Legacy by Christopher Pastrana (best reads txt) 📕

was asked by Briccio Donovan to join in the upcoming battle against the Duzee Master.” A hushed silence fell over the group as they watched him for any signs of lying. When they raised their spears to him, Reinhardt thought that he might have found the wrong camp after all and began planning an escape.
         “Where is Briccio?” A small relief.
         “He's dead.” And the relief faded as the soldiers, in unison, jammed their spear heads into the ground, causing large spikes to rise out of the ground towards Reinhardt's body. Deciding against trying to grab all of their powers at once he forcible halted the spiked that would have reached him first. Jumping up and over the next few spikes was easy, but the group had managed to collect themselves and begin a second round of attacks.
         Lashing out with the Dragon's Tail, he split most of the rocks easily. Like other elementalists he had met before some of these men were considerably weaker than the others. Focusing on them first would help his chances in the fight. Going on the theory that they wouldn't be able to fight as well without their weapons he used the versatility of the strong metal cord of the Dragon's tail to disarm many of the men. A few minutes and half a dozen disarmed shifters later he discovered he was correct in his assumption.
         All of the men he had managed to disarm were forced to retreat from the fight. Whether it was the inability to fight or panic he didn't know but it didn't really matter. When only three were left he withdrew the Dragon's Tail and raised his hands defensively.
         “I didn't come here to fight!” As if considering his word the Ental soldiers held back for a few moments. When the strongest of them moved began pushing forward again the other two followed as if guided. Getting his weapons ready Reinhardt considered what disarming this level of elementalist would do to their ability to fight. Having never seen an elementalist fight unarmed he didn't know if they could, even though the notion seemed ridiculous, even in his own mind.
         “Enough!” Nearby the grass parted and a small woman stepped into the field. Surprised by her size Reinhardt chuckled. When her eyes reflected her serious nature he stopped laughing. Standing a little over five feet tall Reinhardt made her look like a child. Her long black hair ran down her back and was tied to her with multiple red ties.
         Looking him over thoroughly she nodded to the other three, telling them to back down. Even though she was small she demanded respect and Reinhardt could only assume that she received it, and without question. The red sleeves of her tunic stood out in contrast to the black of the rest of the outfit. Strangely he knew what she was without having to be told.
         “I can see that you know your way around with that thing.” She pointed curiously to his left arm. “Also I believe you had something to do with my fire being put out. What did you do?”
         “It's a little trick I picked up over the years.” Deciding it would be best to stay vague on the topic of his ability he dodged the answer.
         “Is this something others can do? No elementalist should be able to have their power stolen away from them like that. It's never been done before. Are there others like you?” She was worried that the enemy had people like himself on their side. That would be a serious change in strategy considering most people relied heavily on elementalists in battle.
         “No, I am the only one like me, at least none that I know of.” The woman visibly relaxed a little before continuing.
         “Why did Briccio send you to us, and what happened to him?”
         “This would be a better conversation to have with the leaders of your rebellion.” Anger flashed through her eyes like lightning.
         “You will be speaking to me first! If I feel you aren't lying I will consider bringing you to the council.”
Deciding this was a game he could play he let his face reflect how he felt inside. The lightning behind her eyes was swept away by fear as he used his size to intimidate her, which was easy to do. Speaking calmly and clearly he made sure she understood his intentions.
         “I will not repeat myself. If I am going to tell this story I will tell it once. You cannot threaten me with force. Your shifts will fail and you cannot best me in armed combat. I refused to kill your soldiers but if I decided to kill them this fight would not last long.”
         Nodding she turned back around and walked away. He seriously hated getting angry, always seemed so undignified. Allies

           Reinhardt walked in silence, following the assorted group of elementalists through a forest. The small leader directed them into the trees only a short time after leaving their improvised sparing ground. She seemed worried about being tracked so they all left the easier traveled fields and moved into the concealment of the large, dense mountainside.

