Author's Note: Hi! I'm sorry this took so long to get up. It's all in Avaris's POV. No stealing. All standard disclaimers apply. thanks for reading. I'm really not in the mood for this right now, so before I can butcher the intro any more ...
"The Rise of the Elements"
Chapter One: Around the World
* * *
Avaris
Something was happening. I knew it was, but I couldn't figure out where for the life of me. It wasn't nearby, or I would have sensed it. It couldn't be too far away, or I couldn't have sensed it. I knew because I had the characteristic pounding headace all through my first period. So during my free period, I hurried into an empty hallway and called Hermes over the communicator.
"What's wrong?" I heard his voice, tinny and small over the microphone, say.
"I'm sensing bad vibes," I said, trying not to sound too concerned. "Have you picked anything up?"
"No," Hermes said, and I could hear the frown in his voice. "Are you sure you're sensing something?"
"Yes, I am definitely sure," I said, rubbing my temple. "I have that headache."
"Hmm," Hermes said. "Well, you're definitely picking up something, but it's not within my range..." I could faintly hear the sound of a keyboard clicking away, and I knew that Hermes had pulled out his tiny computer.
"Well, I'm stumped, Avaris. Call an Elemental meeting after school today."
"Will do," I said, and turned off the communicator. I sighed and slumped against the wall.
"Gee, Avaris, you look super tired!" I heard a familiar voice say. I opened my eyes and smiled.
"Yeah, Molly, I am pretty tired. I just had a long night and now I have a migraine."
"A migraine?" Molly gasped appreciatively. "Shouldn't you go home?" I managed to shake my head.
"Probably not a good idea. I have that in-class writing in Japanese Lit. this afternoon."
"Oh, poor girl!" She said, patting my hand. I smiled.
"That's okay. It should go away soon." Molly nodded and turned to leave, but at the last moment she stopped and looked back at me.
"Oh, did you hear about Ami?" She asked me. I looked up and shook my head.
"No, is something wrong?" I asked, concerned. Mamesa was Ami's guardian, if something was wrong with Ami I needed to notify her. But Molly laughed and shook her head.
"Not at all. Apparently she's involved in something called Around the World, a sort of competitive club outside of school that's for people who excel in academics and athletics. She's in the math program, and she's leaving for Spain to compete in a couple weeks! If she passes the round there, she moves on to Ireland, then England, and then finally California, and finally the last tournament is here in Tokyo. It's a really big deal, and Serena and Lita are trying to go too." She laughed. "I think Lita can get away with Home Economics because of her cooking skills or Martial Arts. But poor Serena, she doesn't have a chance." My eyes widened.
"Really? That sounds way cool. I'll have to talk to Ami and Lita about it." Molly nodded and waved.
"Well, I have to go to Asian Civ. now, but feel better!" I returned the wave.
"Thanks, Molly, I'm sure I will!"
* * *
That afternoon I sat in my room with my friends Halimeda, Mamesa, and Arianna. None of us were feeling too well -- apparently I wasn't the only one who sensed something awry. Hermes sat nearby, clicking away on his computer.
"Okay. I'm downloading from the GPS satellites to get a larger range and try to find what you girls are picking up. Wait for it to finish downloading . . ." I nodded and turned to the girls.
"First item of business. Have any of you ever heard of a program called Around the World?" Halimeda raised her hand, as did Arianna. "What do you know about it?" I asked her.
"Well, actually, I'm a part of it." Halimeda said slowly.
"You are? What do you do?"
"I swim. I wanted to mention it, because I'm getting the offer to go to Spain in a few weeks, and I need to know if I'll be able to or not because of my duties with Rei . . ."
"What about you, Arianna?"
"I compete with the broadsword," she said, looking slightly sheepish. "I thought it might help with the Clouded Blade in battle." I raised my eyebrows.
"Good thinking. Perhaps we all should take weapons training. Are you also going to Spain?"
"Well, if this one girl looses to me, then yes." I was thinking fast.
"Is it at all possible for the rest of us to register in this program?" Halimeda and Arianna exchanged unsure glances.
"Umm. Well, there's a registration today in town . . ." Arianna said. "But what would you guys enter under?"
"Archery," I said without hesitation. Mamesa looked thoughtful.
"Martial Arts," she said finally. Arianna nodded.
"I know there's an opening in Martial Arts, but I don't know anything about the Archery program."
"Wait," Mamesa said. "Avaris, why are we doing this? Shouldn't we be staying here and be good guardians?"
