AN: So here is Chapter ten, another filler one! Don't worry though, for the next chapter will see the kids in the Temple of Nature!
Chapter Ten: Marsh Mages
"How can people drink this stuff? It's so bitter!"
Kevin slammed his drink down on the table, causing some of the herb-green liquid to spill out over the side of the jug. It was an hour after Finedum's Miasma cleansing, and all of the inhabitants had left hiding in the sewers to adore and praise and the Chosen Ones (and Rosaline). As they were the town's heroes, they were allowed to eat and drink all they wanted at the inn for free; naturally, they were putting that to good use.
"Kevin!" scolded Zoe, sitting across from him. "Don't say that; you'll insult the Floranuss!" Zoe and Kevin were sharing a booth at the back of the inn, which doubled as the town's main restaurant.
"Why does it matter?" asked the jock. "No one can hear us!"
"They might be able to. Anyway, I'm sure it's not that bitter."
"Ok then," smirked Kevin. "You try some."
"Sure," replied Zoe, taking a sip of the juice. At once, her face contorted, and her lips pursed. She managed a smile at Kevin, and swallowed the liquid.
"How was it?" asked Kevin smugly.
"Fine," whispered Zoe, before she began to wipe her tongue, trying to get rid of the bitter aftertaste.
"Hi!" greeted Rosaline, bounding up to the booth. "What're you doing?"
"Nothing," croaked Zoe, now gagging violently.
"Hey, Rosaline," said Kevin, "have some of this." He handed her the jug, and Rosaline took it, peering at what was inisde.
"Ooh, Pontata Juice! My favourite!" She raised the glass to her lips, and drained the herb-green liquid dry, slurping her lips as she finished her drink. She was surprised, however, to see Kevin and Zoe's, who was twitching violently on the floor, astounded expressions.
"What?" she asked innocently.
"You drank it all!" stated Zoe, climbing back into her seat.
"Yes, and?"
"Don't you find it bitter?"
"Of course I do, it's the most bitter thing I've ever tasted," replied Rosaline with a smile.
"Then how can you stand it?" asked an amazed Kevin.
"We Floranuss love bitter things, though we can't abide spicy stuff. Now come on; the others will be waiting to go.
"We're leaving now?" asked Kevin. "I thought we were going to stay awhile."
"No," replied the princess, "I want to get to the temple as soon as possible. It's already 1 o'clock, so we need to get going now." Rosaline skipped away from the booth, as Kevin and Zoe got up to follow her.
"So, that was nice!" said Kevin happily.
"I'm still angry with you," said Zoe matter-of-factly, and Kevin sighed as she walked on ahead.
ooo
"Shiny stuff…" whispered Ed, gazing at a set of armour through a shop window. He turned to Rebecca, who was leaning against the shop window. "Can we get that, Rebecca?"
"No, Ed!" snapped Rebecca huffily, as she played "The Sims 3" on her phone.
"Whatcha doing?" asked Ed, peering over her shoulder in an uncomfortable manner.
"Doing something on my phone," replied the girl, not moving her eyes.
"Can I phone someone?" asked Ed excitedly, trying to grab the mobile.
"No Ed!" screamed Rebecca, causing several passing Floranuss to look at her oddly. Rebecca giggled, albeit uncomfortably, before stamping on Ed's right foot, then placing her hand over his mouth to stop him from crying.
"I swear to God, if you don't cry, I'll buy you a chicken-shaped, jawbreaker-flavoured lolly." Rebecca instantly regretted saying that, as Ed, after squealing like a rabid fan boy, grabbed her by the arm and sped off towards a nearby confectionary emporium.
ooo
"Right, everyone's here," confirmed Edd, as the rather large group stood in the town square, "except Ed and Rebecca. Where are they?"
"Here we are!" called Rebecca, and Edd spun around to see them walking towards the other Chosen Ones, Ed sucking on a lolly and Rebecca eating a fizzy lace.
"What are you guys eating?" asked Marie curiously.
"Candy out of this amazing shop," gushed Rebecca. "They have chicken-shaped jawbreaker-flavoured lollipops-how convenient-and mini-Jawbreakers; which are mine!" barked Rebecca, swatting away Eddy's creeping hand from getting her sweet-filled bag.
