“We should get some rest,”
Gilfred stopped and nodded, silently grateful to Thema for the pause. He slouched forward as he nearly collapsed into the pile of stuff that she had moved out for him, giving a small chuckle as he did so. Taking a deep breath, he felt a dull throb begin in his side, suppressing a grimace Gilfreid instead closed his eyes and concentrated on getting at least some modicum of rest for as long as he was seated. As he sat there, his eyes closed, a small, content smile crept unto his face. Truth be told this was the most comfortable pile of stuff he had ever sat in, perhaps it was something with the pile, or perhaps it was something with the company probably seated in a pile close to him, but he was content to sit here for a good while longer.

“Lay down… and take your shirt off,”
Gilfreds eyes opened slowly, instinctively into a questioning look. His mind raced for an answer as to why, his eyes darting this way and that, as if to find the answer written on the back of her head. He opened his mouth and drew a breath as if to give his questions voice, but was cut off as the Plant Mage shot over her shoulder "“and don’t get any funny ideas either.” Closing his mouth he smiled and chuckled, for some reason beyond what his tired brain could think of at the time, he trusted her. "As you so command." he said, the smile still on his lips. Taking a deep breath, which set the aching throb off again, Gilfred brought himself to his feet and set about untieing Clarent from around his waist. With that finished he lay it next to the pile and moved on to the gauntlets, each coming off with a slight metallic click. Placing those alongside the long-sword he shrugged off his semi torn up duster and set about removing his shirt. As his hands got above his head however a sharp ache shot through his left shoulder, he paused for a moment, unable to suppress the grimace this time, but finished pulling off his shirt. The culprits of the different aches sat plain as day, two large bruises were already forming, one on his left shoulder and another on his right ribs, already a deep purple/black.
It appeared that the alien had gotten a couple shots in, and the force of its blows had been enough to bruise, even through the armor. A short "Huh." was all Gilfred gave the thought as he looked at the two bruises as he laid down on his back, and closed his eyes, "Probably need better padded clothing, what do you think?" He asked, a smile once more coming to him.

Phil's trance was broken by Cora, Who had noticed the rainbow that was being emitted. "Ice eventually melts, but if you ever want a prism, Phil. You just let me know. This is beautiful" Cora said with a thoughtful look. "Maybe after your match" Phil said in appreciation. Phil dropped the glass after it started to melt. After Phil wiped the warm water from his hand, He thought it was time to talk about their plans. He shouted towards Will "Dude, we need to discuss about what we should do next, While Cora and Yahtzee have their match."

Yahtzee stared slack-jawed at Cora for a moment before slowly smiling. He was actually going to get a chance to test his skill to see how he truly compared to the rest of the group. His hands fidgeted at his sides in anticipation however before he could actually speak he saw the light display from Phil and for a brief moment he forgot where he was and everyone around him. Past memories came back as fresh as if he had only just lived through them and his smile faded slightly into a slightly melancholic expression.

Alex stood in the living room with his parents on either side of him. On a circular tea table a cylindrical object wrapped in bright red wrapping paper lay dejectedly on it's side. His parents said something about 'happy' but other than that one word the rest were blurred out in the seeming grey fog of the memory. He stepped forward and reached out with one hand to gingerly hold the present in his hands before slowly pulling off the wrapping paper. The red paper seemed to never end and grew until it covered his vision for a moment before it was pulled away in flurry. Replacing the bleak grey landscape was a brightly coloured tent and everywhere various performers practiced their shows. Clowns fell over and juggled as in the air trapeze artists swung as gracefully as butterflies. His attention was pulled from the scene by his own trainer and he looked into the old man's face before looking down at his own hands. They held matches and he took a breath before grinning and lighting one.

