Chapter 21: Aftermath

After the Dragon’s duel ended, I remember volunteering to investigate the site of the epic battle. We approached carefully; the center of the fight having been turned into a city-sized crater. And at the center of the crater rested the Great White Dragon, still recovering from the trials of the conflict.

“OUCH! Hey nurse, could you try not to kill me before you heal me?”

“Oh, stop being an infant, Ryan,” retorted Éclair.

Eramar pretended to watch with only mild interest, but after half of the things he heard that Ryan did, he was anything but uninterested.

He’s still got a way to go before he’ll catch up to the others, but all things considered, this boy may have just as much potential as Leon ... perhaps more.

Speaking of Leon, the boy seemed unusually cryptic, even more than the norm. Whatever transpired between Leon and the traitor, Hamma Steel, it had shaken him. At least Ryan seemed to be back to his normal, obnoxious self. Eramar missed that about him, although he would literally pull out his own tongue before he admitted as much. Ever since the business with Tork started, Ryan had been acting a lot like ... well, Leon.

Ryan and Leon were on completely different spectrums, and yet, they did share certain qualities, rage being foremost among those qualities. A not altogether pleasant observation, but one which Eramar hoped might become the common ground for the two young Elementals in the future. Though, given their polar opposite personalities, it seemed unlikely.

But then stranger things have happened. Even now I can see from the expressions on everyone’s faces that they have already accepted Ryan; even Éclair has, despite her annoyance. You should be proud, Richard. Even if it’s not what you wanted for him, I think you would be happy to see the man your son is becoming. Not to say that the little idiot doesn’t have a long way to go. After all, he takes after you, old friend.

Ryan sat in a hospital bed next to Thomas, who was positively giddy at hearing all the feats of heroism that his mentor had displayed in the battle.

Honestly, one Ryan Uruks is quite enough to deal with.

Éclair had already removed the ice daggers from Ryan’s back. Being psionically crafted icicles, they took longer to melt than regular ice. Miraculously, Hamma missed Ryan’s vital areas such as the kidneys, lungs, liver, and a dozen other places that would have resulted in permanent injury or worse.

It’s not just that though. The boy’s regenerative abilities are off the charts ... inhuman. Of course, Ryan is not completely human, but still, I get the feeling there is more to it than that. Not even Saurians recuperate that fast.

Tork’s injuries were serious, but not as severe as Ryan’s - something to be expected with him being a Dragon and possessing scales even harder than a Saurian’s. Tork sat on a bed in the corner of the room and didn’t say a word. Eramar guessed that he still hadn’t told Ryan about his past, or at least not all of it.

Leon leaned his back against a pillar in his usual nonchalant, cooler-than-school manner. Rachel, while her step-sister preoccupied herself with Ryan, tried to get Leon’s attention with idle chit-chat about the weather. He only nodded absently as if his mind were elsewhere; perhaps an accurate assessment taking his telepathy in mind.

Ryan kept complaining to Éclair about her horrible bedside manner, and Éclair replied by saying that she knew a thousand different methods to paralyze a man for life with a few quick thrusts of her fingers.

To this, Ryan replied in awe, “That’s awesome!”

Finally, Ryan’s attention focused on Eramar, then Leon, and back to Eramar. Eramar had been waiting for this. He needed to start being honest with Ryan on Elemency and all its applications. He’d been worried about overwhelming the boy, so he gave him menial tasks that didn’t require much physical or mental exertion ... but now, Eramar felt confident Ryan was ready for the next level.

With any luck, I’ll have him at First-Level of mastery within the year. It’ll be a long shot considering that most require a much longer period of time to make the transition from Grunt to First. Even Leon needed at least half a year. But maybe after hearing about his recent accomplishments, the council will approve my plan. First to answer his questions, and then to bring him to a point of understanding on how to progress further. But knowing Ryan, easier said than done.

“Hey, Eramar, I’ve got some questions for you,” said Ryan.

“I thought you might.”

Ryan was equal parts anger and curiosity. “I want to know if you knew about Hamma Steel the same as Leon.”

“Yes,” replied Eramar.

“And you didn’t think to arrest him, or to even tell anyone about it, like ... I don’t know ... your pupil! Ouch! Damn it, woman!” Ryan tried to squirm out of bed, but Éclair put him back with a shove.

“My name is Éclair, not woman. Now, hold still before I give you a real injury, you ninny,” threatened Éclair, her fury a match for Ryan’s.

Slowly, Ryan complied.

After Éclair had calmed Ryan down, Eramar drew in a deep breath to explain. “First of all, what I’m about to tell you is classified, and was not meant to reach your attention through any channel. So I must request for you to keep what you hear a secret. That goes for everyone in this room.”

