We were surrounded by shallow rolling hills. Nothing super steep, but enough that I’m sure they weren’t the easiest to farm. I keep saying farm, but I guess a more accurate term would be vineyard. These hills were covered in grape vines. I wondered if we’d stumbled upon a wine maker. But, we weren’t looking to make friends or drink anything. It was time to head west. Freddy studied the map again and spent a few minutes constantly looking around to verify his location. Once he was satisfied, we heading out towards the vineyards.
We kept our distance from the little farmhouse, but the stars and moon provided enough illumination that even from far away, I could tell the house wasn’t made for people of our size. At one point I swore I saw a goblin walking around inside, but I couldn’t be sure. Farmers tended to be very protective of their crops, so we were doing our best to past by unseen.
The vines were growing in rows perpendicular to us, but every so often there was a break and nice path thru, so it didn’t mess with our direction much at all. After we crested the third hill and started down, the farmhouse was completely out of view. We were still in the thick of the vines and I wondered how the farmer kept an eye on his crops. Maybe there wasn’t a lot of grape stealing around here. We crested several more hills before the grape vines gave way to tall grasses. It wasn’t quite as easy as walking through the vineyards, but the grasses didn’t really slow us down. After a while we found ourselves drifting more north, as the hills grew much steeper to the south. I assumed those were part of the unfavorable terrain Freddy helped us avoid by taking the river route.
The hills continued to become more and more shallow before finally smoothing out flat and making our walk incredibly easy. We traveling mostly in silence, each of us keeping our senses peeled for anyone who might cause us harm. Although the chances of meeting a bandit or mugger this far off a beaten path was low, you never know when bad luck will sneak up on you. Finally after another hour of uneventful walking, we noticed something glowing in the distance.
CHAPTER 14
When I say glowing, I mean glowing. While you couldn’t really make any detail out until you got fairly close, it was definitely lava. I’m not claiming to be a magma expert, but that was some molten looking rock. Instead of bubbling out from the top of a large volcano, this was pooling in a sunken crater. It was quite beautiful, the subtle orange glow hazing through the smoke rising into the air. We made our way stealth-fully to the edge and peered in.
The crater itself was about 500 feet across with pockets of flowing lava everywhere. It was a fairly shallow crater for all its size, maybe twenty to thirty feet deep all the way across. I wondered the pit used to be much deeper before years of lava spilling to the surface filled it up. We could make out plenty of cooled black lavas paths snaking though the crater. The active flows provided more than enough illumination to see all the ripples and waves of the dried patches. They looked solid enough to walk across if one was foolish enough to try. But I’d seen enough discovery specials about collapsing lava tubes to know better.
Since the pockets of active flows were scattered about the crater, the heat was somewhat subdued and not so intense we couldn’t sit here and look things over. But occasionally the wind would shift and carry more heat our way, forcing us to slide back down behind the lip for cover. After making a few more scans of the area, I didn’t see anyone or anything moving about. Figuring there were several questions I should get answered before I took my life in my own hands again, we moved away from the ledge to talk.
“Just to make sure I understand what’s about to happen. I’m supposed to pick a fight with a flame monster in a lava field?!”
I’ll admit I wasn’t necessarily as calm as I wanted to be. Vix’s expression also made it clear she didn’t like the location of our next battle. I mean, I’m all about being brave and adventurous, but even the greatest ninja has a bad day if he falls into a pool of molten lava. I eagerly awaited Freddy’s answer.
“No, of course not. Between the heat and the chances of a lava tube collapsing under your feet, that terrain would be very unfavorable to a battle. Luckily, you will be able to draw the elemental we seek out of the crater. Much like the water-kin you battled, the fire-born are very territorial. They will stop at nothing to defend their home,” he said.
“So, on the plus side I avoid fighting on lava, but the creature chasing me will be super motivated to roast me alive. Eh, I guess that’s better.”
Vix couldn’t help herself from snickering a bit. I was glad my worries were at least entertaining. But I was actually kind of worried about this fight. I didn’t know what, but something was wrong with my back. I’d fought injured before, so this wasn’t anything new. Actually that’s a lie. Being burned alive by lava was new. But there was no way I’d allow Vix or Freddy to take my place. This seemed like my most dangerous fight yet and it was my job to keep them safe.
“With your fighting skills, I am sure you will not be roasted alive,” Freddy tried.
“I appreciate the vote of confidence.”
“I’d be happy to face this one myself. This is after all my fault,” Vix offered.
“Not a chance,” I snapped.
Vix looked hurt and I was being pig headed. She was a very capable fighter and not suffering from the effects of two previous encounters. But, keeping those I care about safe isn’t something I’ve always…I’m not letting someone else get killed because I failed to protect them. No matter how stupid I am being.
“Okay Freddy, break it down. What are we dealing with here?”
He cleared his throat before starting, “Well, you are about to face one of the fire-born, elemental beings whose bodies are entirely comprised of flame. While there is some good news, I am afraid there is also some bad.”
“Of course there’s bad news. What’s the good news?”
“The good news is that much like the water-kin, the fire-born are so territorial that we are likely to find only one such elemental dwelling here.”
“And the bad news?”
