The trip took longer than they expected. It was night time when they reached the castle. The castle was even bigger up close. Jet stood in awe as the massive braziers lit the paths and door. The castle walls were made of large gray stone bricks. Spires sprouted from the castle and one tower jutted out, only connected by a bridge.

Inside the castle was highly lit by chandeliers. The floors had long carpets that were a dark purple. Suits of armor, similar to the ones the soldiers wore, lined the walls.

"Good evening, general," a voice said.

Coming down the entry hall was a tall man, wearing gold armor with pink stones embedded into it.

"Good evening to you, Sir Rujar," the general replied.

Rujar had a sword strapped to his side. It's hilt matched the same color of his armor. The blade was visible and pink.

"Who was that?" Jet asked carefully after the man passed.

"One of the representatives from the Crystal Kingdom to the east. Don't pay him any mind."

Jet frowned as he looked back to Rujar. He had never heard of lands outside of the Soul Empire or the desert. Jet decided to stay quiet and look out the glass windows that went from the floor to the ceiling. He had never seen anything more beautiful than this castle.

"So why does the Emperor want to see us?" Dustan asked.

"His lordship has been doing research."

"Research? On what?"

"Elements of course. I believe that your Element might help him in his research. He will be delighted to have you aiding him."

"Will he reward us?"

The general threw on a grin. "He might do that, yes."

Jet was starting to feel uncomfortable again. He didn't think about it too hard. It wasn't long before the general led them across the bridge from the castle into the tower.

After several flights of stairs and down a long hallway, the general stopped them before the door. "Now, only speak when spoken to by his lordship. Great things are going to come from your help, so be on your best behavior."

They both nodded and walked inside after the general opened the door. The Emperor was at a desk, glancing through books. The room was walled with bookshelves. In front of every set of shelves, there was a desk covered in papers and open books.

"Welcome, you two," he spoke without breaking his gaze from the books. He was a tall man, his body looming over the desk.

Jet wondered how the Emperor already knew they were coming. The door closed behind them. Jet looked back as he thought he heard the door lock.

"Now, which one of you is the Elementalist?" the Emperor asked as he stood up straight and walked over to them. He was well-built. Jet figured he would have to be to command an army and claim Emperor.

"I am your lordship," Dustan replied.

"And you're his brother?" the Emperor asked, looking at Jet.

"Yes, sir."

"No Element, correct? You're already thirteen now too."

Jet just nodded, because the Emperor already seemed to know.

"I'm sure you two know, Elements usually present themselves around the age of twelve to thirteen," he stated as he moved back over to his books. "I'm surprised to see that you never had used yours before, Dustan."

"I didn't know that your lordship. I also wasn't sure how."

The Emperor just nodded. "I'm also sure you don't know that there is a theory among Elementalists. This theory is as old as the planet itself. These books state that a Spirit Elementalist has the power to walk the Planes of other Elements. Planes are places where Elements come from."

"Wow, I didn't know that either, sir," Dustan said.

The Emperor looked up, his violet eyes catching the torch light. "Of course not. Now please, come over here."

He beckoned Dustan towards the end of the room. There was a large machine there that had coils and tubes coming from it. "I don't want you to be scared, I just need you to step onto this platform and use your Element."

Dustan nodded and walked over to the machine. He stepped onto the platform.

"If you can help me with this theory, you will become one of the wealthiest people in all the lands," the Emperor explained.

Dustan smiled. Jet stood near the door watching. He was happy to know that they were about to be out of the cold and have brand new lives.

"Now, use your Element," the Emperor said as he began to push buttons and flip switches. The machine roared to life with energy. It startled Jet, but he tried to remain calm after the Emperor said not to be scared.

Dustan's hands lit up with the aura. The machine seemed to immediately respond to it. The Emperor smiled widely. A large portal opened behind Dustan. It was right in front of a window that looked out onto the city.

The portal was magical looking. It was like a large bubble that showed a completely different world. It began to shuffle through a few of the Planes that the Emperor had mentioned. One was a fiery land of lava and fire while another was a land of complete white. The planes began to shuffle faster and faster until the machine started to spark.

Jet watched the Emperor's face darken. "What's going on?!" he demanded. "Steady your Element! Use more of it!" he continued to yell.

"I'm trying!" Dustan shouted back.

The machine continued to spark and steam until it finally made a loud clanking sound. The Emperor and Jet watched as the portal started to the shake violently. After a few seconds, the portal closed. The machine powered down on its own. Jet assumed it was broken now after all the sparks and shaking.

"I'm sorry...sir," Dustan mumbled as he looked around him.

The Emperor's face was disappointed. His machine was destroyed and his plan didn't work. He looked frantic as he ran over to his desk and began to shuffle through pages. All the years of building this prototype for nothing. He wanted to prepare the Empire for what was coming. How could he do that without the machine?

"I did everything right...why did it not work?" he mumbled.

Dustan stepped off the machine and began to walk over to Jet. Before he could pass the Emperor, the Emperor jumped in front of him. "It should have worked! Everything was right!" he yelled at Dustan.

Dustan couldn't say anything. Jet could see fear in his eyes.

The Emperor reached out and grabbed Dustan by his shirt. "You didn't try hard enough. I know you didn't."

"I did sir!" Dustan replied, trying to get out of the tight grip. Dustan truly wanted to do anything in his power to make this go smoothly. He tried to power his Element more. He had to. He had to for Jet's sake.

"You have failed me, Spirit Elementalist. I have no use for you now!" the Emperor yelled as he began to pull Dustan. Instead of pulling his body, his clenched grip began to pull a purple aura out of Dustan. Jet couldn't react in time. The Emperor ripped a purple ghost-like figure out of Dustan, causing Dustan to fall to the floor dead.

Jet wasn't sure what just happened. He had always heard the Emperor be called the lord of souls, but he never knew it was an Element. He was a Soul Elementalist.

The Emperor quickly turned to Jet. Jet had a delayed reaction as he tried to run to the door. Thoughts ran through his head. Did that just really happen? He didn't want to look back to check. He tugged on the handles, but it was locked. His heart sank. He felt the Emperor's grip on his scarf that was wrapped around tight enough to move his entire body. The Emperor began to drag him.

"I don't have use for you either. The Elementless are pathetic and weak," the Emperor muttered as he pulled Jet.

Jet struggled to get free of his scarf. The Emperor held it in a position where it was impossible to do so. "No! Let me go!" Jet yelled.

He was slowly pulled passed Dustan. Jet tried to grab onto him. He was hoping he wasn't dead. Dustan's face was lifeless. It was just a body now. Jet's eyes teared up as the truth began to sink in. He kept his eyes on Dustan as the Emperor threw him towards the window.

"I don't need useless people in my empire!" he shouted.

Jet was flung at the window quickly. His scarf unwrapped from his neck and remained in the Emperor's hand. The glass shattered around him. The Emperor had already turned his back on Jet as he began to fall. His vision was cut from Dustan as the tower wall began to rise as he descended towards the city.

Jet wasn't sure what all was happening. It happened so fast. Green aura began to appear around him.

"You'll be safe in here," Jet heard a voice say. He thought it was Dustan. He wasn't quite sure. The air rushed around him, his clothes violently flapping. The green aura began to engulf his surroundings. It moved with the air. It wrapped itself around Jet until he couldn't see the castle or the city.

Jet wasn't sure what had happened. All he knew now is that he wasn't falling anymore. He was somewhere out of the Emperor's reach. Somewhere out of anyone's reach. Everything was calm. All Jet could see was green mists.

"You'll be safe here, Jet," the voice said again.

Jet closed his eyes. He was safe.