CHAPTER FIVE
Apple Pie, Lizards and Molecular Combustion (?)

The three soon became the closest of friends (gee, we didn't expect that did we?). They decided to head for the Promised Land in search of why the Holy Council wanted their heads. They weren’t heretics. They decided to head for the town of Launder at the foot of the Promised Land crater. To do that, they had to go through a great wasteland, a desert and a marsh forest, all infested with dangers. The Holy Council might also send Priests and minions after them, and to be able to resolve this affair, they had to find out why first.

It was about seven at night when the three set camp in a rocky part of the wastelands. They were a quarter way through it, and it was already nightfall.

“A fruitful journey, so far. Eh, girls?” said Esmer while chewing on a freshly baked pie. Well, it had some crushed parts from the battle in the Grand Cathedral, but it was as tasty as it was before the blood bath.

“The only fruit we’ve got are the ones in our pack. When are you not perky, Esmer?” asked Saphro while chewing on her share.

“You two stop talking with your mouths full,” said Becky, not heeding her own advice while gobbling up a whole portion of her piece.

The stars shone brightly in the night sky. One for every celestial God or Goddess that the elves believed to had helped with the creation of their world. In the new world the stars seemed not to die out, and rotated like an atmosphere in the sky giving the earth a sort of inner diamond atmosphere. It was a beautiful world, indeed and it would be a shame that the occupants believed in a sub creator, the Lights, and not the Mother.

“I was quite freaked out back there,” said Saphro. “I did not know water was so conductive to electricity.”

“Please, you learned it in year four. Water’s a conductor because it’s charge…” Esmer started to explain.

“Hey, no theories during pie, or I’ll burn yours,” said Becky.

“Come now. You’ve tried to burn something since we started our journey here,” said Saphro.

“Maybe our powers are tied to our emotions. Remember that little scratch I tried to heal when we left Ultin? Well, it didn’t work,” said Esmer.

“Well, I was really angry back then when I changed into the Firebird,” said Becky.

“I panicked when I turned to the water spirit,” said Saphro.

“I felt kind of scared, but I was kind of determined as well,” said Esmer.

“Ah, yes. Miss Perfect indeed,” said Becky.

“Oh, hush and eat your pie,” said Esmer.

As they ate they couldn’t help thinking about the pentagram. If the Ultin Cathedral were bad news, then what about the South Continent’s intentions? Were they in the right to wage war upon the entire world? Were they going to repeat the mistakes the mortals made?

“Oh, darn it!” exclaimed Becky as she dropped her piece of pie. As she tried to pick it up, it burst into a million pieces.

“Ah! What was that?” shrieked Saphro.

“I don’t know! I was a little mad, and I tried to pick the pie, and it went all… combusted,” said Becky.

“That must be your immature power. When molecular combustion occurs, the heat in the molecules rise up and increases its vibration speed until it explodes,” explained Esmer.

“So… what’s that in English?” asked Becky.

“It means your immature powers sent a minor heat wave strong enough to blow up the pie, that’s what it means,” said Esmer.

“I understood that,” said Saphro. “I must be hanging around Esmer to much.”

“So, my powers are molecular combustion?” asks Becky.

“Well, I’m impressed you could pronounce it, but yes, it is in a way,” said Esmer.

“Well, I can’t wait to find out what my powers are!” said Saphro all excited.

“Well, you couldn’t exactly get a clue back there at Ultin. Maybe you’re power’s fainting convincingly,” said Esmer.

“Okay, I want perky Esmer back now,” said Becky.

“Ha, be careful what you wish for next time,” said Esmer.

Dawn’s sunrise came, and the three lights woke up rejuvenated and ready to start over. The sun of the Godo Wastelands shone the cracked soil with a scarlet glow. A corona of crimson gradient filled the horizon giving light to the puffy clouds up in the orange sky.

“Argh, how quick the morning comes,” groaned Esmer.

“Are you always so poetic in the morning?” asked Saphro, who was up an hour earlier. She was cooking a broth in a black pot they found in Ultin’s debris.

“Perky, perky! Esmer’s awake! Come on, let’s go see the view from atop that hill,” shrieked Becky, jumping on top of Esmer.

“Eeek, hey get off me you fat pig!” Screams Esmer.

“You two better freshen up, you look horrendous. We may be out in a wasteland but that’s no reason to be unlady-like,” snaps Saphro.

After breakfast, they decided not to waste anytime. They packed up their tents and continued on towards the next area. When afternoon struck, the sun was beginning to shine brightly, and temperatures rose. One could see the atmosphere ripple and distort under the searing heat of the Godo Wastelands.

“Yo, water controller, mind giving us an oasis?” asked Becky.

“I wish I could, but I haven’t the energy to get an emotional overdrive. You’ll have to cope with the heat until it gets dark,” said Saphro, panting and sweating.

