My ears prick at hearing the name Cosmos. "Is Cosmos a common name?"

Torbjorn pushes a glass of strong spirit into Sirius's trembling hands and shakes his head. "It is not so common. Why do you ask?"

"I have been receiving aid from a man with that name. He has the most unusual golden-yellow eyes."

Sirius drops the glass and stares at me. "That is not possible."

I wonder what I have said now.

Torbjorn looks shaken too. "The only man in Elysium with golden eyes is the High King. He is the only son of King Cosmos." He gestures to Sirius. "The old king, Sirius's brother died that night, when I was but a child. I cannot think how you could possibly speak with him now."

"No!" I jump up. "No, it can't be true."

I can't cope with the thought of a dead king haunting my dreams on top everything. Cracks form in the barrier that I have spent years carefully crafting to protect myself from the pain of the past. My long hair ripples around me in a breeze that seems to have sprung up out of nowhere and the fire roars in the grate.

Everyone is staring at me. It is all too much, so I turn and run.

I keep on running, out of the castle and crunch across the frozen grass. I have no idea where I'm going, only that I need some space. Grey clouds scuttle across the sun and the temperature plummets. Despite having no cloak, I don't feel a thing.

Finding myself at the banks of a river, I stop to consider which way to go. The water ripples and a dozen or so blue and green haired nymphs bob up, forming a semicircle. The water in the centre starts churning and from the boiling mass Triton slowly emerges. Water droplets cascade down his bare silvery chest.

Holding his arms to his side, Triton raises his hands palms up and behind him, a huge wall of water surges skywards. Turning his hands, palm down, the water arches over them and crashes down to form a dome of water around just the two of us.

Mesmerised, I am vaguely aware of the screech of an eagle and then Aren beating his fists down upon an impenetrable wall.

Triton bows. "How fortuitous. I wished to speak with you before I departed. On behalf of my father, I offer you the aid of Atlantis should you ever require it."

"Thank you." I bite my lip. He is an intimidating presence, but curiosity gives me bravery. "Triton, may I ask? Did you know an Isabella? I had a dream that she met an elf in an underwater garden, where he proposed."

Triton gives a slight incline of his head. "Indeed, you saw a true account of the past."

I'm not quite sure how to feel about having a vision of the past. "Who was the elven male?"

"That is not my secret to tell. What I can say is that your powers are awakening. Take good council for they will surge like the spring tide under a full moon."

"Am I an Elemental?"

Triton smiles as if I've said something amusing. "You are hope." With that strange utterance, he sinks down, disappearing into the river.

The dome starts to disintegrate, starting at the apex, but before the wall of water has fully receded, Aren crashes through it, his face a mask of anguish.

Grabbing me, his hold is almost crushing and he nuzzles at the crook of my neck. His voice is wrought with emotion as he murmurs against my skin, "I thought that he was stealing you away from me."

I stroke his face. "No Aren, he only sought to offer me his aid."

........

I toss and turn, my mind whirling with questions. Have I found my family? What did Triton mean? Why was I chosen to recover the Light?

At some point I must have finally fallen asleep, because I awake with a start to find Cosmos standing by my bed, his eyes reflecting like a cat's in the dim room.

Shrieking, I sit bolt upright and clutch the covers to my chest. "You're dead!"

Cosmos shrugs nonchalantly. "While my body is no more, my spirit is more resilient."

It is unsettling speaking to a ghost, although he seems real enough. Curious, I lean forward and poke him, my finger meeting cloth and warm flesh. He raises an eyebrow and rubs the spot.

"You were a king? Should I curtsy?" I can't help the sarcastic edge to my voice.

"No need, for we are kin," he responds magnanimously.

"Kin! Are we related?" My eyes widen at his regal nod. "So, do you know who my parents are?"

"Yes," he responds but does not elaborate.

"And..?" I fish, feeling rather exasperated.

"All in good time. I need you to convey a message to my brother. Tell him that I am truly sorry for what came to pass. It was born of my own pride. Show him the locket as a sign of hope."

"I lost it."

"No, it is in your old bag. Simply say 'Aperio' and its hiding place will be revealed." He fixes me with a serious look. "Heed me, for this is important Elissa. Tell Sirius that you are the elemental heir."

