Chapter 18: Story of the Elemental Gods

A/N: In case you forgot, I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or D&D.

A thunder storm developed a few miles later. Cold rain poured and lightning roared. Fast blowing wind blew leaves, small rocks, water, and dirt into the girls' path. One of them spotted a cave with a small opening, barely big enough for them to enter, but small enough for it to go on unnoticed. They entered and quickly made a fire with the wood Caitlin had collected. Gloria sat near the entrance of the cave while everyone else sat around the fire. No one had spoken since they entered the cave. They were shocked from what they had just discovered. Melissa was the first to break the dead silence. "So let me get this straight. You knew this Ation?" she questioned.

Gloria didn't reply. She was just staring at the ground, upset and stunned from her recent discovery. "You knew this guy and you never told us about it?" Melissa continued.

"I don't remember," Gloria replied.

"You don't remember? How is it that this guy remembers? Why don't you remember? You betrayed him long ago! You could've been killed!" Melissa cried.

"I don't remember!" Gloria replied angrily. "You expect me to remember everything about my life! If I remembered knowing him, then I would've told you and the others about him!"

Ashley was about to stop them when Jessica stopped her. "This is between them," she stated. "This is their only way of settling their differences and solving their problems."

Ashley looked at her and looked back at Gloria and Melissa. As much as she did want to bring an end to their arguing she knew Jessica had a point. "Gloria, I don't expect you to remember everything about your life, but if you can remember your childhood and teenage years, you should be able to remember this," Melissa said.

"But I don't remember ANYTHING about Ation!" retorted Gloria.

"Maybe the reason is because he was very different before than now. Or perhaps you just need time to think," Caitlin said.

"Well, on our way home, you can think about it," Ashley said.

"That should be able to help or when we get home, we can help you remember," Jessica added.

"I can do my best," Gloria said.

"You might remember as we continue," Ashley said. "But we'll try our best to help you."

"Thanks guys," Gloria said.

Melissa took in a deep breath and calmed down hastily. "Alright Gloria, sorry for yelling at you. Guess I'm still just a bit surprised about you actually being acquainted with our guy."

"Just make sure you think before you get angry," Gloria remarked.

Gloria finally walked to the fire and sat with everyone else. A flash of lightning lighted the sky with strong light for a brief moment. Then it became dark again. "You know, this reminds me of the thunder god," uttered Melissa.

"There's a thunder god!" Caitlin exclaimed.

"Of course! There are gods for all the elements on Earth, including our own powers," Melissa declared.

"Really now?" Gloria felt a spark of interest. "I sense a story coming."

"Well, it's long but do you want to hear?" wondered Melissa.

Everyone nodded. "Alright," she smiled. "But first…" Melissa shot a fireball at the already burning fire. The cave became even warmer as the fire grew bigger. She soon got herself comfortable and so did the others. "Are you ready?"

They nodded their heads in reply. They all sat around the fire as Melissa cleared her throat and began her story. "There are precisely 7 gods for each element," she began. "Darkness is considered an element just so you know. These gods go by the name of Slifer, Avani, Desdemona, Gryphon, Tranquility, Hyozanryu, and Gren Maju Da Eiza. They control a specific element. These elements are electricity, earth, fire, water, wind, ice, and darkness but you guys should know that. Each of these gods has their own special way of becoming a god.

"Slifer was one of the very first gods. Slifer became a god of electricity because he was in a noble fight to save Earth. Desdemona, Hyozanryu, Avani, Gryphon, Gren, and Tranquility joined him. Slifer's family had been killed by an evil being identified as Kolak. Slifer was also enraged and upset because Kolak killed more than his family. His friends and other innocent beings were killed. Slifer became friends with the other to-be gods and together, they united to fight Kolak. As for Kolak's being, it is unknown for now but is close to being discovered. Slifer succeeded in killing Kolak but it cost him his life. He died in that great war and soon became a powerful god. Before this fight, Slifer had been fascinated with electricity. He thought of electricity as a beautiful thing to look at like fire. He grew up around the element and discovered his power when he killed an evil being called a death elf, who casts spells and cause nothing but torture and death. Since then, he was dedicated in terminating all of evil. His final sacrifice made him a legend; therefore, he became a god. It is said that he's a long red snake-like dragon with spikes on his back, two mouths, and large wings. If there's a thunder/lightning storm, it signifies Slifer's anger. But when he takes electricity away like a blackout, it shows that he is in a fight, mind you just because he's a god doesn't mean he no longer fights evil, or it shows that it's punishment for the evildoing of a monster or human. He has given us his power to survive. His electricity signifies his intense power.