"O.K," said Rosaline, "now that we're all definitely here, it's time for us to go to the Temple. This town is close to the Temple, but to get there we have to cross a marsh."
"A marsh?" shrieked Jimmy in horror.
"Yes," replied Rosaline, "the woods here are much more dangerous than near Floriana. Not everywhere is all hunky-dory in these woods you know. Besides, I'm sure that the marsh won't be that bad."
ooo
Half an hour of walking later…
ooo
"I take it back," said Rosaline dryly, "this marsh is that bad."
The swampy land before them was ten times worse than Rosaline had thought it would be. Muddy, brown water was all over the landscape, bordered by very high reeds and bulrushes: making it somewhat like a murky, pungent maze. An assortment of animal noises and the mist rolling in made the swamp a very spooky, creepy place; somewhere where anyone that didn't have any business with the marsh would steer clear.
"The air here is yucky!" cringed Sarah, putting one of her small hands over her mouth.
"I think so as well!" agreed Elle, fanning the air in front of her face.
"I'm not bothered," commented Zoe, ignoring the horrible odour, "I can't smell anything."
"Good for ya, Zoe!" commented Marie. "It's only a little bad air."
"No, I seriously can't smell it," repeated Zoe. "The Pontata Juice affected me so much that I've temporarily lost my sense of smell."
"Is that all?" asked Lee, before walking on ahead with her sisters. Zoe glared at their backs, whispering something but covering it up with a cough: "(Cough) Barbarians… (Cough)".
"Right, so we should be able to find this path that goes straight through the swamp," explained Rosaline, looking over the reeds for the said path. "After that, it's just a half-an-hour walk to the Temple and then you guys can do your stuff."
"'K," replied Jennifer and several others. "So where is the path anyways that you're talking about?"
"I think it's over there," stated Jonny, pointing to a rather obvious, though rotting, sign that simply stated: "SWAMP PATH-TEMPLE OF NATURE AHEAD."
"Yay!" squealed Jennifer. "Now we don't have to walk through all that stupid marshy bog stuff!"
"Actually, we have to," said Edd.
Jennifer glared at the reserved boy. "Why's that?"
"The path has been blocked by that fallen tree," replied the capped boy, "and that has rendered it inaccessible to us."
"Hmm…" said Jimmy. "That's a problem."
"Indeed it is," replied Edd, "for we now have to find another way to travel through the swamp."
"Well, I can think of another way," murmured Rosaline, "but I'm afraid I don't want to use it, to be honest."
"Tell us anyway!" pressed Eddy.
"Well, this isn't really a swamp, though it is called one. It's really a lake covered with various plant life and exotic animals, giving it its stench. We could in fact use canoes to cross it, though I'm afraid that in order to attain enough for our group, we'll have to deal with the Marsh Mages."
"The who?" asked Kevin.
"Marsh Mages is another name for the Floramancers living here."
"What are Floramancers?" asked Nazz.
"If I've heard right, you're one," smiled Rosaline warmly. "Floramancers are a type of Mage with immense power over Nature. Their name comes from the title Mancer, which means a natural-born Mage with utter power over a certain Element. All Floranuss, including myself, are Floramancers, while several human families are; for humans, the ability is hereditary."
"I get it-sort of…" replied the blonde shyly, for fear of embarrassing herself due to her slight forgetfulness.
"But why don't you want us to deal with these Marsh Mages?" asked Rebecca.
"Marsh Mages are very tricky, and, because they live in an environment like this, have been brought up to fend for themselves and use others for there own gains."
"True," replied a voice in a slightly-Southern drawl, "but we are honest, if nothin'." The unknown voice had come from a barely noticeable wooden shack, squished haphazardly between two thick oaks. The person who had spoke was standing in the doorway of the house, leaning against the frame with a reed in their teeth. The person wore a hooded, long grey leather coat, obscuring their face from view. The person wore black gloves and boots, giving the others a slightly intimidated feel of them.
"I believe that you are an employee of the "Lake Beronus Canoe Rental" service?" asked Rosaline stiffly, as if she was suddenly threatened by something.
"I may be," replied the figure, his voice confirming him to be male, "or I may not be. It's up to ya to choose."
"We would like to rent several canoes for our group," said the Floranuss princess in a slight growl, "each one sitting six. What's the price?"
