Eternal: Chapter Twelve, Part 3

But that wasn’t everyone. Justin and Angeline were married and started their own law firm together. He had taken my advice, though I had known that at the march. She had said yes, just as I knew she would, and she was the reason he joined Caroline that day. As much as they argued, they loved each other and there would never be someone else they’d want.

If you were wondering, their law firm was one of the most successful in the nation and represented the new government—by Caroline’s recommendation, of course.

Mitchell and Valetta stuck around helping Caroline until just before the first elections. Then they took off to travel the world, just as Valetta had always wanted to do with her love. It only took a couple hundred years, but she was living her dream un-life. There wasn’t anyone I knew who deserved it more.

And Mitchell? Well, he was still Mitchell. And no matter how old I become, I doubt he will ever stop making fun of me. But I wouldn’t want it any other way.

Obviously, the Council agreed I had made my significant impact. All charges against us were dropped and we went on with our un-lives. I had heard, though, because of vampiric support during my campaign and the new government being formed, the Council was considering co-habitation in a hundred years, give or take a score. Once co-habitation was established, after all, they could fully stake claim for their part in the revolution.

Elizabeth, the little girl from the march, didn’t see a doll of me made. In fact, no one ever made a doll of me. They did, though, make an angel of me, and she received that for her birthday—courtesy of Drei, who still found it hilarious. Surprisingly enough, the angel looked like me. Pale skin, blue-grey eyes, blondish brown hair, and arms open to welcome everyone and everything. Of course, she was called Leirba. What I didn’t expect was that she was the angel not of change, or hope, or peace, but of miracles. Another company called her the guardian of the impossible, including a story about how she magically came to earth one day, led a great movement for change against all odds, and disappeared when the people could see the path forward. It also promised she’d return again if they ever needed her.

As cute and inspiring as I thought it was, I hoped they wouldn’t need me again, and should they, I hoped someone else would be there to step up and take his or her turn. Otherwise I would be there, but I can guarantee you whoever was supposed to be stepping up wouldn’t like it.

My parents were reunited again, too. I bought a plane ticket for my mom, and left a message for my dad telling him when to be at the airport, which flight, and everything. It dawned on me I could have been there, as well. But the only thing I could do to right what had gone wrong was to give them back to each other.

I stayed at home and mapped it. I watched as she stepped through security, searching for someone familiar, anyone familiar. My dad searched for me, because I had left the message. The two of them finally saw each other, their eyes locking and everyone else seeming to freeze in place. Then he was holding her, so gently, terrified she wasn’t real. She started crying, wrapping her thin arms around him, telling him she loved him and she was sorry she ever had to leave.

A month later, he was divorced from my mother, leaving her the house and enough money to keep her satisfied for years. I think she had been expecting this as she didn’t put up a fight. She just let it happen, and a year later she was married to some guy down the block who divorced her a few months after for everything she was worth. I wouldn’t say she deserved it, because she didn’t, and I found it somewhat cruel that she had to work after never working on anything but a committee for years. I called Dad, left him a message about Kenzy’s situation, and he helped her get back on her feet, ensuring the next guy she married wouldn’t do the same by making him sign a pre-nuptial agreement.

Mom and Dad, though, they had a small apartment in New York, his favorite place in the world. They were happy and he was doing everything he could to help Mom heal after all she had suffered through. I was proud of her for taking the aid he offered—and found for her—and of him for stepping up and being home to help her. If I was lucky, my eternity with Drei would be filled with just as much love as their time together was.

Looking back, it almost seemed as though that march was where most people ended the movement, though it still technically continued into today. I found it strange and flattering. Though it wasn’t the end, it seemed to be the start of everyone’s future. For better or for worse, we had succeeded.

Finally.

Eternal: Chapter Eleven, Part 3

“I would like to begin by expressing my deepest and sincerest thanks for your presence here today.” Standing on the raised platform, news crews stalking along the base, the crowd of participants stretching along either side of the reflecting pool, I felt calm. Sure, there were a lot more people here than I had thought—it seemed we surrounded the entire length of the pool—but they were here because they wanted to be, because they were making a choice to listen and act. “Without you, all of you, none of this is possible. So thank you.”