Yahtzee stood back in the present staring blankly into space as he fought to escape the bleak memories of the past. It wasn't that they were sad or bitter and he treasured each one for it's own reasons but they didn't have a place in his life now and he would rather just be rid of them. He couldn't do that though but he could bury them in new ones and with that thought in mind he faced his opponent with a fierce grin.
"...Don't worry about hurting me." He heard her say and he chuckled.
"I'll do my best." He said earnestly. Despite never actually being officially trained in hand to hand combat he still considered himself to have been trained by the best teachers there were: Trail and error. He shifted in position sliding one leg forward and one back to keep his center of gravity higher up then he brought a fist forward and raised it until it was level with his face. "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages welcome to tonight's showing of fist on face!" He said cockily ripping off the ringleader's speech. He lunged forward swing his fist back and spinning his body slightly for added momentum and as his fist snapped towards Cora's jaw he focused his power and released it. Instead of only his fist combusting like he had planned his lack of control meant his entire body became enveloped in flame with an explosion that sent him flying backwards towards the mouth of the cave. He hit the ground heavily and actually rolled before he could get to his feet again still covered in flames. "Alright then, round two!" He sprinted towards Cora and leapt bringing his fist towards her face once more although this time he had the added benefit of his body being one flaming projectile.

Atlanta | Vex Kasim

The night's shroud grew heavy about the spire of Atlanta's highest skyscraper. Clouds descended in great wisps, swirling in a chaotic flow of air currents and red sparks of lightning. Anticipation charged the atmosphere; a dense, hateful anticipation that seemed to suffocate its city.

Within the highest room of the tower a knock sounded at the Director's door. A Vygorn with black hair and a red streak arrogantly walked into the dim room, taking the darkness in stride. His malevolent eyes glanced over the full-glass windows with their blinds drawn, the lone cup of coffee on the Director's enormous desk, and to his chair. It was huge, leather, and slowly rotating to face him. A shadowy silhouette filled its seat.

"What news do you bring me, Child?" A warped, metallic voice cracked the silence, speaking in a cold tone that reverberated from every part of the room. 

Vex twitched, losing his arrogant grin. "Everything went according to plan. For, um, the most part. We were able to draw in the rest of those Kyra-lifers," He sneered at the word, "but our original hostages... Escaped."

A deafening silence was his only reply. 

Swallowing, Vex continued. "Out of the lifers we attempted to neutralize, a handful got away. Five, to be precise. But the rest of them were taken down, and have been dealt with appropriately."

"How many did you crush?" The voice tore through his ears again, chilling Vex to his core. 

"Four, Master. Earth, Fire, Lightning, and Air. Air is most... Lively. She won't tell us anything. But the others? Pah! Buckled to pain like nothing." Vex bared his teeth in a demonic smirk. 

Warped scoffing emanated from the walls as the chair shook with the silhouette's laughter. Then it was quiet, deathly so. The Director's next words were chosen with cold malice. 

"Kill them all."

***

Nature's Haven | Cora Rishaw

Cora chuckled as Will ran circles, keeping her front facing him constantly. He was enjoying himself, she could tell. With a smirk, she put an end to his ability to move freely, coating the stone beneath them in a thin layer of slippery ice. Her feet were unaffected, coated in ice themselves to keep her connected to the ground. But Will, he'd have to be careful. 

In his first reactions to the change below his shoes, Cora used the distraction to her advantage and aimed to kick out one of his legs. It was a type of hook kick that would bring his leg forward and out from underneath him. In this motion she also aimed a sharp elbow to his chest in a further effort to knock him on his butt again as the two opposing attacks (and frictionless ground) would hopelessly offset his center of balance. 

***

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages welcome to tonight's showing of fist on face!" Yahtzee boomed with the showmanship of a circus announcer, and Cora couldn't help but feel a little unnerved. She was already nervous about testing herself with Fire (it wasn't just Yahtzee who could use the practice.) But she rationalized that her sketchin' would just help reflexes save her ass in a just moment. 

A fist whirled toward her face, which Cora already began deflecting with a simple wrist movement. But out of the corner of her eyes she could see the flames igniting down his arm, and she leaned down and to the side as Yahtzee broke into fiery combustion. The explosive impact tossed Cora in the fire pit's direction, and she landed amidst the logs and passive Hygrons. She was scathed and covered in a few burn marks, but she shook off the pain. Unsure of what exactly happened, Cora struggled up from the hard land, mumbled a hasty apology to the men, and returned to the open area of the cave. 

