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December 2014 - GROUP ROUND-ROBIN Story - JOIN IN
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Running
Zach drummed his fingers on his knee and tried to look at the scenery. It was snowy out there. Cold with lots of very tree-like trees and some snow. It was grey. Grey sky, grey branches, grey ground. Boring.
The guy driving this battered truck wasn't boring. Ryan had curly dark hair, bright blue eyes, and a great smile, not to mention other good things hidden by his fleece-lined denim jacket and all. But they were supposed to be meeting up with their school wilderness camp, with teachers and other students around for three days, and Zach was practicing pretending like he didn't notice Ryan. He needed the practice.
“Dammit!” Ryan's angry voice startled him, even as Uptown Funk faded and died on the car stereo.
“What?”
The slowing of the old truck, complete with a sputtering noise and a whiff of hot acrid plastic answered his question, even before Ryan snarled, “This piece of crap just died. Again!”
Ryan used their momentum to steer to the side, off the main road onto the gravel verge. They rolled to a stop and sat there, cooling metal pinging. The nasty melty-plastic-wires-fried smell was getting stronger.
Zach pulled out his phone. “No bars. You?”
Ryan checked. “Nothing.”
Zach frowned, looking out at the bleak countryside, then back at Ryan. “What do we do? I haven't seen another car for, like, an hour.”
“Well,” Ryan said, “I guess we could...”
"try and fix it?"'Guuurrlll say what,' thought Zach. He had never fixed a truck before. He had never tried to fix one of his broken toy trucks even. When it came to fixing trucks...Zach was a big no.
"Uh!" Zach tried to come up with an answer. The thought of helping a good-looking man like Ryan didn't come a cross a bad idea. "Do you know how to fix it?" he asked looking directly into Ryan's eyes. 'Okay! Why did I just look into his eyes? He's going to think I'm being creepy'.
"It's worth a shot," said Ryan.
Was it just Zach or did Ryan's blue eyes hold contact longer than necessary?
"Okay. Just tell me what to do and I'll do it," answered Zach. 'Anything!' he thought. 'Stop it! Zach!'
Ryan nodded at him and opened the truck door to get out when
the sound of an engine revving came from the road behind them. Zach jumped out of the passenger's side and out into the middle of the icy gravel. "Zach!" Ryan called from behind him. "Get off the road!"
Zach was waving his arms above his head. He could just make out the car's headlights coming over the rise. He wanted nothing more than to get to camp where he could focus on other things -- besides than Ryan's cool blue eyes.
A strong hand grabbed him around the bicep and pulled him hard to the side of the road. The car was approaching fast over the hill.
"Hey!" Zach flailed against Ryan's grip, but he was larger, stronger, and he kept pulling Zach after him. Away from the road now and into the trees. "Ryan! What are you doing!"
"We have to get as far away from the road as possible." Ryan's eyes were steely and determined. "They'll see the car and know we're here."
Zach started to panic. What was Ryan talking about? What were they running away from?
He heard a car skid to a halt despite the icy ground, and the doors opened. Zach turned in Ryan's grasp and saw a group of threatening men examining Ryan's truck.
The taller boy wasn't looking at him now, and something about his expression looked ashamed. "I'm sorry, Zach, I didn't mean..."
Zach put a hand to Ryan's mouth, to silence him, as he saw one of the men pull out a heavy, long-barreled gun. It was the sort of assault rifle legal only to cops and the military, but none of the guys checking out the old truck were in uniform, any kind of uniform. But they all had that wary, tough-guy look to them. Just seeing them checking out Ryan's pickup made Zach feel panicked, but he watched and kept still.Ryan tried to pull away, looking even more panicked than Zach felt. Ryan looked as if he knew exactly who and what the armed men were, and why they were examining the vehicle.
The snow had let up while they were driving, and almost stopped entirely when the men came, and Ryan pulled Zach off the road, but now, the snow came down again, heavier than ever. The men had been so focused on the truck that they had not appeared to notice the tracks leading off the snowy, icy road and directly to the two teens. Even as the snow came down hard, veiling but not completely hiding the searchers, the tracks the boys left started to fade away in the snowfall.
Suddenly, one of the four men pulled a brown paper bag from under one of the truck seats, held it up, and said, "I found it. It's all here. When can we..."
report to headquarters?""Let me check," said the tallest and biggest man in the group. To Zach he looked like the one in charge. He took the brown paper bag from the man who found it and looked at it closely. He didn't open it or shake it. It was if he was X-raying the contents with his eyes.
Zach could feel the cold in his body. As if he had read his mind, Ryan put a comforting arm around his shoulder and pulled him closer, still looking at the four men near the truck. To Zach, Ryan felt as if he was generating heat.
"Yes, it's in there," said the tall man.
"But where's he?" asked a black-haired man. His eyes went towards the woods.
Zach felt Ryan's body tense. Were the four men looking for him? Who's Ryan? Thoughts began to flood Zach's mind. All he knew about Ryan was that he was a normal truck driver who had offered him a lift to the camp.
'This is soooo not happening to me,' thought Zach. No matter how much handsome he thought Ryan was, Zach was not ready to put his life on the line for him. As far as he knew, Ryan could be the 'bad' guy in this scenario. There could be drugs in that brown paper bag. 'What did I do to deserve this?'
The black haired man turned in the direction where the two boys were hiding. Zach felt his heart beat faster. Ryan's grip tightened around his shoulder and then
Gunshots, a double rapport. Instinctively Ryan ducked, pulling Zach down to the forest floor with him. The lying snow quickly soaked through Zach's jeans."What the hell?" The dark haired man span round away from them as he barked the question.
"Tyres, man, the tyres. Even if he could have fixed this pile of junk truck, he can't drive without tyres."
Flat on the ground, Ryan began to belly crawl backwards, further away from the road. He grasped Zach's ankle and pulled, giving him no option but to follow. With each exhalation a cloud of breath formed in the air above him. Under the snow pine needles scraped against the exposed skin of his hands.
"Faster," Ryan hissed as they wriggled deeper into the woods.
The air was still around them. Zach couldn't hear anything over the pulsing of his own blood in his ears. Suddenly Ryan grabbed at his ankle again, pulling him into the shelter of a large boulder.
"What the hell?" Zach demanded as soon as he was sitting upright, his back against the stone.
"Quietly, they're still out there."
"Who are? What do they want?"
"More importantly who are you?" asked Zach. God gave him a hot dude to hang out with and as far as he knew, he could be an escaped convict.Ryan didn't answer his question. He looked busy. As if focusing on a sound Zach couldn't hear.
"Are you even listening to me?" Zach snapped his fingers in front of Ryan's eyes.