Eramar looked around the room until everyone nodded. Not that any of them would remember this conversation unless given explicit instructions by the memory unit of the Mental Division, and that would depend on how things went.

“Secondly, I did what I did because I believed that it was in your best interest as well as the Ministry of Fire’s best interests. You can judge for yourself whether I was right or wrong; however, I do not regret my actions, and would do so again if necessary.”

Silence settled between the pair. “Go on,” said Ryan finally, his voice fierce and sure.

“I admit that I suspected Hamma’s intentions for quite some time,” admitted Eramar. “For the past few years, Steele has managed to circumvent telepathic checkups from the Mental Division. He always seemed to come up with perfectly reasonable excuses for putting off the checkups. A disaster on some deep space assignment. Last-minute changes to his duty roster. Once or twice could be innocent, but repeated behavior of avoiding psychic screenings usually indicates an Elemental has gone rogue and switched to the Mystic’s side. The fact that the disappearances coincided with this strange behavior is what really got our attention. However, he disproved this growing theory by getting a telepathic screening just a few months ago. But he didn’t count on our persistence.

“Though he passed the screening, revealing no malevolent thoughts or memories, our telepaths felt that he was holding something back somehow. They could tell that he possessed special training with blocking mind reading, much more so than is required for an Elemental of his rank. That led them to believe that he was holding back information. A more in-depth screening of his mind could’ve led to brain damage, so they considered that too drastic without solid proof. That’s why I had Leon tailing him since he’s set to join the Mental Division one day. Besides, Steele was always careful around older Elementals, but he never showed the same caution with the younger, lower-ranked Elementals.”

Eramar then spread his arms, as if wrapping up. “So that about sums it up. We never had concrete evidence to implicate him; he was simply too careful. His mind was well guarded, and he always managed an alibi for every disappearance that has happened recently. He even avoided or circumvented our surveillance system, such as when he knocked out our sensors and cameras in the area where he set off the bomb and in the training arena. He may not have been the most effective of fighters, but he did cover his tracks fairly well.

“One of the most sacred laws of the Ministry of Fire is to never accuse a comrade of betrayal without decisive proof. To even spread rumors is considered an offense. As much as I may have wanted to, I could not arrest him without cause, nor inform you beforehand. If I had, you might have gone to the council without evidence, and such an offense is punishable by expulsion.”

Eramar paused, appraising the room to be sure everyone had time to process the information. His voice became darker as he continued.

“There’s nothing more sacred than the bond of love and loyalty that we share as members of the Ministry of Fire, and anyone who threatens that bond must be dealt with. Simply put, we are very prideful, and infiltrators are a rarity. That’s not to say that I couldn’t keep my eye on him. It was only a matter of time before he slipped up, which fortunately because of you, he did.

“Hamma started getting sloppy ever since you got here, Ryan. I suspect that this may be because of the recent past you two have shared; however, there may be other factors that we simply haven’t considered yet. It may be coincidence that Hamma made his move on you just as our guys were getting ready to move on him.

“Whatever the case, we just have to wait for the answers to present themselves. After the explosion, no one knew where you were, and Thomas was in critical condition. If you still wish to complain about not being told of a spy in our midst, well then, I’m afraid that your only option is to get the hell over it. You are still just a Grunt. What did you expect, the keys to the Minister’s secret enclave?”

Ryan seemed to consider Eramar’s words carefully. As hot-headed as he could be sometimes, he still thought things through when he needed to. Ryan seemed to calm himself a little, but the fire in his eyes had not completely dimmed as he turned to Leon.

“So what about you, Leon? After you had disabled his bombs, why didn’t you come to help me?”

“I did,” insisted Leon.

Ryan seemed perplexed. “But you must have done it beforehand, otherwise, we would have noticed you?”

“Oh no, I was there while you two were fighting. I noticed the bombs and decided that they were the more serious threat. They were placed in such a way that they threatened the entire infrastructure of the arena. If the explosion didn’t kill us, the fall to the forest floor would.

“More than that, I admit that I was a little curious to see how you would fair. If it seemed like Hamma was about to finish you off, I would have intervened. Fortunately, Hamma seemed intent on taking you alive, right up to the point when he activated the bombs that I had already disarmed.”

Shock and bewilderment overcame Ryan to such a degree that his mouth hung open and his eyes became bigger than marbles. Éclair started laughing and Ryan’s skin changed color slightly.

Just like his dad. When girls were in the room, he’d always turn purple. Still, I think that Ryan is a little better at hiding it.

Trying to compose himself, Ryan said, “How did you cut Hamma open like that? I didn’t see you draw a weapon.”

Leon held out two fingers up to his face. “I used these.”

As Leon spoke, a tiny tornado swirled around his fingertips. As small as it was, Eramar could feel the wind’s convulsing waves from where he stood.

