The Elementum

Cristal, September 29th A.E. 192

An old man stood before a weathered tombstone, his back stooped under the weight of a year’s grief. His silver beard was unkempt, his head bowed low, and his eyes red from weeping. Above him, the sky was wrapped in heavy, suffocating gray clouds that seemed to mirror the raw lamentation in his heart.

“Mary Gatt,” he whispered, his voice cracking as he reached out a trembling hand to touch the cold stone. “It has been an entire year since you were taken from me. Since you went with the wind. I miss your smile so terribly, Mary... I miss your fondness for the stones, and the gentle sound of your voice reading beside the hearth.”

The old man’s tears finally burst forth, spilling down his wrinkled cheeks. “My beloved, I have nobody left to cut the gems with. I wander this empty house, wondering how to live without you. I cannot go on in this silence.” He paused, looking up at the oppressive sky. “I wish I could join you here... to meet you in the afterlife.”

Despair clouded his mind. Reaching into his heavy coat pocket, he drew out a small silver knife. He pressed the flat of the blade parallel to his chest, steeling his resolve, and prepared to drive the steel home.

But just as his grip tightened, a brilliant, holy light suddenly pierced through the dark shroud of the clouds. High above the silent graveyard, a rhythmic, majestic tapping sound broke the stillness, echoing like a sudden storm. Halting his hand, the old man looked up, blinking back tears as he witnessed a sight that defied all belief.

“Oh, my... what in the heavens are they?” Jude whispered.

Descending gracefully through the gray mist was a pair of glowing, majestic white storks, their wings radiant with a faint celestial light. As they swept closer to the earth, Jude realized they carried bundles in their beaks. One stork held a soft pink bundle of cloth, while the other carried one of pure, spotless white.

With a gentle rush of air, the two magnificent birds alighted softly onto the damp grass near Jude.

Suddenly, a soft, trembling cry broke from the pink bundle. “Wah! Wah!”

A baby?

Peering cautiously into the pink cloth, Jude’s breath caught. Nestled inside was a beautiful infant girl with a tuft of soft brown hair and eyes as blue and brilliant as the finest sapphires. As she looked up, her sparkling eyes locked onto Jude, and she let out a tiny, soft coo.

The sight of those innocent eyes instantly melted Jude’s resolve. He slipped the knife back into his pocket, his hand trembling for an entirely different reason.

“Oh...” he murmured, a sudden warmth flooding his chest. “What heartless mother could abandon such a precious child?”

Then, the baby smiled.

It was a simple, gleeful gesture, but to Jude, it was a miracle. The dark temptation to end his life evaporated in an instant. The heavy shroud of sorrow that had suffocated him for a year vanished, replaced by an overwhelming sense of joy.

“Oh, what a wondrous girl with beautiful eyes!” Jude breathed, reaching out with a gentle, calloused hand to stroke her soft cheek. The infant laughed, her tiny fingers reaching up to grasp his. “No, I will not let you be abandoned. I will raise you as my own!”

The stork holding her let out a delighted, musical clack of its beak, bowing its head toward Jude in quiet approval.

Jude looked at the magnificent bird in awe. “Are you asking me to raise her, noble creature?”

The other stork nodded, presenting the bundle of pure white cloth.

“Awah, awah!” The baby cooed, smiling in gracious joy.

“Look at you,” Jude whispered, his own face breaking into a wide, tearful beam as he carefully lifted her from her cradle of cloth. “I see sapphires shining in your eyes. I promise you, little one, I will give you the best care in the world.”

As he held her close, a brilliant warmth seemed to radiate outward from them both. Miraculously, the deep gray clouds above began to part, dissolving into a clear, azure horizon. The golden rays of the morning sun broke through, bathing the graveyard in pure, hopeful light.

Jude looked up at the clearing sky, his heart filled with reverence. “Oh Lord, I cannot believe I am witnessing such holy light once again... It reminds me so of the day I first met my beloved Mary. Thank you, God, for bringing this heavenly child to me. My little angel... from this forward, your name shall be Selina. Selina Gatt.”

“Ah-ah-ah,” the baby girl cooed in response, as if accepting her new name.

“Yes, you are my hope. You have saved my life, Selina,” the old man whispered, kissing her soft forehead.

The second stork rustled its feathers, nudging the white bundle forward.

“You wish for me to take this as well?” Jude asked.

The bird nodded again, letting the bundle rest gently on the grass before stepping back.

Curious, Jude kept his arm securely around baby Selina while using his other hand to unwrap the white cloth. Inside lay an extraordinarily thick, leather-bound book, its black spine embossed with elegant, gold lettering. On the front cover was a beautifully detailed engraving of a pristine crystal.

“What a mysterious book,” Jude murmured, tracing the golden lines of the cover. “I wish I could read it... but my own letters are poor. I can barely spell from A to Z.” He looked down at the smiling infant in his arms, his heart swelling with determination. “But I will send you to school, my sweet Selina. One day, you will learn to read these wondrous pages, and you shall read them to me.”

With a final clack of their beaks and a majestic flap of their luminous wings, the two celestial storks took flight, soaring high into the clear, azure sky until they vanished into the light.

They left behind a transformed old man, a miraculous infant girl, and a thick golden book—all bathed together in the warmth of their beautiful new light.