CHAPTER 10
Vanished
Loralle might have been upset the next day but she accepted the change of leaving her earth house. She"s had to adapt to different situations ever since she was born and this was just another one.
She had made Mitch sit on the ground, then she put herself directly onto his lap! Then, she let the earth slowly take them back to the Metal Tribe...
Mitch knew he had a lot to do, but found himself happily dawdling to get back to his ch.o.r.es. Luckily, he knew that the Air Tribe were quite a quiet bunch that don"t attack, so he wasn"t too worried if war had happened or not in his absence.
"Why not come with me?" He asked Loralle, still holding onto her tightly.
"I come, find you later." She said, as she cuddled into him.
Sighing, Mitch stopped himself from picking her up and forcefully taking her with him. He kissed her briefly and let her go, thinking, if he dun get away soon, then he probably wun get away at all!
"Ok, find me later then!" He said and started to walk away. Not looking back, as he didn"t think he"d be able to bear seeing those seductive eyes, he disappeared into a cave.
Loralle watched him leave, then sighed. How was it possible that she already missed him?
Making a strange face, she stood there trying to understand her feelings...
After a couple of minutes of trying to answer her questions, she frowned. There was no reasonable answer! She just missed him...That was it!
Was there some kind of other power?
A power...That made you happier...Made you forget about the rest of the world and made you miss someone that wasn"t near you?
Loralle widened her eyes, maybe that"s it!
What kind of power is that!?
If Mitch had heard these inner thoughts of Loralle"s, he probably would have looked at her in complete astonishment! He wouldn"t have known whether to laugh, cry, shake his head or get angry!
Finally, Loralle continued to the field of flashes, situated in the middle of the Metal Tribe village. It wouldn"t be long now, she thought, till I"d be able to get the approval of the metal element. The final element...
Then what?
Uh?
Loralle blinked and scratched her head, what was she going to do after?
She was supposed to have found a way by now, to end the hatred...But she still had no idea! She had...Totally forgotten!
Thinking back, it had slipped her mind, even before meeting Mitch...
Felling bad for drifting away from her mission, she sat down and continued to get the metal power.
Going into the metal flying thing over a week ago, she had felt that she hadn"t been quite ready yet to go into the field of flashes, because it had hurt her...
What was strange, though, was that she had already found the yearning that led into the big field of flashes...Didn"t you only get that when you were ready for it?...
Nonetheless, she continued to think that she needed more power!
Three hours later, Loralle didn"t feel any different. Why had she felt pain then?
Yet, now, she seemed to have the immunity needed for the metal power.
It didn"t make any sense!
Of course, the reason that she was looking for but couldn"t find, was because the flashes that were needed for the metal flying thing, were those from the field of flashes and not the usual metal power that everyone in the Metal Tribe had. Loralle, hadn"t thought that even other Metal Tribal members had felt the pain from them also.
Looking out, into the big flashes, Loralle shuddered.
The water tried to drown me, earth tried to bury me, fire tried to turn me to ash and wind cut me all over...
These flashes...What will they do? She winced when she remembered what the metal power did to food.
Standing up, she went closer...Then put her hand inside the field. Nothing happened, at first, the flashes continued but her hand was untouched. They seemed to randomly go anywhere.
Suddenly, a flash reached over to her, as fast as it was, and hit her.
It disappeared just as quickly as it had come, but the damage had already been done...
Once the flash had touched her body, Loralle completely lost her consciousness...Her eyes rolled back and she heavily fell to the ground. Her nerves, muscles and flesh were all convulsing!
Her body trembled to such a high degree that her body, in which fell outside of the field of flashes, had trembled and convulses to the inside of the field.
Another flash came in a quick instant, five seconds later...
Her body started to show signs of the elements, as the flash went through her body.
Water was seen in her veins, , fire in her skin and earth in both her skin and muscles. A mixture of blue, light brown and orange flowed over her whole body, making her look like she wasn"t human at all, instead, she looked like some divine being.
Her hair that cringed and puffed out, continuously was being combed by the air, but would puff out and cringe again within a second or two.
Frothing at her mouth, Loralle continued to convulse and tremble...Even though her heart had just suddenly...Stopped beating!
It was at this very point in time that the earth mound of fresh, green gra.s.s, reached to the other elements very quickly. The sudden change to the continent of Mondal scared everybody, as the earth mound came into each and every tribe and spreading a lovely green colour everywhere!
What happened afterwards, got the people more frightened as they watched their very own powers suddenly disappear!