"That's the thing," I said. "Ami is going to Spain, and possibly Lita. I don't know about Mina or Rei, but the odds are ten to one that they're doing the exact same thing we are doing right now."
Meanwhile . . .
"We can't let Ami go to Spain alone! Don't even think about it!" Serena wailed. Serena, Rei, and Ami sat on the floor in Rei's temple, discussing Ami's trip. Surprisingly, Mina and Lita were late, and Serena had been on time.
"You're right! Ami, is there any way we can go as well?" Ami looked thoughtful, but her thought process was interrupted by a loud clack as the sliding door banged open, revealing a very happy Lita and Mina.
"Guess what, guys??" Mina asked excitedly.
"What?" Serena replied.
"We registered in Around the World!! Lita made it in Martial Arts and Home Economics, and I managed to get in for Drama and Volleyball!" Surprisingly, Serena began to wail.
"It isn't fair!!" She sobbed. "Everyone is going to Spain except for me!" Rei rolled her eyes.
"Don't be stupid, Serena, I'm not going either!"
"Not yet, you aren't!" Lita said, pulling Rei up by the upper arm. Serena suffered the same treatment from Mina.
"We're going to register you right now!"
At the same time . . .
I walked into the lobby of the Around the World building accompanied by Halimeda, Arianna, and Mamesa. Halimeda led Mamesa and I over to the registration desk and smiled winningly.
"Hello," she said. "I was wondering if you have space for two more applicants?" The secretary returned the smile and turned to her computer.
"Well, I'll check and see. Athletic or academic?"
"Athletic," Halimeda replied.
"Which sport?"
"One for Archery and one for Martial Arts."
"We have several spots open in both categories. Go out to the field behind the main building, they are holding tryouts right now." She handed us each a ticket. Mine read, "Archery, 43," and Mamesa's read "M.A, 37." Halimeda smiled again.
"Thank you very much," she said politely. The secretary nodded and returned to her work, while we headed out back.
"So you think you're an archer, huh?" A large man, an american, asked me, prowling around me in circles. I watched him out of the corner of my eye.
"Sir, I know I'm an archer." The man looked surprised.
"Can you string a bow?"
"Yes, sir."
"Can you find a bow according to your preferred weight?"
"Yes, sir."
"Can you flight an arrow?"
"Yes, sir. In thirty seconds, sir." The man's bushy eyebrows lifted.
"Well, let's just see if you're as good as you say you are then." he led me over to a selection of unstrung bows, coiled strings, un-flighted arrows, and flights. I tested the weight of several bows before finding the one that suited me best. Taking a string that was the correct length, I quickly strung it and selected an arrow and several flights. Within forty seconds I had the bow strung, drawn, and aimed at the nearest target.
"Release," the man said gruffly. His voice showed no surprise. I corrected slightly for wind, and let fly. The arrow thudded into the target, and four others followed in quick succession. When I stopped, he glanced at me and went to inspect the target. He looked back up at me and frowned slightly.
"The arrows will have to be cut loose. They are embedded too deeply into the target to be pulled." I lowered my bow and unstrung it as the man returned to my side. He clapped me on the shoulder and extended a thickly calloused hand.
"Welcome to the Archery team," he said, smiling slightly. "My name is Dawson. I took his hand and shook it, smiling broadly.
"Thanks, Dawson." Dawson looked over my shoulder and his gruff facade re-appeared. I turned, and started in surprise.
"Rei?" I asked. Rei Hino stopped in her tracks.
"Avaris?" She squeaked. "What are you doing here?"
"So you know this one, eh?" Dawson asked. "Is she any good?" I smiled.
"Why don't you ask her?" Dawson nodded and approached Rei. I smiled apologetically at her, and he began barking out the same questions I had answered only moments ago. Soon, Rei had strung her bow and flighted her feathers, and released five arrows into the target next to mine. Dawson shambled over to hers and inspected it, and turned back to us.
"Again, the arrows will have to be cut loose. They are too deeply embedded to be pulled free." He shook his head in amazement. "Two expert archers in one day. It must be my lucky week." I smiled and turned to Rei.
"So, are you trying to go with Ami?" She nodded.
"But what about you?"
"Halimeda swims for Around the World, and Arianna is in the Broadsword class here. We're in the same position as you are." Rei nodded knowingly.
"I see. What is Mamesa doing to get a ride?"
"Martial Arts," I answered. Rei's eyes widened.
"That's what Lita is doing!" She exclaimed. "She's over there now."
