Elektra was ablaze again, barely evading the first strike that shook the ground and created a hole. The impact made the earth trenbke slightly, which was enough for a person to have trouble retaining its equilibrium. And in fact, Aias, who remained on the same spot almost fell. Still, he readjusted himself, and just in time for the arrival of the second tentacle, created a fiery bubble around him. He listened in to the horrid scream of pain that the creature emitted when a part of its body sustained heavy injuries. Its whole tentacle would have been incinerated if it was not for Freya's healing abilities that managed to conserve it more or less whole. The sound of its cries was a sound that could be heard for kilometers around, and Aias started wondering if anyone will arrive at their position, joining the fight:"How may people are currently in the middle ground of our land? More fire mages or water ones?" He decided it was best not to risk it, and end the fight as soon as possible in order to have an escape route if needed.
Freyja could feel the pain of the creature as if it were hers. But she did not give in, as she herself had already sustained strong burns on the same day. She closed her eyes and imagined the cooling and welcoming embrace of the sea, thinking of her next move:
"They're both cornered, but I underestimated them. The creature even with her abilities boosted by my powers won't be able to do them harm. I have to wait for the right moment to wake the sea."
While in a state of semi-trance, she could visualize what the creature was seeing. It decided that the fire mage was best left alone, and three of its tentacles were now carefully circling around him. Ready to retreat them if he made a move, or strike if let the guard down. If the sea creature could feel the power of magic, it would have realized that Aias was, in fact, increasing the intensity of the fire that was surrounding him. He didn't bother attacking too soon only because the creature was protected by Freya's watery magic, and striking with with equal or lesser power was just a waste of energy.
Elektra was jumping left and right, fighting with the other three tentacles of the monster. She did not have the time to focus as she'd have liked to, and the element of surprise was on the opponent's side. She merely evaded a strike, jumping on one of the monster's tentacles. She seized the opportunity to run along the tentacle's length, and launch a fireball through her extended hand. As a result, the flames around her weakened a bit, sacrificing speed for an offensive strike aimed at Freyja. As she did, her thoughts were "She's not looking! Ha! That will teach you dozing off in the middle of a fight."
But to Elektra's astonishment, the fireball struck Freya in the head, disappearing in an instant in a cloud of steam. Freya opened her eyes and was smiling - her trap worked. She let her hands fall free, and in a similar motion the water started falling from the creature's shell. It wasn't physically possible that the shell held all that water, but such was the power of the water mage. Freyja then positioned herself in an aggressive stance, feeling her whole body pulsating in the rhythm of the water she released. And then she jumped toward Elektra, and all of the water that continued to pour from the shell, followed her, forming a tide extending high in the sky.
"ELEKTRA! RUN OR YOU'LL DIE!" they both heard Aias yell, over the sound of the coming waters. Elektra blinked, exchanging her bewildered expression with determination. She looked around and saw a wall of tentacles forming behind her back, preventing her an escape:"I'm sorry Aias," she thought: "but this is a fight to the end. You think I'm weak, but I'll prove you otherwise." She cleared her thoughts and focused on Freya, and her will to kill returned. Elektra readied herself on the monster's tentacle, and smelt the sensation of burning flesh as the creature caught flames. A moment later, she jumped towards Freyja.
At that, Aias moved. In contrast to his calm and reserved behavior from before, he was a raging beast now. The flames around him were glowing a bright light, almost white from the intensity. He made out a plan of attack in his head and wanted to follow it through, but now his priorities changed: "Damn it Elektra! I don't know if I'll reach you in time!!" Aided by his powers, he was almost flying over the ground, having to touch it only slightly, before being airborne again. Light and fast, but not enough. The pair of girls were already at each other, colliding with full force, and being absorbed by the tide that followed an instant later. "ELEKTRA!" cried Aias, hoping that she's strong enough to survive the powerful enemy.
When he reached the wall of tentacles, he jumped right through them, burning a hole that made the creature scream even more agonizing sounds. And suddenly, he found himself in the wave. He felt his powers weakening, something he did not feel for the past two years of scouting, interrogating, killing and looting. He always outmatched his opponents on the dry land. Now the playing field has been changed.
Aias looked around and through his weakening protective bubble saw Freyja who was relaxing in the water. The sight of her naked body aroused him, and the sensation intensified even more with the unfamiliar feeling of weakness. He concentrated hard to search for - "Elektra!"
The sight was terrible to behold. Elektra was trying to swim, but all her movements only spun her around. She was holding her breath, but the air in her lungs desperately wanted to burst out. Her skin was burning, but not with the flames she commanded. Her fire mage's skin was in direct contact with the water and as a result started boiling. Aias was terrified to see Elektra in such anguish and this put him in the present moment, ready to act.
What happened next could be described both as explosively fast, or excruciatingly slow, depending on who you asked.
Freyja ultimately remembered only the explosion that threw her unconscious.
Elektra mostly remembered the pain.
Aias had the most complete picture of them all. He ran towards Elektra in the water, but couldn't reach her. Freyja's spell made the water glow an unnaturally vivid blue color and opposed his movement. At the moment, he realized: "Damn it! There's too much water flowing from the creature. I have to destroy it. Or, perhaps, her." His thoughts guided his eyes towards the watery beauty. And that sight provoked a split-second decision, mixed with actual reasoning:
"We were the ones to attack her, not the other way round! Even though I'll never have the chance to get to know her, at least she should not be the one to pay the price for our actions."
Aias started running towards the creature's shell. The fiery bubble retreated into his body and started to consume his cells, feeding on him, building up to an explosive release of energy.
The explosion that followed left no trace of the creature, nor the cliff they were standing on. If there was a body of Aias left somewhere, he would have been smiling a victorious smile.
TO BE CONTINUED
Word Count: 1322
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