“An elemental powerful enough to hold a territory this big, will not be weak. I apologize; the maps I found of this area were clearly inaccurate as to the size of this crater. It is at least twice a large as my maps led me to believe,” Freddy frowned.
“It’s not your fault Freddy, you did you best with what you had. But, now that we’re here and see how big it is, let me ask a dumb question. Is there another smaller lava crater we could check out in close proximity?”
“Unfortunately there is not. We are at least a full day’s journey away from the next spot that would guarantee we locate a fire-born.”
“With our current time crunch that makes it easy, this is the spot. So, before I run into the sauna, let me ask you a few questions about my weapon.”
I pulled the metal blade out of my sheath. There was enough light between the crater and the night sky that I could make out most of the detail on it. The blade was wide, about a foot and a half long and had a slit running down the middle. It was a swirly grey color, almost smoky looking. The handle was about six inches long and wrapped in black leather. It wasn’t vibrating yet, so I assumed that meant the elemental was still plenty far away. I tested the weight in my hand a few times before looking back up at Freddy.
“I meant to ask you this last time. What’s the range on these things? When I start feeling it vibrate, how close is the creature?”
“My apologies for not discussing this sooner. While a precise measurement is not possible, in general you will be within fifty feet of most elementals once you notice the blade tuning. If the fire-born is less powerful, it might need to be closer. A more powerful elemental would start the tune from further out. Does that help?” Freddy asked.
“Yeah, it gives me a starting point. Now, can the elemental tell when the blade is tuned? Does it feel me pulling its energy away?”
“Unfortunately yes, most elementals can sense the presence of a tuned blade. Or more precisely, the pull the blade has upon thei
r power. While they may not always fully understand what the sensation is, they definitely notice something tugging at them. Does that help?”
“Absolutely. It makes it very clear how useful sneaking up on them would be. Not very.”
“Is there a way to shield the blade until he is closer to the elemental?” Vix asked.
“While there are probably many magical ways to shield the weapon from the elemental, I am afraid we do not currently have any means to achieve that effect,” Freddy replied.
“Okay, so no stealth. How does this blade work by the way?”
Freddy’s face lit up as he started to explain, “the chilled blade functions in a very different fashion from the other tuned weapons you have used. While the tri-charred blade utilized its energy to cut through wood easier and the frozen dagger actually froze the water-kin, the chilled blade essentially puts out the fire. Almost as if the very oxygen itself has been sucked out of the air. The fire will dissipate leaving behind a chilled vapor.”
“Well that sounds hopefully. So if it starts shooting blasts of fire my way, I can use the sword as a shield?”
“Yes, it should function nicely in that way,” he smiled.
“I’ll take that as some good news. Will it do me any good if that thing starts flinging lava my direction?”
“The fire-born are not capable of expelling lava from their body. So, that should not be a consideration. However, if the blade were to be dropped into lava, I do not know how it would react. You must remember, these are not true magical weapons. While they perform great against the target of their intention, they are very far from the indestructibility of a true magical weapon. It is very likely lava would damage the blade if it were not in full tune at the time of exposure. Probably best to avoid that if possible.”
“Good advice.”
Freddy responded with a sad smile. It wasn’t his fault I had to fight a lava monster. Heck, it wasn’t really Vix’s fault. This was the fault of some very evil men who decided to kidnapped the wrong ninjas almost inlaws. After I survive the terrifying lava pit, I would be one step closer to getting even with them. That made me feel a little better. Although the fact that I found comfort in getting revenge on those people yet again showed you who the actual monster was in this encounter. Here’s a hint, it wasn’t the one on fire. I stopped the self-pity train and looked back over at Freddy.
“Anything else I should know before I go? Any hints on drawing it out to the edge of the crater?”
“You will be able to grab its attention by simply walking the crater. Once the fire-born notices any movement around its home it will seek to investigate. The elemental will pursue you for quite a distance from the crater, so you will be able to gain as much distance from the lava as you like,” he said.
“That’s good. Okay, I guess it’s time to get this over with.”
I gave Vix a quick kiss and started the process of stretching out my back and body for combat. Sadly taking any kind of medication was pretty much useless. An unfortunate side of effect of my advanced healing was the inability of painkillers or muscle relaxers to do me any good. You take the good with the bad I guess.
I started swinging the blade around to help get a better feel for its weight. The blade should have felt very top heavy due to its wide head. But the slit down the middle and the thin nature of the metal kept it nicely balanced. It was still just a little top heavy, but not so much that I’d feel like I was fighting with an ax. After I was as warmed up as I was gonna get, I started towards the crater. Vix grabbed my face and kissed me deeper than my little peck. My whole body relaxed. Perhaps the kiss of a beautiful woman was life’s best painkiller.
I made my way to the crater’s edge and started to circle. Except for the occasional wave of heat it was kind of a neat walk. Bursts of steam and the pops of the lava created a very rhythmic background noise. The red glow and slow movements of the lava were almost peaceful. But I wasn’t here to relax. I kept my eyes peeled for any thing out of place. I was a good fifty feet away from Freddy and Vix when I noticed the first signs of movement.
