The Middle Lands: Battle of the Elements

Sarah Yordy

Age 13

The Middle Lands: Battle of the Elements

Grief, fury, and shame; that’s all she could feel, not joy or excitement, just pain. It was dark and gray, with a chill in the air that seemed to be getting colder by the second. This was the Middle Lands. This was the land before rest for her people. How was she here? Was she dead? Celeste looked at the pale skin of her hands, different from the gray of the people around her. She wasn’t dead. She wasn’t sure how; only dreamers could visit the Middle Lands. Unless she was dreaming. Impossible. Dreamers were extinct, leaving her people to grieve their loss for half a century. There had to be a reasonable explanation to this. Whoosh! Air spun her whole body as it whipped at her hair. “What is happening?” she whispered to herself. Another powerful slash of air, forcing her to roll as she narrowly escaped it. The ground trembled as the air became thicker. Think Celeste. Of all the tales she had read as a child, only one mentioned anything like this. Elementals! Immortal beings that controlled the elements Earth, Air, Water, and Fire. She was being attacked by two Elementals, Air and Earth. She was thrown with more wind, her thoughts coming and going. Elementals only fought other Elementals—she had heard about that somewhere. They were making a mistake. They had to be making a mistake. She narrowly avoided another slash of air. She wasn’t sure what to do, or how to end this, but all she knew was that she was going to try and fight. She really didn’t know how. If by some miracle, she was an Elemental as the people trying to kill her seemed to think, how would she channel it? Water began to flow around her like a flash flood. The third Elemental. To her surprise, the water never touched her as it was thrown at her attackers.

She took the distraction as her chance to fling herself behind a mound of thrown rocks. She looked at her hands; the cold and the chill this world was bringing with it was almost suffocating. She thought about Fire. It had to be Fire! You’re not an Elemental, a god like them. She knew that; she thought she would always know that deep down. The sounds stopped, and a moment later, a girl appeared before her. She was in a hood. It was dark,

but when she removed it, Celeste saw her eyes shining in the dim light. The purest light blue she had ever seen. “Esme.” The girl gave Celeste a hand which she took slowly standing.

Esme grinned an odd expression at the time, not that this whole situation wasn’t entirely insane from the spirits around her to the manner of the Elemental attack she just survived. It was all absolute insanity.

“What is happening?” she mumbled before coming back to her wits and noting the pale eyed girl about fifty paces ahead of her. She needed to move, she needed to do something. One by one, she moved her feet one step, then two. She started heading toward Esme with long strides.

“Was worried you weren’t coming,” Esme commented right before taking off again. She led her through twists and turns, dark places and light. Celeste often had to force herself not to marvel at her surroundings. “And to think you’ve done this hundreds of times.” Esme’s voice held possibly a hint of disdain.

“What do you mean hundreds of times?”

Esme gave a small “hm” with a shrug, sliding open a piece of seemingly rock wall turning out to be a door. “Hurry, hurry, we don’t have all day,” she snapped, still not answering Celeste’s question with words of any meaning to her. She continued down a staircase before Esme was leading again. Left, right, forward, left, left. Yeah, she wasn’t going to be remembering this. Esme finally stopped, opening another piece of wall. “They’re going to be tracking us soon.” Esme said in a sing-song voice while motioning inside.

“How are they tracking us?” The dumbfounded stare and the shove she got was the only answer to her question.

Inside the chamber, she openly gawked at the pristine condition of what appeared to be a garden, counters, and benches around the room and a door on the other end. “You really don’t remember do you?” Esme’s voice seemed to hold a solemn tone for the first time since meeting her.

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to remember.” She replied truthfully. Esme sighed, moving water underneath the glass floor causing Celeste to do a double take.

“You and I alike are beings of immortality. As long as the elements burn, we live on life after life, fight after fight, got it?”

No not really, but the girl across from her, with the ability to drown from the inside, didn’t seem like the type of person to ask to repeat something.

“We need to get you to a channel, otherwise you can’t lower your body temperature, and they will be able to track your power.” Esme began pacing, inherently not knowing what to do. Celeste stood frozen. She wished

she knew what to do, part of her even felt like she did. As if the answer was just out of reach.

“OK, I’m going to admit that I have no idea what I’m doing.” Esme clasped her hands together turning to Celeste. She studied her like a puzzle, her brows furrowed and her eyes narrowed.

