by B. T Hoax
Kenna immediately glanced around the room. From what she could see, there was no fire and no smoke, but she had a feeling that wouldn’t be the case for long.
Stall, she heard a voice in her head saying. Stall, someone will find you before he sets the house on fire. Just stall.
“No, tell me,” she heard herself say. “I need to know what he’s done, if what I’ve heard is true.” Clearly her uncle had issues with her father, and she had to do whatever possible to get out every last detail and save every last second.
“That’s between to you and that scoundrel,” the man said again.
“No,” Kenna argued. “I deserve to know. And I deserve to know what the problem is with ice benders. If I’m going to be burned alive, I should at least know why.”
Her uncle folded his arms across his large chest and raised one eyebrow as if to think. “Your father. He’s a lot of things. But mostly he’s a deserter. You don’t just leave the world of bending after you’ve been leading it for so long.”
So he was at the top of the chain, the voice in her head said again. So Jon was right.
“And what about ice benders? Do you really think that I like them any more than you do?” she shot back, thinking that maybe joining forces for pretend might stall things a bit longer.
For the umpteenth time, her statement was met with the sound of her uncle’s laughter.
“Oh, I would say that you like ice benders a whole lot more than I do. Aren’t you dating Jon Colewell after all? That raging, frosty beast? Haven’t you even kissed that scum?” he interrogated as he put his face right up near hers again.
Kenna swallowed her rage. “That was all a mistake. He tried to rape me, even kill me. I would never go near that boy again. That’s been done and over for quite some time,” Kenna said with clenched teeth and tightened jaw.
The man backed away for a moment. “Really, now?” he replied sarcastically. He then reached into a pant pocket and pulled out what Kenna recognized to be her cell phone.
Shit, her internal voice whispered in her ear.
“Yes,” she confirmed in an attempt to maintain her composure. “I have nothing to do with the Colewells.”
The man’s eyes twinkled at her response. “So I suppose if I give Jon a call, he wouldn’t come barreling to your rescue. I mean, if you two are truly over, he wouldn’t consider risking his life to save you from a burning building, would he?”
“I don’t even have his number,” she rebutted quickly. “I deleted it a long time ago. I told you, I’m not associated with Jon anymore.”
Her uncle continued to smile. “Oh Kenna, like I don’t know that Jon doesn’t carry a cell phone. His mother doesn’t either. It’s one of the reasons that they are particularly difficult to track,” he pointed out matter-of-factly. “But if I just scroll through your recent calls, I’m sure I can find a number to reach him by.”
“You’ll never even get into my phone without the password,” Kenna mumbled angrily as the man continued to outsmart her.
Her uncle then shot his eyes back on her. “You know, I could torture the password out of you. In fact, I could do whatever I want to you, you ignorant girl. So maybe you should keep your smart mouth shut for a moment, after all, I have a phone call to make.”
“He won’t come. It’s a waste of time. And you can’t get into my phone. Give it up,” she rebutted, her filter losing its control as the conversation continued.
Finally, Kenna seemed to get a little emotion out of the man. His arrogant smile faded, and he frowned very severely at her as he approached her chair. Before he could say anything, he shot his arm out and tightly grasped her leg. Kenna immediately felt the heat of his clutches as he squeezed her calve.
She suddenly let out an agonizing scream as she felt her skin begin to burn within his harsh grip. Unable to control herself as the pain began to overwhelm her, she continued to cry out and wriggle around in an attempt to free her leg from his flaming hand. But he continued to hold her leg as smoke began to form from where her skin was sizzling and burning.
Finally, when she thought she might pass out from the pain, he released her leg. Kenna’s hollers continued as tears made their way out of her eyes. The girl could not even tell that the man had freed her leg as the pain was too intense and powerful to allow processed thought.
“That will teach you to run your mouth!” he shouted back at her. Kenna, of course, had not registered his words as she continued to writhe within the ropes that held her there. “Now,” he continued. “I already know how to access your phone. I don’t need any help from a pathetic child such as yourself.”
Kenna began to come around a little as the insult broke through her physical pain and brought her back to the situation at hand.
“He won’t come,” she managed as her sobs and screams began to temper, and the adrenaline began to mask the pain.
The man let out a laugh as Kenna observed him through the tears. She lifted her head to see that he was scrolling through her phone.
“Calling Bryce,” he said conceitedly. “That’s the youngest one right?” he asked as he put the phone to his ear. “I suppose this world would do good with one less ice moiety. But he’s nothing compared to Jon or Elisa.” He ranted as he waited for an answer.
Please don’t answer, Kenna heard herself praying. Please, Bryce, don’t answer.
“Yes, is this Bryce?” Her uncle’s voice had suddenly become very normal and non-malicious sounding. He had turned his back to the girl as her eyes went wide with horror at Bryce’s answering.
“Hang up the phone Bryce!” she screamed at loudly as she could, hoping that the Colewell might hear her and obey the request.
Her uncle immediately put his hand over the phone and shot her a glare before stepping out of the room and into the darkness beyond the doorway.
But she could still hear him. “Yes, this is Mr. Rosen. I need to speak with Jon. It’s urgent.”
