Water Shaper (World Aflame)

by Messenger, Jon

  Instead, she shifted her gaze to the Elemental’s legs. At once, the Elemental stopped walking, stopping a few feet from the glass pane of the large outdoor windows.

  It looked down at its legs and then shifted its gaze back to the window. The surprised expression quickly faded, and the deadly smile returned. The red glow of its eyes intensified. “Good but not good enough. Time’s up.”

  “No!” Sammy yelled.

  The Elemental drew its arm back and threw the man through the pane of glass. The glass shattered around him, cutting his exposed upper body. His momentum carried him over the balcony railing, and he fell toward the ruined street below.

  His scream echoed in Sammy’s ears the entire way until he crashed unceremoniously onto the asphalt road. Tears welled in her eyes. Try as she might, she couldn’t bring herself to look back to the monster inhabiting her body.

  Xander stepped away from the rack of sweaters. A violent knot of pain burned in his gut, and he groaned as his knees grew weak. He stumbled and grasped for anything to support himself. His hands closed over a suit jacket. It pulled free from its hangar. The jacket wasn’t nearly enough to support him as another wave of pain rolled through his stomach. Xander fell to the ground, pulling the clothes down on top of him.

  “Xander!” Jessica leapt from the seat and rushed to his side.

  She pulled away the jacket on top of him. His face was contorted in anguish and surprise.

  “Talk to me, Xander,” she said. “What’s wrong?”

  Xander gritted his teeth but managed a broken sentence. “There’s a Fire Warrior nearby… using his power. But not… normal. I’ve… never felt anything… like it. So much power.”

  Jessica looked over her shoulder, hoping Sean would have heard her cry of concern but he was nowhere to be found. She grabbed a silk tie off the round rack beside her and used it to dab Xander’s sweaty brow.

  Xander took a deep breath, forcing the pain in his gut to subside. Despite its presence, he was able to push it down until it was little more than a dull ache.

  “Help me up,” he said.

  Jessica slipped her hands under Xander’s arms and pulled him up to a standing position.

  “Thanks,” he said.

  Jessica furrowed her brow. “Want to tell me what that was all about?”

  “There’s a Fire Warrior nearby, and he’s more powerful than anything I’ve encountered before,” Xander sighed. He sat down heavily onto the bench and rubbed the back of his neck. “When he used his power, it was like someone kicked me right in the gut.”

  “More powerful than anything we’ve encountered?” Jessica asked nervously.

  Xander didn’t reply only because he knew how bad that sounded. He never considered there could be tiers of elemental power. He had only experienced the normal warriors and the Elementals previously. Who knew what he’d face with a new classification of more powerful warriors.

  “We need to get Sean and get out of here,” Jessica said.

  “We still need to wait for—” Xander began, before another lance of pain rolled through his gut.

  The sharp pain was immediately joined by the sound of automatic gunfire, sounding like it was being fired from nearby. Xander bit his bottom lip until he tasted blood, as much to stop from crying out in pain as it was in concern for the British officer. It seemed dangerously reckless to fire all his ammunition at once, and Xander assumed he probably wouldn’t have done it unless he was in real trouble.

  Xander’s eyes glistened with tears from his pain, but the look in his eyes quickly shifted from discomfort to determination.

  “I don’t care if they can find me if I use my powers,” he said. “I’m not going to let Wilkes sacrifice himself for me. We’re going after him.”

  Jessica frowned but didn’t try to dissuade him. “What do you need me to do?”

  “Go get Sean. Tell him to grab whatever weapon he’s found by now and meet me back here.”

  Jessica stood in front of him, unmoving. Xander looked up and arched an eyebrow.

  “I really hope you know what you’re doing,” Jessica said.

  She turned away and disappeared into the darkness of the store.

  Sean swung a cricket bat with a broad smile, reveling in the weight of the weapon.

  “I had you guys all wrong,” he said as he swung again. “This thing’s awesome.”

