Elemental on our side, we’ll easily win this fight.”
Chapter 4
Hours after the fighting began, the war was over.
Magnus Erikson had given the Cambrian Forces enough time to set up barricades around Stanton, but their preparation was in vain, just as he’d predicted. After the Six-Elemental used the power of Earth to create a bridge, Erikson successfully led the Tecken Army onto Stanton and began gaining ground at an alarming rate. The Forces tried their best to hold the Army back, but the Six-Elemental was stronger than they had anticipated, using her powers to burst through their barricades as if they’d been made of wet paper.
It was looking as if Erikson would have Stanton under his control by the end of the day. From there, it was only a matter of time before he took control of the other islands and finally achieved what his ancestors had so long desired – control over the entire Segment.
Then the tide suddenly turned. The Six-Elemental disappeared from the battle and before long, rumours started spreading that she had changed sides. Neither side knew what to believe, but everyone knew that whichever side she was on would win this war. The Tecken Army wondered what could have happened to make her change her mind halfway through the fight, and if it was possible that she had turned traitor after she’d fought so hard for them. The Forces wondered if this was a ploy by Erikson to give them false hope and make them drop their guard. They knew that the Six-Elemental had been on their side before she was abducted and brainwashed by Erikson’s army, but they’d also watched her take down many of their soldiers. As helpful as it would be to have her power back on their side and away from Erikson, they knew that it would take a lot of effort to break the hold Tecken had on her mind.
When the Six-Elemental finally appeared, she destroyed one of the Force’s barricades, allowing the Tecken Army to advance further, and proving that she was still on Erikson’s side. The Army could smell their triumph in the air as they surged forward with renewed energy, ready to conquer this island. The Forces were dismayed, but they were determined to never give up, preparing to fight until the bitter end.
But just as quickly as Tecken’s triumph began, it ended. It had all been a ruse – the Six-Elemental had in fact switched sides and was working with the Forces again. She used the destruction of the barricade to gain Tecken’s trust, getting close enough to Erikson to murder him and end the Erikson lineage. After that, she went back to the main fight and collapsed the ground underneath herself and the Tecken Army, taking them down singlehandedly.
When the dust cleared, the war was over. Magnus Erikson had been defeated.
The Cambrian Forces had won.
Chapter 5
When Pitor picked up Kendra after school, there was a scowl on her face. Usually she was happy to see him, but even after Pitor smiled and said hello, the scowl remained.
“Bad day?” he asked gently.
“I don’t like it anymore,” she huffed. “Too many changes.”
Pitor made a sympathetic sound and gently ruffled her hair. She scowled even harder, and the look on her face made him laugh out loud. His laughter caused her to laugh and the scowl finally disappeared.
“Let’s talk about it at home, okay?” Pitor said.
&
nbsp; “Fine...”
As they walked, he tried to keep Kendra distracted by talking about anything but school. Although this was supposed to be a new time of peace and understanding, he knew how dangerous it could be to voice an opinion against the changes being made. The official line from the Inter-Segment Security offices was that they were not here to punish anyone, but Pitor had no doubt that they were taking down the names of anyone displaying resistance.
Pitor knew enough about military strategy to prepare himself for the inevitable appearance of the Inter-Segment Security team, the government that ruled each island and reported back to the Council of Twelve. The very first thing the ISS did was to reclaim the building in the centre of the island and set up their headquarters inside.
Pitor was glad that the residents of Tecken had been forewarned of the battle’s loss, as it had given them time to secure important items that would have surely be destroyed by the ISS. This warning had come from Akola Allen, the current Leader of Tecken. She had been one of Erikson’s most trusted soldiers and witnessed the Six-Elemental’s betrayal and Erikson’s final moments. She knew that without him, it would only be a matter of time before the war ended and the ISS showed up, so she returned to Tecken, choosing to avoid a pointless battle in favour of preparing the island’s inhabitants for what was to come.
As months went on, the ISS followed almost every step that Pitor thought they would. Admittedly, he was a bit surprised when they appointed Allen to be the Leader of Tecken, but there were certain advantages to the decision. Not only was she Tecken-born, which showed that the ISS wasn’t keen on taking complete control of the island, but she was one of the few people on Tecken who would deign to deal with them.
Although Pitor understood war and its inevitable aftermath, Kendra was a child who didn’t. She didn’t quite understand what was happening or why, but she knew that things were changing, and she did not like it one bit. His assignment to look after her meant that he had to stop her from voicing her opinions in public and getting put on a watch-list. It would have been easier if she had been a teenager, but she was only six years old.
When they reached his house, Pitor led her into the kitchen and poured two glasses of apple juice.
“Now, tell me what happened at school,” he said, handing her one of the glasses.
The scowl returned to Kendra’s face. “I wanted to read the story of how Titus blew up the bridges and made the island safe for us, but it’s not in the library. Now there are a bunch of stupid stories about other islands, but I don’t want to read those! I wanna read about us!”
Pitor put a serious look on his face. “I understand exactly how you’re feeling.”
“You do?” she asked.
“Of course. A lot has changed in the past month.”
The ISS had started removing books, songs, and movies that were Erikson-related, in favour of bringing in items that promoted inclusion and peace. The official word was that anything that did not promote hate or violence would be returned, but Pitor knew that most of those items would never see the light of day again.
“I don’t like it. I want things back the way they were.” She angrily crossed her arms.
“A lot of us feel that way, but unfortunately that’s not going to happen any time soon.”
“Why?”
