Prologue and Chapter 1

Delilah was a woman, she was fine and fair

She had good looks and coal black hair

Delilah, she gained ground on Samson's mind

When he saw this woman she looked so fine

Delilah, she climbed up on Samson's knee

Said tell me where your strength lies, if you please

Then she spoke so kind and she talked so fair

Til Samson said Delilah, cut off my hair

-        Samson and Delilah by The Grateful Dead

Prologue

I can feel my mother’s arms wrap tight around me, pulling me close to her.  Her wool sweater is scratchy and make my skin itch, but I hold still—refusing to move a muscle.  This is perfect and I don’t want it to end.  We are curled up on the couch after an exhausting training session.  My body feels so tired, but it is wonderful being held by her.  When I am in her arms I feel invincible. I feel safe.

“What are you thinking about?” mother asks, brushing my hair out of my face. 

I relish that touch.  Never do I get this much attention from mom.  I know she loves me, but she is always so busy.  It is a special treat to have a moment like this. 

“That I love you,” I admit.

“What else?” she presses.

“I don’t know,” I shrug.  All I can think about is her and how it feels to be loved by her.  Everything else just kind of melts away.

“You did something extraordinary today, Delilah,” my mother explains.  “I’ve never seen anything like it before.”

We were training and I had lifted a car off the ground using my hold on the element of air.  For a eight year old, that is impressive I guess, but most elemental air users can do that and way more.  I don’t understand why she is impressed with it—I’ve seen way cooler things before. 

“I guess” I shrug again.

“You’re powerful, baby.” Mom’s voice is soft and…proud.  I snuggle deeper into the hug.  I don’t know when I will get a chance like this again.  “You and me….we’re going to rule the world.”

Mom smiles down at me and I smile back.  I will do anything she wants me to.  If it gets her to hold me like this, I will lift any car she wants me to.  I love my mother.  She is my world.

Chapter 1

Ten years later

This is it: the beginning of the next chapter of my life.  I’ve been training for this day for so long that it is almost surreal it is actually happening.  I am about to do this—to make a difference.  For the first time in eighteen years I am going to make my mother truly proud. 

Anxiety shoots through me like a lightning bolt and my stomach clenches painfully.  I will myself to calm down.  I am ready.  She will be proud of me by the end of this.   I only have to get through this one task.

One impossible task.

I shake that thought from my head.  It’s not impossible.  Jason and mom both think I’m ready so I must be.  Negative thinking will help nothing.

“Here you are, young lady.”

My hands shake as I take the class schedule the registrar hands to me.  I look my classes over.  Typical freshman line up.  English 101.  Air 110.  Basic Blocking.  Hand to Hand Combat 101.  Early Elemental History.  Elemental Current Events.  I feel the nerves shoot through me again.  It is hard to believe I am even here: a freshman at Cambridge Academy.  It is the ivy league of the elemental world.  Here is where all of the kids of the rich and famous in the elemental community come once they graduate high school.  It is where they truly learn to hone their skills as elementals outside of private tutors.  It is where elementals are prepared for war. 

It is where I will make my mother truly and forevermore proud of me.

Letting out a deep breath, I bring my feelings back in check. I’ve been training for this.  Everything will be okay.  This is where I was meant to be.  I refused to let this place intimidate me.

“Miss Valois?  Are you alright?”

I gave the receptionist a weak smile.  “Fine.”

“Here is a map of the campus, I numbered your classes so you could find each one easily.  If you have any questions, feel free to drop by the office.  Here is your key. Your dorm room is in Sky Hall.”

I have to restrain myself from rolling my eyes at that last comment.  Of course I will reside in Sky Hall.  Where else would an air elemental live?

At Cambridge Academy each group of elemental users has a specific dormitory where its users live and practice their skills.  In Sky Hall for instance, the whole building is made of windows that opened with the touch of a button to allow adequate airflow.  It also extends up twenty stories—higher than any building on campus.  Our private training grounds are on the open roof.  For a non-elemental, you can only imagine how difficult it would be to try and train so high in the air.  For air elementals, it is not only normal, but also something we crave.  Surrounding ourselves with nothing but our element is a high like none other.