  He took a step away from the shelf and set his cricket bat on his shoulder. He took a quick glance over his shoulder, despite knowing that he was alone in the back of the store. Seeing no one, he turned back to the empty aisle.

  “It’s the bottom of the ninth,” he said. “Bases loaded. He’s been facing a ninety-five mile per hour fastball from the Yankees closer all night and now sits with two strikes.”

  Sean pointed toward the emergency exit sign that was illuminated above one of the store’s rear entrances.

  “Is he? Yes. Sean is calling a homerun. That’s four hundred and eight feet to the center field wall but if anyone can do it, it’s him.”

  Sean clutched the elongated grip on the heavy wooden bat and got into a batter’s stance.

  “And here comes the pitch.”

  Sean closed his eyes and swung his bat hard. The air swished audibly around the quick-moving bat.

  “He’s connected. It’s going… going… gone!”

  He released the bat with one of his hands and raised it to his mouth, faking the noise of a crowd cheering.

  “What are you doing?” Jessica asked from the end of the aisle.

  Sean let out an effeminate scream and dropped the cricket bat. It clattered on the hard floor, rattling as it came to rest against the sporting goods rack. He clutched his chest and fell against the shelves of cricket pads beside him.

  Jessica raised a hand to her mouth to conceal the laugh that she tried to suppress.

  “Don’t do that, you crazy woman,” Sean said.

  He took a deep breath and tried to get his racing heart rate under control.

  “What do you want?” he asked.

  Jessica coughed politely to clear her throat. “Xander said we’re going after the British guy. Pick up your bat, Babe Ruth. We’re leaving soon.”

  “Funny you’re coming after me,” Wilkes said as he came around the far end of the aisle, “when that’s the exact opposite of what I told you to do.”

  Both Sean and Jessica screamed this time. The Leftenant laughed as he walked toward the pair. He reached over, retrieving one of the cricket pads and using it to wipe away the sweat and soot from his forehead.

  “We thought you might be dead,” Jessica said.

  “I practically was,” Wilkes said. “But not only did I not die, I have an idea of how to get us out of here.”

  Wilkes looked around. “Where’s Xander?”

  Jessica pointed toward the front of the store. “Right where you left him, though not by his own choice.”

  “He’s a stubborn one, isn’t he?”

  “You have no idea,” she said.

  “Let’s go get him, and I’ll tell you what I have planned.”

  He motioned for Jessica to lead the way, and Sean fell into step beside him.

  “Just out of curiosity,” Sean said, “would you think less of me if I peed myself. Just a little bit?”

  Wilkes laughed at him without looking over. As they passed it, Sean reached down and retrieved the cricket bat.

  Wilkes stepped past Jessica and Sean before Xander had a chance to express his relief at seeing the Brit.

  “My wife and son,” he said.

  Xander paused, and Wilkes took a seat on the changing room bench. The man looked exhausted and white ash still clung to his damp skin. Xander stood beside the bench and watched his profile as he continued.

  Wilkes ran a hand over his short, coarse hair. “You asked before why I was in London, that you thought it was about family. You were right. I was stationed in Kent, but my wife had a job here in London. She and our son lived in a flat near t
he Thames.”

  Xander frowned, glad that the Leftenant couldn’t see his sour expression. He remembered clearly how ruined the city was near the river but didn’t have the heart to tell the British officer.

  “I…” Wilkes paused and shook his head. “When I heard that London had been attacked, I abandoned my post. I jumped in my car and raced up the M20. I knew that I had men looking to me for leadership, but I didn’t much care at that point. I didn’t even pack a bag; I just left them all.” He looked up at Xander with sorrowful eyes. “I’m a deserter.”

  “You did it for your family,” Xander said. “Your men would have understood.”

  “No, they wouldn’t. The army’s a funny thing. They don’t often care about extenuating circumstances when you desert your post at a time of war.”

  Xander looked to Jessica, who nodded to him. He turned his attention back to Wilkes.

