The Elements

“You can die during this test in 4 different ways. Because I tell you about this ways, I have to explain you how the test will take place. Firstly, you’ll be let’s say, sent into your own mind and that’s all we know for sure. From here there are at least 10 different ways in which your test can go. When you’ll ‘get’ there, you’ll been in a room or maybe in a forest, but we can’t know for sure because we’re talking about a person’s mind. We don’t know what’s inside someone’s mind, so we can’t predict what’s going to happen. Then you’ll have to pass a challenge and here, again, it depends on your mind and what it can come up with. Some have to escape a room, some have to save someone or I don’t know, climb a mountain maybe. The mind is a very unpredictable and we haven’t be able to discover all it’s sides and quirks yet, even thought we are, indeed, smarter than the human species. Everything clear until now?” Ash asked with his both eyebrows raised at me.

I hesitantly nodded with a frown on my face. It’s not that I don’t understand what he said, but that’s the problem, because I did and for me, 4 ways to die are 4 ways too much.

He clapped his hands and crossed them over his chest. “Good. Now, back to the main topic. Remember 4 ways to die-” how can I forget something like that? “-and the first one is getting stuck in a place. For example, If you wake up in a room and you can’t escape because you somehow broke the knob. The second way is staying for too long in there and this time we’re talking about your mind and not the place where you’ll be. By staying for too long in there, you lose contact with the reality and trust me, it’s better to day in there then to come back and be insane with no sense of orientation and consciousness. The third one is dying while trying to complete your mission. It’s quiet simple, if the conscious part of you dies, you mind follows and it the end you completely die. And it’s not like that death brain thing. That happens only to humans. To us, the brain and mind are the most important parts of us. Without them, we’re nothing. Now, the forth way happens after you finish your task at hand. You complete your mission and you’re face to face with your power. What most don’t know is that even though it’s basically your power, if your body or mind is too weak they won’t be able to handle the sudden additional physical and mental strength. This is the most painful way to die and the view is horrible. It’s like when you want to fill a balloon with water and you keep filling it and forcing it even after it reached its maximum capacity.”

Goosebumps appeared all over my body and I rubbed my arms trying to reassure myself. It didn’t work.

Tomorrow I’ll die.

“No, you won’t. You’ll be fine because I can see you are a strong person. Trust me, you really are a strong person and Elementar if Ash said that. And yes, you said it out loud.” Hazel said and smiled at me.

“Okay, now that you know the basic things, you should go back to sleep because you look exhausted.” Ash said in the same time I yawned.

“Is it normal to be this tired without doing nothing?” I asked tiredly and climbed in my temporary bed because it’s clearly that I can’t go home now. Not when my powers are manifesting more and more. I don’t want to kill someone by accident. I’m not the best person alive, but I’m not a murderer.

“Yes, it actually is. Your Elementar powers are intensifying and that takes a tool on your body, but everything will be alright after you gain your element.” Ash’s voice was sounding like it was far away.

“Okay. I love muffins and marshmallows.” I mumbled before I drifted to sleep.

~x~

“Shadow.”

I was sleeping like a bear during the winter(minus the whole sucking of the paw thing),when I started to hear voices and I was almost ready to punch that damned alarm clock.

“Shadow, you need to wake up.”

This alarm is really insistent.

“SHADOW!”

I started to search for the snooze button with my hand, without bothering to open my eyes.

“Five more minutes. Where are you damn snooze button.” I mumble still searching for the button.

Aha! I could feel the source of that annoying sound, but I don’t remember my alarm clock to be so fluffy.

Is this a nose?

I thought as I touched something that felt a lot like a nose.

I jumped up on the bed when the alarm clock bite me. Since when an alarm can bite??

“WHAT THE FUCK?” I yelled and when I opened my eyes I saw that my alarm was actually a smirking Hazel.

“I told you to wake up, but you wouldn’t listen and then you called me a snooze button, so I got angry and I bite you.” he said with a shrug.

“What the hell dude! Why do you want to wake me up so early? What’s wrong with you?!” I said when I saw that it was barely 9 o’clock.

