10.A New Companion

Wael and Elias sat on the hill overlooking the waterfall, while Amira washed her face in the calm river water.

Silence settled between them for a few moments before Wael spoke.

"I'm sorry... about your parents."

Elias lowered his head slightly.

"It's okay."

Images of the person who had killed his father flashed through his mind. Then he whispered:

"I'll get my revenge..."

Wael looked at him.

"What did you say?"

Elias was silent for a moment before continuing.

"More importantly... there's something you need to know."

He looked down at his hands.

"Obtaining power can come at the cost of tragedy."

He raised his eyes toward Wael.

"That's why it's wrong to constantly pursue power without caring about what we might have to pay for it."

Wael nodded before asking:

"Elias... what do you have to do with everything that's happening?"

"What does Bahaa want?"

"Who is Yassin, anyway?"

"And why did he choose me?"

Elias sighed.

"Wait... one question at a time."

He continued:

"I'll tell you what I know, but remember... there are many things I don't know either."

He looked toward the waterfall, lost in his memories.

"After I obtained my power, I decided to hide it."

He turned toward Wael.

"My father always warned me against using it without his permission."

Wael frowned.

"Why?"

Elias answered:

"Because he used to say that the appearance of Elemental Users attracts danger."

There was a brief silence before he continued.

"There are forces... even beings... searching for power throughout the universe."

"And we, the Elemental Users, are targets for them."

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"That's why he wanted me to remain hidden no matter what happened."

Wael lowered his gaze.

"So... he knew."

Elias nodded.

"More than I ever imagined."

Then he gave a faint smile.

"And two months after my father's death..."

---

Four months earlier...

Elias was walking alone when he heard a voice calling his name.

"Elias."

He turned around and saw Yassin standing behind him.

Yassin approached him and spoke directly.

"How about training with me?"

Elias remained silent.

Yassin continued:

"I've already noticed your power, so I'll get straight to the point."

His tone became serious.

"Your power needs to be refined."

"If you learn to use it properly, you'll be able to protect yourself."

He looked at Elias steadily.

"And I see great potential in you to stop the evil that's coming."

Elias did not hesitate.

"I refuse."

Yassin raised an eyebrow, then laughed.

"You refused pretty quickly... why?"

Elias answered calmly:

"I'm not saying I won't train."

"But I don't want to receive my power through someone else."

He looked at his fist.

"I want to refine it myself."

Silence fell between them.

Then Yassin smiled.

"Good answer."

He turned and began walking away.

"Then prove to me that you can do it."

Elias watched him until he disappeared.

---

Back in the present.

Elias said:

"Since that day, I've trained almost every day."

"And we would meet occasionally."

"He would tell me that there were dangerous people among us."

He remembered Bahaa's face.

"And it seems he was referring to Bahaa... Mark... and Raouf."

Wael raised his head.

"By the way..."

"What's Raouf's story?"

Elias shrugged.

"I don't know much about him."

"But I know that he uses the Ice Element."

Wael's eyes widened.

"How did you know?!"

Elias looked at him in confusion.

"Can't you see Elements?"

Wael remained silent.

Elias became even more confused.

"Wait..."

"Don't tell me Yassin never taught you that."

Wael shook his head.

"He never mentioned it."

Elias thought for a moment.

"Strange..."

"Maybe he intended to teach you later."

He raised a finger toward his eyes.

"You can channel energy into your eyes."

"Then you'll be able to see the flow of energy inside other people's bodies."

"From the shape of that flow, you can determine their Element."

Wael channeled his energy toward his eyes as Elias had described.

His eyes widened.

He began to see threads of energy moving through Elias's body.

He raised his head in amazement.

"I see... light."

Elias smiled and released a small beam of light from his palm.

"That's my Element... Light."

Then he pointed toward Wael.

"As for you... Lightning flows throughout your entire body."

He continued:

"And Amin... Fire."

"As for Bahaa and Mark, I assume you already know their Elements."

Wael nodded.

"Yeah."

He thought for a moment before asking:

"What about Yassin?"

Silence fell.

Elias looked up at the sky.

"He told you about the first user of Raw Energy... didn't he?"

"Keiji."

Wael answered:

"Yes."

Elias said:

"I heard his story from my father."

"He used to say that Keiji wielded a golden energy."

"An energy capable of absorbing any other energy or concealing it."

"It can also generate heat or cold..."

"Even create weapons."

He sighed.

"In other words, it can somehow embody the properties of the other Elements."

Wael remembered the first time he had seen Yassin use that energy, and how Yassin himself had called it "Golden Energy."

Elias continued:

"And what I saw from Yassin before Bahaa captured him..."

"makes me believe that he possesses the same energy."

He paused for a moment.

"And there's a theory I've been considering..."

He looked at Wael.

"Just a guess."

"I think Yassin is related to Keiji by blood."

Wael remained silent.

All of his memories of Yassin passed through his mind.

His deep respect for Keiji.

His anger whenever evil spirits were mentioned.

As if he wasn't talking about a hero from the past...

but about someone he knew.

Wael raised his head.

"No..."

"I don't think your guess is far from the truth."

Then he smiled.

"Whatever the case..."

"It seems he saw something in us."

"And when you refused to train with him..."

"...he kept searching until he found me."

Elias smiled as well.

"And when we rescue him... we'll make him tell us everything."

Wael smiled.

"Yeah."

Amira waved to them from the riverbank after finishing washing her face.

Wael and Elias waved back, then Elias stood up.

"I know someone who possesses an Element. I'll go talk to him today and convince him to join us."

He looked at Wael.

"And I'm counting on you to find Amin."

Wael nodded.

"Leave Amin to me."

Elias gave a faint smile.

"All right... let's get started."

---

Later that day...

Elias entered the middle school, as if he were looking for someone in particular.

As he passed near the hallway leading to the restrooms, he heard the sounds of a fight.

He immediately headed toward them.

He found a group of students surrounding two boys who were exchanging punches.

But one of them immediately caught his attention.

Elias approached with steady steps.

"Stop."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was enough.

Everyone turned toward him, then began leaving one by one without saying a word.

Only the boy who had been fighting remained.

He picked up his phone from the ground and dusted it off before looking at Elias.

"Thanks."

He sighed as he slipped the phone back into his pocket.

"He wanted to take my phone, and when I refused, he started a fight."

Elias nodded.

"Don't worry about it."

He glanced down the hallway.

"There are plenty of reckless people in this school. Try not to give them what they want."

Silence fell for a moment.

Then he asked:

"What's your name?"

The boy answered:

"Zaki."

Then he smiled.

"And you?"

"Elias."

He pointed toward one of the benches in the schoolyard.

"If you're not in a hurry... let's sit for a while."

Zaki agreed, and the two of them walked toward one of the benches.

At that moment, neither of them knew that this brief encounter would change the course of the days to come.