Wedge: Glad you enjoyed reading it and thank you for the review. Also, congrats on the improvements. Just decided it was time to get back here and clean things up.

Okay then, first chapter. I really hope this goes well.

Chapter One: Dying Grace

“The girl...she is young but resilient,” Guardon rumbled, running a dark hand over The Pool, its mercury-like surface rippling and distorting the image of Raven dodging Cendarius’s attacks.

The Great Lord of Earth turned his deep, seemingly endless, dark eyes towards his fellow Elementals.

Breasil tugged absently at his robes, his hood falling further to hide his amorphous face. Two viridian orbs were the only islands of stability within the Water Guardian’s facade.

“Can she really save us...?” he asked; voice deep and flowing.

“She must,” Aeisix spoke sharply, the winds that constantly enveloped the Sky King’s body whirling more violently for a brief moment.

“Cendarius has fallen...our numbers, among all our races are dwindling,” Firnoas rasped out, narrowing his glittering white eyes at the image’s flickering across the surface of The Pool. The three couldn’t help but nod in agreement to their brother’s words, it was true and it was deeply troubling. Their brethren were falling to rage; irrevocable fury at the Humans for their utter disregard to their own home. Wretched little Mortals believed they were the only things that mattered...

-

Plyso slammed his fist down; gritting his teeth as he watched helplessly. Raven darted around, dodging and barely being missed by Cendarius – who had by now broken his shackles.

“She will succeed...” came a monotonous voice. Plyso nearly jumped out of his skin and looked sharply at the tall woman standing next to him. The man narrowed his eyes at her, not even her appearance fully belied what she really was.

“Tamaska...” he muttered, looking away and watching Raven once more. “You never did warm to me, did you?” Tamaska asked, tone unwavering. Icy blue eyes regarded the black-haired male, briefly running over his haggard appearance in both clothing and face.

Plyso wiped a hand over his face, rubbing at his forehead and only making his sweat move from one place to another. “I tolerate you only because you are bound to Raven...” he stated, almost tiredly. Tamaska was just as calm and unnerved as her Link. “Otherwise you would have me sent back to the Sonic Planes...?” she inquired, if only to occupy herself with something other than worry for the girl she was still watching.

The man was about to answer with a darker destination in mind when a howl made the walls shudder and groan all around them. Dust was shaken free from between the plating of the walls, causing Plyso to sneeze and hastily wipe his lower face. Tamaska had stepped closer to the viewing screen, one slender hand resting against the heated glass. “Raven...”

Neither of them could see inside, as the very air was clouded a deep, dark red. But it slowly cleared, and started to reveal that Raven was wielding a long, slender blade in one hand, whilst water engulfed her other hand. The sphere glittered slowly, filled with shards of ice as the pure and faintly glowing liquid circled her palm.

The blade that Raven held was made from wind and lightning, crackling angrily. But what stood out most; were Raven’s eyes. They were black, but both her iris and pupil had turned a glowing white.

“Cendarius...please, forgive me,” Raven whispered softly. The Fire Spirit let out a roar, raising his arms in an attempt to call more flames to him. In an attempt to destroy his former student...

The girl wordlessly charged, slamming her feet down upon the metal flooring before she jumped. Here was where Raven lost any last vestige of Humanity, as she pressed off from the walls to propel herself higher into the air, and to reach Cendarius’s formidable height. When she finally reached him, Raven whispered another plea of forgiveness, before she crashed the water sphere to her blade and brought it down upon the Fire Spirit’s head.

Plyso and Tamaska looked on wordlessly, as Cendarius let out a heart wrenching wail, reaching up to what would have been the sky had he not been inside this prison.

“My Lords, I meant none of it!” he howled, clawing helplessly at the ceiling as his flames died, causing his body to become a solid husk of ashes and charcoal. “I am...sorry, for my duplicity...” Cendarius whispered faintly, as the fiery jewels that made his eyes finally burnt out.

Raven landed upon the balcony, the blade dispersed from her hand and caused sparks to slowly trickle across her arm, before they too faded from sight. The girl kneeled, her head bowed down as she murmured under her breath. When she stood, her eyes were their normal colour again and had stopped glowing.

Tamaska lowered her head, turning away from a not-so-shockingly jovial Plyso. The man had too many problems to take care of himself to truly worry about the effect of such acts had upon Raven...

The aloof female walked slowly towards the safe gate, standing just outside it and ready for her Link to return to her. She was meant to care for the girl, protect and teach her, and she did so without any word of objection. The door opened a few seconds later to reveal Raven’s tear stained face, it was startling for her Guardian, one of the very few times she had ever seen the young woman cry so. Tamaska didn’t say anything at all, neither did Raven; the girl merely stepped forwards and wrapped her arms tightly around Tamaska’s waist.

