"Have you seen any craters?" asked Bobby. "No, but I've got my eyes peeled," replied Beth. Even though she had only seen endless desert for the past forty-five minutes, she was still trying to find signs of any kind. Meanwhile, Hannah was sitting at the back, sipping a cold beverage. "I'm more of a hot tea girl, but this is quite nice on a humid day like this," she stated while holding her glass of iced tea. "You can have it all to yourself," commented Edward. "What, do you not like tea?" asked Hannah with complete surprise. "I've tried it once and I don't want to try it again," responded Edward. "Your loss," scoffed Hannah.
Just then, the two of them noticed something new outside the window. It was a long concrete strip that extended across the entire landscape. "Beth, I think there's a road to our right," called Hannah. "Good spotting," replied Beth as she turned the base right. Within two minutes, they reached the highway. There were no cars in sight, so getting on wasn't an issue. For the next ten minutes, the base drove on the narrow desert road. Everyone hoped that it would at least give them some kind of direction. Eventually, Bobby, Hannah, Edward and Beth arrived somewhere. It wasn't a giant crater with a castle hiding underneath. It was a small town that seemed to be doing quite well, despite the surrounding environment. There were various shops, open stall markets and residential houses.
Everyone got out, stretching their muscles and taking in the fresh air. "What do we do now?" asked Edward. "I think we should take a break from driving," explained Beth. "Let's find something to eat and enjoy a bit of down time," she added. Bobby eyeballed the town, seeing what the area had to offer. "There might be someone who can help us find the castle," he proposed. "Great thinking," applauded Beth. "We'll look into that after we get some lunch." "Where are we going," asked Hannah. "I don't know, there's bound to be something around here," answered Beth.
For the next five minutes, The Braw Agents walked through the town, hoping to find some kind of eatery. After strolling past various restaurants and cafes, they decided to go with a small takeout venue. When they got inside, they noticed some of the menu options, like sandwiches, hot chips, fish bites and noodles. There were two people lined up in front of them. With that on top of the food preparation, Bobby knew that this would take a while. "Beth, can I look for a helper while we're waiting for our food?" asked Bobby. "I suppose, but what do you want?" asked Beth. "I'll just go with some hot chips," answered Bobby on a whim. "We can meet back at the base," he added. "Okay, bye," replied Beth as he walked out of the shop.
From there, Bobby walked down the streets once again. He took note of every building he went past, in case it had a possibility of being helpful. Unfortunately, there were no such places. Some of the things he saw included an open fruit market, a home equipment store and a couple of restaurants. Then, he found an antique store. It didn't seem to contain any useful artifacts, but Bobby thought the place looked interesting, so he went in anyway.
The shop contained many objects. Such as tea sets, paintings, pieces of furniture and souvenirs, all equipped with price tags. Bobby knew that Beth would love this place. Just then, a man walked out of a nearby door. He had medium length black hair that draped down his neck and slightly curled up at the ends. His face featured a small black mustache and a black goatee. He was wearing a white short-sleeved button up shirt, along with grey trousers and some dark brown shoes. He also wore a pine green poncho that resembled a carpet due to all of the intricate patterns.
"Hello, how can I help you?" greeted the man. "I just want to take a look around this place," replied Bobby. "Alright, let me know if you need anything," insisted the man. After two minutes of checking out the antiques, Bobby decided to finally speak his mind.
"Do you know where I can find a giant crater with a castle in it?" he asked. "I don't know where it is, but I know what you're talking about," answered the man. "You do?" elated Bobby. "Yes, it's the place where all of the weird fire experiments are happening, I can sense the flames from a mile away," explained the man. "That's interesting," commented Bobby. "I'm a flame conjuror, I can manipulate fire to my will, I can also sense the existence of flames, along with their creation and extinguishment," explained the man. "What's your name?" he asked. "I'm Bobby." "Nice to meet you Bobby, I am Ezhar."
"Can you tell me more about your fire magic," requested Bobby. "It's not magic per say, but rather a skill and an interaction with nature itself," explained Ezhar. "I'll see if I have something I can demonstrate it with," he added before going back into the other room. When he came out, he was holding a small un-lit candle and a box of matches. He laid both items on the counter and ignited the candlewick, much to Bobby's confusion. "Can't you just make a flame?" he asked. "No, I cannot make my own flames, I can only alter ones that already exist," answered Ezhar. He then closed his eyes. "Put the candle somewhere," he instructed. "Where?" asked Bobby. "Anywhere," answered Ezhar.
Bobby spent a few seconds eyeballing the shop, trying to think of a good spot to put the candle. He ultimately decided to put it on one of the vintage tables. "It's on the table, near the porcelain coffee jar," claimed Ezhar. When Bobby turned to him, his eyes were still closed. The candle was still burning, so Bobby decided to test the legitimacy of Ezhar's abilities.
He moved his finger towards the flame very slowly, all while keeping his eyes on Ezhar. "Careful, you don't want to get burnt now do you," said Ezhar. Bobby decided to pull one more experiment. He picked up the candle and quietly blew it, until the flame was no more. "You just destroyed the flame," stated Ezhar. He finally opened his eyes once Bobby walked back to the counter. "That was awesome, your skills would really come in handy," praised Bobby. "What for?" asked Ezhar. "My friends and I came here because we heard about the heatwaves on the news," explained Bobby. "We're a crime fighting team, and we suspect whoever's causing them is up to no good." "We've been having trouble finding the castle, so if you come with us, you could help us find it with your fire sense thing."
"I can't come on your adventure, I have a shop to run," replied Ezhar. "I know, but those heatwaves are now going beyond The Sunlands, we need to find that castle and stop whoever's in there, otherwise the entire world could burn," explained Bobby passionately. "Alright, if it means that much to you, take this," instructed Ezhar as he took off his necklace and gave it to Bobby. It was a bronze chain that featured a red gem encased within a bronze pendant. "It's like a compass for fire, it can detect where flames are and what's happening to them," explained Ezhar. "No, you're the only one who knows how to use this," demanded Bobby as he handed the necklace back. After a few seconds, Ezhar made a decision. "I suppose Heatarin wouldn't fall to shambles if I left for a week, and it's been a while since I last went on vacation," he hesitated while trying to assure himself.
Without wasting any more time, the two of them walked out of the antique shop. Ezhar flipped the sign as he closed the door. After navigating a few streets, Bobby found the base. Hannah, Edward and Beth were all standing next to it, eating their lunch. "Where did you go?" asked Beth. "I went to an antique shop and met this guy," answered Bobby. "Hello, I am Ezhar, I am a flame conjuror and your friend Bobby said I could help you find the crater," he introduced. "Trust me, he gave me a candle, closed his eyes and knew what I was doing with it the whole time," proved Bobby. "Nice to meet you, I'm Beth and those are Hannah and Edward," she introduced.
"We remembered your chips," stated Hannah as she handed them to Bobby. They came in a small cardboard box and had cooled off quite a bit. Hannah was eating a skewer with small pieces of battered fish on it. Edward also had some chips, while Beth had a sandwich filled with pork and green salad. "When are we going?" asked Ezhar. "I don't see any reason we can't go now," shrugged Bobby. Once Beth unlocked the base, everyone went inside. She sat in front of the wheel with Ezhar as co-pilot. "How do your powers work?" asked Beth. "This necklace helps me detect the flames, if we follow my senses, we should be able to find the castle," explained Ezhar. Beth still wasn't exactly sure about his methods, but she was more than willing to let him help, if it meant they would find the crater.
Comments (0)
See all