  “I’m not good at asking for help,” Wilkes said. “I guess what I’m saying is…”

  “I can get you to the Thames,” Xander interrupted, saving the man from his uncomfortable request. “I can fly, like you saw when I first landed in London and we ran into each other. I can fly you there, and we can get your family.”

  Sean frowned, which Wilkes noticed.

  “When he said that you brought the Fire Warriors to us during our fight,” Wilkes said, “it was because you used your powers, wasn’t it?”

  Xander swallowed hard as the wave of guilt swelled again. “Yes.”

  “Then no.”

  Xander shook his head and leaned against a rack of clothing. “It would be quick. We’ll fly in and be out of there before the Fire Warriors could catch up to us.”

  Wilkes looked up at him before climbing back to his feet. He faced Xander, but it wasn’t with malice. “When I was out there on the street, I fought something I’d never seen before. He had massive, flaming wings and threw balls of flame ten times stronger than that rubbish the other ones were playing with. If I didn’t know that these Fire Warriors weren’t devils, I would have sworn this man was a fallen angel.”

  Xander looked at Jessica knowingly. What he felt earlier had to be connected to the Fire Warrior Wilkes fought.

  “If that thing is still out there and you go flying about, wouldn’t that draw him to us?” Wilkes asked.

  Xander nodded.

  “Then no. Even if we could outrun him now, by the time we found my family, we’d be bringing that thing down on them. I won’t put them in any more danger than they already are. We’re going to get to them, but we’re going to do it my way.”

  “What’s your way?” Sean asked from behind everyone.

  Wilkes looked over his shoulder. “We’re going to take the Underground. There’s an Underground station about two blocks down the road from where we are. There’s another Underground station exit near my flat. We should be able to stay off the streets all the way there.”

  “Don’t you think there’ll be Fire Warriors there?” Xander asked.

  “Maybe. Probably not. They seem pretty intent on burning down the city and probably haven’t put much thought to the railways. At least, I hope they haven’t. And if they have, I’ve still got a few magazines left, and we still have the fat man’s quite dangerous cricket bat.”

  Sean blushed but smiled at the ribbing.

  “So what do we do first?” Xander asked.

  Wilkes looked around the store. “We’ll need some supplies before we go. Then I say we wait until nighttime before we make our move for the Bond Street station.”

  Xander looked at the other two college students, who nodded their approval.

  “All right,” he said. “We’re with you.”

  As dusk settled over the city, Leftenant Wilkes hefted a heavy hiking bag full of supplies over his shoulder and led the way out of the department store. He stepped gingerly, limiting the amount of crunching his army-issue boots made on the broken glass on the sidewalk.

  He looked left and right down Oxford Street, but it was an exercise in futility. Visibility was practically nonexistent during the day because of the smoke. Couple the smoke with the gloom of a moonless night, and he could barely see the ruined car parked on the curb in front of him.

  Exasperated, he motioned for the other three to follow.

  Xander led the group out of the window. Their footsteps weren’t as tempered, and the sound of breaking glass echoed around the silent neighborhood. Xander cringed and gently brushed aside some of the larger pieces so Jessica and Sean wouldn’t make the same mistake he did.

  He didn’t bother looking around the street. He knew his eyesight was bad enough that he wouldn’t see a Fire Warrior if he was standing on top of a nearby car proudly waving a flag over his head. Instead, he concentrated on the sensation in his gut; the one that grew in intensity every time someone used elemental powers nearby.

  Xander practically braced himself in anticipation, remembering the anguish he felt when the crazy Fire Warrior hybrid used his powers. While it was a telltale sign that they were going to be in danger, it didn’t make the kick in his gut any less painful.

  Luckily, he felt nothing as they hurried across the street.

  The group rushed down the far side of the road, ducking behind cars whenever possible and sprinting across the open areas when it wasn’t. Long before they reached the intersection of James Street, Xander could taste the sulfur still hanging in the air. The taste was pungent and strong, even after hours had passed since Wilkes’ gunfight. The smell in the air was reminiscent not of the number of fights Xander had with the Fire Warriors since discovering his power, but reminded him directly of his first exposure to a Fire Warrior: when Sammy tried to kill him in the abandoned house in White Halls. Her blasts had carried the pungent smell of sulfur and brimstone.

