Somehow, Endrah knew he was not alone when he woke face down in a pool of sunshine. He lay still for a few moments, listening to the sound of the forest. The uneasy feeling did not leave him as he checked each part of his body for injuries. His wings twitched and shook from being folded for so long but they were fine. His arms and back were sore, but unbroken. His legs were only just starting to wake, and he could feel the tingling sensation. Endrah slowly sat up, pulling himself to his knees. He stretched his arms as he looked around. The unfamiliar territory was filled with oak and maple trees, bushes that Endrah had never known, and the sound of birds on the wing. He looked up and saw a circle he could have come through, plenty big enough for an uncontrolled landing.

‘How did I get here,” Endrah wondered silently.

He slowly drew himself to his feet, spreading his wings. Every muscle in his body was sore, but at least he was alive. Endrah slowly turned in a circle, searching for any sign of sentient life. The breeze combed through his wings like gentle fingers but gave him no scents but that of birds, squirrels, deer, foxes, and other woodland creatures. Endrah gave his wings a quick shake off, testing them. Unfortunately for him, they did not feel flight ready. With a sigh, Endrah began pacing his small pool of sunlight, tugging at his hair every now and then. His ears twitched at every noise that drifted to them, and his wings twitched from the uneasiness he felt.

Suddenly, a new scent danced on his nose. The stench of smoke from burning wet wood had Endrah’s wings flared open and heart racing. Fire. Coming from just south of him. Either it was someone making a fire with poor kindling, or there was a wildfire. Endrah’s ears started to pick up the crackling of the fire, but not the sound of animals fleeing a fire. He crouched down and went back and forth in his head. Should he trust the scent, or should he wait. Would they be friend or foe? The scent wasn’t that of dragon flame, so it was not absolutely an ally. His wings shivered and twitched as he half folded them against his back. With a deep breath, Endrah started his slow, silent trek through the brush.

At every noise, Endrah froze for a brief moment, crouched among the brush. Slowly, Endrah crept closer to the sound and stench of fire, ready to bolt in a moment’s notice. After what felt like hours, Endrah caught the sound of voices and froze.

“If that spirit was right, there should be others right,” a female voice asked.

“We don’t know that for sure,” another woman answered.

Endrah sank closer to the ground and peeked through the brush. Two women, a kyrill and a flit, sat on opposite sides of a fire. The kyrill scanned the tree line diligently, blue eyes never landing on anything for long. The flit sat on a stone, legs crossed underneath the rest of her body. Her orange glow turned the kyrill woman’s gray scales orange.

“Maybe they are waiting for us somewhere,” the flit woman said.

“We don’t know that for sure,” the kyrill answered.

“I could go looking,” the flit said. “And you can stay with the fire.”

“A kyrill watching a fire Wanda,” the kyrill cocked her head to the side.

“Oh, right,” the flit, Wanda, sighed. “I am sorry, I didn’t mean to imply that I wanted to see you hurt.

“I need a soak,” the kyrill stood. “I know you didn’t mean to say what you did Wanda. I will be back soon.”

“Alright,” Wanda sighed again while the kyrill woman walked away. “I will be here when you return Brooke.”

Endrah stayed nearly plastered to the ground until he heard a splash in nearby water. Then he deliberately snapped a twig underfoot as he stood up. Wanda’s flame flared up, along with the fire, as she turned toward him. Endrah raised his wings and arms, showing he was unarmed.

“I am sorry to startle you miss,” he said. “I am a bit lost.”

“It is alright,” Wanda smiled and let her light dim. “I am a little bit jumpy right now.”

“Would it be alright if I came to sit with you,” Endrah asked. He slowly lowered his arms.

“Of course, come and sit,” Wanda sat down on her stone as Endrah came out of the brush. “What brought you to wherever we are?”

“I don’t know,” Endrah’s wings stopped shivering as he sat on the ground near the fire. “The last thing I remember is being in a storm. I was with another sprite, trying to call the wind and calm it down. She disappeared as the storm quieted down.”

“I have heard of calling the wind,” Wanda’s flame danced a bit beneath her outer shell. “It is when a sprite uses their inner magic to manipulate the air around them, correct?”

“Yes,” Endrah nodded. “For some it is easy to do, but to others it is more difficult.”

