Water Shaper (World Aflame) (5 page)

“What that glowing when we landed?” Xander asked.

Jessica shook her head instead of responding as she kept her jaw clenched to stop her teeth from chattering painfully.

“I’m pretty sure I would have noticed it,” Sean said. “It was almost pitch black when we were flying in.”

Xander swallowed hard but stepped toward the base of the hill. The slope was gradual and, even from its base, he could almost see the source of the light at its crest. He could hear the sucking footsteps of his friends following behind him as he nervously climbed the hill.

The hill rose a short distance before leveling off. In its center, surrounded by immaculately carved flagstones, was a pool of crystal-clear water. The blue glow radiated from its depths, though Xander couldn’t tell if the glow came from something on the bottom of the pool or from the water itself.

“This wasn’t what I was expecting,” Sean said as he turned up his fur-lined collar against the chill. The air seemed even colder close to the water’s edge. Though the pool clearly wasn’t frozen over, the air seemed far below the freezing point.

As Xander walked toward the still pool, his stomach began to churn. The weight of inevitability settled over him, and he struggled to find the inner resolve he needed to continue. As though sensing his doubt, he felt a renewed tugging in his gut. Despite the dilapidated appearance of the city around them, he knew that at least one of the Elementals was here.

He stopped at the pool’s edge and crouched down until he was inches from the water’s edge. With a shaking hand, he reached out toward the pool’s surface.

“Are you sure that’s a g-good idea?” Jessica asked, breaking her silence. She ran a dry tongue over her blue-tinted lips.

“We have to do something, right?” he replied.

Xander dipped his hand into the water and felt the biting cold roll up his arm and settle in his chest. He pulled his hand back, but not so quickly that he spilled the water cupped in his palm. The water was painfully cold in his hand but, even removed from the pool, it continued to glow with an inner light. The blue painted his fingers and reflected off his face, as he stood, awestruck at the sight.

“It’s impressive,” Sean said. “I’m guessing we’re sure the Elemental’s here, then.”

Xander felt the knot forming and easing over and over in his stomach. “One of them is. That’s for certain.”

“So…” Sean began, drawing out the first word for as long as he could. “What do we do now?”

“I have no idea,” Xander admitted. “I kind of expected the Elemental to just kind of be waiting for us when we got here, like the Wind Elemental was.”

“D-did you happen to have a plan B?” Jessica asked.

Xander stared into the pool. Its light seemed to wax and wane like a heartbeat, something he didn’t remember it doing moments before. His face lit up with its glow as it pulsed, only to leave his frowning expression in deep shadows moments later. He could feel its power practically radiating from its surface. One of the Elementals was here; he just couldn’t figure out why it wasn’t appearing.

Sean cleared his throat to get Xander’s attention. As the friends locked eyes, Sean pointed over his shoulder.

“We’re kind of feeling like the third wheel… well, I guess more like the second and third wheel on a unicycle, if you want to get technical.”

Xander sighed.

“My point,” Sean said before Xander could chide him, “is that we’re going to go check out the other side of the pool and leave you to your thoughts.”

Sean and Jessica began walking around the perimeter of the pool as Xander went back to staring into its depths.

When they were far enough away, Xander knelt back down until his face was only inches from the water’s surface.

“I know you’re in there,” Xander whispered. “You made sure the Wind Elemental pointed the way to you as soon as she gave me her powers. I’m guessing you’re still asleep right now. She didn’t exactly tell me if there was something I needed to do to wake you up. If you could throw me a bone, that would be great.” Xander rolled his eyes. “You probably don’t even know what I mean by that.”

He stared at the silent and still pool, but it offered no response. Xander frowned and put his hands on his hips.

“Xander!” Sean yelled. “You need to see this.”

Xander glanced in the direction in which Sean and Jessica had disappeared before looking down at the water once more.

“Xander, I’m not kidding,” Sean reiterated. “You really need to come check this out.”

He walked around the pool until he reached the far side. Both Sean and Jessica were staring at the surface of the water. A portion of the glowing water close to the shoreline churned angrily, seemingly boiling from within. The frothing water slowly approached the shore, leaving a wake behind it. The chill in the air that he had seemed impervious to suddenly crashed down over him, and he couldn’t stop shivering.

The churning water grew closer, like a monster was swimming just below the surface. Yet beneath the boiling surface, the pool remained still and crystal clear. Xander looked and could see the bottom. There was nothing in the water beneath the agitated region.

The blue light from the water pulsed faster the closer the boiling came to the edge of the pool. It waxed and waned like a strobe light, casting the entire city into alternating dim light and inky blackness. Every time the light reemerged, the churning water had grown eerily closer.

As one, the trio stepped away from the edge. Xander couldn’t hear the chattering of teeth from his two friends, as though anticipation had frozen their bodies in place.

“Xander?” Jessica asked.

“Stay where you are,” he said. “This is what we came for.”

He hoped he sounded more confident than he felt. The truth was he had no idea what to expect. He had felt sure of himself when they left the Wind Elemental, as though going to find the other two Elementals was the only course of action. Now, knowing he was about to come face to face with another embodiment of pure elemental power, he was more frightened than ever. He felt like he was making a terrible mistake.