“No! Hang up!” she screamed even more hysterically as her fear began to build.
“Jon. Is this Jon Colewell?” His voice had changed again, now back to its sinister sound.
“Jon! Hang up!” Kenna screamed again. Tears were rushing down her face as she began to understand her uncle’s evil plot. If the building was indeed burning down, surely Jon would die if he ran in to save her.
“Yes, that is Kenna. Unfortunately, your little girlfriend is in a bit of a bind…”
His voice began to trail off as the vile man must have stepped further away.
“No!” she screamed again as she waited, hoping that she’d maybe hear some more hopeful sound like the cops or her father.
But when she heard slow and steady footsteps making their way back to her room, she knew that little hope remained. Her uncle still held the phone to his ear as he approached the fuming girl.
“Well, Kenna, now you just need to do a little convincing,” he said as he held the phone to her ear. “Tell him to come.”
Kenna said nothing, but glared intently at her uncle.
“Here, this’ll help.” With that said, he reached for her leg again. In the same place as before, he gave her leg a tight squeeze. But Kenna did not give in immediately. Instead, she bit down on her lip as hard as she could, using all of her will to keep her mouth shut.
But it was useless. Suddenly the pain overwhelmed her, and she was forced to let out a series of blood-curdling screams.
“That’ll do, Kenna. That’ll do,” he mocked as he patted the girl on the head. Kenna tried to bite at his hand as he did it but wasn’t quick enough to land a blow.
Kenna hollered in fury as he laughed at her futile attempt. In a state of unimaginable anger, Kenna tried again to bolt and lunge from the chair but was once again met with a hit from the hard floor.
“Pretty boy should be here shortly. I think that’s a good place for you,” her uncle noted with a smile that was followed by his continuing laughter.
“Why?!” she shrieked back at him.
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There had never been a laugh that she despised more than the one she heard at this moment. Not Chelsea’s, not Jason’s, not anyone’s.
“Well, I suppose I could let you in on the secret. After all, there’s a good chance that this will be the last time I see you,” he said with a sneer. “Tonight will mark the beginning of a new era in bending. It won’t only be Jon and Elisa that perish tonight, but almost fifty of the few full-blooded ice benders still left. In one assault we will wipe out the future of ice bending, or at least most of it. Tonight, a new war begins.”
Kenna’s breathing was fast and loud. “But why? What did they do to you?” she argued as best as she could, still hoping to buy some time.
“They existed Kenna. It’s like light and dark. Do we really need darkness?”
“Yes!” Kenna said off the cuff. “Without darkness-“
“There would just be light!” he shouted. “And it is time for our little light show to begin.”
Before Kenna could further her argument, the man backed himself into the doorway and began to move his arms in a very fast and powerful motion. His knees started bent with his arms hanging rigidly downward. And as his knees began to straighten, his fists opened, and his shoulders flexed his arms upward so that they seemed to make a giant circle around him. And when this happened, enormous flames began to shoot from his extended limbs so that the entire doorway was engulfed in orange fire.
Kenna could instantly feel the heat of the flames as her chair lay only a few yards their blaze. Thinking that he might have been done, Kenna opened her mouth to speak, but before words came out, flames shot once again from the man’s palms and set the opposite wall on fire.
Though only seconds had passed, smoke began to fill the room as Kenna had become completely surrounded by the intense fire.
“Make sure you scream,” the man laughed as he walked away. “We want lover boy to know exactly where you are!”
With that said, her uncle walked slowly and confidently through the burning doorway, the flames having no effect on the man.
“No!” Kenna screamed. She began to fight her chair again as the smoke began to fill her lungs. “No!” she hollered again though she knew it wouldn’t accomplish a thing at this point.
She was alone, and the flames were only getting larger.
For several minutes, she lay there, fighting her chair, not knowing how she might escape.
And then, footsteps. Loud, fast footsteps.
No, her internal voice said. It can’t be him, please not him.
She thought about staying silent but knew that if it were Jon, surely he wouldn’t give up until he found her.
“Help!” she heard herself call into the flames, praying it would be her father who shot out of the fire, and not her cold-blooded Colewell.
But it wasn’t.
Suddenly, Jon burst through the doorway. Without a word, he sprinted toward her and bent down and picked up both her and the chair that held her captive. Kenna heard nothing but his heavy steps and the loud flames as he tore through the building, dodging the falling boards and crumbling walls and floors as he did.
She’d never been so thankful for his coordination as he weaved in and out of the fire, managing to keep them both as safe from the blaze as possible.
Though it seemed like hours, in less than a minute, they were out of the building as Jon fell to the ground, only yards from the firestorm.
“Jon,” she breathed. She was still tied to the chair and lay there helplessly against the grass. “Untie me,” she demanded as her hands began to wrestle the knots behind her.
With the adrenaline surging through her body, Kenna hadn’t taken the time to observe Jon. His breathing was fast and crackling as he lay there when she finally turned her eyes to him.
“Jon!” she screamed as she realized why he hadn’t bothered with the ropes and why he’d collapsed on the ground in the first place.
