Caloric

“All right, now before we get too ahead of ourselves, does anyone have any kind of fighting experience?” Phoenyx asked.

Lily’s watch showed it was early morning and they prepared themselves for when the large man would return, their chance to escape.

“Well, Skylar and I have been in plenty of fights but we’re no heavyweight champs, that’s for sure,” Sebastian said. “As long as we are all vigilant with our powers and you girls scratch and kick and punch whenever you have to, I think we will get out of here just fine.”

Phoenyx took in a deep breath, and said, “You’re right,” as she exhaled.

“Quick!” Skylar whispered loudly. “Someone is approaching the door. Ready, Sebastian?”

Sebastian nodded and then his face went blank with concentration.

The door clanked unlocked and then swung open. This time when the large bald man stepped inside, he paused, did a double take of the room and dropped the large paper bags at his feet. His face went sallow and he looked clearly distraught.

“Shit,” he muttered. Then he approached the cell to take a closer look and assess his next move.

As soon as he came close enough, Phoenyx grabbed his arm. He jumped in shock and confusion, but then quickly relaxed, soothed by her touch.

“Don’t be afraid,” she said in a sultry voice. “You want to help us. All you have to do is unlock these cells and let us out.”

“I would but I don’t have the key,” he said, his eyes locked on hers, looking like a love-sick puppy.

There was a collective sigh of disappointment behind her.

“Who does?” she asked.

“Dexter has it,” he confessed eagerly.

“Is there any way that you can get the key for us?”

“Uhhh, I don’t know,” he said. “He keeps it hidden in his office and no one is allowed in there. I will gladly try.”

She frowned. Why did we just assume this automaton would have the key? This really put a damper on their plans.

“Ask him what we’re doing in here,” Sebastian whispered.

“Right, why are we locked up in here?” she asked the oaf.

“Because, you four are the Bound Ones, from the legend,” he said as if it was simple and obvious.

“The Bound Ones?” she asked, feeling like she just stepped into The Twilight Zone. “What legend?”

“Yes, the legend we learn when we join the brotherhood. The legend of the Bound Ones says that, thousands of years ago, man was a slave to the elements. Man could not master crops because Earth was fickle. Volcanic eruptions would swallow whole villages and earthquakes would topple any and all of man’s accomplishments. Man could not master the sea because Water was too proud to be tamed. Air constantly tore apart cities with tornados and hurricanes, and Fire ravaged everything in its path. So our forefathers, the wisest of the Celtic sorcerers, forged a powerful spell binding each of the four elements to a volunteer from the rite, so that man would have control over the elements, rather than be controlled by them.”

“So…you’re saying that the four of us each have one of the four elements inside of us?” she asked, unable to keep the tone of doubt from spewing out.

“Yes, you are Earth, Air, Fire, and Water in bound human form,” he said, as if none of this sounded ridiculous.

Phoenyx turned around and looked at the others. Their faces were a mixture of skepticism and pensiveness.

“If this is true, what makes you think we are these Bound Ones? Wouldn’t they be long dead seeing as this legend happened so long ago?” Skylar asked.

“According to the legend,” the bald man began, “the spell was made to keep the elements bound in human form through reincarnation. The elements are eternal and cannot be destroyed, so if the bound human died, the element would once again be free. The spell was made to assure that once the human died, the element would be immediately reborn into another human vessel. Unfortunately for our forefathers, they didn’t take into account how that would make it impossible to keep track of them. After the first volunteers died, we lost hold of them permanently.”

“That still doesn’t explain why you think these Bound Ones are us particular four people,” Skylar argued.

“There was another partition in the spell,” the man continued. “When one of the Bound Ones dies, all die, and when one is born, all are born.”

That struck a chord in all of them.

“That’s why we all have the same birthday,” Lily said.

“That’s why they want to keep us alive,” Sebastian said. “They think if one of us dies, we’ll all die.”

“Yes,” the man said.

“That doesn’t prove anything,” Sebastian said. “So we were all born on the same day. Big deal. There must be thousands of other people all over the world born that same day.”

“You were all born, not just on the same day, but at the exact same time,” the man said. “Your births coincided with the deaths of four people who showed signs of being the previous Bound Ones.”

“We were all born at the same time?” Lily thought out loud. “That would definitely bring the odds down quite a bit. Approximately two-hundred and fifty people are born every minute—at least, that’s what I remember from my nursery rotation.”

This was ridiculous. It had to be. These people clearly had some screws loose…then again, the four of them did have powers. That couldn’t just be coincidence. That same nagging, writhing feeling reared its ugly head once more. She ignored it and went on with the interrogation.

“Okay, so let’s say we are the ‘Bound Ones’,” Phoenyx said, air-quoting with her free hand. “What do you want with us?”

“The Celtic sorcerers who bound the original humans founded a brotherhood to keep an eye on the elements, to keep everything in balance, and called it the Four Corners.” He moved the fingers of his free hand over the pin on his shirt. “Dexter Mauldive, our Grand Master, convinced the High Council that it was time to put the elements back under our control, and that it would be best to put all four elements into only one vessel, making it easier to relocate them after each rebirth. He has volunteered to be the first.”

“Just how do you plan to do this?” Skylar asked.