Wild applause. Okay, so not so wild, but it was there and reassuring. At least I wasn’t losing them and just spouting off to myself.

When they quieted down again enough most could hear me, I continued; “I believe you’re here today, because you’ve seen the ads, read the available information, viewed or attended one of the local orations, and, most of all, because you care. Because you believed what you saw, what you witnessed, and you’ve made the decision to care.” Looking out at everyone, people were nodding, smiling, holding hands with their friends, some people looked to be tearing up even. “Elementals, as you have probably heard a lot in the past two years, are oppressed, are stripped of their rights as citizens, and are in hiding. Until now. We have been quiet too long, and now we’re strong enough to speak, and stand up; and with everyone here, elemental or not, we can make a difference.”

I stopped a moment, reminding myself to breath, relax, that I wasn’t going to cry. But it wasn’t easy. Speaking now, in front of everyone, where it really mattered, every reason I was doing this came flooding back to me, with every successful baby step we had already made. It was inexplicably satisfying, to say the least, to be standing there after so long, after having had sacrificed so much. After everyone had sacrificed so much.

“Any elemental, here with us, or watching at home, who would like to keep their secret, can,” I said, remembering Justin. No one was going to be forced into this if it wasn’t what they wanted, but I hoped they would be persuaded. “We won’t find you out. It’s your decision, just like being here today is your decision. A decision we—I am glad you made. But we would not be here without the help of my close friends and their willingness to step out with me.”

Sweeping a hand out to my right, I introduced, “Mikael and Kora, representing earth.” As Ian had instructed them, they stood in the grass and together—mostly Kora, though Mikael did what he could—they coaxed three trees into full height, intertwining into each other. Then they climbed up to one of the branches and waved in response to the awed applause.

 “Jake and Xenia, representing water.” Together, they shaped the water in the reflecting pool into a tall, thin sculpture of an angel, freezing her in place. They raised themselves on two small, frozen pedestals at either side, also waving as they were applauded. “Caroline—”

“And Justin,” he added, jumping onto the platform beside her, seeming to shock even himself.

“And Justin;” I smiled. So he had come through after all. “Representing fire.” Caroline whispered in his ear before they crafted a tower of fire skyward that transformed into a phoenix, flying a moment out over the crowd and greeted with dropped jaws and wide eyes. When the phoenix died away into smoke, everyone literally went crazy with praise, whistling and shouting at the top of their lungs. Angeline, I noticed, was one of the loudest and most enthusiastic. “Ian—”

“And Leirba,” Ian said, as was planned, both of us gesturing to each other.

“Representing air.”

Together we whisked the cherry blossoms Ian had gathered into a thin cyclone, changing it into the form of a woman, opening her arms and leaning out over them. Then the cherry blossoms separated, and we treated them much like butterflies dispersing amongst the crowd. A few children nearby I saw chase some, and gingerly held their prizes, excitedly showing their parents.

Though I wanted to introduce Drei’s part in this, I knew that would put me in a whole new set of trouble—considering this turnout should have won us our forgiveness from the Council. As for Nick, I had asked, and he insisted he didn’t want to be introduced, despite persisting he would be on stage with me. It was for my safety, he insisted.

“We represent each element, and are the first elementals to risk exposure. Some of you might ask why, after we’ve been in hiding so long and none of you probably knew we even existed, or that many others like you existed. The truth is, hiding doesn’t work,” I stressed, trying to strike a balance between demanding and understanding. “I grew up without my mom because she was found, and she had been in hiding. Jake lost his mother to the government, and she was in hiding. Xenia was forced to find other ways to express herself so she could stay hiding. Mikael was left by both of his parents due to hiding. Hiding doesn’t work—not for long,” I added, trying to hold eye contact with as many people as possible. “It leads to repression, depression, other unhealthy outcries, and lies. No relationship can be founded on lies or omissions.

“But this is what we are forced to do. Live every day lying to ourselves because it’s safer. But it isn’t, really.  It just delays the inevitable. Worse than that, though, it hurts. Not just us, but everyone we know.” I was treading into deep water, and I felt it; I had to remind myself I was strong, that I could talk about this without falling apart. I had to.