“I never thought I would meet a sprite,” Wanda said. “Nor had I even dreamed of meeting a spirit. But now I have met one of each in a single day.”

“You met a spirit,” Endrah asked.

“Yes,” Wanda answered. “They were asking for help, so my acquaintance Brooke and I followed them.”

“Where is your acquaintance,” Endrah asked.

“She needed to soak in water for a little while,” Wanda answered.

“She is a kyrill then,” Endrah nodded to himself and tugged at his betrothal pendant’s chain.

“Is that a necklace,” Wanda asked.

“You could say that,” Endrah sighed. “It’s a betrothal chain and pendant. It shows that I am betrothed to another. I will wear it until my fiance and I wed or until I die, whichever happens first.”

“You don’t look happy about it,” Wanda said. “From what I have seen, when one is betrothed it is usually a wondrous time. You have a look of dread.”

“Normally one marries someone they love,” Endrah said. “My engagement was arranged when I was still a child. My fiance simply keeps pushing the date back.”

“Why was it arranged for you,” Wanda asked.

“My family is poor compared to my fiance’s. We do good business but they have old money and resources that we don’t,” Endrah answered.

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“So your family set you up to marry one from another’s family so that they may have those resources,” Wanda asked.

“Yes,” Endrah answered.

They both jumped when something came crashing through the underbrush. Endrah’s wings snapped open and Wanda’s flame flared. A human wearing fine courtly clothes tripped on a tree root and fell on his face just a few feet away. His black hair and skin marked him out as from Glade, as did the cut of his courtly clothes. Wanda jumped to her feet, thickening her outer shell. She walked up to him and offered him her hand.

“Are you alright,” she asked.

. The human grunted and took her hand. Wanda helped him to his feet and he brushed dirt, leaves, and grass from his shirt front. Endrah lowered his wings slowly, cocking his head. What would a human in such fine clothes be doing in the middle of a forest? Something that he couldn’t quite name danced on the edge of his mind as the man offered his hand to Wanda.

“My name is Acarad,” the human said. “I am the second heir to the throne of Glade.”

“I am Wanda,” Wanda held his hand for a moment, careful not to burn him. “I am heir to my mother’s room of stone carvings I suppose.”

“It is a pleasure to meet you Wanda,” Acarad smiled. His white teeth were startling in his black face, hair, and eyes.

“What brought you so far out here, your highness,” Wanda asked.

“I honestly don’t know,” Acarad’s brow knit together for a few moments. “The last thing I remember was talking with an old man who needed a spell to bring water back to his home village.”

“Did he disappear too,” Endrah asked.

“How did you know,” Acarad asked.

“It seems to be a theme for the four of us,” Wanda answered.

“Four,” Acarad asked.

“My acquaintance and I were following the call of a spirit asking for help when they disappeared,” Wanda answered. “The next thing we knew, we were waking in a pool of sunlight beside a pond just a few feet into the brush.”

“Are you going to tell your life’s story to anyone who comes by, or is that something you save for attractive people,” they kyrill, Brooke, asked. She stepped through the brush just a few feet away from Endrah.

“I just want to be friendly,” Wanda said.

“And what would you do if someone took advantage of you for that,” Brooke asked. She crossed her arms over her scaly chest.

“I would let them walk down that path alone and remind myself that not everyone is like that,” Wanda said. “You never said that we were keeping anything a secret.”

“Who are you,” Brooke turned to Endrah.

“I am Endrah Feyborn,” Endrah answered. “My family has a merchant’s train back home in southwestern Aviary.”

“And why are you here,” Brooke asked.

“That I cannot answer,” Endrah answered. “I don’t remember coming here. I am sorry.”

“Who are you human,” Brooke asked, turning toward Acarad.

“I am Prince Acarad Allison, second heir to the throne of Glade,” Acarad answered. “I woke up about a mile from here a few minutes ago. I don’t remember how I came to be here either.”

“There is a good reason for that dear prince,” a strange voice said. The four gathered in the clearing jumped, each looking for the voice.

“Yes, a very good reason,” a second strange voice chimed in. “Sibling Water’s words could not be more true.”

“Siblings Earth and Fire,” a third twittered. “I do think we are frightening the mortals.”

“You are right, Sibling Air,” a fourth voice bubbled. “Let us take more welcoming forms.”