Ryan looked directly at him, into Zach's eyes. Zach felt his chest tighten. Ryan took a deep breath. "I'm...."
'BANG!'
The sound of gun fire echoed throughout the forest.
"Oh! God this can't be happening," said Zach. 'I didn't sign up for this.'
"Don't move," whispered Ryan. He was looking at something behind the stone Zach was pressed up against.
'Believe me I'm not going anywhere,' thought Zach. He wanted to say it out loud but couldn't. His whole body was trembling. The sound of real gun fire had pierced into his heart. It was lot different than hearing gunshots in the video games he enjoyed playing.
"This needs to end," said Ryan and he stood up.
"Get-get down! You'll get shot!" whispered Zach.
"I have to warn them," said Ryan. Zach watched as Ryan put his arms forward, his palms facing the snow around his feet. He raised his arms and Zach couldn't believe his eyes as the snow raised as well.
'What the hell is happening?' Zach was wide-eyed.
Ryan smiled at him and then his arms made a quick motion as if he was throwing something over the boulder with great force. A pile of snow raised up and flew over Zach.
"Watch out!" yelled a man. Zach recognized the voice of the black haired man.
"We have a water elementalist here!" yelled another one of the men after them. "A gun's not going to do us any good. He can freeze us in an instant with all this snow around us."
"Retreat to base!" came a man's voice. "Those two won't be going anywhere with that broken up tuck of theirs. We'll come after them with reinforcements."
Zach heard the men go away. He then turned to Ryan. His expression demanded an explanation.
"Well," said Ryan, giving him a smile. "I..."
“Don’t!” Zach interrupted, his expression changing, and then changing again. “Don’t explain it. I heard what they said. I saw you do it. I saw that they feared you and fled. All I want to know, all I need to know is that I’m safe to be around you. That I’m safe with you, from you.”Ryan nodded. “Believe it or not, you make me stronger.”
“How? Whoever you are, whatever you really are, I’m just human, a nobody,” Zach shook his head. “Less than nobody. Ryan, I’m gay. And I have it bad for you. Are you going to freeze me now, kill me because I like you that way?”
Ryan pulled Zach to him. “That’s exactly why you give me strength, make me stronger in what I can do. My kind, my people. Our powers only mature, become fully our own when we find and are Joined to the one person we are destined to be with.”
Zach shook his head, then suddenly nodded. “I don’t understand any of this, but I feel it. Maybe that’s why I…”
"No!" Zach tried to make up his mind. Everything felt confusing. How could he fall in love with this...this weird hot dude that looked as if he came out of a sci-fi movie? And the whole 'one human we are destined to be with' thing? How is that even possible? Yes, he wanted to get into Ryan's pants but that didn't mean he was willing to spend all eternity with him, right?Zach stepped away from Ryan. He instantly regretted the decision because being close to him was making him feel warm. 'Great! I've fallen for a walking heater!' he thought.
"I know this is confusing for you," said Ryan. He sounded sad. "Believe me, this wasn't the way I wanted you to find out."
'What is wrong with me?' thought Zach. The Heavens finally gave him a hot dude. Someone who was ready to spend all eternity with him and he was having doubts? He wanted to run into Ryan's arms and let him carry him away from danger. But he just couldn't make himself trust him even though his heart was telling him otherwise.
"I need to get to camp," said Zach. He turned to look in the direction they left the truck. 'I need to get back to my normal life.'
"Okay," said Ryan. "Whatever you want."
The two started to walk towards the truck. Zach remembered putting some warm blankets in one of the bags. He really needed to wrap himself in one of them. The two didn't talk to each other while they walked.
"The truck is done for," said Ryan as the two reached the truck. Zach looked at the tires. Those men had slashed them up good.
"Well, I'm going to go get a blanket," said Zach. He was about to walk forward when Ryan grabbed his arm. Zach felt an electric surge move throughout his body.
"Do you...do you hear that?" asked Ryan.
"What?"
BOOM!!! The truck exploded and
For a brief moment, Zack thought he was going to die. The concussive blast and heat from the booby-trapped truck should have killed them both. But instead of his life flashing before his eyes, it was a sheet of solid ice and Ryan's hand spread in front of him, protectively.
"See? Stronger every moment I'm with you." The panicked and exhausted look behind Ryan's eyes told Zach that that was bravado.
It was dumb luck that they had just survived. Zach was about to call Ryan out on the macho act when Ryan swooned.
And not the pretty, fairytale princess kind of swoon. The kind of swoon that causes doctors to run for the smelling salts.
'Exploded truck, clandestine paramilitary goons after us, and now the only thing between them and me is a puddle of human,' the sarcasm sprang free in Zach's thoughts, 'or is he even…
human. Zach recalled every incident in his life and from what he knew humans weren't capable of making snow float. It was stupid, but he had tried as a kid to change the channel on his T.V by thinking it. Alien maybe?Zach could search Ryan's body for some extraterrestrial sign, but maybe that wasn't a good idea.
Instead he stood up, the snow had covered most of his hair by now and looked down at Ryan. "I'm sorry."
The apology was more to ease his guilt from what he was about to do next. He turned and
kicked Ryan hard in the gut. The hot dude was shocked as much as Zach was as he grabbed his stomach in pain."I'm...I'm so sorry!!" said Zach. "I don't know why I did that."
"It wasn't you," said Ryan. He was still on the ground. He pointed in the direction behind Zach. Zach turned around and saw two people coming towards them...a man and a woman in tight black suits.
Instinctively Zach came near to Ryan and helped him up on his feet. Even though he wasn't sure what Ryan was, if he was going to fight off mysterious people he'd need his strength, extra-terrestrial or not.
"Damn! That kid broke free of my mind control," said the man. "Stupid brat!" The woman next to him rolled her eyes.
"You...you need to run," said Ryan as he stood up and pushed Zach behind him. For some reason he was only focusing on the woman.
'Is she dangerous?' thought Zach. He couldn't see any weapons on them.
The fire was still burning because of the exploding truck. "I'll take over from here," said the woman in a bored voice. She raised her arm and Zach couldn't believe his eyes as the fire grew bigger.
"Zach! RUN!" yelled Ryan over the sound of the laughing woman as a stream of flame, shaped as a dragon shot towards the two men
“Fire! Water? Air? Earth!” Zach shouted without even knowing why, turning, stopping and raising his hand toward the flame. "Earth!"Suddenly the road between the flame dragon shooting toward them erupted in an explosion of dirt and gravel, and then formed a thin, impenetrable wall, frustrating the flame, quenching it.
Zach stared at Ryan. “Thanks. Whatever you just did. Thanks.”
Ryan was now staring at Zach. “That wasn’t me. That was you!”
