Levantica: Kingdom of Wind

(I've been working on this story for a long time now, and I want to share some of it and maybe get some feedback. c:) Introduction The Legend of the Four Kingdoms Long, long ago, in a peaceful land of love and prosperity, resided the four goddesses of the planet we live on: Water, Earth, Fire, and Wind. Together they make up one perfect being called Divine. They were sent here by their mother, Light, as a reward for their great deeds in the heavens. Their task was to mold this planet into something great. Shortly after their arrival on this barren planet, the goddesses began creating the natural landscapes in their image, each playing their own role in the process. Water, being the wise and knowledgeable one, chose to go first. She knew that in order for anything to grow on such a wasteland, water must be there as a primary food source. And so, she filled the great sphere with the ocean. Then Earth, craving a rough landscape that would prove a challenge to build, used her unrivaled strength to force the land up from under the oceans, creating mountains and land for plants to grow on. Fire, being rambunctious in nature, decided that all the peace needed some balance. Seeing as too much of a good thing could be a bad thing, she created holes in the mountains and filled them with fire, thus creating volcanoes. And to warm the growing plants in the earth, the warmth of this fire would help them grow. The goddess Wind saw that all this was balanced, and felt a bit unneeded. Even though her purity rang strong, the Lord of Darkness took this small window of opportunity to plant a seed of anger in her soul. Her jealousy for the gifts that had been given to her sisters grew and grew until one day it sent her seeking Darkness, the one below. Darkness greeted her with open arms, and gave her a sinister gift; the destructive power of storms. Her new-found powers she used to wreak havoc upon all that her sisters had created.

The three goddesses were no match for Wind’s dark gifts, and they called upon Mother Light for help. But, in the end, not even Light could stand up to Wind with Darkness controlling her. The four decided to create a race of living beings, called the Elvin, ones in harmony with nature, and trained them to fight against Darkness. Each sister appointed their chosen warrior, those who were most connected with their corresponding element, and sent them off on a mission; destroy Darkness and stop Wind before it was too late. Darkness saw their plan, and he too created his own race. These Elvin beings were corrupted and soulless, having no connection or respect for their ruler, Wind. Even so, she sent them off to fight against her sister’s armies. Severely lacking in motivation and skill, these pawns were annihilated quickly. All but one. This lone dark elf had sympathy, compassion, and kindness, a personality much like Wind’s. He joined forces with the others, and vowed to free Wind from Darkness’s clutches. After ten years of failed attempts, he finally managed to free Wind and defeat Darkness. (Although, one can never truly kill the Lord of Darkness.) Wind felt terrible for what she had done, and in order to repair everything she had destroyed, she decided to sacrifice herself to the planet. Her sisters pleaded with her not to do it, saying that they could fix it within a hundred years, but there were living, breathing creatures inhabiting it now. She couldn't risk their mortal lives. So, she gave up half of her immortality to the lone dark elf in gratitude for freeing her and dissipated into the pure gentle breeze, lightly rocking leaves, flowers, and making the oceans sparkle.

Seeing the choice their sister had made, the other three goddesses decided to follow in her footsteps, giving up half their immortality to their chosen warrior, and disappearing forever into their element. Thus, the four kingdoms were created as a result. Mizulia, Revoltico, Fyorea, and finally Levantica. The kingdoms of Water, Earth, Fire, and Wind have lasted through the centuries, through war, peace, time, and will continue to stand tall and proud until the end of time.

Chapter 1 “Princess, you’re not allowed out at this hour!” The large guard put his arm in front of me to block my exit. I tried to go around it but to no avail. “What do you think you’re doing?” His deep voice asked in a disapproving tone. “What does it look like? I’m trying to leave but your gigantic arm is in my way,” I stated bluntly, folding my arms across my chest and glaring at him. I stared him down but he did not budge. “I’m sorry Princess, but you may not leave,” he said. I “hmphed” and rolled my eyes; suddenly an idea struck me. My mouth twitched up into an eerie grin and the guard arched an eyebrow in suspicion. “If you don’t let me go, I’m going to cry and run to Daddy. I’ll tell him you tried to hurt me,” I threatened. I knew this would get him; I had done the same thing to the former guard. He sighed and moved his arm, granting me access to the village. He didn't seem scared though, just annoyed. “Fine, just don’t be out late and don’t mention it to anyone, Princess.” “Thank you very much, Mr.Vestle,” I said stupidly, running through the gate to my freedom. I heard him call something to me but I didn't bother to look back. I kept at a steady pace jogging through the large village. I knew it like the back of my hand. All the alleyways, the shops, and even the time of day certain villagers were out and about. It sounded a bit creepy actually, but I really had nothing better to do with my time than people watch. The people bowed as I passed, which was one thing about my social status that I absolutely loathed.

