Dignified

Chapter five

Ryan didn't understand what his brothers were gawking at. He pulled out his iPod, looking in it trying to see what was so special about his eyes. He gasped, dropping his iPod and leaning back against the tree. Ryan's eyes were no longer the dark brown color they normally were. Instead, they were turning into a bright, shining blue. "Zach, let me see your mirror." He said, holding his hand out. Zach reached in his pocket, grabbing his pocket mirror that he refused to leave at home. He was very conceited at times, and believed he should always be able to see himself. Ryan watched his eyes change color, wondering whether or not the crystal was to blame. "How do you feel?" Clark asked, raising his eyebrows. Ryan looked down at his hands, realizing he felt much stronger and knowing something was...different. "Maybe you got some weird, alien powers or something!" Said Zach excitedly. "Go on! Try teleporting, or-or shooting lasers out of your hands!" Trace laughed, pretending to shoot something from his hands. Ryan frowned slightly, looking down at his hands. "Hmm...maybe." He said, his eyebrows pressed together in concentration. He looked up, spotting another tree a few feet away from them. He took a deep breath and held his hand out towards it. "C'mon! Try it!" Zach urged again. Ryan focused on the tree, willing something, anything, to come out of his hands. He felt a rush before a large burst of water flew out of his hands, knocking hard on the tree. "Woah!" Ryan's eyes widened, stepping back from the boys, still looking at his hands. "Ryan! You just shot freaking water out of your hands!" Yelled Zach, jumping up and down. "You've got super powers!" Trace said, grinning widely. Clark smiled at Ryan, still a bit shocked. He ran his hand through his hair, unable to believe what had just happened. "Me next!" Zach said, running back towards the clearing. "Zach, wait!" Yelled Clark, jumping after him. Zach stopped in front of the crystals, smiling widely trying to decide which one to grab. "I like red, so, red it is!" He took hold of the red crystal, laughing loudly as he braced himself. The crystal got hotter in his hand, making him wince. "Woah. Hey, ow. This is starting to hurt." He said, trying to let it go. "What the hell?! OW!" He yelled, shaking his hand and jumping back. The crystal did the same as Ryan's, growing extremely bright before sending Zach flying back. He landed on the ground, pulling his knees up to his chest in pain. Clark hopped over to him and rolled him over. "Hey, you alright? Get up." He said, trying to pull Zach up. Trace and Ryan walked up to Zach, focusing intently on his eyes. "Well? Open your eyes, idiot, so we can see them." Zach sighed before opening his eyes slowly. They were no longer the bright blue they once were. They shimmered slightly before turning a very light brown color, nearly red. He took the mirror from Ryan before glancing at his hands. The deep cuts in his palms were slowly sealing up. "No way..." Zach said, his hands now completely healed. He looked in the mirror, observing his changing eyes. "I liked my blue eyes." He said, groaning a bit. "And so do the girls. Brown eyes aren't as attractive as blue eyes." He said, crossing his arms. He smirked suddenly, walking over in front of the clearing. "Zach, what are you doing?" Asked Clark, trying to follow him. Zach focused on a few trees in front of him before yelling and holding his hands out. Flames shot out his hands, grabbing the trees and swallowing them in smoke. "Zach! STOP!" He stepped back, staring at his hands with a devious smirk. Ryan ran in front of him, eyes wide as he watched the fire spread. "Guess it's time to try out my new powers." He said, aiming his hands at the flames. His face hardened as he focused, shooting waves of water out of his arms and hands. Within seconds, the scorching fire had died down under the coldness of the water. Ryan smiled, pleased with himself before turning to his brothers. "Who's next?" He asked. Trace and Clark glanced at each other. "I will." Trace said, stepping back towards the rubble. He considered each of the crystals, trying to figure out which was better. He shrugged, wrapping his fingers around the green crystal. "I like green." He said, preparing himself to be thrown back. As the crystal lit up, Trace planted his feet firmly into the ground, grabbing the edge of the platter with one hand. He felt the force of the crystal try to push him away, but he stayed in place having been prepared. He smiled, pleased with himself, before stepping away from the clearing. "My eyes are already green, so I'm not expecting any change." He said smiling. Trace was right. His eyes didn't change color. They just simply brightened up more than they already were. He walked over to where Zach was standing and faced the trees his brother had killed. He focused on them, as if he already knew what to do. The trees burst back to life, every leaf regaining its color. New plants sprouted from the ground where Trace was stepping, each swaying and growing quickly. He laughed quietly, his green eyes bright and happy. "Earth." He whispered. Clark sighed, stepping towards the top of the clearing. His foot was still hurt, giving him a small limp. His dark hair was messy and for once was not combed the way it normally was. He held his hand out towards the silver crystal, shining brightly, and enclosed his hand around it. He, like Trace, knew what to expect and braced himself. The crystal in his hand grew brighter, trying to send him back flying. Clark smiled when he felt the force disappear, and released his nervous muscles. He opened his hand, wondering where the crystals disappeared to. Ryan jogged over to his brother, looking directly at his eyes. He smiled, watching his brother's blue eyes turn much lighter. They turned into such a shade of light blue that his eyes almost appeared gray. He grinned, holding the mirror up to his face and observing the switch in the colors. "Well? Are you just going to stand there or are you going to test your new powers?" Zach asked, clenching and un clenching his fists. Clark turned towards the trees, unsure of what to do. He focused on a much smaller tree, extending his arm out towards it. He felt a rush run down his arm before leaving his fingertips, and the tree he was focusing on snapped in half. Clark's eyes widened as he watched the tree fall to its side, smashing onto the ground. "So, you can break trees?" Said Zach, raising an eyebrow. Trace walked around Clark, hand held out towards the broken tree. He was curious, lifting an eyebrow as he fixed it. "No," he said. "His power is air. Don't you get it, guys?" He turned to face his brothers, a thin smile on his lips. Although Trace was the smallest and the youngest of the group, he was also the smartest. He was constantly studying new things, reading new books, or trying to learn how things worked. "Guys, these aren't just ordinary superpowers." Said Trace, grinning. "It's the four natural elements. We've been gifted with the abilities of the four natural elements." Clark, Ryan, and Zach all looked down at their hands, taking in what their younger brother was saying. "Earth-air-fire-and water." He said, pointing to whoever that ability corresponded to. Clark smiled, wrapping an arm around Trace. "Alright. It's great that we got these and all, but we have to head back to Camp Safe Haven." He said, locating his bike and heading over to it. "Can't we stay here and practice?" Asked Zach, holding a blazing fire in his palm.

