Elements of Ours - Book Two - Chapter One through Five (Hope your happy Socky!)

I sat by Arianna and her mother sadly as we listened to other people talk about Cheif, how he was a great man in many ways. I didn't hear one person mention Jasper, which wasn't a shock.That was alright, because I needed to mourn without wanting to kill somene. The service was quick but depressing, anyway. Even if I disliked Chief, he did nothing to deserve this. I walked silently with my friends when the funeral ended. We were Cheif-less now. The ritual to finding one is long, and no one seemed to 'fit' the expectations, so to say. To become Chief, some person has to show that they exceed in their elements, nothing else matters much. I bit my lip and opened the door to the EB, and suddenly stopped. What day was it today?
"Oh my god. I forgot!" I cried and backed out the door again, and ran toward the village.
Today was Saturday.
I stopped at the edge of it and gasped, catching my breath. I kept my head down low and swiftly walked past all the people. I was about to enter the library when someone tapped my shoulder. I turned around and blinked at Rebecca.
"You might need back up." She explained emotionlessly. "They're two idiots now, remember?" She added, following me in. I looked around and grasped the gun hidden in my waistcoat, which was only for emergancies. I went up to the desk clerk.
"Excuse me, did a boy my age come through here?" I asked him politly. He pointed toward one of the extra vacant rooms on the back wall.
"He went in there." He grunted boredly, and went back to checking out books. I nodded and jogged over.
"You stay out here. Just in case." I whispered and slipped inside. Jasper was sitting at the table in the middle of the room, his sister beside him. I stiffened and held my weapon even tighter.
"You made a bad choice on my birthday." I grumbled.
"Well, ya can't hurt us, can ya? We have your best friend." She pointed out, giggling. Jasper nodded and smirked in agreement.
"Mia is right. Sit down, Lauren." He commanded. I reluctantly obeyed and sat across from him. I noticed Rebecca's shadow behind Jasper's seat. Well, I hadn't expected her to listen anyway. I leaned back in my seat expectantly.
"I'm gonna guess this is a randsom meeting." I guessed, pursing my lips.
"Almost. Jaspy?" Mia piped up, giggling again. I grinned at Jasper.
"Oooh. Nice name." I taunted, cracking. He rolled his eyes and folded his hands professionally. I put my feet on the table casually, and my ahnds behind my head.
"Continue." I pressed, glaring at them now.
Jasper turned and pointed at Becca, who was now human.
"She needs to go first" He instructed casually. Becca slowly made her way to the door, eyeing Jasper wearily.
"Here's the deal." Jasper started, when Rebecca had shut the door.
"You trade your freedom, and Anna will be let go." He offered. I rolled my eyes.
"Got anything else, smart one?" I spat, wrinkling my nose when Jasper nodded.
"In fact, I do. As soon as my plan takes action, I'll need some help. Anne will be let go, and I won't harm your friends if you, Lilly, Rebecca, Danny, Ellen, and Alex join me." He finished. I stared at him like he was an alien from Mars.
"What? Are you insane? Wait. Yes. You are. Those are pretty much the same choices!" I retorted hoarsly. Mia laughed and threw her arm around her brothers shoulder. She has over-delight problems, or something.
"Of course they aren't! It's only you in the first choice, and your friends are left alone. The second is half of your friends come with us, but the rest of them are left alone. For now." She explained in a matter of factly way.
"You have until Monday to decide. By then, I know I'll be in charge!" Jasper exclaimed. I instantly stood up after that and and stalked away, slamming the door. Rebecca looked at me, puzzled.
"They gave me two choices. Gah. I HATE HIM AND HIS FREAKY LITTLE SISSY." I ranted loudly. I continued my flaming until we got back to the EB. Rebecca explained to everyone what happened. Lilly, Danny and Alex looked disgusted.
"That means we have until Monday to figure things out." Jay pointed out, biting his lip in frusteration.
Yay.