There are three other kinds of elementals.  Earth, water and fire users.  Earth users reside in Terra Dorm.  Only the entrance to the building is visible—the rest of the building dives deep underground.  It makes sense since their powers come from the earth itself.  Only earth users know truly how deep the dorm goes.

Aquatic Hall is where the water users live.  It is said they have an underground water reserve they can tap into in case of emergencies.  That is in addition to the multiple pools and water training centers throughout the building. 

Finally there is Pyre Residence.  The building is state of the art with fireproof everything.  Considering how many times the place has been rebuilt due to rampaging fires—it is no wonder.

I am an air elemental though and like most elementals, I’m pretty confident my element is the best.  After all, with a few years more of training, and a lot of control and focus, I will be able to fly.  You can’t beat that.

Adjusting the bag on my shoulder, I head out of the office, spotting Sky Hall immediately.  The early morning fog hides the top of the building.  Sky Hall looks like as though it continues on forever into the heavens.  I can’t wait to train on the roof.  Just the thought of being that high up sends a shiver of satisfaction through me.  Nothing can stifle the exhilaration of being up in the atmosphere.  It is the one thing I am looking forward to most about my stay here.

“Delilah Valois?”

I jump at my name and turned around.  I’ve been here less than thirty minutes and already someone knows me.  Either news travelled fast or I have been expected.  I don’t know which bothers me more.  I’m exactly what you would call a people person.

Putting on my best new girl smile, I face my caller.  Standing a few feet away is a mousy looking girl with thick black-rimmed glasses that are probably meant to look cool, limp brown hair that is in desperate need of being styles, and a slightly crooked smile.  She has a pretty enough face, but everything about her screams Air Geek.  Under normal circumstances I probably would have ignored her, but I want to make a good impression.  No point in starting the year off badly.  There is no telling how long my task will take.

“That’s me.”

“I’m Amber.  Amber Watson.  It’s so nice to meet you!  I’m on the welcome committee for our class.  I recognized you from your picture on file.  You’re a hard face to forget.  I’m so glad I got to meet you first.  I get to give you the grand tour!”

I guess I am a hard face to forget.  That’s what mother says anyway.  With coal black hair that I’m not allowed to cut, jade colored eyes and a body that I spend many hours at the gym working on, it’s just been the way of things.  People look at me.  Mother taught me to embrace that and use it to my advantage.  I don’t know how good of a job I do at embracing it, but I try—for her I try.  

Amber is staring at me expectantly.  I open my mouth to politely decline, but stop myself short.  Jason told me to make friends.  I need to remember the reason why I’m here and not let my shyness get in the way.  So even though what I really want to do was find my room, drop my stuff off, and pull my thoughts together, I instead give Amber a slow nod.

“Sure, let me just drop my stuff off.”

“Leave it with the front desk!” Amber announces, linking her arm with mine.  “We’ll save our dorm for last.”

We drop my bags off in the lobby of Sky Hall.  I stare up at the building longingly, wishing I could just take a nap or text Jason.  Instead I’m stuck on a walking tour of a campus I probably know more about than anyone else here. 

As we walk through the commons, Amber drones on about the history of the school.  I don’t need a history lesson on Cambridge Academy.  I’ve spent the last year being drilled on every aspect of the campus.  I probably know Cambridge better than some of the seniors do.

“What year was the college founded?” Jason asks.  His eyes stare at me from above my flashcards card.

“17….17….1776?” I answered tentatively.  That sounded right…

“1775.  It was before the Revolution began,” Jason corrects patiently.

“Right.”

“And it was founded because?”

“Because the Elemental Elders of the time wanted a training ground for recruits so they could fight the British.”  That one I did remember.  “It was founded by Edward James Cambridge.  He is the father of the laws governing modern day elementals.”

“He’s a traitor.  That’s what he is,” Jason responds, tossing the cards down and throwing his head back tiredly.

“And this is the statue of Edward Cambridge.  He was the founder of the school and an Elder councilmen for nearly four decades.”  Amber beams up at the statue like he hung the moon.  It irritates me.

“He’s a traitor,” I whisper unthinkingly.

