3. Dark Sides: Tournament of Elements

Chapter 20 - Melting Point

A/N: Apologies for the later update today, I decided last minute to combine the chapter with an older draft of the fight, and I like it a lot better now. 

. . . 

It was raining.

A fight was about to go down between the elements of fire and ice, and now it was raining.

If Seliel didn't know any better, she would have thought Chen planned it out himself. But Skylor said that her dad had no elemental powers to speak of (besides those that he stole of course) and even Master Chen couldn't command the weather to do his bidding without the proper elements.

The arena for this round was set in a quarry, starting at the base of a mound of boulders, each at least twice as tall as Seliel's own height. The Jadeblade rested far above at the peak. Seliel stood next to Skylor in the pouring rain at the bottom of the incline while she stretched and readied herself for the match. Behind them, the rest of the fighters were seated under sheltered stands, with Master Chen's throne at the center. Nya and Garmadon were already in the stands, but Seliel wasn't ready to let Skylor go so easily.

"Forget the rain," Seliel was saying as thunder rumbled overhead. Beside her, Skylor was throwing air punches and visualizing the match in preparation. "You're still the best fighter here by a long shot. Waaaaay better than that Ice Ninja." She didn't really know this for sure, but she hoped that if she hyped her friend enough, Skylor might have a better chance at winning. Skylor was good at talking herself into a defeated mindset sometimes.

Skylor paused and raised her eyebrow. "You really believe that?"

Seliel sighed, exasperated. "What really matters is if you believe it! Look, no matter the circumstances, you gotta pull through."

To her surprise, Skylor actually smiled. "I think you're more worked up about this fight than I am."

"But aren't you usually the one who gets discouraged when things look bad?"

Skylor shrugged. "Plans change, that's just part of the battle. I don't know, I guess maybe I feel more confident since I'm on my own turf. Fire or ice or rain, I'll be the one winning this round." She laid a hand on Seliel's shoulder. "I've been training for this tournament my entire life," Skylor reminded her. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

Seliel grinned, bolstered by her friend's confidence. "Yeah you are! Now go out there and kick that boy's butt!" 

They hugged and Seliel went to join the audience. She found Nya and Sensei Garmadon and took her seat beside them. She was glad to be out of the rain, but shivered in the cold air. 

"You think she'll be okay?" Nya asked worriedly.

"She seems to think so. She'll have to be. It's bad enough that we lost Pixal, I don't want to lose her, too."

Garmadon nodded. "If there's anyone who could win a round with the odds stacked against her, it will be Skylor."

Lightning struck in the clouds overhead, and Seliel turned her attention back to the fighters as they took their places and Chen's voice rang out over the arena:

"Skylor, Master of Amber versus Zane, Master of Ice! Fight, fight!"

Immediately, Zane and Skylor took off scrambling over the stones toward the Jadeblade. Zane was already picking his way over the large rocks lying at the base, finding the smoothest path possible. Skylor was following close behind, until he whipped around, shurikens in hand, and threw a sheen of ice over the wet boulders.

Skylor swiftly raised her hands and created wave of fire around herself. It didn't last long in the rain, but it was enough to melt the ice before it could reach her. Still, much of the path before her was frozen.