The menacing lake was drained of water, the magma came through the earth, the giant cyclone stopped and evaporated and the flashes stopped flashing.
The magma pools, the air and flashes around the caves, all of the defences of each and every tribe...Disappeared!
Then, each and every single person fell unconscious as their powers were zapped from them as well!
The earth mound retreated to go with the powers it had taken...The earth, water, fire, air and metal elements all raced towards a certain location.
This all happened in a s.p.a.ce of ten seconds, as all this power came together, and a big blinding light covered the entire continent of Mondal!
With no one able to witness this spectacular event, they didn"t see that the one who took everything...Was none other than Loralle...Who was still unmoving, still not breathing and her heart, still not beating, laying on the ground.
When the light entered her body, the light disappeared to see normal light return to the continent of Mondal, as it was beforehand...But, to Loralle...Changes were happening, and one of those changes, was her coming back to life!
***
"Finally, Freedom!"
"Yes, we have been returned to our natural state."
"Yeah, was fun though aye!?"
"To be put here and used like that! Blasphemous!"
"Now that we are together again..."
"No! You wanted to be the leader! You"re always the leader!"
"It doesn"t matter anymore!"
"You always take his side!"
"Let"s jus go n have some fun aye!"
"Agreed, I want to get out of this dump of a land!"
"Agreed, we have spent enough time here."
"Hey! Hey! Let"s go see Arculas!"
"...Very well."
***
One day later, everybody on the continent of Mondal awoke. It was a pandemic! There was no water power, no fire power, no metal power, no air power and no earth power!
Dead fish, squid and other water creatures were found at the bottom of where the menacing lake used to be. The volcano, that had blown up the top of the earth covering, no longer had magma at all! People who were in their magma homes when they fainted, found themselves in empty pits and the woman were crying over their lost homes.
The Air Tribe gathered together and looked around with a little bit of fear. They looked at their earth homes, seeing them still there, and remembered Loralle. Luckily, they had a lot of fruit and didn"t have to worry about relocating their tribe.
The lights in the caves no longer worked and Mitch found himself in the complete darkness upon waking up. Following the light that was outside of the cave , he looked around to see the changes in the Metal Tribe.
What was goin on?
"Ah...Boss...I can"t..." That person didn"t continue to speak.
The boss looked over to the field of flashes to see...Nothing. No flashes anywhere!
"Go n find out what"s goin on! Nathan...Go n find Loralle!"
"Yeah, Boss!"
He had...A really bad feeling about this!
"Boss...Someone...Someone from the Air Tribe has come to stand in the middle of the tribes!"
Mitch bit his lip, for an hour there were no answers, none! And now...
"Jus let em stand there fa now...We might av weapons but...If they still av powers..."
"Yeah...I"ll jus watch em then!"
Mitch nodded, then looked around, wanting to see Nathan. He hadn"t returned...
Turning to another suburbanite, he said, "Help Nathan find Loralle."
"Yeah, Boss!"
He had a niggling feeling ever since awakening...What was goin on!? Why have the Air Tribe suddenly come? Perhaps...They are having troubles too?
Mitch sent another person towards the Air Tribe to spy on them, strangely enough they seemed happy too.
Daniel, who had been confined, had felt a change in his body as soon as he had woken up.
But, he didn"t care...He was put into this cell, what felt like a long time ago, and still thought he was the reason everyone died, not knowing that they were, in fact, were still alive...He had...Willingly gone into confinement because he felt like he deserved it.
When the Fire Tribe had came out to meet up with the rest, who stayed at the Water Tribe village, Daniel"s father had heard everything from his eldest son. On purpose, they hadn"t told Daniel anything and no one was to go down to see him as punishment...Until this day.
Both his father and brother came running to him and asked, "Have you lost your powers too?"
Daniel looked up, blinking...Was he perhaps dreaming? Did he...Die?
"Daniel! Speak!" His father"s voice! His father"s body!
"Daniel!" His father"s angry, familiar voice!
Without knowing, Daniel had slowly come to stand and be at the front of the cell. "Fath...er?"
Actually, his father was a kind man...He loved his children very much. "Yes, we lied to you, so you would learn your lesson...Quick boy, answer my question!"
A tear ran down Daniel"s face as he answered, "No...I lost the powers..."
Daniel smiled and wiped his tear away. Right now, the powers were nothing, he was just so glad to see his father again!
His father sighed and looked at his eldest son, "Let him out."
