-Cutting the Strings-
Something about the way Third Arc stood felt wrong to Flame Princess. Sure, the girl looked as strong as ever, the full might of the earth at her disposal. But the posture ruined her entire appearance, somehow highlighting an underlying sense of imprisonment, due likely to the interference of a certain wizard.
The Arc raised her hand, causing the ground to rumble beneath FP's feet. She cautiously set herself into the air, worried that an attack was imminent from below. Her instincts were right, as several dozen massive roots burst from the earth moments later. They attempted to bash the fire elemental, but she was quick enough to burn them to ashes within seconds.
Landing back down, FP was faced with a mass of water from the nearby river. It still hurt when her flames were doused, but she figured a shield of fire would be less harmful than being directly blasted by the oncoming liquid. Third Arc's attacks seemed fairly disorganized, confusing the princess.
Looking back at the human, she saw the girl's stoic face, absent of any emotion, as if she were a doll. As more globs of water were thrown, FP decided it was time, regrettably, to strike back. After dodging the next volley of aqueous material, she flame dashed to the side, catching Third Arc off guard on her left. Flame Princess sent a wave of fire right at the human, hoping that it wouldn't damage her too much.
However, the Arc threw up a gust of wind from below, blowing the flames upward and out of her vicinity. Instead, they struck above her head, stunning FP as several objects appeared out of nowhere. Four ghostly strings, one connected to each arm, one to her head, and one to the human's back. The fiery girl recoiled, shocked by the sight.
"What in Grod's name are those!?"
Third Arc momentarily stopped attempting to douse the fire elemental, arms growing limp and hunching over, as if truly controlled by a puppeteer. Suddenly, her mouth formed into a grin, showing her teeth and letting out a muffled snickering. FP took a step back, slightly frightened by the behavior. The human then raised her head, staring at the fire elemental with a cruel expression of amusement.
"Heh, heh, heh, quite a stretch, isn't it?"
The voice, it wasn't Third Arc's, or at least, not just hers. There was a second, overlapping one that took over, giving the girl an aura of villainy that repulsed Flame Princess. On the other hand, she recognized the tone, tightening her fists and glaring at the human.
"Elodeus."
The Arc's hands inaccurately came together, clapping as she chuckled.
"Well done, princess of flames."
The girl's arms were released, as the wizard continued speaking.
"Unfortunately, the nature of Third Arc's power makes it rather difficult to control her. So I was forced to take greater measures in chaining her."
He laughed again, using the Arc's own mouth. FP felt disgusted, watching such foul manipulation.
"You're sick."
The strings made Third Arc shrug.
"I have no problem with that. After all, none of what you say will matter in a few minutes, when you're dead."
With that, the human suddenly lashed out, catching FP off guard as a spiral of roots bore out of the ground and constricted her in an instant. She struggled, trying her best to burn the vegetation, but it was difficult, seeing as these were from much deeper underground, and had plenty of water soaked into them. The young ruler groaned as the liquid held inside the plant began to sting her skin, causing a sufficient amount of pain to keep her unfocused.
Through her suffering, Flame Princess managed to open her eyes and look down to the earth, of which she was suspended a good fifty feet above. Third Arc stood there, mindlessly commanded by Elodeus' sinister strings. She looked hollow, an empty shell to be used. There was no true life to her. FP somehow sucked herself within her own mind, ignoring the pain that was literally eating away at her.
She could relate to the human; that sense of uselessness, lack of reason for existing. The fire elemental had experienced it before, all those years held within the glass lantern above her father's throne. Never knowing the outside, never living a full life...
...never finding love.
From out of nowhere, a blinding light blasted a hole in the constricting roots, instantly weakening them. Before Third Arc could react, another explosion vaporized the subterranean vines completely. After the human was done shielding her eyes, it was revealed that the vegetation had been completely annihilated, with flaming pieces raining down from the sky. In the middle of it all, Flame Princess gently floated down to the ground.