“Hold your dominant hand palm upward to that side.” Celeste lifted her hand palm up like Esme was demonstrating. “Think about fire?” That sounded like a question—why did the girl teaching her sound like she was questioning all of this herself? “To be fair you taught me how to channel, so it’s kind of your fault if this doesn’t work.” Celeste thought about fire. She was not exactly sure what she was doing, but she could try. If not for herself, but for the girl who looked to be praying to anyone she could think of. Her palm felt warm but nothing else happened. Esme groaned, beginning to pace again. “OK, try again.” Celeste tried, getting the same outcome. Esme seemed to be just as confused as her, but with more urgency. She flicked her hand conjuring water before throwing it at the wall. Then again and again. This also seemed like a waste of time, but Celeste, once again, was almost too fearful to point that out to Esme. Almost.

“Maybe there’s another way.” Esme turned to her, water still dripping along the walls.

“Yes, there is. It’s called throwing water at you until you figure out what you’re doing.” She created a mini whirlpool in her hands raising a brow at Celeste. Her only response was a shrug, what else had she expected.

Yes, please nearly drown me, and pray to whatever lord you believe in that I don’t die. Celeste shut her eyes, mostly wishing the water would never come. This room may have been warmer, but the chill she felt still remained. She opened her eyes to see Esme standing there just looking at her. No water, no impending doom, nothing but silence. Then, Esme was moving straight toward her, stopping only about a foot away.

“Well, at least I don’t have to drown you, but please don’t burn down all of the Middle Lands.” Celeste looked down to see her hands alight, looking back up wide-eyed. Esme just smirked at her reaction as she slowly forced the fire away. Esme stepped back again, beginning to conjure another whirlpool. “Conjure it again.” Celeste focused on the fire, but it didn’t come. Instead, she focused on the chill in the air. More specifically removing it. As she did, fire materialized in her left palm followed by the right. She felt the chill in the air ease; maybe that was just her—she wasn’t sure then that the world seemed to fade away.

She was standing across from two others, looking to her left to see someone

she vaguely recognized. Pale, blue eyes. Esme: different person, same eyes. She looked across from them again, viewing the two people who had attacked her earlier. One looked the same, the other didn’t. She knew them not just as faces but as people. Fading, everything was fading. She was sitting in a room where counters lined the walls and vines above them. The only difference was the table she was sitting at. Across from her sat one of the people she had known as an enemy, but she didn’t hate him, not here. Then, darkness claimed her once more.

Celeste opened her eyes to see Esme kneeling over her, blue eyes full of concern. She groaned, beginning to sit up.

“Flashback?” Esme sounded excited, but Celeste’s budding migraine and confusion on what she just saw didn’t help her to feel the same.

“Why did he look the same?” Out of her hundreds of questions, of course that’s the one she asked. She needed answers, and if Esme refused to give them to her, she would find them herself. “Uziel?” Celeste raised a brow, multiple things were going on she didn’t know about. “What aren’t you telling me?” Esme took a deep breath looking away from her at a spot on the wall.

“They were the same as us living to protect the world, but Asterin got fed up with it. He told me he didn’t want to protect humanity anymore and that it would be better if we destroyed it. We weren’t as close then, but when I told you, it didn’t matter. You confronted him, but Uziel took his side. He had fallen in love with a mortal on a visit to the material plain and that mortal had died. You had refused to help resurrect them as it would destroy the natural balance. He was broken inside and out. You were always the closest of us, you two were the same.” She looked far off as if she was reliving it all. “They betrayed us!” Esme took a deep breath before continuing. “They had already begun their plan to destroy the material plane . . .” Her voice broke as she told Celeste the whole story. “With all of your strength and my help, we created a trap so that once every fifty years or so we would all be brought here to live another fight against them. Otherwise, we lived in the mortal world. The only thing keeping us safe was the fact that we only have our memories while we’re here—”

“Then why don’t I have mine?” They locked eyes, and Celeste understood that her question had more meaning than she had originally thought.

Esme locked eyes with her. There were tears welling in hers, but she looked as strong as ever. “Last time we lost.” She let that sit a moment, the failure Celeste realized was why they were weakened this time. “Your memories not returning is a mercy, so you wouldn’t freeze.” Esme stood and Celeste took her place sitting. “Last time we lost because you didn’t have what it

took to destroy him. You failed to finish because of Uziel. He played on the fact that you actually have a soul, and we lost because of it.” The world had done her a mercy by not returning her memories; they had given her the ability to see clearer.

“Wait, so why did he look the same?” Emse had entirely glossed over the question she had actually asked.

“It was Uziel’s final request to the god we serve that he would never look different in any life he lived.” Why would their god answer his request, why would they help him destroy the world? Celeste stood, she finally had gotten answers, she finally understood what was at stake here. The whole world.

“I want to train.” Esme turned her brows skyrocketing before grinning once more.

“Do you remember the rules of a duel?”

