Steven Burke - The Broken Council

"I take what is rightfully mine, dear sister. I am the eldest and should therefore be queen. Just because you have a husband does not give you any more claim to the throne. I believe my ability to look out for myself gives this new nation the sense of direction that your miniscule mind could not possibly imagine!" She was not going to hold back her true feelings anymore. "Yukio is nothing more than an unworthy little man who wants fame and glory! He is not fit to wear a crown even though he has no real power. It is an insult to the high elves. There are many who agree with me and are willing to follow me as their leader. They recognize your weakness and do not think you are capable of leading them. Think about that!" Kishi felt all of the anger and resentment she had bottled up for the past few months leave her body in one big rush.

"Well, dear sister," Kira said while keeping her rage in check, "you have made it crystal clear where you stand. The question now is what are you going to do? Will you stay here with us or are you leaving? I know that you are good at the latter," the queen said in icy tones.

"Why don't we let the people decide? Or are you afraid of what they would say? The monarchy serves the people, not your own selfish desires. If I am guilty of greed and being self-centered, then a vote would help you to inventory yourself. You may find that you and I are not so different after all. The keystone in my life is that I recognize and embrace who I am. You pretend to be something you are not."

"Now is not the time to make more changes. We will wait until the city is finished and then bring the issue up with the council where these matters should be addressed," Kira replied coolly. She turned her back to her sister to make it clear that the conversation was over. I'm the queen, not her. She is just jealous of what I have.

"I will wait until the time you have appointed, my queen. Make no mistake; I will present this issue to the council when our fair city is complete. All I ask of you is to honor whatever decision they make," Kishi replied confidently. She has given me some rope, and I am going let her strangle herself with it!

"I agree. We will wait until then, and I will respect the ruling of the council. Until that time, I am still your queen, and you will not openly disagree with me. Understood?" Queen Kira stated, with her back still to her sister.

"I will wait until the appointed time to make my case. You have my word," the princess replied sardonically.

Kana soared high over the sprawling Forest of Renshaw on a strong easterly wind. She smiled as she looked down at the third part of the elves moving toward their new home on Mount Quang. She thought that these inferior creatures would have been more difficult to persuade, but they seemed only too eager to do her bidding without even questioning her motives. Her plan was working perfectly thus far, but she knew better than to lure herself into believing that there would not be any hiccups along the way. She still had to keep up her guard with the other Elementals for the time being. She firmly believed that Lady Necia and Lady Hilzarie would join her when they heard her plan. As she continued to congratulate herself on her first victory, she turned with the wind to head toward the guardians' homeland. She could not be seen from the ground as she glided amongst the white clouds. She changed shapes randomly as she continued her journey so that she would not be seen by searching or wandering eyes.

There was not much known about the race of Elementals throughout the lands. The lesser peoples of Tuwa did not know what they really looked like because they could take the form of the element they were composed of. Kana was considered an elder guardian because she was made of both fire and air. She has the ability to command these elements to do her bidding regardless of the intended use. There were limitations to what she could command however. For example, it was forbidden to command elements that they did not have stewardship over. There were four basic elements that the world was comprised of. fire, air, water, and earth. Lady Necia had command over fire, while Lady Hilzarie controlled the air. These two guardians were both accountable to Mistress Kana. These three chose to appear as human females when traveling through populated lands.

The other two basic Elementals were Lords Keb and Neb. They chose to take on the form of a male human when they were not mimicking their respective elements. Keb commanded the earth and reported to an elder guardian, just like Hilzarie and Necia. Neb ruled water in its various forms while being subject to the same guardian as Keb. Mistress Khalida was their overseer and was much more sensible than her volatile counterpart Kana. She was made of both earth and water. She was considered to be the most patient of all the guardians and was more than a match for any of the Elementals, with the exception of their master. He was more powerful than all of the others combined.

The guardian was made from all four elements. This unique combination gave him ultimate power and command over all the Elementals. He chose to appear in a male human form when he traveled outside his eastern realm, which he had not done for several centuries. Even among the guardians he was considered to be the rightful lord of Tuwa. His power and wisdom was matched by none other throughout the land. No one could utter his name because it had real power when spoken by someone with knowledge of the sacred language. No mortal or immortal had ever attempted to speak his sacred name out of fear of reprisal. As a result of this, the guardians simply referred to him as their master while the lesser beings called him lord. Kana did not care for him or his power over her at all, but she was wise enough to respect his immense capabilities for the moment.

The mistress of fire and air desired the power of her master more than anything else. She worked tirelessly to hide this secret ambition from the other Elementals, and especially from him. She was gliding gracefully as she continued her journey east flying over the High Plains of Landen. Her thoughts turned to the meeting that would take place once she arrived at the council she had been summoned to. It was imperative to not give the others any ammunition to use against her at this crucial juncture in her plan. She needed to keep her indecorous deeds safely hidden and her malicious motives concealed until the right moment. She knew that the only one she had to worry about was him. He seemed to always know everything, but she had taken careful measures to act in such a way that it would not be readily apparent what her intentions were. It was as though he could read her thoughts and divine from his intrusion what a person was plotting even through her mental barriers. She wanted that power to be hers. She just had to be patient to learn all that she needed to in order to move her plans forward.

The guardians gathered together from various parts of Tuwa for the council meeting called by their master. Only Mistress Khalida appeared to have an idea of what the purpose of this gathering was for by the knowing look on her face. They were silent as they waited for the guardian to arrive. Belatedly, Mistress Kana graced the council with her presence after her long trek from the western lands. She nodded to the others as she took her proper place in the circle. Then their master appeared suddenly in their midst. He took on his human form after his spectacular appearance. The rest of the council followed his lead and transformed themselves into similar forms. A massive circular table appeared in their midst with seven granite-looking chairs. The guardian took his seat and bade the other to sit down so that they could begin.