"Nothin'," smirked the Mage, "if y'all can make it 'cross alive."
"Whaddya mean by that?" asked Eddy, frowning.
"Y'all see. Canoes are over there," said Mr. Mage, jerking a thumb to a rotted jetty connected to several surprisingly well-kept canoes. He walked silently back to his shack, smirking to himself as he did so.
They'll never make it 'cross the swamp. If they do, though, I gotta surprise for them…
ooo
"Ok!" called Kevin, standing on shore next to one of the hollowed-out tree canoe. "I've given each of the team leaders a compass, which I handily kept from back in the cul-de-sac. Head north, and we should all reach the lake-banks in no time. Try to keep together, though; apart from the do-" Zoe shot an icy look at Kevin, causing him to blush and cough awkwardly. "I mean…uh…we don't want anyone getting lost!"
Kevin ceased shouting out commands, and gently got down into one of the two fronts of his canoe. Rosaline, as the guide, sat next to him, while Jimmy, Michael, Jennifer and Ed sat in the other seats.
In the second canoe sat Eddy and Zoe (in the front), Edd and May (the middle) and in the back sat Nazz and Marie. The third canoe had Rolf, Jonny, Lee, Rebecca, and Sarah, Elle and Lindsay (squished together in the back).
"Ok!" called Kevin. "Row!" His group pushed their canoe off of the muddy shore and into the murky water below. They began to simultaneously row the oars of the canoe, and soon disappeared into the vast forest of reeds.
"Very well, team!" called Edd from the middle of Boat Two. "Please start rowing!"
"Who died and made you leader?" asked Eddy sourly. Nevertheless, he began to row along with the rest of his team, and soon the second boat vanished into sea of marshes.
"C'mon!" cried Lee from the final boat. "We're losin' 'em!" They began to row as well, and all three canoes were trapped in the swamp. None of them saw a tiny ripple in the water they had just left, and a shiny black skull emerge from the murky waves, before submerging as soon as it had appeared.
ooo
"Why is this place so spooky?" asked Sarah timidly. "I don't like it one bit…"
"I think it's fabulous," replied Elle brightly. "The atmosphere of death in this place is abnormally high; it's ecstatic!"
"How cheerful…" muttered Rebecca sarcastically. "How do you think the others are doing?"
"Rolf believes they are fine," replied the Monk, nodding solemnly, "for they surely they will best any beings this accursed place throws at them."
"What do you mean by beings?" asked Jonny stupidly.
"He means monsters," replied Lindsay, pushing the oar out into the water. "It's best we're on our guard at all times. This was a bad place to come; the water's dirty, so we can't see what's in it, the reeds are perfect for hiding ambushers, and I can't see properly because of all the mist. Basically, if something attacks us, we're screwed."
"Don't say that!" cried Elle.
"Guys-" butted in Jonny, but Lee cut him off.
"Yeah Lindsay, lighten up."
"Um guys-" began Jonny again, but he was interrupted by Rolf.
"Rolf believes we shall all surely overcame any horrors we encounter in this cursed swamp."
"GUYS!" burst out Jonny, capturing the attention of everyone.
"What is it, Fat-Head?" asked Sarah, looking bored as Jonny talked.
"Plank asks that when you say monsters, do you mean that kind of thing?" Jonny pointed at the water to their right, and the others noticed just what he was looking at. It was a huge black thing, it's oily skin shining in the fading light, as its huge, unblinking eyes gazed at the seven Chosen Ones. It was floating on the water, next to some huge lily pads, making it's tadpole-like tail and flippers visible. It opened it's mouth, showing its toothless gums, and the kids breathed loud sighs of relief.
"It's got no teeth," said Lindsay," so that's a plus." The creature (which looked like a huge tadpole) began to move lazily through the water over to the canoe, and began to push it towards a waterway through the reeds that was devoid of any obstacles, though there were a few scattered, rotting logs here and there.
"Aw, it's helping us!" said Jonny happily. "Plank says it's because it knows we're the Chosen Ones."
"How the heck could it know we're Chosen Ones?" asked Sarah, looking at Jonny like he was stupid. "It's just a stupid over-grown fish thing."