  Sean shoved him from behind as he reminisced, forcing him to sprint to the side of an overturned double-decker bus. The bus was ruined but offered great protection as they passed toward the open intersection between James and Oxford Streets.

  Wilkes held up his hand, indicating for the group to stop. The officer inched to the far edge of the bus and peered around the corner. The smashed car onto which the winged Fire Warrior had landed was nearby, and the wall behind it was riddled with bullet holes. He turned back to the rest of the group and nodded while pointing to the far side of the street.

  The Brit led the rush across the road. Xander kept expecting a roar of flames to chase them through the open intersection, but it never came. As he dropped to a crouch behind a car on the far side, Xander took a moment and looked back across the intersection. He saw the scorch marks on the wall and admired the still-smoking husks of the cars that were decimated by the Fire Warrior’s tirade. Xander also saw the same bullet holes marring the wall and silently wished Wilkes would have hit the warrior instead of clearly just nearly missing.

  Jessica tapped him on the shoulder. As Xander turned, he realized the other two were already sprinting ahead, rushing toward an entrance a few storefronts ahead of where they stood.

  Aside from the white, metal cage that protruded from above the entryway, Xander wouldn’t have guessed that they were approaching an Underground entrance. He wasn’t familiar with the red circle and blue bar, which designated the railway. It wasn’t until he was underneath the metal awning that he saw “Bond Street Station”.

  Wilkes was already at the glass doors, pulling one open. Unlike the storefronts, the recessed Underground doorways still seemed to be intact. Wilkes held the door as they all rushed inside and the officer scanned the road once more before letting it close quietly behind him.

  Inside the train station was silent like a tomb. A few pamphlets and Underground maps were strewn across the floor. Xander half expected a breeze to blow across the room and a tumbleweed to go rolling past. He reached down and picked up one of the maps, figuring it would be a handy tool as they explored the rest of the city.

  The turnstiles were ahead but were barely visible. There was hardly any li
ght to filter through the glass doors, and even the emergency lights seemed to have failed.

  Xander felt his skin crawl as he looked at the ominous darkness beyond the turnstiles. The inky blackness seemed to swallow any attempt of his to see into its depths. It was like the world ended just beyond the metal gates, devoured by the nothingness on the far side. He had never been afraid of the dark before, as well as he could remember. Of course, he had never believed in monsters before either. Now he lived in a world where he knew monsters existed, and the thought that they could be hiding in the darkness before him was all too real of a threat.

  Wilkes slung his camping bag from his shoulder and unclipped the top flap. He shoved his arm into the bag and rummaged around for something.

  “It looks like all the power went out here too,” Xander said, staring at the threatening darkness. “Emergency power failed too, from the looks of it.”

  “Give me a moment,” Wilkes said. “I’ve got a torch in here somewhere.”

  Sean furrowed his brow. “Like a stick and fire?”

  The Leftenant pulled a flashlight from the bag and turned it on, shining the bright light in Sean’s eyes. “No, not quite.”

  Sean shook his head and tried to blink away the bright blue spots dancing in his vision. “I feel like we’re having the same conversation but speaking completely different languages.”

  “Don’t worry, Sean,” Jessica chided. “I took some English in college. I should be able to translate for you.”

  The Brit laughed quietly as he started repacking his bag. Sean stepped beside him and looked into the bag, curious about what the officer had retrieved from the store.

  Sitting on top of his bag was a shimmering silver, foil blanket.

  “What’s that?” he asked.

  Wilkes paused and looked at the object. “It’s a flame retardant blanket. You’re supposed to crawl under it if you’re caught in a forest fire.”

  Sean smiled. “Are you planning on getting caught in a lot of forest fires in the middle of London?”

  Wilkes smiled right back. “With the craziness that you blokes have shown me, I’m planning for bloody well everything now, aren’t I?”