POLISHED DRAFT

Finished: 2020-07-04

Chapter Seventeen: Burning Fear and Singed Fur

Burning hate-filled those grey eyes the moment Rekka recognized Mirth. The Fire Elemental clambered to her feet, thrusting a finger at him. "Get away from me!"

"You're the one that ran into me," Mirth snapped back. "What in the name of Sasba are you doing here anyway? How'd you find us? I thought you never wanted to see me again because I was the bane to all your problems?" He pressed his throbbing hand to his chest, unsure if he was gritting his teeth in anger or pain.

Aaralyn peered behind Mirth, only for her eyes to widen at the sight of another Elemental. "You look terrified," she squeaked out. "What were you running from?"

Aaralyn cowered behind Mirth the moment Rekka sent her a scalding glare. The Fire Elemental had recognized her dark blue eyes and the more obvious ball of water floating around her. Aaralyn was the opposite Elemental subrace of Rekka. By all decrees, in Rekka's eyes, The Water Elemental was just as much of an enemy as a different race was.

"Yeah, Rekka. Why are you terrified?" Mirth repeated the question, situating himself in front of Aaralyn so that the Fire Elemental's focus was back on him.

"Terrified? Me?" Rekka snorted, nose in the air. "I was trying to find you, Mirth. I've changed my mind and want to travel to this…Ring with you and…" Her gaze drifted over Aaralyn and Irfan, a disgusted sneer curling her lips. "Simple-Person and Water Elemental. Then again, if I have to travel with things like that..."

"Why would you change your mind? I thought you only traveled with other Fire Elementals, and your family full of Ash Elementals?" Mirth butted in, a blade of energy slowly forming in his hand as he kept himself in front of Aaralyn.

"Ash Elementals?" Irfan's voice squeaked from where he had been cowering some paces away. "And I'm not a Simple-Person! I'm an undecided Tianshi. I haven't grown my wings yet." Before Rekka could question what he was talking about, Irfan stepped closer. "How can you have a family full of Ash Elementals when you're a Fire Elemental?"

"Does it matter?" Rekka snarled, a dark orange flame blooming on her right fist. Spying his frightened look, she extinguished her flames. "I think you would value my protection." Her pale gaze found Mirth's again. "You're going to need all you can get."

A roar echoed through the forest, followed by shouting. Mirth's gaze hardened. "What did you do?"

"What do you mean, 'what did I do?' I haven't done anything, you stupid Rahib!" Even as she said this, fear paled her features, and she couldn't stop herself from flinching when another roar rang through the forest. "I just came here to join you."

"You're lying. You were running from that thing, weren't you? You did something to piss it off." Mirth stepped forward, though his gaze shifted to look over Rekka's shoulder from where the source of the roar had come from.

"When did you get so confrontational?" Rekka snapped, fire flickering to life on both hands.

"When—" Mirth cut himself off. "When I was separated from my family. I've been on my own since the Shift."

"Big deal. So have I. I've also burned the living daylights out of Odysseus not even a few hours ago." She stepped forward, the fire on her hands burning brighter. "I found him in a cavern, unconscious from his wounds. I don't know how he got there, but he obviously was able to walk after that fall. All his wounds were healed, but then I burned him alive."

Mirth held her gaze even as the anger boiled inside him. He desperately wanted to say that she was lying. That there was no way that the beast could still be alive, but deep in his heart, he knew there was little that could kill an Immortal.

"And he's going to be after you for that ruby you're still wearing," Rekka spat, pointing a flaming finger at the red gemstone strung around Mirth's neck, hanging just above the emerald his mother had gifted him.

"Shut up!"

"What…?" Irfan croaked from beside Mirth, taking a step away from the taller boy, eyes locked on the red gemstone.

Mirth ignored him, approaching Rekka. "I was told that I should wear this ruby with pride. That whoever knows where it belonged would see me as a great warrior."

"More like a cursed idiot who will forever have Odysseus on his tail because he refused to toss aside a necklace he stole from one of Odysseus's dead lovers. There's no damn way I'll travel with you. Forget it. I was thinking about helping you, but maybe I won't. I don't want to be killed by Odysseus. And I also don't want to be searching for some place that doesn't exist."

"Mirth…?" Irfan looked up at Mirth, eyes wide with fear. "Is that all true?"

Mirth said nothing, his hands clenched into tight fists. His fingernails dug into the old wound made by the ruby, breaking the tender skin open, blood trickling from it. "I don't think it would matter if I had the ruby or not."

"And why is that? Were you cursed since birth? Was your entire family cursed?" Rekka let out a sharp bark of laughter. "I wouldn't be surprised."

"Bitch."

"Excuse me?" Rekka raised her fist. "Would you like to say that again?"

"You heard me loud and clear, Rekka." Mirth snarled, taking a step closer to the Fire Elemental, energy building up in his hands. "You're a bitch. You think you're all that. I bet you ran screaming your head off when you saw Odysseus, and he didn't feel an ember on his tar-colored skin."

"Please, stop. I don't know what's going on anymore." Irfan spoke from the sidelines, crouching low as he covered his head with his hands. "Stop. I don't want to hear any more arguing. I don't like it."

