Elora fell to her knees, still bound by the ropes made from shadows, her head lowered and she though "Pull yourself together, you can fight him. Fight, Elora, Fight!" But then she screamed as a painful sting ran through her body, a sting as if she were being electrocuted. The image of herself in her own mind started to become more transparent, this she could see... she was starting to fade away.
"I can't give up." Elora whispered to no one in particular.
"Give in to me, girl." Voldemort, whom had been watching Elora from a distance hissed.
Elora lifted her head and looked up at Voldemort, pure rage had taken over the fear Elora felt for him. "You expect me to give in?" Elora sneered, "I would never! Not to you; not to anyone; and NOT this way. I'm not gonna die because you commanded me to!" Another painful sting went through Elora's body. She winced and shook, but held in her scream.
"Look at yourself." Voldemort said, "Slowly but surely you're fading away. You shouldn't fight it, it'll hurt less that way."
"Since when did you care if someone was in pain or not?"
Voldemort growled, "As soon as you're gone, girl, your full power will be mine. The power of Fire will merge with that of Shadow."
"Shadow Fire." Elora whispered.
"Yes!" Voldemort cackled, "Doesn't it sound beautiful? The two powers combined will create an even stronger force, one that I will control. I will truly be invincible."
"Don't count on it." Elora shot just as another sting spread through her body. She screamed because this one was stronger and more painful than the others were.
Voldemort laughed loudly, "It's humorous to see innocent's suffer. Can you feel it? The pain... the emptiness. The feeling of your own soul fading?"
A thunderous roar broke in; "It will not be that way."
Elora, as well as Voldemort, looked around. "Who said that?" Voldemort shouted.
Then, in front of Elora, the fire dragon appeared from a cyclone of flames. It guarded Elora, keeping its flaming eyes upon Voldemort. "You must be Voldemort," the dragon's deep voice roared, "The dark wizard whom took over Gaelen, the Shadow Guardian."
Voldemort grinned, "That I am. You must be the Fire Spirit, the shadow of fire power."
"Release the girl!" the dragon shouted. "She will not be a part of your evil plan."
"On the contrary, dragon. She has a vital role in my plan, as do the other Guardians. When I gather the powers of all the elements I will rule the worlds of this plain and others."
"Never." Elora sneered while trying to gain balance on her own feet.
Voldemort noticed Elora standing up. He waved his hand forward yelling, "Down!" as the ropes binding Elora shrunk, sending a sharp sting of pain through her body.
Elora stood her ground, taking her mind off the pain the ropes gave her, "The great Voldemort, the dark wizard, attacking an innocent girl just to attempt to take over worlds vaster than his own power. How pathetic."
"You will be silent, girl!" Voldemort hissed.
"I will not be silent!" Elora screamed, "You killed my Grandmother. Now I seek revenge. The great Voldemort will feel his downfall!" Just then, the ropes that bound Elora broke.
Then, in front of both Elora and Voldemort, the Fire Dragon grew larger. His thunderous roar grew louder.
"You power is growing." Voldemort hissed, "If I'm to have your full power then I will have to defeat your dragon with my own spirit."
Elora gasped as Voldemort summoned the Shadow Spirit: a great panther created from black gas. It stared at the Fire Dragon, and the Fire Dragon stared back. They charged at each other. The dragon sending a large fireball towards it while the panther swiped its claws. With a mighty force the panther fell back as the fireball hit it. It crashed to the ground.
"Place them on their...- ARGH!" Voldemort-in-Elora commanded Iceabelle, just to sto short with a scream of pain.
"My Lord, is there something wrong?" Iceabelle asked.
"The stupid girl is fighting back. Iceabelle, I might lose control of her. Quickly, get Potter and the others on their platforms and we'll start the collecting."
"Yes! Elora's fighting back! I knew she could do it!" Harry shouted with excitement.
"Shut up, Potter!" Voldemort-in-Elora hissed, "Now Iceabelle!"
Iceabelle bowed her head and quickly forced Harry and the others near the center of a ring where a pillar stood, and six platforms (with stairs) surrounded it. Each platform had a symbol embedded on it. The six symbols represented the seven elements of the Maze - Ice, Water, Wind, Forest, Lightning, and Fire. The center pillar had no marking, but instead of being white like the platforms, the shades varied from white to black (actually moving through the scales of white to black).
"Move it!" Iceabelle shouted, pushing Harry towards the Lightning platform, and the others to their respective platforms. "Stand in the center of the platform. Now!" she barked.
Each did as they were told. They waited for the exact moment when the enchantment that held their powers at bay would be released. Harry gazed over at Voldemort-in-Elora who was having a hard time standing up. When he reached the top of the Fire platform he collapsed. Harry could feel the enchantment lift from around around him... it was time.
Continued: Chapter 22 - Elemental Power