FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

-L-

"A-Are you sure about this!?" I asked, trembling at the idea.

"What are you a pussy? If you can't even climb that fucking statue, then you can forget about joining our gang! We've all done it so if can't then fuck off pussy!" Trek, a big and burly rhino, dared me. I looked up at the Statue of Liberty, seeing the torch she held. They wanted me to...climb up there!? B-But that's impossible!

"A-Aren't there supposed to be security guards!? The entrance to the upper levels is closed off!" I pointed out, hoping to get out of this and do something else to earn my keep. I suddenly wished I hadn't said that as Trek and the rest of his gang gave me some dirty looks.

"See...he's such a wimp. He can't even climb a statue!" Kev, a kangaroo, remarked. Everyone else started to shout out their comments about me and that started to frazzle me. Someone even suggested that I should take a swim in the harbor.

"N-No! Wait! I-I'll do it!" I cried out, not even thinking anymore. Now that I thought about it...climbing a statue wasn't that hard...right?

"Well then, get going pussy!" Trek commanded, giving me a rough shove towards the entrance. I whimpered weakly, glancing back at Trek to see him snort at me with a menacing look. Okay...better get going. Besides...if I get through this...I'll be a part of Trek's group! He's the most popular person in the school and to be in his gang was like being royalty. I definitely wanted to be treated like royalty for once. All my life I've been teased and bullied. As a dragon, I should have been part of the high school royalty as dragons are known to have their amazing physique that makes anyone lust over them and gets them on the list. But I was that exception as I was scrawny and didn't have any muscles on me at all. The only thing "special" about me were my topaz-colored scales and eyes that, on closer inspection, actually looked like real topazes. Too bad no one at my school took the time to get to know me so I could show them.

I walked nervously into the statue, making my way through tour groups. I then reached the tall, narrow, spiral staircase that would lead me to the crown. Well...at least I wouldn't have to worry about security until I got up there.

Ascending the flight of stairs, I was exhausted when I finally reached the crown. My legs burned a bit from the climb, but it was going to be worth it. There were a few people still up here looking at the view, but I had my sights set on the other spiral staircase that led to the torch. It was smaller, but I think I could manage. All I had to do was get pass one guard that was watching everyone in here like a hawk, funny that he was a hawk. I was about to think of something to distract him when someone else did it for me.

"Ah! Jeffrey!" a woman shouted, grabbing her son's shirt and pulling him back as the kid leaned a bit too far out the crown.

"Madam, please be careful!" the hawk guard shouted, running over to help her. That left the entrance to the torch wide open for me. I quickly made a dash for the stairs before the hawk could come back.

I was right, the staircase was really narrow, but I got to the top! Stepping onto the torch's platform, I felt a gust of wind blow at my face, making me smile. If there was anything that I loved, it was feeling the wind blow on me. My wings folded out and the wind felt more amazing on them. I've never used my wings as they were too weak to carry me. Everything about me was weak. My cellphone started to ring and I answered it to hear Trek's voice.

"So you up there yet pussy?" he asked. I wondered how he got my phone number, but it didn't matter at the moment.

"Y-Yeah...I am," I answered, feeling proud of myself for having done this. I was finally going to be popular! My shining moment was suddenly dimmed as Trek started laughing on the other line. I could hear him tell his buddies that I really up here, making them all laugh. W-What was going on?

"Shit...he really did it!"

"What a retard!"

"He's going to get his ass in so much trouble!" I heard some of them say, still laughing.

"Umm...what's going on Trek?" I asked, wanting to know what was up with everyone. He was too busy laughing to hear me though. I kept my phone on the line until they could finish laughing and give me an explanation. What the hell was going on?

Looking out at the harbor, I shivered at the thought of swimming in there. I couldn't swim, and was deathly afraid of water. That's why I had accepted doing this rather than swimming in the harbor. Besides...who knows what's in there. I've always had this superstition that large bodies of water had monsters in them that were just waiting to gobble me up, but I didn't know why though. I started to see these really dark shapes in the water moving towards Liberty Island, but I thought I was just seeing thing from being so up high.

"Hey...Lance...," I heard Trek say, pulling the phone back to my ear.

"What?" I asked.