"Tranquility is goddess of water. She is believed to be a blue woman with hair that had all the colors of the rainbow. She's also supposed to be wearing a long light blue dress. She is goddess of water because she was also part of the war Slifer and the others took part in. Most of her family was killed but the only survivor was her younger sister, who, in addition, loved water as well as she did. Tranquility and her sister tried all they could to protect others but neither could stand up to the power of Kolak. Then Tranquility met Slifer and soon learned what he was doing. She and her sister joined the others to a final battle. She helped defeat Kolak but also lost her life. And, like Slifer, because of her sacrifice, she became goddess. Before the fight, she was fascinated with water, but never liked to waste it like we humans do today. She too discovered her power when she saved some stranded sailors from a sea monster. She also became dedicated in destroying all that was evil. She became a legend after her death. It is said that when she's angry, destructive tidal waves, floods, and tsunamis will form. Supposedly when it's raining like now, she's upset. Oceans, waterfalls, rivers, and lakes, including rainbows, stand for her beauty. She gives us her power to help us survive like Slifer. As you can see, Slifer and Tranquility have a lot in common. They sacrificed themselves, protected all good, loved their elements, were fascinated by their elements, lost most of their friends and family, became legends, and, lastly, became god and goddess. They are the wisest of all the gods and they are the strongest of all 7. They soon became extremely close friends, but didn't fall in love with each other, or at least I don't think they did.

"The next powerful one is Gren Maju Da Eiza. He is god of fire. Before his final battle, he studied fire and even loved being in places of hot temperatures. He loved watching its power. He never liked to waste his fire, even if he had an unlimited supply. He only used it for specific tasks. He spent most of his life with fire and practiced with it. He discovered his power when he killed his own father for murdering his mother. He was very devastated by her death and therefore, he was determined to let no evil live. He showed no mercy and even enjoyed watching his evil victims writhe in pain. He treated it as punishment for what the sinful being had done to the good. He supposedly has green scaly skin with orange armored skin, a snake-like body, and dragon wings. He also joined the war and helped killed Kolak. But that was the first time he experienced fire's true destructive power. His great fire helped bring death to Kolak but his triumph was short-lived for he died after the war. His body was thrown inside a volcano, since he loved fire and his wish was fulfilled. Slifer and Tranquility didn't have a wish after death like Gren. It is now assumed that when a volcano erupts, he is very angry. It's even alleged that explosions from explosives like grenades, rockets; even the all-powerful nuclear/atomic weapon shows his anger. He has given us his power to help protect the world rather than help us survive. True, we wouldn't have survived without fire but we use fire far more on wars and things like that.

"Next one's Hyozanryu. He is the god of ice. He enjoyed being around ice and even risked his life persistently just to test the power of frost. He used to be a shiny silver dragon until one day while he was spending his usual time with ice, he was attacked by a frost bird. Hyozanryu didn't have much fighting experience because he never liked to fight. He would only fight if absolutely necessary. The frost bird's attack devastated him by freezing him. It then left him for dead. Luckily, he was able to break free but not after nearly a month. Note that even though silvers are immune to ice, they can still be frozen by it. But they can't die from it. So if they were frozen in a block of ice, their powers would steadily melt the ice, freeing them. Anyway, once he was finally free he looked at his new body and realized what had happened. While he was frozen the bird's frost literally turned his scales into pure ice that can't be melted. But he wasn't devastated by his icy transformation. In fact, he enjoyed turning into an ice dragon! He was now icy blue with golden claws. But his moment of happiness was cut short when he thought of the frost bird. He wanted his vengeance, even if he liked being an ice dragon. Hyozanryu never allowed anyone to defeat him without payback. He still had a heart of a silver dragon. He hunted the bird down and finally killed it. But that wasn't doomsday for him. Death for him would be when he would join the fight against Kolak. He hadn't exactly lost any friends or family to him, but, as all silver dragons, he didn't like watching guiltless beings die from Kolak's onslaught. He fought bravely alongside the others and died with honor. Now when there are blizzards or avalanches, it means that he is angry. Snowing is a way of showing how happy he was when he was alive.

"Next is Gryphon. Gryphon's god of wind. He enjoyed feeling the cool wind breeze on his feathers. He is a turquoise eagle with red eyes and sharp talons. He loved 'basking' in windy days. He sometimes used his time to study the wind and even tested his power at times. He too joined the fight against Kolak and only joined because he didn't like to see innocent mortals killed by the nearly invincible Kolak. He was responsible for creating the ultimate attack, which combined his power with the others. But he was the first to actually come up with it. It's an even longer story. So he had the others combine their power and together they killed Kolak. And like the rest of them, he died honorably. When tornadoes form, it signifies his anger like all disastrous weather. But windy days show that he is cheerful and shows us why he was happy when he was alive.