It was a reunion that Daniel would never have thought, in a million years, would happen!
He hugged his father till he was pushed away, then he hugged Emily, not letting her go for hours!
It felt like it had been years, but it was only days. Days of thinking he had killed the whole Fire Tribe. Days of loathing himself and Loralle. Days without anybody to talk too!
He had never known what loneliness was, or betrayal or losing something precious.
And now...He was just so d.a.m.ned happy! He also came to know that what Loralle had done was all an act! That she hadn"t intended to kill anyone! He wasn"t sure if he wanted to thank her or to call her a b.i.t.c.h!
In the following days, big changes had to be made because the powers had gone and with that...The hatred!
The Air Tribe continued to stay in the middle of their tribe and the Metal Tribe, even offering food to imply peace, but they were still ignored due to fear.
Mitch worried endlessly about Loralle, who had gone missing with their powers, and was unsure how to proceed. He checked her earth house outside of the Metal Tribe daily, to see that she wasn"t there.
Finally, he succ.u.mbed and went himself to go see the Air Tribe, wanting to know if she was there instead.
Walking straight past the Air Tribe envoy, he went to their village.
He knew his tribesmen would worry endlessly about him but he had made up his mind.
He noticed that the wind that used to circulate around the Air Tribe still seemed to have not reappeared. Much like their own flashes...Not only that, the hatred he used to have for them, had completely vanished as well. They had wanted to find out what the Air Tribe wanted to do since a few days ago...So now, he was going to find out!
The Air Tribe watched him silently as Mitch searched each and every earth house to not see anything of Loralle. They did not attack him and Mitch was pleased to see that they hadn"t changed.
Putting his head against one of walls, he started to think that maybe...Maybe Loralle was really gone...
No!
He put a fist against the house and took a deep breath. Turning around, he slid to the floor, finally looking at the Air Tribal members that were watching him. Their faces seem to look very similar to Loralle"s curious gaze.
One pointed at the house, then at a ball and rolled it to him. Mitch tried to smile but all he could think of was, the memories he had with Loralle.
The ball stopped rolling and Mitch stared at it...
That"s right, she was er, maybe they know where she went!
"The person that made this house...Do ya know where she is?"
They were stunned because he spoke, but after a long moment, they all shook their heads. Mitch fisted the ground in anger. "Dammit!"
They tried to console him with the ball, fruit and dried meat...But he just sat there looking a little sad.
***
Who was better because of the amount of power that they yielded? What about other things that relied on powers to use? How could they defeat an enemy now? What about defence?
They couldn"t become the wind, they couldn"t hide, they couldn"t produce what they used to and even cooking became more of a challenge!
They had to find other ways to live...Other ways to defend themselves, even against animals!
In the next few years, the Air Tribe and Metal Tribe became great friends. They also weren"t divided anymore and merged together to make a brand new tribe. Mitch stayed with Loralle"s earth built homes and gradually had a family with someone that was similar to Loralle, that was original from the Air Tribe.
No longer were there thunderstorms upon birth, instead, they came at random intervals to rain on all the different lands of Mondal.
Where the barren, desolate wasteland once was, now, was with several different types of lands...Some of it was sand dunes, some turned to rocky mountains, half of it turned into lush, green, tropical forests...One in which became a home to the last survivors of the Water Tribe.
The continent of Mondal moved on...To a future that no longer contained powers...It was as it was before the Elements had arrived. The humans were no longer victims.
And in time...Loralle was forgotten by all, except two...
Daniel was one, who was still angry, yet, happy...And Mitch, who never met another woman who he cared for more.
***
"Wake up!"
"Yes, we want you to wake up, please!"
Loralle opened her eyes to find sunlight on her face, making her blink and cringe her face in displeasure.
"She"s awake!"
"Let us out aye!"
Wiping her eyes, Loralle looked around to find n.o.body around. She found herself laying within a big gra.s.sy area.
Uh?
"Hey, Hey!"
"Ah, miss...Miss?"
"Shuddup! I"m talking!"
"Both of you be quiet! Loralle, honey, make an earth ball for me please."
"Mr high and mighty!"
Loralle shook her head and blinked.
Uh?
"Come on, come on, come on!"
"Loralle, honey, make an earth ball."
Making an earth ball, she saw it float above her hand and move around all by itself.
Uh?
"Me too, please!"
"No! Me first!"
Loralle let out a breath and blinked again. What a weird dream?
"Honey. Make a fire ball now."
