Cleo's Game

16. Pyrophobia

She stood confidently, surveying the environment with an excited, malicious grin. "There's really no point in hiding from me. I'll just level this whole place so that you're caught in the crossfire. Why don't you just-" Her monologue was abruptly ended mid-sentence by a surprise blow to the stomach, knocking the wind out of her. She wasted no time getting back onto her feet from her knees, fuming with red-hot anger.

What she expected was a cowering, captive audience, but considering who she's facing, she's out of luck. Her sharp eyes scanned the surroundings obsessively before landing on her adversary, Drew. He confidently strode until he was within a couple metres of the fierce woman, with his hands in his pockets and an unfazed expression.

"So you must be Eereva, huh? I've read all about you. You're the 'strongest'. Well, the self-proclaimed strongest at least," Drew mocked. Eereva momentarily bared her teeth in anger before wiping her expression back to a confident smile. "You can read all that you want about me. Just don't forget that it's written by the survivors." Eereva set her own arms ablaze, stepping forward to lash out. Drew was one step ahead of her movements, blocking her blazing strike with a thick earthen shield that was hastily constructed to absorb the white-hot heat.

When he was able to peer past the shield, there was no enemy to peek at. Her human form had evaporated into a formidable cloud of flame, floating tentatively and refusing to take on a solid form. Drew poses much more of a setback than the average opponent that Eereva faces, with her most basic weapon being shut down by his razor-sharp defensive acumen. However, someone like Eereva didn't get where she is by giving up that easily.

Drew stayed wary, knowing that an attack could come from any angle at any time. He listened, watched, and waited, until suddenly she struck from the left. It didn't take him much effort to neutralise the attack with yet another shield, but things weren't over yet. She struck from the right, behind, and above until Drew was completely caged in. Each lash of fire rumbled the walls threateningly, with no real damage being done.

"You can't beat me while hiding in there. Just give yourselves up, and I'll let you live," she asserted, portraying otherworldly confidence. Harnessing his power and using his ears rather than his eyes, Drew blindly raised a ferocious stalagmite from the ground, connecting directly into Eereva's stomach. She let out an infuriated yell, becoming even more fired up. "You will sorely regret that," she sinisterly growled.

Glaring at Drew, and more specifically at the all-encompassing protective layer of rock that surrounded him, she approached menacingly. She kicked at the rock forcefully, cracking it and breaking her way through. Once she made her way through the somewhat hollow shell, she was disappointed to find it empty. After tunnelling out of the defensive position he put himself into, he switched to the offensive.

He prepared to smash into Eereva unexpectedly with his hardened shin, only for Eereva to reflexively swing her elbow back, brutally connecting with Drew's face. Blood dripped down from his nose as he was knocked back, staining the dirt beneath his feet. Eereva looked at him condescendingly, before taunting him. "You should have just kept hiding away."

Eereva confidently strolled over to the dazed Drew, before grabbing a hold of his collar. "You had your chance to come quietly. I think I'll give you a nice burn mark, right here!" she taunted, punctuating her sentence with a hard slap to the right cheek. Drew's heart was pounding wildly, his body recognising that this was a brush with death. Eereva's confidence was complete and unwavering as she prepared her finishing blow.

She had only just noticed that her feet had sunk into the ground, into a miserable pool of quicksand that Drew had instinctively whipped up. She rolled her eyes, astounded by Drew's lame idea. However, it bought him plenty of time to get back into a good defensive position. By the time that Eereva had quite effortlessly pulled her feet out, Drew was already behind another shield; ready to drag out this fight all day, and all night long.

Eereva expected to be able to wipe Drew out easily if she didn't get her way, but he was proving to be quite persistent. He had evolved from an annoying grain of sand into her toughest foe, slowly eroding her patience and durability while safely hiding behind his sturdy stone shields. It was going to be closer to a war than a fight, a dreary siege that her fiery temper would not be able to stand.

Her eyes scanned for any way to avoid direct confrontation, before landing upon a faint glow. Blake's lure was just barely poking out from behind her cover, but Eereva's predatory eyes latched onto it like a target. She turned her back to her opponent, who already thought he had won, and walked closer towards it.

Blake must have known she was found, as she preemptively left cover, with a tough expression on her face. If she was going to die, it wasn't going to be while cowering and hiding. It will be during combat, and she wouldn't die happy without bringing the assailant with her. Eereva smirked as she looked Blake up and down, before sharing awkward eye contact.

"If you think I'm an easy target, then you're wrong," Blake assured, with a slight quiver in her voice. Eereva responded by raising her eyebrow, daring Blake to step closer. Charging wildly, Blake threw her fist towards Eereva's face, and she watched it burst into flames and cease to exist without a trace. If Blake was able to sweat, she would've had a pool of it to wipe off of her face.

Eereva was gone, or at least invisible. Blake felt relieved, with relief that neither Drew or the well-hidden scream felt. As Blake walked around like nothing had happened, they were picturing the worst in their heads. However, as minutes passed, there was nothing but silence and calm. Blake considered this ordeal finished, and wanted to get things moving again. "Didn't you see me deal with her just now? Why are you two still hiding?"