Keepers of Elements: Citadels of the Sun

Chapter One

She jerked awake in her bed, once again mystified by the same dream that had ended exactly the same for the last three nights, the ultimate end result having Addie wide awake and breathing heavily from the shock. She glanced around the bedroom, ensuring her brothers were still sound asleep. Calming herself, she pushed aside the bed sheets and stood up, exiting to the common room of her home.
The embers in the hearth glowed dully, waiting to be stirred back to life. Noticing that her mother and father’s door was closed, relief filled her as she did not want to wake them. She had tried yesterday to speak to her mother of the dream, being dismissed without a word. She found it odd that she had never had the dream until two nights ago, on the eve of her seventeenth year. Making a decision, Addie walked to the cloak closet and quickly took out what she needed: her black cloak to shield her body and black shawl to cover her head. Hopefully, no one else with any decency would be out at this hour to see her. She paused thinking that she must not have any decency herself to be venturing out like this, so she had no reason to think such things of others. Slipping into her field boots, she was through the door to her home and outside in the elements in a span of seconds without having made a sound.
Her destination was the home of Neviah, the village seer. Every village of Kydina housed a seer, each a woman gifted by the Creator with exceptional talents to be used in aiding others who were born without those gifts. Addie set her course without faltering, watching the woods to her right and the other village dwellings on her left to be sure she would not be caught surprised by anyone or anything. She did not have far to travel due to the fact that Neviah’s dwelling sat at the opposite end of the road as her own. Within minutes, the seer’s home came into sight and Addie noted with relief that light shone through the windows. She was thankful she would not be waking Neviah. With that last thought, the door that led into the seer’s home opened and the seer herself stepped out into the darkness causing the light from within to cast a bright illumination behind her. The sight stopped Addie in her tracks. Neviah’s actions caught her off guard. Especially since Neviah was looking directly at her. The seer motioned for her to come, waiting a few moments before retreating back inside her home.
Addie swallowed against the lump in her throat and took a deep breath to steel herself. Neviah was a seer and so it would stand to reason that she would know Addie would be coming to her. Moving forward, Addie glanced around before stepping into the seer’s home and closing the door behind her.
Neviah approached and embraced her. “Good morning, dear Addie. When I saw that you were coming while it was still dark outside, I had to make certain you arrived here safely. I did not mean to startle you.”
Addie returned Neviah’s embrace and smiled. “I thank you, Neviah. I was so intent on getting here, your sudden appearance caught me by surprise.”
“I know that’s the last thing you wanted, “ Neviah nodded, taking Addie’s cloak and shawl and draping them over a nearby chair.
“Yes,” Addie admitted, smiling. She watched as Neviah began moving her furnishings around, unsure as to why the seer had a sudden compulsion to redecorate. Addie wondered then, not for the first time, how seers became seers, what made them stand out to the Highest as the ones suited to the tasking that they would undertake. She had known Neviah her entire life. They had grown up together. She could recall those strange occurrences throughout their childhood together when Neviah had seemed to know when a specific event would happen and how it would unfold. She would be able to identify a person’s illness and be able to recommend the correct mixture of potions to ensure their healing. Another gifting she possessed, the one that always amazed Addie, was the one when she could look at someone and be able to tell them what they were thinking, why, and how they came to be thinking what they were. Addie’s earlier surprise of Neviah’s silhouette in the doorway had faded once Neviah had explained she had known Addie would be coming.
She waited in the entry way, waiting for Neviah to finish what she was doing, the purpose of which Addie still did not know. Neviah had gone into the next room, the place that Addie knew to be the potions and preparation area of the house. Neviah had moved the furnishings to create a wide and open area in the middle of the common room and had set a small carpet down in that space. She had never done this before in any of the other visits Addie had made with her mother to Neviah’s home.
Neviah, though a seer, was still very young for one in such a position. She was only in the beginning of her nineteenth year. She had taken over as the village seer two years before, when Alma had passed suddenly. Of course, members of the Highest had come to their village to complete the process of the transition, but Neviah had been Alma’s apprentice since her tenth year, having already been placed in that role by the Highest.
Addie took a deep breath as Neviah came out of her potion area carrying a tray laden with several different items, some of which Addie was unable to identify. Addie glanced at the seer’s face determined to find her answers there alone. Neviah had her long copper colored hair in several pleats down her back, her fair skin honey-hued in the subtle lighting of the oil lamps. She had always been a petite person, but at this moment she seemed taller. She knew what she was about, her face framed with purpose.
She placed the tray down on the floor, kneeling to arrange some of the items on the floor around the tray. She then stood up and walked to each of the four oil lamps, blowing them all out but one. She brought that one back to the center of the room, kneeling once again. Setting it in the center of the tray, Neviah looked up at Addie and motioned for her to join her.
Addie stepped forward and knelt opposite of Neviah. She looked down at the tray, taking an inventory of the items. There was oil, rosemary, thyme, some berries, and what appeared to be roasted chicken, as well as small corn bread patties. Neviah had also placed small cups of water beside the victuals. Addie almost laughed, knowing she had expected much more exotic ingredients that seers were fabled to use in conjunction with their gifts. She looked up at Neviah with an almost quizzical look on her face.