"So is Mamesa," I said. "Let's go see what they're up to." She nodded, and we headed over to the Martial Arts section of the field.
"Be here at nine o'clock on Saturday for practice!" Dawson hollered at us from the archery lanes. We nodded and waved our acknowledgement and continued to the field.
We were walking over to the field when we encountered Arianna, Halimeda, and Ami, smiling and waving at us as we approached.
"Where's Lita and Serena and Mina?" Rei asked.
"And Mamesa?" I chimed in.
"Mamesa and Lita are signing in for Martial Arts -- they both got in, you should have seen it, Mamesa nearly flipped the guy instructor and Lita beat the crap out of the girl one. Needless to say, they both made it. How did archery go?"
"We both made the team. Where's Serena and Mina?"
"Serena decided to give the Field part of Track and Field a try; she thinks she'll be good at the discus throw." Ami said. Rei nodded knowingly. "Mina went with her."
"Where's the discus throwing?" I asked. Lita and Mamesa came up, chatting animatedly and Ami pointed over towards the track.
"It's being held in the center of the track," she said. "Shall we go over there?" I nodded.
"I want to see Serena throw the discus!" I said. Everyone else nodded in agreement, and we jogged to the track.
Moon . . . Tiara . . . Magic! Serena thought, biting her lip in concentration as she shifted her weight and hurled the discus with all of her might. It went sailing up into the air in a graceful arc and then came down to land gently on the other side of the track, at the foot of the bleachers. The man who had asked her to throw stared, and Mina clapped and cheered her appreciation.
"That's the fifth time in a row," she heard the man mutter to himself. "I don't understand the accuracy!" Serena grinned at Mina and saw that all of the other girls -- including the de-transformed Elementals -- had showed up.
"Throw it again, Serena!" Mina yelled. The other girls cheered their encouragement, and Serena shook her head, blushing, but went to pick up the discus all the same. Again, she threw it, and again, the discus sailed gracefully to land in the exact same spot as before, give or take a few centimeters. The cheers this time were louder than ever, and the man, shaking his head in bewilderment, walked over to Serena.
"I guess you're on the team!" He said, looking slightly bewildered. Serena smiled. "Our next practice is at nine this saturday. Do you know about the banquet sunday night?" Serena shook her head. "The owner of this program is having a banquet at the Rising Sun Hacienda on Sunday night. The attire is formal, and everyone who is going to Spain must attend."
"I'm going to Spain??" Serena squealed. The man laughed.
"Are you kidding? With a throw like that? Of course you're going! Be at the Rising Sun at seven o'clock. It ends at eleven." Serena nodded.
"Thank you so much, sir!! I'm so excited! Thank you thank you thank you!" The man nodded and waved her away.
"Don't forget about the banquet!"
"What banquet?" Rei asked. Serena shrugged.
"Apparently everyone who's going to Spain has to go to a banquet at a place called the Rising Sun Hacienda. It's being hosted by the person who started the Around the World company."
"That's right," Halimeda said suddenly. "I had forgotten. Did you know about it, Arianna?" Arianna shook her head.
"I still have to duel that one girl on Saturday. If I win, then I go to Spain, but if I loose, I miss my chance." Ami nodded.
"I knew about it, but I didn't think to mention it. Are you guys going?" She indicated Lita, Mamesa, Rei, and myself.
"I think that Avaris and I will be going," Rei said. "Dawson seemed like he was pretty impressed by our archery skills."
"After throwing that guy, Mamesa is going to Spain for sure," laughed Lita.
"You're one to talk!" Mamesa exclaimed. "You're the one who beat the crap out of what's-her-face, Ms. Shang!" Lita laughed too.
"Okay, so we're both going. Mina?" Mina shrugged.
"I'm in the same position as Arianna. I have to play in a volleyball tournament on Saturday, and if my team wins, I go, but if we loose I don't."
"What about Drama?"
"Oh, that. I'm already going for Drama." Mina said, shrugging off the question. We stared.
"And you didn't tell us?" demanded Serena. Mina shrugged again and laughed loudly.
"Like Ami, I just didn't think it was nesecary!" Rei groaned, and we all said good-bye and returned to our respective homes.
That night, I sat on my bed with Hermes, discussing what it was we were sensing.
"Well, I've localized all the points of negative energy by country, and it's looking like they're most prominant in Spain, Ireland, England, and the state of California in the USA." I started.
"We're going to each of those spots for the Around the World tour!" I exclaimed. Hermes nodded.