* * *

“It’s simple, you focus on his power, and it becomes your own. See, it’s simple.” They were standing over one of the counters with maps of the battle fields and other places within the Middle Lands spread out. She had been training for two days and had quite a bit to show for it. Except the idea of stealing Asterin’s magic and using it herself. Esme had explained it over and over, and she still didn’t get it. According to Esme, she had been doing it for centuries, and as Esme had also said “It’s simple,” but it didn’t look simple not to her.

“And we can’t practice by having me steal your magic?” Esme rolled her eyes, but as always smiling even under threat of death.

“Do you know how to give it back?” She didn’t, that was true. She had no idea what to do once she stole it and used it to enhance her own. She shook her head slowly, wishing she had her memories, wishing she knew what to do. “Good neither do I, so back to the actual plan.” Steal Astrerin’s magic, imprison him, Uziel’s would fade, and they would trap him as well. Sounded easy enough. Celeste knew none of it would seem simple on the battlefield. “Do you remember what I said about sacred laws?” Esme asked, tapping her stylus against the page.

“There’s three and we’re bound by an oath to them.” Esme had only reiterated that sentence about a hundred times this morning alone. At least Celeste thought it was morning she wasn’t entirely sure.

“Yes, and that means . . . ?”

“Uziel and Asterin are still trapped by them.” Esme began jumping up and down.

“You were listening!” Then, she grew serious, looking closely at Celeste.

“What are the three laws?” Celeste had to think. Esme may have reiterated the other part over and over, but she had only explained the laws once.

“They can’t attack another Elemental unless it is in combat.” That was one. “They can’t attack another Elemental unless it’s in a sacred battleground. Why are all of these about attacking each other?”

It was as if their god had known this was going to happen, as if they had planned it, but Esme only shrugged. “Some things you never know, and you have one more.” Celeste took a deep breath focusing on the laws she knew, and yet she didn’t.

“They have to have a reason for conflict?” Esme furrowed her brows, setting down her stylus while surveying Celeste.

“Wish to try again, FireBug?” Celeste thought about it again, how she was so painfully wrong. Then, it hit her all at once she knew it.

“You cannot under any circumstances kill another Elemental.” Esme grinned, handing her a bowl that looked to be made of paper. “What’s this?” Esme gave her a blank stare.

“I’m cold, that’s a fire holder that can hold a flame for hours.” Esme had the ability to make Celeste laugh in a way no one in her life ever had.

* * *

Celeste awoke to the ground shaking, unaware of the time, seeing Esme standing, sword in hand. Celestial metal, Esme had told her all about it the day before. She threw one to Celeste, which Celeste held prepared to use. “Asterin, they found us.” Esme’s voice shook as she told Celeste that, almost as much as the ground. “They are trying to draw us out,” she added. Celeste sucked in a breath, unsheathing her katana and laying the cover on her back.

“He can’t fight us here.” She saw the way Esme’s eyes surveyed her as if she was trying to assess how much of a liability she would be. She looked away from her a moment before turning back and handing her something.

“You used to hide these everywhere, maybe it will bring something back.” Celeste looked down at her hand seeing a necklace made with black string and four beads on it. Earth, Air, Water, and Fire. Each of them looked to be moving; they were pure forms of each element. Celeste recognized it faintly. She placed it around her neck, not waiting for Esme to lead her out. She tapped the pattern on the rock wall. She wasn’t as strong as she used to be, but they didn’t know that, and they didn’t need to. Esme appeared beside her and with a small nod, allowed her to step out. A rock flew toward her, and she slashed it with her katana.

“Asterin Malice!” she yelled as the boy lowered himself and all of the floating rocks.

“Celeste Anne,” he replied coldly, dark eyes boring into her.

“Where’s Uziel?” He cocked his head to the side, not replying for a moment.

“Where’s Esme?” She forced herself to remain calm, she had fire and she had a blade. He couldn’t kill her and she couldn’t kill him. “Well then, if you choose not to answer, let’s get this over with, shall we?” She glared at him, feeling the fire pumping through her veins. She manipulated her mind to not focus on the fire but the earth, the source of his power. Esme hadn’t followed her.

“Asterin is your fight; I got Uziel.” Esme had told her that; she had anticipated this play. They would separate from one another, and Celeste would be distracted with him while Uziel would take Esme. Celeste held Asterin’s gaze watching him wince but he hid it well.

“You think that’s enough to stop me?” He lifted where they were standing, forcing it into a circular battleground. He was making his own sacred battleground instead of taking them to one. Celeste knew it hadn’t been strong enough, but she truly didn’t know how to strengthen it.

“See? Simple.” Once again her thoughts landed on Esme. She hadn’t known how to show her exactly, but she had tried to help. A thought occurred to Celeste: maybe Esme had given her the exact tools to do this. She looked down at her necklace to see the earth bead glowing faintly. She ripped it off, watching Asterin’s expression; he hadn’t seen it until that moment.

