The legend returns

Chapter 40

The five bladers stood at the entrance of the Snake Pit, watching as the rain slowly came to a halt after seven hours of heavy rain and constant lightning. Each one had a bag strapped off of their shoulders, filled with some equipment they had found within the old temple-like building to scale down the canyon wall.

The freed bladers had stayed inside, tearing the place apart and destroying any equipment they found to ensure the Snake Pit would never rise again. Ashtem had been forced to watch as they destroyed the interior of the building, especially his lab.

"We should get going. The fire should be out by now." Free said. The group stayed silent as they headed back towards the canyon. A sence of dread and uncertainty hung over thier heads. They were afraid that they wouldn't like what they found. They were already fearing the worst.

Who knows what happened when they fought or after they disappeared? Who knows if one of them survived the fall or died while they fell? Sora was still recovering from the bullet wound that almost killed her. What if she reopened it? What if Phi reopened it? What if they died from the force of impact from the ground, or worse? The fact that there was a wildfire leaves so many possibilities... But both of them have survived one. But, they didn't fall into it, they ran through it. What if they both survived but Sora was left incapacitated by the fall and her wounds? What if Phi is waiting for us? Shu thought as his mind raced through the many possibilities. His thoughts were cut off by the sight of the canyon.

The bladers laid their bags on the ground and opened them, getting the equipment out and tying the ropes to the trees nearby. They walked to the edge and with one last check to make sure the ropes were secure, they began climbing down the canyon wall.

So far, there was no sign of either of the missing bladers. That is until Shu spotted a glove shaped object on the ledge below him. He quickened his pace, scaling down the wall towards the ledge.

When he deemed himself close enough, he pushed off of the canyon wall and loosened his grip on the rope, letting it slide through his grip as he fell towards the ledge. He let go of the rope once his boots made contact with the ground and ran towards the glove-like object that lay near the center.

When he got close to it, he slowed his pace before falling to his knees and picking the object up. As he examined it, he noticed the parts that weren't burned to a near crisp were a smoked gold color. "No." Shu whispered to himself.

Shu quickly stood up and frantically began searching for any sign that Sora was alive. The scorched remains of a tree lay on the ledge closeby, near the wall. "Sora!" He yelled, his voice bouncing off the canyon walls in a nearly endless echo. There was no reply to him. "Sora!" He yelled again, trying to keep the oncoming despair out of his voice. Again, there was no answer.

He felt his chest tightening as he struggled to keep himself together. She can't be gone. She had to have made it out somehow. He thought. He kept looking around, only stopping when he saw a spot on the ledge that looked like dried blood. That could be from anything. Shu thought, despite the feeling of grief tightening its grip on him.

The other bladers dropped down onto the ledge, curious as to what the albino had found. Lui and Free's eyes widened in disbelief when they saw the scorched glove in Shu's grasp. Valt walked up to his childhood friend, followed by Hearts.

"Shu?" Valt said, sounding concerned for the red eyed blader. "She's gone." Shu said, his voice barely above a whisper. The next thing he knew, Valt was pulling him into a hug, which he gladly accepted. His grip was tight on Valt's vest and his eyes were shut tightly.

The others realized what had happened and fell into their own habits of grief. One resorted to punching the scorched tree, another had their back turned to everyone and faced the edge, the other was still in denial.