I wanted to keep Guan's... actions secret. Chase agreed, after much persuading. Guan was more than a little surprised that he wasn't kicked out of the temple or punished the next day. But then, we did have other problems.

A few minutes before dawn, Dojo began screaming that the temple was under attack, at the eastern field, the area facing the mountains.. Dashi, Guan, Chase and I immediately jumped into action. The eastern field was surrounded by the golems that had attacked me at the beginning. I recognized the red-haired woman at their head.

"Dashi," she smiled gleefully, revealing two pointed fangs. "It's nice to see all of you." Her eyes narrowed as she noticed me.

"We'll see how nice it would be for you, after we thrash your sorry butt!" Dashi retorted.

Anger flared up in her features.

I quickly assessed the situation. The sun had yet to rise, and the shadows still ruled. Wuya i should /i be the one holding the advantage, with the size of her army. But the fact that I was there made a huge difference. One, earth was element, something that the witch could not have been aware of, (either that, or she was a complete idiot) as she was using minions made out of i rock /i . Two, besides the Earth, I controlled the shadows, and the shadows powered me. I smirked.

"Attack, my creatures!" she shouted, pointing a razor-sharp nail at us.

Before the order had even been completely issued, I snapped my fingers. At my command, the rock golems had collapsed in a heap of rubble and dust.

" What?" she shrieked. Her name was very appropriate. Wuya- Crow.

In the next second, Dashi had leapt to her side so quickly; he was just a moving blur. I could see he was clutching a small box. When he slid it open, Wuya screamed - whether in pain or rage I couldn't tell. Her form wavered and grew translucent and insubstainable, then vanished in a puff of smoke that was sucked into the box. With a tiny click, the box slid shut.

A celebration at the temple was thrown in Dashi's honor, for sealing the witch. I refused to get involved and sneaked out with Chase.

We went to our - already, I had begun to think of it as our secret, private place - valley. But even as I breathed in the cool, sweetly scented air, I couldn't shrug off the feeling that we were being watched.

"What happened with Guan?" Chase suddenly demanded.

I inhaled deeply and sighed. "He... Just attacked me." I realized how bleak my voice sounded terribly bleak and fragile, even to my ears. "I felt ... frozen. I couldn't move, to struggle or attack. Your voice... You came just in time." my voice trailed off, and I was reminded, forcibly, of a previous incident.

"But there's something that you're not telling me," Chase prodded, but gently. As I stared at his eyes, it was like drowning in twin golden pools.

"Are you sure you want to know?" I asked, my voice trembling slightly.

"Tell me or I'll think it's worse than it really is."

Master Du eyes me critically.

"You've grown into a fine woman now," he says. I shrug, unsure on how to answer. His eyes glitter as he looks at me.

All of a sudden, I'm thrown on the ground and his face is so close to mine. I realize what he's doing and shriek, terrified.

"Be still," he whispers harshly as he pins me down.

Rage and terror struggles in a locked battle inside me. Rage wins and it quickly changes to hate. The hate allows me to focus on the situation. I close my eyes and silently summon my element.

But it is not the Earth that answers my call, but the shadows. It responds to my hatred, and suddenly, a huge looming shadow appears and throws my mentor back. He crashes onto the solid walls of the hut.

"You-" he gasps in shock.

As I get up, my senses heighten. My vision sharpens and my hearing grows keener. I can sense the shock and taste the fear my mentor feels.

"I taught you the Heylin ways well." He breaks out in a smile. "A true warrior of evil."

Then there is a ripping sound, like the tearing of silk as the shadows reach out and pull open his chest. Blood gushes from the wound like a red stream. It seems to glow a brilliant red in the dim light and I savor the sensation as it splatters on me, steaming hot. I smile a wicked smile.

As a final touch, a dark hand reaches out and plucks my mentor's still-beating heart from his chest and drops it into my expectant hands.

The memory haunts me, even today. That was the day I discovered my other element.

I barely realized Chase had pulled me closer to him; I was too wrapped up in my memory. Then I catch a whisper, almost inaudible even to my ears. The whisper sounded soft and velvety. The voice of shadows. I listened closely.

"I need to be alone," I mumbled, still absorbed by what the soft voice had told me. Gently, I pushed him away and slipped off into the night.