It was pretty much exactly what you’d expect, a giant creature made of fire. From this distance it was hard to tell exactly how big it was, but it definitely wasn’t tiny. I gave the creature a big smile and waved to make sure I got its attention. It started to flow towards me, skating across the hot surface much like the water-kin on water. I wondered if it was just riding the thermal currents. The blade in my hand started to vibrate and I knew the fun was about to start. Also, just because it’s nice to think about, the creature was a whole lot more than fifty feet away. So, I guess we found a big one, just as Freddy worried.
It wasn’t moving faster than a person at a brisk walk. I was hoping that was its top speed, but there was no way to tell. I was waiting until it got closer before I starting moving away from the crater. I didn’t want it to stop chasing me because it thought I left. Once it was about fifty feet from me I could make out much more detail. It was very wide, at least twelve feet or so. Unlike the water-kin, the fire-born had a very clear head. It was sort of a dome shape on top of its shoulders, but the shape varied as the fire flickered and flowed. It had two very long, thick arms and its lower body just kind of got skinnier as it flowed to the ground. Almost like a fire genie or something. Sadly I didn’t think he was here to grant me any wishes.
I couldn’t tell if the creature had eyes in that big domey head or if it was my imagination. But as it continued to get closer, I swore I saw a sneering face as it swung its left hand through the air. He was definitely too far away to reach me, so I wasn’t sure exactly what he was doing. But, as the fireball left his hand I quickly understood his intentions. The fighting bell had just been rung.
I dropped down quickly below the rim of the crater, watching the fireball zoom overhead. I started moving back to give myself plenty of room for when it crested the edge. I’d put fifty feet between the crater and myself when Burney showed his face. I continued to move back slowly, just giving myself a bit more room. Once he fully emerged from the crater, I had a much better idea of his size.
My twelve feet wide at the shoulder might have been a little optimistic. Burney was taller than a two-story building and almost that wide at the shoulder. His waist was only half as wide as it flowed into the small tornado of fire that held the creature upright. It continued moving at about the same pace, a brisk walk in my direction.
The ground around the crater was already charred and black so the fire wasn’t really doing anything damage. But as it continued to move towards me, it seared the ground, destroying the small patches of dead grass that remained. Luckily there wasn’t enough vegetation around to catch fire. After I found a patch of earth that seemed level and appropriate for our fight, I stood my ground. Burney greeted my stoppage with another fireball.
The ball was slightly larger than a beach ball, trailing flame behind it like some type of streaky comet. I stepped to the side, putting my body out of the way while I extended the blade into the path of the fire. The flame struck the blade and instantly went out, a fine mist flowing to the ground in its place. I couldn’t help but smile.
“Well, this should be fun.”
Burney let out something like a roar. It sounded a lot like when you pour a bunch of lighter fluid on a lit grill, only much louder and longer. He threw another fireball and this time I did something a little dicey. I didn’t dodge, but instead just used the blade to perfectly block the fireball. I kept my body sideways to minimize the damage if I was wrong, but luckily I was not. The fireball dissipated just as the first, leaving a fine mist to cool my face.
“That’s very handy. So, before we get into this, any chance you speak English?”
Burney slowed his forward movement a bit, stopping about thirty feet in front of me. His body sort of tilted back and forth as if he swayed on his fire tornado. I assumed he was pausing to size me up. I’m sure he wasn’t expecting to meet someone with a tuned weapon. I tried again to see if
I could avoid the fight.
“Look, I don’t want to fight you and I have no interest in your lava field. I just need a bit of essence and I’ll be on my way. What do you say?”
Burney seemed to be considering my offer. I actually thought his flame was dimming just a bit, the raging fire calming ever so slightly. But, it was a false hope. Again he roared and this time he flung two fireballs at me. I dove to the side, dispelling only the closest one as the other was nowhere near me. Burney started towards me again and once he was close enough for me to attack, I did.
He flung two more fireballs in my direction on his way over. I avoided both. Then once he was close enough that I could reach, I jumped to the right and attacked. I swung the blade through his outstretched left arm and the flames dissipated as the sword made contact. My slice cut off his arm and it fell to the ground burning itself out. Burney let out an even louder roar as he swung his other arm my way.
As he spun towards me roaring, I did him a favor and made his arms match. I smiled as his right arm fell to the ground and burnt out. Again more roars and again he turned towards me, as I kept moving. I watched fire grow out of his arm stubs and reformed his hands just as they were before. I was hoping I’d shrunk his overall body mass in the process, but if I did, I couldn’t tell. I wasn’t going to just stand there and wait for him to get going again. So I surged past his right side, under the reforming arm and sliced clean through the fire tornado.
I kept clear as Burney toppled to the ground behind me. Before he could regain his twister feet, I ran by and removed his arms once again, this time at the shoulder. The roaring was becoming a constant, so I ignored it at this point. I found myself standing in front of a giant mass of flames, so I kept working, slicing off as much of his body as I could. His roaring came to a sudden stop however, once he looked up and noticed my blade pointing straight at his face. I kept myself aware of his reforming hands to make sure I was ready if he tried a sneak attack.
G.H.O.S.T. Teams (Book 3) Spirits Page 14