"I know. That's why I'm suspicious. Keep your eyes open at that banquet, Avaris, and watch for anything -- or anyone -- who seems a little strange." I nodded.
"Am I patrolling tonight?" I asked. Hermes nodded his assent and clicked off his computer.
"Yes. Especially after these discoveries." I groaned, but stood up and opened the door from my room to the balcony. After checking to make sure no one was around, I leapt from the balcony to my roof, and then to the sidewalk behind my house.
"Soul Crystal Power," I whispered, and began my patrol.
At around midnight -- the witching hour, a part of me thought -- I reached Juuban Park. I hesitated, wanting to go in but not wanting to encounter the many memories the place held for me. Finally, I decided duty came before desire, and, taking a deep breath, hurried inside.
When I reached the lake, I paused, hidden in the shadows, and watched the moonlight reflect off the surface of the water for a while. Something plopped into it, causing ripples, and my senses became alert so suddenly it was as if they had been electrified. I squinted my eyes into the shadows on the other side of the lake, straining to see a hidden figure or a flash of movement. I became very still myself, and after a few moments I was rewarded with a slight flash of white from a shadow under a tree. I squinted, and watched as the flash fluttered slightly in the breeze like a cloak, and disappeared. Right after the patch had gone, a feeling hit me in the stomach like a solid punch. I had to sit down, because I thought I recognized the feeling immediately, but as it faded away I became less sure of what it was. I shook my head, and decided to head back to my house and my warm bed. I had done enough patrolling for the night, and we had archery practice the next morning . . .
That Sunday . . .
A long, sleek, limo pulled up to the covered entrance of the Rising Sun Hacienda. I piled out of it after Serena, Ami, Rei, Lita, Mina, Mamesa, Arianna, and Halimeda. We had all qualified for the trip to Spain, although Mina's volleyball team had lost their tournament. We were all dressed accordingly to the formal attire requirement and also according to our respective elements, although only we knew that. We each handed the door keeper our invitations and he bowed us in to the main room.
We stepped in and I heard Serena sigh with appreciation. The ballroom was beautiful, decked out in crystal and gold and silver. Dancing couples of students our age twirled across the floor, and more students sat at tables, laughing and eating. Just as we stepped in, the band quieted, and a man -- Dawson -- stepped up to a microphone.
"Now that most of us are here, it is time for us to introduce you to a very special lady. She had the idea for this whole operation and still keeps it going with generous grants. Please allow me to present to you, the creator of Around the World, Miss Selestinea Soluminary." There was applause as we all sat at a table near to the platform, and a beautiful woman who seemed to be made of silver and gold took the stage.
She was dressed in a simple, shimmering white gown, but her wavy golden hair cascaded down her back like a fountain of honey. She wore a simple chain with a glittering silver stone at her throat and her eyes -- grey -- seemed to glow a sterling silver in the light from the crystal chandeliers. Her features were so finely shaped they seemed to be carved from a luminescent marble. Something about her reminded me of someone . . . but I couldn't place just who it was. She shook her head when Dawson offered her the microphone, and began to speak in an accent I was completely unfamiliar with.
"Thank you, Dawson. I am very glad to be here on this day when all of my talented young children are readying themselves for the adventure of their lives. We depart for Madrid two weeks from now, and I hope all of you keep up with your studies and practices until then." She smiled and laughed, and it was a throaty, gurgling laugh one would not have expected from so delicate a woman as she. "Thank you all for attending tonight, and I hope you all enjoy yourselves. If you have questions, please come and ask me." Her eyes fell on our table, and her expression changed from happy to the satisfied, pleased look of the cat who knew she had caught her canary. She dipped into a little curtsey, and stepped off the stage.
It wasn't until she had sat down at her table on the other side of the room when the same sensation hit me exactly as it had the night before. I groaned slightly and bent over my table, waiting for it to pass. When it faded away, I looked up and found that Selestinea was no where to be seen. Disoriented, I closed my eyes and tried to place the familiarity I had sensed from her. I had felt it last night on patrol . . . and . . . and also . . . I scrunched my eyebrows together in an effort to remember, but all I could catch where flashes and fragments of images. A breeze . . . a sparkle from the moon on water . . . a waving cloth that was . . . a cape? I bit my lips in frusturation, and my concentration was shattered when a gentle hand touched my shoulder.
"Avaris? Are you all right?" I looked up into Halimeda's concerned blue-green eyes. I shook myself, as if to rid myself of my confusion.
"Yes. I'll be fine," I said, although I wasn't sure at all that would be the case.
