Behind the Flames .:H2OVanoss:.

.:Chapter 25:.

          The wind manipulated the ocean waves like a helpless puppet on strings. Thunder rolled deeply in the sky as a light rain flooded the valley with an eerie mist, and the crumbling of stones clamored to the rhythmic screams of suffering. The field on both sides were dull with dread and fear, for the winner of the war was far from known. The only hope for the rebellion were slowly making their way to the battered ship, swimming invisibly deep under the water.

"Find somewhere safe. We'll come out of this alive and victorious, I swear it." Standing atop a protruding slab of metal, Evan frowned with sympathy as Jonathan bowed his head and slunk back into the cold waters. They both knew why Jonathan couldn't come, but as much as it pains them to have him sit out, it would have meant worse if he had frozen up and gotten himself killed by the lightning bender.
As Evan turned back to the others, there was a splash and a hand grabbed his boot. He looked back down into the worrisome baby blues.
"Please be careful. I just got you back, I don't want to lose you again." Jonathan choked on his words, and Evan's chest swelled with a warm, fuzzy feeling. This is what he wants fight for; like a soldier fights for its family and nation, Evan would fight and soon return to Jonathan. He had too.
"I'll be careful. We all will. We'll be back soon, I promise." He leaned down and rested his warm hand on Jon's cold one. "Today is the day the rebellion takes its first step forward and kills a lightning bender."

They filed into the small gap in the side of the battered ship. Evan, Lui, and Luke bounded up the stairs to the bridge while Craig and Marcel took to the hallways and downstairs in search for the engine room. The plan was simple: find the lightning bender and kill him. And if that plan failed, Togek would die in the explosion of the ship once Craig and Marcel destroyed the engine. Plan 'C', well, don't die.
Evan and Lui followed Luke down the winding hallways until they spotted the large metal door at the end. Two guards stood tall with spears in their hands and swords at their sides. The three soldiers nodded silently and began approaching the door. The guards watched unsuspectingly as Evan marched up to the one on the right. The man opened his mouth to say something, but before sound could leave his lips, Evan stuck a knife in his throat. Blood gushed down his chest and he fell to he ground.
          "Hey!" The other guard shouted and readied his spear, but Luke slid up behind him and grabbed the man's chin and top of his head, twisting forcefully until a bone-shattering crack came from his neck. He lay the dead man down without a sound.
When Evan finally faced the door, realization and anxiety began to boil in his chest; The lightning bender was most likely just beyond these doors. The anger he had towards this man overwhelmed his other senses and thoughts. He hated him so fucking much, for everything he did to him and his friends; especially Jonathan. Now Togek was right at his fingertips, and all he could think about was the most painful and torturous way he could murder this man.
          "Break down the door, Lui." Evan commanded. The airbender swallowed and did as he was told, forcing a powerful wind against the door, ripping it from its hinges and slamming into a couple of soldiers inside.
          Evan ran in first, rounding and kicking the spear out of a guard's hands, forcing him back, then scorching him against the wall. Another man at the steering wheel leapt back to let the other soldiers run forward and take on the three intruders.
          Luke sent a blast straight at an unsuspecting guard, hurling her through the window in a hailstorm of shattered glass. He grabbed another soldier around the neck and threw him into the cyclone Lui generated to launch two more out the window.
          Evan's eyes skimmed past the last few fighters in the room. To his displeasure, the lightning bender wasn't here. His blood boiling, he screamed in rage, slamming his fists into the ground and raising a massive fire wall to the roof. His foot slid forward and he pushed his fists along the steel floor, rolling the fire forward. The remaining soldiers had no choice but to leap out the window into the water or face a gruesome demise landing onto the metal deck three stories below.
          The fire caused various explosions from the controls, drawing out a smoke that slowly filled the room. He heard a small cough from behind the wheel, noticing a lone survivor. Evan grabbed the shirt beneath his armor and held him up close to his face.
          "Where the fuck is he?"