Anne

I tried to loosen the ropes by wiggling and squirming, but they were awfully tight. I was tied to a chair, but not the floor at least. We weren't in the warehouse this time. It was more of a large house, I think. Mia came in every now and then, checking on me. But today she burst in, all excited and jumpy.
"It's brilliant!" She squealed happily, coming over to untie me, like always.
"Hmm? What?" I muttered, not really interested. Mia rolled her eyes and pulled me along toward the kitchen.
"Why, Jasper's plan, of course!" She answered dramaticly.
"Nothing about that boy is brilliant. it's either annoying or insane." I retorted, sitting down on a chair. Mia sat by me, smiling and handing me some cereal.
"To you, probably. He's got Lauren totally figured out by now." She snickered, watching me start to eat. I stopped in mid-bite.
"What did he do?" I asked her, frowning and continued stuffing a spoonful of cereal in my mouth.
"He gave her two choices. I'm not allowed to tell you. But it's hard to keep in." She whispered in my ear.
"I don't think I wanna know."
"Aw, C'mon!"
"No, Mia."
"Pleasee?"
"Nope."
"Anne..."
"Stop begging. No!"
"They involve your freedom?" She suggested hopefully. I turned to her, suddenly interested.
"Keep talking."
"One: She stayed with him, you go free." Mia began. I gagged in disust. Jasper is so... GROSS sometimes. Wait. No. ALWAYS.
"Two: He starts his AWESOME plan, he'll need help, right? So if Rebecca, Lilly, Lauren, Ellen, Alex and Danny join his ranks, he'll leave the rest of you alone." She exclaimed. "Man, Lauren was so peeved. She has anger problems." Mia pointed out, then randomly started giggled.
"You have the opposite issue." I grumbled, thinking about what Jasper's sister had said. Wow, that would be a tough choice. I gulped down some milk and sighed, leaning on the back of the chair.
I don't think Jasper meant what he offered.

The Next Day...

Today was the day they the Element Base leaders have to chose a new Chief. Apparently a ton of people had offered to try out today. We were able to watch, but all they do is try and out do each other. Like fighting with powers kind of thing. I had decided not to watch it, along with Bennet and Ellen. But I do know there are one hundred thirty-two contestants, and it's suppose to last all day. You could also watch it on TV. Normal mortals thought it was just a fictional show and stuff, but it was real shizz. You can't tell who is who, because everyone where black clothing and masks, which I always found odd. I flipped on that channel and plopped on the couch as the first fight began. These could get VERY violent, which is the main reason I watch them. But mostly, they aren't also for Chief. Just for fun, most of the time.
Not today.
I furrowed my eyebrows and watched boredly, chowing on some popcorn. This one dude was winning pretty much everytime. I grinned and threw popcorn into the air and caught it in my mouth.
"Bennet! Ellen! Come check this guy out!" I called over my shoulder. Bennet strolled it, carrying his otter, Otter. He sat down beside me, an stole some popcorn.
Wow. Go random dude!" He cheered. I laughed and rolled my eyes. Ellen came in and took a seat by Bennet, smiling.
Ben is right. He must of trained like crazy." She complimented. I nodded in agreement.
"We'll see if he wins." I added, staring at the T.V.

***

It was almost nine at night, and the final round was just beginning. All my friends came back a couple hours ago, and we we were all staring at the TV screen as the two people threw water and earth at each other.
Soon enough, the earth dude staggered and fell. The winner turned toward the host of the contest. He was award with a ton of money and the title of Chief. They asked him to take of his mask. The guy obeyed and grinned at the camera. I shivered and stared back.
It was dead silent in here. Someone dropped their popcorn. I'm pretty sure it was me. No one said a word, or even moved.
Cause that face, they guy who Bennet cheered for?
Was Jasper Chase.


Ellen

I stared at the screen, my mouth open. Quick enough, the T.V was soaked, and the screen flickered and died out.
"Lauren! You just ruined our T.V!" I complained, huffing and crossing my arms.
"ELLEN! IT HAD JASPER'S FACE ON IT. AS CHIEF. IT DOESN'T DESERVE TO LIVE!" She screeched, pacing the room. Her face was pale and her eyes were wild with anger... And fear.
"Yeah!" Danny agreed, and lit it on fire. I rolled my eyes and stared at the charred, wet mass of what use to be our television. I narrowed my eyes at Danny.
"Ellen, stop worying about that. JASPER. IS. OUR. BOSS." Rebecca ranted furiously. Lauren took the remote and smashed it to bits.
"This remote must die also. It controls the televison." She explained and Danny also burned that. I did a 'facepalm' as someone would call it. Lauren started shoving popcorn in the DVD player, saying it needed to die also. I rolled my eyes and glanced at Lilly for help.
"Guys. Please. We need to think clearly." She growled over the ruckus. Everyone stopped and stared at her.
"Think. Aren't there ways to get rid of a new Chief?" She asked, trying to calm Lauren down.
"They either die, disappear, or step down." I muttered, sniffing in disgust. "Well, he does have to have all the new rules in place by tomorrow so we have tod-" I was cut of when Lauren gasped and stared at me.
"That's what he meant! Jasper said that I have until Monday to decide. He wants to kick us out, so we don't interupt. He has to make a list with the banned people by tomorrow, also!" She moaned, burying her face in her hands.
"Well... I think I have a possible idea, Lauren. But you'll have to pick a certain choice." I suggested quietly. She slowly looked up.
"Shoot." Lauren murmered, coming to sit by me.
I hoped my plan was as good as I think it is.