"I burned him with a roaring yellow flame that would have melted your skin off your bones. The only reason he survived was because he's an Immoral. Be glad I did that, or he would have been stringing your intestines on these branches right now. Now he has to nurse the wounds I gave him, which gives you more time to run and hide from his wrath."

"Then maybe it would be better if you burned me alive right now so that I don't have to suffer from being gutted alive by the Terror of the Wastes?"

This time, Rekka said nothing, merely holding Mirth's gaze for a long moment. Slowly, the fires around her fist died out, and she took a step back. Mirth stood where he was, watching what she would do next. The Fire Elemental's pale grey gaze swept over to Irfan, who was trembling under one of the white-barked trees, clutching his head. Aaralyn was rubbing his back, though her eyes were filled with fear and worry.

Then another roar ripped through the forest.

Rekka whirled around, only to let out a hiss of fear.

A sleek, rosette-spotted pelt slunk through the trees. Amber eyes peered at the young adults from behind blue and purple leaves. A soft growl rumbled from the creature. On quiet paws, it approached them, long tail lashing and hunger in its eyes.

"What in the name of Sasba is that?" Rekka's fire burned brighter, and she pointed at the prowling feline.

Irfan gasped. "Shifter!" In a second, he was clinging to Mirth's side. "That-that. From before."

"What do you want!" Mirth shouted, ignoring Irfan's babbling.

Rekka stared at Mirth as if he was insane. "It's a fucking cat. It can't understand you, stupid Rahib." She raised her hand, the air around them crackling with heat. "It won't take much to run it off."

"Rekka! Don't!" But Mirth's warning was too late.

Fire erupted across the grey feline's back. It roared but ran at Rekka instead of away. The feline lunged for the Fire Elemental, claws catching the side of her arm and bringing her down to the ground. Jaws clamped on her other arm, large paws moving to dig claws deep into her side. The fire still burned along his back, but the feline was unphased. Rekka's screams filled the forest.

Swearing, Mirth had already formed a blade of energy in his hand. He jabbed it down on the feline's back, just under its shoulder blade. The big cat released Rekka, turning on Mirth. The young man just managed to dodge the swing of its paw with a burst of speed to his legs. The feline leaped at him again, and he could only parry the blow with a rod of energy.

Rekka was now sitting up, clutching her injured arm. All she could do was stare at Mirth in horror as the large grey-furred cat continued to swipe at him. Gritting her teeth, she raised her less injured arm and ignited the feline's back once more. With a roar of pain, it turned back to her. This allowed Mirth to stab another energy blade into its back.

Before the feline could turn on Mirth again, high-pitched whistles filled the air. A heartbeat later, three people came charging through the forest, opalescent smoke curling off their hands. Without much as a word between them, they apprehended the feline. The leader of the group, a slender, middle-aged woman, looked up at the group of young adults. Her eyes shifted from a pale green to lavender.

"Magic Eating Demons," Irfan hissed. "They found us." He pressed himself to a tree, legs shaking so much that he couldn't run even if he wanted to.

Mirth said nothing, just staring down the three as the big cat snarled underneath them. This time, the young man stepped in front of Irfan, sensing they were staring down the wingless Tianshi as much as they had been staring down the Shifter. A silent message seemed to slither between the three Magic Eating Demons.

The leader of the Demons smacked the feline atop of the head, earning her a snarl and a snap of deadly jaws. A moment passed, tail lashing before the feline's form began to change. Silvery grey fur disintegrated, and massive paws turned into hands and feet. The man from before that had tried to sniff out the traveling young adults, now lay naked on the ground, the same feline-like snarl etched on his face.

The young adults could only stare, dumbfounded, as the three Magic Eating Demons dragged the man away.

Once they were out of sight, Mirth turned to Irfan, only to remember that Rekka had been severely injured. Just as he was about to check over the gruesome bite wound, she pushed herself to her feet, the smell of burning flesh heavy in the air. She had cauterized her own injury with a fire hotter than what she usually wielded.

"I'm not weak," Rekka hissed. Her eyes darted to where Irfan was shivering against a tree. She then looked around, only to noticed that the Water Elemental was nowhere to be found. "Where's the water lover."

All tension broke from Mirth, and he looked over his shoulder where Aaralyn had been last standing. She was nowhere to be seen. "Aaralyn?" He called for the petite, dark-haired woman but received no answer. "Aaralyn?" He caught the side of a frond of dried violet leaves.

"We'll continue this later," Mirth grumbled under his breath, sending a glare at Rekka over his shoulder. "We have to find Aaralyn first. There's no telling what's out there that has been stalking us and what it'll do to any of us when we're alone. That Shifter was a mess."

"Like I'm going to look for a water lover." Rekka hissed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Then stay here and get attacked by those Magic Eating Demons."

Rekka let out a small growl. She glanced at the trees she had burst from some time ago and cursed under her breath. With that, she followed Mirth and Irfan.

~Character List~

The amber-eyed man/Grey-furred Leopard Shifter = The Dimetrodon

The 3 Magic-Eating-Demons = OCs