“What?”

Shit.  Shit, shit, shit.  I most look horrified because Amber is looking at my like I have just started dancing the Macarena in front of the entire school.  I need to fix this.  I glance at the statue and notice someone had taken a sharpie and wrote AW loves SM.  Wow. I thought people only did that in fourth grade.  I latch onto it though and shake the fear out of my expression.

“Whoever did that graffiti…they’re a traitor.  So disrespectful,” I amend.

“Oh I know—it’s horrible.  Fire Elementals like to burn their initials into the statue.  It’s some stupid tradition.  I think it’s just plain rude.”  Amber’s face is a little pink—perhaps out of indignation.  She seems like the type to get indignant about a lot.

“Totally.”

“Like, who do they think they are?” Amber continues with a laugh.  “Abusers.”

Abusers.  That word sets my teeth on edge. It is a filthy, derogatory term that had no use in anyone’s vocabulary.  But that is war for you.  The enemy can call you whatever they want and Amber and the rest of these yahoos were most definitely my enemy. 

We are at war.  It is something I have to remember while I am here.  In fact it is the reason for my mission. 

There are those who see our elemental magic as a gift to be used the way someone might use their strength or wisdom to better him or herself.  But others see it as a responsibility not to be abused and used against those without elemental magic.  Cambridge Academy falls into the latter category.  They train their students to use their magic to protect non-elementals and to wage the war against those who seek to “abuse their power”.  Hence the term “abusers”. 

What we really are, are Liberators.  The Resistance if you will.  Certainly some people use their elemental magic in the wrong way, but the laws governing it are just too constricting.  The net is cast too wide and the laws meant to help really only take away our freedom.  We aren’t abusers.  We just want the right to use the gifts we’ve been given.  It is something we are all wiling to fight for. 

It is something I am willing to fight for.

“You know, every elemental trained here graduates prepared for battle against the Abusers,” Amber explains, grinning as though she had endowed me with secret information.  As if I don’t know that Cambridge outputs the largest number of battle ready soldiers of any elemental academy in America. “You and I will be graduating in the same class.  Together I bet we will make an awesome team and kick some Abuser butt!”

“That’s awesome!”  I have to restrain myself from rolling my eyes.  First: all air users are paired with another elemental user battle.  Usually an air user is pair with fire.  The elements compliment each other.  Second, anyone who says ‘butt’ instead of ass doesn’t belong in a war.

I try to cut her some slack though.  I very much doubt Amber has much real world experience.  War sounds fun and glorious when it is just pages in a history book.  Living it is something completely different.

We eventually make it back to Sky Hall where I am able to disentangle myself from Amber’s clutches.  She promises to find me again.  I grunt in response.  I am beginning to think friendliness and first impressions are overrated.

#

Unless your family was very wealthy, you share a dorm room.  Having a roommate complicates my life a bit, but it is unavoidable.  After freeing myself from Amber, I find my dorm and let myself in.  The person I am staying at is a second year.  Her roommate has not returning to Cambridge this year.  An elemental college like Cambridge sees many dropouts.  The coursework is intense and only the very best can truly hack it.  Her loss is my gain, however.  According to my research my new roommate is a party girl, hardly ever stays in her room, and is fairly close with the one person I am anxious to get to know at this horrible place.

Dropping my bags, I scan the room.  It is big for a college dorm.  As my eyes examine the space, I found I have a fair, though not clean, roommate.  Half the room is cluttered with clothes, a messy bed and a bureau that has half the drawers open with clothes spilling out of them.  The other half of the room looks like it has been cleaned with a toothbrush.  There is a naked bed, a desk and my own bureau—all just begging to be lived in.  I hope the respect for my space continues through my time here. 

I toss my bag on the bed.  I have some clothes and toiletries, but the rest of my things will arrive in a couple hours.  I arranged to have them delivered so I didn’t have to try and lug all my things with me.  I have no family to help my move in—at least that is my story.  There would probably be an all out war if my mom and Jason decided to help me move in.  That isn’t just hyperbole either.