People always hate Mondays, right? Gloom and doom and all.
Well, they're right.
Mondays suck. Especially when your boss is your worst enemy, and flirts with you when he can. Mondays can't get any worse than that. Trust me on this one. But, with Ellen's risky plan, my Monday just got a little better.
I glanced at Rebecca nervously before enter the Chief hall. I peeked in, with Rebecca right behind me. Jasper looked up and spotted us,, smirking slyly.
"Have you decided?" He asked, strolling over. I didn't see Mia anywhere, and bit my lip, thinking about Anne.
"Yes. We chose your second choice." I snapped darkly, stepping and inch away from Jasper. He looked slightly disappointed, but shrugged.
"Very well. Oh, and, you'll be meeting some other recruits at the meeting. We also found ANOTHER one of your careless friends. You guys multiply like bugs." He whispered in my ear. I pushed him away and blinked at Rebecca, concerned. I didn't ask who he had, though.
"Okay. I'm out of here." I muttered and stuffed my hands in my pockets before stalking away from Jasper. I felt his hand brush my arm and jerked away slightly. I stared at the ground as me and Becca left, side by side.
"Don't worry, Lauren. I'm sure Ellen's plan will work. We won't be stuck on the bad side for long." She assured me, but I could hear the doubt in her voice. I rubbed my forehead and walked down our hall. My friends glanced at us anxiously.
"What did he say?" Eamon inquired when I sat by him.
"Well, I told him our answer. He said alright, but also said there will be new people also. Also, he found another RPC member. I-I think it's Blankie." I whispered, sighing.
"Blanks? He has Blank and Anne?" Lilly gasped, covering her mouth. I nodded slowly and glanced at the clock.
"It' almost time for his stupid little meeting." I muttered, glancing at Ellen.
"Part one of our plan." She responded to my gaze, and gave me a thumbs up. "You'll be the best at this part." She teased slightly.
"-And proud of it!" I laughed weakly, starting toward the corridor again.

