THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS VIOLENCE THAT MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR SOME READERS.
High above, the beautiful sun shone downwards, its rays slicing between the thick branches in shimmering ladders of gold that danced across the mossy floor.
Klaven Voren moved through the shadows of the forest. He jumped on a branch, swung, and somersaulted, sticking the landing on the top of another.
I guess this is an advantage of having a forest at the back of your school, he thought.
In his palm, the core of the Sunspire princess pulsed with rhythmic, golden light. Every time it glowed, Klaven felt the raw power of ten kings vibrating against his skin. He looked down at it, a desperate frown tugging at his brow.
"If I can get this to Doran's men and lead them away… I just have to find one to chase me and the others should follow," he whispered. "They're robots afterall so it'll be like making animals follow you for food."
He smirked and jumped down, hit the dirt, and began to run. Ahead, seven soldiers surveilled the perimeter. Perfect.
Klaven didn't hesitate. He created seven circular blasts of fire and launched them. A blueish, transparent shield materialized before the soldiers even turned. When they spotted him, the chase began.
They're fast, was all Klaven could think before sprinting in the opposite direction.
Further from the Crypt, the six boys Damon had entrusted with the plan ran toward the school. The Light user hit the wall first. With a determined look, he lowered his hand, creating a step.
Fire boy jumped into his palm and was hoisted up; one of the Wind users projected a current to guide him through an empty classroom window. The rest followed in a sequence of fluid coordination until they were all inside.
The Earth user caught his breath. "Do you all remember the plan?"
"We have to or else we're dead if we don't," Fire boy said. "If we fail at this we might be blamed for the princess's death."
The Wind user who had lifted them looked back. "Do you think we should've let Prince Damon handle Doran himself?"
"That might have been smarter," Water said. "But we couldn't just sit around and do nothing."
"Look, let's just go before we all get swallowed in our own self-doubt," Light snapped.
Fire boy nodded. "Alright. How do we even find Doran?"
The second Wind user, who hadn't spoken yet, looked around. "Before that, we don't even know our names."
"Look, I'm actually too nervous to remember names right now," Earth said, pointing. "You're Wind 1. You're Wind 2. And the rest of us can just go by our elements."
"Well, that's an easy solution," Water noted.
"It didn't seem like a problem to me in the first place," Fire said.
Light ruffled his hair aggressively. "Let's just go, we're wasting time with unnecessary stuff!"
The group stared at him. Water whispered to Fire, "Wasn't he practically invisible before? And aren't you supposed to be the angry one?"
Fire pushed Water's face away and bolted out of the classroom. "You coming or not?"
They moved. While they ran, Fire spoke:
"Senior Cythera said she saw her grandfather fighting him. So he should be at the library or his office. Thankfully they're not too far apart. We'll check his office first and then head to the library."
"I really hope he's at the library," Wind 2 said.
"Why?" Earth asked.
"Because we'll have more space to fight than in the old man's office," Water replied.
"Oh yeah, that makes sense," Earth agreed.
They reached the office and found it in shambles. The desk was cracked in half; scrolls and sheets were strewn everywhere.
Light muttered, "Headmaster Voren…"
"C'mon, let's go," Fire urged.
"Wait. Look at this," Wind 1 said, pointing to the center of the broken table. A golden sheet of metal sat there, a message written in blood:
Find me at Verdant Atrium.
"Does anyone know what Verdant Atrium means?" Wind 1 asked.
"What does it matter, let's go?!" Fire yelled.
"No. What if Headmaster left this note for us?" Water argued.
"He doesn't even know we're coming here!" Fire pointed out, frustrated.
"Wasn't Verdant Atrium where all the teachers go to train?" Earth asked.
"What do you mean?" Light queried in confusion.
"Okay, this is practically a secret," Earth explained. With an arm folded and another gesturing, "but one time a couple of friends and I snuck out of class to explore. We found a room with V-A written on it and we also heard teachers' voices and felt large Eterna fluctuations, so we guessed they trained there."
"Okay, it's no longer a secret," Fire said. "Can you lead the way?"
They bolted. As they ran, Water glanced at Fire. "Calm down. Are you really that horny for a fight?"
"You have no idea," Fire replied.
They reached a hall ending in a large door with a rectangular device stuck on the wall beside it.
"Now how do we get in?" Light asked.
"Why don't you swipe the gold card on that thing by the door," Earth suggested.
Wind 1 pulled the card from his pocket. Before sliding it, he looked at Fire.
"Fire. You don't have to beat him. Just follow Prince Damon's plan."
"Alright, alright, just open the door."
The card swiped. Light turned everyone invisible except Fire. The doors pulled apart like that of an elevator. The room was vast and grey, accented by patches of grass, stone, and a waterfall.
Under a far away waterfall, a man lay unconscious. Valora Nemien, the combat teacher, was sprawled on the ground. Other elemental teachers were bleeding from their ears, knocked out. In the center, Doran Volcav held the Headmaster by the throat.
Doran's voice echoed through the chamber, metallic and cold. "Where is the Chosen One… and the Princess of Sunspire?"
He immediately fired a series of blasts at Fireboy. Wind 1 whispered for him to move. Fire ran, dodging the projectiles while creating fire randomly around him—a screen to hide the invisible team and the blasts they were collecting.
He ducked under the first barrage of circular blasts from Doran, rolled across the stone, and came up with fire spiraling around his fists. Doran dropped the Headmaster like a discarded toy and fired again.
Fireboy tried to reach him, but a blast forced him to roll, landing in a low crouch.
He and Doran began to circle each other.
"How are you immune to my blasts?" Doran asked.