The moment she touched the grass, the fire elemental fell to her knees, panting as her arms supported her. However, regardless of the intense expulsion of energy she'd just performed, there was nothing but sheer will to fight on written on her face. With a bit of struggle, she got to her feet, setting her determined gaze on the human. Third Arc, or rather, Elodeus, was giving her a smirk.
"Bravo, but you realize you used up your strength for nothing."
FP scraped the dirt underneath her hands as she formed fists and closed her eyes.
I won't let you down. I'm not letting myself lose. Not until I can help them, and you, escape.
While her opponent was busy laughing and casually tugging Third Arc about with the strings, Flame Princess got to her feet, breathing steadily in and out. She got into position to meditate, calming herself and her volatile powers. The human she was facing stopped 'her' cackling, studying the fire elemental with minimal curiosity.
"Laying yourself down? Finally you seem to show your intelligence."
One of the strings jerked, causing Third Arc to gather up a massive orb of water from the river, then float it above Flame Princess's head. The Arc released control of the liquid mass, allowing gravity to bring it on top of FP, obscuring her figure in the torrential downpour. A sinister smile appeared on the human's face as she was forced to laugh evilly.
"Out goes the candle, haha-"
A blinding slash came from nowhere, startling Third Arc and causing her to stumble backwards. As the unprecedented attack ended, the human opened her instinctually shut eyes, observing the surroundings. She sensed heat behind her, turning to gaze at what stood at her back. Flame Princess was facing away from her, disengaging a flame sword on her arm. As the fiery weapon fizzled, a snap was heard from Third Arc.
The human looked at her right arm, seeing a now loose strand of phantasmal line dangling from it. Her eyes widened, then she looked back at FP, stunned.
"How did you..."
For the first time, Elodeus seemed quite concerned. Briefly, this brought a satisfied feeling to the fire elemental. Dismissing the petty emotion, she turned to face the surprised human, whose controller finally recovered from his shock and bared Third Arc's teeth at her.
"Why you little-"
FP fire dashed right at the Arc, attempting to sever another of Elodeus' strings. However, the wizard was too fast for her, immediately raising a wall of solid rock from the ground in front of Third Arc. Caught, Flame Princess put all her strength into not ramming into the stone, at least, not as hard. Regrettably, she still smashed her shoulder badly against the obstacle, grunting from the pain.
This momentary distraction cost her, as her opponent was able to drum up two more masses of water, using them to bombard the fiery girl by smashing the twin globs of liquid together, with FP in the middle. Third Arc lowered the wall back into the earth, observing that this time, the fire elemental had indeed been hit by her attack.
Flame Princess sputtered, trying her best to brush of the stinging pain of water contact. The Arc walked up next to fiery girl, carrying a vicious smile that was obviously not hers.
"You're powers could never surpass mine, mutant."
All pain vanished, instantly replaced by pure rage as the insult hit FP's ears. Her flames exploded like a beacon, forcing Third Arc to back away as the inferno grew into a full-on incendiary tornado. Once the bizarre weather had reached its pinnacle, an enraged red face appeared within its swirling flames. Flame Princess's roar echoed as the combustive vortex moved in on Third Arc.
Realizing real danger, Elodeus forced the human to retreat, backing away and bringing up multiple shots of water in an attempt to douse the aggravated ruler. It had no effect, since the aqueous material was vaporized upon coming within a foot of the twister. FP suddenly sent out waves of her blazing force of nature, having lost all restraint and aiming to kill the human fleeing her might.
Unfortunately, due to the string that had been sliced, Elodeus only had full control of one of Third Arc's arms, the other being to resistant to be of any use. The wizard cursed his disadvantageous position, knowing his puppet couldn't last long against this type of fire. As the flame waves lashed out at the Arc, she had difficulty avoiding all of them, being that their pattern was as chaotic and destructive as the one who had conjured them.
