Chapter 3

Scorched Earth

Balsilide

The world around Caleb exploded in fire and chaos. Tables flew through the air, as well as many of the people sitting at them. Caleb didn't care. Picking himself up of the ground, his muscles ached, and his jacket was on fire, beginning to burn his hair and skin. Caleb didn't care. Discarding the burning cloth quickly, Caleb surveyed the area around himself. His team, as well as everyone else at the table, were scattered on the ground. The lucky ones were lying on the ground, coughing. The unlucky ones weren't coughing. Caleb didn't care.

The only thing that mattered to Caleb at this moment was the young girl before him, struggling to get up. The rest of his friends were trained warriors, and could handle themselves. The light of Meridian, Queen Elyon, could not. Soot covered Elyon, and she coughed even more of the black powder out of her lungs. Bending down, Caleb helped Elyon to her feet.

"Caleb!" came a voice from behind.

The boy turned at the sound of his name to find Will, coughing, but on her feet.

"Caleb, I need you to…"

"No, Will." Caleb replied. "The only thing I need to do is get Elyon to safety."

Caleb used the Tonga tooth to quickly fold himself and Elyon back to Meridian.

"I need you to get Elyon to safety." Will trailed off as she watched Caleb disappear.

Will sighed and looked around her. She had transformed the girls into Guardians the second she heard the explosion. With relief she also noticed that Matt had transformed, and appeared to be unharmed. With that knowledge safety in her mind, she tried to remember what happened. It had been an ordinary dinner, until a large explosion had sent everyone flying. And the explosions didn't appear to be stopping, Will noted as another ball of fire went up in the distance.

"Head count!" Will yelled. "Girls, you all here?"

"Yeah, we're here." Irma replied. "Although I wish I wasn't."

"We're all fine, Will. Just a little sore." Taranee answered. "What happened?"

"No idea." Will replied. "How's everybody else? The Honor Guard?"

"Battered, but not broken." Came a voice from beside Will.

Vathek pulled himself from under the flipped table and dusted himself off.

"I'm all right, but I can't say the same about the others. Julian's in bad shape."

"Will! I don't see Caleb or Elyon!" Cornelia shouted searching franticly.

"We're fine, Cornelia." Caleb said, emerging from a fold. "Elyon's back on Meridian, safe."

Just as he spoke, another, smaller explosion shook the ground once more.

"Vathek, get everyone to safety on Meridian. Starting with the Balsilidian president." Caleb said, handing his old friend the Tonga Tooth. "Girls, let's figure out what's causing these explosions."

"Sounds good to me." Will replied. "But first, Matt! I want you to…"

"No Will." Matt said, approaching Will. "These are my friends too. I won't run from this fight. I can help."

"I don't want you to run," Will said calmly, "I want you to get in the air and see if you can get a good view of the area. Why does no one let me finish orders anymore?"

"Sorry." Matt said weakly as he took to the skies.

"Taranee, Irma, see what you can do about these fires." Will said loudly. "Cornelia, Hay Lin, try to find out what started this. Do a city wide search…"

Suddenly, Will was interrupted by the sound of laughter. The girls turned to find a dark figure, standing on the roof of a burning building. At first, Will thought it was just a silhouette of a man, but she quickly realized that it was just the stranger's appearance. Black and featureless, the person was like a shadow, drifting back and forth along the rooftop. Only the creatures' bright red eyes allowed Will to follow its movements. Although the roof he was standing on was burning, the creature did not seem to be bothered by the flames.

"People of Balsilide!" the figure shouted, it's voice echoing through the fires. "You took something from me, and now your day of reckoning has arrived. You live in sin, and unjust wealth. You live, eat and drink on the bones of the innocent, and for that, I, the Shadow Walker, have decided to put an end to your atrocities! Watch now, as your world burns around you."

"Cancel the city wide search." Will said through gritted teeth.

"So can we just go up and hit him, or what?" Cornelia asked with clenched fists.

"It's not that simple." Taranee replied. "There are still people who need our help. Besides, I don't think our new friend is going anywhere."

"Irma, Taranee, help with the clean-up," Will said, taking charge. "Try to control these fires, and help Vathek get people to Meridian. Start with the injured members of the R.E.G and the Honor Guard, and go from there."

"Got it Will." Irma replied, starting to lift Grimm, the R.E.G's magician who had been knocked unconscious by the explosion.

"Wait!"

Will spun to find Balken, the leader of the R.E.G, heading towards her.

"These men fell on Balsilide, and it is there they shall remain." Balken said. "They will not go to Meridian."

"What?" Will shouted. "And what happens if they die here on Balsilide?"

"Then such is their duty and their honor." Balken replied.

Suddenly, Wilder, the military commander of Balsilide, pushed Balken aside, striding up to Will.

"Oh, for heaven's sake, shut up Balken!" Wilder said, as Balken's eyes went wide.

Wilder was not a young woman by any means. But although she was covered in soot and clearly limping, she still held herself with dignity and grace.

"Ma'am, they wish to take our wounded off-world, to Meridian!" Balken explained. Despite being a foot smaller then the R.E.G leader, Wilder stared the Balken down with an icy gaze.

"The sky burns above us, yet you would squabble over territory like a child? I am the military commander of Balsilide, which means I give the orders, not you. Understand?"

Though he didn't respond, Balken made it clear that he understood fine, and wasn't happy about it. Seemingly satisfied by this non-response, Wilder strode passed Balken and headed for Will.

"Guardian. Any assistance you could provide in assuring the safety of the men and women of Balsilide would be appreciated. In addition, I would like to request the aid of the Guardians and their allies in handling the current catastrophe."

