Countervail

Chapter 1A

A/N:

Elements as a proper noun will be capitalized; such as when I mention the Element by its name or essence directly. Un-capitalized words that are the same as an Element (such as water, earth, air, gravity, etc) are indicated to be actual substances not being created/controlled by an Elemental—such as those that are already preexisting in natural states (oceans, the atmosphere, trees, sunlight etc).

"Sometimes love is not enough, and the road gets tough; I don't know why."

They say that those who don't fear death are the reincarnated souls of the dearly departed, who have long since passed and experienced death. Those who understand it best have unwittingly passed away before, and only have a vague idea of its so-called permanence, despite knowing it will eventually come.

(Six Months Earlier)

"I hope you like it." Foxfire stated quietly, smiling slightly. There was something about her gingery hair that made her chestnut eyes all the brighter. Perhaps it was why her parents had added 'fire' to her name; her hair seemed aflame in the sunlight—especially with the blonde streaks running through it. It shrouded her like a cloak around her shoulders, making many people jealous of such naturally beautiful hair. But of course, with every beauty lies a deadly secret.

Meo, her best friend, opened the small box that Foxfire had just handed her, a random, surprise gift. The box was small and black, with no markings or signatures. She carefully opened the lid to reveal a silver necklace with a worn, round pendant hanging from it. The pendant had a peculiar symbol, but it was pretty nonetheless. It looked tattered in a distinct way, with the metal around the edges cracked to reveal darker metal beneath. The darker metal was the same color as the odd symbol etched into the middle of the pendant. It looked to be of two comets swirling around each other in a perfect oblong, or perhaps they were stars. She didn't know, but she liked it anyways.

"It's beautiful! Thanks, Fox." Meo smiled, holding it up and inspecting it. She didn't ask about the symbol, for she had gotten used to her friend's strange fascination with different symbols. Meo had never learned what they meant, but she was sure she had seen this one from somewhere before.

Foxfire watched with guarded eyes as Meo moved to put the necklace on, whipping her long, sandy brown hair over her shoulders, out of the way. She nearly told her friend what the necklace was for, what it symbolized, but then bit her tongue. Then wasn't the time. And it'd be best to just let her figure it out for herself, even though Fox knew it was just about the dumbest thing she could do. But she had more important matters on her mind, like Gallissy.

"I hope you like it," she spoke to keep her tension from being obvious. She just desperately hoped she was doing the right thing, and that Dakedei wouldn't find out soon. Of course he'd find out eventually in spite of her true hope of no one ever figuring her plans out, but she tried to find the better of two evils. This is what Gallissy would've wanted, and what she felt that she had to do. Since it had been two years since Gallissy's death, Fox figured that Transition for the Element would go smoothly—especially since it was going to be a very long time before she returned to the family anyways. She certainly would miss them, but for the better of everyone, of Gallissy most of all, she had to go through with this. No turning back.

~

"How many days until Foxfire returns?" Dakedei asked, pacing around the foyer in anxious debate. It made him antsy that Foxfire had left and thrown herself into a public place like high school, and he doubted seriously of her stability. Even though it had been two years, Gallissy's death had greatly affected the family, Foxfire especially. He was worried about her because she had never quite returned to normal after Gallissy gave her the Element. And lately, she had been acting even more unusual; the family hadn't seen her in three weeks.