Elemental: Fire

Chapter 12

"So the question is...who are we battling?"

A loud silence fell upon them as the possibilities rushed in. It could be anyone: the Mortem ruler, the strange kid from her class, or even the closest of people.

"Let's get going. We finished our business here. It's not safe to stay in one place for too long." Scarlett advised in thought.

The pair stood up and left the peculiar library, a Menehune leading them out. As they left, some of the Menehunes stared after them, slowing down at their work. Scarlett scrunched her eyebrows, wondering why the hard working creatures would halt in their duties. A Menehune opened the door from above and slowly closed them shut. They seemed cautious about Finn and Scarlett.

All of a sudden, a screech was heard from the inside of the library. Doors swinging open, the workers all started shouting the same word.

"Theif! Theif!"

Puzzled, Scarlett turned to Finn, who widened his eyes. Grabbing his partner's arm, Finn pulled her quickly. The Earth elemental ran as fast as he could, Scarlett following by his side. Just as quickly, Menehunes began to run out of the library. Scarlett quickly rounded the corner, leading to the Gem Seller's trail. Of course, they were all trying again to sell them the ornate objects as they pushed through.

"Move out of the way! No, sorry. Excuse me, excuse me," the Elementals managed out.

When the Menehunes appeared, the crowd parted, revealing Finn and Scarlett in the open. They both ran as fast as they could, quickly passing the trail. People cleared out of the way just as they saw two strangers running wildly. They ran through the entrance/exit and into the forest, their satchels slightly behind them. The Menehunes still followed them in a small army, and they ran faster. Just as they were a good distance into the forest, Scarlett stopped.

"We can't keep running. Let's hide."

"Okay...um...there," Finn exclaimed, pointing to a large boulder in the distance.

They ran over and leaned against the cool stone, trying to take quiet, heavy breaths. A few minutes later, small voices neared them.

"The theives are gone. The book is...gone," a delicate high-pitched voice said disappointedly.

"It now lays in their possession. Let's hope it didn't fall into the wrong hands," a surprisingly deep voice responded. A pattern of many light footsteps followed, signaling that they have left.

Sighing, Scarlett relaxed against the boulder.

"Why—why were they after us," Scarlett breathed out.

"Because of...of this," Finn replied, pulling out the bestiary where Scarlett found the Zithone. At that moment, Scarlett gave him a huge whack on the head, sending his head to the left.

"Why on Earth would you steal that? Don't you ever think of the consequences?"

"First, ouch. And second, I thought it could help us in the future. Also, just do what you need to do. Consequences are overrated."

"So are your so called 'ideas', grassling. Well, since your bright idea got us chased, we're tired. Let's camp here for tonight."

The sun was setting, and a breeze could be felt. Pulling on her green hunting jacket, Scarlett stayed as warm as she could. Finn gathered wood for the fire, walking away to look for a good piece. Scarlett began to search through her bag as the sun began to tuck away more. All of a sudden, the Fire elemental heard her partner yell in the distance.

"Oh no," Scarlett muttered, afterward calling out, "FINN! Where are you?"

Trying to follow the direction of his scream, the girl ran as fast as she could in the wind. Spotting the back of someone in the distance, Scarlett sprinted to the figure. When she arrived, her spirits fell a bit to find that not only was it Finn but someone else. Their bright red hair stood out, even though its extremely short length. Finn stood in front of them, cautious. Scarlett hid behind a tree, thinking it was best to not show herself.

"You're comin' with us, grassling," the apparent boy mocked.

"How—how do you know that?"

"We've been watching," the boy responded in an unsettling tone.

Scarlett got a weird feeling in her back. A feeling of alertness, or waiting for something to happen in an eerie quiet. Dreading it, she quickly turned around and ignited flames in her right palm. Rustling came from above in the trees, so she quickly glanced up when a figure jumped down in front of her. Their extremely pale skin stood out in the moonlight.

"Go join your little friend over there," a female ordered with a slight snake effect in her voice.

At that moment, Scarlett launched some fire at their feet, causing them to fly backward. She immediately ran to Finn, who was fighting with the boy. The boy tackled Finn to the ground, but Scarlett pulled him up and gave him a punch square in the jaw. He fell over limply, groaning.

"GET THEM," the girl shouted as they ran to their resting spot.

Slipping everything into their satchels, the pair ran farther into the dark woods. The moonlight illuminated the land a bit as they sprinted. They heard the other pair began to chase them, but the footstep was much heavier. It was as though...

Scarlett turned around and saw a giant figure, much larger than the former foe. It was half the size of the trees, stomping through the woods. It was an ogre.

Where did an ogre come from, Scarlett worriedly thought.

With its large steps, the beast was able to catch up in no time. They made many abrupt turns, but it wasn't fast enough. With its large hands, it plucked Scarlett off the ground from her jacket. She immediately sent fire at the ogre's feet, but it did little to no effect. Slipping out of her jacket and running was no smart idea since Scarlett was really high off the ground. The fall would guarantee an unwanted broken bone. All of a sudden, Scarlett began to lower, the ground getting closer. Looking behind her, she saw the bright-headed boy transitioning from the ogre.

Of course, a Therian, Scarlett realized.

As soon as the boy completely formed, Scarlett asked, "What do you want?"

He only shook his head and chuckled a bit. "This is for payback," the boy threatened.

Channeling his ogre strength, he kissed his knuckle and punched Scarlett straight in the face. Then everything went dark.