As the grasslands began to burn from the strikes, the human began to struggle further with avoiding the fires. This culminated when another series of waves closed in on her. Even with Elodeus' puppeteering, the string attached to Third Arc's head was cut and burned away. In that moment, the true owner of the body was reawakened.
"No!" the vile wizard shouted as he lost control of the human's mouth.
Third Arc fell to her knees, breathing heavily and doing her best to refocus. Once the insane temperature around her became apparent, she looked up, astonished at what she saw.
Flame princess's scorching form still growled with anger and fury, glaring down at the human as it continued to grow closer. Third Arc's face shown concern, sorrow, and even a bit of shame.
"FP..."
The fiery girl struck with another wave of flames, which the Arc narrowly avoided by throwing herself to the side. By this time, the entirety of the surrounding grassland was ashes, with rampant fires burning away now even the dirt underneath. The human was grief-stricken, seeing such devastation befall the natural plain. However, she knew better than to blame the fire elemental.
Flame Princess had been through unimaginable stress throughout the past few days. Being set off by Elodeus was inevitable. Suddenly, Third Arc got to her feet, holding out her arm to conjure up large chunks of earth to throw at FP. She grinded her teeth, using her other arm to resist.
"No!...I...won't...let you!"
The wizard cackled maliciously as he used the remaining two strings to force the girl to hurl boulders pulled out of the ground right at Flame Princess. The blazing tornado was disrupted by the hits, destabilizing and beginning to shrink.
"Stop it!" the Arc cried.
FP's pained shouts were all she received in reply, as the fire elemental shrunk down further until finally being brought to her hands and knees on the charred ground. Third Arc at last managed to stop her arm, struggling to make her way to the downed ruler. In the meantime, the fiery girl looked up at the Arc, a look of hatred in her burning eyes. She had utterly forgotten that the human wasn't responsible for the attacks.
Fighting off Elodeus' influence, she at last was able to fall flat on the ground, right in front of the subjugated Flame Princess. Gazing up, with difficulty, at the fire elemental, Third Arc saw FP raising her hand to her, aiming to blast the human with a flurry of combustive wrath. Shedding a single tear, the Arc threw herself forward, despite the wizard's denial, and managed to place her finger on the flame being's forehead.
This act immediately surprised the girl, who fizzled out her flames as her amber eyes stared astonished at the human. Third Arc glued her desperate sight to that of the royal's.
"Remember who you are."
FP was instantly pulled within her own mind, separated from the chaotic physical realm for a brief moment.
When Flame Princess next opened her eyes, she was lying flat on her back, in a completely dark environment with nothing in sight. Utterly confused, the fiery girl got to her feet, trying to distinguish any detail whatsoever that could identify the area.
"Where am I?" she called out to no one.
She waited, seemingly for a response that she was sure would never come. However, she was soon surprised when a familiar voice from behind called back.
"You're where you need to be."
Shocked, FP spun around, only to see Finn, standing a few feet away and smiling warmly at the girl.
"Finn!"
The young ruler instantly rushed into the human's arms, holding him so tightly she was slightly concerned she was suffocating him. This was disproved shortly after, as he placed his arms around her back.
"You've got a big battle coming up," he began.
Flame Princess tore her head away from the hero's neck, looking him in the eyes.
"FP, I know you've got that fire elemental pride in you, it's hard to deal with a loudmouthed jerk."
The king listened closely.
"But right now, everyone needs you, including Tres. She's in pain, as are all the Arcs, stuck under that wizard's control."
He leaned his forehead to bump hers.
"You're not some reckless force of destruction. To me, you've always been one thing."
Flame Princess kept staring into his eyes. Absentmindedly, her face was drawing closer to his.
"What's that?" she asked.
Finn closed his eyes, also leaning in.
"A strong and passionate girl, who's tough as they come."
A second later, their lips met, unleashing light into the dark world around them. The entire plane was consumed by the brightness, pulling Flame Princess out of the space.