“We have realized that we can’t just kill you, because then the elements would immediately be reborn somewhere else and we would lose them once more. Our best researchers have said that the elements must be in a sort of limbo state in order to be manipulated and placed inside a new host.”

Phoenyx swallowed hard. “Limbo state? How will you accomplish that?”

“There is currently a massive solar storm happening. In three days a very rare, very large solar flare is forecasted to explode. Our researchers say the radiation and electro-magnetism this will release will both heighten the powers of all four elements and weaken their hold to your bodies. On that day, the four of you will undergo a series of electrocution which will further weaken that hold enough for the spell to work. In order to break down your bodies even more in preparation for the ritual, we were going to starve you. This is the last time you will be fed.”

Phoenyx’s heart pounded wildly and the hand she grasped him with was trembling and dripping cold sweat. Holy shit, this was so much worse than anything she could have imagined in her head. The prospect of being killed was already bad enough but to find out that they were going to be starved an electrocuted? This was a goddamn nightmare!

She sensed Lily was crying. Like hell she was going to let this happen to them!

“What’s your name?” she asked, her steady voice disguising the panic and anger she felt.

“Lucas,” he answered. She noted to herself how creepy it was that, even as he told them about all the horrible things that his cult planned for them, he still gawked at her like a horny gorilla.

“Lucas, you have to bring us that key and get us out of here,” she commanded, pushing her will into him with everything she had. “At all costs but be discreet about it. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” he said, almost like a moan of pleasure.

She released his arm. “Now go, and hurry!”

He nodded eagerly, moved the last brown paper bags closer to the cells, and left the room.

Now that he was gone, the room was dead silent, except for the loud banging of Phoenyx’s heart. No one spoke for a very long moment. Finally a sniffle escaped from Lily. Phoenyx instinctively turned and put her arms around Lily, inviting Lily to stop holding it in and her tears soaked into Phoenyx’s already quite dirty shirt. Phoenyx had no words to comfort her with this time. If Lucas didn’t come back to free them, they would die.

“This is bullshit,” Sebastian said finally. “These people are fucking psychos!”

“That may be,” Skylar said. “I saw it in his mind; they all believe it down to their core. They live it and breathe it. The question is, do we believe it?”

“Hell no!” Sebastian said. “Who the hell could believe that anyone could actually imprison the elements, like they were actual beings? This isn’t ancient Greece; it’s 2016 I don’t even believe in God but I’ll believe in him long before I swallow any of that nonsense.”

“I don’t know,” Skylar said. “It can’t just be a coincidence that we all have these powers. It’s not every day that four people, born at the exact same time, all have Marvel-esque super powers.”

“So, what you’re trying to tell me is that you actually believe the four of us are Earth, Air, Fire, and Water? You’ve been in this damn cell for too long.”

That uneasy feeling was growing and scratching at her insides, making her queasy. Lily had stopped crying and listened to them argue. Phoenyx only held her tighter, herself wanting to be held as she felt like she might jump out of her skin.

Skylar, who was about to say something, paused mid-breath and looked at Phoenyx, and she knew what he was thinking. It was the same thing she had kept herself from thinking for six years, the thing she always suspected in the back of her mind but never wanted to face.

“Phoenyx, your dream,” he said softly, his brow creasing up in apology and pity. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”

The feeling erupted inside her, icy cold fear flooding her veins as if the hand of Jack Frost was squeezing her heart.

“What?” Sebastian asked, wanting to be let in on the secret.

“That’s why it was so hot last night,” Skylar continued. “You were making it happen and didn’t even know it.”

Her breaths came faster and faster, without her consent. Jack Frost’s hands were closing in around her neck, making it harder to breathe. She could barely hear the fretful voices of those around her as she hyperventilated. Memories from that night flashed in her mind. The fire in the kitchen. The anger she had felt right before. The explosion. The way her hand didn’t burn.

“Calm down!” Sebastian urged Phoenyx, as he pressed up against the other side of the bars, reaching out to her.

Lily rubbed her back desperately, then she grabbed one of the empty paper bags and handed it to her.

“Put this over your mouth and breathe into it,” Lily instructed. “Try to calm down.”

Phoenyx did as she said, panting repeatedly into the bag.

“What’s happening?” Sebastian whimpered. “Why is she freaking out? What did you do to her?”

“I’m sorry, Phoenyx,” Skylar said, calm and yet pleading at the same time. “I’m sorry but we have to face all our demons if we’re going to get out of here.”

“What demons?” Sebastian demanded, shoving Skylar’s shoulder.

“There is at least some truth to what Lucas said, because compulsion isn’t Phoenyx’s only power,” Skylar explained. “She can also start fires with her mind.”

“No!” Phoenyx screamed, throwing down the paper bag, tears streaming down her face. “No, no, no, it can’t be true!” She buried her face in her hands, wishing desperately that she could hide from everything.

All this time she blamed herself for her father’s death because she knew in her darkest depths that she had started the fire! It never really seemed possible, so it was an easy thing to ignore, to deny, even with her dreaming about it at least once a week for six years. She couldn’t deny it anymore. It was all true! They really were the living embodiments of the elements, the Bound Ones. She was Fire and had killed her father. She was a terrible person.

Soon all she heard was her own hiccupping. Jack Frost’s hands crept up until they covered her eyes, and the world turned upside down. Then all she knew went black.