"Hush!" barked Rolf, visibly startling Sarah. "Needle-tongue Sarah girl, say not such things, for Rolf believes you will anger the Goddess of Water!"
"How do you know that there even is a Water Goddess?" asked Lee, turning to the tanned boy.
"An olden myth from the Old Country tells of how a benevolent Goddess of Water-haavakc leurp-can help travellers and takes on many forms."
"Sure…" replied Lindsay mockingly, before the creature that had been helping them turned away from the boat and swam away.
"Great!" cried Elle. "Look what you both did!"
"I don't think Lindsay and Loud Mouth scared it away," said Lee slowly as she pointed to a semi-fallen tree. Perched at the top was a large, skeleton bird, its bones bleached white though matted with brittle black patches. It had a huge, curved beak, slightly ajar, and screeched violently at the Chosen Ones. It shot up into the air, and began a sky-dive towards the Chosen Ones.
"DOWN!" screamed Lindsay, and everyone except her fell to the base of the canoe. Lindsay took out her Magnum, loaded several magazines into the gun, and fired at the demonic bird. It screamed as part of its ribcage fell off, and slammed its large skeletal wings into Lindsay, knocking her to the floor. Lindsay bashed her head on the side of the canoe, causing it to violently shudder, and she blacked out.
"Raaahhh!" screamed Sarah angrily, swinging her giant shuriken at the bird. It narrowly evaded the attack, and the shuriken came back to Sarah. She snarled in anger, and vowed to hit it next time. She rooted about in her holsters, and began to launch kunai after kunai at the bird (known on Gaia as a Revenant Crow). The bird was fast, though not fast enough, as every kunai hit it, causing its brittle bones to break apart easily. The bird began to descend to the water below, and Jonny was open to make the final attack. He leapt upwards, brandishing his spear, and impaled it right through the Revenant Crow's skull. The monster gave a final feeble caw before falling downwards into the waves, resulting in its defeat.
ooo
"Doesn't this remind you," asked Edd, "of the time we all went camping in 5th Grade and had to canoe through that marsh, and we all ended up getting lost?"
The others in Boat Two nodded, each of them recollecting several memories of that trip, which now seemed so long ago.
"So, do ya think any monsters will try to pummel us while we're here?" asked May in her usual unfeminine voice.
"I hope so," said Marie, cracking her fists, "I've not had a proper chance to pummel some asses into oblivion!"
"Marie, please control yourself!" scolded Edd, frowning at her.
"Sorry, muffin," replied Marie sweetly, batting her eyelids and advancing towards the now-horrified hat-wearing Ed.
"P-pardon me, M-Marie, but what a-are you d-doing?" asked Edd, sweat begin to tingle down his forehead.
"Aw," pouted Marie, "can't I even give my little muffin a kiss?" Marie began to lean towards him, and Edd's ivory face was now ashen with terror.
"Marie, I honestly don't-"
Edd was interrupted when something large and snaky snatched him off the deck. He cried out in terror, and was flung far across the swamp and collided with a rotting oak. It broke into various pieces of wood, and Edd was knocked out. The others stared in shock at the beast that had attacked Edd.
The Scydra was native to Lake Beronus, and was a very rare, extremely dangerous beast. It had a red, lizard-like body, with four short, yet clawed, stubby legs. It had seven draconic heads, al writhing about in a tangled mass of flesh, and surprisingly hair. At the end of each long, lizard neck was the head of a snake like creature with wild, frizzy black hair. The Scydra snarled viciously, and slammed the boat, knocking Zoe and Nazz into the water. The two girls managed to cling onto a floating log, but they were out of the battle, making May, Marie and Eddy the only ones able to fight it.
"Finally!" called Marie enthusiastically. "Now the time for me to beat this creep into the ground!"
"Yeah!" cried May in a peppy manner, giving an air-punch.
"Um…sure…" said Eddy, looking nervously at the two sisters. "Who's gonna make the first move?"
"That'll be me!" grinned Marie, pulling out her harp and placing her fingers on several of the strings. She played a few notes, and they could be visibly seen floating from the harp and towards the Scydra. They burst on impact, and the Scydra growled; that attack had hurt. "Want some more?" taunted Marie. "Then take a load of this!" The female Bard began to play a fast-paced, rock-music anthem on the harp, and the notes began to become jagged and larger. They beast began to howl in pain from the enchanted musical onslaught, and one of its heads zoomed for Marie's neck. She managed to dodge the attack, but the musical chain was broken, and her harp flew out of her hands.
