Picking Up The Pieces

80. Here We Are, Don't Turn Away Now

As a child, you would wait

And watch from far away

But you always knew that you'd be the one

That work while they all play

Warriors by 2WEI (atlantis ❀ playlist on Spotify)

   I thrust my hands forward and narrowed my eyes, and I could feel the water droplets pulling from the air to circulate in my palms before launching out in a directed stream at Hawkes. The man was quicker, clawing his fingers up in the air to order his Elemental army in front of him defensively. Some were knocked down by the pressure while the others used their own water powers to try and deter my attack.

"He's going to get away!" I heard Amy snarl behind me, and I looked over my shoulder just as she punched a fiery fist through a soldier's chest. The girl was swaying, blood still dripping from her back where her wings had previously been. While we all possessed minor healing skills, hers evidently were not working fast enough as she directed Elemental power somewhere else. As if on cue, Amy fell to her knees with a loud grimace, but I had to turn away as an Air soldier swiped speedily at my face.

"Rude," my younger self snarked, and my vision flared a darker blue as my Elemental side took more control. My hands grabbed the soldier's shirt before she could run away, and my muscles tightened as I pushed off the ground, water droplets materializing from the soil and boosting me. I flipped over her head with my hands clenching the fabric, the water from the ground running up my arms in thin strands that laced around my wrists and fingers. As I touched back down in a crouch, letting go, the Air soldier was suspended in the air with water molecules growing around her from where I had made contact.

I jerked my head up from the ground toward the soldiers heading in my direction, and my attacker was thrown at them. The watery strands I had placed on her sprung out and attached to my enemies, pulling them away and out of the field. I had created an opening, but it quickly closed as more soldiers filled in and disregarded their fallen brothers and sisters. My vision returned back to normal colors, and there was a full ache in my chest as I regained control. I glanced back at Amy, who was kicking fireballs from the ground as she became surrounded. Thomas was trying to reach her, but other Earth soldiers were preventing him from making any progress. Attacking alone was no longer the best solution.

"Zane!" I shouted, despite having no idea where the other Elemental was. I couldn't feel his presence or sense his thoughts, but I hoped he could read mine. "I need backup!"

"On it!" I heard the Air Elemental yell faintly, and I raised my arms to the sky. The wind was picking up, and the clouds in the sky grew darker and heavy. I could smell the rain brewing in the air, a chill going up my spine. As the wind grew louder in my ears, I lowered my head to stare out and see the white flash speed past me every other second in a circle. It carried the currents from the sky and kept the soldiers from passing by, knocking them down or through the air depending on how they tried to come forward.

I grimaced from the weight of the rain as I pulled it from the sky and swung my hands out to the airy force field, swinging the water as another protective barrier and separating the four of us from Hawkes's army. It carried up into the sky, preventing any entrance. Zane tumbled out and rolled a few yards on the ground, the white aura from his powers steaming around his suit. He looked up at me with his dark hair sticking in every direction and gave me a massive grin.

"That... was fun," he told me breathlessly, and I gave him a small smile back. My arms shook as I kept them elevated to continue the barrier, my muscles burning. My fingers were twitching through the strain, almost as if it could help relieve the pain I felt. Zane's face fell quickly, and he pushed himself up on his feet. "Shit, Amy."