Cold and Turmoil

Captain Demetrius is currently leading his crew on a ship. They are traveling towards the Ice Wastelands through an ocean by the name of the Chill Reef. William, Demetrius and Jean have been very tense ever since William's reckless actions in the caves. Jean is steering the ship, her hands gripping the wheel tightly. William shifts restless at the edge of the deck while Demetrius stands at the helm of the ship, his eyes scanning the expanse of the Chill Reef. Wimund stands apart from the others, staring into space. His thoughts are with the villagers back home. He has asked Demetrius if he has sent the soldiers he was talking about, and he confirmed that he did. That still does not stop Wimund from worrying about them. In addition to that, he is worrying about the next creature they would have to face.

Captain Demetrius has explained that Thomas's father did not just choose some random locations, but he chose places, where magical beings exist to prevent the fragments from falling into the wrong hands. Captain Demetrius also explains that each outfit he has given them, in addition to making their powers stronger, has a special ability, except Jean and Grace as he believes that they are already strong enough. He tells them one by one their special abilities.

Thomas is once again alone. The voices are right: everyone will always abandon him. He knows that he keeps pushing everyone away, but he just does not trust them enough. The last time he trusted someone, it ended badly. He admires the view. He watches as the water breaks upon the hull of the ship, and the seagulls fly overhead, until a fog bank rolls in. Everyone in the ship is cold, including him, but they are all able to endure. Grace is the only one, who is shivering. Thomas looks at her, and her face once again reminds him of his sister. He walks towards her and puts his blanket around Grace in addition to her own. He walks away before she even has the chance to thank him. The fog starts disappearing, rolling back over the ship. Hundreds of pinnacle and windswept ice bergs surround the ship, in all shades of blue and white.

"Hey, look over there!" John yells while pointing at a another ship.

That ship is black, ominous and filled with Trolls.

"Look out!" Thomas screams as the Trolls fire a cannonball straight at them.

It hits the side of the ship with such intensity that it bends the railing and sends chunks of wood flying through the air. Everyone has dropped to their stomachs just in time, and thankfully, none of them are injured. They lift their heads and try to find the ship again, but it has been swallowed by the mist.

Captain Demetrius turns to John.

"This ship has cannons, but they are not working. The Trolls might attack us again, and we need to be ready. Think you can help, John?" Captain Demetrius asks.

"Of course, I can!" John answers excitedly.

Finally something that he can do. John starts working immediately and quickly. He knows what he is doing and will get the cannons back working in no time. He is sure of that.

The journey continues, and the weather keeps getting colder and colder. The whole group is now shivering. They try to stay warm in many ways but fail. Thomas knows that if he can use his powers, he can help them all. His purple fire is not normal fire, but it still provides heat. He tries to unleash it, but he is unable to. It seems to only work when he is angry. Thomas is disappointed in himself. He has done it again. He has failed those who need him. As the tension grows, so does the number of icebergs and growlers. It is becoming difficult for Jean to steer the ship through the treacherous obstacle course, and soon they come to a complete dead-end. They must now continue on foot. Captain Demetrius gives each of them a cutlass, so that they can defend themselves when they need to.

All of their faces look almost purple from the cold, and they are all clearly in a bad mood. They leap over the hull of the ship and land on the snow-covered ice with quiet thuds. An endless field of pure white sprawls out before them. There is also a deafening silence; not a sound is to be heard except for their own breathing and footsteps. As they journey through the perilous terrain of the Ice Wastelands, the crew feels the bite of the freezing wind against their skin. Their breath freezes in their throats and their hands turn clammy with cold. It does not take long for the ice to work its way into their bones, sapping their energy and leaving them feeling weak and sluggish. And yet, they press on.

"Screech!"

The sudden chilling call reverberates through the dense fog. The sound is so piercing that it sends shivers down the group's spines. As the echo fades, they try to look around for the source quickly. It was very loud, and it probably belongs to a giant bird. This is most likely the magical being they are going to have to face this time. The fog keeps everything well hidden, and they are not able to find the origin of the noise. Without warning, a gigantic blue and gold creature with the body of a lion, and the head and wings of an eagle with its talons on the front legs comes from behind and grabs Grace, who screams, then flies away. Jean tries to stop the creature with her power, but she completely misses. The crew is taken by surprise. They have not even felt that something is near them.