"Your ass is going to be in so much trouble...," he said, hanging up. I was confused at first, but then it dawned on me. This wasn't some way for them to test to see if I could be a part of their gang. It was just a way for them to get me into trouble. A dirty prank was all it ever was!

I heard footsteps coming up the stairs, thinking it was the hawk from below. Crap, what am I going to do!? I'm probably going to get expelled for listening to Trek and doing this stupid stunt! I should have known that they wouldn't want a punching bag like me to be in their gang! I was considering jumping it until I heard people screaming from down below. Peering down from where I was, I saw everyone running around, being chased by these creatures I couldn't identify. From what I could tell, they looked like giant fish mutants with the head of a piranha, sharp teeth and all, with the lower body of a frog or toad. I also noticed that there were some people that didn't run away, but instead ran towards the monsters. They must be suicidal if they're running towards a fish monster like that!

"Who are you?"

"And what are you doing up here?" I heard two voices behind me ask. Crap! They must be the security guards! Umm...think of a good excuse Lance. What could convince them that I didn't come up here on purpose? Oh forget it! I might as well come clean. Maybe I'd get suspended from school rather than expelled.

"Umm...I can explain...," I was about to say when I turned around and saw two otter twins, both boys, looking at me with blank expressions. They looked no older than ten! The strange thing about them was that they wore matching outfits that looked a lot like something from a fantasy game or movie. "What the...."

"Ales! Alos! What are you doing?! Hurry up and get the barrier up! We can't let more of the monsters inside the island!" another voice shouted as a human boy about the age of seventeen came up to the platform. The twins were strange enough, but this guy was even stranger. He wore the same style of fantasy clothing the twins wore, but he had silver hair and eyes! I wanted to ask if he wore colored contacts and dyed his hair, but I don't think now was the right time. His eyes turned to me and his gaze was blinding, like literally! I had to cringe away to avoid going blind.

"Who are you? And what are you doing here?" he asked me, repeating what the twins said earlier.

"I umm...well...I...," I wasn't sure what to say. Not that I had a chance anyways. A loud, ear-piercing shriek interrupted us as water from the harbor started to rise up and make a large hump. The hump kept rising until it was just as tall as the Statue of Liberty herself! With the water breaking away, I saw, to my horror, a giant black snake with its yellow eyes peering right at me! I should have screamed in terror, but fear had clutched my throat and shut it. The snake slithered its large head forward, making its way to the torch. Down below, I heard shouting and explosions in the place of screaming. What the hell was going on!? Tell me this is all just a bad dream!? It is right?!

The silver-haired boy suddenly pushed me aside and launched something right at the snake, making a bright flash of light and an explosion. Lurching backwards, the snake shrieked again, but this time in pain. When I could see again, the snake had one eye gone and bloodied. No way...how did he do that? Glancing over at him, I saw the boy had his arms pointed out at the snake, a white light dimming away in his hands.

"Ales! Alos! Now!" he shouted at the twins. I looked back at the two otters and saw them facing each other, positioned in a white circle that hovered and lightly spun. They reached for each other's hands and grasped them, closing their eyes.

"Pacema's power to shield and defend, let forth your divine protection and shelter your warriors in brilliant light. We call upon the guardian spell: Radiant Barrier!" they chanted in unison. The circle around them started to glow and burst outward, expanding towards the harbor and knocking the snake backwards. The circle went as far as the island boundaries and stopped, flashing bright white before disappearing.

"What in the name of...," I couldn't finish as I was too shocked to say anything else. The boy besides me sighed with some relief, glancing at me again before going over to the flame of the torch.

"Good work you two, but the fight's not over yet. Tell everyone to hold the monsters back for as long as they can. The barrier should hold the sea serpent just long enough for me to reawaken Ignis, but that's only a hunch. That sea serpent is ancient and powerful. I pray to Pacema that her power will hold strong," he told the twins, looking back at the serpent as it hissed angrily at us. It lunged forward, making me yelp as I thought it was going to crash into us, but hit something invisible that made the serpent bounce back.

"What about him?" one of the otter twins asked, pointing at me. They all turned their attention to me and I jumped back, afraid of what they were going to do to me.