He let out an exasperate sigh. “Woman! It’s 9 o’clock in the morning and you have to take your test at 10! And we have to be there with 10 minutes before the test, idiot! That’s why! Now get your ass to the bathroom and be ready in half an hour. If you’re not ready by then I’ll change you!” he said and pointed at a door which was next to another one.

I gasped. “You wouldn’t!” but I was already heading to the bathroom because I know he would. He bit me for fuck’s sake.

“Yes I would!” he yelled at me because I already closed the bathroom’s door.

“Wow.” I gaped and stared at the sight in front of me. The flooring had a nice shade of royal blue and the walls were a lighter shade with different kind of fishes draw on them. And then we have the enormous shower with too much buttons for my mediocre brain, and just as big bathtub.

Everything ridiculously good and I was a little afraid to use the shower, but after a little debate and the remainder of a wild Hazel appearing and dragging me down the stairs, I decided on the shower instead of the bathtub. When the warm water hit my muscles, I realized how tensed I was. Who wouldn’t be? I just find out that I’m not human, that I’m some kind of guardian with powers and that I could die today in 4 ways. But life is really beautiful.

I wrapped myself in a very fluffy towel and brushed my teeth, because no one likes morning breath, and I just then I realized that I don’t have any clothes.

Good job genius.

I recommend you to shut up if you don’t have anything nice to say, dear brain. It’s enough that I can die today because of you.

I opened the bathroom door a little and toke a peek to see if someone was there. Thank God, the aria was clear and I could see some clothes on the bed. I walked and toke the clothes in my hands and headed back in the bathroom to change. I’m risking to have Hazel came in and say that I ran out of time, okay?!

The weird thing here was that this clothes fitted me perfectly and I had new underwear too. Now, I was dressed in a simple black t-shirt, some black track suit pants and I decided to keep my Batman high tops. When I saw my mane (’cause you can’t call my mess of a hair, hair) I knew that I don’t have any chance to make it look presentable, so made a simple high ponytail.

I exited the bathroom and when I wanted to open the bedroom door, someone else did it for me, and I was hit right in the face with the door.

You need to stop getting hit in the face. First a tree, now a door...

“Shit. Sorry, Shadow I didn’t know you were there.” no other than Hazel said and helped me to get up from the floor because my clumsy ass fell butt first. Sucks to have bad balance.

“It’s okay.” I said as I rubbed my nose because it kind of hurt.

“Okay, you can put some ice on it while we drive to The Novices Department because we’re a little late and Ash is going to have my ass if we don’t go right now.” he said and literally dragged me through the whole house until we arrived in the garage.

I gasped when I saw the beauty in front of me. It was an 2015 Lamborghini Aventador and it was a dark grey.

“Stop drooling on my car and get in or we’ll be late.” Ash said from the driver seat.

“I call shotgun!” I yelled and looked at Hazel.

His eyes were big because I’m sure he wasn’t expecting this. “That’s not fair! I won’t let you stay shotgun! That’s my place!”

“I don’t care! I won short and fair so get in the back loser. And you don’t know that ladies are first?” I said and smirked at him.

“You-” he wanted to say something but Ash yelled at him to stop being a pussy and get in the backseat.

“Wait. I thought this car shouldn’t have a backseat.” I said a little confused when Hazel laid down on the whole backseat with a pout.

How much I like when I win an argument, especially with boys because they get pissed when they’re beat by a girl.

“Ash knows a guy that knows a guy that knows another guy and that guy modified his car.” Hazel replied still pouting.

I turned to look at Ash. “How can someone modify a car this much?”

He rolled his eyes. “You’re in another dimension with 2 guys that are not human and I’m driving you take that a take to figure out what element you have with a 60% chance of dying in the process and that’s what you can’t believe?” he deadpanned and it was my turn to pout.

The rest of the ride no one said a word. Hazel was with his arms crossed on his chest and he was glaring at the car’s window after he got bored of staring at the car’s ceiling. Ash was driving but you could see the glint of amusement in his deep green eyes. His eyes are really beautiful and I swear I never saw such a nice shade of green. It was the color of the leafs when the moonlight was brushing them softly.