“Oh, gosh. All this sweating is going to do wonders to my complexion,” says Esmer sarcastically.

“Quit whining, you two. Come one, let’s rest under that big rock,” said Saphro, spotting a large rock in the middle of the wasteland. Its shadow was big enough to overlap all three of them.

“What an amazing stroke of luck---“ Esmer couldn’t finish. A white figure somersaulted from atop the rock and landed in between them.

“Death to the Heretics!” the white figure screams, and he (or she) releases a huge wave of energy around him, pushing the three girls backwards.

At once Becky was on her feet, being the middle light and the only one that could summon her powers. At once she raised her palms and threw them like she was spraying water from her fingertips. In a split second the figure’s white robe exploded and it caught fire. The figure did the sensible thing: stop, drop, and roll. That little dance ritual gave the three enough time to escape.

In a few minutes they were miles away from the figure (what did you think, that they were out of shape?) and closer to the next area. Soon the cracked up earth began to turn to soft grains of amber sand. The sun was setting, and after that escape, they were getting tired. It was getting cold, so Becky combusted a pile of wood to make a small bonfire.

“I had no idea the Ultin Priests were so acrobatic,” said Saphro, sitting by the fire. "They were so nice to me back at Ultin. Did you notice how big the turkeys were?"

“They were probably assassins sent by the Priests,” answered Esmer, looking through a book. "And what does turkeys have anything to do with it?"

“Hey, Saphro. Do you want to try out your power?” asked Becky.

“Well, I don’t know what it is---“ before the words left her mouth a pot of water was on it’s way to Saphro’s face. She panicked and waved her hands at the pot to block it off. The pot ricocheted of her hands and fell on the sand. The strange thing was it was no longer solid. It was now a blob of liquid black muck previously used as a cooking utensil.

“Whoa, that’s so cool!” shrieked Esmer, completely forgetting about her book. “You have Molecular Desolidification!”

“Okay, you have GOT to stop with this scientific gibberish,” said Becky.

“Hey, doesn’t it seem strange that---“ Saphro waved her hand at the melted pot, and it became solid again. “Whoa, okay it works two ways as well?”

“Well, you are the oldest. Your powers are probably more advanced than ours,” explained Esmer. “I’ll probably get mine in the far future on the count of I’m youngest. It'll probably be so stronger than the both of you.”

“Okay, whatever. That’ll certainly come in handy when we need to melt our foes,” said Becky, ignoring Esmer's arrogant remark.

“That is disgusting! I’m not doing that! ” Exclaims Saphro, disgusted (obviously).

“Well, whatever. Anyway, we’ll be reaching the next area by the end of the week, so get ready for moist and humid conditions,” said Esmer.

“Moist and humid? We’re proceeding to the north, shouldn’t it be dry and cold?” asked Saphro.

“After this desert is the Great Marsh. It stretches out until Launder. From there the climate starts changing,” explained Esmer. She seemed to know a lot, she being a star student and everything.

“Okay, very well. But I am not melting any priests,” said Saphro.

The night started to age. The moon was high up in the sky, watching over them. It was freezing, as there weren’t any clouds in the sky. They really couldn’t wait to ditch the place, but a few weeks were a long time. Suddenly Esmer’s eyes opened wide.

“I hear something,” said Esmer.

In a split second Saphro and Becky sprung up, hands extended like a kind of bodyguards. They could hear rustling coming from a close by withered bush.

“That’s weird, I thought I felt someone with red hair following us,” said Esmer.

“Shh… let me have a look,” Becky said and advanced towards the shrub. She tried to use her powers on it, but before she could throw her hands, something leaped out and continued flying towards the tent.

“Watch out!” warned Becky.

The creature tore through the tent fabric and landed in front of Saphronye. It was a sort of black lizard-like thingy with piercing red eyes. Saliva (eeew…) dripped from its forked tongue as it scanned Saphro.

“Saphro! Melt it, now!” whispered Esmer.

“Okay, but I am going to vomit after,” Saphro said, and threw her hands at the lizard. The lizard started to bubble; never a good sign, and soon it began to evaporate. Black and red smoke rose out of the tent.

“Hey, It didn’t melt!” said Esmer.

“Would you rather it did?” said Saphro. “Maybe my power isn’t molecular de…so..lid… something. Anyway, maybe I just change the form something is in.”

“I guess it forces solid, liquid and gas randomly. Molecular Distortion is what it is,” said Esmer.

Soon Becky reached the tent. She was surprised not to see any residue on the ground.

“What? Where’s the remains?” asked Becky.

“I gassed it,” said Saphro.

“She what?” asked Becky again.

“She gassed it. Turned it into gas. Evaporated it,” said Esmer. “Pretty cool, huh?”

“Um, I guess so.” Becky wasn’t in the mood to complain of the lack of drama. It would be more interesting to see melted lizard on the ground. Too bad. Esmer, however could not shake the feeling they were being followed by a red head.