Element Rebirth

4. Magic At Work

It was a miracle I was able to get out into the open, fresh air, but when I did, I couldn’t be more grateful. The chaos and panic all day was killing me: I’d worked in the mines all day, had several hours in the kitchen and was finally released for a couple minutes. It had to be enough time to find Kyle and ask him about yesterday, I could only hope though.

“Kyle!” I hissed frantically, speeding around the lake recklessly. I honestly couldn’t care less about getting caught because all I wanted was to find Kyle and have a proper explanation for why – how he’d cause such a panic and mess in the mountain. If he truly had been able to shake the mines, then it was his fault my feet were bleeding badly from blisters and sharp cuts.

“Shh, they’re tightened the security.” I felt his hand clamp around my wrist and yank me into the safe shadows of our usual meeting spot. I breathed a sigh of relief, glad not to have wasted much time looking for him. “So did you bring it?”

“The green rock? Heck yes I did.” I turned around gingerly on my feet, careful not to rupture more cuts again. “Why – how – I don’t understand! Why me? Why you?”

“Give it here,” he demanded, black eyes peering at me out from the shadows. They were urgent.

“Why?” I wrapped my fingers around the hard rock cautiously, stepping backwards in suspicion. “And how did you make the entire mountain shake?”

“I’ve been practising,” he replied quickly. “Give it!”

I inhaled sharply when he lunged at me, pouncing on me lightly, swiped it from my hands then leapt back off me all in one swift move. Stunned, I sat there for a moment, unable to believe how quick he’d been then quickly scrambled to my feet, grabbing his wrist as he peered at it in the moonlight. “What do you want with it?”

“The second one,” Kyle muttered under his breath, a look of relief crossing his dirt-spotted face. “Thank goodness.”

“Give it back!” I snatched it off him childishly and held it to my chest protectively. I didn’t know why but I’d suddenly grown a strong urge to keep it close to me, refused to even let Kyle touch it despite that he was the reason I had it in the first place. “What’s so special about it?”

Kyle rummaged through his pockets then released the blue gem I’d seen him practise moving the water with several times. “You see this?”

“The Water Crystal.” I shrugged nonchalantly. “What about it?” I cringed at my tone – it made it seem as though magic was a casual, everyday thing to come across.

“What colour is your rock?”

“Green – no. No freaking way. Absolutely no – that’s not possible! It’s not possible, Kyle! And how did you know how to find it?”

He ignored me, gazing at the rock in my hands impatiently. “There’s hot magma inside the volcano and it’s still active. It’s deep underground but it’s active. Magma is part liquid so I moved it. It really took a lot out of me but I got it working so I could shake the Earth Crystal out of the walls.”

“You could barely move the lake water without dropping it!” I exclaimed, mortified at what he was claiming he’d done. “How could you possibly –”

“I don’t know,” he interrupted rudely, rubbing at his face vigorously and managed to wipe away some of the dust and dirt that had collected along his cheeks. “But I did and that’s what counts.”

“And how did you know that this was hidden in the mines exactly above me?” I demanded and shook my head. This was crazy. Grandmother always talked about these Crystals like they still existed but I never thought I’d live to see the day where I could see one, let alone hold it. “You know, things are starting to get way too crazy.”