“Like what you see?” Ash said and I cursed under my breath because he caught me staring.

“Sorry, I was trying to figure out what shade of green your eyes are.” I said and he gave me a what-the-fudge look.

“Don’t judge me! I like to figure out people’s eyes color!” I said and looked ahead.

“What’s your conclusion then?” to my surprise Ash asked and you could hear the amusement in his voice.

“Deep green like the leafs at night when the moonlight brushes them.” I mumbled, but I know for sure that he heard me.

I looked at him and he looked surprised.

“To be honest I wasn’t expecting this answer. Usually people would say green and that’s all, but nice one Shadow.”

“Thanks.” I replied with a proud smirk.

“S!!! What’s my eyes color?” a very excited Hazel asked.

I looked at his eyes for a minute.

“They are the color of wild hazelnuts, but not when they’re already picked, when they are perfectly made and ready to be harvested.” I said and turned back in my seat.

Hazel’s jaw could hit the floor right now.

“Oh, shit, you’re good.” he said still shocked.

“I know. Thanks.” I said smirking, but it vanished when we pulled next to a big white building.

Small window, white everything, a fairly big parking lot....This place looked like a governmental secret place and it send shivers down my spine.

“Let’s go to the reception.” Ash said and he was the first one to exit the car. I was the last one, obviously. I was walking slower then those 2 and I couldn’t help but wonder if I’ll die today. I was pulled out from my trace when Hazel placed his hand on my shoulder and gave it a little squeeze mounting “You’ll be fine.”

When we entered the building the first room was a huge white lobby with white matching sofas and a sparkling clean white reception desk. I looked up at the receptionist and to my damn luck, the receptionist was Tiffany, one of my old bullies. She graduated last year and I was so happy that I could change in the lockers without snarky comments about my ‘fat’ ass.

“We have an appointment for a novice test.” Ash said with his normal poker face, but his voice was colder than normal.

Tiffany, when she saw him, she started to twirl her hair with one hand and beat her fake eyelashes at him.

“What’s the novice complete name?” she asked in a sick sweet tone and I was one step back from vomiting.

Ash turned to me and I was a little confused before I realized that he didn’t know my whole name.

“Shadow Renoir.” I said and Tiffany’s head snapped to me like she just realized that I was there.

Her fake smile turned into a scowl. “You? Here? So that’s why you were and still are a weirdo. The power in you messed your head? I hope you finally die today and leave all of us alone.” she spitted in my face and I could feel my anger raising.

My fists were clenched so hard that my knuckles were white and my nails were digging in my palms. I could feel the blood boiling in my veins in anger and the lights started to flicker and I took a step closer to the fake bitch.

“I prefer to be called a weirdo my whole life then being called a whore, like you. Now, tell us where we can go before I beat the crap out of your fake Barbie face, slut.” I said with a growl that surprised both me and her.

She took two steps back and stared at me in shock. “You’re a monster! You are a dark for sure! You are a sick weirdo and a monster!”

By the time she finished her sentence, I jumped at her and the lights went off. I was about to lend on her, but Ash grabbed me by the waist and went to the elevator.

“Let me finish her! Let me kill her and make a favorite to all humanity!!!” I growled again and keep trashing around.

“Calm down. You won’t resolve anything if you kill her. Now, we need to take you to the test because your powers are more bigger than I thought.” he said and I looked at him.

He was thinking hard about something. I really was that bad? Was she right? I am a monster with this powers?

I thought and looked down at my hands which were still shaking.

“Shadow you’re not a monster. She was just trying to get on your nerves. You just need to learn how to control your powers, that’s all.” Ash said like he just read my thoughts.

When the elevator arrived at the floor 5, it let out a bing and the doors opened. We exited the elevator and Ash put me down.

“The lab is down this hall and on the right. You’ll be walking first because I don’t want you to panic and run away.” he said and pushed me in front of him.

He was right. I was about to sprint the hall out of here.

The hall was too damn long and the all white theme with neon dull lights and white chairs on each side of me, weren’t helping my case.

I took a deep breath and I started to walk slowly down the hall.

Let’s do this.