I slowed to a walk as I got closer to my favorite spot in the village; the small river that runs the perimeter of the outskirts of town. The deep blue sparkled as the setting sun slowly vanished over the horizon, leaving the sky a mix of pale orange and pink. That was really my favorite time of day. The sky was so beautiful, just like paint on a canvas. At times like these I always felt refreshed and at ease. All my stress could just wash away with the river. Without thinking I laid on my back and sighed. “If only the rest of the world were this beautiful,” I thought out loud. “It is when you’re around, my dear,” a soft voice said from behind me. I tilted my head back to see a huge figure silhouetted in the sun walking towards me. How did he always know where I was? I sighed once more, but this time in annoyance. “What do you want, Vex?” I asked in a disinterested tone, which always failed when attempted on him because he knew I was always interested in what he had to say. He flashed a dumb smile and took a seat next to me. “What I’ve wanted for six years,” he said. I rolled my eyes and sat up beside him. My body looked so small and fragile compared to his muscles and height. “You know I’m not interested,” I reminded him. He looked at the sky and smiled. “I know, you don’t want to fall in love. You think it will cause ‘complications’.” Vex air quoted that last word. He shifted his gaze to me, his pale blonde hair brushing gently across his flawless face with the breeze. I seemed to get lost in his oceanic eyes every time I looked into them, almost like they hypnotized me. I really liked Vex, but I couldn’t do it to him; I couldn’t bring him down to my level. He was just too perfect. I knew he would make some lucky girl very happy one day, it just wouldn’t be me.

I tore myself from his gaze and stared at my feet. A bit of dried mud covered the buckle, but it blended with the black of the boot. “Love is much too complicated,” I stated, remembering what my mother had said six years ago before she left the kingdom with my unborn baby sister. I wondered if she was alright, and if I would ever see my sister. I heard a snap in my face and I jumped, bringing me back to reality. “Hey, Uthonna, you zoned out on me,” Vex said, a hint of worry in his eyes. He was such a good friend, besides the fact that he was infatuated with me. I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. “Sorry.” “That’s okay. Hey! Want to see something awesome?” His face lit up, like a young child when he receives presents on his birthday. I laughed. “My definition of awesome? Or your definition of awesome?” He laughed with me. “I think this would be awesome enough to classify as your definition,” he said in a confident tone, puffing out his chest to look more impressive. It’s not like he needed to anyway. I raised an eyebrow and looked at him. My definition of awesome would’ve been witnessing a little mouse take town a horse just by tackling it, which was impossible by the way. Could it really have topped that? This spiked major curiosity in me. I stood up and placed my hands on my hips and raised an eyebrow in disbelief. “Well? What are we waiting for? Show me this awesome thing!” I ordered a bit too excitedly. He chuckled and stood up. “To the clubhouse! Away!” He grabbed my wrist and pulled my back through the village, where curious strangers stared as we ran by. All the villagers must’ve thought we were “together” because that’s what the palace servants all gossiped about.

We reached a dense forest that was used as a fourth wall in our defenses, (the river was the other three) and grinded to a halt. The clubhouse we built eight years ago was located just inside the trees, close enough to the village that we couldn’t get lost, yet far enough away that no one could find us. It was awesome planning for two eight-year-olds. We made our way through the bushes in front, cutting my leg several times as well as tripping, (for boots with large heels were not the best hiking shoes), and disappeared from the villager’s view behind the trees. The makeshift clubhouse had many renovations throughout its history, thus it looked like two idiots pieced it together with random bits of wood. I smiled. It wasn’t much but it was ours and we put years of effort into making it perfect. Vex released my wrist and motioned for me to follow. We entered the door and I lounged on the old couch that was in the corner while he fiddled with one of the makeshift cabinets on the wall. He opened it a little too hard and pulled off the door. I took this golden opportunity to point and laugh at his failure. “Nice goin’ dummy,” I said. “You know who’s going to fix that right?” I looked him in the eyes and smiled. “Kel?” He suggested. (I'm really tired, so I'll post the rest of chapter 1 later on)