She focused her energy away from him and toward the bead, the glow; the same way she had eradicated the chill when she conjured fire. She felt the bead getting hotter and saw the glow becoming stronger. She looked back up to Asterin seeing his body being pulled up by an invisible force, his skin paling to an almost gray tone as she leeched his power from him. She felt the island they were on begin to lower. She felt every pulse in her body, every nerve, every muscle, every piece of herself, was on fire.

She let the flames encase her, let herself only feel this. This was it, this was who she was, this life, or the next, one thing would never change. She had been made for this and this alone. They hit the ground and she began walking toward Asterin. She knelt beside him checking his pulse. “Still alive?” he murmured. She tapped his cheek.

“Enjoy the rest of your life. We will meet again, Asterin.” He seemed to use all of his remaining energy to smirk at her.

She stood picking up her katana and placing it on her back before breaking off into a run. She could feel the power from Esme and Uziel. She ran toward it, seeing them both slashing at one another. A beautifully fierce sight of water and air converging. She had to catch her breath before it disappeared

fully. Uziel should be weakened. He shouldn’t be able to hold his own, not after she had destroyed Asterin’s power, but here he was. She used her fire to hover her into the air near them. Uziel saw her, and with one large motion, knocked Esme out of the air.

She threw a ball of fire, nearly blue with heat, and he barely dodged it. He was weakened but not enough. She focused on his energy but she couldn’t sense it. “You gave me a blessing last time, Celeste!” He stopped attacking, so she did too. “When you didn’t trap me right away, you showed me you are truly the best of us, and if I can never be the best of us, I can be the worst of us.” Even with the heat around them, her blood ran cold.

“Uziel?” He smiled, cold, malicious, long gone, the boy she had seen in her flashbacks, the one she had been close to, the one she had thought of as family. It took everything in her to keep her mind focused. She didn’t know him now, but the ghost of her had. She used all of her remaining strength to throw a ball of fire at him; he didn’t dodge it, instead slashing it with air. She continued throw after throw her arms burned, her head felt light, and yet she also felt alive. She felt human and god all at once. As she fought him everything in her felt real, for the first time in her life she felt like herself.

One wrong move from either of them, and they were gone. He made that move allowing her to slash him out of the air. She flew to him on the ground as he stood again, but she didn’t give him the chance, lacing the net of fire around him. It was a cage. She walked toward it as it finished watching him try to access his powers. He couldn’t; it was gone. She had stripped all of it away and burned it into her own. She got close enough to speak, so she did. “How’s your blessing working out for you?” He glared at her, but she just smiled.

“You are stronger than before.” He was trying to avoid getting too close to the fire burning fiercely around him.

“You’re weaker,” she responded, remembering Esme on the ground and backtracking. “In more ways than one. Goodbye Uziel.”

He would be forced to return to the mortal world once more in a minute with no memory of this remaining. When she and Esme opened the gate, they would all return them with their own free will and the others with the choices they had made long ago. She headed to Esme, seeing her on the ground. She sat beside her, aware of Uziel’s gaze on them both. “You alive?” she asked quietly, and Esme groaned.

“I despise him.” She glared at Uziel who was still glowering at them. Celeste pulled Esme into her tightly.

“We have to go, can you walk?” Esme made a small sound almost as if she wanted to protest, but knew she couldn’t.

“For you.” She answered instead, beginning to stand. Celeste helped her limp to the gate she had told her about. A stone arch that had once held the power of their god themself. Once they had caged the other two into mortal forms with no power and fading memory, they could access the remaining power of the gate and open the entrance to the mortal world once more. She laid Esme down, beginning her magic on the gate. Once it opened, she helped Esme up, placing her forehead against Esme’s cool one.

“Do me a favor and take care of yourself,” she whispered to Esme, making her smile sadly.

“I hate this part.”

This part, as in the part where they have to leave each other for the next fifty years or so. Celeste kissed her forehead, preparing herself. This wasn’t the end, simply another beginning. One they would have to live without one another. Celeste understood that the world was more important but the thought of Esme and her being separate again hurt more than any other possible form of pain. “Until the next fight, Esme Monroe.” Esme smiled, getting her strength back and standing on her own, her forehead still pressed to Celeste’s.

“Until then, FireBug.” She walked through first, leaving Celeste to marvel once more at the beauty of the Middle Lands before stepping through herself.

Celeste awoke seeing the sunlight stream in through her window. Her memories were already starting to fade. By the time she got to her window sill, only little remained and even that was fading. Only one thing wasn’t; one word, one name. “Esme,” she whispered to herself, pale eyes burned into her memory with the fiercest cold as everything else faded away.