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Chapter 6: The Eternal Flame |
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I woke before the sun rose and went to the Council’s chambers to receive my new mission. As I stood in front of the door, I felt a great energy resonating from inside the room. I slowly opened the door and walked into the center of a huge room, with the council sitting around on benches elevated off the ground. Though they did not speak, I heard their voices in my mind “You are here for your mission. You will find the Gem of Eternal Flame inside of the volcano deep inside of this mountain. Be warned, when you journey there, you will encounter monsters and beasts that have been warped with the energy of the Gem. Are you ready?” I didn’t even give it a second thought, “Yes, I will leave right away.” “Very well young one. We will tell the guards to let you into the volcano. Good luck.” As I walked out of the chambers, I felt a shred of doubt come from one of the Council. I would prove him wrong. I walked to where the gates to the tunnels were, and the guards stood down from their position to let me through. I paused for a second and looked into the gaping maw of the tunnel. I forced myself into it, and began my mission.
There was not much light in the tunnel, but I could see perfectly. After about twenty minutes of walking I came to a door. The inscription above it read “To gain access to my heart, you must fight my guardians”, I felt a rumble under me and leapt back as a huge warrior made of lava rose from the ground. How could I land a blow on this thing without burning my skin? Suddenly, the gauntlets began to cover my arms, and continued to spread across my entire body. Now, I was encased in a tough yet light set of armor. After examining it, I looked up and ran at the lava warrior. I jumped towards his face and delivered a round house to the head. My foot slid through him like a hot knife through butter. This threw off my balance and gave him an opening. It grabbed me by the torso and smashed me into the wall. I fell to the floor struggling to breathe. Then I remembered the Gem of Earth. I began to focus my energy into the gem. The armor turned dark green. I swung at the beast and delivered a hit. The place of impact solidified and cracked. I knew how to win. I began to kick at the legs, turning them to stone. When it could no longer move, I jumped back and sprinted towards it. I began to slide towards the legs. I shattered them and forced the beast on its back. Leaping into the air, I smashed its head into the stone. The remaining lava began to seep back into the ground and the doors slowly swung open. The first trial was over.
Walking deeper into the cave, the heat began to rise and I started to see magma below me. Finally, I saw a pedestal with a small red gem on it. That must be it! Right when I was about to grab it, something grabbed me by the neck and threw me away. I landed on my palm and flipped to my feet in a combat stance. “So, the new trainee has come for the gem. I will destroy you if you do not leave now.” I stood my ground. “Fine, I gave you a warning. Now you will know the ultimate pain!” Suddenly, this being, was moving so fast I could barely see him. I strained my eyes and saw him right in front of me. He slugged me in the gut, causing me to lose my breath. Then, he grabbed me by the hair and began to pummel me. After hundreds of blows, he finally punched me with enough force to send me spiraling through the air. As I tried to get up, I heard him laugh and taunt me. I yelled and ran at him, while the armor covered my body once more. By the time he saw me, I was behind him and was about to deliver a blow to his spine. Before I could connect, he spun around till he was behind me. I stopped my first strike, but used the momentum to spin me around and I punched him in the face. He moved back a little and fell to one knee. “You actually hit me. HA! I guess I can go full force on you then.” The magma around us began to rise into two spouts on either side of us. Then they began to drift towards me. I rolled in his direction and managed to dodge them. Thrusting my foot straight into the air, I kicked him in the jaw, catapulting him upwards. I moved with amazing speed into the air next to him. I put my arm out and spun it into his throat. He spit up some blood. The force of this blow sent him straight down. Before he hit the ground, I moved next to him again, and delivered a vertical roundhouse to his chest, crushing him into the floor. As I moved away from him, I noticed he was not getting up. I slowly walked over to him and looked him in the face. He coughed, and said “I am amazed, you beat me. Only one has done that before and that was the original. Take the gem and move onto your next test. Good luck.” He began to sink into the floor. And as fast as he came, he was gone. I walked to the pedestal and picked up the gem. I felt a surge of power run through me. I saw myself performing a new technique. If I charge my energy to the gem, I can cover my fists in flames, burning anything I touch. The power left and the gem was in a slot in my right glove, next to the Gem of Earth. I walked back out of the tunnel and the guards were shocked. As I continued past them towards my quarters, I felt Keira’s piercing eyes on my back. Still walking I said “What do you want”, suddenly she appeared before me. “You got the Gem of Eternal Flame. Excellent. I guess they were right about your potential. Report early tomorrow, and I will show you how to control your energy better.” I nodded and continued walking to my room. As I went inside, I knew this was only the beginning of my journey. Again, as I slipped into sleep, all I could think about was Ryuka.
-Xhaos Incarnate- · Thu Feb 22, 2007 @ 04:22am · 0 Comments |
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