Zach startled and the wall of dirt and stone fell back to the road in a jumble that still rendered the road between their attackers and them unusable. As the woman shot fire at them again, Zach raised his hand at her, and all the dirt and rock from the broken road shot at the man and woman like bullets from a gun, flattening them, burying them.
Zach knew without understanding how or why that the attempt to control his mind had instead unleashed it, almost like breaking a hidden dam within it. And then, before he could tell Ryan, Zach felt dizzy, and fell to the ground, unconscious, striking his head on the icy, snowy road.
"Rock, Paper, Scissors...Water, Fire, Earth, Air..."
The two series kept rolling through Zach's mind until he slowly, blearily awoke in Ryan's arms.
"Zach! Zach! Are you okay?"
Zach saw two of Ryan slowly become one, but he felt Ryan's strong, warm arms hold him, supporting him, and he mumbled, "Better than okay, much better..."
"Well, good. Because we have to move. Right the hell now." Ryan raised him to a sitting position, then slung an arm around him and hauled him to his feet. "Come on. Can you walk?"Zach blinked hard, trying to clear both his vision and clear his head, from thoughts of Ryan's arms to thoughts of flaming dragons and falling rocks. Walk. Yeah. "Sure. I'm good."
For the first few steps he was glad of Ryan's support, but soon he shrugged free, able to move faster on his own. Ryan had been steering them down the road. Once Zach was stable he began to hurry.
"Why the road?" Zach asked. "And what... Why... who...?" All the questions he had got tangled together like a log-jam in his mouth, not letting anything coherent out.
"The road because we need speed more than hiding, right now. We'll get off it soon enough, but I want a mile between us and them." Ryan broke into a jog. "Can you go faster?"
"Yeah. Star short-stop," Zach mumbled. Like Ryan would care about that.
Ryan continued to speed up, until they were running full tilt along the icy gravel road. Each footfall jolted Zach's spinning head, and made his breath come shorter. Beside him, Ryan was unfairly quiet, running easily, not even working for it. Zach dug down where he went for that seventh-inning speed and picked up the pace still more. Ryan fell back, but he caught up a second later. To Zach's surprise, Ryan grinned at him, mud and tousled hair and all. For a moment they fell into step, and Zach found his strides coming easily, the air flowing sweet and cool into his lungs. This. This was running!
He was almost sorry when Ryan slowed, casting a worried look over his shoulder. Zach slowed along with him. "What?"
"I think they just dug out of that landslide you buried them with."
"I buried...?"
"Yeah. You." Ryan frowned and actually grabbed his hand. Zach realized he'd come to an open-mouthed stop. Ryan tugged him toward the side of the road. "Come on."
Ryan pointed down at the ground and breathed out sharply. Zach saw the snow become ice. "Walk carefully," Ryan said. "Stay on the path I make and don't, for the love of Velociraptors, slip and fall down, all right? We're going to head into the trees and I don't want to leave any tracks."
"The love of what?" Zach was distracted enough not to realize he was following orders from this weird alien whomever guy until he'd made it over the ditch and almost to the first outlying pines.
"It was a joke, Zach. Come on. Keep moving."
"Wait. I need to know..."
"You need to walk. Look, I know you're puzzled and probably scared."
"I'm not scared." That was reflex.
"Well I am. And you should be. Move it, short-stop boy. If they catch up with us, the first thing they'll do is...
feed you to the Velociraptors.""But..."
"There's no time now for questions. Either make a list or let it go."
Zach's sanity was grasping to the last shreds of normalcy with desperation, and the last few threads were fraying. Zach tried his best to choke back a giggle as he asked, "Hey..." *snort* "Hey Ryan? Do you want to build a snowman?" Zach lost it at that point, his mind going blissfully blank as laughter at the poor joke and the absurdity of the situation overwhelmed him.
Ryan wasn't in the mood for that lame crack of a joke yet again, especially not now while terrified and fleeing for dear life. He calmly walked back to Zach, being careful to retrace his own footprints in the snow, grabbed the waistband of Zack's pants and proceeded to dump cold sleet accumulated from the palm of his hand into Zack's underwear.
Zack reacted like any guy would do when sensitive parts come into contact with extremes of temperature: spout expletives of the four letter variety and double over to protect himself from further damage.
Ryan was ready for it through. He clamped his hand over Zach's face, and forced Zack to look directly in his eyes, "We have to MOVE." His terror was barely contained now, "If we don't go now, they will...
“Kill us?” Zach interjected when Ryan did not finish, a bit surprised that ice down his pants brought him back to reality. The cold moisture had another effect, one he hoped Ryan would not notice. "Velociraptors? Really?"Ryan shook his head as he kept them moving, his eyes glancing over Zach. “Capture us, confine us, if they can, and separate us. Water and Earth are powerful elements alone, terrifying when combined, as with us.”
Zach suddenly realized that Ryan feared being separated from him more than capture, or even being injured, or worse. It made him smile for a moment, then a thought struck him. “Am I even human or am I whatever you are? And what the hell are you, are we, anyway?”
“Later,” Ryan half-promised, “I’ll explain it all, later. But we have to lose them by confusing our trail, and I need to focus to do that.”
Zach looked at the ground, feeling really, really connected to it. He pointed at his footprints, and they blurred, and then vanished into almost virgin, snowy soil and rocks. But just blurring a few footprints made him feel weak again. He grabbed Ryan for support, and felt a surge of renewed strength, and vitality. He aimed his hand at Ryan’s tracks behind them, and watched them blur into untouched soil and rock, but without feeling weak himself.
Ryan looked at him, looked at what he was doing. “I felt the energy pull from you, and like what you’re doing. That’s the downside of our powers. They use a lot of body energy. We can risk doing a little of this, but not much. We need to have the energy to run, if we need to, and certainly to walk. It’s a long way to safety on foot.”
“'Safety' is a place? Where-- where will we safe?”
Zach wanted to know where 'safe' was. It was the most important place for him to be right now. Of course he wanted to be safe. With Ryan? Well, that was something he didn't want to talk about. There were a lot of questions in his head. Zach didn't know who or what Ryan was and now he was having doubts about who or what 'he' was himself? He never had the talk with parents that Clark Kent had with his adoptive parents when he figured out his powers."Yes, there's a place where we can be safe," Ryan nodded at him. "That was where I was driving you."
"Wait! What?" asked Zach. "I thought you were driving me to camp. Wasn't that what I paid you for?"
Ryan smiled at him. He didn't feel sorry about it. In a sense Ryan had actually kidnapped Zach and was taking him to 'who-knows-where'?
"Well," said Ryan. "You see, I had to take you there. You know, to be with your people."
"My people?" asked Zach. Was he out from the 'human being' class now?
