Young Writers Society

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“Go find the headmaster. Top floor.” Regina ordered Isaac into the lift outside the infirmary.

Isaac felt the clinical treatment from the woman. He was now forced to adapt and follow or risk getting lost in the immense facility. He never saw Regina’s eye contact; her look was to the distant campus interiors.

As the elevator doors closed, the magnetic fields began pulling the confinement up through the levels.

Pain forced through his skull, making Isaac lean on the bars.

‘Regina?’ He thought he saw something around her neck. There was a ring to it.

No, it was the elevator that rang. He had reached the top floor. Lights flooded in from the magnificent city.

Isaac paced himself on the catwalk, suspended within the hexagonal glass walkway. When he looked down, he realized the extent of the campus’s height at the 20th floor.

Spires and towering sprites rose from the central city in the distance while link ways connected buildings. Lining the airways was levitating public transportation, functioning as commuter vehicles for the residents. Isaac could see how the campus branched out into its peripheral domains and sub-facilities.

When he entered the secretary’s office, the first thing that hit him was the smell of the most expensive fragrance. The place was made of high quality marble. Grandness of the royal red carpet led from the entrance to another automated door.

The secretary greeted him and opened the office door. And he entered.

Covered in high textured wooden Teak, the office was lined with highly polished metal pillars. Staircases spiraled up to the second floor while the sweet and crisp spring fragrance complimented the crystal windows above. Plants and paintings gave a gentle touch to the atmosphere. Not a spot, or a layer of dust accumulated anywhere.

Isaac’s feet stopped several meters from the desk. He saw the headmaster facing away, taking sips from his wine glass.

“Sit.” He ordered.

The young man obeyed.

Gail had brown hair and the seasoned warrior’s look. Creases lining his frown made Isaac think of scars fought both physically and socially. Yet none can compare to his terrifying eyes. He saw a slight pink hue in replacement of his pupils.

“I understand you’ve been through a bad case of coma,” he referred to his tablet, “you had amnesia and that pathetic eye replacement.” He did not even look at Isaac. “You’ve forgotten me haven’t you?”

Isaac’s sweaty fingers dug into the armrests, unsure if he should answer.

“I am a Foresight, I read people and predict their next actions.” He turned slightly, giving the young one a glimpse of terror.

The young man remained silent.

“I know your father.” The words hit Isaac like a dagger. “I was born an Elemental here on this planet before traveling to Earth to work with him.” He placed down the glass of wine.

Eyes tensed, lips forced. Isaac’s blood pressure rose, the fainting sensation came back. Moreover, the principal’s eyes were intense.

“Don’t feel too bad,” he turned to the window, “he was a good man, who showed me the Earth you were from before his…solemn departure.” He turned halfway to the student, his eyes squinted: “you’re nothing like your father.”

Reality became hard for Isaac. Now, going back to sleep was a better option.

Pacing pass the young man, Gail placed a hand on this shoulder, “good to know you’re afraid. You’ll serve and obey what you fear.” Isaac’s eyes were fixated, his lungs slowed, chest muscles less obvious in contraction. The light from the campus pierced into the office, silhouetting the two men. “We, who dwell here, are Elementals.”

Gail watched several Elementals through his office window, gaining a view down on the lower common halls. These were Elementals. Their powers to control the elements of the earth had forced policies of isolation on them. About a thousand moved along the lower floors alone, not counting those having lessons or resting in their rooms.

“We are seen as a dangerous group by the government. Yet you are here, privileged to be protected by us.” Gail looked at Isaac. “Elements of earth, fire, wind, water, gravity, lightning and ice.” Suddenly, Gail pushed Isaac across the room with a surge of gravity to the desk. “Usually orphans or runaway kids come to us, and I always tell them that to keep their eyes opened. Because only then can elements manifest, if not, then we’re like any other human.

Isaac burned with the urge to ask a question, but he trembled.

“Come on, speak up.”

“What about you?”

“I’m a Compound Elemental, of both lightning and gravity. Anymore questions?” A tone of sarcasm.

Isaac still shocked by his chair shifting across the floor by itself, “no sir...”

Gail was however getting frustrated by Isaac’s quiet and introverted attitude. “Are you just going to sit there like a fool?”

“No sir.”

“THEN GET UP!” he yelled. Suddenly an invisible force pushed the chair back, inducing Isaac to stand after he had stumbled backwards. The headmaster turned to the staircase, leading to the second level of his office, “get up here,” then with a mumble, “what a dope.”

Gail watched the city’s spacious skylines and suburbs before sensing Isaac’s entry. “I explain these things for your safety. You need to know what’s happening. Or rather, what will happen to you. Maybe your amnesia might get better.” He turned and looked from the corner of his eyes. “There is rebellion. I feel that the scales of the world have not yet been balanced.