"I'm an air elemental?"

"Yes, no not an air elemental," he says impatiently. "The elemental heir."

I nod, though don't really understand.

.....

I suck in a deep breath and then enter the king's private chambers. Aren squeezes my hand reassuringly, letting me know that he is there for me. This morning I couldn't eat a thing for nerves. Tabbi had noticed and asked if I was ailing with something. Not wishing to lie, I admitted to not sleeping very well last night.

Torbjorn bids us sit. He and Sirius are situated opposite us. Sirius looks at me with vulnerability in his eyes, belying a man who has known too much loss.

"I seek your pardon for yesterday. It was a shock. I did not think how it would affect you." Sirius's voice crackles slightly. "I hope that we can get to know each other better."

Giving him a weak smile in response, I relay the first part of his brother's message. "Cosmos came to me last night. He wants me to pass on his apologies. He said something about his pride." I look to Sirius for affirmation that this makes sense and find a pained, yet resigned expression on his face.

"He said that we are related." Biting my lip, I unclench my hand and offer up the locket nestling in my palm. "He said to show you this."

"You found it." He takes it with wonderment and audibly gulps as he takes in the image inside.

"It was in my bag, hidden the whole time. Oh, he also said something about me being an air elemental."

Sirius nods. "The element of air is strong in my - sorry, in our - family."

"Element of air! No, that is not quite right. He was very particular." I stare upwards trying to recall his exact words. "I have it, the elemental air, but that doesn't make sense."

"Of course, the Elemental heir," Sirius says softly.

Torbjorn's face takes on a thoughtful look and he quizzes Sirius, "Do you think Elissa has a claim to the Elemental throne?"

Sirius nods. "While I may have lost favour, there are families still loyal who would support Elissa as the next Queen of Essentia."

Aghast at the turn of the conversation, I interrupt, "Hang on a moment. I have absolutely no desire to rule anywhere."

"Even so, my nephew may still see you as a threat. I understand that he had you captured, so we cannot give him any further reason to suspect you."

Guiltily, I recall the reason why I was captured and turn to face Torbjorn. "I should have confessed this to you sooner. The unicorn set me on a quest to uncover the Light of Elysium, though I have no idea why he chose me."

Sirius nods sagely. "The Light is linked to our family. Let me explain a little of our history:

"Our family has ruled the southern kingdom of Essentia for over a thousand solars. When the Light of Elysium was created, it was given to Thor, the golden eyed King of Essentia, to be the first Guardian of the Light.

"Thor relinquished the Elemental throne to his son and became King of Avalon, a newly created kingdom at the very heart of Elysium.

"Every few generations a golden eyed boy is born to our line and takes over guardianship of the Light.

"Though Cosmos is my senior by many years, his eyes marked him as a future Guardian, while I was to succeed our father as the next King of Essentia.

"When I was still a boy, Cosmos was crowned King of Avalon and remained unmarried for many years. By some strange turn of fate we both had sons born in the same solar. His caused a great scandal, for the mother was the Celestia, Queen of the light elves. The elfling child could have been killed, if not for his golden eyes.

"Cosmos took the boy to Avalon, convinced that he was the prophesied golden one and groomed him to rule after him.

"Many solars later, my daughter Isabella became pregnant, but refused to say who the father was. She was nearly nine moons with child when she insisted that she go to Avalon. I begged her to wait until after she had her babe but to no avail, so my son Stephen accompanied her on the journey.

"I know not what happened that awful night, but my brother and both my children died; all three burnt beyond recognition. The Light of Elysium vanished and has not been seen since.

"My nephew claimed that my children killed Cosmos, however I know that dear sweet Isabella, even had she not been so heavy with child, would never have hurt anyone.

"I was stripped of my crown and banished from Essentia, on the grounds that my family had committed treason. I was too consumed with sorrow to fight it. Torbjorn's father remained a true and loyal friend, allowing me and my wife to settle in his lands.

"My nephew took the Elemental throne and not long after proclaimed himself High King of all Elysium. To this day he has ruled from Avalon."

Sirius finishes his tale and I shiver. It is all rather a lot to take in.

..............

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