"No, we have to go. It's late." Said Clark as he mounted his bike, noticing that his foot was no longer hurt.

"But we have to learn how to use our awesome new powers!" Zach told him.

"Well, we can learn tomorrow, but for now we have to go."

Zach groaned, still very curious to see what else he could do. The boys got onto their bikes and rode back to the lake house, the wind messing up their hair. Ryan thought about what had happened, and he smiled to himself. He couldn't believe what was happening. He had superpowers? His brothers and him had superpowers? What? That didn't make sense. He sighed, taking in the fact that it might all just be a dream, but then again, Ryan never was a heavy dreamer. He slowed to a stop as they arrived at Camp Safe Haven and jumped off his bike. He placed it back onto its rack before heading back inside. He wiped at his forehead with a napkin, realizing just how dirty he was. "I'm going to take a shower." He called out to the other boys who were still outside. Ryan made his way upstairs, kicking off his shoes as he sat on his bed. His soles were aching and his limbs were shaking. He felt very tense after all the commotion he had just gone through. He undressed and slipped into a towel, leaning against the bathroom sink and watching his eyes in the mirror. Why had his eyes changed color? He wondered. He turned to step into the shower, rubbing the back of his neck. He smiled as he touched the water, knowing that he now had some sort of connection to it. The cold water relaxed his tense back muscles, making him let out a sigh of relief. He washed himself before being hit by a little curiosity. Ryan stepped back into the corner of the shower and held his hand up towards the water. He began to slowly raise his hand, and the water decided to defy gravity and curve upwards in the direction of Ryan's hand. He smiled, laughing a bit as he turned off the shower. "This is crazy." He said, drying himself and getting dressed. He stepped into the hallway, knocking on Trace's door.

"Hey, you in there?" He asked, opening the door. Inside, Trace was reviving a small plant he had kept by his window for weeks, but it had just died. The plant thrived in color as it opened up and began to grow at Trace's will. He smiled, placing the plant back next to the window. "What's up?" Said Trace, turning to face his brother. "Have a goodnight, alright?" Ryan said, smiling slightly at Trace.

"Thanks. You too."

Ryan stepped outside, heading for Zach's room next. He opened the door and found his brother fixing his hair and staring at his eyes intently with one of his many mirrors. "Why are you spiking up your hair? We're about to go to sleep." Ryan said, raising an eyebrow. Zach smirked.

"It's never a bad time to make yourself look more attractive." He said.

"Whatever. Well, have a goodnight. Try not to burn anything in your sleep." He said, rolling his eyes. Ryan glanced into Clark's open bedroom, but didn't see him. He stepped downstairs, humming along to a song on the kitchen's radio. "Where's Clark?" He asked himself, looking around. He smiled as he saw him outside, sitting at the edge of the pool with his feet in the water. Clark looked up at the stars, simply observing them as he splashed around a bit. "Hey, I'm going to bed. Have a goodnight." Ryan called out, surprising Clark as he turned. "Alright, then. Sleep well." He said. Ryan smirked, raising his hand so that a wave of water sprouted from the pool and splashed onto Clark. "Whoops. My bad." Ryan said sarcastically, stepping inside. He made his way up to his bedroom, falling into his bed and sighing loudly. He rolled onto his back, looking out his screen window and listening to the sounds of nocturnal animals out and about. He smiled, thinking about everything before drifting off to a comfortable sleep.