Fate of Elements

  Fate of Elements

  The Skeleton Key Book Series

  M. Stratton

  Contents

  Copyright

  Books by M. Stratton

  Dedication

  Introduction

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Thank You

  About the Author

  Also by M. Stratton

  Find M. Stratton Here

  Fate of Elements

  Copyright © 2016 by M. Stratton

  Cover by J.M. Rising Horse Creations

  Edited by Kimberly Brancatelli

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the author.

  The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  Fate of Elements is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Other Works by M. Stratton

  The Storm Series

  After the Storm

  Eye of the Storm

  Caught in the Storm

  Fade to Black

  Bender

  The Star Series

  When Dreams Come True

  Wishing on a Star

  120 days…

  Novellas

  Dreaming in Moonlight

  Constant Echo

  Fate of Elements

  To the real life Dayna,

  who was kind enough to lend me her name

  for a character who is not nearly as nice as she is.

  Welcome to the world of The Skeleton Key

  One Skeleton Key – Endless Adventures

  Raina Owens, who’d been taught from a young age that she could never be too careful, lived vicariously through the characters in her books. She never expected the letter informing her of a mysterious uncle she never knew, whose untimely death left her the only remaining heir to his estate. What she thought was a leap of faith into her first, real life adventure was only the beginning. Her uncle, and the house he had willed to her, held secrets beyond her understanding, but she held the answers to her future in the palm of her hand: the Skeleton Key. Would she be brave enough to turn the lock and step into her destiny?

  Hallet, King of the Fire Elements, spent his life obsessed with the prophecy of the Skeleton Door and the one who would walk through it. As the tensions between the elements of his world rose, all he could do was wait for the one who would bring peace. His power over the fire element burned in his soul, and although he loved ruling over his people, deep down, something was missing.

  A battle had been brewing for centuries. Betrayal, blood, and suspicion ran just below the surface of the people of Aimsir. Only the one who crossed through the Skeleton Door could bring them hope and peace. But was she ready to be The One to fulfill the prophecy? She would have to rely on her training, magic, and power over the elements to defeat the age-old rivalries which had been smoldering for centuries. Who could she trust? And was she strong enough to be the leader they so desperately needed? She was more than she ever thought she could be.

  She was the key to uniting their world.

  Hallet

  “Dayna, you need to calm down.” Naida, the Queen of the Water Elements, said as the ground where she lay trembled. Her wavy deep blue hair spread out around her.

  “Let her get it out of her system,” I spoke from the shadows of the forest just across the meadow from them. I didn’t step into the light; however, they knew my mood based on the red glow of my eyes.

  Whirling around, Dayna’s green eyes flashed menacingly. The ground rippled out under her feet toward me. “You dare speak to me like that, Hallet, King of Fire?” Sarcasm dripped from each word like acid eating through metal, her fists clenched by her sides. “You are not superior to me.”

  “And that burns you up, doesn’t it, sister?” I taunted her.

  She spread her arms, raising them high. “I control the very ground you walk on, the very ground your crops grow from, and the very reason you can stand there with your arrogant nose in the air, brother.”

  The land heaved under her magic and settled back down, only to whip upward again, waves of angry energy rippling out toward me. I was used to her temper tantrums and waited until it passed.

  “Are we really going to go over this again?” Erion’s bored voice echoed down from his perch at the top of one of the towering trees surrounding the meadow. His hair looked white today with only a little bit of grey at the temples, warning us it wouldn’t take much to anger him. “Without me, there would be no air to breathe, without Naida, no water to drink, without Hallet, no fire to warm, and finally, as you pointed out, dear sister, without you, nothing to place our feet upon. We are all needed equally. Can we hurry up with this pissing match? I have things to do.”

  “Yes, we all have things to do,” Naida agreed.

  Dayna simply crossed her arms in silent agreement, waiting.

  “We need to talk about the Skeleton Door,” I said.

  “Oh, for the love of…” Erion sighed and elegantly jumped down, landing softly on the ground. His hair turned darker grey, like the storm clouds gathering above him. “We’ve been over this; it’s a waste of time.” He turned and started to walk away.

  “It’s shifting.”

  Erion stopped and deliberately turned around. “What do you mean, it’s shifting?”

  “The bones are changing their pattern.”

  “That isn’t possible.” Naida’s voice shook as she sat up. “They aren’t supposed to move.”

  “The elders wrote about this happening.” Over the years, my brothers and sisters had grown tired of my obsession with the Skeleton Door. I figured half the time they tuned me out. “Remember, they said there would be a time when One would come to unite us all, to stop the fighting.” I looked at Dayna directly. Out of all of us, she craved power.