“When my mom was taken, she left behind my dad. He missed her immeasurably, because, do you know what the government says happens to those they take? The loved ones issue a missing persons report, and a year or so later, the government sends the order to officially claim the person deceased.” Breathe, I reminded myself. “And my mom isn’t dead, because I’ve seen her; I actually shared a cell with her for a month and saw firsthand what their…“tinkering” does. How it corrodes the brain and sends many of their prisoners into an irreversible state of insanity.

“I was lucky, though. Not because they let me go, but because I knew people who would find me, so that today, I could be standing here before you, working to end what’s happening.”

“But they can’t just make people disappear,” one of the reporters at my feet said into his microphone, reaching it up at me.

I opened my mouth to respond when someone from the audience stepped forward, saying, “They did it to my husband, and my father.” It was the woman who had approached me earlier that morning.

“And my sister,” someone else shouted.

“And my fiancé,” another voice called out. Before I knew it, it seemed half the audience was claiming a lost relative or loved one, some of them children or distant relations, others friends and parents. Many of those speaking up also admitted to having an elemental ability; my team gestured for each person to join their respective group, welcoming them with hugs and condolences. The reporter who had complained seemed to be shrinking under everyone who contradicted him. Even his fellow reporters were stepping away.

“What’s worse than taking people we love and telling us they’re dead, is what they do to them in there. What makes them go insane and eats away at their brain,” I began again, a quiet washing over my audience. “At first, they wanted to figure out a way to force elementals to use their gifts as weapons in warfare. But after more research, they discovered that every elemental has a direct connection to their element, an entity more powerful than all of us combined. And thus, they began looking for how to tap that entity, whether it killed us or not. They didn’t care…they don’t care. To them, we don’t exist, because most people don’t know about us. But we exist,” I asserted, restraining myself from yelling. “And we have the same right, as every other citizen, to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

It wasn’t just the elementals in the crowd who were cheering me on, supporting me, giving me strength to say what so desperately needed to be said. It was everyone, and it felt so right to be there, for them to be there, for this to be happening at that moment.

“We are people. We are citizens. We are entitled to our equality. And we will not be silenced.”

BANG!

Eternal: Chapter Ten, Part 2

A month before the march, I met with Justin and Angeline again. While Justin was still reluctant to admit he had less than a casual understanding of the movement, Angeline had been known to call, asking questions, and not just of me. After she actually started reading the information and watched the copies of our speeches online, she was an avid follower, always wanting more information. She often complained that Justin was too disinterested, not even having an opinion on the whole thing. But it was his choice, and I already told him I wouldn’t make it for him.

“Only a month left,” Angeline stated as I entered the meeting room we always used. “You know, everyone keeps asking how it is I ended up advising you.”

“Yeah, we’re the envy of our coworkers,” Justin added, a note of bitterness to his voice.

Smiling politely, I took a seat and waited for them to do the same. Justin leaned back in his seat, crossing one leg over the knee of the other and twirling a pen between the fingers of his left hand.

“We’ve run a clean campaign so far, with minimal incidence,” I said. “What I want to know is your professional opinions on what to expect during the march.”

“It should run smoothly,” Angeline said, glancing at Justin, her voice too sweet and sure.

“Honestly,” I amended, regarding them carefully. From everything I had read about marches and such in the past, I could gather some idea of what to expect. But I needed to know for today, for this movement, what might happen.

Biting her lip, Angeline didn’t say anything. Instead, she kept glancing from me to Justin, hoping I’d withdraw the question or he’d answer for her.

Justin exhaled heavily, shaking his head, but then he turned his gray eyes on me. “You should be fine since it isn’t a riot or anything. There will, inevitably, be the people who think you’re dangerous, that you’re lying, unnatural and so on present, but a small security detail can remove them without much incidence.”

“Nick’s been talking with his detail, making sure they understand violence is an absolute last resort and won’t be tolerated otherwise,” I said, nodding my head. Justin studied me for a moment as though this shocked him.

