328 Elementia part two (1/2)

Nix bowed his head formally. ”I will fight on your behalf.”

Light laughter, filled with warmth carried from the far side of the building. ”So formal.” A cloaked figure approached, she stopped in front of him and lowered her hood. ”Thank you for coming.”

Nix couldn't stop the smile that widened his face. ”Shae...”

She gripped his face with her warm hands, kissing him a few times before pulling away. ”Oh my... You've changed again. May I?”

Nix nodded. ”Of course.”

[Arch Elemental: Five Elements]

Fire: Nemesis

Ice: Lord

Air: Lord

Lightning: Spirit

Water: Spirit

Arch Elemental

All Elemental abilities and resistances are increased by .5 (.2+.1+.1+.05+.05)

”A water seed?” Shae clucked her tongue at him while shaking her head. ”Who gave you such a thing?”

”Mina,” Nix admitted.

”If it's Mina, then it can't be helped.” Shae kissed his forehead before releasing his face and grabbed his hand. ”There are a few people I would like you to meet.”

Nix followed her toward another group, he glanced back to see if Rhy was following but noticed that she had joined a group of air elementals in casting a large air dome. ”What are they doing?”

”There are eyes and ears everywhere, Nix; we've had to be very careful.”

”What's going on here?”

Shae stopped and nodded to herself. ”I should fill you in first, so you can prepare questions for them.”

Nix couldn't help but smile when she popped a small pepper in her mouth. ”You running out of those yet?”

”Of course not,” Shae shook her head. ”This is Elementia, a city hidden in a seed world. To enter this place, you need to be an elemental.”

”Which explains why I've never heard of it. What is the problem?”

”A few weeks ago, the Air and Water elementals started disappearing from the city. Rhy came here to investigate, because...”

”Because Wilo was one of the Air Elementals that disappeared?” Nix knew that Ronnie's spirit companion stopped answering her summons a few weeks earlier.

Shae nodded. ”Additionally, this city has been taken over by a very powerful Ice Elemental. He's very boorish and has the backing of the city guard.”

”City guard? Are they elementals also?”

Shae nodded her head. ”Earth spirits, more than I've ever seen in one place. In the past, they've been neutral, but suddenly they are doing his bidding.”

”How many missing elementals?”

”Hundreds, possibly more. Lord rank and below so far, no one has attempted to take any Nemesis.” Shae pulled his hand gently, and they resumed their walk toward the group.

A group of four people in cloaks stood in a half-circle waiting for them. Shae stopped a few meters away. ”This is Nix, the one I mentioned.”

Nix studied the group; they were comprised of three men and a woman. Two of the men were Water Elementals, and the third was an Air Elemental. For some reason, he couldn't get a good read on the female. ”Greetings.”

Shae pointed each person out as she introduced them. ”This is Falad, and Tibero, twin brothers and both of them are Water Nemesis. This is Shoma, the Air Nemesis, and last but not least, Silia, the Ice Nemesis.”

Falad frowned at Nix; he had short blond hair and pale skin. ”I know your reputation Nix, but a single Fire Nemesis isn't going to be much help.”

Tibero nodded in agreement. ”We have plenty of Fire Mages already.”

Shoma held up a hand to stop them from commenting further. ”Don't be so hasty, none of us has garnered so much attention from Khione. There must be a reason.”

Silia stared at him for a long moment; she had the typical Ice Nemesis coloring, white-silver hair, and pale blue eyes. ”This is very unexpected.”

Nix bit down on a smile that threatened to come. ”Secrets out.”

Tibero glanced back and forth between the two of them for a moment. ”What secret?”

Silia stepped closer; she raised a hand to touch Nix, only to have Shae step in front of him. ”Hmm... so protective. I'm not here to poach your mate. He is ready to rank up.”

Shae's warm brown eyes showed her surprise. ”An Ice Nemesis?” She turned to face him, her hand resting on his chest. ”You were barely Lord rank when last I checked.”

Nix had been caught up in Khione's trap; he had been able to separate Ice into Water and Air, someone stronger than him could definitely do the opposite. ”I can help if you allow it. I already know why the Air and Water elementals are disappearing.”

[Whisper: Nix to Shae] Can this Silia be trusted?

[Whisper: Shae to Nix] Yes, without a doubt.

Shoma's round face scrunched up; for a moment, he reminded Nix of Gil. ”Explain it then.”