Neviah smiled and explained, “A nice meal usually makes the kinds of things that we ourselves are unsure of easier to convey to others. I must hear what you have seen with as much clarity and conviction as you can give and what you see before you will help you do this tremendously, dear Addie.” She chuckled. “Do not worry, for I will be sharing this treat with you. My body demands it, in fact.”
Addie laughed with Neviah, in spite of herself. The seer knew how to make others feel at ease and comfortable in her presence despite whatever foreboding thoughts may have been circling around in their heads. She reached first for the water, hoping to wet her throat, which suddenly seemed dry. Popping a berry in her mouth, she closed her eyes savoring the flavor and rich sweetness the berry produced. Neviah mixed the rosemary and thyme in the oil before pouring it over the chicken. She used an intricately carved blade to slice a few cuts off the chicken and offered them to Addie.
Once the two young women had their fill of nourishment, Neviah prompted Addie to begin her narrative. Addie once again closed her eyes, but she did so this time to summon the bright and vivid images that made up the dream that had left her sleepless for the last several nights.
“My dream begins with me in a garden. I’m picking wildflowers that are no longer wild. Tall grasses and rose bushes, and I think lilies surround me. There are tall stone walls that look ancient, but only because they have vines growing from top to bottom and the stone is bleached from the sun. I know they do not falter in their purpose to protect what’s within them. Suddenly, I hear wailing. It is mournful, sorrowful, full of grief. Dropping the basket of flowers, I pick up my skirts, rushing toward the source of the wail. I see myself running up stone steps that seem to go in a circle, upward. I reach the top and find myself in a vast hallway. The wailing is much louder. Still determined to find the source, I go right and down the hallway. The walls around me are made from the same stones and even these stones are bleached almost white. I take another right turn and stop in front of an enormously arched wooden door. It is open and I know this is where the wailing is coming from.”
“I step inside the room, the size of it taking my breath away. I have never seen one room so large. I see many colorful tapestries and simple but costly furnishings. So many bright colors. There are many windows. The sun seems to be fading, the clouds hiding it from view as they approach. The wailing continues and I look to my right. There are two women kneeling on the floor, sobbing loudly. They are the source of the wailing. Yet, my eyes look from them to the raised bed that they are facing. This bed is richly adorned in a way I have never seen. There is a third woman laying on that bed. I approach slowly. Who is she? I walk past the two women mourning this other woman’s death, for I know there is no other reason for them to wail in such a way. A light seems to emanate from the woman’s face, even though she is dead. I walk up the steps that lead to her bed and find myself standing beside her. She is beautiful. She still seems to be alive because of the glow, but she is not breathing. I look back at the two wailing women, and one of them is looking right at me with wide eyes as though she cannot believe I would be so bold as to approach the dead beauty. I turn back to the woman on the bed and I reach out to touch her face. I feel I know her in some way, though I have never seen her before in my life. As my fingers touch her cheek, the light that has been pulsing around her shoots up my arm. My fingers feel seared by flame and I fall to my knees, crying out in pain and grasping my arm, struggling to breathe. That is when I awake.”
Addie opened her eyes, and looked at Neviah. She knew she was grasping her own arm, the arm that the light had burned, yet it was Neviah’s face she focused on. Neviah was staring at her with wide eyes, brimming with tears, her lips slightly parted. The room had grown brighter and Addie thought of the sunrise that must have arrived.
“No, Addie, it is not yet fully risen,” Neviah said softly, reading her thoughts. She rose quickly, running into her potions chamber, returning with an object. As she knelt again, she handed it to Addie. Addie recognized the looking glass and shot her eyes to Neviah’s. “Look into it, Addie. You are safe from harm.”
Addie believed Neviah’s statement to be an odd one, but she did as the seer urged and raised the looking glass to peer at her reflection. What she saw was not what she expected. Though her face was her own, the light that seemed to glow from the dead woman of her dreams was now on her, except the light was much brighter and was putting out enough of itself to brighten up Neviah’s home as though it were morning and the sun high in the sky. Surprisingly, the light in the glass did not hurt her eyes as she would have expected. That must have been Neviah’s meaning. She gently set down the looking glass and looked at Neviah.
“What do I do?” Her voice was soft and shaky, not what she wanted, but she was at a loss of practical knowledge in how to handle this ordeal.
Neviah smiled slightly, having regained her purpose. “You must stay with me for the next few days. I do not know how this light you have works. We must not frighten the village for they will not understand until they come.”
“Until who comes?”
“Members of the Highest.”
Addie felt confused. “But…why would the Highest be coming here? All of the village elders are in perfect health and we have lost no one. Has something unspeakable happened?”
“They will be coming to see you, dear Addie.”
“What?” Addie felt beside herself. The Highest only came to instate the gifted, mourn the loss of and pass the torch of a village elder. They would also come for the most embarrassing reason: to prosecute criminals and ensure that the Justice was carried out.
