Kyle made his way down the familiar corridors leading to his elemental home, the Madin shrine. This place had, over the past several years, become more of a home to him than his home with his family in Wales. While he still loved his mother, father and brother, Kyle had a different kind of connection with his fellow elementals; a connection that went far deeper than blood or magic. His fellow Madin were him, and he was them. The deep and profound link that they shared with the earth was unbreakable, un-waiverable; and yet over the last few weeks since the end of term, Kyle had begun to feel his connection to his element slip. Sure, he was still able to morph, but he found his ability to control summoned earth, practice spells, and even his general focus all was slipping. Ever since Linnet had been poisoned and forced to morph into an elemental state without returning, Kyle began to notice the emotional baggage. A feeling of loneliness that was even more noticeable here, at Inverness; and especially at the shrine. Stopping outside the entrance to the shrine, Kyle took a moment, composed himself and stepped into the naturally lit, heavily vegetated shrine.
It hit him like a ton of bricks. He could feel her. It was a somewhat different, less defined feeling, but it was her all the same. Kyle was as familiar with Linnet as he was with anyone else he had known in his entire life. Her presence to him was as familiar as was his own kin. He knew that none of the elders from the council could tell she was there like he could. They kept using words like “retreated” and “cut-off” but Kyle felt her presence as if she were there with him physically. The feeling washed over him. He didn’t know whether or not Linnet knew he was there, or if she even could sense anything in her morphed state; regardless though, Kyle knew she was there. He had been away from the council for some time, searching for answers; but now he was home, now he was with Linnet again.
Walking through the shrine to the solitary ash tree, Kyle sat beneath her. To anyone else who would walk past without knowing what was happening it would just appear that one of the young elementals was meditating; perhaps preparing to morph himself. But to Kyle this was different. This was the only way he could spend time with Linnet now. Kyle had been to visit several times. The first had been the hardest by far. Kyle had not really felt anything but shock the night of the attack, but the first time he saw her here in the shrine, the emotions had all hit him. He had been a wreck, not even able to hold his morph. Now though, he had a renewed focus. His conversation with Camm had helped him find center. He was ready to try again, to try to reach her once more. He knew she was there, but everyone kept telling him she would not return from the morph. Not anytime soon anyway.
Closing his eyes and reaching out with his mind, Kyle probed, searching for Linnet’s consciousness. He had done this before, and to no avail; but this time, something would be different. This time he would be able to connect with her. Even if he couldn’t do anything to help her out of her morphed state, he could at least share some time with her rather than just sitting in her shade or staring at her in her tree form. Kyle’s consciousness found several other elementals, some in other shrines, some passing through Inverness; but not the one he was looking for. Linnet’s consciousness would be unmistakable to Kyle. He just needed to follow the feel of her back to the place where she was now. No matter how far she had retreated, Kyle was determined that he would find her. Today was the day.