The churning water stopped at the edge of the pool. The blue light disappeared altogether before slowly reigniting, casting their faces in sharp relief.

The water swelled in the center of the boil, rising like a bubble from beneath the surface. It grew larger as it emerged further. Slowly, the bubble shrunk around a more defined shape. The sloshing water merged into strands of hair. A pointed nose emerged as the bubble reformed into a pair of glowing blue eyes and pale blue lips.

The figure continued to emerge from the water. As she became more defined, it was obvious that she was naked, though it mattered little since her body was completely translucent, molded from the water of which she was formed. Her body glowed with the same bioluminescence of the pool.

Sean took in a sharp intake of breath as the woman finished her transfiguration. She remained ankle deep in the pool, and the water seemed to flow up her body. Despite her soft appearance, her blue glowing eyes were cold and emotionless.

Xander cleared his throat. “Are you the Water Elemental?”

The woman shifted her gaze to Xander, boring into him with her stern expression. Her blue lips pulled apart, showing translucent teeth beneath as she sneered.

“
You made a terrible mistake in returning here, humans
,” the Water Elemental said as the water formed a spear in her hand.

The Fire Elemental walked through the hallways of the keep with a pair of Fire Warriors following closely behind. There wasn’t a purpose to its walk; it had spent so long trapped within the bowels of the earth that it yearned for nothing more than to wander freely.

Turning, the Elemental walked down the steep steps that led from the side tower and into the courtyard. Dozens of Fire Warriors filled the courtyard, practicing battle techniques and mastering their control over their elemental powers. Flames erupted as balls of fire exploded against training targets.

It stood on the edge of the courtyard, admiring its army in practice. Every time a Fire Warrior used his powers, the Elemental felt connected to the warrior. It could feel the pull of their power as though leeched directly from the Elemental’s endless well. It was a sensual connection, one that it shared with every Fire Warrior on the planet.

Closing its eyes, the Elemental could feel other Fire Warriors already surfacing in other continents and marching toward the world’s major cities. Their destruction of humanity washed over it and sent shivers up its spine.

One of the Fire Warriors noticed their master and called the courtyard to attention. The warriors stopped immediately and saluted the Fire Elemental. With a nod of recognition, the Elemental walked through the center of the courtyard; the Fire Warriors parted before the blond woman host.

It emerged out of the far side of the courtyard and walked beneath the massive iron portcullis that led outside the castle. There was a small stretch of land between the rim of the castle and the cliff that dropped off to the river of lava below. A bridge stretched before the Elemental, dilapidated as it had always been with an open hole along its length.

The Fire Elemental turned away from the bridge and arched its neck backward, staring up at the castle wall above the portcullis archway. A man dangled from the wall like a decoration. His arms were chained to the wall, held straight out to his side awkwardly. He had a grimace on his face, but he stared straight ahead defiantly.

“
Tell me, Lord Balor,
” the Fire Elemental said. “
Do you like your new accommodations?
”

Lord Balor looked down, and his eyes widened in surprise. He immediately tried to conceal his horror, but it was too late. Balor slowly raised his eyes back up, refusing to look down at the Elemental.

“
Does it pain you to see me this way? Wearing your daughter’s skin as my new host? Look at me.
”

Balor kept his face straight ahead with his eyes glistening.

“
Look at me, Lord Balor.
”

The Fire Elemental’s feet left the hard ground, and it hovered up into the air. It drifted upward until it floated directly in front of the disgraced Lord. Balor strained against the chains when he saw it directly in front of him. The Elemental’s smile was disturbingly familiar to Balor, as it spread across his daughter’s face.

“
I want you to look upon the face of your daughter. Every day that you hang here on this wall for your betrayal, I want you to remember that I’m using this body to bring about the end of the human race. And, trust me—you’ll be hanging on this wall for weeks. I could have stripped you of your power and let you die in the heat within a day. By leaving you with your elemental powers, you don’t need much water to survive. I’ll make sure you get exactly enough sustenance to survive for a long time, dangling and wallowing in your disloyalty, thinking about the destruction of your daughter and everything you built as Lord of this clan.
”

Balor shifted his eyes to the Elemental. “Go jump in a lava pit.”

The Elemental scowled. The expression was unusual for Sammy’s face, and it twisted it until it ceased to resemble the former blond. Lord Balor smiled at the illusion, since the woman in front of him no longer looked like his daughter.

“
I’ll take great pleasure in your anguish and torture. And when the time comes, I’ll be here to see you die.
”

Lord Balor turned his eyes away and stared at the distant, black stone wall. Frowning, the Fire Elemental drifted back down to the hard ground. The Fire Warriors that followed him everywhere bowed deeply.

“What is your wish, Master?” they asked.

“
Take me to the surface
,” the Fire Elemental said. “
I wish to look upon the sky for the first time in millennia.
”

As the Fire Warriors led the way onto the bridge and into the maze of tunnels beyond, the Elemental stole a glance backward toward the defiant Lord. The same sense of guilt washed over the Elemental, and it temporarily considered releasing the man. Frustration quickly erased the asinine consideration. It snarled and turned away, following the warriors into the pitch-black passageways.