Fire scoffed. "It doesn't matter what things you've knocked up in that chunk you call a body. You're not leaving here alive."
"I suggest you keep your word," Doran buzzed while he tilted his head "Or the next things that happen to you will be… very painful."
A short surge of fear hit Fireboy. Doran sensed it. "Good. I like the smell of fear," he whispered.
Doran fired six simultaneous blasts. Fire boy thrusted his hands forward with a roar. From his palms, a concentrated torrent of orange-red flame erupted, surging toward Doran like a spear of living heat.
The pressurized fire spiraled into a wide, jagged blast in a straight horizontal line. The Atrium lit up in violent crimson, while short sparks formed in the flames.
Doran froze. Did he burn my blast? No. His readings show he's at the Blaze stage.
Fire surged forward, shooting a straight blast from beneath his foot. Doran dodged and counter-punched, sending Fire crashing into a wall. Fire spat blood, scrambled up, and launched two more blows.
Doran somersaulted between them, firing back. Fire boy covered his ears and jumped toward Doran's flank.
The blasts missed the stone, disappearing into thin air.
Doran stopped. "What?"
Behind him, Earth and Light flickered into view for a split second.
Fire boy saw them and frowned. 'If Doran sees them the plan won't work!' He thought with desperation.
Doran was about to turn back but Fireboy grunted, forcing fire from his fists. Two flames shot outward diagonally before snapping to a single point, hitting Doran directly on his face. Fire boy grinned, blood dripping from his lip.
The team went invisible again. C'mon, let's go, Fire thought.
He stood and unleashed a barrage of fire from his fists and legs, lighting up the entire area. He gathered one last shot in his palm.
"Take this!… YOU MURDERER!!"
The explosion turned the waterfall into rising steam. They waited, and nothing moved for a few seconds.
Wind 2 whispered while still invisible "Did we get him?"
Then Doran jumped out of the mini inferno. He had transformed, his mecha frame growing larger. Bigger. Bulkier. His mechanical frame had shifted. Plates sliding, joints locking, a blazing core of electricity pulsing in his chest.
Light groaned, "Oh c'mon." and forced the team invisible once more.
"You didn't keep your promise," Doran said to the panting Fire boy.
He brought his mechanical hands together, merging them into a single cannon. He didn't fire a circular blast; he fired a straight shot that expanded as it tore toward Fire boy.
Fire created a dome, but it was useless. "AGHHHH!!" his shirt shredded, then his skin. The shot seered a line of fire into his flesh, leaving him on the ground with electrical sparks dancing over his body.
Woewynian's… they are constantly getting stronger, Doran thought. How can a boy at the Blaze stage take that and remain intact? What will happen… if I met the Chosen One right now? Ropes of electricity snaked out, lifting Fire boy into the air.
"Don't we have enough?" Light whispered to the others.
They looked at the container and shook their heads though horror shook their faces.
Doran stretched his arms wide. From his chest, a straight shot of electric combustion fired at the suspended boy.
"ARRGHH!" Fireboy screamed. The blast spread over him, then collapsed into a single point on his chest and exploded with a high-pitched whirrrrr.
Light blinded the room. When it faded, Fire boy's body was bathed in electric sparks and so were a few plants on fire. Doran walked towards him, face and stride as if confident he had won the fight.
But then— Fireboy's body trembled. He slowly lifted himself using his forearms. He staggered to his feet but his face remained downward.
Doran took a step back, his robotic face-plates shifting in what looked like fear. Fire boy's arms were almost raw skin and blood. Then he looked up, his face scarred and bizarre.
"Emotions power Eterna, Doran. Can you guess what I'm feeling right now?"
Doran stepped back again. His internal fans whirred like a hitching breath.
The boy braced his legs, fists clenched. His chest thrust forward as a primal roar ripped from his throat. A jagged, golden-red aura of fire erupted around him.
"I'M ANGRYY!! DIEEEEE!!!"
Doran unleashed a massive, concentrated beam. Fireboy reacted instantly, propelling himself into the air on a pillar of azure flame to dodge.
While airborne, he spun with lethal precision, whipping a massive, spiraling disk of crimson fire downward to strike Doran's head.
Doran jumped, but Fire boy was a blur, running straight at him. He fought primally, punching the air and sending waves of destructive fire with every strike.
Doran dodged most byut the last one clipped him, forcing him into a submissive crouch. Though he got up and prepared his final attack, mechanical forms extending from his shoulders to bolster the chest cannon.
The cyborg's blue energy blast roared forward, a spiraling vortex of raw power. Fire boy stood his ground and planted his feet. He thrust both hands into the center of the surge. A wedge-shaped burst of orange fire sliced through it.
The heat acted like a blade, forcing the blue energy to split and curve around him into two harmless streams. Through the gap, Fire boy glared, a crimson-tinted grin on his face.
He dropped into a combat stance, one arm forward, the other pulled back. He struck the floor. The fire curved upward and crashed down on Doran. Doran fired circular blasts upward in a desperate attempt to stop the rain of fire.
The collision hit a central point and exploded into a violent cross-shape. A shockwave of crimson heat tore through the Atrium.
When it stopped, Doran's body was battered. He staggered up, tremblingly stretching out his hand.
"NOW!" Fire boy yelled.
From above, the container held by the Earth user dropped. All of Doran's own contained blasts fell directly onto his head. Water added his own ugly burst.
Doran went still. His humming internal machines went silent.
Fire boy collapsed, letting the ground take his weight. He saw the faces of the others, their silent questions about his current condition. Though he closed his eyes and whispered in his mind.
I did it, Dad. I'm strong.