Danny

"I still don't want to work with him." I whined, trudging down toward the confrence room, right behind Bennet. He scoffed but didn't look at me.
"Too bad, Danny." He muttered, sighing. "I don't want you to either, but the world doesn't work that way!" He retorted, clearly in a grumpy mood. I shrugged and followed them in. The meeting was being held in a fairly large room, but with Jasper standing in the front, it was ruined. Behind him were three other teenagers I didn't regonize. Mia was standing in the corner with Anne, and who I suppose must be Blanks. She had short blonde hair with blue streaks in it. Her eyes were green, and she was wearing all types of bright colors. I grimanced when she looked at us hopefully. Anne and Blanks hands were tied together behind them. I bit my lip and sat down in one of the vacant chairs. Beside me was Bennet, and Lauren sat down on my other side of me. The other elements were seated in front or behind us. I knew the whole EB was here. Lauren looked almost excited. Her part of this was to get in trouble during the meeting. She also had a pistol hidden in her coat. I looked up when it suddenly got silent.
"Alright. I'm Jasper Chase, the new Chief. First of all, your all going to call me Chief." He sarted, beaming at us.
"What if we don't want to, Jasper?" Lauren said, loud enough for him to hear. Rebecca and Lilly snickered and a grinned at her. Jasper glared at Lauren and she shrugged innocently.
"Anyway, I first would like to introduce you all to the new staff around here. They will be making sure some certain people won't be leaving." He said, staring directly at us. "Kristi Mullery." He began, pointing to a girl with long, curly brown hair an dark brown eyes. She gave me the creeps instantly. She wore all black, also. So did the other two weirdos. "Nathen Morris." He introduced, gesturing to a boy with shaggy blond hair and bright blue eyes. He reminded me of Justin Bieber. I shuddered, thinking about that girly singer. "Also, Mitch Konag." He finished and glanced at the last boy. He had dark black hair, shaved in a buzz cut. He had extremly pale skin and freckles dotting his nose, with sharp violet eyes. Lauren giggled out aloud, but stopped whe Jasper glared at her again. She blinked at him and had a straight face on, but he rmouth was threatening to smirk. Jasper looked irriated, but continued. "I have a list of people that are not allowed to leave, and some that are expelled." He spoke, some people gasped silently and glanced around.
"Who, Jasper?" Lauren called out. He looked up at her.
"Lilly, Alex, Lauren, Danny, Rebecca, and Ellen will not be able to leave here. Grace, Bennet, Eamon, Jay, and Arianna will not be seen here again after this meeting." He listed, smirking at us.
"Pure evil." I whispered to Bennet, shifting my weight. Lauren laughed at my comment. Many people stared at her, and she beamed right back. I could tell she enjoyed ruining Jasper's moment of victory. Jasper gave Lauren a death glare and she smiled sweetly in return.
"Anyone, who breaks the rules will be punished." He growled, grinding his teeth together.
"Oh, please, I've already been tormented by you a ton, Jasper." She scoffed, rolling her eyes like it was the lamest thing ever. Jasper cocked his head.
"Do remember, I do with Anne and Kayla." He growled. I glanced at Blanks, who I guess is Kayla. Japser smiled at us then started listing off a ton of rules that I didn't bother to listen too. He FINALLY finished naming them and grinned up at us brightly. "Alright. I'll be seeing Lauren in my office." He inscructed as people filed out. Lauren stood up and pulled out her gun. Some people froze to watch, and others rushed out. She glared at the remaining people and they backed away, then turned and ran. Jasper came near us and watched Lauren.
"I'll shoot if you don't untie them." Lauren warned, wrapping her finger around the trigger.
"No. I've decided to keep them awhile. If you shoot, well, lets say you'll be visiting some other funerals." He sneered as my friend lowered her gun slowly to her side.
"What do you want?" She snapped, stomping her feet in annoyance.
"If you want your friends back, you only need to do one thing."
"What."
"Kiss me."
"WHAT?"
"You heard me."
"NOOOOOOOOOO. NONONONO. NOPE." Lauren yelled, stepping away from him. Her face was completly colorless.
"Oh, alright, Mia take them to the cor-" Jasper was cut off when lauren reluctantly leaned in and kissed him. I started gagging and coughing. Lauren stumbled away and aimed dher gun again, glaring at Jasper, who was smiling happily. She pulled the trigger, and the bullet seemed to only graze Jasper's arm, leaving a red slice through his skin. The remaining part of the bullet blasted into the wall. He cringed and held his arm as Lauren marched over and shoved Mia away roughly. She grabbed Kayla and Anna, dragging them along.
"I will GET YOU FOR THAT." She threatened Jasper before disappearing down the hall.
It's going to be a long day.

I can't believe I just did that. I'm about ready to die of guilt and horror. As soon as we were back in our hall I shot toward a pillow and screamed in it for a couple minutes straight. Kayla looked concerned and sat by me hesitantly. She slowly took the pillow away and sighed.
"Ugh. I think Jasper is only doing this for me." I muttered, huffing and crossing my arms.
"No. he's not. I know his entire past and why he's doing this. Some of it's you, but only because your awfully powerful and apparently, pretty. Don't ask. But, we are in huge trouble, and I need to leave as soon as possible." She informed us quickly. Rebecca gave her a puzzled stare, and I growled.
"What? Why?" She asked, ppuzzled by Kayla's worried expression.
"Well, me and my father are wanted by the Element government. Jasper wants us very badly also. That's why he's been gone all the time. He caught me running back to my hiding spot. Dad fled, I think. It's a long story..." She explained, trailing off slowly. I paused thoughtfully, and my eyes got wide.
"Your Kayla Macintire? You and your dad are the last mind elements, aren't you?" I gasped, that fact hitting me in the head. Kayla ducked her head and stared at the ground, nodding. I didn't know what to say. Apparently no one else did either. I blinked and stared at her.
"Wow. So you can read minds and stuff? Isn't mind the most power element?" Anne pointed out, taking a deep breath. Kayla's cheeks were a light pink.
"It's not that great. Jasper's thought are sick. When you kissed him, I felt like puking." She muttered, shivering. I grimanced and grabbed the pillow back from her.
"You said something about Jasper's past. What happened? Why is he so eager to take over teh EB?" I inquired, changing the subject quickly. Blanks frowned and rubbed her head.
"It starts when Jasper's dad, Aaron Chase, when he was training here. He was a talented at his arts. He was water, of course. He was exceeding at all his studies, and soon got tired of the same tasks over and over again. He decided to try and master all the elements. But for someone to do that, you have to have a sacrifice of each element you want to control. He killed seven people. One from each element. Water, Mind, Fire, Shadow, Light, Wind, and Earth. He never managed to finish his task. The mind sacrifice's best friend stopped him, and he was banished forever. Jasper and Mia were raised to believe in what their father did. Hate for the Element Base. Jasper is only keeping me alive because he means for us to be slaves. His helpers. You guys, he's going to kill Anne, Grace, Bennet, Jay, Eamon, Arianna and me or my dad to finish what his dad started. He wants us to watch and suffer." She whispered seriously, gazing at all of us. I buried my face in my hands while Anne started to freak out.
"I DON'T WANT TO DIE." She cried and glared at the door longingly. Rebecca tried to calm her down, but she herself wasn't that happy.
"Wait. Why'd he let them go then?" Ellen asked quietly, glancing at Kayla.
"He's tracking them, of course. Todays June 15th, right? We have three days to stop him." She finished, swallowing hard. I was literally starting to freak out inside. I could tell Alex, Eleen and Lily were trying to sort things out. I suddenly thought of something very bad.
"Ellen. Your plan. It won't work with them being tracked." I whimpered, clutching her arm. She froze and stared at me in shock.
"Oh no. You guys are telling us we have no plan, and Jasper is WINNING?" Danny growled, standing up. I paused for a moment and nodded.
"Yes. Danny, that is EXACTLY what I'm saying." I answered airily, slumping against the couch.
Suddenly, I heard a horribly familar laugh in the entrance.