"Am...am I even human anymore?" he asked.
"Yes," Ryan nodded. "But you are also more than that. You are special, Zach."
'Where have I heard that one before?' Zach wanted to roll his eyes at Ryan.
"I'll explain later," added Ryan. They had already wasted too much time. Ryan wished he was able to create an ice-slide like his masters. That way they could escape faster.
Before Zach could say anything the air around them started to get warm and then the whole area filled with the sound of explosions. "What's happening?" asked Zach as he looked back and saw trees beginning to burn. The temperature was rising all around them.
"The woman," answered Ryan. "She's more powerful that I thought."
And then Zach started to scream. His brain was in excruciating pain. The man after them was trying to get inside. It was taking all of Zach's will to keep him out. "AHHHHHHH!!!" Zach yelled out in pain.
"No, no," said Ryan. He was helpless seeing Zach in pain. Zach looked at Ryan. 'Make it stop!' Thought Zach. 'Get out of my head'.
Without any control over his body, Zach pointed at Ryan and rocks hurled towards Ryan, ready to kill...
Ryan caused the snow and ice on the ground to liquefy, fountain, and freeze between the rocks and dirt hurled at him by Zach, but it was rapidly wearing him down. Zach was bleeding from the nose and in obvious agony as he continued to be the puppet of the telepathic man teamed with the fire elemental woman. Ryan desperately formed snow and ice into a spear and hurled through the air at the telepath, the spear growing in size and mass as it pulled more and more moisture from the air in its path. The telepath was so focused on controlling Zach that he never saw danger coming until it was too late to even dodge the spear. The dense, razor-sharp shaft of ice plunged into and through the man’s scull, killing him and releasing Zach from his control.Zach dropped to the ground, lifeless. Ryan could not tell if he lived or had died, and he had no time to check. He had to deal with the fire elemental or die, since the pair had decided that only Zach was worth capturing for whatever reason. And he could not help Zach if he died, so…
he tried to put up another ice shield. It was a feeble thing though, and he panted as he tried to reinforce it. The woman behind it laughed and raised her hand. Roaring flames danced in her palm.For a moment Ryan thought about running. At least if he got away maybe he could rescue Zach. But he couldn't make himself turn away. He pushed all his energy into that shield, knowing it wouldn't be enough.
And then a huge pine-tree behind the woman cracked and fell, flattening her to the ground. A hand landed hard on Ryan's shoulder. "Come on!"
He whirled around to see Gareth, snow dusting his greying brown hair and an anxious look on his face. Gareth bent and scooped Zach over his shoulder. "More are coming. Move it, kid."
Ryan gasped in relief, and turned...
to see Gareth, one of his masters and one of the most powerful elementalists out there. Even though Ryan was happy to see Gareth, he knew he and Zach would've been dead otherwise, he couldn't shake of the feeling that something was very wrong. Why would Garth Vanhal, one of the most power air elemtalist to ever live, come and rescue him and Zach? What was happening? Were the fire elementalist woman and the mind controlling guy that powerful?
Before Ryan could ask the question the air around them filled with a sharp shriek. Ryan immediately put his hands on his ears. It can't be! He thought. Gareth looked worried too. He wasn't covering his ears. Ryan understood that he was controlling the air around his ears to stop too much of the sound from entering to cause pain. He was also doing the same for Zach who was still unconscious.
"We have to go! NOW!" yelled Gareth. "They have a reviver!"
Reviver's were a rare race, people who could bring back the dead or heal people on the edge of losing their life. If someone had even one of them on their team, they were unstoppable. Judging by the loud shrieks, there were at least two approaching them.
Ryan could feel the temperature around them rise. The fire woman was waking up! He felt Gareth grab his tightly by the shoulder and then his master flew off with him. He had Zach tossed on his shoulder while he held Ryan with one hand. Flyng without a glider was hard enough for air elementalists and Ryan could only imagine how much pain his master must be in to carry himself, Ryan as well as Zach.
The fire woman, fully healed threw a fireball at them. Gareth dodged and flew higher into the sky. 'Will we make it?' though Ryan. He didn't know but he hoped they would reach the base or at least get close to it when...
...the whole sky erupted in thunder and lightning as the moisture of the clouds themselves were compressed to form a shield between the fireball below and the escaping trio above. Ryan knew that every last water elemental in the Guild of Water Elementals had to be helping. But why help now? Other than to make sure that the Master of Masters came to no harm? Gareth was not that popular on the Council. If Gareth fell rescuing a rejected Apprentice, and an Emergent kept ignorant of himself and his powers, it would likely be Master Aquitaine of the Water Guild herself who would most likely succeed. Ryan knew he was risking everything to help a castout and an emerging elemental. So, what was new enough, frightening enough for the all the Water Elementals to finally unite?
Ryan had been cast out just weeks before. Not for not being powerful enough, not for lack of dedication, but for the reason most hurtful to him of all, for simply being true to himself, a guy who loved guys and girls equally well. His own Guild within the Council rejected him, and not enough members of the other guilds cared enough of oppose their vote. Gareth had been among the few to challenge, risking his leadership to do so.
So, what had changed? Was Zach that special or was it Joining of the two of them? Ryan knew enough about Elemental Joining, to know, to be certain that Zach and he were joined even if they had never been a couple, or dated, or anything.
Only the fact that Zach had come out to him was going to make being joined anything but totally awkward for them. And Ryan wasn't sure he was ready to give up girls to be exclusive with a guy, even a guy so enticing as sweet, emergent Zach. Since being cast out, he had given himself to the simple joy of being bisexual, out, and proud of it. Could he even be monogamously gay for the right guy?
Were the elementals trying to capture or destroy them Council members or some of the rumored renegades who sold their powers to wealthy Mundanes for great wealth themselves?
It was all too, too much for him to deal with. Ryan had too many questions, no answers, and he himself was fading fast. Ryan had no answers and his mind drifted to dreams of Oz with Gareth as the Wizard, only somehow Zach and he were the ones on the Yellow Brick Road, instead of Dorothy.
****
Zach weakly came back to himself, aware of flying, and with a shield of ice and snow forming below to shield against a frustrated flame. A strong arm held him, and he half-turned, half-rolled to see that it was not Ryan that held him, but some really old man with shaggy white hair, and bad taste in fashion. The old man glared down at him, and observed, "So, you are awake, good, because your elemental mate has fainted from the drain you put on his powers."
Zach could not process anything the man said, except that Ryan was somehow in danger because of him, "What can I do to help him?"
"You're already doing it," the old man told him, "Can't you feel your energy flow across me, and into him?"
Zach nodded, only realizing that he felt that sensation because the old man's words made him expect to feel it. "And it will save him? From dying?"
