A Return to Normal Proceedings

Hello again, dear readers of this ever growing Chronicle of the Elements.

The Long Tale - A Pause

Hello again, followers of The Long Tale.

The Long Tale No. 50 - Blind Freedom

Flashes of light and shadows, originating from the man's fingers, encased the sphere, blinding the dragon completely. The flashes' speed fluctuated as the time within the sphere ebbed and flowed. The man reached through the sphere and touched the dragon's snout, extracting its knowledge, its experience, its being. And, then, finally, the man drew a sword, coated in the blood of kings and beasts alike and plunged it towards the beast's heart. The dragon shrieked and, as the blade broke the sphere, tore free of its prison and knocked the man to his knees before flying away. Blind but free. 

The Long Tale No. 49 - Captured

Blackened flames danced across the sphere surrounding the dragon, encasing it in a raging inferno. The beast shrieked and tried to break free, but merely added crimson to the darkness. The man moved his hand and the sphere froze to ice with only the dragon's great eye being able to move, its maw still caught up in its final roar. A burst of wind moved the sphere down where it rested on a newly formed goblet of earth. Vines reached up and encircled the beast, compressing the sphere further until the creature was in the foetal position, facing the man...

The Long Tale No. 48 - Return of the Elements

The projectiles stopped in their tracks, frozen in the split second before they would have struck the man. He moved the flame over to the icy spears and melted them before using said water to extinguish the flame. He shone the light onto the shadows and they eradicated each other from existence. Then he reversed the wind and used it to send the spears, cannonballs, blades and thorns hurtling back towards the oncoming Elementals. They took cover beneath trees and vines grown by druids and rocky shields thrown up by golems. But they stopped charging nonetheless. The man stepped forwards...

The Long Tale No. 47 - The Changing Winter

The sharp white dogs of war bit into the man with crystal fangs and icy breath. The wind intensified at barraged the man with spears of ice and blistering cold. So very cold. The man fell to the ground, the dogs taking advantage of their fallen prey. But then, resolutely, he stood up and brushed away the frozen blades stuck to his clothes. He changed the wind and for him the dogs transformed back into angels that guarded him from the winds that did him harm. Heat radiated out from him and the snow melted leaving behind nothing but memory. 

The Long Tale No. 46 - Nature's Brawl

The water rippled and shook as the boy brought it around him, rising up with the waves and standing on the resultant inverted whirlpool. He threw a river at the girl who hid beneath the ground, dodging the attack, before rising up and slicing the boy's pillar in two with blades of stone. Ice formed around the boy's feet and he slid along the ground, dancing between the man and the girl's fierce blows before returning her attack with shards of ice. They shattered on the wall of stone with which she hid herself and slowly the boy's ammo emptied...

The Long Tale No. 45 - Man Fights Back

The beast roared in anguish and let out a stream of crimson fire. The flames surrounded the hole that the man was hiding in and yet he did not burn. Thick black smoke plumed from the impact site and yet was soon blown away. The dragon shrieked and launched itself at the man who merely pointed his hand at the creature and let it feel the force of a hurricane. It flew backwards and rose up into the sky, its final gambit to escape. Suddenly, its great wings slowed and the very air seemed to stop. The man rose, smiling...

The Long Tale No. 44 - The Burning Disease

A flicker of flame. A tendril of smoke. That was all the warning that the man had before the forest fought back against the oncoming disease. The line of trees behind him caught alight and formed a ring of fire around the suffocating smog, choking the disease with grey, wooden smoke. The poison screamed, its cry resonating with the pain of all that it had killed. But still the forest squeezed. The blaze crept further towards the smog, spitting sparks at it in detest. Flames ran along the poison, burning it into oblivion. The forest was fighting back. And winning...

The Long Tale No. 43 - Resolute

Grey and lifeless, the stone stood strong in the night air. Columns and arches, windows and doors, bricks and mortar. All carved from the body of the Earth. Imposing. Resolute. Immortal. The man stared up at it, awed by its magnificence, for it really was a masterclass of architecture. Towers and battlements, barracks and halls, courtyards and vaults. A fortress. A city. A masterpiece. Built by ancient Earth Elementals in a bygone age, the ruins of their civilization stood here. It was one of the many stops on the man's journey. A journey that would stand the test of time. 

The Long Tale No. 42 - Driven

The line of creatures stretched as far as the eye could see. There were Elementals of every Element and guise and humans of every culture and creed. A sprawling line of emotion. The man watched them with a mixture of contempt and pity. Death and destruction drove them from their lands, their homes and their lives and, yet, these wars continued. He admired and detested their drive and determination, their want for a better life. He turned away and began to walk to the front of the line, taking his place at the head of their ranks. They moved on. 

The Long Tale No. 41 - Sunlight

The sun's rays lit up the sky in a burst of energy that outshone any fire down on Earth. The light sifted through leaves and glinted on lakes and ponds. It ran down rivers and peered through caves. The man sat under a tree - one which he protected as much as it protected him. He watched as the dawn's breath filled the sky and woke up the world and as the dusk peeked over the darkening horizon. He watched just as the eyes appeared and watched him back. But soon, the sun would arrive again. Lighting up the world. 