            Two of the guards disappeared into the shadows, probably scouting ahead of the group. It was clear to him that this little group was not affiliated with the Duzee government; he guessed they were either bandits or rebels. With that assumption in mind he looked everyone over and figured them to be about the same age as the few men who had traveled with Briccio before being killed by the Four Winds.

            The earth elementalists made sense to Reinhardt, but the single fire shifter didn’t. She wasn’t like the others, and even wore the colors of her home nation, Fatir. No sigil was visible but she didn’t seem to be of low birth, the way she walked and carried herself told him that. It was a mystery to him, one he would figure out in time.

            Nobody spoke as they pushed through the deep green vegetation surrounding them. Shrubs and low hanging branches did the most to hinder their progress, but the terrain played a large part as well. With great effort they fought against the incline of the mountain, trying to stay on the correct course. Large walls of trees blocked their paths from time to time as they had to fight through the vegetation that sprang up in the water flowing down the side.

            Reinhardt enjoyed walking through these large draws, they made it very difficult to see more than a few feet around you, and on a few occasions the group would have to stop and take a break after crossing one. These breaks typically involved someone going back into the natural barrier to retrieve something that had been ripped off of them while crossing. It amused him that a few even lost their spears.

            It was clear nobody would be using their powers to make the traveling easier; most likely afraid their guest would rip whatever they took control of away and restart a fight. While amusing it was also time consuming and was creating a big mess within the group. Reaching the other side of another draw the group decided to stop. After being given the command by the small fire shifter everyone began taking turns going over their gear to make sure nothing had been lost in the travel. The last crossing had been especially bad and nearly twice as long as any of the others.

            One man returned to the draw and vanished while he searched for whatever he had lost. The long thick vines inside had a nasty habit of taking things from your possession if you hadn’t been careful and tied them down before entering. With the group finally halted Reinhardt took a minute to gather his thoughts. He never had to check his gear since he only carried his Dragon’s Tail with him, and his cloak, both of which he would notice being ripped off.

            The small woman kneeled down and checked her own gear. Like him she carried very few things with her out side of her pack, which was synched down tight with specialized straps. Clearly she was used to traveling through the woods, another peculiar trait from a Fatir of special birth. Soon the missing man appeared carrying a small coin purse in his hand. Apparently that had been ripped off and Reinhardt didn’t blame the man for wanting to retrieve it.

            Almost two hours had passed since they entered the forest before the group turned down the hillside. The sudden change sparked curiosity in Reinhardt. In a few more minutes they emerged from the tree line and were again in the fields below the mountain. Unlike the rest of the fields this one had a large hill in the center. Their forward scouts returned to the group and led them towards the hillside. Everyone came to a stop when the two earth elementalists opened a large hole in the ground. As they walked into the darkness the rest followed.

            After a few moments the group emerged into a small room. It was poorly lit, only a single torch glowed nearby, but Reinhardt could see a staircase leading down into darkness. A smile crossed his face as he felt intrigue spread in his mind. One of nearby guards caught his smile and replied with a wink; at least one of these men wasn’t worried about him trying to do anything stupid. It was Reinhardt who had wanted to go with them without any further fighting.

            Without an earth elementalist he wouldn’t be able to escape from this place on his own, nor would he have ever found it. Everyone started forward again, walking down the stairs into darkness. The small shifter drew a small piece of flame from the torch to give them light; she no longer seemed to care if Reinhardt was around either.

            They emerged into a large underground city. Reinhardt thought about it again and figured it was less of a city and more of a war camp. It was a marvelous sight regardless. At a quick guess there would have to be at least ten thousand people hidden beneath the hill, maybe more. To his surprise the air smelled clean and wasn’t heavy with foul odors that would be associated with most camps this size.

            Whoever crafted the idea of burying an encampment instead of risking it topside was a genius. Any enemy forces that happened upon the site would have no idea that beneath their feet stood an entire army. For the first time the group began to speak openly to each other, now unable to be heard or followed. As the group followed the staircase downward the camp grew