"Um, if that means you want us to help, then yeah, sure!" Will said, taken aback by the older woman's presence. "And, no offence to your troops, but they should probably stay back until we know what we're dealing with."

"A wise decision, and one I will abide by." Wilder replied. "We will attempt to reduce the chaos."

Will breathed a sigh of relief as Wilder left. Will smiled as she realized she was much more comfortable around monsters then around high-ranking officials like Wilder. Still, Wilder seemed much more understanding then her R.E.G counterparts. She turned to her friends, waiting on her instructions.

"Irma, Taranee, keep working on the fires. Hay Lin, go high. Make sure this guy doesn't escape, and see if he has any other tricks up his sleeve. Matt, Cornelia, you're with me. Let's go meet our mystery man."

The Shadow Walker had been watching the chaos below him with curiosity from atop his roof. He continued to watch as Matt, Cornelia and Will took off and headed towards him. Together, the three of them had the power to shake worlds. Any other beings would tremble at the sight of their combined might, but the Shadow Walker stood his ground.

"You call yourself the Shadow Walker?" Will asked, hovering in front of the shadowy figure.

"Yes, and who might you be?" replied the Shadow Walker.

"We're the people who are going to bring you down." Will replied firmly.

To the surprise of the three people in front of him, the Shadow Walker laughed. Will could not recall hearing such an unnerving laugh in her life, like broken glass scraping ice, and it sent a chill down her spine. The Shadow Walker's featureless face remained motionless, but the laugh seemed to echo darkly inside Will's head.

"Oh, child, do you even know why you fight?" The Shadow Walker said once he was done.

"We fight to protect the innocent." Will replied.

"Then you are five hundred years too late."

With those cryptic words, the Shadow Walker took Will off-balance with a sudden attack. With lightning speed, the Shadow Walker extended his arms to three times their original length, hitting both Matt and Cornelia in the chest with surprising force while never leaving the roof. His two victims were sent flying backwards, gasping for air. Will, now alone, began her attack with fury.

With a brief glance over her shoulder to make sure Matt was alright, Will unleashed her full power, launching a massive bolt of energy at the Shadow Walker. Will watched in horror as the well-aimed blast went straight through the Shadow Walker, leaving him unaffected. The Shadow Walker countered the attack by stretching his arms at high speed towards Will. Quick to react, Will dodged the attack by mere inches.

Cornelia and Matt had recovered by this time, and were moving in on the Shadow Walker. Quickly, Matt fired a volley of energy at the Shadow Walker, but once more the energy passed through him, shattering the roof below. The Shadow Walker made an impressive leap to a nearby building, where Cornelia waited for him, flanked by boulders. The Shadow Walker stood his ground as the boulders crashed around and through him, leaving him unscathed.

"Anyone want to explain why this isn't working?" Cornelia said angrily.

"He's intangible," Will said. "He's not even solid. Things just pass right through him, like a shadow."

"Not all the time. I can still feel the hit he gave me." Matt said.

"We need to come up with a new game plan," Will said. "Something to…"

Will was interrupted by a blow to her chest. The Shadow Walker was no longer interested in watching his opponents, and now was now fully dedicated to destroying them. With great speed and strength, he attacked Matt and the girls, working his way through their defenses with ease. Any counterattack mounted against the Shadow Walker was foiled, as his body went intangible. Eventually, Cornelia managed to destroy the building the Shadow Walker was standing on, as well as any buildings nearby, leaving her foe shaken, but unharmed.

"This is ridiculous." Will said, out of breath. "He can hit us all night, but we can't lay a finger on him."

"Well we better think of something, and quick." Matt replied, watching the Shadow Walker approach them once more. "There must be something you can do with the Heart."

Suddenly, the Shadow Walker stopped in his tracks.

"What did you say?" the Shadow Walker said softly.

For the first time, the Shadow Walker noticed the glowing jewel hanging around Will's neck and upon seeing it, he charged at the trio. Matt and Cornelia did their best to stop him but the Shadow Walker swatted them away like flies. He then focused his attention on Will, grabbing her by the neck and forcing her against a nearby wall.

"I've waited centuries for this moment. Now, the power of Balsilide will be in the hands of its true owner!"

As he said this, the Shadow Walker carefully reached for the Heart with his free hand. As he touched it, a pink spark shot from the Heart, causing the Shadow Walker to recoil, although never losing his grip on Will.

"But… this is not the one." The Shadow Walker stuttered, confused. "I don't understand. How can this be?"

Taking advantage of her foes' confusion, Will focus her powers in her neck, instead of her hands. Sending the energy rushing forward, the silver sparks rushed into the hand of the Shadow Walker. Since the Shadow Walker was grabbing her, she knew this part of his body to be solid. The Shadow Walker screamed in pain, and dropped Will quickly. Now recovered, Cornelia and Matt landed beside Will, ready for battle. Confused and angry, the Shadow Walker did not give them one, but instead disappeared into the night like his namesake.

"So, I'm kind of new at this. Did we win?" Matt asked.

"Well, we're still alive, and everyone's safe for now, so yeah. Let's go with win." Will replied.

"Sure wasn't our best performance." Cornelia muttered.

"Are we even sure he's really gone?" Matt asked.

"Yep. He's gone." came a voice from above.

Hay Lin dropped beside them, a tired look on her face.

"I saw him slink off into the distance, so I think that's the last we'll see of him for tonight," she said. "Sorry I couldn't help. I found three more bombs in the city, and getting rid of them was not fun."

"It's okay." Will said with a smile. "Let's get this cleanup done and let's get home. I have a feeling we going to have some busy days ahead of us."

With reluctance and exhaustion, the four headed back to the scene of the feast. Will had a lot of questions going through her head as she walked. She only hoped the answers would soon become clear.