"He'll be safe with me, but let's not worry about him now. Get going and do your best. Understood?" the boy said. The twins nodded before suddenly disappearing in a flash of light, leaving no trace that they were there. I was still trying to figure out what was going on when the boy introduced himself.

"My name is Silnis. I can't explain everything to you just yet, but I promise not to hurt you." At least that gave me some peace of mind. "What's your name?"

"M-My name is...Lance...," I said rather quietly. He walked over to me and offered a hand, helping me up.

"You need to speak up Lance, and don't be afraid. I promised I wouldn't hurt you so there shouldn't be any worries...well besides what's going on around us," he comforted me somewhat. "Just keep yourself out of trouble. I need to do something really important and it requires my full concentration." He held my hand in his and gave it a reassuring pat, making me feel all the more better. He walked back to the flame of the torch and placed both hands on it, making a red glow emit around them.

"W-What are you-" I stopped myself, remembering what he, Silnis, had told me. He needed to concentrate. I just stood there, switching my gaze from him to the chaos down below us. If only I could see what was really going on down there. Dragons are supposed to have really good eyesight, but apparently not me.

"You doubt yourself young one? You do not know this, but you are one with many gifts and talents. Have faith in yourself and the fires within you will burn bright!" I heard someone say inside my head. Confused, I turned to see if it was Silnis who spoke to me, but he was still stuck on the torch's flame.

"W-What?" I asked softly, not fully comprehending what was just spoken to me. I didn't get a reply back so I was left to decipher the strange words. Did I doubt myself? Yeah...a lot of times I admit. I never was really good at anything besides being a punching bag. No one liked me because I had no talents and I was unattractive.

"Think about it young one.... A simple fire may not seem worthy, but it alone can achieve many things that might not seem possible! I can gift you with the strength, the fuel, to achieve your full potential, but you must be the one to feed the fire its wood. Have faith in yourself and others will have faith in you...," the voice said before fading away. I suddenly felt a warm glow from behind me and turned back to see that the torch flame had burst into an actual fire! Silnis was still standing in the same spot and didn't seem afraid of getting burned.

"Ignis...Keeper of Fire...The Warmth Within...The Fire of the Heart...awaken and bless your warriors with your gift!" he said before about a few dozen orbs of fire shot out of the torch and scattered in all directions.

"Come to me young one...," I heard the voice say. Looking at the larger fire, I got the feeling it was speaking to me. I didn't know what possessed me to do so, but I slowly stepped forward and reached out to touch the flames. Silnis was about to push me back, but he stopped himself short.

"By Pacema's light...it can't be...!" I heard him mutter, stepping back a bit and watching me. My hand touched the flames, but it didn't burn or hurt. I felt my body get lighter and looked down to see that I was floating off the ground and into the fire. Strangely though, I wasn't afraid. There was a confidence inside me that I never had before. It made me feel like I could do anything that I wanted to!

Feeling the flames envelop me, I heard the voice from before say "I Ignis, have chosen you, Lance Farrow, as my champion! I grant you with my strength and power to banish those who would extinguish the life fire of this world! Serve this world and bring about it peace!" My body started to tingle and it felt like it was changing. Every muscle in my body started to tighten and enlarge. My head started to throb as two white horns sprouted out and shape themselves to be an impressive pair. Everything in my body was undergoing change.

After some time, I felt myself being lowered down back onto the platform, looking completely different. My body had undergone change from being scrawny to flat out muscular! I also noticed that I had grown a few inches and that my sight had tripled to what it was before. I could see the tiniest ship sailing in the harbor with my naked eye. That's not all. I mentioned that Silnis and those two otters twins were dressed in fantasy-like clothing, right? Well I was decked out in the same clothing too! My armor looked like the fire had manifested itself into some armor, bringing with it the colors of fire and the heat.

"What...just happened?!" I cried, touching my body to see if I was just hallucinating. M-My voice! It was deeper too! It was real...all of it. My muscles were taut and smooth, my horns definitely sharp and solid, my voice deeper than before, and the armor was real as well.

"You've been chosen," I heard Silnis say to me.

"W-What do you mean?" I asked, wanting a better explanation than that.

