Elements: In The End (Book 8)

The Most Honorable Goes To... (Chapter 28)

Jamil wouldn't lift his eyes off of the ground. He's leading all of them through the trap filled Ruin and didn't want anyone getting caught in one.

The ground starts to become uneven and the walls are getting closer and closer. Jamil keeps focusing on the ground.

"Everyone stop!" Jamil abruptly stops walking. He shuts his eyes, expecting to get pushed, but finds that everyone stopped, Xian almost crashing into Jamil. "Wow, I honestly thought I was gonna get pushed off."

"We're professionals," Xian winks. "So, uh, why'd you stop?"

"There's a drop," Jamil points to the walls suddenly disappearing and the loose rocks. "If I just step on it-" Jamil prods his foot against the rocks and they all crumple down into the endless ditch, "-that happens."

"I don't see anything," Amy squints. "It's nothing but pitch black."

"Yeah, like all the phones you've destroyed," Scott mumbles.

"Why you little-" Amy turns around. "You wanna fight? I'll fight you right now."

"I'm going to shoot a laser," Red's eyes glow and shoots. The laser keeps going and eventually out of view.

"Oh, hey!" Jamil smiles, looking down. "It's a slide!"

"A slide?" Yi Min looks over with a are-you-serious face. "What are we? Five?"

"You're not, but I am!" Quill jumps onto the slide.

"QUILL!" Red and his siblings all follow.

"Well, after you two," Xian puts his hand out with a smile.

Yi Min goes, then Jamil, then Xian follows. The two boys start laughing and cheering as they slide down with Quill and Rohan. Yi Min rolls her eyes at them before looking down to see the end of the slide.

"I sure hope this doesn't lead out," Scott says. "Because if it does, imma kill you Quill."

"But it's so much fun!" Quill throws her arms into the air and giggles.

Scott looks up to see a blinking light going over all of them. The light then dies after it goes over Xian. He raises an eyebrow. "I think we were just scanned..." Scott says.

"Scanned?" Hiro looks confused. "In a Ruin? That's weird."

"Right? Where'd the tech come from? And why would we need to be scanned?"

"I swear if it leads to trials to see if we're honorable or not, imma throw hands," Yi Min sighs.

"Girl, you and me both," Amy nods her head. "How much longer? I'm bored."

Suddenly, Quill drops out of sight and the cheering dies. They all quickly put up shields as they're thrown down.

"Hey...all of you are on my back," Quill mumbles. "Get off..!"

A mumble of sorries go around as they all get up and wipe the dust off themselves. They look around at the murals on the wall and the narrow tunnel ahead.

"Woah!" Hiro's eyes widen. "These are murals of a bunch of lost spells! I could make so many cool combinations with these!"

"Is that a Guardian?" Yi Min joins in, pointing to a large griffon standing with its chest puffed out. "Of course it is. They never miss a chance to show off."

"Haha, you're right about that," Hiro laughs. "Say, maybe if I touch it...?" He reaches over to the highest point he could touch, but magic sparks fly out from his hand and he pulls back. "Never mind. That's a bad idea."