The old man nodded. "Trace your energy flow through me and see for yourself."
As quickly as the old man suggested it, Zach realized that all of his senses flowed with the energy that left his body, passed through the old man, and into Ryan. "Could he feel that in me, when I was unconscious, and he was sustaining me?"
"Instinctively, perhaps," the old man shrugged. "He was never trained to look for the sharing, because he had not been joined, until Fabron accidently unblocked your powers, and Ryan and you joined powers, and souls. Master Bergen had blocked you, forbidden your access to your powers because you were born to love men. Ryan was banished by Master Aquitaine because he's made to love men and women alike. And yet amidst the school we have for ungifted fosterlings, you found one another, and got caught up in this intrigue that triggered you, and joined the pair of you."
"Fabron the banished Earth Elemental?" Ryan asked, re-energized enough to come back to himself, as Gareth spoke to Zach. "he's who tried to get into Zach's mind? And I killed him. But they have a reviver?"
As Zach became aware of Ryan's mind across the flow of energy, he suddenly knew the old man to be Master Gareth, Master of Masters to the Four Elemental Guilds. He knew all about their loose federation of guilds held together by a council of eight masters, one of whom served as their leader, the Master of Masters. And Zach suddenly knew that there were powerful specialists in each guild, such as telepaths and revivers who did better with manipulating their aligned element in themselves and other Elementally Gifted women and men. "So, it takes an Earth Elemental to invade the mind of one?"
Gareth smiled at Zach. "Bergen is such a fool to have blocked a mind like yours because his telepath told him you would emerge both powerful and gay. Earth Elementals make the most powerful telepaths, because all flesh is of the earth. But in trying to control you, Fabron unblocked you, and you immediately joined with Ryan here. Joinings are felt by all the Elemental Masters. Bergen and Aquitaine are both obliged to provide safe passage and shelter joined Elemental couples, although it appears that Master Aquitaine alone is putting duty above her bigotry, at the moment."
Ryan observed, "Fabron was one of Master Bergen's favorites before being banished."
"And the reason Bergen ordered his remaining telepaths to block any Earth emergent they read as potentially gay," Gareth told us. "He could not blame himself for favoring a future betrayer, so he had to blame it on Fabron emerging gay as well as telepathic."
Ryan suddenly had a question, "If Fabron was not banished for being gay, then why? And why was me being gay sufficient cause for Master Aquitaine to banish me?"
Before Gareth could answer either of Ryan's questions, they reached the outer defenses of the ancient Elemental sanctuary, deep within the forest. Gareth descended back to earth, and the earth convulsed to shield them, while the ice sheet flowing beneath them in the air arched overhead to shelter them from above. Then, shimmering gates composed of all the power Elements opened before them, and the seven other Masters appeared, parting in the middle for Gareth and his guests to pass.
Master Aquitaine, a tall, proud, grey-haired woman stepped forward and...
moved directly to Ryan. "I'm so sorry, Ryan. We… I… " Master Aquitaine was fumbling for the right words, "You should never have been banished, especially not for that… for being you. But you have to understand, Bergen forced our hand. Your banishment was staged; we..." she indicated to herself and Gareth, "we had to make it convincing. We had to have you and everyone else think that you couldn't have a place here. It was the only way."
"Only way for what?!" Ryan was incredulous. "Only way to try and get me killed without the blood being on your hands?"
Gareth took Ryan by both shoulders and looked him square in the eyes, "It was the only way to find Zach. And it was the only way to make sure Bergen couldn't get his hands on you--or worse, kill you--when he defected."
Ryan was slow to notice, but the news of Bergen's defection made him take note; the place was in shambles, like a war had taken place here not long ago. The trees marking the perimeter were scorched, cracked and toppled. The ground was smooth and the stone buildings were pristine, like the Earths had recently redone the facade. But everything was minutely different; no windows and thicker walls, like the place had been rebuilt to withstand a siege.
Why had Ryan not seen the faces as they were arriving? The Masters were not the same as when he left. So many younger faces; too young to be wearing the garbs of Masters, yet here they were.
Ryan was lost to the impact of what he was just now noticing. Zach meanwhile, was piecing together the information, "So I was blocked, not only from learning my powers or knowing about elementalists, but I was also blocked from you? Wasn't I? You couldn't find me like you normally could with other emergent elementals, so you had to use Ryan. You cut him off from all other support to strengthen his sense of the paired bond, right?"
"He's been and elementalist for all of half an hour and he's already got a better grasp of Joining than some of the acolytes born here." Gareth was again complimenting Zach's quick grasp of the abstract.
"But how? How did you know it had to be Ryan?" Zach was not finished following the logic trail until he had a full explanation "Someone needs to…
tell me all of this..." Zach tried to complete his answer but ended up waving his hand at the people in front of him. "This..this...whatever this is."Deep down he understood that everything was making sense but his mind wasn't allowing him to accept all of it. What was his life? It felt like a movie to him with people who could control elements. Not only that, he was one of them! And he was supposed to 'pair' up with Ryan. God had to give me a hot guy but also had to make him the crazy kind didn't He? My life! he thought.
"We really don't have much time," said Aquatina. "We need to face Bergen. He has amassed a small yet powerful army." The rest of the people around Zach were clearly worried. I don't even know who Bergen really is, thought Zach. He didn't know what kind of reaction to show the rest of them.
"We will strike him tonight!" said Aquatina before anyone could say anything. Zach felt Ryan come closer to him.
"But..." Gareth tried to speak.
"No!" said Aquatina. "We strike tonight and that's an order!"
Some of the more important looking people formed a group around her and to Zach it felt as if they were talking strategy.
Gareth walked him and Ryan. He looked serious. "Come with me. I have to tell you something important."
Ryan nodded at Gareth and looked at Zach.
What can I say? thought Zach. He nodded at Ryan and then at Zach. Gareth looked worried but he lead them away...
…to his quarters within the ancient hidden sanctuary.Once inside, the door locked by elemental means, Gareth stripped off his winter gear, undressing down to bare chest, bare feet, and loose-fitting white pants. He gestured for the two young men to do likewise, and the sudden warming of the large room, obliged them to comply. Ryan had no problem stripping down to his pants, barefooted, and bare-chested. Zach, however, was far more self-conscious, but did so, a bit nervous to have Ryan see how lean, and thin he was by comparison to the far more muscular Ryan.
“When I left to get you two, Bergen had not defected, and I was still Master of Masters,” Gareth told them. “Aquitaine has the Master’s mantel upon her now. We do not know if Bergen actually declared himself for the renegades or if she pushed him out so she could force a vote of the other six masters. She may only want the two of you here to keep the renegades from getting you. So, play nice, pay attention, and don’t trust anyone.”
