The Gift of the Elements

I've lost track of how much time I've been out here. A month? Six months? Three years?

All I know is that I've been out here, fending for myself in the forest for a long time. I used to live in a village, among other people, but I can't go back to that village.

I can't return home because I used magic.

Every day used to be the same. I'd wake up, have breakfast, go to work, go home, make dinner, and go to bed after a few hours. Sometimes I'd stop by the bar for the town's gossip and a drink.

But that all changed that faithful spring evening. The evening strange things started happening.

I was walking home from the bar when I saw an off-white glow in the bushes. I had always been a little curious, so I couldn't help but investigate.

I pushed back the brush and found the source of the glowing: a small gem the size and shape of a baseball. It was glowing like a lightbulb.

I picked it up. The instant I did, I started feeling tingly and a little lightheaded. I held it for a couple more seconds and suddenly felt out of breath. Confused, I put the gem in my bag to investigate later.

The walk home was mostly uneventful, though I couldn't stop thinking about that gem.

When I started coming up my walkway, I started feeling tingly again. I ignored the feeling and got out my keys.

But then, when I touched the doorknob, a jolt of electricity went from me to the doorknob to the light above the door. The light flickered, then went out.

I stood there for a couple moments, trying to make sense of it all. Then I went inside.

I tossed my bag onto the couch and tentatively took out the gem. Instantly I started feeling tingly again.

I set the gem on the table. The gem was so bright it was overwhelming, so I turned off the lights. The gem's glow made it so I could see clearing ten feet all around it.

"What is with this thing?" I murmured.

Was it just me, or was the gem getting brighter? It was! It became so bright I had to shield my eyes.

When I opened my eyes, the glow had decreased dramatically and was now about as bright as a nightlight that was almost out of juice. But the brightness in the room was the same as before.

I looked around, looking for anything else that was glowing. I was startled when I realized I was glowing! I was feeling tingly and lightheaded again, too.

The glow radiating from me faded, and so did the tingly feeling. Now the only light in the room was the gem.

I turned on the light and was just about to put the gem back in my bag when I started floating up into the air! I tried to propel myself down to the ground again, but I didn't stop until I was about six feet above the ground, my head close to hitting the ceiling.

I thought things couldn't get any weirder...until they did. First, flames shot out of my fingertips! Luckily, they dissipated before they hit anything. Then water came out of my fingers, then lightning. Then the ground rumbled! I was glad I was six feet in the air, or else I would have been injured.

Once the ground stopped rumbling, I gently came down to the ground. Surprisingly, the house hadn't been damaged. But still, weird things were happening, and I was pretty freaked out.

I only got about two hours of sleep that night. I was trying to figure out what happened, and by the time my alarm rang for 6 AM, I still didn't even have an inkling of what was going on.

Turns out, the gem I had found was a magical gem, and by touching it, I had been granted the Gift of the Elements. I could now fly and control the four elements: Fire, Water, Lightning, and Earth. An old woman in an alley told me on my way to a restaurant for lunch that day. I was told not to let anyone know my new magical powers.

But I let my guard down.

After about two weeks, I got the hang of my new powers and managed to hide my powers for a few weeks after I got them. Sometimes I'd play around with them when I was alone at home, with the windows closed, curtains drawn, and doors locked.

But one day I forgot to close the curtains.

I was sitting on my living room couch, playing around with a droplet of water a little smaller than a golf ball. I was tossing it from hand to hand, throwing it up in the air, and other things you might do with a small ball. I thought I was perfectly safe from peering eyes, and I was actually kind of enjoying myself.

Then I looked out the window and saw the stares.

Five or six people were staring through my window. They had been watching me play with my ball of water! Hastily, I let the water ball splash to the ground, got up, and closed the curtains.

After a few moments, I peeked out. They were still there. I made sure there were no cracks in the curtains and walked away. I had let someone see my powers!

I guess the people who had seen my powers had spread the word to others because the next morning, I woke up to somebody knocking on my door. I got out of bed, threw on some clothes, and answered the door.

I was surprised to see the Queen's Messenger standing outside my door! Nobody in the Royal Order ever visited small villages like mine, let alone someone as important as the Messenger! And what was he doing on my doorstep?

"You are Matthew Sanders, correct?" the Messenger said in a gruff voice.

"Yes...?" I said.

"The Royal Order has gotten word that you have been using forbidden magic. Therefore, you shall come to the castle so Her Majesty can decide her punishment," the Messenger told me.

Forbidden magic? Punishment? I got a twisty feeling in my stomach. I should have closed the curtains while I was playing with that ball of water. Now I was probably going to be thrown in jail or something!

I didn't even have time to do my hair, eat something, or at least get into better clothes. Instead, I was instantly put into handcuffs by members of the Royal Order and thrown into a royal car the size of a police car.

The drive to the Queen's Castle was long. My estimate was about four hours. And I was starving, and they didn't give me a bite to eat.

Finally, we arrived at the Queen's Castle. It looked like something out of a fairy tale and was huge! I would have been amazed if I wasn't there to get thrown into prison.

The Royal Order people didn't give me time to marvel at the castle. Instead, they immediately had me marched to the trial room.

The room was packed. On the right was a bunch of people who looked like ordinary citizens. On the left were more people from the Royal Order. I was marched down the middle by two big guys also from the Royal Order, and in front of me sat the Queen herself and a judge.

"This man," said somebody on my left, "has been tampering with the magic we banned decades ago. We have discovered he has control of all four elements."

How did they discover that with just a glimpse of me playing with a water ball? I thought. But I pushed that wonder away.

The Queen didn't skip a beat. "He knows magic is banned in our kingdom. Therefore, he shall be exiled for as long as his magical powers persist!"

"No!" I yelped out. But it had already been done. I had been exiled from the kingdom I was born in.

After the trial, the Royal Order drove me out to the corners of the kingdom and threw me out of the kingdom. Literally. The two big guys from earlier literally threw me beyond the boundary of the kingdom. Then everyone quickly drove away.

I looked back on the cars as they drove away, away from the man who would never see his home again.

And that's where I am now. In the forest beyond my home kingdom, using my powers to try and stay alive. I'm also gradually moving north, looking for a place where my powers will be accepted. Until then, I'm a fugitive. A fugitive with a gift that is really a curse.