  “It’s all a lie,” Dayna quickly dismissed me. “You want to believe in these old relics the elders prophesied, so you see what you want.” She shook her head. “Grow up, Hallet. The Elements can never be united. We can’t stand to see each other, even though our parents came together for us to be raised as siblings from birth. They thought by bringing each future ruler of the Elements together as children, they could unite us. Fools they were; we can’t be united. We are all too different.”

  “Remember what the Librarian said?” Naida’s soft voice flowed over to us. “He knew this was coming.”

  “That old mortal was more interested in his damn books than the world around him. Surprised it took him so long to die, breathing in all that nasty book smell for so many years.”

  I shook my head. Dayna
always had preferred action over study and felt superior to those who spent time reading books. “Some might say the same of you; always riding head-first into battle before using your brain.”

  In an instant, she was before me, the ground under her lifting her to eye level. “Don’t start something you can’t finish, sister,” I said.

  “Or what? You’ll lose your precious control and burn me? Wouldn’t be the first time.” She licked her lips. “You used to like riding the line, pushing it as hard as you could before destroying everything.” A smirk played across her mouth. “Failed a few times, didn’t you?”

  I narrowed my eyes at her, the pain of what I had done smoldering in my gut. I knew what she was trying to do, but I’d spent too many years reining in my fire to allow her to push me over the edge now. “Do you really want to see everything you hold dear burned to nothing again?” I asked, smooth and controlled. “I can destroy everything and still have firm ground to stand on. Don’t mess with me, Dayna.”

  “Children, please.” Erion’s voice cracked, turning our attention to him. “Enough. Hallet, tell us what have you seen with the Skeleton Door.”

  “The bones are lining up.”

  “Please, is that it?” Dayna’s voice shook. “That’s nothing.”

  I raised an eyebrow at her, knowing I had her attention now. “You might be able to lie to your people, but not to us. You’re scared little girl, and you should be. In order to unite all the elements, we may all have to die, and trust me, none of us want that. We need to work together to figure out what is coming and to find a way to survive.”

  “I’m not scared of battle.” Dayna shrugged. “I’ve survived worse.”

  “This is going to be something our world has never seen before. The elders didn’t record a clear outcome to any battle that may take place.” I’d spent many sleepless nights thinking about what needed to be done to guarantee an outcome where we all survived. For as much as the deep-seated need for dominance over the other elements burned inside of me, the thought of the deaths of my siblings and their people was too much for me. There had already been so much death in my life, I didn’t want more.

  “Hallet, what do you need us to do?”

  “Geez. Naida, way to take the path of least resistance. Right away you’re ready to fall in line.” Dayna’s voice was dismissive.

  With fluid grace, Naida stood up, looking down on her sister. “You, of all people, should know I’m not easy to bend.”

  “Is that it, Hallet?” Erion asked. “I need to leave and do my own research.”

  Dayna rolled her eyes. “Great, another one. Go ahead, put your head in the clouds and ‘think.’ Meanwhile, I’ll be here, with my feet firmly on the ground, ready to fight.”

  “We may not need to fight. Haven’t you been listening?”

  “I’m not giving up my kingdom. I’d rather not fight against you, but I also will not surrender.” She whirled around to leave.

  “There’s one more thing you should know,” I stopped her.

  Without turning around, she said, “What?”

  “You remember there were four skulls, one for each of the original elders? Earth, Air, Fire, Water.”

  “So?”

  “There are now five.”

  In an instant, the winds blew and rain fell from the sky as the earth shook beneath us seconds after I uttered those words.

  Raina

  The stranger stood there in the shadows. I could only make out his huge silhouette and glowing, red eyes. Under normal circumstances, fear would have been coursing through my veins, but I’d dreamt of him my whole life. He had never hurt me. There was no reason for him to start now.

  I watched as he spoke to the others, and as always, I wished I could understand their language, but I couldn’t. The other man and two women didn’t particularly want to be there, but they had come, and then they were angry. I’d never seen anything so powerful before. Gusts of wind blew so hard, it tried to bend and break the tall pines, but they wouldn’t splinter. I blinked, unbelieving, as the ground heaved and cracked, reaching out from one of the women. Torrents of rain beat down from the rolling grey clouds that would have beaten a stronger man to the ground. Yet, all four of them stood still, as if they couldn’t feel it.

