Elementalist

32

Talon stares at the man brought before him. He turns white as do Jet and Ethan. "What's the matter?" Stephanie asks in alarm as they stare at the witch brought before them by Tracey's vampires.

"It can't be. He died more than a century ago." Talon says almost in a trance as he stares at the witch before him.

"Who, Talon?" Stephanie demands searching the man brought before them.

"Chase." Ethan manages to say in a voice whisper thin and he looks like he's just about to pass out from shock. Talon and Jet are little better.

"No, I took the liberty of finding someone that has his DNA." Tracey says, he hadn't expected the response he'd gotten from the elementalist consorts. He had just wanted to bring them some comfort for the lost friend that hurts them still after all this time.

Stephanie is the only one able to speak and turns her words to the nearly shaking man before her. She does her best to reassure the man that the vampires wouldn't hurt him. "Please, would you tell me your name?"

The man turns his terrified gaze from the vampires that hold him to the female witch that just casually tore one of the council members apart using a tornado. He faints.

They all look at him nonplussed at his reaction. That's when the others snapped out of their shock.

Tracey looks upset, "I hadn't meant to cause any of you pain. I certainly hadn't expected that reaction.

"I am sorry Talon, guys, I thought it would be nice if you knew that there was a relative of the guy that meant so much to you."

"A relative, how could that be? From the time we fled from our community he hadn't fathered any children. The closest he came was when he was with Bianca." Talon finally manages to speak.

Tracey shakes his head, "For that information you will need to ask the young witch yourself. If you would like I can give him some of my blood to wake him up and help with the shock?"

"Yes, please, Tracey," Stephanie answers him when the others don't. She would very well like to know the answer to those questions and she has a few herself. Like if he has the healing ability that Chase was said to have. She would be very interested in learning more of the healing aspects of her powers.

Soon enough the young witch is once more awake. "Forgive us, please. We didn't mean to cause you any problems. King Tracey was just trying to help us out and you look so much like our long dead friend that we didn't react nicely." Talon says gently to the frightened witch before him.

He helps the witch to stand. "Please, can you tell me how you look so much like Chase of Council Rock?"

The young witch stares at Lord Talon in shock, "You knew my great grandfather?"

Talon staggers back a bit at this news and it's Stephanie that steadies him, the others not being in much better condition than him.

"Yes, we were best friends and more. He was like a brother to me. After Council Rock was attacked we buried those that we could find and then stayed together until his death some centuries later. Now, please, tell me how you are his great grandson?"

"My great grandmother used to tell us stories of her youth. How the dashing community leader had most of the females wanting him to be their child's father, but for her, there was only the unknown mixed witch, Chase, that she wanted. She managed to get him to agree to having him be her partner and she had twins from him.

"When the attack came she and her family fled. She said it was chaos but from the sounds of fighting she was sure that their leader, Talon," here the young man's eyes open wide in fright as he realizes that the powerful leader of his great grandmother's community was no other than the current leader of the council. 

Talon nods at the young man to continue. The young man swallows hard and continues his story, "She lost her brother as he fought off those that would have killed them. Her father and mother were both injured. She and her remaining family made it to safety, but were never able to find others of their community, they feared that they were the only ones to survive.

"They managed to start over in a different country hiding all their powers so that they were considered just normal people. They made it so that it wasn't unusual for them to move around. Their family was known for being merchants and it wasn't unusual for merchants to leave and never return.

"In time her parents passed on and her remaining siblings found a group of witches and joined their community. It wasn't until she found her chosen that she decided to join, once more, a witches community. But she never did find out what happened to her lover or the leader of the community."

"Your great grandfather and I stayed away from most people. We were near enough to towns that if we needed or wanted something we couldn't make or grow we had access to it. Over the years Chase increased in his abilities to heal and he became sought after. We started traveling more to avoid becoming targets.

"After a few centuries we found Jet and Ethan and he healed Ethan and we taught them. Then our time was up. One we trusted betrayed us and forced a breaking between Chase's chosen and himself causing her to be badly treated, her sister killed violently and Chase killed as well as that bitch that betrayed him, betrayed us all. We weren't able to get there in time. If we had been there even two minutes earlier we would have been able to save him." The bitterness of that admission still burns Talon, makes him ill. He should have acted sooner.

Stephanie holds his hand and lets him know that he's not to blame, the hunters were the ones to blame and that traitorous bitch.

"I see," the Chase look alike says, his tone grieving the man he never knew.

"You seem to look just like him, from my chosen's reaction. Tell me young witch, are you able to heal like he was?" Stephanie asks softly knowing that the witch is terrified of her.

The man is unable to vocally respond but nods his head despondently.

Stephanie perks up with this. "Really? Would you be willing to teach me what you know? Talon and the others have tried, but they don't know a whole lot and with the danger we get into it would be a good idea for us to be able to do more than just the basics."

The young witch looks up, astonished at her words, "You want me to teach you? But you are far more powerful than I'll ever be."

Ethan snorts at this, "She's more powerful than any of us will ever be. But that doesn't mean that she can't learn new ways of using the abilities that she has. She can kill, as you've seen, but she wants to learn how to help save people's lives. Can you teach her that?"

"Of course, my lord, my lady, it would be an honor." The young witch replies more than a little astounded that such a powerful witch is asking him for instructions.

Stephanie smiles warmly at the young witch before her, "Very good, what is your name young man?"

"Chris, my lady, Christopher Jones."

"Well, Christopher, are you aware of where Lord Talon and the others live?"

"Yes, of course my lady."

"Come there tomorrow after your breakfast and we'll start our lessons, if that is convenient for you?"

The young man nods dazedly and then leaves to let his family know the astounding turn of events.

That young man, however, wasn't the last of Tracey's presents to those that are now his family. He has the vampire that has a young witch with him to bring her forward.

"Steven, I would like for you to meet your daughter," Tracey says and watches the show in delight at the astounded looks of both daughter and father.