"This creature relies on ambush attacks. Find cover!" Captain Demetrius commands.

The next moment is filled with the sound of many feet scrambling over ice. Wimund manages to find some sort of ice cave and hides himself as deeply as the shallow indent would allow. He then hears John scream. He must have been taken too. Wimund tries to think up a plan of attack, and he quickly figures one out. He is offering himself as bait for the creature. He prepares his special ability that Demetrius has told him about earlier.

"Here I am!" he shouts into the fog, his voice echoing

The creature suddenly comes and grabs Wimund with its feet. As soon as it begins to take time him away, Wimund unleashes his ability. His coat blasts out hundreds of light rays at different angels, and they are more powerful than Wimund's usual light rays. It slices through the creature's body, creating lots of holes. With a thunderous roar, the creature collapses on the icy ground, a pool of blood spreading beneath it. Thankfully, Wimund is unharmed. Wimund calls for Demetrius, Jean, Thomas and William. One by one, they all get out of their hiding spots. Now, they have to find Grace and John. They have no idea where the creature has taken them, but they head north in agreement. The miles and miles of fog weigh down on them. The terrain begins to slope upwards, and soon, they are met by a mountain of blue and white. The only distinguishable feature nearby is a large, dark hole, the entrance into a cave.

"Not another cave," William mutters.

"We have no choice. We will die from the cold if we do not get inside the cave," Jean says.

On they go, plunging into the darkness, guided by Wimund's ball of light.

"Hello there," comes a gravely voice says from behind.

Everyone turns to see a platoon of Trolls, standing behind them. They are led by a three-eyed Troll, Grimnir. They see that he has Grace and John held by the collar in both of his hands.

All are silent as Grimnir continues, "As you can see, we have some very precious cargo here. Let us pass and perhaps these pathetic wimps will be yours again."

Grimnir tightens his grip on the captives. The group also sees that the Trolls already have the fragment as one of them is holding it in his right hand. Thomas steps up and looks Grimnir in his eyes angrily. Grimnir just grins.

"Where is my family?" Thomas asks, his fists clenched in anger.

Grimnir's laughter resonates in the cave.

"Oh, we are using them as maids now. Do not worry, you will be joining them soon enough," Grimnir replies.

That is when Thomas loses control. His hands ignite with purple flame that he blasts at the Trolls. Grimnir is able to barely evade the fire, but he is caught by a purple ghost. More and more spirits start coming out of Thomas and attacking the Trolls. The Trolls try to fight back, but the ghosts are faster and stronger than them. Some of them, however, manage to hit the spirits, and they start using their cutlasses. Jean and William join the attack and use their powers. Wimund helps Grace and John stand up. They look very exhausted, and he tells them to hide for now. Captain Demetrius runs after the Troll with the fragment. He easily takes it from him as the Troll is distracted by one of Thomas's spirits. Demetrius then notices that Thomas is losing control and is unleashing too many spirits. He runs towards him and taps onto the gem embedded in Thomas's necklace, making all the spirits disappear.

"Back to the ship!" Demetrius shouts with urgency in his voice.

The crew makes a run for it. Grace slips, and her sister comes back to help her up. Grace uses her powers and makes the both of them fly towards the ship. Demetrius asks John if the cannons are working. John says yes and aims it on the approaching Trolls. He fires a cannonball with precision, striking a cluster of Trolls and sending them tumbling into the icy depths below. John smiles at his success, and the crew takes off. They have two of the four fragments now. Only two more to go.

John breathes in deeply and adjusts the thick blanket slung around his shoulders. His hands tremble as he hold the steaming cup of tea. Sitting in the dimly lit corner of the ship's hold, uncomfortable silence envelops him. Around him, all the others are also drinking tea and keeping themselves warm with blankets. Some scenes are replaying in John's mind over and over again. Visions from the harrowing escapade replay tormentingly in his mind.He was grabbed by the claws of a magical creature, dumped into a massive nest and then taken captive by the Trolls. The worst thing is that he could not fight back. Even Grace, who is younger than him, fought off some of the Trolls before she was captured. He did nothing. He is also still the only one not to activate his powers. Every memory ignites an ember of shame deep within him.

