Elemental Empires

{Chapter 22}

Their flame long extinguished, terrifying darkness enveloped the girls. Not a sound could be heard except for the pounding of three hearts. Three human hearts. Ther

"Mia? Are you alright?," Kira groaned as she clutched her head.

"Yes, are you?," Mia asked, cradling her aching elbow.

"I think so," Kira replied.

There were a few moments of silence as the girls nursed their wounds, before getting up and dusting themselves.

"Will no-one ask about me?," a third voice echoed around them. The smooth, silky voice of a female.

"Aaaah!".
"Aaaah!".

Both girls screamed simultaneously and groped in the dark to find each other.

"I was hurt too," the voice came from the darkness.

"She's a ghost, a cannibal-ghost! These palaces are usually haunted you know! We're dead. Dead!," Kira screamed as the voice laughed a low, smoky laugh.
" We should follow her orders! I'll ask if you are okay, alright? Hello, hi! Are you fine, fine? Good, good? Awesome," Kira burbled on.

"Wh..who are you?," Mia tried to stop her voice from faltering but failed. Her heart thudded and a chill went up her spine.

There was a soft click.

"She's taking out her blade! She'll kil- wait do ghosts need blades?," Kira cried.

Another click and a low flame appeared, it illuminated a long, dark shadow standing before them.

Mia's gulped as an empty, wooden torch floated on the shadows and the flame nestled itself on the torch, illuminating everything in a dazzling, yellow flame.

"Cathy here. Not a pleasure to meet you at all," the voice said.

Mia rubbed her eyes to let them adjust to the sudden light and saw a tall girl of about fifteen standing before them, she had smooth, tanned skin with freckles that glowed golden in the light of the flickering flames, luscious black hair and small, olive eyes that glinted softly.

"Are you guys deaf or what?," the girl-Cathy- raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow." I'm Cathy. Mia, Kira do you recognize me?".

Kira and Mia were dumbfounded, busy staring at Cathy and didn't hear her question. She snapped her fingers before the two, jolting them back to reality.

"I'm Ivory as you named me Mia," Cathy sighed.

"What?," Mia shuffled around as she searched for the kitten but it was nowhere to be found.

"What did you do with her?," Mia snarled, trying to be intimidating.

"Ugh, you knucklehead. Look I am a shape-shifter. Olive eyes," she pointed to her eyes," You looked at me like a thousand times a day, yet you couldn't figure it out, dumb-head! Just like your dead brain couldn't figure out the contraptions that made the wall shift. Like seriously what cat has such beautiful eyes like mine?" Cathy spat at them.

"Excuse me? Firstly, not a cat but a kitten, also every cat's eyes are beautiful so you don't need to get ahead of yourself and easy on your words there! Keep the insults at bay please," Mia raised her eyebrows and pointed a finger in her direction.

"Woah missy! This is how you repay me for saving your sorry asses from those guards? Ungrateful piece of.." Cathy trailed off.

"Enough!," Mia moved forward as her anger rose.

"Or else what?," Cathy challenged

"Hey, hey! Nice cat-human. Okay we get it Ivory..Cathy? Cathovry, Ivocath. Whatever. We get that you're tough and bla but who are you really?," Kira stepped between the two.