Epilogue
His boots rattled loudly as he walked down the path. A small cloud of dust rose in his wake. He scratched the short stubble on his strong chin before stopping atop the same hill he had left that fateful day.
The young Rohad stared down at the city of Missea. He had not set sight on those golden walls for many years. Now, on his twenty-third birthday, he treaded slowly toward the city, not entirely sure he wanted to go inside, for within those golden barriers lay his entire future.
She had told him that she would wait for him. It had been a long time since she muttered those words, though. Much could change in five years. Did she still remember her promise? Had she moved on? She was a beautiful girl. He was certain that many men had attempted to court her.
Steadying his breath, he walked into the city. The entire scene became a sea of colors as people scurried about.
“Read all about the harrowing exploits of the great Falcon Hyatt!” screamed a young boy. He had yellow-stained teeth and a crooked smile. He stood atop a wooden box that barely seemed strong enough to sustain him, while holding a parchment over his head. A bag filled with countless other scrolls rested against his shoeless feet. “Travel with him as he vanquishes foe after foe on his wild adventure.” The boy spotted the travelling wanderer. His eyebrow lifted. “You there, sir. Surely you would like to learn all about the great hero of Va’siel. It’s so realistic that you’ll feel as if you were actually him.”
The young man decided to humor the kid. “How did you acquire such accurate descriptions of his life?”
“I know Falcon Hyatt, sir. He’s a good friend of mine, and he recounts his stories exclusively to me.”
“Does he now?”
“Oh, yes.” He patted his chest. “You can trust Mokin to always tell the truth.”
The Rohad reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a gold coin. He tossed it into Mokin’s expecting hands. The boy’s eyes glistened as he eyed the shiny trinket in his palm.
“Get yourself some shoes, boy,” said the man.
“Of course, sir.” Mokin blew kisses at the generous person before him. “A thousand blessing to you, sir.”
The boy grabbed his bag. Before he could take off, the Rohad took hold of his collar. He met his gaze and said, “And quit with the lies, boy. It will only bring you misfortune in the long run.”
Mokin gave a mischievous smile. “Of course, sir.” He then dashed into the crowd, turned the corner and disappeared.
A splash of water fell from the skies. A look up revealed a leathery-skinned woman staring out a second-story window. She carried a bucket in her hands.
“Watch where you’re going, stranger,” said the old woman. “I almost drenched you from head to toe, I did.”
The Rohad gave her a half-hearted smile. “Many thanks for the tip.”
As he made his way around the pool of water, he heard the woman muttering to herself. He only caught the words, “Darn foreigners.”
The air smelled of salted meat, horse dung, and fresh water.
As he passed yet another stall of fruit he waved the flies away from his face. Despite the many small distractions the city had to offer, he found his anxiety growing. He could not say exactly why. Odds were the girl wouldn’t even be here anymore. She had probably returned to her hometown of Ladria.
He turned another corner, passing the city council, which, if the marble sign outside the splendid jaded doors were to be believed, had apparently been renamed
Aadi and Falcon Chambers.
That wasn’t the only thing that had been renamed. The same inn that he had dwelled in all those years ago now had a sign that read
The Hyatt Sanctuary.
Then he saw her, and his heart skipped a beat. She was coming out of the oak finished door. Five years had done little to lessen her beauty. Her dark hair had grown to her waist. She wore a black blouse and a black skirt.
She looked up, and their eyes met. Her neck rose in a gulp.
The Rohad knew that this was the crucial time he had both yearned for and feared.
If the girl had indeed waited for him, she would hug him; he was certain of that. But if she had moved on and found a man in her absence, then she would welcome him as a friend. She would speak to him, perhaps even shake his hand, but the girl had honor. He knew that if she were attached to another, she would maintain proper distance. She would not dishonor her beloved by embracing another man.
The crowd around them became invisible. Sounds drowned out as they slowly made their way to each other. Under the shade of a flower stand they met, standing face to face. Her lips moved, but the man heard nothing but the sound of his own beating heart.
He shook his head, forcing his mind to return to the present. The scent of honeyed flowers filled his nostrils.
“Falcon?” said the girl, as if not believing who was standing before him. “You… you came back.”
Falcon’s heart sank to his stomach. He couldn’t help but notice that Aya was maintaining a well-mannered distance between them.
Of course.
What had he expected? That she would simply halt her life at his convenience? That he could just show up and she would welcome him with open arms?
Before he had an opportunity to dwell on those thoughts, she closed the distance between them. Her arms laced around his torso. Her warm breath caressed his neck, and the rigidness he had carried with him dissolved.
A soft kiss grazed his forehead.
He’d waited far too long and been haunted by her absence for far too long, to settle for a peck.
His skin tingled. Before he had a chance to think too much on it, he pulled her in. An explosion of emotions rushed through his body as their lips met. His fears faded, washed away by the taste of strawberry the girl with the soft lips left behind.
When they broke apart, her face was flushed in a deep shade of pink.