“Including you?” Zach questioned him.
“Especially not me,” Gareth grinned at him. “If I was a good ally, I would still be Master. So, eat, rest, and allow me to train you, Zach, in using your powers, and the pair of you in combining them. If, I’m right, and Aquitaine had no real plans for either of you, except getting you away from our common enemies, we’ll have several days to train, but no more. Once she has consolidated power within the sanctuary, her mind will return to us. I am a threat as long as I live and her hold on power is thin. I cannot believe she has suddenly grown a conscious when it comes to LGBT Elementals. So, let’s make the two of you real threats by getting you trained...”
"Wait. So, I'm like not supposed to trust anyone?" asked Zach. He though Aquatine was one of the good guys...or ladies. He looked at Ryan. Could he trust him? As far as he knew, Ryan had lied to him the first time they met. Zach thought Ryan was the drunk driver who was going to drive him to camp. 'The camp' thought Zach. He wanted to go back to his 'normal' life. Everything 'normal' felt like a lifetime to him now, with all the elemental stuff that was going on. "You can trust me," said Ryan. He looked directly into Zach's eyes and Zach could feel his heart start to beat faster. 'Can I trust, Ryan?' thought Zach as he looked into Ryan's eyes. What he know about Ryan's life anyway? That he was supposed to 'pair up' with him for some reason.
"I..." Zach tried to answer.
Ryan placed his arms on Zach's shoulder and he felt his whole body begin to grow warm, as if Ryan was transferring his energy into him.
"I don't think we have time for all of this drama," said Gareth. "I need to train the both of before...."
'BOOMMM!!!'
The whole world seemed to shake because of the sound of the explosion. As if by instinct Ryan had Zach in a protecting embrace."What the hell?" asked Gareth. And then all of them heard it, a sound that encompassed the whole sky...a sound so chilling that Zach pressed himself harder into Ryan's arms. He couldn't even manage to walk out the Gareth's quarters. "Stay here," said Gareth and he walked out the door, closing it behind him.
"I know you have him!" said the voice. It was unfamiliar Zach. 'Bergen, perhaps?' thought Zach.
"Peacefully hand him over and no one needs to get hurt," continued Bergen. "You have an hour to do as I say or else I will kill all of you one by one and take him by force."
And then there was silence. Was Bergen talking about him?
"I'll keep you safe," whispered Ryan in a comforting voice as he Zach.
Zach didn't answer. 'Can Ryan keep me safe?' he thought. He was confused about all of this. Could Ryan keep him safe if all the elemental's decided to give him away to Bergen?...
Zach could hear Ryan's heart beating fast. In on odd way, it helped to know that Ryan was freaked out too. It made Zach feel less out of his depth. Or at least, less alone in the deep water."What do we do?" he whispered.
"I think the first thing we need to do is find a safer place, somewhere no one knows. I want to have a say in what happens, not just let them use us like chess pieces. Even Gareth."
Zach glanced around the room. There was only the one door, and what furniture there was wouldn't hide one man, let alone two. "Do you have an actual suggestion or are we going to try to hide in the fountain or cling to the ceiling?"
"Nope. Get dressed. Quick." Ryan let him go and bent to toss him his clothes, rapidly pulling his own back on. He hurried to the door and tried it. "Damn. Locked. They think we're contained in the training room."
"And we're not?" They looked pretty contained to Zach. His head was spinning, and he missed the reassurance of being skin against skin in Ryan's arms. But muffled noises, thumps and shouts from beyond the door, forced his mind away from a fantasy of spending time in a warm safe place, watching Ryan move and being finally told what the hell was going on by Yoda-Gareth. Life was never as simple as the movies. He knew that.
His clothes were stiff and damp, but he tried not to care, fumbling at the zippers with clumsy fingers. "What now?"
"Come here." Ryan went to stand by a side wall and held out his hand.
Zach moved toward him, and reached out. Their palms met, and he thought he could see the spark that leaped between their joined fingers.
Ryan suddenly grinned. "No time now, but damn, that is so cool!" His eyes sparkled. "Okay. We need to work together. This room is contained from the outside and reinforced, but two elementals like us can tunnel through the floor if we work together."
"And go where?"
"My first mentor's old room. Just two doors down. And then out his escape hatch. He was a wily old guy. He said any fortress you couldn't get out of yourself was another name for a trap. Come on."
"What do I do?" Zach stared at the floor trying to get all elemental about it, but the shiny marble floor, smooth and unbroken, just reflected his confused face.
"We work together. You talk to the stone, convince it to crack. I slide water from the fountain under and use that to lift a piece. When that's done, it's just earth underneath. We can get through that. But hurry. Bergen said one hour, but there's no guarantee they'll leave us alone that long."
Zach stared at the floor. Until now,he'd been using his powers pretty instinctively. Mostly when someone was trying to kill him, and Holy hell, when had his life gone from worrying about a handful of snow in his too-gay face to people trying to kill him?
No time. Concentrate. He wasn't sure if those were his thoughts, or Ryan's, but he stared at the marble. ...smooth...hard...little shifts of tone, of density...there! He sensed a vein of something softer. He pushed somehow, his sense of the stone focused on that weak spot, and there was a pop and a tiny crack.
"Hell yeah!" Ryan muttered. "You are damned strong. The floor was made in one piece by one of the strongest elementals of a hundred years ago."
Zach was glad he hadn't known that before. "Now what?"
"My turn."
Water from the fountain in the center of the room suddenly leaped out of its bowl and flowed across the floor to that cracked spot. Zach could feel the tug and drain down through his arm and into Ryan as the water gathered, filled the space, pressed, pressed harder, then with a louder crack a slab of the marble tilted up wide.
Ryan dropped his hand for a second, whirling to watch the door. But whatever the important people were doing out there, they hadn't noticed. Ryan grabbed Zach's hand again, gripping it almost painfully. "Now. Move the dirt out from under. We need a tunnel, that way." He pointed. "About twenty feet."
That was easier. Dirt wanted to move, to flow. It was dry and sandy and willing to go where he pushed it. Ryan's grip was warm and strong, the power this time flowing to him down their joined hands. In a few minutes there was a big dirt heap on the floor and a round tunnel led out and down. under the wall.
"I don't know if I have the right room where it comes up," Zach muttered. He could feel the size, the distance of the space in his friendly earth. There was a layer over it, firm but not solid, not stone, but tile. Tile was earth, tile remembered being clay. It was willing to crumble for him.
"Wherever it is, it's better than locked in here. Go!"