John is beginning to wonder if he is really the metal elemental. Maybe Captain Demetrius made a mistake. It definitely seems like it. How could he have been so stupid as to think that he was some sort of special hero? Sure, he has successfully fixed the cannons, but that does not make him a warrior. Not only has he never controlled his element, but he is also nothing like the others. He is not tall, strong, or even fit. It does not make sense. Surely, he does not belong here. He needs to go home. John has tears streaming down his face. He cannot handle this anymore. All he wants is to escape and return back to his comforting home and family. John stays curled under his blanket until the ship pulls into a harbor. They all finally stand on firm ground again.

"Next we head to—," Demetrius is talking, but John finds it hard to concentrate when all he is thinking about is running away.

They begin to move towards the stables where they have left their horses, and John follows in a daze. His parents will be disappointed in him if he comes back. Demetrius will be disappointed in him too. There is so much pressure on his shoulders, but he cannot keep going or else he knows he will die. Every attempt he makes to speak with Demetrius fails miserably. They are on a tight schedule and are always moving, and since this is a conversation John prefers to have in private, he is forced to wait until nighttime when they make camp. However, Demetrius goes straight to sleep after dinner without giving John a chance to approach him. When morning comes, John does not want to open his open his eyes for fear of finding himself once again faced with all the anxieties and dangers the day promises.

"John, come on, get up," William grumbles as he comes over and nudges him. "Come on, before Jean starts nagging us," William continues.

John can feel William's hand on his arm as William forcefully rolls him over to face him.

"Woah, are you okay?" William asks with concern when he sees the bags under John's eyes.

"I am fine," John replies, and he turns his face away.

Jean calls for them, and within a few minutes, they are once again on their horses.

"How long will this take?" Thomas asks, his voice impatient.

"About two more days," Demetrius answers.

"Then we get my family back?" Thomas questions.

"You misunderstood. It will take us about two more days for the third fragment and a few more to get the fourth one," Demetrius explains.

"So that means, at the very least, one week? Why don't we just sentence all the prisoners to death? It is better for them that way," Thomas says.

"Do not talk this way to your Captain," Jean snaps.

"Give it a rest, princess. No one invited you to the conversation," Thomas snaps back.

"Stop this attitude, Thomas!" Demetrius commands. "How about you try being useful instead of complaining," he continues.

"Yeah, well, I did save you back in the wastelands. It is astonishing how quickly you forgot that," Thomas replies.

"I believe I told you to stop talking!" Demetrius yells.

Thomas just looks at his horse and continues moving. He is visibly angry, jaws clenched and nostrils flaring.

At night, after setting up camp and preparing food, Thomas spots John sitting alone, which is weird since John is usually talkative and sociable. Thomas knows what it feels like to be alone and approaches him.

"Hey, why are you sitting by yourself?" Thomas asks.

"Leave me alone!" John blurts.

He has not meant to lash out, but it is too late to take it back now.

"I was just asking a question, there is no need to shout at me," Thomas says as he moves back to where he was sitting.

"What is his problem?" William asks Thomas while gesturing towards John.

"I do not know. Maybe he is tired," Thomas replies with a shrug.

"I am not tired," John grumbles, barely loud enough for them to hear.

"What?" William asks.

"I said I am not tired!" John cries.

"Okay, okay. You are not tired. Hooray," Thomas says sarcastically.

"Cut it out, Thomas," John says with a sharp tone.

"What did I even do?!" Thomas exclaims.

John mutters something under his breath and then rises to his feet.

"Where are you going?" Demetrius inquires.

John rolls his eyes. He does not owe anyone an explanation.

"You would better be back here in fifteen minutes," Demetrius continues.

John scoffs internally. Or what? John walks in the darkness aimlessly with no idea where he is going. He thinks about leaving at this very moment but quickly comes to his senses. He does not have a map or food on him. He probably will not get far on foot anyway. Unless, he waits until everyone else is asleep, then saddles up his horse, grabs some supplies and then leave. Yeah, that sounds easy enough. It is a simple plan to run away.

"Hey, what is up with you?" Grace appears with a bright smile.

"It is nothing. Just leave me alone," John replies.

