Taiga looked into the light, a small tear rolling down her cheek. Over her many lives, she had been part of countless rituals, so the dragon's actions didn't bother her. She did as she was told throughout the ritual, but once it was over, Taiga felt her heart begin to race uncontrollably.
She put her hands into the light, a beautiful staff of dark, twisted wood taking shape with frost covering either end. The girl spun it in the air, smirking at the new design.
"You are now bonded to the guardians," the dragon said.
Taiga whipped her head around. "What?" She snapped. Sathurra finished her speech, and the girl slowly shook her head with a frown spreading across her lips. "Stand straight. I never gave you permission to do that." Suddenly, her mind flooded with voices, all distinctly belonging to her brothers and sisters, but Tak'karan and Abri's voices specifically stood out.
She looked to her right and saw the figures of two men approaching.
"I don't want to be a guardian, Sathurra," Taiga said, looking at the staff. "That's not-"
"That's not her role," Tak'karan's strong voice said, distinctly pronouncing each syllable. He stood directly in front of the dragon, pale yellow eyes peering downward as he towered over her in her human form. Abri walked over to Taiga and hugged her. Though the brothers were both generally peaceful people, they took their roles very seriously, which meant they took someone altering the roles even more seriously.
Abri looked at Sathurra, his eyes much softer than Tak'karan's. "We are not the guardians of our environment or homes, Sathurra," he said. "We are not bonded to anyone, or anything, or anywhere. We stand as the symbols of the elements, the order and balance of the world. If you bond Taiga with the dragon guardians, you have made it so she is forever incapable of fulfilling her purpose as an Elemental."
Taiga stayed quiet, letting her brothers speak. She knew the words to say, but she was in a state of mind that had her scrambled. Tak'karan walked over to his siblings. "Forever is a very long time," he said. "Reverse the ritual and unbind our sister."
The girl looked at Sathurra with an uncharacteristic vulnerability in her silver eyes. "Please," she said.