The Colewell was on his back. His eyes were completely white, and she could see where his skin seemed to be melting from the inside out. He was burning alive, and right in front of her.
“Jon!” she screamed again, praying he would be able to respond.
He couldn’t.
His back was beginning to arch until he was almost only on his toes and shoulders.
“Help! Somebody help!” Kenna yelled at the top of her lungs. Despite the smoke intoxication, her words were loud and clear as she called. “Jon!” she screamed at him again, still hoping he might suddenly come out of his shock.
Instead, things went from bad, to worse. Suddenly, his back shot to the ground and his body began to seize.
“No! Someone help us!” she hollered as she began to attempt to free herself even more frantically than before. “Help us!”
When she began to survey her surroundings, it became apparent to her that help might never come. They were laying a few body lengths away from a blazing, old building. The place itself seemed surrounded by trees and fields. It was like they were in the middle of nowhere.
As she continued to scan the abandoned lot, she began to hear voices from what she assumed was the other side of the building…and they were getting closer.
In a matter of a few short moments, Elisa, her uncle, and several other benders came into view. From what she could make of it, the main battle was between Elisa and Ray, a battle that was almost too intricate and fast to describe.
The man was shooting fire at the Colewell as she backed away, creating giant and powerful ice shields to defend herself. Her uncle was clearly on the offensive as were all the other fire benders present at the battle. Kenna couldn’t say who was winning, but it didn’t seem in favor of the ice elementalists.
“Help!” she screamed again as loudly as possible. The flames were getting closer, and the girl was inhaling more and more smoke as she lay there.
Then Jon abruptly stopped seizing. Turning quickly to the boy, she began to immediately panic as his breathing had also stopped.
“Jon!” she cried as she tried to scoot herself closer.
As she did, Bryce and another boy about his age appeared seemingly out of thin air.
“Get her to the hospital,” Bryce instructed as the other boy began to work at her knots. Bryce bent down near his brother. “Stay with me, Jon, stay with me,” he whispered as he began his examination.
“Bryce, he had a seizure, he isn’t-,” But as she spoke, she began in an intense bout of coughing that she could not control. As she sputtered and tried to gain control, she felt the ropes loosen, and she fell away from the chair.
Using what strength she had, Kenna crawled her way closer to Jon. Bryce had just begun chest performing rescue breaths, but she realized that Jon still wasn’t breathing.
“Jon!” she cried as she touched his brown hair. But her words were strangled by the smoke, and she was unable to say anymore.
“Get her out of here!” Bryce hollered to the other boy. He was swift and obedient as he grabbed Kenna and began to haul her away from her dying hero.
“No!” she screamed and fought as he pulled her further and further away.
But as she struggled, she felt herself growing weak and dizzy.
And before she knew it, everything once again went black.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Sound.
“Kenna?”
Her father’s voice was the first thing she heard.
Kenna’s eyes remained closed as she lay there. Her senses were slow to come to her. She could hear an annoying beeping and a few distant shuffling sounds.
“Kenna?”
At this point, it registered in her brain that her father was indeed trying to communicate with her. The girl thought she opened her eyes, but there was only black. Black, and pain. Her eyelids closed immediately from the irritation. But as she blinked, the room began to make itself clearer and the pain began to lessen.
Above her were several large, rectangular lights. They were so bright that they almost made he
r just as blinded as she originally was upon waking. The rest of the room was white except for a few cool-colored decorations and a window that gave view to a few neighboring rooftops. And it was clean. Not just in looks either, the room smelled fresh with subtle hints of some kind of fruity sanitizer.
As those first few seconds passed, Kenna suddenly realized where she was.
In a hospital room.
At the realization, her memories began to flood her mind.
Her uncle.
The fire.
Jon.
Where was Jon?
Her eyes suddenly went wide with fear as she shot up to a sit from her reclining position on the hospital bed.
“Jon!”
Her voice was hoarse, and she could feel her chest muscles using every effort to spit out the word.
“Shhhh!” the man instructed as he placed a calming hand on her shoulder to indicate that she should rest.
But the adrenaline in Kenna’s body had begun to flow again. She quickly whipped off her blanket and made a move to stand. To her displeasure, her father caught her and held her firmly on the bed.
“Kenna! You inhaled too much smoke. Your leg is covered in third-degree burns! You are dehydrated! The doctors are monitoring your oxygen. You need to stay put!” The man did his best to explain as she fought him for a moment. But the brief struggle made her become very weak, and she felt her consciousness drifting once more.
At this time, a loud beeping began, a beeping different than that of the heart monitor that she’d first heard. And in no time at all, a nurse had rushed into the room and with her father’s help, forced the girl back into her reclined position. The male nurse also placed an oxygen mask over the girl’s face as her eyelids began to flutter.
“Kenna, this is Josh, and I am your nurse,” his voice was deep, soothing, and sympathetic. “We know you’ve been through quite an experience, but for the moment, we need you to rest and recover.”
She felt her head nod just slightly, her body otherwise too weak to respond to the matter.
After several minutes, she felt her consciousness returning though this time it came with fatigue instead of a surge of adrenaline. It was just her and her father in the room again.
