Elemental: Heat Rising

Chapter Four

Chapter Four

The Spearmint Task

    Meanwhile, up at the Northern castle Froggut sorted out the soldiers who were ready to move to the Southern castle for attack under the moonlit sky.

“Are we ready?” Violet asked Froggut as she stepped out of the Northern castle and to the front of a legion of Northern soldiers.

    “I think so,” Froggut said, checking over the assembly of warriors, armed with swords and shields. Their leather armor brushed against each other filling the night with the sound of friction.

“Good,” Violet said, the moonlight coming in from behind her made it impossible for Froggut to view her face.

She turned to the large throng of soldiers.

    “Soldiers of the North!” she yelled above the noise within the night, “It is time for movement to the Southern castle! You are to attack on arrival! Now move!”

    They moved in unison, their feet thumping to the ground sounding like thunder rolling across the earth.

    Violet dashed from the scene, grabbing her black cloak and putting it on her once more before running to the castle stables and taking out a black horse.

Strapping a saddle onto it’s back and sliding on, she took the reins and forced the horse into a speedy gallop down the dirt and gravel path headed South into the night.

☄

    Holly trudged up the tower staircase to the lesson room, still thinking of what the adults were talking about in the meeting the night before.

    “Southern war plans were stolen?” she thought, trying to piece together the subject of their meet.

    She crept into the lesson room, nervous of what Oak would do about her behavior in her assessment the previous evening.

    The morning sun shown through the drawn shades over the hexagon windows on either wall of the lesson room. It aggravated Holly’s vision as she sat down on her cushion.

    Oak sat across from her, his back turned. After minutes of Holly waiting for him to move or say something he finally did.

    “Hello, Holly,” he said to her, his back still turned from her, “Did you enjoy the extra rest you got last night?”

    Holly didn’t answer, but she did want to throw a tea cup onto his head for mocking her.

“Your behavior at last night’s tea ceremony was unacceptable, do you ever want to succeed as a healer? You’ll be lucky if those two ever come back for your second try at an assessment.”

“I don’t even want to be a healer,” Holly said to him.

“Holly,” he said, before stopping.

“What? I’d much rather be something else. You know like… a warrior. One that actually fights the North.”

“Air Elementals have the greatest records as healers. You were blessed with your touch so you could become one,” he explained to her, “You are meant to be a healer.”

“But what if I don’t want to become one?” she responded, “There’s a reason I’m an elemental and it’s not so I can sit in an infirmary and tend to the people actually fighting. I should be one of the ones needing the healing!”

“Holly,” he said, cutting her off, “we are not talking about this now.”

“But.”

“No. None of what you're saying excuses your behavior from last night,” he continued, still turned away, “Go to the castle library and find the book on tea leaves.”

“Oh, great,” Holly groaned.

“This is not about you being a healer,” Oak said coldly, “This is part of your punishment, bring the book back up here and I will tell the rest of your… How should I put it? … Task.”

Holly stood, determined to get whatever Oak was to assign her with over with.

She turned and ran out the room and down the winding staircase to the second floor. Then she turned and descended the grand staircase like the night before but this time faster.

She turned left in the great hall and pulled open the large wooden doors to the castle library.

When she walked in the castle librarian, Clover was sitting at her usual desk, sorting out books into two piles. Holly recognized one pile as fictional literature and the other as astronomy.

“Hello, Holly” she said, looking up, over her oval shaped spectacles, “What do you need?”

Holly admired the warm tone she spoke with.

“Can you direct me to the… botany section?” Holly paused trying to remember what the word for plant study was.

    Clover got up and walked Holly to the botany section. Field journals written by various people lined the shelves.

    “Are you looking for anything specific?” she asked Holly who responded to her by telling her she needed a book on tea leaves.

    After Holly was given the right book she dashed back up to the tower and threw it down in front of where Oak sat, with his back still turned to her.

    “Got the book,” Holly said.

    “Good. Would you like your punishment?”

    “Yes, please,” Holly spoke unhappily.

    “I’ve been running out of spearmint leaves to use for my tea. So in return for your awful behavior from last night you are going to fetch me ten tea leaves,” he said smugly.

    “You mean go down to the market? I need money,” Holly said, confused.

    “No!” Oak said, stopping her before she was able to continue, “I only use fresh spearmint leaves in my tea. You are to collect the tea leaves from the forest.”

    “The black wood?” Holly asked, worried.

The black wood was filled with dangerous creatures and poisonous plants. If she collected the wrong plant leaves it could become disastrous.

    “The black wood,” Oak said, plainly, “Turn to the spearmint page in the book and don’t come back until you’ve collected ten spearmint leaves!”

    Holly left the lesson room and went directly to her bedroom.

    Once there she opened the book of tea leaves and flipped through until she found the spearmint page.

    “They won’t miss this,” she said as she ripped it from the book, folded it up and stuffed it in her pocket.

    She opened her dresser drawer and lifted up a panel on the bottom that uncovered a secret compartment where she kept a knife, for emergencies, and a photograph of her old family.

    She stared at the picture for a moment before whisking out the knife and strapping the holder it was in to her pants.

Slamming the drawer shut, she walked to a cupboard on the other side of her room and pulled out a small glass jar to place the tea leaves in.

She rushed out the bedroom doorway, closing it behind her and rushed out of the castle.

It was near two o’clock according to the sundial in the castle courtyard.

Holly looked to the sky, dark clouds were rolling in, she turned to face the castle then turned back around.

Without another action she started into a run and began down the path into the black wood.