"Leave my sister alone!" snorted May, like a boar. She pulled out her Omnitome and began to leaf through it, looking for a suitable spell that could defeat the Scydra.
"Just leave it to me!" called an exasperated Eddy, as May looked for the spell and Marie searched for her harp on the solid land, where it had presumably landed. He brandished Gladys Touch, and launched himself at the Scydra. He cut one of its necks with the knife, and the creature flopped down on the ground, momentarily stunned. The stump of the cut-off neck oozed scarlet blood, and the creature growled at a smirking Eddy. It snapped its neck down at him, and bit right through his left arm. Eddy cried out in shear pain, as the head that had hit him retracted back to its main body. Eddy tried to plot out the searing pain in his arm, but he slowly knelt on his left knee as the pain began to worsen, and hot tears pricked his eyes.
"Eddy, you ok?" asked Marie.
"Marie, look!" called May suddenly. "His arm's hurt!"
"Eddy, get up and fight like a man!" barked Marie roughly, and though he wanted to, Eddy had to sit out of the battle for a while due to his first severe injury.
"Guess that leaves us, huh?" asked May, a tone of slight nervousness in her snort-like voice.
"Yeah, but no worries; we can take this creep!" smirked Marie darkly. She took out her harp, found after a long search, and began to play another rock-anthem; slower than the first one, yet much louder. The enchanted, scrawny-looking notes took longer to hit the Scydra, which didn't dodge them as it was a relatively thick monster, but hurt a lot more than the previous barrage.
"Divine Gust! Freedom of Aria!"
The sudden gust of wind that formed from seemingly nowhere hit the Scydra instantly, pushing it back several feet. By now, it was pretty beaten up; though it was still very resilient. Marie and May began to attack the monster while Zoe and Nazz, now thankfully on dry-land, watched.
"Do you think we should help them?" asked Nazz quietly.
"I don't think they require any assistance," replied Zoe, "as they seem to be perfectly capable of holding their own. Even though we're on another world, they're still the same Kanker sisters."
"What about Eddy?"
Zoe suddenly frowned. "He looks in need of help, but the Scydra always has one head on us and one on him. If we tried to re-enter the battle or help Eddy, it may only further provoke the Scydra."
"You're right," replied Nazz, though she still looked very worried. Then she began to look slightly angry. "By the way, who does Marie think she is?"
Zoe glanced at her best friend who was attempting to dry her dress with a handkerchief she had brought with her. "I mean, doesn't she get that, like, Double D doesn't like her? At least not in that way?"
Zoe, wringing out her hair, looked at her best friend and smiled knowingly. "Nazz, am I detecting a hint of jealously at how Marie is infatuated with Eddward?"
"No, I just think it's sad how she, like, treats him," replied the cheerleader. "Anyway, you like Kevin!"
Zoe merely looked at Nazz, who was expecting her to deny the accusation, before calmly replying, "True. Kevin is a good person…though his temper needs controlling."
Just then did Nazz notice something. "Zoe, look! The Scydra's distracted; now's our chance!"
"Let's hurry then!" said Zoe, when she glanced at her brother. He was still out cold on the ground, making him the only person out of the fight.
I don't want to leave Eddward by himself in a place like this, especially when he's unconscious, thought Zoe, but the sooner we defeat this monster, the sooner we can help him.
"Zoe, are you coming along or not?" called Nazz. Zoe snapped out of her reverie to see Nazz already with the others. Eddy had been healed, and he was ready to fight again. Zoe stepped on to the marshy water.
"Water Walk!"
Zoe began to walk on the water, her feet silent as she gently walked, almost floated, on its surface. The Scydra merely snarled at her in annoyance, and swiped its claw at her. Zoe vanished under the water, and the beast growled again.
"Take this!" cried Eddy, slashing violently at the beasts necks. He somehow managed to slice them all off, leaving a completely headless Scydra lying there. The others began to cheer except Zoe, who emerged from under the water, completely dry (AN: One of her abilities as the Chosen One of Water is to only get wet when she wants) and looking rather worried.
