Seekers of Fire

Chapter 10 - From the Shadows

All she wanted to do right now was crawl into bed, close her eyes and sleep reality away. But she was not at home and even if she could fall asleep, she knew that the horrors of today would wake her up in the middle of the night.

A demon. That was what the fortune teller had called her, and that was when the day had become hell. Literally, because everything around her was on fire. She closed her eyes and spent a few minutes hiding behind one of the unaffected tents. Adrenaline still coursed through her veins and her heart raced with fear as she thought of the near-death experience she had just encountered.

Her head was starting to hurt from all the mixed emotions she was feeling, and she had to remind herself to breathe. Take it easy Rachel Marshall, just breathe. With her eyes still closed, she inhaled and exhaled the smoky air, and ended up coughing. That's right... there's a couple of freaking fire monsters out there! she recalled and could feel her panic rising again.

Rachel thought of how Drake and his best friend had started fighting the monsters back with fire and she wondered if she had just imagined the whole thing. Gathering the few remains of her courage, she opened her eyes and cautiously walked to the side of the tent in hopes of seeing what was really going on out there.

Her eyes swept across the fiery battlefield and she noticed that Drake was lying on the floor unconscious and that the two monsters were surrounding his friend. There was no one else in sight and Rachel swore that she could hear the faint sounds of police sirens somewhere in the distant background.

The two fiery beasts then started to attack the girl and Rachel gasped, feeling terrified and helpless. I have to help them! I have to help... wait, what was her name? A memory of Drake telling her about his best friend came to mind and she remembered. Amelia! I have to help Amelia... but how?

Suddenly, the night sky seemed to light up momentarily and Rachel watched as Amelia began to ascend from the ground on fiery wings. The strange sword she was holding was glowing a light red and the flames on her sides seemed to form phoenix wings. Regardless, it was an unbelievably impressive sight.

Amelia then swooped down towards the fire elementals and took them both out within a matter of seconds with her magical sword. Rachel watched with awe as the monsters seemed to explode into trails of light and smoke. She was about to run towards them and check on Drake when a dozen police officers suddenly appeared at the scene.

"Drop your weapon and don't move! You're under arrest for arson and the use of prohibited weapons in public," one of the police officers commanded as he and his team surrounded Amelia and Drake with guns raised at them.

Rachel cursed under her breath and quickly hid behind the tent as she continued to watch what was happening from the shadows. She wondered if Amelia was going to reactivate her wings and fly away or attack them with her fiery powers. Instead, Drake's best friend dropped her weapon without hesitation and raised her hands in surrender as two of the officers from behind began to handcuff her.

Still frozen in place from fear, Rachel did nothing as the police officers carried a still unconscious Drake and Amelia into custody. Knowing that the fire brigade would also arrive soon, and the area would be closed off, she decided to follow the police from a safe distance. She kept to the shadows and after following them out of the carnival, she saw Drake and Amelia being forced into police cars and driven off to the nearest police station.

What do I do now? she wondered as she racked her brain for solutions. One part of her wondered if she could somehow follow them to the police station and even help them escape. She shook her head at that thought, no, I could get in so much trouble! Instead, she went for the more rational decision, and that was to head home and crawl into bed. And cry.

With her head hung low in defeat, shock and uncertainty, she began walking towards Crimson Railway Station with her arms hugging her body. Rachel could not help feeling partially responsible for what had happened to her friend. She had turned her back on him when he needed her most. It had been Amelia who had saved them from the monsters whilst she hid behind the tent like a coward.

A tear escaped her eye and it started to roll down her pale cheek. Rachel had thought that moving from her old school to Crimson High would be a good idea. It was an opportunity for a fresh start and a chance to make new friends, but now she felt that she had blown that too. Overwhelmed by guilt and misery, she collapsed to her knees and started to weep in silence. She knew without a doubt that confusion would be her only companion tonight.