“Wind is not just good for blowing things away,” explained Leon. “If refined to a certain degree, it can have incredible slicing abilities. Observe.”

Leon then demonstrated his power by slicing in half the soda can that Grafael drank from with a quick chop of his hand too fast for Ryan to see, but not for Eramar. The cut had been so clean and so quick that it took a few seconds for the top of the can to slide off. Éclair swooned a bit. Ryan gapped. Grafael looked sad, and at the same time, angry. Eramar had never known Leon to show off like that, but maybe he just wanted to impress Éclair.

“I hope you’re willing to replace that,” growled Grafael, easily crushing his dispatched soda can into the size of a pebble. “Do not think to desecrate a warrior’s beverage without consequence.”

Leon shrugged uncaringly. “I apologize. I was overzealous. Would you forgive me if I promised to bring you another box of Twinkies?”

Grafael seemed to consider as he scratched his chin, then held up two massive fingers, “Two boxes. And this time I want strawberry filling.”

Grafael stomped towards the door, shaking the room with every footstep. Before he left, he turned around, pointing at Ryan. “As for you, your actions were moronic, foolhardy, and vituperative.”

Then Grafael softened a bit before speaking again. “However, you redeemed yourself by seeing through the lies of the cowardly traitor, and defeating him like the motherless dog that he was. In so doing, you aided the Ministry and saved my winged brother from death. For that, you have my thanks.”

Grafael’s face hardened again as he flashed his fangs. “But do not presume that your insolence will go unpunished in the future. It will still be many, many moons before I consider you even remotely close to being my equal. Until then, be wary of me, Ryan Uruks.”

As Grafael turned to leave, he put a comforting hand on Tork’s shoulder, a surprising display of friendship from the usually gruff Saurian. And with that, the doors turned to fire, dissolved, and then reappeared as Grafael vanished behind them.

“Hmm, charming,” said Ryan sarcastically. “I bet he’s just a killer with verbal jousting. Oh, wish to have a friendly chat with Grafael? If he doesn’t like what you say, he’ll bash your head in with his two-ton hammer.” Ryan seemed to consider something. “And how does he have that kind of muscle tone and eat Twinkies? Sometimes, I wish I was a full-blooded Wingless Dragon, but don’t tell him I said that. His head’s already too big for this dome.”

Rachel moaned in annoyance. “My God! Lord Caretaker take me! Does he ever stop talking, Éclair? You would know since you hang out with him the most.”

“I only do it because I have to. The council told me to look after him. He is my protectorate after all,” said Éclair, becoming defensive and slightly embarrassed, as if it would be unthinkable if anyone assumed she didn’t mind Ryan’s company.

“Éclair, you really do care for-AAAAAHHH.” Ryan gasped, suffering a bandage tightened much more than necessary.

“And no, he never stops talking like this,” answered Éclair, glaring at Ryan.

Ryan turned slowly towards Eramar. “You’ve been keeping things about Elemency from me, haven’t you?”

“What makes you say that?” probed Eramar, hoping Ryan had already put most of the pieces together for himself.

“Firstly, I had no idea that we could control more than one element. Secondly, I’ve had my suspicions for quite some time that there are abilities other than Elemental powers. I confirmed all of this in my battle with Hamma. He had control of not just his main element, mist, but water and ice too. And then he used another ability that I think he called a psionic ability. Somehow, he could sense me in the mist even though it was too thick to see.”

Eramar spread out his hands offhandedly. “He could’ve detected your presence through many different methods. He could have heard your breathing. Put a tracer on you. It’s also possible he could’ve known where you were through the displacement of the mist cloud that he created, much in the same way that a spider detects a fly caught in its web.”

Ryan considered this, and then shook his head.

Eramar smiled inwardly. There are times when Ryan can’t see past his own nose, and other times when he is as perceptive as a hawk.

“I don’t think that was it. Up to that point, he was pretty confident that he could take me on because of my lack of experience, so I don’t think he would bother putting a tracer on me, even if he had one handy. And to be honest, I don’t think he was skilled enough to pull off those other things that you were talking about.

“Sensing an enemy from where he has made contact in the mist web or being able to hear them from their breathing ... I don’t know how else to explain it. He was good, better than I was ... but he wasn’t that good. Does that make sense?”

Eramar nodded approvingly. “More than you know, Ryan. You are right. Hamma wasn’t skilled enough as an Elemental to sense with his mist powers alone, nor was he experienced enough as an assassin to be able to detect someone simply by their heartbeat. I say that because, according to Leon, you hid your presence and leveled your breathing quite well.”

“Really? I didn’t notice.”

Astounding! He did all that by instinct. He has so much potential ... if he only had a little more knowledge, and brainpower, I could make a legend out of him. But that will still take a lot of work and no small amount of patience.

