Elavale, of the duo made with her and Lyruk, was the one who could endure more extended intense exercise. It wasn't to say Lyruk couldn't hold his own in a physical fight, it was just that he tended to avoid close confrontations.
A hoof larger than three of her combined slammed into the ground next to Elavale. She'd jumped aside, moving quickly to act more the part of an annoying uncatchable fly or mosquito than to cleanly stay in the blindspots of the Draequilae. Lyruk cast a ball of light into the eyes of the creature, the flashing brightness enough to temporarily hinder its vision. Taking advantage of the aid, Elavale twirled a hand, a thin green vine emerging from the ground to lightly dangle in the air around one of the legs. No longer looking that way, she sprinted toward the rear, ducking beneath an underside kick of the back leg and continuing on at the same speed.
The lizard-like tail at the end of the animal swished back and forth, the end touching the ground. Just as the Draequilae regained its sight, Elavale leapt up, grabbing the middle of its tail and holding on, wrapping both arms and legs to get a better grip. It bucked instantly, flapping its wings, trying to use the sudden movements to propel her off.
As it tried to prepare a second kick of back legs toward her, it pulled on the vine circling its front leg, halting the momentum. Staggering, it reached down to peck at the vine and free itself, wings spread to steady itself, while Elavale made it atop the beast.
Lifting its head, no longer hindered, its head swiveled to the occupant on its back. She smiled, pulling the saber free from its place dangling from her belt. Without warning, it did what any bird would if something unwelcome had taken residence on its back. Expecting the sudden attack, the further swivel of its head and the beak headed her way, Elavale charged forward, ducking, blocking with her weapon and reached the neck of the Draequilae unscathed.
The scales didn't reach all the way up its neck. In a way, the creature had the same weakness any bird would. Feathers couldn't hold up against a sharp blade.
Off to the side, Nadia's fire lit the end of the branch Haq had acquired. As soon as the flames were stable, burning in rather than clinging to the outside, she thrust it into his free hand. Surprised, he tossed aside the rock he was holding and shouted to Abana.
"Fire!"
Abana, hearing him, too one short glance at him before racing alongside the creature, swiping with the head of her axe. The attention of the Balaranpius had switched over to Haq with his outburst, but immediately swiveled back to Abana and the weapon tickling its side. Its body turned, pivoting slowly as it followed her with its sight, needing to overcome the obstacle of its wide sides to keep her in peripherals.
It continued an onslaught of stabs with the large tail of a scorpion, landing just shy of the places Abana had been in a few seconds prior. Haq hefted the flaming branch onto his shoulder and stared intensely at the back of its neck, waiting for the perfect shot. Abana managed to circle farther behind the creature, eyes finding both Haq and Nadia as the large feet began to move again.
As soon as Haq saw, he took several rushed steps forward. The branch-turned-javelin left his hand as he came to a sudden halt, his body twisting with effort as he let go. It sailed through the air quickly, finding its mark at the base of the creature's head, sending it down to the ground, the body instantly collapsing in a resounding thud.
Abana looked solemnly between the Balaranpius and Haq, her eyes narrowing.
"You weren't lying," she muttered to herself. Haq grinned in the distance, putting a thumbs up her way before brushing his hands off on his shirt. "No way was that just a lucky shot."
She leisurely made her way over to the others, giving herself ample time to think things over in her own mind. Questions regarding Haq, his confusing words and equally baffling actions, as well as the odd occurrence of the two creatures they were taking down.
Abana revised her last thought as she watched Elavale sitting atop the Draequilae as it slowly kneeled and toppled over with a last hurrah flap of its wings.
The creatures they had taken down, she thought to herself, were odd for them to face. The Canyon of Fire was fair in judgement. Though it was true they'd easily cleared them from the path as a group, not as much of a challenge, it was strange that they were facing not just one, but two magic resistant ones at once. And, more than that, fire. Not one of them had an affinity with elemental powers like that of fire, water, rock and earth, or wind. To suddenly face a creature with that sort of specific weakness? If it had been among the last creatures before exiting, Abana would've understood better. The difficulty increased by day until the moment one exited the Canyon.
Though, she supposed, perhaps it was their group, there was five of them now, so maybe it was altering things in this manner to make up for their capabilities.
Elavale hopped down from the Draequilae easily, whistling a bit as she spotted the scorched marks on the Balaranpius.
"Fire? So fast?"
All eyes swiveled to Nadia as she hurriedly finished putting her glove back on, a smoldering pile of sticks next to her. She grabbed the flint and steel with shaky hands, rising to her feet before shoving them in her pocket again. She shrugged, brushing off the fire she'd managed to make.
They all seemed to get the same idea. Shaking from adrenaline. A modest shrug to push aside the fire that couldn't even stay lit. Elavale reached out and put a hand on her shoulder.
"You did good."
Abana gave her a smile and nod. Haq smiled only until he saw the soot on her wrist, leading beneath the hem of her glove.