Yahtzee landed near the entrance of the cave, and he didn't waste a moment to come at her again, fully engulfed in flames. Great, my lucky day. Cora thought sarcastically (in an effort to not panic) while lowering the temperature severely below freezing around her hand. As Yahtzee's fist of fire came within inches of contact, Cora snapped her palm against his fist with lithe precision, holding on tight. Ice and Fire fluctuated and spit like mad, hissing with intense hostility. Cora winced, immediately feeling the heat. Using his own momentum against him, Cora ducked down, pulling on his hand with an iron grip at the same time. She shifted her body in a way that his high speed would send him rolling off her shoulder and onto the stone behind her. Everywhere he contacted was left ashened and searing. 

"Whoah..." Will muttered as the floor was turned to ice in mere seconds and he slipped and slided around Cora. She spent no time in putting him on the floor belly up again, kicking at a leg and elbowing his chest. Will grunted as Cora's elbow connected straight to his sternum. Will was falling again but it felt like he was in slow motion. Will stretched his leg so it landed on an unfrozen bit of stone. Using this as balance, he moved the kicked leg inwards so he had full balance again. Will realized he was crouched at this moment and Cora was above him. He covered his right fist and forearm in water and sprung up in the air using a right uppercut as an attack with his left arm for protection.

---

After the fight, Will sat by Phil to watch the fight between Cora and Yahtzee. Will also noticed the prism which made beautiful light illuminate what was left of the Haven. Cora spoke first, offerig to make a real ice prism, and Will agreed when she noted the beauty of the light. At the beginning of the fight, Phil asked about where they should go next. "Uhhhh, I don't know to be honest." Will said. "I'm torn between looking for survivors of our...encounter, or moving to the city to find refuge, like Atlanta or somewhere." Will explained.

The word "Atlanta" hit Phil like a truck. Half the reason to leave for this haven was to escape that city. A shocked expression emerged on Phil's face, of all the places to suggest first... "Atlanta..." Phil repeated as if he was in a trance. Realising he was putting on a scene, Phil quickly recovered and gave Will the excuse "L-lets not... Go to Atlanta. Too... large an influence o-of Vygorns there". Though a blatant lie, Phil wasn't ready to go back. "H-How about the town to the east?" he asked, hoping to get away from the subject of Atlanta.

Will noticed Phil stuttering, almost nervous-like. "Yo Phil, you okay?" Will asked, nudging him slightly. Will wondered what could have set him off as he watched the fight take place, Yahtzee bursting into a ball of flame and charging at Cora who seemed nervous about facing fire but ready to block. Will watched with anticipation and a bit of glee.

Her elbow connected effectively, sending Will down. But with some incredibly fast foot play he regained his balance, crouched carefully around the ice rink. Cora, surprised she didn't see the follow-through of Will falling on his ass, glanced down just as his arm came up. Not having the time to dodge, Cora moved to buffer the blow as her arms crossed her face, palms up. The water-intense uppercut connected, knocking her back.

Countering the moment she could, Cora sent a quick left hook to Will's face, rolling with her momentum in another full 360 degree twist to come at him again with a flying spin kick. The first kick aimed a solid swipe at his guarding arms, then she spun once more, jumping to gain a few inches as her foot streaked toward Will's temple. 

***

Cora turned on her heel, stepping into a defensive stance, ready for Yahtzee's next demonstration. Ice cracked with a sharp, hollow sound under her foot. Apart from the few ashy burns that seared her body and bruises from the fall, she felt well enough. Yahtzee intrigued her so far, but he'd have to show more variety in his moves to be truly effective. Not that his element needed that, it was a natural anti-life. 

Phil nearly jumped out his seat as Will nudged him, asking "Yo Phil, you okay?". Phil replied with "Y-Yeah... I'm fine." After an awkward pause Phil continued "We need to think about where we need to go next. So we could go east to the Mine or Town over there. What do you think?". Phil tried his best to promote they go anywhere BUT Atlanta, Phil couldn't handle going back there, especially if he saw the ruins of his old house... Phil turned his focus to Will again, trying not to show his distraught.

