The Elemental Sisters: Spirit

I entered the throne room and approached the King, bowing at the foot of the stairs leading up to the royal seats. Surprisingly, my brother and the Queen were not present.

"Were you successful in your mission, son?" he asked.

"I was sire, they are waiting on the other side of the door." I answered him.

He nodded at one of his guards, who left the room in a rush.

What was going on? I thought as my father spoke again.

"Are you sure they are the sisters from the prophecy and not some wenches that have tricked you?" he accused.

"The Goblins believe they are, and to be honest, they have the abilities that the prophecy speaks of."

He nodded as he stroked his long black beard in thought, his blue eyes sparkling as ideas formulated in his grotesque mind. His hair had random braids in the front and fell loose in the back. "What abilities have they shown you?" He finally asked.

"They have each demonstrated their abilities to some extent, control of fire, water, air and earth was witnessed as well as spirit."

"We shall see about that. Are you sure you have not been tricked? Women are tricky creatures." He accused making me angrier than I already was. I hated this man; he was a sorry excuse for a King. "Bring them in." He ordered as the doors opened, revealing the sisters surrounded by guards. Both parties had their weapons drawn.

Rage consumed me as I walked over, reaching for my weapon as well, "what is the meaning if this?" I yelled looking at the guards.

"I have orders, Prince Tyr, until they prove themselves, they are to be put under arrest."

"On what grounds?" Akasha asked as she moved to stand between him and her sisters.

"On the grounds that you may be frauds."

I looked at the sisters. Their faces held mixed: emotions Akasha, Gia and Ari looked pissed, Sunama looked like she would faint, she was so spooked and Huricana was laughing.

I turned to face my father, "They came here on their own, they are our guests. We have nothing to arrest them for." My hand wielding my sword as I spoke to him.

He seemed to think about my words as he eyed my weapon, then replied, "Very well, our guests then." As the guards stood down, the sisters put their weapons away, and I did as well. The Two guards returned to stand on either side of my father's throne.

Akasha and her sisters entered the throne room cautiously and as they approached, my father's face seemed to go redder and redder.

"Why are you being rude to your king?" he yelled at them.

They looked at him confused, "You are not our King. Our King is King Kenloc of the Pixies." Akasha spoke calmly.

"How dare you be rude to me!"

"We are not, our King is dead, and our people no longer bow to anyone." Ari replied curtly, earning a glare from the King.

This is not going well. I thought to myself, surprised that my father was letting his emotions slip so much when he was supposed to be the example to our people and have full control over them.

"Who are you?" My father asked.

"I am Akasha, this is Ari, Gia, Sunama, and Huricana." Akasha introduced them, they curtsied when their names were spoken.

"We are the Elemental Sisters." Ari announced when Akasha finished speaking, Akasha shook her head at her disapprovingly.

"Who is your leader?"

"Our leaders were our parents, the pixie village chieftains Wyder and Valda. They were killed by the Goblins. We believe we are the only ones that made it out alive. Akasha is now our leader, as she is the Eldest." Gia explained. One guard had a look of recognition at the mention of their mother. Had he known her?

I turned to Akasha and her sisters, "This is the Elf King, King Halamar, and his wife Queen Elasha." Queen Elasha was my stepmother had just entered the room and sat down in the seat beside the King, my birth mother the first queen had been executed when I was six.

"Thank you for meeting with us." Akasha greeted as she bowed and looked at her sisters with a warning until they did the same.

"Why did you want to speak with me?" King Halamar asked.

"We came to ask for aid against the Goblin army if we are to defeat them and their allies. My sisters and I will need your assistance and from the others allied with us." Akasha shared. She looked so confident as she spoke to the King, almost as if she were a royal herself.

I looked around the room at the court members. Some seemed to be excited by the arrival of the sisters, and others looked leery.

"Wait, a minute. You can't just barge in here and ask for my resources and army." He boomed.

"I believe I just did." She retorted a little annoyed, "You had allied yourself in the past with the Pixies and numerous other creatures of our realm so in the case of a full-on war we could rally together and defend our people, me and my sisters being the remaining pixies and the ones of prophecy have come to ask for your aid. Will you aid us or am I wasting my time?" She spoke coolly. Both, amazing and shocking me.

"How dare you speak that way to me, I am King!"

"Of the Elves and as such," she turned to Sunama, who handed her a scroll from her bag. "This scroll with your family seal binds you to keep your vow and ensures you ally with us." She showed the room the seals that marked the scroll. "How did you get that?" he roared angrily as he stood up and walked over to inspect it.

"It was passed down in my family and now belongs to me." She retorted, rolling it back up. "If you break your word and your seal cracks, you know what will happen, right?"

A look of fear crossed my father's face before he smiled smugly and returned to his seat.

"It will only crack if you are who you say you are. Before we discuss this matter any further, you and your sisters must prove yourselves."

"And how are we supposed to do that?" Gia questioned.

"A battle to show your abilities to the entire kingdom."

"Oh, fun. I get to fight people." Ari whispered with a gleam in her eye.

I knew what my father was planning. He had a man in his army that could control every element; he was half pixie and half elf. If he wanted the sisters to go up against him, he could disprove their claims and imprison them or kill them for being frauds.

Akasha looked at me as if reading me like a book, before turning her attention back to my father and asking, "when and where?" with an air of confidence that floored me.

My father, frowning, answered, "The sisters shall fight in two days' time at dawn, they will battle against each other, and the winner will face my highest guard Taoen."

She nodded and glanced at me again as if trying to figure something out, her thoughts entered my mind, "I would love to know what Tyr is thinking. He looks worried, I wonder why? Should I read his mind and find out what has got him so shaken?... No, I wouldn't dare enter his mind; it is greatly unfair to him not to mention against the pixie code."

My frown deepened as guilt wracked through me. It was not like I could control my ability. There weren't many Elves who had my ability to begin with, which left very few to help me learn to control it. My mother was one, but she passed away before she could teach me. Can she really read my mind?

"So, we have a day to prepare?" Gia confirmed, interrupting my thoughts.

"Yes, then you will battle, use the time I have given you to train." He paused, "if you win, I will honor our alliance as you will have proven yourselves as the sisters from prophecy. If you lose, you will be executed. My son, Prince Tyr, will show you to your quarters."

Five shocked faces turned to look at me.

"I'll show you to your quarters," I offered as I moved towards the room exit, refusing to look them in the eyes. I led them away from the King.