Jay

I think I'm going crazy. I'm sort of the more mature guy on RPC, so I don't go insane often. But this was a good time to go mad. We were out alone, trying to find a place to stay, while Grace was completly sure we were being tracked, but couldn't find the tracking device.
"Grace! Stop!" I growled, jerking away from her. She frowned unhappily at me.
"Jay, just let me check your stuff one more time!" She begged hopefully. I glared at her in annoyance.
"You've checked ten times already. Give up." I snapped. My patients was slowly wearing off. Lauren had just contacted us about everything that happened. We were going to die in three days, unless we firgure something out very soon. Grace is now obsessed with finding that stupid device. I actually think he's tracking us by person. Following every move, and setting things up so we don't make any progress. That happened a lot. Each hotel was booked, every apartment taken, no jobs, places to stay and stuff. I know someone is forcing the managers of these places to say things, because when they tell us that they are full, they look scared. I sat on the park bench with my five other friends in defeat. We were tired, upset and hungry. Bennet looked up suddenly, and was completly silent. I looked at him, puzzled. I fingered my gun carefully and watched him. Lily stood up also and walked toward the playground, which was no longer deserted. I could make out a little girl, probably around eight years old. Lily approached her and kneeled down. They started talking quietly. Lily looked grimly at the girl and then stood up, offering her hand to the child. As they came closer, I bit my lip in surprise.
"Oh my gosh. Don't tell me it's ANOTHER Chase!" Bennet complained when Lilly stopped at the bench.
"I'm Maria Chase!" The girl chriped happily, eyeing Bennet. Lily nodded in agreement and sat on the grass with Maria. I leaned back in the seat.
"So your brother is Jasper, and your sister Mia. " I muttered dully and rubbed my forehead. Maria crinkled her nose in disgust.
"Sadly. But they like daddy more. Daddy is mean, and wants power all the time. Mommy doesn't agree with what he's doing to Jasper and Mia. Mommy sent me to come and find you. She wants to help." Maria explained, playing with a small daisy she had picked up off the ground. I studied Lily and she shrugged at me. "I also know a lot of stuff. What Jasper is doing. What he plans on doing. What he did." She sighed, looking upset about this knowledge. I bent forward, suddenly interested.
"Can you tell us what you know?" Arianna questioned excitedly, sitting by the little girl.
"Oh, of course. Your being tracked by Kristi Mullery, Mia's best friend. Kristi gets easily lost in big cities. Jasper fights with Mia all the time, which is why is why she sometimes spills secrets about her brother. My dad is helping my siblings secretly." She whispered, her face pale. "They scare me. I have nightmares every night they will take me and mommy away." She finished, and was silent after that. I instantly felt bad for the little girl. Lilly cradled Maria in her arms and smiled slightly. Most eight year olds act grown up, but Maria seemed to be the opposite.
"Well, why don't you show us to your mother now?" Lily asked gently. Maria nodded and got up quickly. She suddenly stopped and crumpled to the ground and didn't move. Her breath was soon shallow and quick.
Lily yelped and kneeled down beside her when a firgure appeared out of no where.