Raven shivered, curling her fingers into the back of her Guardian’s black coat. Tamaska could only stroke the girl’s hair, trying to be comforting even though the emotion itself was hard for creatures of her nature. “There was nothing else for him, Raven...you did the only thing that could be done,” Tamaska’s voice carried a shred of compassion. The only time she even remotely showed emotion was in Raven’s presence.

The pale girl suddenly shoved Tamaska away from her, but the taller female knew the abrupt anger was hardly directed at her.

Raven growled and strode up to Plyso, grabbing the man by the front of his pale grey shirt – which had honestly seen much better days. “You could have warned me!” she snarled, amber eyes burning with near hate. No one understood...no one could even remotely understand. Even Tamaska - despite her respect out of second nature – could never fully understand it.

Lonnie gave the same respect; both of her companions knew that it was something of the most intimate link, a Shaman and the Spirits. For the former having to resort to destroying the latter... it was close to ripping out someone’s heart.

Yet it was something sacred as well.

“Uh...I take it I missed something?” came the blonde man’s voice. All three turned their heads towards him, and the scout swallowed slightly from the look in Raven’s gleaming amber eyes. Plyso was not getting any better at handling her, what he took for an attitude in need of adjustment, was actually Raven realising that no one grasped the intimacy of the bonds she had with the Elementals. Others spoke so loosely about her powers, the rituals, and the Spirits.

It was nothing short of a joke. These people wanted to save the world, they wanted to save it. Yet even though they knew about the Elemental Lords, and the Spirit Worlds beyond their own home...

They were just as bad as they Upper World Humans, even if in their own ways.

Raven turned her head sharply back towards Plyso; she narrowed her eyes at the man before letting go of him. The girl turned on her heel and stormed off, where Tamaska and Lonnie swiftly followed after her.

-

They only had a few seconds to leap upon their own mounts as Raven tore off, her grey stallion pounding his hooves into the ground as she rode away. Both the Scout and Guardian followed closely yet said nothing to their friend as they travelled in silence.

Eventually they came to a halt - at Raven’s Enclave – where they tied the horses outside and moved in, calmly making their way through the tunnel-like entrance into the small sanctuary of life.

Raven could feel calm here, at peace, and it was exactly what she needed right now. “Did you get them...?” she asked, speaking to Tamaska.

The Guardian stepped forwards, placing a small leather sack in Raven’s hand. “Raymik gave them to me before we left,” she murmured, watching her Link with faint concern. “Thank you...” Raven spoke in a quiet and hollow voice, clutching the sack close to her.

She glanced over her shoulder at Tamaska, and her Guardian nodded her head in brief respect.

Raven sighed, and reached into the bag, feeling her hand wrap around one of the two hard objects within it. Pulling it out, the girl was holding a large perfectly cut diamond in her palm, and it glittered with an inner fire that its twin held just the same.

They were all that remained of Cendarius, at least, what little of him that still held his essence.

She worked for a painfully long hour, preparing and quietly chanting ancient words, learned and known only by her. It was a language used among the spirits, so she was the only human alive to speak it.

Finally, the girl placed to twin gems into the already alight fire, pale hands coming away untouched.

“He will be reborn, elsewhere...” Raven murmured softly, the flames reflecting in her eyes. What’s happening...? Firas, Earthas, Wartas, Aeiras...all of them have strength of will a thousand times my own. This shouldn’t have happened...Raven narrowed her eyes.

The Shaman flinched as she felt her Guardian’s hand rest upon her shoulder. It was quickly followed by Lonnie’s on the opposite side. “Don’t worry, we’ll find out what’s going on. We’ll do anything and everything we can to help you,” he stated coolly. His eyes held the utmost sincerity, and the blonde man held his other hand to his heart, swearing his life upon his words.

Raven didn’t need Tamaska to speak to know that the ice-eyed woman felt exactly the same.

She nodded slowly, before turning around and facing her only friends. “Alright then, we’re leaving for the Sonic Planes tomorrow morning. I...I need to rest,” Raven muttered, glancing up at Lonnie. The scout gave a lopsided smile, “right then, just have to find some way of explaining to Plyso-” “No!” Raven snapped, clenching her fist. “No explaining to him, it’s pointless. He will not understand.”

Tamaska glanced at the blonde man, who had swiftly straightened his face and nodded curtly. “We should get back...leave Plyso to deal with things here by himself for now, he should live.”

Well there you have it. I'm sorry for not making this longer, but I think it was done there for now.

So you've met the three of them now, Raven, Lonnie and Tamaska.

I personally quite like Tamaska, her name means - Mighty Wolf.

Hope you enjoyed reading.