"Oh, come on! I can keep secrets. Just talk to me. Did someone offend you? If it was Thomas, I know he can be a little annoying, but he is actually a nice guy. It is just-"

John interrupts her, "Thomas did not do anything,"

"Then, was it Jean?" Grace asks.

There is no reply from John.

"William?" she continues.

"It is me! The problem is me!" John suddenly shouts, his voice reverberating through the trees. "Everyone has used their powers, even you. You are younger than me and have mastered your powers. Jean and William mastered theirs too. Wimund and Thomas have made use of them multiple times. I never did anything with my powers. I do not even know if I have them," he continues.

"Oh, John, do not worry about that. Your powers will come out when the time is right. Just-" Grace says, attempting to sooth John.

John interrupts her again, "Grace, I know you are trying to make me feel better. Thank you for that, but I just want to be alone."

"Yeah, sure, I understand. Just know that Jean will come to lecture you. Do not say I did not warn you," Grace says then she walks away.

Jean does come, and she monologues him about "protocol" and "discipline" for a solid five minutes. Soon the camp is silent as everyone drifts into sleep, everyone but John. It is time for his plan. The ropes holding the horse in place are easily undone by John. The horse wakes up quietly. John takes some food and a map. He mounts the horse and has one last glance at his companions. He has come so close to finding friends, but he still chooses to leave all of that behind. He rides into the stillness of the night, and several minutes pass by. When a rush of wind passes by, the horse starts grunting and whinnying violently. It backs up, and its ears stand on end, its head moving from side to side.

"Woah! Woah! Calm down! It was just the wind!" John says as he tries to stroke the horse's neck.

The frightened horse charges ahead.

"Stop!" John screams, gripping the reins tightly.

The horse keeps running. A tree branch strikes John in the face, and he tumbles from his saddle. He finds himself lying on the ground, ears ringing and mind swelling. The world spins into darkness as he loses consciousness.

Pain is the first thing John feels when he wakes up the next morning. His eyes strain against the unblemished sunlight, and his face feels practically swollen. After what feels like an eternity just trying to sit upright, he looks around the unfamiliar forest. There is some dry blood on his nose and mouth. He attempts to stand up; attempts and fails. His head immediately becomes dizzy, and his vision is blurry, forcing him to remain on the grass for a while longer. The food and map are beside him on the floor. The sunlight is warm on his skin. In addition, the sound of the rustling leaves is very relaxing, so perhaps the situation is not all bad. He uses his time to rest and eat a little food, then around noon he feels strong enough to stand. Clinging into a tree for support, his shaky legs lift him up. The terrain beyond is not at all familiar to John. He slowly exits the woods to find himself surrounded by large rocks and loose dirt that keeps growing up and up. He needs to get a better view of the situation and carefully gets on top of one of the boulders. From up there he can see past the trees and so much more. That is when he realizes that he is on a mountain. He tries to make his way around the woods. The journey is unpleasant as he is weighed down by his armor.

"I could not just stay. No, I had to run away in the middle of the night. Real smart move, John," he mutters to himself.

His path leads him higher and higher. After another hour, he crests a small ridge and looks out at the world below. He collapses from exhaustion, and his eyes begins to water.

"Captain Demetrius!! Jean!! William!! Anyone, please find me!" John shouts at the wind. "I do not want to be alone anymore," he continues.

The wind seems to mock him and responds with a large gust aimed right at his face. He bends over on his knees and heaves deep sighs of depression. Just then, a raindrop lands on John's face, prophesying the rain to come. After a few seconds, the rain is coming down in torrents. John tries to find shelter. He ends up finding a tall temple nearby. He does not plan to go inside. That is until he sees a group of Trolls. He bolts inside the temple and goes up the stairs. John does not waste a second to hide inside one of the rooms in the temple. He can hear the Trolls' heavy footsteps and clinking metal armor as they are near him. John's heart is pounding extremely fast, and his face grows sweaty. He then hears them move into another part of the temple, or so John thinks.

John puts his face outside the room to see if the coast is clear and finds a gray face staring straight at him with lifeless red eyes. It is not just a Troll, it is Grimnir.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the little runt. Where are your friends?" Grimnir says, amused.

Grimnir grabs John by the collar.

"Answer me, kid. Are they nearby?" Grimnir shakes John hard as he asks, and John thinks that he might vomit.