  As quickly as the storm had started, it stopped, and the three of them left my dream man alone. Slowly, I walked toward him. It wasn’t fear that faltered my steps, it was the fact that I wanted him so badly; a man I had never fully seen nor spoken to. Over the years, I’d seen him both protect and destroy with his fire. The same fire which he now had burning in the palm of his hand. The bright flames sensuously danced like an old partner. There was something sad and comforting about it. I reached my hand out and touched it, jumping back when the flames leapt in his hand, shooting up toward the darkened sky.

  Instantly, he was on guard, his body tense as he spun, searching for an enemy. One that wasn’t there – because it was me, and I’d never hurt him. As he shot flames out of his fingers, lighting up the meadow, one of those flames hit me, immediately engulfing me. It felt warm and comforting as his fire danced over my body, warming me from within. I raised my hand and watched as his fire flowed across my skin, and the beauty of it brought tears to my eyes. My dream man’s power, both dangerous and exciting, intoxicated me. His familiar essence pulled me in. I knew he saw me, too, because he froze and did not look away. We took a step toward each other, reaching out before he faded away.

  *****

  Knock, knock, knock.

  I jumped in my seat, so engrossed in the book I was reading it took me a minute to figure out someone had knocked at my door. Looking at the clock, I saw I still had a half an hour before I had to leave for work. I was torn between ignoring the knock and continuing to read or answering it. Curiosity got the better of me, and I went over to open the door.

  “Hello, dearie,” said Mrs. Miller, my elderly neighbor. She stood there, all five feet of her, grey hair sticking out at odd angles. “I was out late last night playing bingo, and I wasn’t able to drop this off for you.” She shoved an express envelope into my hands. “Looks important. I didn’t want to leave it on your doorstep.” She peered over the edge of it and tapped the return address. “See, it says Esquire, that means it’s from a lawyer. Do you know what it’s about? Look, they even spelled your name right, Raina Owens. Must be real official.”

  I had no idea why a lawyer from South Carolina would be contacting me. “I don’t know, but thank you for bringing it over to me.” I tried to close the door.

  “I hope it’s not any bad news, or that you’re in trouble for something. Although, I guess they’d just send the cops over. Besides, you’re too quiet to cause problems.” She shook her head at me. Over the years she’d been trying to, what she called, ‘loosen me up.’ I think she thought I was a lost cause.

  “Ummm, thank you, I think. If I need anything I’ll let you know. Thank you, Mrs. Miller.” I finally succeed in closing the door and walked over to the kitchen table. I sat down looking at the envelope as if it were some kind of snake, ready to strike.

  My life had been pretty uneventful up to this point. I preferred to live my adventures between the pages of a book. I had a boring job, doing the same thing, day in and day out in a plain, beige office. I lived on a quiet street, in a small community of townhomes in the suburbs of Chicago. Even though I was only less than an hour from one of the most interesting cities in the world, I never ventured into the city. If what I needed wasn’t within twenty miles of my home, or I couldn’t order it online, I didn’t need it.

  I had one of those feelings, deep in my gut, that nothing would ever be the same after I opened this envelope. Vaguely, I wondered if I had been reading too many mystery novels lately. I took a deep breath and pulled the tab, dumping it over and shaking it until a few sheets of paper fell out.

  My fingers shook and the lines blurred as I attempted to understand the words telling me I had an uncle I never knew, Charlie Owens,
who had died, and I had somehow inherited his entire estate somewhere in South Carolina.

  The words on the cover letter swam in front of me as I tried to make sense of it all. Searching through the pages, I saw a list of assets. It seemed like I’d be able to quit my job and move there, never having to work again. I could live in his house, which came with a fully stocked library in it. This was a dream come true.

  My stomach clenched at the thought of actually quitting my job, selling my townhome, and moving hundreds of miles away to somewhere new. My breathing became shallow, and I had to put my head between my knees. Looking at my shelves of books while upside down made me wonder about seeing things differently. Yes, it would all be a challenge, but shouldn’t I have an adventure? Sure, I’m living in the same town I grew up in, even after my ultra-overprotective, conservative parents died. I didn’t spread my wings and fly away. Reading about adventurous people was much easier than actually taking the risks myself. I knew I learned that from my parents who always wanted to play it safe. No one had died from reading a book. I could do all the things I never even allowed myself to dream of doing in the novels I spent hours reading.

  I jumped for the second time this morning as one of my alarm clocks went off, letting me know it was time to go. I wondered if I was even going to survive long enough to set foot in my uncle’s house.

  I knew myself, and I could sit here for the next week going over and over every single pro and con for moving, but right now I needed to get to work. I had responsibilities no matter what that letter said. I had to logically go through all the steps and focus on something else while the information contained in that one, life-changing envelope seeped into my brain.