Chapter 9: Brush With Evil

A Chapter by Anonymous

   “Realms, stop bein’ a stalker. Weïnyu ain’t eye candy for the likes of ye,” Ewa snickered.
Realms blushed intensely and looked away from the silver girl whose hair was blowing in a gust of hot, thick wind - Ewa and Realms were used to it by now - and shimmered in the dim glow of the distant flames. Her black eyes shined golden.
“Well, she is pretty hot, ain’t she, Realms?” Ewa muttered in his ear with a smirk. This time, Weïnyu's silver cheeks burned pink. Realms shook off Ewa’s comments and picked up his weapon, examining it.
“Do you think we’ll find the other Benders out there?” Realms said, polishing the blades at the ends of his staff. Weïnyu looked directly at him with intent eyes flashing.
“I’m sure you will, now that I’ve joined your group,” she said. “I know where the remaining three are.”
“Three? But you and Ewa only make two, and aren’t there six living Benders?” Realms asked.
“No,” Weïnyu replied, her eyes sparking. “There are only five presently living. The first is a young girl living in the Kiarach region of Odanes, about sixteen years of age. She is a healer, commonly called ‘Demii’ by the people of Kiarach, meaning ‘Savior’.”
“She sounds familiar,” Ewa commented, stretching her arms high above her head. “Would she happen to be that little tyke that I helped my mother deliver back when she was a nurse? I heard from someone that she was workin’ for the people down in Kiarach nowadays.”
“Sounds like it,” Realms said. Weïnyu blinked and nodded in consideration.
“There is also a boy named Clai who has been held captive by the king ever since he was a child. He was charmed, so he rarely ever is able to practice his Bender abilities.”
“Eh?” Ewa grumbled. “That’s just cruel! A Bender who ain’t allowed to Bend?”
“Listen, there is one more,” Weïnyu continued. “She is a Zolaen, a being that was descended from the ancient water nymphs and has qualities of a human. Her name is Totou, the princess of the Zolaens.”

“So,” Ewa sighed, leaning back on a rock, “all together, we have a sorcerer, an Elf, a Dark One, a shut-in, a saint, and a princess. What a likely group.”
“Now all we need to do is get out of this bloody place and find the rest of them, right?” said Realms.
“One problem,” Weïnyu sighed. “We can’t get to the surface.”
“What?”
“There’s only one way out of here, and it’s not accessible to us. I’ve tried for years, but I can’t do it alone-”
Weïnyu’s eyes suddenly flashed brilliant red two times as she almost jumped a foot in the air. A wide smile spread from ear-to-ear on her face.
“That’s it!” she exclaimed.
“Would ye mind explaining what’s runnin’ through yer head?” Ewa said, poking Weïnyu’s shoulder.
“The key to getting out of here! It takes the power of two Benders to open the gate to the world of the living! And now that you’re here, I can finally get out of here!”
“Well, where is the gate, anyway?” Realms asked.
“The gate is way on the other side of the-” Weïnyu started, but then stopped abruptly as a loud echoing screech came from a cavern hanging on the ceiling of the Underworld. Ewa’s pointed ears twitched down quickly just before Weïnyu shoved her and Realms down into a narrow hole on the floor.
“Get down!” she hissed. Ewa covered Realms’ mouth with her hand before he could make a sound and try to run back out and save the day. He squirmed, but Ewa kept him down.
   C’mon, girlie! Jump in the hole before the thing out there gets ye! We’ll never get out if ye get hurt! Ewa thought, a drop of sweat leaking down her temple. Her teeth clenched together as she waited intently; no sound at all came from outside the hole. It seemed as if the entire Underworld was stilled.
   Weïnyu. Where are ye?
A huge crash came from outside, followed by a gasp from Weïnyu and the sound of huge, lumbering claws scraping against the ashy stone earth. A gargled, screechy roar stung Ewa’s sensitive ears and an aggressive snuff told her that whatever it was that was out there, it wasn’t looking to help them out.
Ewa hurriedly scrambled over Realms and peered out of the narrow way, trying to get a glimpse of what was happening out there. There was Weïnyu, standing strongly, and a towering beast with an unhinged muzzle, dozens of rows of steaming, yellow fangs dripping red acid.
   Bloody hell!
Weïnyu unlocked her arm gun quickly, then held out her free palm and squeezed her eyes shut, letting out a kah sound and shooting a pulse of mist from her hand, as Ewa did before.
Nothing happened.
The beast bellowed in rage, scraping its claws angrily on the turf again. Weïnyu shook off her failed attempt at stopping the beast and clicked her gun, her eyes flashing red. She hardened her stance like stone and locked her gaze onto the beast’s ugly mug.
“Bring it on.”

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