"No, he can't be. You're joking,"
"Sadly, I am not,"
"Does he know?"
"Yes. He knows we can't kill him without causing a fatal imbalance,"
"What type is he? Do you know any of the other Elementals?"
"He's fire. I have no clue, Miles. I only know Klaus is an Elemental, because I grew up with him," I knew we were, at this moment, powerless against Klaus.
"You were with him before he turned dark-side. I guess if we can't kill him then there must be a loophole. There is always a loophole,"
"Maybe," it was all I could really say. To be honest, not only did I not know what Klaus was capable of, but I wasn't sure of what I was capable of either. It terrified me.
I left the observatory, with a final nod to Miles, who hung back to wait for the girl to wake up. I was exhausted and had some much needed rest to catch up on. I didn't have the patience or the energy to wait for the girl to wake up.
-
I was running from a very pissed off pack of Hybrids. The situation was all a misunderstanding on their part, but no matter what they weren't willing to listen to me. It didn't matter if I wasn't their target, and it also didn't seem to matter that it was an unfair fight. It was well below freezing that night when I ripped through the woods, sprinting as fast as my legs could move. Blackberry bushes scratched my legs and clung onto my clothing as if it would give them life. My hands were frozen, and with every gust of wind spraying rain against me, it felt like needles forcing their way into my body. I didn't dare look behind me, afraid that I would lose my balance. I couldn't afford to lose the valuable time it would to take to fall and recover.
The Hybrids' growls bounced off of the trees around me, causing crows to fly from their perch in the branches while laughing at my misfortune. I knew exactly how these packs worked if someone crossed their path. It wasn't pretty and that someone didn't walk away alive.
"Over here!" a girl's voice called out, breaking through the sound barrier of the howling wind and growls. I couldn't see anything, the rain clouded my vision and the fog was too heavy. "Don't worry, you're almost here!" the girl cheered, and I wondered if she could actually see me through this weathered mess.
Before I could ask where she was, I saw her bright red coat. It stood out against the dull and muddy colors of the forest, and I could feel my lungs jump for joy. When I got closer, the forest floor began to shake and rumble, startling me and causing me to stumble.
"Don't worry, this is supposed to happen. Only a few more steps!" Stone walls shot up out of the ground behind me and a few seconds later the stones shook with impact. The growling grew louder as the Hybrids crowded up on the other side.
"You know, I told Miles it was a stupid idea, but he said it would look cool amongst providing the compound with some sort of protection. I personally think it's a bit much, but 'it's not up to me'. Freaking things are never up to me when they should be. I swear, Miles is still a little boy sometimes," the girl in the red coat extended her hands toward me and I shook it gratefully.
Confusion washed over me as I tried to catch my breath. "Miles? What compound?"
"Miles is our nerd. His ability has something to do with that, you can ask him if you want, but I can promise he'll give you an entire speech about it instead. You'll never get an actual straight-to-the-point answer. The compound is where all of us live. We kind of stumbled across it and made it our own I guess. It's pretty awesome, I mean it's underground so... it's kind of like one of those garages rich people store their expensive cars in that are under the actual garage and no one knows its there. It's an awesome defense mechanism, much better than the sad stone wall we got going on," the girl sucked in a quick breath before continuing her speech. "I'm Amy, by the way. Miles saw you running from those Hybrids and told me to come up here to retrieve you. You look awful,"
"Thanks?" I remember looking at the ground behind Amy trying to see if I could notice the lines of the compound. I couldn't.
"You won't be able to see it. It's practically invisible. Don't thank me, thank Miles. You'll meet him the moment you step foot in the compound. It's hard to take in Miles all at once, so I recommend you don't even try... ride the waves I like to say. He's going to want to test you immediately and he likely already knows everything about you, so don't expect any personal questions. He wants to make sure you don't work for Klaus. You don't, right?" Amy dug a small plastic clicker out of her pocket and pressed the button.
"No. I don't,"
"Do you know him?" Amy seemed distracted as she rummaged through the bag she had slung across her shoulder.
I didn't have time to answer before the ground began to shake again. The growls of the Hybrids were shut out as a metal box surfaced. It was an elevator covered in a thick layer of moss.
"It looks cooler inside," Amy shrugged. She seemed to have forgotten her previous question and I sighed in relief. The metal doors of the elevator opened with a hiss revealing a rather bright entrance.
It was one I would soon learn to loathe.