Zach hesitated only a moment. He was tired, and the sudden break in his attention from that oddly peaceful yet draining communion with soil and rock made him ache in some part of his depths. But another louder thump outside the room spurred him on. He dropped into the tunnel, duck-walking because he'd barely made enough room. The walls brushed his shoulders, welcoming him in his place, happy to touch him. Jesus, he was losing his mind. Happy dirt!
Ryan followed close behind. Somehow, he managed to keep a hand on Zach's back and his touch was comforting.
Zach spoke as softly as he could. "They'll know where we've gone."
"This far, yeah. But my mentor's exit hatch is excellently hidden."
The opening was rough with the edges of broken tiles. Zach hauled himself up and out carefully, then turned to put a hand under Ryan's arm and give him a boost. They were dirtier than ever, tired, and yet he felt a rush of triumph. As Ryan found his feet on the broken floor, Zach turned to look around and saw...
…a wall of water, warm water, flood over them, envelope them. Zach thought he was going to drown at first, and yet he didn’t. Ryan was controlling the flood, and keeping him safe within it by just the clasp of their hands together. He felt and then heard Ryan’s thoughts, You did this to me. And you must be able to do it for others. You’re not just an Earth elemental, Zach, you’re an elemental amplifier, that’s why they want you, why Bergen wants you. You’ll make him even stronger than he is, if he gets you.Then-then we’re not really joined?
We’re joined, and they must know it, but they must think if I’m dead, you’ll just join again, with someone else, someone they choose. You must be that powerful or they wouldn’t be so set on killing me and capturing only you.
The churning water around them, cleaned them, protected them, and moved them. They left the shattered sanctuary, zoomed across the frozen forest around it, all wet and warm and safe, until we were back on that road alone, free, clean and as dry as dry could be. The same water than kept us warm, suddenly turned to solid ice at the edge of the road. Zach looked at Ryan, wondering what to expect from him next, or even from myself.
Suddenly, they heard and then saw a large charter bus grind to a halt on the icy road beside them.
“More of your new found elemental magic?” Zach laughed.
Ryan shook his head. He pointed to the sign in above the bus’s windshield. “Just our good luck. If you have to be stranded on a road in Bavaria, what could be better than a charter bus to the Christmas Market?”
The doors of the bus opened, the two young guys saw the hunky driver beckon them to step up. They did so, and to their surprise, it turned out to be a gay couples Christmas charter from Merry ole England in route to Nuremberg. The tour was fresh from the legendary Neuschwanstein Castle, and taking a scenic route to the Christmas Market. And there were empty seats. No need for Zach to rely on Ryan’s German for the time being, they could just chat and have fun for a bit, assuming no elementals in pursuit knew they were aboard that bus.
BOOM!!!Zach tried opening his eyes but it hurt to much. He tried to move his hands, his arms, his legs, but it was as if he was without a body. 'Ryan?'...he tried to speak but couldn't. 'Ryan!'...again it was as if it was just thought. All he could see, all he could feel, was just darkness. But it wasn't the usual darkness he was familiar with. No, it was as if the darkness was alive, breathing.
"That was very selfish of you," came a voice.
'Bergen?' thought Zach. It sounded familiar. But he wanted to listen to another voice, he wanted to listen to Ryan's voice.
"Who would've thought that someone like you would end up killing innocent people," the voice continued.
'No!' again it was just Zach's thought. He remembered the bus stopping, he remembered getting ready to get in it with Ryan and then driving away from all his troubles. But it was a selfish move. He knew the elementals would've certainly fought Bergen if they realized he was missing. And now, just because he decided to run away, innocent people died in that bus because of him.
Was Ryan alive? Zach needed to know. He couldn't feel Ryan anymore. He tried not to think too much about it. His powers or whatever connection he shared with Ryan must be weak due to recovering from the blast. Yeah! That was it! Ryan was alright...he had to be! Zach tried to keep himself calm.
His whole body shivered in fear as he felt a finger touch his face. Was it Bergen? He didn't know. Whoever's touch it was, Zach didn't like it one bit.
"Let the joining begin!" boomed Bergen's voice and then
Zach felt the same sort of pressure on his mind as when that Earth Elemental had invade his mind before. And he knew, he knew exactly who Bergen meant to join with him.“Not Bergen,” the voice scoffed, as hands touched Zach more intimately in the dark. He felt his bare chest caressed, his nipples, the ridges of his lean, fit abs. As the caressing touch moved down his body, Zach did not feel aroused, but only nauseated by the hands on him. “Fabron!”
Zach felt the hands break contact, the mind retreat, but he didn’t let it. Whatever the opposite of amplifying elemental control and other powers was, he suddenly realized that he had that, too. He pursued Fabron’s mind into its inner retreat, breaking down the efforts inside Fabron to keep him out. Fabron thought of them as shields. Zach shattered Fabron’s shields. Fabron would never been able to shield him out again. And Fabron would need his permission to shield out or invade the mind of anyone else from that moment on. Fabron was his telepathic bitch to command.
Zach sensed from Fabron that he was doing two things to him that the telepathic Earth Elemental feared and dreaded. He was bonding Fabron to him, not joining with him, and he was leeching Fabron’s powers, making them his own, to strengthen himself, at Fabron’s expense. Zach was forcing Fabron to teach him what he did not know to ask about his unique powers. And all it so swift and certain that Fabron was his to command before Fabron could physically or mentally react. That told Zach that Ryan still lived, and they were still joined, strengthening and amplifying one another.
“Where’s Ryan? Where am I?”
The whole illusion of the assault on the bus evaporated. Zach realized that he was lying unconscious in Ryan’s arms on that bus. Ryan was lending him strength that he needed, but not enough for him to finish this task awake and fully conscious. Somehow, this coma like state, allowed him to put all of his energy into his powers.
He knew through his contact with Ryan that the gay guys on the bus were sympathetic Elementals keeping Bergen from taking the bus itself, or anyone from the bus. Using Fabron to mess with his mind, create a false reality while keeping him unconscious had been the Rogue Master’s last hope to get and flip Zach to their side. But now his unconscious state served him, instead of Fabron, Bergen or any of the Rogue Elementals.
Bergen will kill me, torture and kill me, for failing him like this! Fabron telepathically whined to Zach.
Then, if you wish to live, do exactly as I bid you, Zach instructed him. Tell Bergen, I am ready for him to link up with and command as he pleases. If you fail me or warn him, I will end you, and you know I can. Do it, do it now.
Fabron felt Zach’s presence inside his inner consciousness, lurking in his mind, messing with his ability to breathe, and the very rhythm of his pounding, frightened heart.
Fabron used the telepathic code Bergen gave him at the peril of his life to verify contact, then assured Bergen he could use Fabron telepathically to link with Zach and control his every action. Bergen very cautiously allowed the telepathic link via direct contact with Fabron, a very sharp knife pressed ungently against Fabron. He could maim or cut and bleed out the telepath with a flick of that blade.