“Just to be on the safe side, I’d have Nick tell them no violence at all.” The longer he put off saying whatever it was he wanted to say, the paler he became and the faster that pen twirled. I wondered if he realized that.

“Tell me,” I demanded softly. Whatever it was, I obviously needed to know. If I didn’t, I couldn’t take any precautions to possibly prevent it.

“More than likely, you’ll have to face some kind of government intervention,” Angeline finally said when Justin didn’t volunteer. “Anything from angry people, as Justin said, to police waiting for someone just rude enough to call violent, from your bounty hunters causing a stir to assassins.”

“Keep in mind, any shooters or assassins might not be government related,” Justin added quietly, “and the likelihood of them being prosecuted is slim if they do manage to do any harm. Your group has become somewhat high profile, so they can’t make you disappear, but that doesn’t mean they won’t try or allow something to break the movement up completely.”

Well, there wasn’t any way to guard against that. I hoped since we chose the reflecting pool, it was open enough to avoid that sort of threat. But it seemed it didn’t matter where we were. I would have to bring it up with Nick, see what he was planning to do about it, if anything at all. My concern wasn’t for myself as much as it was for everyone else with me. They were considerably more partial to bullets than I was, and I didn’t bring anyone into this to see them injured. My movement was to lessen the grievances against us, not increase them.

“You asked,” Justin reminded me, and I realized I had been quiet for quite a long time.

Smiling at them, I said, “Thank you.” I stood, and they jumped to their feet as well.

As we shook hands, Angeline inquired, “Are you worried? Because you shouldn’t be. The chances of it happening, especially at the reflecting pool—”

“Are slim,” Justin finished for her.

“So were the chances we’d end up this far in this amount of time,” I replied, still smiling. “It’s good to know what might be coming.”

Justin stopped me near the elevators again, asking if I was okay.

“I’ll be fine. I’ll face whatever I have to, as I’ve always done.”

“You don’t have to lie to me,” he said, a pained look on his face as though he were insulted and feeling guilty at the same time.

Taking his hand in mine, patting it, I said, “Don’t worry about me. But, ask her out.”

“What?” he asked, jumping back slightly and staring at me wide-eyed. “Who?”

“You know who,” I told him, smirking. “She might say no, but she’ll want to say yes. Trust me.”

Winking, I left him, muttering under his breath to himself, trying to figure out what had just happened and some way to tell me I didn’t know what I was talking about. However, I knew what he didn’t want to admit. They were made for each other. All he had to do was tell Angeline.

Eternal: Chapter Eight, Part 3

Justin was the one who met me in the lobby shortly after I arrived for our meeting. Angeline, he said, was saving a conference room. As we walked, he kept flashing me smiles as if that made up for something wrong. From where I was standing, there was nothing wrong. The smiles were flattering; I could see why she might like him, though I could also see how his confidence could be annoying.

The conference room was all windows on two walls, 30 stories up, and had an oblong table in the center surrounded by cushioned chairs. Angeline was standing at the window when we entered, enjoying the view of downtown; at this height, you could barely hear the traffic below.

“It’s wonderful to see you again, Miss Jones,” Angeline said with a strained smile. “You’re looking wonderful, though you could stand to use some sun.”

That must have been why Caroline liked her. “It’s a medical condition,” I lied, smiling. There was nothing wrong with the woman; she was pretty much just like Caroline, even if it didn’t make her the most eloquent or flattering of people. “And please, call me Leirba.”

It was still strange giving people a name that wasn’t technically mine; all the practice in my spare time helped, though.

“Shall we sit?” Justin asked, pulling a seat out for me. I took the seat, on the corner of the table. He helped Angeline sit, as well, before sitting across from me.

“So what is the goal of your revolution?” Angeline asked, sitting back in her chair.

Passing them each an overview sheet, I summarized, “The goal is to reveal the corruption of our government through the oppression and mistreatment of elementals—citizens who are gifted with the ability to manipulate a certain primary element.” When I said elementals, Justin tensed and his brows knit; a second later he had regained a neutral composure. “In the process, the current government may be completely removed, but that remains to be seen. For sure we’re aiming for exposure and liberation, our rights as people and citizens.”