“Well, you did. And you are right; Hamma was using an ability besides simple control of the elements. He was using a psionic ability to sense your presence. An ability called Trace used by sensory types of the Medical spectrum of psionic abilities. Tracers can enhance their senses well beyond human capacity. Some Tracers focus these abilities into their natural senses such as their eyesight, hearing, or sense of smell. Others have been known to sense the psions of those around them.

“It’s like they have a radar in their head that tells them where other living beings are, how matured their psions are, and sometimes even what nature or psionic abilities that they possess. You see, Ryan, there is much more to Elemency than you have been led to believe. They only teach the basics in the Grunt classes that you are assigned.

“However, we leave it up to the students themselves to discover the secrets of the true Elemental arts. We leave clues and hints here and there, but nothing definite for them to grasp. This is a way of testing a Grunt’s curiosity and capacity to learn.”

Thomas spoke up for the first time. “Oh, sweet! That means I can use this to get ahead in class!”

Eramar turned to Thomas. “I’m afraid that you will have no recollection of this conversation because you didn’t discover it for yourself like Ryan did.”

Thomas crossed his arms with an eight-year-old pout.

Eramar then turned back to Ryan. “You see, Ryan, there are two parts to Elemency. One is the means to influence external things, such as fire, wind, water, and earth; that is to say, things outside your own body. The other part is to influence internal things, that is, forces within your own body.

“As such, the external elements of Psionic Users come from things that the subject has little control over. The factors that contribute most to what element you will use are aspects of your external environment, such as your upbringing, your surroundings, and your family bloodlines. An element is determined by one’s genes, so those with fire like you can only pass down the fire spectrum to future generations.”

A thought occurred seemed to Ryan. “What if I married someone from a different spectrum, like someone who used fire instead of water? Which spectrum would our kids get? Could they get both?”

“If you married someone from a different spectrum, then your offspring could get one or the other. You could have a daughter who gets your fire, or a son who gets the mother’s water. However, a single child cannot have traits of both. Either they would get the fire spectrum, or they’d get the water spectrum. No one is gifted with an element from two separate spectrums.”

Ryan gave a brief glance at Éclair as she continued doctoring him, then turned back to Eramar. No doubt he was indulging in some boyish fantasy of the two of them.

When Eramar had the boy’s full attention again. “The Elemental genes you inherited all combined to give you the natural element of Fire. As such, this will allow you to eventually control all the elements that fall into the fire triad. With enough training, perhaps you will master both lightning and lava. However, this will depend entirely on you. Not every Elemental can master all three elements in their spectrum.”

Ryan considered Eramar’s explanation for a few seconds. “What if someone doesn’t have an element or a psionic ability to inherit? What if someone is born with no Elemental parents?”

“All Elemency is passed down the generations through blood,” answered Eramar. “Every Human Elemental that lives today can trace their lineage back to the original Elementals formed at the foundation of the Empire. Sometimes the trait skips a few generations, so it’s possible to inherit Elemency without Elemental parents. But like I said, there would have to be an Elemental somewhere in the bloodline.

“Now, as for your psionic abilities, the factors that influence this part of your Elemental life are dependent on internal factors, such as your personal preferences. Your personality and unique ways of reasoning determine which psionic ability you will inherit. Though your bloodline can also come into play as well, particularly in the case of those like you with nonhuman blood. Most Demihumans with Elemency inherit abilities in a single spectrum. This means that you have abilities from your Dragon side. Wingless Dragons, as of now, do not have any elements, but they do have psionic abilities, particularly physical-type psionic abilities. These psionic abilities come in many forms and diversities, but we have managed to narrow down at least twelve basic types, just like there are twelve element types.

“These are the twelve psionic types. Beaters for strength. Runners for speed. Defenders for endurance. Tracers for enhanced senses. Healers for tissue regeneration. Shifters for shapeshifting. Hiders for invisibility. Jumpers for those who can teleport like me. Phasers for those who can phase through solid objects. Thinkers for the telepaths. Seers for the few who possess foresight. And Protectors, who possess telekinesis and the ability to create barriers. Out of these twelve types, we have grouped them into four categories just like the elements. This means that when you inherit an ability from one category, then you may eventually control all the abilities from that specific set. If you want to know your category, you are the physical-type, particularly a beater, giving you enhanced strength. One day, you may inherit the powers of a Runner and a Defender, granting incredible speed and near invulnerability.”

From the quizzical expression that so often clouded over his simple features, Eramar doubted Ryan had a full understanding of the lecture.

He’s Richard’s son alright. A lot of potential, but not much brainpower. No need to worry though, at least not yet.

“The point from all this is that there is much more to Elemency than you have been led to believe, and infinitely more than my brief explanation covered. The possibilities of Elemency are infinite, with a limitless range of abilities and preferences for you to master, depending on your will and your curiosity.”