The Eternal Fire (13+)

Chapter 8

"Where are we going first?"
Inferno turned his attention to Aquarius as the four stuffed satchels with maps, compasses, water bottles, and food.
"The Ruby Kingdom," he answered.
"Why are we going there?" Tempest griped. Inferno turned to his friend, giving her a death glare.

The bright red dragon closed the flap on his satchel and hung it around his neck.
Blade flicked his tail. "What if Shard attacks while we're gone?"
"Then we'll teach him a lesson when we get back!"

"Yeah!" Aquarius cheered.
Inferno walked to the edge of the cliff outside the cave, his talons gripping the stone. He looked to the west, the dry, clay-colored rock in the distance.
"You think we'll find the other elements?"
Inferno turned his head in surprise.

Blade stood behind him. "We don't even know what they are."
"They're lightning, snow, light, and void." Inferno unfolded his wings. "Are we ready?"

Tempest groaned, putting her satchel around her neck. "I guess."
Aquarius grinned her blue tail twitching. "Let's do this!" The Elements took off, swooping up and angling their wings to the west.

Inferno eyed the ground. Sheep and cows grazed in pens far below. The setting sun began being swallowed up by the jagged mountains on the other side of the border.

★ ★ ★

Inferno flapped his wings and landed on the ground, gripping the dry rock and dirt. Crickets sang and a coyote wailed not far away. He shivered, the cold air sinking to his bones.
"Why is it chilly?" Blade raised a question. "Isn't this the desert?"

Inferno turned his snout to Blade. "The sun is down. While the sun is up, it's hot. But when it goes down, the land is cold."
Blade flicked his ear. "Ah."

Inferno grabbed a stick off the ground and opened his mouth, blowing flames at the dry wood.
Tempest coughed and gasped for air. "Can we make this quick? I want to get back to the Jade Kingdom as fast as possible."

Inferno started walking, and the rest followed. He felt Aquarius come up beside him.
"Hey, look what I can do!" she said. She launched herself into the sky and hovered in front of the half-moon. Aquarius began doing different poses, creating shadows on the sandy floor.

Inferno and Blade started laughing. Aquarius shot forward, landing and kicking up sand. Blade raised his talon to shield himself, a grin still on his face.
"Watch it!" Tempest snapped. The purple dragon flicked her talon trying to shake off the sand.

Inferno spun around, teeth gleaming in the moonlight. "Hey! Don't talk to her that way." Tempest roared and flung herself at the fire dragon. The two of them rolled on the ground, trying to bite each other.

Inferno felt Tempest's talon slash him just under his right eye, blood splattering the sand. He let out a roar and punched her in the face. Tempest rolled on the ground, wings flailing. Looking up, she hissed, and Inferno noted her black eye.

"You...!" the Wind dragon snarled.
Aquarius shook Blade's forearm. "Blade! Stop them!" she begged.
Inferno and Tempest ran toward each other, but just as they were a few feet away, vines sprang from the desert floor, wrapping around their feet and holding them in the air.

"Put us down!" Tempest barked.
"Stop fighting! Both of you!" Aquarius cried.
Inferno crossed his forearms. "Fine..."
Blade opened his talon and the vines released his friends.

"Oof!" Inferno and Tempest fell to the ground, landing on their necks.
The red dragon got to his feet and rubbed the back of his head. "Ow..."
"Now, can we go?" Blade pointed behind him. Wordlessly Inferno, Aquarius, and Tempest followed the green dragon.

★ ★ ★

Inferno bit into a lifeless armadillo, chewing roasted meat. He looked over at Aquarius eating a raw fish. He held back a gag. How could anyone eat meat RAW? The male dragon dug into his meal and looked up to see a dragon flying away from the Ruby Palace with guards chasing them.

Inferno was about to ignore the newcomer when he heard the sound of electricity and saw a lightning bolt shoot down at the earth. The Elements jolted, immediately becoming alert. Some of the Ruby Kingdom guards fell lifelessly to the ground while the rest shot backward.

"What in Skywatcher's name was that!?" Tempest gasped.
Inferno looked at the dead dragons on the ground, then glanced back and forth between the black lightning mark and the sky. "I think we found the Element of Lightning..."

The fire dragon spread his wings and took off after the strange dragon.