"You didn't get burned, did you?"
Nadia shook her head, lifting her hand to brush away the grime and reveal unharmed skin beneath. She showed as much as she was able to without removing the glove or revealing what was on her palm. Abana and Haq, both making a fuss, bickering and chiding one another in concern for her, were eventually satisfied with her assurances that she hadn't been harmed.
Abana then doubled-down on her questions about Haq's aiming capabilities in fighting and why he never actually tried when battling her. Haq laughed, smiling with bright glee as he danced around, dodging a frustrated swing of her axe as if it were a harmless toy.
A hesitant relief calmed the incessant hammering of her nervous heart. Harboring a secret, one that sent her into seclusion, hiding one of the most important things about herself due to the reaction of others, she'd long been sharing the secret only with herself.
On her hands were symbols she didn't fully understand. They weren't raised as a scar, but they wore the same type of coloring. All she'd pieced together was that they shared something with the abilities she'd been born with.
No normal person could stick their hand in fire and remove it unscathed. No ordinary person could concentrate with the thought of heat in their hand, and open their eyes to find a fire in their palm.
Things of old tales and magic scared regular folks who wished hard against the existence of myths. They prayed and hoped that the natural disasters were just that, instead of being caused by beings that could crush mountains while maintaining a form similar to their own. For, if those things were real, anyone could be them. Anyone could hide their identity to fit in, like a poisonous flower amongst identical medicinal ones.
The first person Nadia had told of her abilities, having shown them after their blatant stated disbelief, a scoff thrown in with a roll of the eyes, had run away. When she walked through her hometown after the incident, wide eyes followed her, hushed voices murmured things with her name attached. Doors closed. People ignored her voice.
It was the isolation of an outcast.
Alone, by means of family, friends, and community, she left. In her next residence, she kept her mouth shut and powers hidden. An older woman, one with deep lines on her face and a gentle demeanor, gave her the first pair of gloves she'd wear, helping her hide her distinct differences while sharing the history of the planet. She'd been with her as she passed on, age claiming her, leaving a lasting message in her mind, one she considered for a few years before acting upon. To change the fate of the planet, the horrendous loop of destruction that lived in the anxiety of everyone's souls as they waited for the next tomorrow of disaster.
What Nadia knew of the symbols was limited to personal experience. There were no records of fire elementals. No dictionary for symbols existed.
Her right hand, the one that glowed whenever she sparked flames into existence, she assumed had the symbol for fire. It was like two hands holding three small curved lines. Her left palm had something different. Not once had the symbol there ever glowed. It was almost as if there were some other ability she'd yet to unlock and uncover.
The lines of it were odd as well, as if someone had experimented drawing different types in the same area. A semi-circle, a wavy line, two straight ones of differing lengths. She once stared at it for hours, wondering if there was anything in existence that looked remotely similar, and eventually coming up empty-handed on ideas of resemblance.
Part of her wanted to tell the others here, this group of unique and powerful individuals. Who else might understand her better than those who were far from the ordinary human?
And yet, what if there was some discovery, something she'd had yet to learn of herself, something she wasn't prepared to face? She knew, from those dozens of books regarding the history on Elpidius, whether myth or written with evidence, that no human had ever evolved to have elemental powers. Not once.
She didn't know her parents.
Something in her worried, or rather feared, that she'd learn she was more deeply related to these people, the individuals of myth and legend. What would if mean if she wasn't human? What would her life be if who she believed herself to be was the true myth? Who would she be then?
Living with such a finite hundred years as a human was something far removed from the concept of living a thousand lifetimes. What would she even do? What did someone do with such an extended life? Frankly, she didn't want to consider it, the possibility that she'd be in that situation, but she couldn't completely ignore it either. Not anymore. Not while being surrounded by those who grew up with the idea already living in their minds as if it were normal.
Off to the side, away from the anxiously pondering Nadia and the ever-constant back and forth of Haq and Abana, Elavale made her way over to Lyruk. Something had been plaguing her thoughts the past few nights, watching the appearance of the moon change in the sky, the visibility of the surface growing.
"Your birthday is in two days," she stated, watching the others as she stood by his side, arms folded securely in front of her torso.
"I know."
"There's a full moon in four days," she said in response, her voice remaining quiet, just between the two of them.
"I know."
She nibbled on the inside of her cheek. They wouldn't be free of the Canyon, not in four days, despite the quick progress they were making. She was trying her best to help him out, to cater to one of the only requests he'd ever given her. Fidgety by his response, she uncrossed her arms and wrung her hands together behind her back. She wanted to ask what he was planning to do, but refrained from wording it in that manner.
"We good?"
He nodded. "We're good."
At least, that meant he had a plan, she thought to herself, whatever it may be.
"Alright."
She let out a breath as he walked away, ending their brief conversation, if it could be called that.
"It better be a good plan," she muttered.
Or else he'd have a lot of explaining to do.