The world seemed to blur for a moment and the next thing Yahtzee knew he was lying on his back on the unyielding ground looking blankly at the ceiling. The throw had knocked the wind out of him. For a moment he could do little but lie there in a daze and as he got to his feet he held out one hand towards Cora. "A moment, if you would..." He gasped between breaths as he regained his bearings. He shook his head and straightened up meeting Cora's eyes steadily. "Alright, I'm ready." His flames burst back into their full glory and he ran towards Cora again. Instead of just trying to simply attack her like he had done earlier he stopped just before reaching her and ducked low and to the side so that he moved past any retaliation she might make and he straightened up behind her driving his elbow backwards and into the small of her back. It seemed only a few notches higher than a cheap tactic and he was more than a little ashamed to resort to something like that however he doubted he knew that there was almost zero chance of him coming out the victor in this fight and he would like to have at least one solid blow to show for it.

While Thema removed the gloves from her hands, she could hear GIlfreds breathing irregulate. Metal clashes and sharp gasps danced behind her while she waited for her subject to situate himself. "Probably need better padded clothing, what do you think?" he asked. Thema took this as her queue that he was ready and turned around, unprepared for the sight before her.

Blotches of his skin were severely bruised. But even through the bruising, Thema couldn’t help but notice his impeccable physique. His upper body had great definition while his core was chiseled. It was the first time she had seen the body of a man so closely and she could feel an overflow of unknown feelings begin to drown her. She swiftly turned away only moments after, unsure if she should or even could continue on. Taking a large gulp, “Ive never done this before, so don’t blame me if you start to sprout any leaves,” she said, trying to lighten the mood.

Though the injuries were no doubt painful, Gilfred still flashed his cheeky smile at the girl. Thema had half a mind to dig her fingers into his bruised flesh for being so charming. It was annoying how happy this guy seemed to be. Just moments ago their allies had been decimated by power hungry aliens and he was smiling. While his positivity indeed irked her, it was also comforting. She found herself giving a small smile right back at him. With that, she got down on her knees beside him and raised her hands above his wounded shoulder. It had been a while since she had used this spell and she had to think back to when she herself was injured in the past. After a few seconds of awkward tension, her hands began to give off a feint green glow. As she lowered her hands closer to his body, the glow intensified. Eventually, her hands rested on his shoulder and the light they gave off rivaled that of the moon.

It was a draining process, but there was no doubt that he was being healed. Like the oceans tide, the black and blue bruising began to recede to the center of the wound under Themas hand. As she opened her eyes and removed her palms, there was hardly a trace of any previous injury. Exerting so much energy tired the mage out though and she was beginning to feel lightheaded. While she tried to be happy for her accomplishments, all she wanted was nothing more than a good nights rest. As she moved on to his ribs, she could see her vision begin to blur. She shook her head and reassured Gilfred she was fine, If I could just perform this last spell… she tried to convince herself to stay alert. Her hands let off a dim glow but her sight was starting to tunnel. Like a faulty bulb of light, her hands slowly flickered, but it was no use. Though she fought all she could, it had been a long day and finally she was at the edge of her breaking point. Her eyes slowly shut and her body gave out, toppling onto his Gilfreds. Her head laid into his freshly healed shoulder while her hands stayed on his ribs. She was out like a light.

Will once again fell to the ground, unsure whether his uppercut connected. "Ow..." he moaned as he looked up. So he saw that there was no way he could win and conceeded the fight. "Wow Cora..." he began to say as he began to pick himself up off of the ground. "You... are one heck of a fighter. Sure as hell glad you're on our side." He commented as he looked at Cora and smiled. He stuck out his hand to shake hers and made his way to sit by Phil

---

"Uhhh, maybe we should look for any signs of survivors at first light. I'm not gonna lie to you Phil." Will began giving a very serious look to him amd lowered his voice a little. "I believe in every single one of us, but even at our strongest four Elementals are not going to take down an alien race who have continously dug their roots for years now. We need more, Fire, Water, Ice and Light... I genuinely think that ain't enough. I think we should loop round the mine and to the town but ultimately Atlanta is where we need to begin and spread OUR influence." He ranted. Will nearly always wears his heart on his sleeve and wasn't about to stop now.

Will picked himself off the floor slowly. Cora winced, thinking she must have hit him too hard. She intended to go easy on him, but Will knew how to fight -- the temptation to play hard was definitely there. But they'd have to train again another time. He looked done, through and through. Curiously, a smile still remained on his face. "You... are one heck of a fighter. Sure as hell glad you're on our side."