The Long Tale No. 40 - The Invisible Monster

The man watched as... Creak. The ground shifted. Crack. Supports broke and pillars tumbled. Smash. The invisible monster tore itself a path. Crunch. Plants and rocks alike froze in front of it and not even the ocean could escape its embrace, instead joining with it. Tap. The rain battered it, trying, desperately, to destroy its magnificent armour but to no avail; raindrops merely became soldiers atop the great fortress. Burn. The sun's rays fought the soldiers and won. Melt. Its weapons useless, its armour broken, the monster faded to oblivion. Gone. No ice could beat the fire in the sky.

The Long Tale No. 39 - Chasing Injury

The man sprinted forwards. He leaped over mounds and rubble and dived over streams and craters. The tounge of crimson shot through the sky as drops of scarlet dripped from the beast's great eye. Its talons were broken spears, its teeth were razors snapped in two. The dragon's thick hide was scarred and scratched by and it was stained red with blood. It was injured, in pain, but still its power remained. Its wings fired hurricanes, missing the man by inches, while his hair was singed by the encroaching flame. He dived into a hole and held out his hand...

The Long Tale No. 38 - Onslaught of the Elements

The creatures crept and crawled, walked and ran, flew and thundered towards the man. They were of every size and shape, from the smallest fairy to the largest golem and of every Element and at varying degrees of power. A herd of centaurs readied their bows and fired, just as the dwarves let loose a volley from their cannons. Blasts of fire, spears of ice and gusts of wind joined the onslaught, as did a cloud of thorns and blades. Shadows erupted from the ground and a burst of light shot towards the man. He held out his hand and...

The Long Tale No. 37 - The Island

The small island sat, forlornly, in the midst of the lake. Slowly, over the course of many years, the gentle ebb and flow of the water had shaved away at its skin, leaving flakes of sand floating among the liquid. A single palm tree grew from the corpse of the island and under it sat the man. The sun had set many hours ago and he was enjoying watching the vast array of stars twinkle in the cold night air. The moon, the very cause of the island's demise, was now rippling in the water. But still the island survived. 

The Long Tale No. 36 - Treasure

The boy lay sprawled across the treasure. Mountains of gold, diamonds, rubies and emeralds as well as other jewels, gems and stones. Stacks of priceless artwork; paintings and statues, drawings and models. Shelves upon shelves of books and tomes, scrolls and tablets. Food of all flavours a towered around him; exotic meats and fish, fruits and spices. A cry that had only been heard once in the last hundred years sounded in the corner and a rustling became a thunder as the trapped animals and Elementals screamed at their oblivious captor. But the boy wanted more. The man would provide...

The Long Tale No. 35 - The Pool

The pool of liquid slowly spun, transfixing any who looked upon it. It had a mirror-like sheen to it and the images it reflected swirled around, distorting the colours and fracturing the picture. It was said that people had wasted their entire lives staring into the shining depths, watching their life play out as if controlling a great game. It showed their wildest dreams: of wealth and love, knowledge and power. But also their deepest fears: of death and loss, meaningless and destruction. The man had looked at it once, but saw nothing other than emptiness. Swirling white and black.

The Long Tale No. 34 - The Right Words

The girl sat, alone, in the dark room, her ebony hair flowing down her shoulders like the ink on the page in front of her. She had been writing for hours but had eventually come to the conclusion that the right words would never come, no matter how much she were to write. The man would know what to do, she thought. He understood secrets like nobody else; the fear they caused and the terrible need for answers. But how could she ask him? She couldn't, not after what she had seen. No, surely the right words would come. Soon.

The Long Tale No. 33 - Running

The sirens blasted as the man fell through the wretched streets. Rubbish was strewn everywhere and crimson stained the walls. A scream could be heard in the distance although what creature could make such a cry, the man was unsure. Tires screeched behind him and the sound of leather could be heard flapping through the crisp air. Flashes were all he could remember; flashes of red, white and black. Blood, paper and ink. Always blood, paper and ink. But what was he running from? The man wasn't sure but he knew that he couldn't stop. No matter what the cost. 

The Long Tale No. 32 - Nurture

The seed slumbered, silently, beneath the cool earth, waiting for its time. Many months passed and the ground began to warm, awakening the seed with the sun's comforting glow. It reached up and out of its womb and felt the air for the first time. It gained strength and soon grew. The small green shoot climbed from the mud and faced its competitors around it: other shoots and shrooms, bugs and critters. But this shoot was protected. It had an advantage that was not of nature. The man had planted the seed and now he watched over it. Nurturing it. 

The Long Tale No. 31 - Earthen Steps

The golem plodded, painfully, towards the hillside, each of its steps a shock to its strained system. The ground reverberated with each footfall, sending up clouds of dust that encircled the great creature. Stones rumbled down the cliff face and angry critters scurried away from the seismic waves. The golem was damaged, its body cracked and its scroll burnt. But towards the hillside it carried on. Towards the earthen bed where it would lie and become mountain once more. On and on. Through pain and suffering. Towards sweet ending... The man watched it come, steadily, towards him and he smiled.