She made a fire ball. "Yes! Ah ha. Awesome. Freedom!"
It too floated around on its own.
Uh?
She closely looked at the two b.a.l.l.s, that seemed like they had a life of their own.
"I believe I"m next!"
"A water one this time, please honey!"
So, she made a water ball, then an air ball, then a metal one.
"Right, ey thanks little un!"
"Let"s go!"
The fire ball drifted off, then a voice came once again, "You won"t be able to go far without the vessel, Fire!"
"Then bring her then! Let"s...Go!"
Loralle suddenly fell back, as the earth below her started to move.
Uh? Such a very...Strange dream!
"What"s going on?" She finally asked.
"Oh, honey, we are meeting up with brother."
"Yep! Yep!"
"We"ll help im get back tagether again, aye!"
Uh?
Loralle looked around as she continued to move on earth that she wasn"t moving herself..."Where are we?"
This place did not look familiar at all! It was quite a nice spot really, lush green gra.s.s as far as the eye could see. Every now and again there were little pretty things that came out from the gra.s.s. They swayed slightly to the wind and Loralle was really speechless...Heaven? Has she died and gone to heaven? She wanted to stop and have a better look at the pretty things in the gra.s.s.
"It"s where brother is aye."
"This place is Kralaide." The strange, leadership voice had said. This voice seemed very sure of his answer, and that is because it was the Element of Earth and it had already ventured out quite far to get information.
"Yes, and brother is still not finished putting himself back together yet."
"Yeah, Haha, we beat you brother Arculas!"
Uh? What in the world are they talking about?
Kralaide? Where"s that? How"d they get here? What kind of place is it?
"Is Kralaide in Mondal?" Loralle asked, scratching her head, confused.
"No!"
"No way, humph, not going back there."
"Honey, we opened a portal and left Mondal, to come to Kralaide. Since you were able to connect us once again, you have to follow us."
"Earth." Loralle said suddenly.
"...Very good! Ah! She knows me!"
Earth...Is talking...To me!? For a moment, Loralle lapsed into a stunned silence...
Loralle smiled, why talk to me now!? Why hadn"t Earth talked to me earlier!?
"Why talk now, not before?"
"Oh, well, honey...There was...Circ.u.mstances."
Loralle raised her eyebrows.
"Don"t tell her, she doesn"t have to know!"
Loralle frowned, "Fire."
"Uh? You knew!..." Actually, Fire was very surprised. Many vessel"s hadn"t even bothered to know which of them was which.
"Mmm." It seemed only natural that she could tell who her friends were...
"I think it"s okay to tell her, she"s our friend right?" Loralle wondered if that was Air.
"Who said!"
"Me! I like er! She"s cool!" Loralle smiled, that kind of language...That must be Metal.
"Look...Honey...Our brother and us...We got into trouble. Our father broke us up and punished us because of it."
"Ha ha the old man sucks!"
"I miss im aye!"
"Shuddup, you idiot!"
"Now, now!"
"Fools. Both of you Shuddup!" Water...Loralle scoffed. The Water Element seemed to sound quite arrogant.
As the Elements continued to bicker and take her elsewhere, Loralle phased them out as she tried to get her bearings. So, this wasn"t some sort of heaven? I"m alive...And, awake?
The last thing that she remembered was being at the field of flashes in the Metal Tribe.
What had happened?
Had she been approved...And now that she was...
Was I asleep that long that Mondal turned into Kralaide?
Loralle frowned, does that mean I"ll never see anyone I knew again?
A sadness overwhelmed her as she remembered her last days in the Metal Tribe.
The Elements...What had they said?
Putting her hand to her head, she felt...Weak.
What had happened!?
Shaking her head in displeasure, she wanted to at least return to Mitch once...
How could they leave like this?
Sighing in defeat, Loralle put a hand slowly on the earth beneath her. She was a little scared...Of finding out that what the Elements said was true.
Seeing the unfamiliar terrain go into her head, she pulled her hand back in fright.
She was no longer on Mondal. That or...Mondal turned into Kralaide...
Taking a deep breath in, she attempted to calm herself, but her heart started to race and she could feel it throughout her whole body. As much as she tried to fight against it, nothing helped and her heart continued to beat rapidly.
Clutching her chest, in panic, she felt herself fall.
The Elements had spoken to her by now, but she couldn"t hear them. Her heart raced and her blood rapidly went through her, flushing her face a scarlet red.
Then...Blackness overcame her sight.