When Will offered to shake hands she merely shook her head, wrapping him up in a tight bear hug. She realized she must have felt freezing, but she meant it with love. Standing on her tiptoes, she whispered in his ear. "Thank you for the match, Will. I haven't had so much fun in a long time. Sorry if I hurt you, maybe you can ask Phil to treat you."

She stepped back, blushing slightly. "Maybe next time we can work on Wolgran's 'combining our elements' thing, hm? That'd be fun."

***

As Yahtzee ran at her again he changed it up, ducking real low. As he moved past her right side she automatically rotated her front to continually face him, but it wasn't enough to see the elbow coming. Of course, the elbow was no longer aimed for the small of her back, but rather her shoulder. When it connected, it scorched and spun her off a bit. But Cora's fighting technique was all about redirecting momentum, and she continued the spin fully. Her left leg swept around in a snapping reserve kick aimed for his abdomen. Her heel kick was less of an attack and more of a forceful swipe to gain some room between them again. That way she could see his next move coming. 

"Excellent, Yahtzee. Excellent. Come at me one last time, and we'll conclude practice for tonight." Cora said, glancing back at the fire pit before returning her cool gaze to Yahtzee's center point. An encouraging smile crossed her lips briefly. 

Phil felt he had no choice but to go to that city, but he decided to argue to at least put it off a day or two. "W-well... The places to the east are nearer so... we should head there first" he said in a stern voice. That city could swallow the group whole, if they arrived at the wrong time. Phil may have survived there for a few years, but he played it as careful as he could and still got into a few tight spots. Be it a lack of money or a disagreement with someone with connections, even the smartest man could end up dead. But all that, it wasn't the reason Phil left... Phil left thought, before more damage to his sanity could be done. "Have... have you lost anything to come out here?" he said meaningfully.

Will chuckled a little. "What haven't I lost?" He said almost matter of factly. Will stared at the ground not noticing that Cora countered Yahtzee yet again but not as efficient. "To be honest... not alot. Just family, friends and a home. My parents, they loved me and Gill, they really did but when our powers first sparked we all agreed that him and I were dangerous and so to not hurt anyone we left our home. It was hard, saying goodbye to our family and friends, real hard but we knew it was for the better. What none of us knew..." Will said and looked up to Phil "was that there was a greater calling-Kyra's calling and we had new responsibilities to uphold." Will turned his gaze upon the fight. "This... this is what I want to do. I had a good job too, boxing. Not effective against Cora mind you..." he said jokingly "but now it's a tool to protect people, not to make a living." Will smiled at the end of his little speech. "What about you?" He asked to Phil.

As soon as Yahtzee felt his elbow not connect as he had attended he quickly spun around to face Cora in time to see her foot speeding towards him. He yelped and leapt backwards hurriedly but tripped over his own feet and landed on his rear. "Ow..." He muttered as he got to his feet listening to Cora. Her praise struck him as out of place considering how effective his attacks had been thus far but he accepted it without comment. "Alright then, one more time." He said wearily as he squared up to face her again. "The score so far is one point to you, one draw and one undecided." He mused aloud. "I'll claim that last point so brace yourself." He slipped down into a fighting stance as he held Cora's gaze steadily. "I've only done this attack once and it was hard enough to control then so get ready to defend. A lot." He smiled at her warmly "I'm sure you'll be able to cope though. Salamander taught me this. Ready?" Without looking away from her he started taking a deep breath and focusing his powers as he started to lean forward bracing himself. For a long outstretched moment everything was completely still and his lungs burned from the effort of holding his breath for so long. He gave a nod to her to show he was about to strike before blowing out. Instead of a small stream of air a great gout of flame burst from his mouth with enough force that it would have thrown him backwards if he hadn't been throwing his weight against it. As it was his feet slipped backwards leaving gouges in the floor as the fire raced towards Cora.

Phil just stared into the slowly dying fire as Will asked "What about you?". "A lot..." Phil replied with a tired tone. Still trying to avoiding the subject, Phil said "it's getting late" as he looked around him at their barely visible surroundings. He then turned to Will and asked "Err... where do we sleep?", Hoping he would know. It'd been a long day for all of them and he definitely hadn't slept for a few days.