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Justin asked after a moment. A bead of sweat creeped down his right temple.

Justin’s response didn’t worry me as Kora had already reacted similarly; Angeline was different, though. She stared, her lips pursed and eyes widened in disbelief, and a single thought scrolled continuously through her mind.

“It’s already in the works,” I answered, flipping to the front of my binder and pulling out the disks. “One of the disks is the rough draft of the commercials we’re putting together.”

“Commercials?” Angeline asked, one of her eyebrows arching high.

“To intrigue viewers into visiting the website, which the content for is on the other disk if you wanted to look over that; in that case is also a paper with the information needed to view the developing website. It’s mostly set up already and it explains our cause.”

“People won’t believe it’s real,” Justin said, staring at the CDs on the table before him.

“That’s where we disagree,” I politely said, sitting forward. I knew this was going to be an uphill battle; the whole two years were going to be an uphill battle. So far I was doing pretty good, but I wasn’t sure how long I was going to be able to last at this rate. “I think most people want to believe there’s some magic left in the world. It’s why people are interested in Wicca, even if they won’t ever practice it. Why supernatural books sell and movies are made. Deep down, we all want to believe there’s some kind of magic left in the world, that miracles can still happen.”

He stared at me and I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing. After neither of them said anything, I stood. Right now, it didn’t matter if they believed me. All they had to do was keep my movement from sinking due to legal issues.

“Just do your job.”

I was halfway down the hall before Justin stopped me. He instructed me to follow and then led me past the elevators and into what I presumed to be his office. Once there, he closed the blinds on all of the windows and locked the door.

“Why do you want to do this?” he asked, sitting on the black leather couch he had in the corner.

Still standing, I said, “Because it has to be done.”

“Exposing all of us is the only way?”

Ian’s instinct about the past was seeming more right by the second; given the opposition I was coming against, it seemed easy to believe everyone else who had tried before had been stopped by someone else; discouraged by someone telling them it was wrong. But no one could convince me what I was doing was wrong. Not because it wasn’t frightening to think how others might handle the news, but because there was a greater wrong happening that needed to stop. We weren’t weapons; we were people, and we deserved the right to live our lives.

“If you expose yourself, it’s your own thing. But people have to know we exist. If they don’t, we can’t stop what’s happening.” It struck me suddenly that he might not have known what was happening to us, how oppressed we were. “You do know about that, right?”

“Of course, I know. We all know.” He bowed his head, rubbing his temples.

“So, wild guess, fire?”

“Yeah. I’m guessing you’re air.”

Nodding, I sat down next to him. “I’m not forcing anyone to admit anything they don’t want to. I have given everyone on my team a choice, and any of them are allowed to back out when they feel it’s too much. You’re only association with us will be as a lawyer,” I said, feeling a need to comfort him. “It’s completely up to you if people learn otherwise.”

Justin sighed and looked at me. “Okay.”

“I need to be going now.”

He unlocked the door and walked me to the elevator. I hoped he would be okay; part of me also hoped he would choose to reveal himself as an elemental and truly accept himself.

Eternal: Chapter Four, Part 5

Drei, who had reappeared overnight, didn’t want me to go; he insisted I shouldn’t press my luck. It wasn’t a surprise when I objected; I had to go. When the day proved sunny, he attempted again to talk me out of going. Then, relenting, he brought out an umbrella and made me swear I wouldn’t forget to use it. Though his worrying seemed like it was because he thought I was incapable of managing myself, I knew it was because he loved me and he worried.

He wasn’t coming with me, despite my asking, and it was because he was still working on his secret project. I promised myself if his project wasn’t done by the time I had brought everyone together for a first official meeting, I would ask—and when I did, I would have an answer.

At first, it was strange walking through the streets with an umbrella—something came up and I assured Ian I was fine walking there. But after a while, I realized people didn’t care; they weren’t staring at me. Most of the people who even glanced at me probably either questioned my sanity or suspected I had a heightened threat of skin cancer or something to that effect. It made me grateful for the city.