Four beings materialized in the clearing, each simultaneously young, old, beautiful, and ugly. Words could not capture the feel emanating off of the four. No words could describe what they looked like quite correctly. Endrah recognized one of the four. Endrah hit the ground, planting his hands shoulder width apart and his nose in the ground.

“First Wind, I am honored beyond reason,” Endrah said. “I apologize for gazing upon you.”

“Oh young sprite,” one of the four sighed. “Please stand my child. I am here with my sibs to speak to you and these other three. It is difficult to speak to one who has their nose in the soil.”

“Please younglings, come together around your little fire,” the second of the four chuckled. “We must speak.”

“Be quick younglings,” the first rumbled.

“We cannot be in this world for long,” the fourth answered.

Acarad, Wanda and Brooke all took new positions within the circle. Endrah’s wings trembled as he stood, keeping his gaze to the ground. Wanda’s flame flared up as the second of the four watched her. Brooke’s scales turned from gray to blue as the fourth looked at her. Acarad felt the weight of the first one’s gaze.

“Now Younglings,” the third said. “We shall introduce ourselves. I am called First Wind., I am the Air Elemental”

“I am called Soul Stone,” the first said. “I am the Earth Elemental.

“I am called Burning Ember,” the second said. “I am the Fire Elemental.”

“And I am called Shining Water, the Water Elemental.”

“The four Parental Elementals,” Brooke gasped.

“But how,” Wanda asked.

“We come to this world when we choose our Drifters,” First Wind said.

“It is time for us to do so once again,” Shining Water said.

“You four have been tested,” Soul Stone said.

“Each of you have passed all of our tests,” Burning Ember said.

“What tests,” Acarad asked.

“If I had known you were testing me First Wind, I would have studied,” Endrah said.

“Younglings, if you had known you were being tested you would not have passed our tests. You would have been too busy trying to please us by following your ancestors,” First wind said.

“You were tested in compassion, adaptation, fighting, and morality,” Soul Stone said.

“We tested you in ways different from each other, but each of you passed,” Burning Ember said.

“The tests we gave you were interesting to watch,” Shining water said.

“I have never seen such quick thinking from a human in their time in this world,” Soul Stone said.

“And I have never seen one so willing to stand for others but not themselves in any of my mortal children as I have seen in you Endrah,” First Wind said.

“A Kyrill so willing to both change and listen as you have not been seen in a long time my dear,” Shining Water said.

“A flit so welcoming of others and yet willing to fight as you is a rarity as well,” Burning Ember said.

“We have chosen to change your paths and make each of you our Drifters,” First Wind said. “To keep the peace, protect the innocent, heal the hurt, fight for what is right, and do our bidding.”

“War is coming,” Burning Ember said. “We need Drifters who will think before they act, and heal before they leap into battle.”

“Innocents will be hurt and the wrong will go unscathed so long as there are no Drifters,” Shining Water said. “We need those who will protect even as they fight and heal.”

“Our previous Drifters were killed in one strike,” Soul Stone said. “But you must have the courage to fight together, protect each other, heal each other, and work together.”

“WE HAVE DECLARED THESE FOUR READY,” all four Elementals spoke together. “LET THE BONDS BE FORGED BETWEEN ELEMENTAL AND MORTAL.”

The four gathered between the Elementals each covered their eyes as a storm of pure magic swallowed them. Soundless screams struggled to claw their way out of the four as they were lifted into the air and filled with magic. The magic bound them first to their respective Elementals, then to the other Elementals, and finally to each other. Connections to minor Elementals and spirits wove themselves into the four somehow. As the storm of magic cleared, the Elementals set their Drifters down and clothed them in Drifter’s Uniform. Wings, scales, flame, and magic aura all changed colors rapidly as the magic settled into the Drifters.

The four lay in a circle around the now cold fire pit, breathing heavily but unconscious. Their uniforms reflected their new status. The color of the robes and clothing were gray, blue, brown, and orange to match their Elementals. Embroidery on the cuffs, hemlines, and shoulders of their shirts, pants, and robes had the color of the other three matched down to the stitch. Gray swirls for air, brown squares for earth, wave patterns for water, and flame patterns for fire.

The noon sun warmed them as they slept. Spirits and minor Elementals brought food from the forest for the Drifters to eat when they woke. Animals kept an eye out for danger. There were Drifters again, but danger could always strike.