Burning Water: Stories of the Elements Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Earth

“There is a legendary item known as the Obliterator that can destroy any sort of evil,” explained Power. “My grandma told me that it can be found behind the Gates of Destiny. But in order to unlock the Gates, we’re going to need the Destiny Key.”

“How do we get the Destiny Key?” Fire asked.

“In order to obtain the Key,” Power went on, “you must defeat the beast known was Earth - a giant serpentine creature capable of immense power. Upon defeating Earth, it shall lend us the Key.”

“Well, how do we get to Earth?” Water asked.

“Earth lies in the Realm of Rocks, where everything is just desert. And, don’t forget, there are rocks everywhere.”

“Let’s do this!” Fire said enthusiastically. “High five, Water!” Water, remembering earlier, just followed Power with her back to Fire. Fire frowned, then continued onward with the others at a slow pace.

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It had been hours, but the Elementals had finally arrived at the Realm of Rocks. Power was correct; all they could see was sand, cactus, and strange rock formations.

“Wow, this is as depressing as you described it,” said Fire as he examined the desert.

“Pretty barren,” Power replied. “Okay, let’s go.”

The Elementals traveled forth, making their way through the scorching hot desert. Power and Fire were fine, but Water not so much.

“Ugh, it’s so hot I’m evaporating!” Indeed, Water was slowly starting to disintegrate into tiny droplets.

“We’ll be there soon, Water,” Power told her.

“Hey, it’s an oasis!” Fire yelled, pointing toward a small pool of water in the distance. It had a few trees, some grass, and plenty of supplies for the future.

As the Elementals ran closer and closer to the oasis, it started to fade away, and when they finally got to it, it had completely disappeared. It was just a mirage.

“Dangit!” yelled Water, stomping on the ground. However, that just made her hotter, so she stopped quickly.

“Look, guys! We may not have an oasis, but there is Earth’s palace!” Power shouted. He was looking directly at a stack of rocks in the distance.

“That’s a palace?!” Fire asked, purely confused.

“Well, compared to the rest of this place, it kind of is,” replied Water. “Hey, do you think there’s maybe some water there?”

“Well, my grandma said that Earth is a water hoarder, so he probably has some,” Power answered.

The Elementals dashed toward the stack of rocks as fast as they could. When they finally got to it, there was a giant hole in the ground, but no serpentine creature.

“Are you sure this is where Earth resides?” Water asked Power.

“I’m sure.” Power walked up to the hole and yelled down it. “Earth?! You there?!”

There was no answer. But then, there was a rumbling beneath Fire and Water. Power turned around and shrugged as to say there was nothing there as an enormous, brown, dragon-like creature emerged from the depths of the hole. It had only two tiny arms, but still looked very powerful. It roared, then yelled, “Who dares disturbeth me?”

Power turned around, amazed and terrified. “Uhh...we, um...we wanted to have the Destiny Key?”

“You must fighteth me in order to obtaineth the Destiny Key!” Earth roared.

“Okay,” said Water, jumping up and slapping Earth’s face.

Earth roared as Power jumped high, too, and started punching its spine rapidly. And as the others were doing that, Fire burned its underside to make sure it couldn’t counterattack.

But it was no use. Earth roared terribly loudly, sending the Elementals flying. It dove in Fire’s direction, but Water blocked the attack with her extendable arms, and Power punched the beast into one of the rocks. It was resilient, however, and roared again, but before it could do anything else, one of the giant rocks fell on top of its head, sending it crashing down into the floor.

The Elementals thought that it was defeated, but it suddenly manipulated the rock into flying in their direction. All three Elementals punched the rock at once, and it broke into several smaller pieces.

Upon seeing this, Earth was terrified.

“Okay, okay, you haveth woneth,” it cried, scared of the Elementals. “Here is your Destiny Key.” It pulled a glowing key out from under a tiny rock and handed it to the three.

“You mean that’s all we had to do?!” Water cried.

“Well, we still got the Key,” Power replied. “Oh, and, can we have some water for our friend, Earth?”

“Yes, you mayeth.” Earth made a jug of water appear out of thin air, and Water dumped it on her head. Oh, that feels so good, she thought. “Would you also liketh a rideth?” Earth asked.

“Yes please, Earth!” Power said. “Thanks for your help!”

“You areth welcome.” It then teleported the Elementals back to the forest, where they would plan their next mission.