The Planes Walkers

2. A Day's Work

Mr. Gher led them inside and straight to the back. It was quick so no one could see them entering. The farthest part of the bakery was huge. Ovens lined the back wall. Mr. Gher worked by himself because he was a Fire Elementalist, one who controlled the power of fire.

"Alright, I'm using the one on the far right, but all the other ovens need to be cleaned," Mr. Gher explained. "I'll leave you both to it. Do a good job and there will be a few gold pieces in it for you."

Dustan smiled and nodded. Jet nodded quickly and turned back to the ovens. Mr. Gher left to the front of the shop.

"Come on, let's get started." Dustan told Jet.

"Alright, one sec," Jet said as he took his scarf off and set it aside safely.

The two of them began cleaning the ovens late into the morning. While they were cleaning, Dustan told Jet the stories from their homeland. There was a desert to the far northeast which is where they were from. Dustan was too young to remember the name when his dad had told it to him. It had been shortly after Jet was born that their parents brought them to the Soul Empire. Shortly after their move, the Soul Empire saw the desert people as a threat and closed their borders. Their parents left them in the safety of Calbar to go fight for the borders to be opened, or so the story went. They never came back.

Jet always hated the end of the story. The Soul Empire's army that mostly came from Calbar had put a stop to the immigrants protesting the border close. A part of Jet hated the Soul Empire for that, but he had to be thankful they didn't kill him or arrest him just because he was from the northeastern desert.

Dustan and Jet reached the last oven. It was a new industrial oven, more massive than the last ones. They both had to crawl inside to get the ash out and clean it. The oven was dark, with little light coming inside to tell where they needed to clean.

"The Fire Element seems to cause much more ash," Dustan said, breaking the silence.

Elementalists were gifted people who controlled the power of specific Elements, such as fire, water, air and earth. He knew of rumors that there were Soul Elementalists that had founded the Empire, thus giving its name. Those were the ones that Jet knew of. They were all pretty rare, according to the citizens of Calbar. Jet assumed that the emperor, Wrathel, kept close attention to Elementalists to keep them under control.

Jet was going to reply when they both heard a soft voice-like sound. "What was that?" Dustan asked.

"I'm not sure..." Jet mumbled as he tried to listen.

After a few seconds, it happened again. It almost sounded like someone sighing, but it was distorted. Then suddenly, Dustan's hand lit up with a pale green aura. It caused both of them to jump. Jet fell out of the oven with a thud onto the kitchen floor. Dustan crawled out of the oven.

"How's it going back-," Mr. Gher started but then stopped as he saw Dustan's hands. "A Spirit Elementalist!" he shouted.

Mr. Gher's shout caused a stir inside the lobby of the shop. He ran out to tell the other people. Neither Dustan nor Jet knew what was going on. Before they knew it, Mr. Gher was leading people into the kitchen to see them. Jet felt uncomfortable because he didn't know how to react. No one seemed to care that two poor citizens were in the kitchen of a bakery, they all seemed focused on Dustan.

"Why didn't you tell me you were an Elementalist Dustan?" Mr. Gher asked.

"Because I didn't know myself," Dustan explained. The aura swayed around his hands like a pale smoke.

"Out of my way, out of my way!" a voice shouted from the lobby of the bakery. Through the crowd came a soldier of the Soul Empire army. Not just any soldier. It was one of the high generals. He wore a black and purple trench coat that held metals of valor on one side.

As soon as people realized who he was, they began to move and bow. Mr. Gher shuffled and bowed quickly. "Greetings, sir. I didn't know you were in this part of the city. I apologize my bakery is in such a state."

"What's this I hear about a Spirit Elementalist?" the general asked.

Mr. Gher stood up straight and quickly moved over to Dustan. "This is the boy, sir."

"Looks like a nobody to me," the general sneered.

"Well he is a nobody, but he has an Element."

"Alright then," the general nodded as he examined Dustan's aura-covered hands, "Come with me boy."

Dustan resisted for a second. "I can't leave my younger brother here."

"Brother, you say?" the general asked. "Do you have an Element as well?"

"No, sir," Jet muttered.

The general seemed to think about it. The look on Dustan's face was stern. He wasn't going to leave Jet behind.

"Well his lordship might have a use for the both of you. Come on."

"His lordship? Where are we going?" Dustan asked as the crowd parted for them.

"To the castle of course."

Jet's face lit up with excitement. He was finally going to see the castle and maybe even get to be a part of the Soul Empire as an official citizen. It would make them both well off.