“To ensure security around the world,” Gail tapped on his computer, projectingahologram of words and texts, “the phirans created the Horn of Peace, harnessing the magical coherence of this planet. But now it has changed.” The horrific image of a horn appeared, crafted with the lines of a pentagram and the face of a devil.

The headmaster directed Isaac to a new chapter, “news of the Horn sent messages across the world at breakneck speed. A new world era has begun.” Gail’s words sent echoes through Isaac’s head, “till now the prophecies never die. The book of revelations writes that fire will destroy a third of the world during the end times. Now, many predictions resemble the Holy Book. One of them foretell a new Doom Horn rising with the help of a human with red hair,” birds scattered from the railing near by, “you fear death,” Gail had read Isaac’s emotions, “Is there a red man familiar to the one I spoke of?”

A trigger went off in Isaac's mental realms, this time another piece of his memory shot back. He saw himself at the cliffs once again, bracing himself in the torrents as a red silhouette emerged from the mountain mist.

Too fast. “No,” his jaw was trembling, his answer hesitant.

Lying was a crime to Gail, yet he did not punish the young one. Instead he tapped on the holographic keys, sending the next set of instructions to Regina, “just as I thought.”

***

He stepped out of the office, finding Regina talking to another man. “Isaac, this is Sage Lionheart, your fighting instructor.”

Sage had spontaneously extended a hand of greeting and Isaac felt compelled to raise his in compliance.

“Ah Isaac!” Sage then gave a pat and a firm assurance on his shoulder. “It’s great to see you alive and kicking.”

The moment he took the hand of Isaac, the latter could feel the immensity of Goliath in him, cupping tightly yet perfectly around his palm. Yet there was a certain harmony that played when he spoke and moved.

“Sir.” Isaac acknowledged with a fearful lowering of his head. His eyes fell to his sharp beard and moustache.

“Boy Gail really scared the hell out of you.” He joked, knowing that such a level of respect deserves notice.

“We should get going.” For a moment, Isaac felt the subtle scorn from Regina. He saw her glare at him from the cutting edge of her eyes, yet they were showing signs of fatigue.

“Indeed, the rest must be excited to see you back again.” Sage turned around and led Isaac down the stairs to the main areas.

For one the latter made no noise, no sound when the ‘lion’ gave him instructions along the way; when he told Isaac to look at a direction he obeyed. When he called him to catch up, silent compliance followed.

Sage had a certain musicality in his stride that Isaac could sense. It echoed the muzak that was playing in the campus interiors; like the innocent yet firm voices of a psalmed choir.

Pillars of strong marble towered at consecutive junctures, marking the path to a different zone within the hallways. Each mighty column, like Sage’s long curled mane, had a Corinthian spiral in solace at its top and on each other. Isaac craned his neck up to observe the warm entry of the sun’s rays coming from the paneled windows. Light was reflecting off the golden linings of the upper floors, enveloping him in the feeling of a fortified citadel.

Isaac’s marvel at the structure soon became fascination when he saw Sage bending down to pick up a furry feline along the way. It looked like a stray, yet the instructor merely gave a pat before setting it down at a nearby fountain.

This happened a few times when several more cats were found following him. He however did not ignore his conversation with Regina who continued to talk like normal!

Isaac frowned at the peculiar setting as Sage set down another cat in the bushes, paired with an artificial waterfall. Passing students had greeted him along the way, even while a cat was relieving itself in his brawny arms.

Isaac began to feel the distance Regina was imposing on him. Yet he remained passive by following them with a lowered head, his back slightly bent forward. It was not long before they arrived at the lecture hall.

Sage told the young lad to find a seat. Lining the place were individual computer tablets, sharable by several students. “Third row to the right, that empty one,” Sage instructed. Stares and whispers echoed, giving a sense of alienation when people turned their eyeballs at Isaac, glaring like some eccentric.

Then, collision! By accident, he bumped into a man. He apologized, before everyone broke out in laughter. Isaac never knew why they found it hilarious, was he an estranged person who commonly makes mistakes? Especially stupid ones?

Regina responded by looking down, covering her head with her palm.

“That’s probably the first time I have seen him make people laugh.” The ‘lion’ said flatly.

Isaac could hardly pay attention when Regina began her briefing; his mind was blank as his headache persisted. His neck muscles contracted from the uneasiness, bringing his eyes across the class, to the doorway. There, he found someone talking to Sage, a man with long red hair, fair skin and a massive body structure. It was impossible; his eyes were the color of hell’s ashes, yet his face bore a beautiful androgynous quality. The red man at the cliffs?

But before the meeting ended, a sharp stab of pain seared through his head, Regina’s voice faded. Then on cue, Isaac collapsed as soon as the students stood. Regina and Sage saw him; the students behind could not ignore, “hey you okay man?”

The young man had lost it; he passed out.