Elementia Tellurian

Black Rose, they say, is a symbol for a tragic love, hate, and death but for me it symbolizes strength, bravery, determination, and being different. It has the color of black which is my definition of bold and its uniqueness. It also has thorns that protects itself from harm. Pretty yet dangerous. ••• My sweats are now dripping on every inch of my body as I keep punching the punching bag. My sweats are unstoppable and so as my punches. Left jab. Right jab. I just can’t stop. I want to release the intensifying heat circulating around my veins.  It is so hot that I want it out of me. One, two, three and I kicked the punching bag very hard but it is still not enough. I take a deep breath, sweats still dripping, and let my energy flows to both of my hands and let out my fire to the dummies appearing, consecutively, either every one at a time or by group. I gasp for air, catching it. I wipe the sweats away from my face with my arm and sit on the bench situated on the side of the training area.  I assess the area and it is all a mess. Burst punching bags and burned dummies.   “It looks like you have a lot of cleaning to do, Sera." Joash appears from the dark. Smiling at me mischievously. I roll my eyes. Why is he here? And how long has he been watching me train? He sits beside me. Reach for my hands and assess it. He sighs. “Your hands are burnt. How intense was it this time?” I pull my hands back. “Stop acting so concerned, Joash. You’re not my dad.” I stand up and heads to the area where the medical kits are. I started cleaning my hands with antiseptic and wrapped a bandages around it. “I’m your best friend, tho. We’ve been together for nineteen years. It’s obvious that I’ll be concerned about you. I am like your brother.” He says with pride. I just shake my head in response.  “Why are you here, by the way?” I asked. He doesn’t usually visit me every time I do my trainings.   “We have a meeting in the academe. The king will be there too. It is about the competition.” Yes, the competition is fast approaching. Two days left. I need to train hard. I looked at him and nodded. “Get out now. I’m going to prepare. You can go first. I’ll be there in a bit.” He stands up and throws a towel on me. “You sure you’re not going to back out? You still have a chance to do so.” I looked at him with displeased. “You knew how many years I’ve waited for this to happen, Joash. I want to be the ruler of Aqua. To restore the broken relationship between ours and theirs. And, It’s what father wants too.” He sighs. “And besides, I can handle a great responsibility. So stop telling me to quit.” I added.   I walk towards him and push him out of the training grounds. “Get out.” I shut the door before he can say anything. I grab my gym bag and hurriedly walk my way towards the washroom. I need to hurry. The king will be there anytime. I don’t want to have a bad impression. I immediately expose myself to the cold shower. As the water drops on me, images vividly flash in my mind.   I am standing on a balcony. I am surrounded with two children, a girl and a boy, whose age would be seven and nine, respectively. The ambiance is dark and heavy. Only the light from the moon gives us illumination.  The boy comes near me and grabs my hand. I am like a puppet who can’t do anything but follow. “Come, Eirene. Let us play,” he said. Eirene? Who is that?  Both of the children laugh and it echoes throughout the whole place. I wandered my eyes around it. I am shocked to see that this is not just a place but a palace. “Where are we?” I asked but none of them seem to hear me. They laugh and laugh. They looked at me this time but fears are registered on their faces. What? Are they scared of me? They ran away from me. Leaving me alone in this big and quiet castle. “Wait, where are you going?” I shouted but they are nowhere to be found. I close my eyes hoping that I’ll be able to get out of this place.   As I open my eyes, I can feel the burning sensation invading into the depths of my skin. Fire. I am now surrounded with fire. Where am I now? People are screaming for help. Crying. Who are they?   “Help!”   I look onto the direction of that voice.  A child. I hurriedly walk the direction of the child but as I am about to take my last step a man appears in front of me. I can’t see his face, blurry. He blocks my way towards the child. I shove him away but I can’t move him. He’s too strong to be move. “Get out of my way! “I shouted but just like the children from earlier. He seems to not hear me. He grabs both of my hands, covers my mouth, and carries me like a sack on his shoulder. “Let go of me!” I tried to resist his hold but that made me weaker. Fire started to surround us again. I’m out of breath. Smokes are starting to take over my system. I am suffocating.   ••• “I am glad to be seeing all of you here. My brave masters. The sons and daughter -,” The king of Regnum Ignis looked at Sera and smiled. “- of Ignis.  One of you will be my successor. I’ll be very of happy to see you at the end of the competition. Crowning one of you will be one of the happiest moments of my reign. Fire for the future kings!” the king proudly said. “Fire!” everyone responded. The claps and laughs echoes throughout the hall.   This is where the story of Sera begins.