"Ignis, Keeper of Fire," he explained, gesturing with his hand to the torch flame, which was still burning, "has chosen you as his champion." That was still a vague explanation. He must have read the confused expression on my face and waved it off. "Never mind, right now we are in a battle and you could be a great asset. Will you join us?" I didn't know how to reply. A battle!? Is that what's happening!? I went over to the railing and peered down, truly seeing what I couldn't before. The fish monsters were real, doing battle with others kids adorned with armor and weapons...real ones. A majority of the corpses were the fish monsters, but a few scattered bodies were those of the kids. A few were too gruesome for me to look so I turned my eyes back.

"T-This can't be happening! I-I'm just dreaming! Wake up! Wake up!" I cried desperately, slapping myself to wake up. Silnis caught my hand and looked me in the eyes. Those silver eyes drew me in and I instantly calmed down, wanting to gaze into those eyes forever.

"Lance...I know that all of this might seem unbelievable, but trust me...it's real. We are all chosen warriors of The Elements-divine beings that keep this world in balance. This here," he explained, gesturing to the torch flame, "is Ignis, as I told you before, and he guards the element of fire. Right now, minions of our enemy are trying to destroy him. If Ignis dies, then this world will lose all sources of fire and warmth. Do you want that to happen?" I shook my head no, understanding him and the threat we were in. A small sliver of fear and doubt crossed my mind and snapped me out of his gaze.

"B-But I'll get killed! I don't know how to fight!" I argued. He just smiled and took my hand in his, blowing a gentle breath on it. It instantly warmed me up and gave me a small boost of courage.

"You don't have to fight alone. Let Ignis guide your attacks and let the other warriors help you. We are all in this together. No one has to fight alone," he reassured me, letting my hand go and stepping a few steps back. I didn't want him to let go, but he smiled again before jumping off the railing and tumbling down below. I panicked, thinking he was crazy, but I watched as he landed on his feet with no problems, almost graceful if I must say.

"Shall we?" Ignis spoke inside my head. The sea serpent was still trying to break its way into the island, but the barrier still held strong. Looking down, I hesitated for a second before jumping off myself, wanting to scream, but couldn't. Thankfully, I landed with no injuries and saw the battle that had been going on while I was up there. Kids with weapons and armors of all kinds did battle with the monsters, one impaling a monster with a deadly spear and another frying it to ashes with a lightning bolt. I heard a loud croak before turning around and seeing one of the fish monsters behind me. It bared its piranha teeth at me and lunged, about to kill me before a blast of cold air turned it into a popsicle.

"Whew...that was a close one!" I heard before a snow leopard girl appeared out of a mist of snow. She helped me up and introduced herself. "I'm Kia, but can't talk now! We got a job to do!" She pulled out a bow with a quiver of arrows out of thin air and launched two arrows at another fish monster, killing it. "Talk to you soon!" Running off, she left without me uttering a single word.

"Come my champion. Draw your blade and vanquish these foul water beasts!" Ignis urged me on. Looking around, I didn't see a sword on me that I could use, but I thought back to what Fia did and tried that. Holding my hand out, nothing appeared before me. No cool sword, spear, axe, nothing! That's when Ignis chimed in again. "Concentrate on your weapon and it will appear to you." Trying again, I concentrated really hard, picturing an awesome flaming sword. That must have done the trick because the next I knew, a flaming blade was resting in my hand, the fires seemingly harmless to me. "Good! Now smite your enemies!"

Like Silnis had told me, I should let Ignis guide my attacks. With nothing to lose, besides my life, I charged at a lone fish monster, catching it by surprise and slicing it in two. I was feeling pretty good about my first kill and was about to celebrate until my reflexes instantly turned me around and side-slashed another fish monster in half. Its blood splattered onto me, but burned away from the heat of my armor. W-Wow! This was so cool! It was like I was some hero in a video game! For once...I felt better about myself. I had always prayed for a chance to prove myself to others and perhaps this was the answer! It wasn't what I was expecting, but it was still good nonetheless.

Slicing my way through the fish monsters, I managed to save a few other kids from certain death and they all thanked me before continuing fighting. I even saw Silnis and his amazing skills in battle. He had a pair of wicked hand blades that did a number on the fish monsters. He also used some sort of light magic that either blinded several of the monsters or completely obliterated them to nothing but a burn mark on the ground and a fishy stench. I was too focused on the fish monsters that I had completely forgotten about the sea serpent looming over us, still trying to break in past the barrier. It wasn't until I heard a loud cracking sound that I finally looked up and saw a giant crack in the barrier. Most of the fish monsters were dispatched with and the loud cracking noise got everyone's attention.