Zach caused Fabron’s heart rate to slow to a very steady, calm rate, forced his mind into an artifice of servile loyalty to Bergen.
The instant that Bergen’s mind touched Zach’s, Zach had him. The knife slowly let off pressure to Fabron’s flesh. Zach sensed the deeply bigoted hatred that Bergen had for him, for Ryan, and even for Fabron. He let Fabron sense that Bergen meant to kill or maim the telepath once he had Zach in his control. The knife was not just a threat, but a part of Bergen’s endgame.
You will not harm Fabron, Zach commanded Bergen, implanting the imperative deep into his mind. I am joining the two of you, linking your lives and powers. If you harm Fabron, you will suffer yourself. You will now belong to Fabron. You will still like girls, but will love only Fabron as your joined mate. Not my death, Ryan’s death or even Fabron’s will set you free. Only your death or my command will free you. If I die, all hope of ever returning to your true self dies with me. If you can’t live with this, then you know your only way out. And even there, Fabron still commands you. Your life is entirely in his hands.
Zach turned his stolen telepathic abilities back on Fabron, Never try to get inside my mind again, or I will end you then and there. Whatever happens to you now, is on you, and only you. Just know that Ryan, I and anyone we befriend are off limits to you, unless you want to die, horribly. All I have to ever do, is release Bergen and he’ll take care it, personally.
****
Ryan saw Zach stir and react to his gentle caresses for the first time in hours. He grinned at the coven of gay British Elementals around him on the bus, as Zach finally opened his eyes, and smiled up at him. Ryan kissed him and murmured, “You scared the hell out of me. I thought I had lost you, forever.”
“Me, too,” Zach told him. “So, these guys are all Elementals, and all gay, from England?”
Ryan nodded. “Pretty awesome, isn’t it?”
“Too bad we can’t be part of a coven like that.”
Ryan looked at the Elemental Master, who nodded. Ryan said, “They want us to join them, but there are conditions. They were drawn to us by our joining, but they are here to confront the mundane banker behind the Rogue Elemental coven, and we must help them defeat Albert Schwann first, and then they will let us be inducted to their coven. So, are we in?”
**Zach wanted to say yes. He wanted to stop making these huge decisions and sit back and let grown-ups take over again. But he wasn't convinced. It was all so convenient, wasn't it. A bus full of gay guys all on their side?
"How can we trust them? Do you know them? Maybe they just want to control us like everyone else seems to."
He was waiting for the Elemental Master to try to win him over, but instead the man frowned at him. "I'm not sure we do want you now. I think the shoe is on the other foot. Convince me we should associate with you after what you just did. How dare you?"
"I what?" He couldn't believe the man was challenging him. "I just saved all of us from Bergen and Fabron."
"By perverting something vital to us - an elemental joining. You took two people who hate each other and who aren't sexually compatible, and joined them. Forever."
"Hey, I could have killed them."
Ryan hugged him closer. "He's right. He saved a bunch of lives with that move."
"Maybe. That doesn't make it right, though. Generations of us were forced to marry women, sometimes forced to join them, to hide what we are. It's mental slavery of a kind. And now you forced a gay joining."
Zach had thought it was poetic justice, had even felt proud of his solution, but now he winced. "It was the only way I thought of to all end up alive. That was the goal, right?"
"Yes, but the ends don't justify the means."
Zach sighed, his pride and confidence draining. He just felt tired. "I did the only thing I could think of that wouldn't make me kill them. I never killed anyone. I couldn't..."
Ryan said, "Stop harassing him. If you went through everything he has today and then had to make the best decision in a split second, you might've done far worse."
The Master nodded. "I'll allow that defense. But as soon as Albert Schwann is defeated you two are both getting a new mentor and about a decade of real training. And some history lessons."
Zach closed his eyes, slumping against Ryan. "I actually want to go back to school. How sick is that? So what now?"
The Master nodded to the driver to speed up. "Now we have to get to Nuremburg and keep Schwann from taking hostages at the Christmas Market. The two of you were not the only young Elementals hidden among the Untalents in that school of yours. Your coven has been riddled with suspected rogues and renegades for years, and most LGBT kids and odd talents have had their abilities suppressed and exiled to that school, or worse. Schwann has been collecting them, manipulating them, and using them as disposable Elemental soldiers. We have to separate the kids and savable young adult talents from the rest, and put an end to that mundane monster’s use of our kind.”Ryan was very quiet for a moment, and then said, "If our coven is that flawed, shouldn't it be disbanded or something?"
"That is also on our agenda, but first things first," the Master agreed.
"So what comes first?" Ryan asked, hugging Zach against him. Zach still felt a bit shaky, muscles twitching under Ryan's touch. "Food," the Master said. "You need to eat, gain strength, while we plan our approach."
Ryan's stomach was still tied in knots and he wasn't sure he could eat, but Zach sat up more and said "Wow, food."
The cooler guy handed them sandwiches. Zach took a giant bite of his and coughed.
Ryan had to smile. "After all that, don't you dare choke to death on a sandwich."
"Won't," Zach mumbled,dropping crumbs. "'s wonnerfl."
Ryan took a little bite of his own, then a much bigger one as the taste of Black Forest ham and Emmentaler made him aware of just how much his body needed that."
The Master said, "There are two groups we need to defeat, to deal with Schwann. His soldiers, who are mostly young, confused and poorly trained Elementals. And then his bodyguards."
"I don't want to kill anyone," Zach said. "Especially not some confused kid."
That was almost funny, coming from Zach, but Ryan rubbed his back and said, "Same here. No killing."
The master frowned. "You may not have the luxury of getting all holier about that. If we have the chance to take out Schwann, we'll need to grab it. Even if it means using lethal force,"
Ryan looked down at his feet, and didn't comment. He hoped Zach's silence meant he agreed, but more likely it meant he was working on a different plan. Hopefully a good one.
The Master went on, "We'll create a diversion to pull as many of his soldiers as possible away from the main fight. Then you'll have to deal with the bodyguards."
Zach frowned, obviously doing some thinking. "Remember how I made that tunnel? Maybe I can do it again and this time dump them in it for a few months."
"Like hiding our enemies in a shallow grave? I like that."
"If you can get his guards at least ten feet away from him, he can be captured," the master said. "But that's a deep hole to open all at once."
Ryan wanted to say his guy could handle it, no sweat, but truthfully they didn't yet know what Zach could deliver.
"I guess," Zach said, sounding more like a scared kid than an experienced fighter."
"We'll stop briefly for a practice run," the Master suggested. "We need to...
* I'll post the picture and start us off.
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And so, onward...