The door opens behind me and a girl about my age flounces in.  She has wild, curly blond hair and a cherubic face, despite being fairly thin.  The opposite of my dark straight hair and thin face.  The girl is wearing a tank top and very short grey shorts.  Running shorts I realize a moment later.  I make a mental note of this for future reference.

“Hello,” I call, realizing belatedly that she has ear buds in.  The quiet humming should have tipped me off.  I wait a moment.  When she grabs her water bottle and turns to leave, she spots me.  A scream erupts from her lips and she drops the water bottle.  It crashed to the ground making me jump.

“Oh shit! I didn’t see you there.  You scared me!”  Her voice is too loud because of the music and she places her hand to her chest like she thinks she might have a heart attack at any moment.  Once her breathing is back to normal, she yanks out her ear buds and approaches me.  “Sorry, how rude of me.  You must be Delilah.  I’m Sandy.”  She extends her hand in an open invitation.

“Hi, Sandy.”  I take it and give it a quick shake.  My hold lasts probably a moment longer than is polite, getting a feel for the person I will be living with.  That extra moment is all I need.  My roommate is powerful.  I can tell in that single contact that her raw talent is enormous.  Given more practice, she might rival me in combat one day.  I make a note to keep an eye on her.

“I was just going for a run.  Want to come?”  Her smile broadens at her invitation.  I imagine Sandy is one of those social girls that make friends within five minutes of meeting someone.  I envy that kind of talent.  While never a social pariah, I have always been on the outside thanks to my mother. 

“Next time?”  While a run doesn’t sound bad, I want to get settled into my room.  Plus it might be nice to regroup my thoughts before venturing out on a reconnaissance mission.

“Absolutely!  Alright Delilah, it’s nice to meet you.  I’m out!”  Sandy heads out the door as quickly as she arrived. 

The room is peaceful as I put my things away.  My clothes are meticulously sorted by color and style and hung neatly in the bureau.  The rest of my things are put away efficiently with almost military flare.  When my suitcases full of supplies arrive later via delivery services I finish my unpack job.  In a short amount of time my side of the room has transformed into something almost normal.  There are a few posters on the wall, a pink fuzzy lamp and even a lime green bean bag chair for entertaining.  I almost fit in here. When there is nothing left to put away or organize, I head out of the dorm ready to do a little exploring.  I just hope I don’t run into Amber again.

I exit Sky Hall and head around the circle of dorms, passing Terra Dorm, Aqua Hall and finally arrive Pyre Residence.  There I stop, staring up at the huge chrome and black building.  It is wide and low to the ground with fire escapes on both sides of the buildings.  Rumor has it that the building contains some of the latest flame repellant technology that money can buy.  Of the four elements, fire is the most volatile and hardest to master.  It has a mind of it’s own.  Even the most experienced fire wielder loses control now and them.  Fire is rage.  It’s anger and hatred.  Fire is dangerous. 

“Hey Mason!” a voice shouts, breaking through the dull roar of campus conversation I have been tuning out.  The name snaps me out of my thoughts.  Not a hundred feet from me is Samuel Mason.  Tall and well built, with light brown hair and green eyes that are so bright they could be mistaken for freaky colored contact, Mason is attractive.  Jason warned me that he was good looking, but not to let that get in the way.  I had blown him off at the time, but Samuel Mason really does have that All American Boy thing going on. 

I watch as the boy who called out to Sam tosses a football his way.  Sam catches it with ease and suddenly there is an impromptu football game happening on the green.  Several boys are running to try and tackle Sam, who has dropped his bag and started running towards them, ball tucked under his arm.  I find myself strangely compelled to watch and I’m certainly not alone.  Sam employs some fancy footwork and makes it past both of the guys heading towards them.  When he reaches the edge of the green, he spikes the ball down with a laugh.  People clap.  I shake off the trance I had been and step back to assess the situation.

Physical appeal aside, Sam Mason is also intelligent, athletic, and a very powerful fire wielder.  Cambridge has given him a full scholarship to attend and they haven’t been the only academy vying for his attention.  Sam Mason is one of those guys who everyone loves. 

Everyone except me. 

You see Sam Mason is the reason I am behind enemy lines.  He is my target. 

I have been sent here to kill him.