Upon returning to the physical world, FP noticed her calming flames. The grasslands were becoming quiet, as she extinguished the last of her fires and looked on with sadness at the destruction she had wrecked. She still didn't have a grip on her powers, but she swore, one day there would be nothing to fear of her outbursts. Ooo did not deserve to suffer because of her fury.
A groan caught her attention, returning her gaze to Third Arc, who was fighting with the last portions of Elodeus' control.
"Tres!"
FP knelt by the human, attempting to get her to her feet. Unfortunately, the girl's arm was trying to fight on, making it difficult. With quick precision, Flame Princess severed the third string, giving the Arc control over most of her body. The moment that the young lady stood up, a crippling pain was felt throughout her back, nearly bringing her back down.
"It's no use. With that last string, I'll never break away from him."
Flame Princess reproduced her blazing sword, preparing to break the connection between the Arc and the villainous being controlling her.
"Don't worry. I'll free you, Tres. Just like I promised."
Third Arc gave the fire elemental a frown, which stopped her from slashing at the string.
"This...won't free me, Flame Princess."
The young ruler was shocked, looking hard into the tearful eyes of the human.
"If I fall, Elodeus will ensure that I will not get back up."
FP's mouth trembled as she dissipated her fire blade.
"N-no, that can't be."
Third Arc forced through a gentle smile, taking the fire elemental's hand in hers and squeezing it tightly.
"It's alright, FP. I know you did what you could."
The fiery girl shook her head.
"But that wasn't good enough!"
Tres chuckled.
"Flame Princess, you gave me hope, hope that this evil can be stopped, and when it is, you'll be able to enjoy life to the fullest. Earth will be spared, and you will all be free to do as you will."
She closed her eyes.
"As for me, I can finally rejoin my love, who awaits me somewhere in the afterlife."
She looked back at FP, who was beginning to cry as well.
"Those were Finn's true words you know."
The fire elemental was briefly stunned.
"After he embraced his identity as an Arc, I peered into his heart, finding that through it all..."
She closed her eyes again.
"He wanted to make the world a better place by our actions. Specifically, he wanted to show how much he was willing to change...for you."
Flame Princess gasped, watching as Third Arc allowed her strength to seep away. Regrettably, she reformed her flame sword, giving a quick slash to the string fastened to the human's back. Elodeus' voice could be heard fading into the wind, but it wasn't a curse to the fire elemental, or an enraged roar. It was a laugh.
Both girls ignored it, focusing instead on their limited time. Third Arc's body had already lost its solid form, appearing transparent and frail. The human did her best to hang on, as Flame Princess continued to let lava tears run down her cheeks. Tres placed her hand against the girl's abdomen.
"I'm glad that, at the very least, I was able to give you a gift before I left..."
FP panicked as the young lady's hand vanished into the air, along with most of her lower body.
"Tres!"
No matter how desperately she wanted to save the human, the young ruler could do nothing as Third Arc's figure dematerialized, fading away, reduced to a cloud of dim shimmers that flew off to the sky. Flame Princess fell back to her knees, head hung and hands formed into fists.
"Finn..."
She looked out into the distance, spotting a strange luminous anomaly that was certainly where Elodeus was still plotting. Aside from the phenomenon, Tres' remains were the sole source of light in the sky, shining down on the solemn fire elemental.
"I'm not letting you go. Never."
A/N: I'm really sorry about how long it's been. I haven't been able to get to my computer in a while.
kirbyfan1996: Glad to hear that.
DJ Rodriguez: I'm hoping to return to normal updating schedule, so I'll do my best.
OMAC001: Here's to that.
Fiery Crusader: I wish I could've given it to you sooner, but rest assured I won't give up on it.
TheMentalAdventurer: Yeah, I have a thing for scientific junk and all it's interesting concepts.
I am The7: Yep, it's awful.