"Take your pick" Will said gesturing to the entire remnants of the cove. "I'll keep watch for the first couple of hours." Will said, he then patted Phil's shoulder. "Get some sleep mate." He said as he got up. Will wandered his way to cave entrance and sat himself on a ledge he found, looking out into the surrounding area. Flashlights could be seen from miles away and Will reckoned they had till tommorow afternoon at least.

Gilfred kept his eyes closed as Thema, quite literally, worked her magic. The glow from the procedure itself felt warm to the Metal elementalist, but it felt like she had poured ice water in the wound. It was not painful, or even that uncomfortable, but a soothing feeling as the ache of the bruise was washed away. Truth be told he was beginning to drift off, the pile he was laying on becoming more and more comfortable the longer the procedure went on, in fact he barely felt the trickle of power that began on his shoulder. What he did feel however was a body slump against him, his eyes opening rapidly as the weight pressed down on him, a worried expression painting itself on his face. He looked down at Thema and then took a quick scan around, nothing he could see, nor anything Gawain could sense as he patrolled , indicated danger. Which meant that she wasn't hurt, but had collapsed from something else. Gilfred swallowed as he looked back down at the form of Thema, her breathing slow and rhythmic, reaching out he touched the side of her neck, letting out a sigh of relief as a strong pulse met his touch. He began to withdraw his hand when a thought struck him, she was beautiful and she had been so concerned about him. He smiled sheepishly as he began to move away so he could stand, lightly moving her as if he was afraid to wake her. After he had stood and donned his clothing, gauntlets and sword, he crouched next to the sleeping figure. Had it been anyone else, even his own brother, he probably would have slung them over his shoulder and continued on. But for some reason he simply couldn't do that here. Reaching out his slipped his arms under Thema's shoulders and knees, and slowly lifted her with him as he stood. Shifting her to a more comfortable position to be carried in Gilfred once more began to walk in the direction of the cave, his mind beginning to wander.

As he walked he thought about the day, what he and his fellow elementals had done and what they had in turn lost. So many gone, Will most likely among them. As he dwelled in this he was suprised to find that his breathing had become ragged, and the corners of his eyes had begun to feel damp. He stopped, and found himself slowly lowering Thema as he sank to his knees and cried. No waling or sobbing came from him, he simply closed his eyes and cried, his head hanging as he couldn't find the will to keep it upright. Yet, the more he cried the more he thought, he thought of what had come before, all the bad but all the good as well. As he opened his eyes once more, his vision blurry, he smiled. Not because he was happy, but because he had been happy, and there was no longer time for tears. Wiping his eyes with a rag, Gilfred picked Thema back up and started off again once more, this time smiling as if all was well in the world.

After what seemed like an hour of walking the metal elemental saw the opening of the cave in the distance. As he saw this his smile grew, and his pace quickened. But as he drew close a feeling from Gawain intruded into his head, the Enfield had spotted someone outside and was creeping closer in the failing light. Gilfred grit his teeth, he was in no position to fight, he couldn't reach Clarent let alone use it. He silently went through his mental catalog of options, discounting any that meant leaving Thema behind, as he didnt know if this figure was alone. The list soon narrowed to two, run or use Shatter, and he wasn't going to run for a second time in a day.

Sending a stream of what energy he had left in him to Shatter, he broke the gauntlet into its razor sharp fragments, each beginning a slow orbit around the Metal bender. Striding forward towards the cave, he took a deep breath and ordered the Enfield to hold off and wait in it's hidden perch. He didn't try to disguise his approach, his boots crunched on the various rocks and debris on the ground. When he saw the figure sitting in the now dim light he stopped, the fragments turning so their sharpest point was towards the figure. "And who are you?" was all he could manage to say.

A familiar voice sounded throughout the night sky. But.. he was dead, no, it's a mind trick. Could Vygorns do that? Will didn't know. Will saw a disformed silhouette in the distance but Will couldn't make it out. "That depends, who's asking?" Will said, loudly so the Elementals inside the cave could hear, he readied his powers just incase this was infact an assailant. Will slid of his perch and took a step foward. "What's your name?" He asked the mysterious shadow.