Glancing over at Silnis, he had a stern expression as he stared at the sea serpent above. Looking away, he chanted a spell under his breath and several spears of light sniped down on the remaining monsters in the island. They vaporized in an instant and left me star-struck at his amazing magical abilities.

"Everyone, listen to me! When the barrier falls! Hold back the minions with all your strength! I, along with the other champions, will try to dispatch the sea serpent! Let balance forever triumph!" he shouted, everyone repeating the last line in unison. There was a wave of inspiration and pride when everyone cried out the last part of Silnis' ten second speech. I may not fully believe that this is all true, but the feelings inside of me were undeniable. Silnis and the other champions all gathered together discussing battle plans. I had forgotten that I was a champion too, and was about to join them when I felt a large hand slap my back playfully.

"Hey, newbie, you gonna join the rest of the party or what?!" a deep and rough voice questioned me. Turning my head, I saw the biggest rhino I've ever seen. He was bigger than Trek! He wore dark brown armor and had a huge war hammer as a weapon. My first instinct was to cower and cover my head with my hands, bracing for a barrage of punches from the big rhino.

"P-Please don't hurt me!" I cried, waiting for the painful blows to come, but none came.

"Jace, don't scare the poor boy!" I heard a familiar voice call out. Kia, the snow leopard from before, came running up to the rhino and lightly pounded on his bulked chest.

"Oh...sorry dude...I didn't mean to scare you like that," he apologized, rubbing the back of his head and looking sorry.

"It's okay. Jace isn't a bad guy! He just looks the part, but he's actually a big teddy bear inside!" she reassured me, helping me up. Jace was blushing at the comments Kia gave him and quickly reached out a hand towards me.

"Like Kia said...I'm Jace. It's nice to meet the new champion face to face. Sorry if I frightened you," he apologized again.

"No...it's fine. I'm just used to someone of your species at my school giving me beatings every once in a while," I confessed, seeing him look hurt for me.

"Don't worry. I'm not like that rhino I saw daring you to climb the Statue of Liberty. And to honest, he's actually a coward along with his friends. They didn't climb the statue even once in their life. But you, even, if it was a dare, had the guts to and I admire that," he said.

"Y-You saw all of that!?" I asked, wondering just how many other people witnessed it.

"Yeah...I saw. So did Kia too and a few other warriors, but we admire your courage," he clarified. I felt a little embarrassed and happy at the same time. They admired my courage? Wow...I-I don't know what to say. All my life I've been looked down on, but for once I'm being looked upon. My life is changing so rapidly! One minute I'm the punching bag and the next I'm some hero!

"Jace, Kia, Lance! Hurry up! We don't have much time!" Silnis called us over. Following after Jace and Kia, I got the chance to see the other champions. There was a human girl with long-dark hair that wore aqua armor; her weapons were two daggers in the shape of urchins. A ram boy had black armor and a harrowing scythe as his weapon. There were a lot more, each with their own colored armor and unique weapon.

"So what's the plan Silnis?" the ram asked, twirling his scythe without a care.

"The plan, Pierce, is that while the warriors are holding off the minions, we will try to push the serpent back further into the harbor. We can't risk one of its attacks damaging the statue and possible making it collapse along with Ignis. So, Kia, we need you to form a ring of thick ice around the serpent once we get it far enough out. That'll serve as our battle platform and keep the serpent from escaping, but if it does attempt to escape, Hannah, "Silnis explained, pointing at the human girl with short, curly dark hair, "I need you to stop it from trying to escape. Use your water magic to push it back into the ice ring so that we can continue our attacks on it. I know some of your elements may not be of use on water, but do your best. Ignis and the world are counting on us to prevail."

"Let's do this! I'm ready to rock!" Kia exclaimed, pumping with adrenaline.

"I thought that was my line!? I am Terra's champion after all!" Jace countered.

"Oh yeah.... All right then! I'm ready to ice!" she edited, fist-pumping into the air.