"I do not know," John chokes. "I am alone," he continues.

"You expect me to believe that?" Grimnir replies.

Grimnir slings John over his shoulder and walks towards his squad. He hands John to one of the soldiers, and the soldier holds him tightly.

"I will make you talk," Grimnir says.

Grimnir draws his sword.

"Tell me what I want, or I will slice your arm off!" he continues as he makes his cutlass rest on John's forearm.

"Please, I do not know anything! You have to believe me! I came here by myself, I swear! Just let me go, please!" John cries.

"Lies!" Grimnir screams.

His sword flies through the air, but just as he is about to pierce John's skin, it is sent flying by a tendril of water.

"Let him go, ugly!" Jean says.

John turns and sees all the others here to rescue him. Thomas is the first to charge with his cutlass in hand.

He aims for Grimnir, who teases Thomas by saying "Here comes my favorite slave."

Wimund and William take out some soldiers with long range elemental attacks while Captain Demetrius uses his sword. Jean is using the rain to help her fight. Grace flies her way to the Troll holding John and pushes him away with her wind powers. Since John is in the Troll's hands, they fall down together, but John gets out of his grasp. Before he stands up, Grace makes the Troll fly and once again throws him away. Grace rushes to John's side.

"There is blood on your face," Grace says.

"I am fine. How did you guys find me?" John continues.

"I can make wind carry voices to me if I need to, and also, a fragment is supposed to be at the top of this temple," Grace explains.

"Oh no, you heard all my screaming. That is embarrassing," John says.

"John, listen to me. Being weak does not mean that you are worthless. It means that you are very brave as you are putting your own life at risk just so you can help others. That is what my sister told me once when I was even weaker than you are now. Now, we will take care of things around here while you will go up there and get the fragment. We depend on you," Grace says.

"Me? No, wait!" John replies.

Grace does not give him a chance to talk then sends him flying. John lands at the top floor. The noise of the rain and fighting is all drowned out when John lays his eyes on the fragment and also the beast beside it, a huge black scorpion. John freezes in his place. He looks down at the others. They need him to get that fragment. They need him. The scorpion tries to strike John with its tail. John runs and jumps to dodge the attack. The scorpion is very quick though and immediately tries to attack John again while he is sitting on the ground. John is scared, and he closes his eyes. He hears something hit metal. He opens his eyes and finds that his metal armor pieces have connected with each other and also extended to make him a full metal armor. His powers, he is using his powers. The scorpion's tail could not penetrate his armor. John smiles. He does not waste much time though and grabs the fragment. He then looks at the scorpion and tries to think of a way to run away. He only has one idea.

"Please work," he whispers to himself.

He then jumps from an open window, flying through the air.

"Come on, come on," he says.

And it works. A ball of metal surrounds, and it lands with a loud bang on the floor. He is safe. He is fine. He opens the ball and gets out of it. He is once again in shock of what he has done. William drags him away as all of the group is now leaving the fight scene. Captain Demetrius has to drag Thomas away as he does not want to leave until he defeats Grimnir once and for all. Thomas is, however, losing. Demetrius saves him and pulls him away. Jean delays the Trolls by making all rain droplets merge in a giant water ball that pushes some of them away. She then runs along with the others.

After a while, the group set up camp once again as the sun is starting to disappear. Everyone is congratulating John on finally using his powers. Captain Demetrius tells him that what he has done is wrong, but he is letting slide this time as he understands that John was in some sort of internal conflict. Thomas is the last one to talk to him.

"That metal thing you did was nice," Thomas says.

"Uh, thanks," John replies.

"Sorry, I am not great with compliments. There is something else I wanted to tell you. I know what it means to feel like you are failing others," Thomas says.

John interrupts him, "Wait, Grace told you all about what I was saying. That makes it even more embarrassing."

Thomas continues talking, "I know that you probably hate yourself, and I am not going to tell you that you shouldn't as I, for one, hate myself for always failing those I love. All I can tell you is that you can either let that hate consume, your, or you can make it fuel you. You can use it to become a better person."

"Wow, that is actually some good advice. Thank you," John replies.

"Awww, seems like mister tough boy actually has a heart," William says.

"Shut up," Thomas replies as William chuckles.