Elemental Heirs

Prologue: The Legend

Millions of years ago, back when the planet Earth was still void of any life force, exists Aether – an element that fills the region of the universe above Earth. Conferring to ancient accounts, Aether was more than just an element; it was also the name of the deity who ruled in the said region. As life started to form and eventually develop on Earth, inhabitants of it have proved that Aether – as an element indeed exist. However the ruler and the elemental creatures of the said kingdom still remains a mystery.

As Aether ruled beyond Earth, four other elements have begun to stir life on the planet. Four elements, four kingdoms ruled by four deities. The elementals of earth, air, water and fire had finally awakened from the depths of the planet with each kingdom populated by different creatures and possess unique abilities.

First are the Gnomes. Ruled by the deity Gob, has claimed their homes in caves and on rocks. Next are the Sylphs, highest of the elementals as their vehicle was the wind, soaring high and free with their ruler Paralda. And from the vast sea, Necsa was the deity leading the elementals of water called Undines. Lastly, Djim, the ruler of the most powerful and dangerous elementals on Earth, has lead his army of Salamanders dominating the planet with much needed warmth.

As time passed by, two more elementals had also made themselves visible on the surface of planet. The elementals of Wood, whose life form started to grow as the Gnomes cultivated the land and Undines on water beds. These elementals have grown in numbers in a short time and their kingdom was led by the deity Pan. And the last out of the seven elemental kingdoms was populated by the elementals of Metal. Their kingdom shined as various precious substances and materials began to surface from deep down Earth and their dominion was ruled by Anchiale.

For a long time the six elemental creatures have live peacefully, sharing whatever the planet can give them and help each other improve life on Earth. This was until a new race of creatures came to live on the planet - the race of the Humans.

At first both humans and elementals were living in perfect harmony. The elementals have accepted the existence and arrival of humans and nurtured them till they were able to stand on their own and live. Soon the humans began to gain knowledge and found out that elementals hold certain unique powers. Powers that they have envied and it didn't take them long to figure out how to achieve it.

It started when a human has accidentally wounded a salamander. Upon impulse, guilt and pity for what he had did the human lapped creature's wound to stop the bleeding. The salamander didn't mind as they do the same to themselves whenever they got themselves wounded. However, the effect of elemental blood on human was different.

As soon as the salamander's blood entered his system, the human began to feel a rush of something strong and powerful on his veins. His hands became way warmer than they usually were and so he extended his arms to look at them. As soon as he did, small flickers of fire started to dance on his palm. Both the human and the salamander watched in curiosity until the fire extinguished itself.

Words of the event have spread fast among the human race. They stipulated that by taking in elemental blood, one can temporarily experience to have the skills and abilities of the elemental creature in manipulating elements. Some just ignored the story but the greedy ones have decided to prove the theory. And so started the mysterious deaths of the elemental beings.

Shortly after they had proved that the blood of the elemental creatures will indeed give them the same power humans have thirsted to have, they had begun to hunt the poor unsuspecting elemental creatures and kill them for their blood. Not all humans approved the said act but there were still many blood thirsty humans who longed to attain power over the elementals. And so these humans created a new group among them and called themselves Hunters.

After some time the deities had noticed the drastic deaths of from their kingdom. The six of them started to search for answers and since their trust for the humans were high, never once did they suspect them to be the reason for the horrible deaths among their populace. However, as their search for answers continue, evidences have pointed them to truth which they still refuse to accept. It was only when they have witnessed the murder of a poor undine from their very own eyes that they realized what exactly was happening.

The deities were furious. The people whom they've trusted, helped and nurtured had betrayed them because of jealousy and greed for power. The deities realized that now, when the humans have finally became wise and learned to live on their own, they were starting to push themselves on top and try to dominate the rest of the creatures. But their realization was already too late. The elemental creatures were depleting, only few have left. The humans have also begun to take over and utilize the resources that the elementals have spent their lifetime cultivating.

With both their race and kingdom slowly vanishing into the hands of the humans, the six deities were forced to surrender their life force to the remaining inhabitants to save them from the cruelty of the hunters. With their last strength, they released their powers to the elemental creatures. They turned them into human form to help them disguise and hide from their enemies and extended whatever protection they can to keep their race alive for the generations to come.

After which, the six deities vanished into nothingness. Some say they've joined Aether in her kingdom beyond Earth but up till now nobody is certain as to what had happened to them.