Elementalists (completed)

Chapter 19

For a minute the Black Serpents just look at the boy on the ground in shock, giving everyone else on my team time to attack.

And attack they do.

Nero shoots what looks like a painfully powerful jet of water at Fotia. It slams into the girl and she lets out a strangled scream before hurtling into the trees, being pushed back by the force of the water. Ignis shoots a stream of fire at the ice elementalist and he screams as his clothes are set on fire. He runs toward the river, but realizes it's just ice and drops to the ground, still wailing, and starts to roll over and over to put the fire out.

I wince. Was that necessary?

Anemos creates a small tornado and uses it to fling the other wind elementalist into the trees after Fotia, who hasn't made a reappearance. Kin makes something heavy and metal slam down onto the earth elementalist's head, making her collapse onto the ground, unconscious.

We managed to do all that before the remaining Black Serpents snap out of their shock.

"RETREAT!!!" The metal elementalist wails, turning and running away, "RETREAT!!!!"

The remaining elementalists do, following the metal kid into the trees. Just before Zhen disappears, however, he shoots me a look so full of hate I actually take a step back. Whether I did it out of shock or fear I may never know.

The ice elementalist had managed to put out the fire and stumbles into the trees too, leaving only the unconscious water boy and earth girl.

"Should I.....?" I trail off, gesturing toward the two kids.

Ignis nods and I grab the earth elementalist's hand. Terro helps me hoist her onto my back and I nod thankfully at him before Darting into the trees a couple feet to the left to where the Black Serpents fled. I run ahead of them and set the girl down so the snakes would come across her. Then I run back and do the same for the water boy who groans and shifts a couple times when I set him down beside the earth elementalist.

"Sorry." I mutter to them before turning on my heel and Darting back to camp, the trees moving in slow motion around me.

"Blitz! Check out this loot!" Kin calls as I arrive back at the camp.

I turn to see that Kin is standing in the entrance to the mud houe, waving me over. I jog to her and she leads me inside.

I think I was close with my fifty foot estimate of the mud house, but it looks a bit smaller from the inside. There are seven small piles of leaves and moss, the beds I suppose, and a hole in the back. Kin is standing in front of the hole, her eyes sparkling. I walk over to see that it is full of cooked fish.

Kin beams at me, "We have lots of food now! Look!"

She points to a smaller, less noticeable hole to the right of the fish-hole and see berries.

I smile. Neve will love this.

"This is....awesome!" I finally say after Kin stares at me expectantly.

She nods enthusiastically, "And it's all thanks to your lure plan!"

I shake my head, "Naw, it was a simple one. You guys would have gotten it without me."

The metal girl opens her mouth to say something when Ignis interrupts her,

"Hey you two! Get out here!"

We share a look before walking out of the house to see Ignis, Nero, and Neve unfreezing the river.

"What?" I ask as we get closer.

The three elementalists are standing in the usual warping stance, hands out, and are watching the river as it slowly thaws.

Ignis looks at me and Kin over her shoulder, "What's in there?"