Chapter One – The Meeting
It was warm, the day the council meeting was held.
Well. That was to be expected, seeing that it had been warm on Lorien for hundreds of years now. Many people claimed that Lorien was perfect; and it was, to an extent. But what people seemed to have forgotten was that the planets past was far from being perfect. There had once been war, destruction, and death at every corner. Disease and starvation had ravaged the planet, scarring it beyond recognition. There was once a time when Lorien was on the brink of dying, and if it had not been for the discovery of the Elders, the planet would have died long ago, adopting a state quite similar to that of the present Mogadore, which resides in a state of ruin.
Lorien had had its dark days, that was for sure. The Elders had emerged at what could be called Loriens' darkest age: a time when the sky was dark and the sound of the dying pierced the air. There were ten in total, each with their own story to tell. From childhood, they could tell they were different. They were strong, stronger than the other people they knew. In their teen years, their lives changed when they began to develop superpower like abilities, which would in time come to be known as legacies.
The oldest and first of the Elders was Loridas Flue, who found at the age of seven that he could control his age, and later – among other legacies – developed the ability of telepathy.
The second of the Elders was Wayla Carpe, a wise woman who could heal the deadliest of injuries, breathe underwater, and see clearly in the darkest night.
The third of the Elders was Rin Portou, a tough but kind man who could bend the elements to his will, and turn invisible whenever the need should arise.
The fourth of the Elders was Alanna Turret, who had visions of the future, and was able to create duplicates of herself.
The fifth Elder was Pittacus Lore, and he was by far one of the strongest of the group, with a collection of every legacy they knew of.
The sixth Elder was Iva Rush, who was able to shape shift into anything she desired, and teleport from one place to another.
The seventh Elder was Setrakus Ra, who was able to shape shift into any intelligent living being and could create a rock-like substance which could cover his enemies.
The eighth Elder was Trip Murra, who could defy gravity and communicate with animal life forms.
The ninth Elder was Isis Olova, who could read minds and could form fire-protective light in her hands.
The tenth Elder was Carlos Ingis, who could cause earthquakes and change his size.
Each had been born on a different section of the planet, and each were brought together by fate. Each believed they were unique, and none knew why they were chosen, but all had a role to play in the planets great history. As each grew up, they faced different challenges and hardships – and eventually they found each other and brought the Bright Age to Lorien, but how they did that is a story for another day.
At first, the original elders were hunted by those who did not welcome change, but after many years and hardships, they were accepted as leaders as more and more citizens of the planet developed strange powers beyond their control and life expectancy soared. A new society was formed; a society of peace, hope and amazing opportunities. Brilliant scientific breakthroughs were made day by day, eventually developing an efficient way of space travel. Using their new found technology, they were able to discover seventeen planets besides their own, including both Earth and Mogadore.
When the Loric found Earth, it was quite by accident. A ship crew sent out to investigate a planet with suspected life on it were knocked off course and landed on Earth because of it's unusual amount of water, where they discovered early humans living in caves. The Loric introduced many things to the humans, and over time they grew to be a great species, full of amazing ideas about the universe. It was at the time the humans were beginning to think of their own ideas that the Loric Elders found themselves holding a meeting considering their prodigy planet's fate.
It was Pittacus who called the meeting. "This had better be important. I'm a busy woman." Iva growled impatiently. She was already stressed enough ruling over the Rush sector of Lorien, resources for space shuttles didn't just pop up out of nowhere. Hopefully the newest generation of Loric would eventually realise that peace wasn't cheap and actually help work towards Lorien's future. Otherwise, Iva didn't doubt that Lorien would fall.
Wayla reached out a comforting hand. "If he's called us all here, it is a matter of utmost importance. Pittacus would not assemble us to have a friendly get together and some tea." Iva snorted, but Wayla ignored the gesture, and head counted the Elders.
"We've only got eight, we're missing someone." As if on cue, a rather happy man bustled through the doors, obviously out of breath. "Sorry I'm late, everyone! I got, er, caught up."
Iva scowled at the man who seated himself abruptly. "What have you been doing, Ra?" She spat, "Keeping secrets are we?" Setrakus shifted in his seat under her gaze. "Well, Iva, I wouldn't say keeping secrets exactly - I was spending time with my grandchildren. I doubt it's a secret that I'm happily married with children, or did you not recall my relationship with Pertee?" He tried to joke, though the woman he addressed was not in any way amused.
Iva would have thrown a comment at the man, something to do with a Chimeras backside, but before she could, Pittacus entered the room, and every conversation fell silent.
The tall man's very body screamed power. Pure, raw and pumping. "I am glad all of you could make it." His gaze flew across each of the people he had once called his best friends, and a deep sadness took over his body. He shook it off inwardly; they were not young anyone. They all had their own responsibilities to tend to. Not much for much longer though, it seemed. Any day now the first of The Second Generation children would be born, as Alanna and he had predicted. But that was a matter for another day.
Today he had to confront them about something that had bothered him for a while now. Something that could – and would – affect the history of universe. Pittacus looked at his comrades and took a deep breath.
"I've summoned you here to discuss whether it is time to leave Earth to its own devices."
For a moment, no one did anything. The mere idea of leaving Earth to fend for itself was... unthinkable.
"No." Iva's voice was quiet, but it echoed through the silence. "No! Do you know how much I've worked towards the Earth project? Without Earth, Rush would go bankrupt! It's my life's work, Lore. I don't what I'd do without it!"
There was another pause. "I know it means much to you, Iva, but perhaps it's time to search for another planet. Perhaps you should send a ship out to the planet you originally sought out before Earth was discovered." Rin's beard bristled as he spoke. It appeared he had said the wrong thing as Iva stood up. "I'm not taking part in this meeting. I don't care what you decide is best, Lore. But I promise you this – if you make the Loric pull out of Earth, it'll be entirely your fault if something goes wrong." With that, the woman stood up and stormed out of the room.
The rest of the meeting took place in a tense atmosphere, but at the end the verdict was clear.
All Loric were pulled from planet earth a week later, ships taking off as subtly as they could. As the last ship left the atmosphere, reality itself shifted around the planet. Dark clouds formed and lightning crashed as Earth's future began to change for the worse.
The Elders had no-idea what their actions would result in, no idea what they were creating. For as the last ship was nothing but a memory forgotten, Earth fell, and from its ashes came the world known as Panem.
A/N: There you have it, people! The new start to my Hunger Games/Lorien Legacies crossover. Let's just say this year's games are going to be Out of This World... ;)