"Eddy! What have you done?" asked Zoe.
"I killed this thing," he said proudly. "May checked in her book: it's called a Scydra."
"Oh my God…" said Zoe in disbelief.
"What is it?" asked Marie.
"Isn't it obvious? It's name is a portmanteau of Scylla and Hydra, two Greek mythical monsters, and if a Hydra's head is cut off…"
"What?" asked Eddy, now sounding slightly worried.
"Haven't you ever seen Hercules?" asked Zoe. The others looked extremely alarmed, and each of them gasped as the neck stumps of the Scydra squirmed and gurgled with horrendous noises. Until two heads formed…from each stump! The now fourteen-headed Scydra cackled in monstrous glee at the terrified youngsters, and breathed a jet of fire at them like a dragon. The five Chosen ones were surely done for.
"Thermal Shield!"
A wall of hot, licking flames materialised before the cowering kids, and grew tenfold in size as it absorbed the flame from the Scydra. It roared in aggravation, and the others were shocked as it tried to suck up the flame shield.
"Pyro Slash!"
A straight line of fire appeared out of nowhere, revealed to be Edd holding his now-flaming blade. He ran over the water, his feet forming steam clouds whenever they came into contact with the moisture. He stopped next to the others, and glared at the Scydra. It lunged for him, and Edd leapt into the air, slashing at it's neck.
"Eddward, no!" cried Zoe, though he had already cut off the neck. He pointed to the wound with his left hand.
"Fire!"
A tongue of fire shot from his middle finger to the stump, and began burning it with fiery passion. The stump began to blacken and crust into flaky, charred pieces of flesh. Edd slashed and burned a second neck, leaving only five to go.
"Let's help Double D!" exclaimed Nazz, bashing the body of the Scydra with her staff. The others soon joined in, and soon there was only one final head left. The beast looked at them angrily, its face red with rage at the destruction of its accompanying heads. It slammed its front claw on the ground, creating a slight tremor and a large wave of murky, dank swamp water.
"Like, look out!" called Nazz, before the group were submerged by the water. They were all forced to the floor, leaving the six of them very vulnerable. The Scydra towered ominously over them, deciding who to devour first. It settled on Nazz, and began to slowly leant towards her. Nazz was too busy coughing up water from her flooded lungs to notice.
"Steel Slam!"
A rock, like an extraterrestrial meteor, zoomed from the right of the area and right into the Scydra's skull. It vanished in black clouds instantly, meaning that the long battle was over. Edd got up from the moist earth of the swamp, and saw the other groups gathered around them, with Ed beaming from ear-to-ear; he had cast the spell.
"Thanks, Ed," said Eddy, "but we could have beaten that thing up on our own."
"Eddy, please!" pleaded Edd. "That was a very difficult monster to defeat; be thankful we managed to weaken it enough for Ed's final blow."
"True," said Rosaline," but I have to say something."
"What?" asked each kid simultaneously, slightly freaking Rosaline out.
"We've been here too long. We should have got to the temple long before, but for various reasons we've had to take several detours."
"That can't be helped," stated Jimmy.
"I know, but the Temple isn't far from here. If we move, quickly, we should reach it shortly."
"Then what are we waiting for?" asked Michael.
"Let's go!" exclaimed Jennifer, and several others cheered along with her, as they emerged onto the far side of the swamp.
Finally beginning the last leg of their journey to the Temple of Nature.
ooo
"Guys," said Rosaline simply, as she and the Chosen Ones emerged into a large, spacious clearing, bordered on all sides by various trees. The grassy earth was carpeted with blooming wildflowers, and various animals could be seen wandering around the grove. "We're here."
The others gasped at the sight before them. At the far end of the clearing was a large, stone building. Many windows on it, stained with the colours of the rainbow, let in plenty of sunlight inside, while a large, wooden door was the entrance to the Temple. It was built in a sort of Mexican-pyramid style, with each floor (that was going upwards, at least) smaller than the last. The Temple backed onto a very large tree, which stretched to unimaginable heights. The tree was part of the Temple, for spiral plank walkways could be see connecting branches of the tree, and many small, oval windows were cut out of the bark.
"Rolf has never seen such a wondrous sight…" stated Rolf quietly.