“You forget, Addie, that they also come to collect those who are to be Chosen Keepers.”
“Neviah, the Chosen Keepers are chosen at birth and taken at an early age to the citadels.”
“No, Addie. There have been very rare instances in which Chosen Keepers have been overlooked at birth.”
Each statement from Neviah caused Addie to become unsettled further. The Chosen Keepers were gifted such as Neviah, yet their gifts were much different. They were individuals who were naturally attuned to the earth and celestial elements. They were able to predict events that could cause harm, damage, or infliction on the earth and its inhabitants. At times, they could suggest ways to prevent such events and what could potentially be catastrophes. Ultimately, the only other thing Addie knew of the Chosen Keepers was that they were in constant communication with the Creator, this unique relationship making them the select of the gifted. What Neviah seemed to be suggesting was impossible.
At birth, each child was presented to a Namer, who would name the newborn according to their purpose. No person had the same name as no person had the same purpose. Those who were named accordingly were chosen to be Keepers. So, from birth, their parents knew that one day their child would leave for the citadels to be trained in the ways of the Keepers. This is why Addie knew she was in for it if the Highest were coming. She would follow Neviah’s recommendations, hoping that she would find favor with the Highest.
“Do not worry so, dear Addie. You will have your answers when the Highest come. For now, you will stay here and I will go speak to your mother and father as soon as the sun rises.”



Addie was sound asleep in the bed Neviah had provided for her until her mother’s voice carried through the walls, causing her heart to jump, waking her almost by intuition. The door to the chamber opened, and Neviah stepped in quietly. “Addie, your mother is here. I have learned much from speaking with her. She wishes now to see you, to explain.”
Neviah came and sat on the edge of the bed and Addie could tell from the look on her face that the light was still shining brightly on her face.
“Will she be frightened to see my face as you have?”
“I do not believe so, dear Addie. She knows more than you, I dare say.”
“I would like to see her please, Neviah.”
“Very well.” Neviah left and moments later, Addie’s mother stepped through the door. Her mother had been crying, she could tell. She and her mother shared traits: long fire-red hair and bright green eyes with stout, slender frames. They shared work in the fields with her father and brothers before ensuring housework was completed. Her mother still looked young, with a sprinkling of gray beginning to appear. Her mother smiled at her, standing with her hands clasped in front of her in the middle of the room. Tears began to stream down her face and Addie sat up in alarm.
“Mother, come sit next to me.” She patted the space beside her. Her mother shook her head, and Addie’s heart fell. “Why?”
“Oh, Addie,” her mother began. She stopped, unable to continue. She gripped the edge of the apron tied around her waist and brought it up to her eyes, wiping the wet streaks from her face. Several moments passed, mother and daughter silent as the mother tried to compose herself in front of her daughter. Finally, she raised her eyes to meet Addie’s. Her sorrow was evident. “I truly did not expect this day to come. Please forgive me. If I hold you now, I will not be able to let you go when they come.”
“What do you mean, Mother? You knew this was going to happen?”
“Yes.”
“What about Papa? And the boys?”
“Of course, your father knew. He has known as I have. Your brothers are younger than you, darling. We never spoke of it.”
“What do you know that I do not, Mother?”
“That you have been chosen. That this has been the truth since you were born. That what we call you, Addie, is actually a shortened version of your real name.”
Addie sat speechless for several moments, her mouth hanging open, not having expected this admission from her mother. She took a deep breath to calm herself. “Mother… what is my name?” Addie knew she must learn the truth from the ones who knew it. The truth that had been withheld from her all of her life and was now causing pain and fear for both her and her mother was one that she anticipated nervously.
“Aditya. It means ’belonging to the sun.’ It is a name meaning that is common with the chosen, those that have insight and share a bond with a certain element. When the Namer held you in his arms, he grew silent for several minutes. Even the midwives seemed confused at this. As he handed you to me, he spoke your name and looked at me. He instructed me to use the name Addie as you grew, that you were not to know that you were Aditya, a Chosen Keeper, until the time came. He did not say when. He only said that the natural order of things had to be followed before you would be called, unlike the others who are chosen. Your not knowing was essential for this process. I do not know the reasons exactly, only that I had to follow his instructions. I knew I must in order for you to fulfill your purpose. Addie, please forgive me for not telling you.”
Addie sat on the bed, the impact of her mother’s words hitting her like a hammer in the stomach. The natural order of things? She, a Chosen Keeper? Aditya? It all made sense, yet it did not. How did her dream bring all of this about? What was it’s meaning? She still did not have a clear answer for that. Blessed Creator, help her understand!
“They are coming! They are here! The Highest! They are here!”
Addie looked up as the shouting of the villagers from outside reached her ears. Her mother turned toward the door then looked back to her. She smiled sadly.
“Your father has your belongings prepared, Addie. I do not know what will transpire from this moment on except that you will be leaving with them. I love you, daughter. I know you will do great things. Trusted is the Creator, young Aditya.” With those words, her mother turned and left the room.