Caroline was waiting in the lobby when I arrived.

“What’s with the umbrella?” she asked, gesturing to it, her lips scrunched to the side in disapproval.

“Direct sunlight is detrimental to my health,” I said, shrugging. “Shall we meet your lawyer?”

After eyeing me a moment longer, perhaps hoping to lure a better answer from me, she conceded; “Angeline’s waiting for us upstairs.”

It wasn’t long before Caroline was leading me into Angeline Baxter’s office, which may have been poor timing on our part as she was angrily talking into her speakerphone about someone named Brommer.

“…And you know what he did today? He had the nerve to assume how I make my coffee every morning. So, not only does he show me up in success rate—which doesn’t even make sense since he doesn’t have nearly as many connections within the system as I do—now he’s trying to get to know me?” she complained, pacing behind her desk as Caroline and I sat down. “He makes me so angry.”

Caroline let her rant on a short while longer before clearing her throat—more from boredom than irritation.

“Oh, I’ve got to go. My twelve o’clock is here,” she asid, and the person on the other end assured her they’d talk more later. “Sorry about that.” Angeline sat down, composing herself. “It’s great to see you again, Caroline. Nothing wrong, I hope.”

“Not at all,” Caroline assured her, sitting back and lacing her fingers together in her lap. “I’m actually here because my friend, Leirba Jones, is looking into beginning an endeavor and wanted to make sure she had legal backing.”

“You must be Miss Jones,” Angeline noted, facing me. A strand of her brunette hair fell free from her careful pinning; she shoved it behind an ear, her hazel eyes scanning me to figure out what kind of endeavor this was exactly and how much quick thinking she was going to have to do.

“It’s nothing necessarily illegal,” Caroline offered, studying her nails now.

“I’m starting a revolution and I need to make sure what I do won’t be slowed down with legal problems,” I elaborated, sitting upright, my hands folded in my lap. “Caroline tells me you’re the best.”

“Caroline told you right,” a tenor voice said from behind us. Caroline and I turned to stare at the stunning young man entering the room. He was easily five eight and of a slender build, dressed in a brown three piece suit. His hair was clean cut and auburn in color, and his dark gray eyes glinted joyfully as he approached the now standing with her hands on her squared hips Angeline. “Miss Baxter is the best. It’s an honor to work for the same firm as her.”

“What’s this about?” she demanded defensively as he stopped just before her. She tried to stand straighter to appear taller than her five foot six height—with heels—but she only succeeded in seeming slightly flustered. “You have no right to interrupt my meeting.”

“I just wanted to see what kind of new clientele you were attracting,” he said, glancing a moment at Caroline and I before turning his eyes back to her.

“You could have seen from the window instead of interrupting us,” Angeline snipped, though I had the feeling it was more for show.

Caroline was disinterested, studying her nails again, waiting for it to pass. I couldn’t help but wonder if Angeline was always so easily distracted. Though watching her and whom I assumed to be Mr. Brommer, I was beginning to see why he bothered her. That wasn’t the only thing I picked up on, though. There was something about Mr. Brommer that was different. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it but I knew he was here for a reason.

“You’re both hired,” I stated, standing up.

The two stared blankly at me, their prior conversation forgotten. Mr. Brommer spoke first; “What?”

“Both of you will be my legal consultants for the duration of my movement,” I elaborated to catch him up. “I want you to work together.”

“But—” Angeline began.

“Are we done then?” Caroline asked, looking up from her nails for the first time in five minutes.

“Justin Brommer,” he introduced, shaking my hand, then Caroline’s. “I’d be delighted to work with Miss Baxter for you.”

“I know,” I assured, smiling kindly. “We’ll be in touch.”

Caroline added, “Charge my account for payment. It was nice to see you again, Angeline.”

In the elevator, I said, “You don’t have to cover the costs.”

Facing the elevator doors, Caroline replied, “I want to.”

“I don’t want you paying for everything, Caroline.”

“I’m going to, whether you want me to or not,” she said in her annoyingly level voice. There was no way I could convince her otherwise.

Shaking my head, I relented the argument. Some things would never change.