"Indeed, it is a beautiful architectural masterpiece," agreed Edd.
"It's enchanting…almost haunting in a manner," completed Elle, adding her two cents into the conversation.
"So what do we do now?" asked Sarah.
"You travel through the Temple, and find the Crystal of Nature," replied the Floranuss princess.
"Why do we have to do that now?" whined Eddy. "I'm bushed from all the fighting."
"Eddy!" chided Zoe. "Didn't you pay attention to King Edward? It's imperative that we get those Crystals before Faith does."
"Lest all matter be destroyed, and creation descends into eternal darkness," said Rolf ominously, almost as though he were quoting someone.
"How the hell could you know that, Rolf?" asked Kevin confusedly.
"Rolf has already explained once before, hat-wearing Kevin-boy, at the commencement of our important quest," stated the farmer. "A prophecy of Rolf's home country tells of the Chosen Ones and their quest to rescue the twelve Crystals."
"How do you know that?" asked Eddy quietly, rubbing his chin in thought. "It's all very odd, if you ask me."
"Nevertheless, we have to go," said Rosaline. The twenty-one strong group walked up to the doors, when Nazz, as though in a trance, walked right up to them. Her eyes glowed green, and when she touched the door, a ripple of magic energy spread over it.
"Whoa!"
"Ooooh!"
"Cool!"
The door glowed the same green as Nazz's eyes for a few seconds, before the light disappeared. The door began to slowly open, and the group advanced into the Temple.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the clearing was Faith slowly emerging from a tree shadow. She looked mildly annoyed at something.
"The Scydra should have killed some of them," she muttered, "yet it failed humiliatingly in its task…" She suddenly looked upwards, towards the top of the giant tree, and grinned darkly. "Not all of the Chosen Ones will be able to advance through the Temple of Nature, and we'll take care of them, won't we, Swarm?"
Yes, mistress, sounded a voice. Faith cackled with manic glee, and was absorbed by the shadows around her…
Ooo
AN: And so begins the end of this arc! Faith's word at the end was correct: due to the amount of characters, only six (including Rosaline) will travel through the Temple, and I have yet to decide who. Alright, some important news this chapter: I'd like to introduce Lilienne!
(A tall, blonde teenager appears out of the darkness, walking towards me (the author). She wears a long, silk black gown, split down the middle and showing some of her legs, and lace-up golden sandals. She wears a black cape, trimmed with silver satin, and has bright green eyes. She looks rather serious and her face is emotionless.)
Me: Hey Lilienne!
Lilienne: Greetings, Lucas.
Me: So, why don't you tell the readers why you're here? Tell us a bit about yourself.
Lilienne (frowning): Thy personal matters are not of ye's concern. Keep ye nose out of the affairs of others, lest yr face the wrath of people like thyself.
Me (looking scared): Right…Anyways, why are you here?
Lilienne: As part of thy plan to rid thyself of any past sins, thou has volunteered to assist ye chronicling the tales of the Chosen Ones.
Me: Ok! Why don't you announce this week's "Fun Cul-de-sac Facts!"
Lilienne: This week: Eddy, "The Megalomaniac." Did ye know that:
1. Eddy's favourite colours are gold and silver?
2. Eddy has a secret passion for mechanics, and could construct machines as well as Edd can?
3. Eddy is actually very smart: he is just extremely lazy?
4. Eddy is scared of birds because once, at the beach, a flock of seagulls attacked him. However, he tells people it's because birds steal his money.
5. Eddy hates people try to outsmart him, and that he can become embarrassed very easily by any situation?
6. Eddy's three favourite school subjects are Business Management, Chemistry and Drama?
7. Eddy's favourite food is bacon: he can't get enough of it, as well as ham.
8. Eddy is very talented at badminton, however, as mentioned before: laziness.
9. Eddy is secretly glad that Faith gave him hair, as he had been trying to grow it all his life?
10. When it comes down to it, Eddy cares deeply for his friends. However, his obsession with money can cloud his judgement.
Lilienne: So now that ye know about Eddy, next time shall be Miss Nazz, "The Unattainable Love Interest." Farewell, all those who read this. Review wisely, lest the shadows capture your souls!
Me: Ok…Anyways, hope you like this chapter; please review!
-LucasBravvus97