Pitor took in a deep breath. “Do you remember after your Mommy and Mama came back from fighting, how we explained to you that there were going to be many changes coming soon and that we all needed to be patient?”
“Can’t we just not change anything?”
He shook his head. “No, because Magnus Erikson is not in charge anymore. Someone else is our Leader, and she has to be nice to the people making the changes. If she’s not nice, then they’ll remove her and put one of their own people in her place. And we don’t want that. If that happened, things would get even worse.”
“That’s stupid.”
He nodded, taking a drink of juice to buy some time as he thought of an appropriate reply. “It’s how things are now,” he said gently. “We lost the fight. The people who won get to make up the rules, and we have to follow them.”
Kendra sighed. “Why not fight again until we win?”
“Because the Six-Elemental is helping the other side now, and as long as she’s with them, we can’t win. She’s too powerful.”
“She’s stupid. I hate her.”
“So do a lot of us...” Pitor took another drink and waited as she tried to process everything he’d told her.
“I don’t like it,” she grumbled. “I wanna read what I wanna read.”
“Well, luckily I can help you with that,” he smiled.
Her eyes opened wide. “How?”
“I have some of those stories you like right here, at home. If you want to read them, you can do so whenever you come over. And if there are any stories I don’t have, let me know and I’ll try to find them.”
“Yay!” she clapped her hands in excitement.
“But, first,” he leaned closer to her, “you must promise me two things.”
She settled down and her eyes widened with curiosity.
“First, you must never tell anyone else about the books I have – not even your mothers. This has to be our secret. If the wrong people found out about these stories, then they would come in here and take all of them away, and we’d never be able to read them ever again.”
“I promise.” She nodded emphatically and made a cross motion over her heart.
“And secondly, you must try to control your feelings. I know that this is a difficult and scary time, but getting angry will solve nothing. If you feel angry about something, put those feelings aside until you talk to me.”
“…Okay…” she promised, not quite as enthusiastically as before.
“Good!” Pitor’s smile appeared again, brighter than before. “Now let’s go get that book for you!”
He led her upstairs, to his office. Letting go of her hand, he walked over to the bookshelf, took a box from the bottom, and opened it. As he dug through the books inside, Kendra wandered around the room, picking up random objects and examining them before putting them back down.
“Do you ever get angry?” Kendra asked.
“Sometimes,” he answered honestly. “But I know that it isn’t helpful, so I try to turn that anger into something useful. Like collecting all the books they don’t want us to have and keeping them safe.”
Kendra went back to her exploring. A few seconds later, Pitor found the book and lifted it triumphantly out of the box, but before he could announce his success, Kendra spoke up again.
“Do you ever get sad?”
He turned around and saw that she was holding a wooden frame. He didn’t have to see the picture inside to know that it was of his wedding day to Fitz. It showed the two of them standing together, arms around each other as the sun set in the background. His reply caught in his throat, and he could feel a tightness around his heart that appeared every time he thought of his late husband. He couldn’t help remembering how he had sat with Kendra and her mothers, waiting for Fitz to come home from the war, watching the minutes turn into hours, knowing deep inside that something wasn’t right.
“Sometimes,” he answered quietly. “Most times.”
“I miss him,” Kendra said, tears welling up in her eyes.
Pitor put the book down and went over to her, wrapping her in a hug. “I know. But we should be thankful that we had as much time with him as we did.”
“But I wanted more.”
Tears began to fill his own eyes. “Me too, Kendra. Me too.”
Chapter 6
The sigh Kendra let out was loud enough for Pitor to hear from the kitchen. He put down his pen and walked over to the doorway between the kitchen and living room. For the past half hour, Kendra had been lying on the couch, staring at the ceiling, moping. When he’d asked her mothers if she could stay with him while they went away, it had been in the hopes of discussing something i
mportant with her, but her current attitude wasn’t encouraging.
“I’m old enough to stay home alone by myself,” she said, talking to him for the first time since she’d arrived at his house.
Pitor laughed to himself and leaned against the wall. “Is this your way of telling me that you’re too cool to hang out with your uncle?”
“No, I just...” She sat up and looked at him over the back of the couch. “It’s just one weekend. It’s not like I’d burn the house down or anything.”
Pitor put an overly serious expression on his face. “I didn’t want to say this, but I begged your mothers to let you stay here this weekend. I’m such an old, lonely man, Kendra, and the only joy I feel is when you visit.” His lower lip trembled, as if he was about to start crying.
Kendra scoffed and rolled her eyes. “You’re such a liar.”
Pitor shrugged off his fake-sadness. “Just trying to make you laugh.”
“Just trying to distract me...” She turned away from him and her gaze fell upon the mantle across the room. It was lined with photo frames, each containing a picture of Fitz, either alone or with Pitor or her mothers or her. In the centre of the frames was a small black box with a polished metal ring resting on top. Guilt started to build up inside of her as she realized that Pitor probably was an old, lonely man who appreciated her visits. “Have you ever thought of getting married again?” she asked him.
He didn’t answer right away, and she was worried that she’d said something inappropriate. She tried to think of something – anything – to say to change the subject.
“Not yet,” Pitor replied, trying to keep his voice light. “Maybe someday – but not yet.”
“But it’s been nine years. Don’t you get...” she trailed off. “Never mind. Forget I asked.”
Pitor walked over to the mantle and picked up one of the frames. It held the first picture he had taken of his late husband, during their third date. Fitz was trying to look alluring but was having a hard time staying serious. It made for an extremely adorable picture.