"Right...let's get started," Silnis confirmed, breaking away along with the rest of the champions as another crackling sound erupted from the barrier. Looking at the menacing black serpent, I wasn't sure if I could face such a monster. The little guys weren't so hard, but this was another level!

"Having doubts?" I heard Silnis ask me.

"Yeah...," I admitted, looking down at the fiery sword in my hands.

"Remember what I told you. You don't have to fight alone. We're all here to help," he made me recall.

"I know...but...this is all so sudden. I'm still having a hard time believing that this all real. This could be a dream for all I know. Me...being a hero when in reality I'm nothing," I said. I felt Silnis' soft hands touch my arms, my newly muscled arms, and it sent pleasant shiver up my spine.

"You shouldn't say such things about yourself like that. Everybody has a purpose in their life. You just have to take the initiative to find that purpose. I saw you fight those pisnas and you were really good! You've just been given the title of a champion and already you can fight like a true champion. You have a lot of potential and I believe you can achieve your true purpose in life," he said, giving me another dazzling smile.

I was truly touched by his words. I've never been given a pep talk like that before and it felt nice that someone truly believed that I could become a better person. Just from him saying that, I felt like my life did have meaning after all. "Thank you Silnis," was all I could say.

"You're very welcome," he replied, glancing back at me as he walked away. The barrier was still holding, though more cracks had appeared on it since my short conversations with everyone. The serpent started to get more aggressive with his attacks, even spitting out an acid that hissed at the barrier, but still held strong. There were many wounded around the island and the other champions were doing their bests to get to them all. I wanted to help in some way, but what could I, a champion of fire, do to help them?

"Fire is warmth. It soothes the body and soul. Those in need of comfort and peace of mind will need the glow of a flame," Ignis said to me, though rather vaguely. Ok...fire is warmth. I thought about a cold winter night and how sitting by a fire would always make you feel warm and comfortable. Peace of mind...well...if you do look into a fire for a while, you start to go into this trance that makes it feel like everything's going to be all right. So...all I had to do was...show them warmth and peace. My armor started to glow bright and erupted into flames, harmless to me, but definitely warm. All eyes were on me as I was the center of attention. I wasn't so sure on what to do, but after hearing a few content sighs, I just assumed that I had to stand here and be like a fireplace: bringing warmth and peace. A few of the champions nodded their head at me; some giving me a thumb up.

The wounded were quickly taken inside the statue while everyone else who could still fight remained outside. I stood with the rest of the champions, all of us waiting for the signal. I was ready to do this. I wasn't going to run, not when I finally have the support of all these people who I barely knew, yet trusted. This time...I'm not going to be the coward.

A bolt of light spun out behind us and crashed into the barrier, making a deafening bang before the barrier fell apart. That was our signal! I charged at the serpent with the other champions, feeling like I was in some epic war movie. Jace jumped into the air before bringing his fist down onto the ground, sending a shockwave that pushed the serpent back quite a distance. That's when Kia did a graceful flip into the air and shot out two ice arrows into the water around the serpent, forming the ring of ice we needed. Hannah propelled us all forward towards the serpent with a burst of speed with the water like a jet boat. We began our attacks on the serpent right when we hit the ice ring. We spread ourselves out to give the serpent a harder time and so far everything was going perfectly. I slashed at stabbed at the serpent with my sword, dodging its acid spray and countering it. The others were using their own type of magic and that got me wanting to dish out some fire magic on this snake.

"Just say the word," Ignis vaguely advised again. Taking him literally, I tried my luck.

"Fireball!" I cried, pushing my hand out as a basketball-sized fireball propelled out of my hand and exploded on impact with the serpent's hide. It left a burned, pink spot where it hit and that got the snake's attention. He snapped his giant head at me and would have devoured me if it wasn't for Silnis who came to my rescue. A flash of light and another explosion made the serpent draw back, hissing angrily at Silnis for intruding on its free kill.

"Don't stand in one place too long Lance. Always be moving. Don't give your enemy an easy kill," he told me, slashing at the burnt spot I made earlier and receiving a painful shriek from the serpent. He easily dodged an acid spray and shot another one of his light bolts at the serpent, hitting it right under the other eye. The serpent shrieked again before submerging underwater, making everyone act quick.