"The next one's Desdemona. She is goddess of darkness. Although darkness isn't exactly an element, we and the gods consider it as one. Anyways, she is supposed to be a green colored woman with purple hair, a third eye (positioned as a vertical slit like a cat or snake's pupil), a long dark purple dress, and nice jewelry. She loved being in darkness. Often times, she would spend her day in a dark room. She hardly went out in the sun but always went out at night. She enjoyed being with nocturnal creatures and loved traveling with them. She lost all her friends and family from Kolak and went mad with vengeance. No, she didn't go insane from anger and depression. She was just dying to gain revenge on him. So she fought and died respectably. You know how there are places on Earth where the sun takes forever to rise? According to legend, when it takes longer than normal, it supposed to mean she's angry. It is unknown what happens when she shows everyone how happy she used to be. People believe that when it becomes night and when nocturnal animals come out, she shows that she's happy. But some people don't believe that.

"The last one is Avani. She loved anything of earth and, like Tranquility; she took great care of the earth. But many people harmed the earth, which made Avani furious. She has purple hair, a sharp sword, and the clothes of an Amazon warrior. She loved creating things like drakestone golems (a dragon made of a special stone that only takes orders from its creator) with her earth powers when she first discovered it, which was when she killed an enemy of hers. She befriended few earth-loving creatures, but spent most of her time with her favorite creations, the drakestone golems. She was unkind to most creatures, especially humankind. True she lost most of her drakestone golems from Kolak but she preferred working alone, so at first she didn't help Slifer and the others. But they eventually got through to her and she helped them defeat him. For the last time, she died with respect. Now rock slides, dust bowls, earthquakes, and sandstorms show when she is angry. Daredevils or small tornadoes made of sand/dirt show how fast and daring she was.

"These guys became gods of the elements they liked. They all sacrificed themselves to protect the entire world. When they're angry, their rage damages Earth. And it's believed that one day, they will be angry at the same time and they will destroy Earth with just that, which some of us knows as Armageddon. Each day, they get angry for crimes that the evil do. But at the same time, they protect us from them. This war we're having could be getting them very angry and if we don't finish this now, it's a pretty safe bet that they can get very angry at the same time, spelling end of the world for everyone."

Thunder roared loudly and more angry lightning bolts struck the sky. "Wow," Caitlin said, amazed. "So is that how we got our powers?"

"I don't know but I highly doubt we were chosen at random," Melissa went on. "It could've depended on our ancestors."

"Why?" Caitlin pursued.

"Well, a god wouldn't just give anybody their power because then that person equipped with their power could kill themselves. The gods' powers are extremely powerful," Melissa continued. "In each bolt of Slifer's lightning, there are over 100,000 volts, powerful enough to kill maybe 30 humans in one strike. Tranquility's water can turn New York from a thriving city to a ruined city with remains of building, cars, and living things all over the place. Gryphon's wind can destroy the state of CA in a day! Desdemona's darkness can bring eternal darkness to the entire world, blocking the sun's rays. Gren's fire can burn down half of America within minutes. Hyozanryu's ice can freeze the entire continent of Texas in seconds. It can even freeze pure lava and not melt for a very long time. Avani's earth can crush the entire state of Montana, turning it into a wasteland. Combining all these powers will mean doomsday for Earth."

"Ok we get the point!" Gloria looked at her with a thoughtful expression. "It is interesting, but aren't some of these gods from…Yu-Gi-Oh?"

"Yes," Melissa replied. "But I didn't make any of these things up. Yu-Gi-Oh created cards based on the gods. But other games and shows and things like that have based monsters or characters on the gods."

"Coolio. That was a very long story you told."

"Yeah I know."

"Well I think it's time to go to sleep. It's probably almost midnight."

Caitlin made pillows and blankets of clean grass. They all fell asleep near each other by the fire.

The next day, they rode a silver dragon for 8 miles and then flew back home themselves. Gloria and Ashley didn't fly at all this time. They stopped to rest when they had a few miles to go. They told stories around the fire again that kept their spirits up. Gloria was keeper of funny stories. Ashley was keeper of scary stories and stories of killers. Caitlin was keeper of creepy stories of crazy people. Jessica was keeper of witch related stories and family stories. Melissa was keeper of legends/myths and monster stories.

After 3 days, they finally reached home. It was almost midnight by the time they had arrived. They all went to sleep quickly once they split and went home. They slept longer, now that they were in their own decent bed, but they would once again wake up into another nightmare.

"Shoot! They stopped the thunder lizards too!" Ation yelled.

"I swear you are a frickin' dumbass," Abby commented. "They're smart, unlike you. With Gloria, they're gonna beat you. She's smart and a good leader. So there's, like, no way you can beat them."

"Whose side are you on?"

"I am on Gloria's side. Duh!"

"Alright, you're going to the attic NOW!"

"Oh no, you didn't! I ain't going up there."

Suddenly five monsters that were orange with black spots and had spikes all over them stood in her way on all fours. "Go now!" he ordered again.

"Fine." Abby turned around and headed out the door. She went up to the attic and remained there with her rat Elizabeth. "Now it's time for the last threat," Ation noted. "If that doesn't work, we are going face-to-face. This should also give me enough time to finish working on my master plan."