“You waited,” he said in a shallow breath, seeing his future in those sea-blue eyes.
Her lips formed into a smile. “Always.”
He pulled her in, tasting the sweet taste of strawberry all over again.
~~~
Councilman Nakatomi grunted and cursed as he trudged slowly into the damp cave, dragging the white sack behind him. In his wake, he left behind a trail of blood. There was a dark blotch of purplish red on the sack. It was the sixth sacrifice he’d killed.
He inspected the cuts on his arm. This one had been a feisty one. He had lured her to his small cabin, with the farce that he was a simple farmer who needed help tending to the animals.
A smirk spread across his lips as he thought back at how eager she had been when she thought she finally had a job to feed her struggling family. Of course, he hadn’t expected the peasant girl to put up a fight, even after he had landed a blow to the back of her head. No matter, she was dead now, and he was one step closer to fulfilling his goal.
The councilman walked into the room. The seven crystals were spread about. Fire torches clung on the grimy walls, providing much needed light. He tasted the thick, oily air and more than once he had to breathe through his nose to avoid the burning sensation that would travel down his throat with every inhale he took.
The old man moved to the first and smallest of them. The brown crystal had hundreds of cracks. Inside it he could barely make out the figure of a long, stretched-out woman. It was hazy from countless years of regret.
With monumental effort, he took the corpse out of the sack and tossed it atop the crystal. He took the girl’s cold hands and rested them at her side. He looked away as her cold blue eyes met his. They reminded him of that wretched she-devil whom he had helped bring into the world, Aya. The simple thought of how she had stained his name with dishonor caused his teeth to grit with anger.
He pierced two deep cuts in the girl’s ribs. He closed his eyes and imagined that he was cutting into his daughter instead. The thought made him find his smirk once more, and he let his anger flow away with the blood that was now dripping out of his victim.
The liquid traced the cracks of the crystal, adorning it in a web of red.
Suddenly, two crimson marbles lit up inside the crystal. The councilman’s chest rose with excitement. It was working!
The light went out a second later, but what remained was the sweetest sound he’d ever heard.
It was the soft thump of a heartbeat. The wicked pounding of a creature who had rested for far too long. He would have to go out and find a few more sacrifices to fully awaken the hellion resting within. That would be easy enough. There were more than enough simple-minded girls around Va’siel he could lure to their deaths.
His skin shivered at the thought of the legacy he was so close to fulfilling. He would be known as the man who ushered in the end of the human age. The name Nakatomi would forever be linked with the destruction of Va’siel’s way of life.
There was one who stood in the way of his legacy: Falcon Hyatt. He had become too powerful.
There was, however, also an answer. He licked his lips as his eyes fell on the black crystal at the end of the room. The being who lay dormant within was more than enough to handle the so-called heir of the elements.
A new era was coming. The era of the Onagas.
Acknowledgments:
As I write this acknowledgment, like many other times when I write, I find myself alone in my room. Nonetheless, this series wasn’t brought forth by me alone.
I thank God, for giving me a chance to share my creativity (as minor as it may be) with the world.
Thanks to my son, Cesar Adrian Gonzalez. Thank you for listening to my stories and getting so invested in the world of Element Wielder. I love you more than you will ever know. I’m glad I get to pass everyday with you, buddy.
Thank you to Natali for allowing me to steal your computer on a daily basis to write (Sorry).
Then there’s my cover artist, Dennis Frohlich. His amazing artistic ability and valuable input is always greatly appreciated. To my editor, Laura Hutfilz. Thanks for your keen eye as you fix my awful (and I do mean awful) grammar.
Last, but certainly not least, I thank all of you who bought, read, and recommended my book to your friends and family. I conceived the idea of Element Wielder when I was an 8
th
grader. I’m glad that dream I had all those years ago has reached so many of you out there.
Thank you for following the adventure of Falcon Hyatt, from a lowly orphan boy to the Heir of the Elements. His adventure isn’t over, and I sincerely hope you all follow along with him as he begins a new chapter of his life.
Don’t be a stranger. Feel free to e-mail
me with your thoughts on the series, or stop by the website. I like hearing from you all.
***New space Action/Adventure series by Cesar Gonzalez,
STAR RISIN
G
, will be available for pre-order now ***
~About The Author~
Cesar Gonzalez lives in Bakersfield, California, with his space-wielding son. To learn more about Cesar and see artwork from Element Wielder, visit his website at
http://cesarbak99.wix.com/element-wielder
Become a full-fledged Rohad by joining Cesar Gonzalez’ e-mail newsletter (visit website or follow link).
Members will receive 2 free books.
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He can also be found from time to time on his Twitter and Facebook handles:
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Other Books By Cesar Gonzalez
Void Wielder Trilogy:
-Legacy of the Golden Wielder: Prequel to the Void Wielder Trilogy.
-Element Wielder: Book 1 of the Void Wielder Trilogy
-Legacy of Chaos: Book 2 of the Void Wielder Trilogy
-Heir of The Elements: Book 3 Of the Void Wielder Trilogy.