"Hannah!" Jace exclaimed, telling her it was her time to shine. She understood and reacted fast, thrusting her arms down and then back up. The water in the center of the ring started to ripple violently before a huge column of water shot upwards with the serpent in it. The water dispersed and left the serpent falling back down towards the harbor. I was expecting everyone to wait for it to fall back into the water, but apparently we had different plans.

"Keep it in the air everyone! Don't let it fall back into the water! Strike at it before it does!" Silnis commanded, suddenly disappearing and reappearing high in the air. Everyone else followed suit and had their own ways of getting up to the falling serpent. I thought of something fast and suddenly remembered that my wings had grown stronger too along with the rest of my body. But...would they work? I've never even tried flying before. But I didn't want to disappoint Silnis and everyone else. Stretching them out, I pushed down with them and felt myself being flung upwards. I-I'm flying! I'm really flying! My initial start was a bit tipsy as it was my first time flying, but I quickly got the hang of it and flew up to the sky battle.

Explosions and bolts of elemental magic struck at the serpent as it quickly descended back down to the harbor. It was having a hard time trying to strike back at us and that was our advantage. I could easily remain in the air for an indefinite amount of time, but everyone else had to repeatedly get back up into the air.

"Ugh...this is getting tiring! Penelope, give us a boost!" Silnis shouted through the roaring wind. Another human girl with waist-long blonde hair and blue eyes pulled out a staff with a curved end like a crescent moon, and summoned little cyclones for us to ride on. I didn't need one, but it definitely helped us stay in the air longer. We were getting closer to the water again and I was worried we weren't going to kill this serpent in time. But Silnis seemed to always have a plan. He flew in towards the burnt spot that I had made earlier and slashed at it again, making the snake shriek in pain again. Everything happened so fast that I didn't get enough time to comprehend it. Kia immediately followed up Silnis' attack by shooting a volley of ice arrows into the snake's open maw. The snake's body started to freeze from the inside out and Pierce teamed up with Jace for a slingshot. Jace, with his strength, whipped Pierce right into the snake's jaw and Pierce slashed wildly at the insides of the snake, cutting his way out at the snake's tail. I don't know how, but I just knew it was my turn to do the finishing blow. Aiming myself right in the middle of the snake, I hefted my sword over my head, now on fire, and brought it down, making a wave of flames cut the snake in half and envelope it in fire. The snake shrieked one more time before turning into ashes and embers, dancing around the sky.

Penelope commanded our mini cyclones to carry us back to the island where we rejoined with everyone else. It was a burst of applaud and cheers, everyone congratulating each other on their hard battle. I even got a few compliments on my sword skills and the finishing move I made. It all felt so good. These people I barely knew yet they've made me feel more welcomed then my classmates at high school who've I known for years! I just got done receiving a few more heart-warming compliments when I felt a familiar hand on my shoulder.

"You did a good job Lance. You really do have talent," Silnis said, smiling at me like he always did. He was good at it too. Nothing felt better than to see him smile.

"Thanks...but you guys were amazing! I'm still new at this...so I'm just an amateur. Nothing compared to you guys...," I said, still putting myself down a little.

"Hey...I told you not to say stuff like that about yourself. It takes a lot of courage to do what you just did now. I've known some warriors who passed out after I told them we were in the middle of a battle protecting one of The Elements. Some made it a little farther than that, but once they saw the monsters, they completely blacked out. But what I'm trying to say is that even though you may not believe all of this is real, you still faced it like it was real. And that takes a lot of courage," he reminded me.

"Heh...I guess you're right. Thanks though...for supporting me Silnis. You're a pretty nice guy for someone I've just met. Though I'm going to expect you to explain some of these other things to me like The Elements and the giant serpent we just fought," I told him.

"All in due time, but for now you need to rest. You've got a big day ahead of you tomorrow. You'll be explaining a lot to your classmates at school," he said, poking at my hard torso. It tickled me, but I started to moan a little bit. His hand trailed up my body, feeling so pleasurable against my sensitive scales, until it stopped at my head, his fingers touching my forehead, "And don't forget...have courage and confidence. Make for yourself...a life with meaning." He smiled one more time before a bright flash of light blinded me and made me black out.