Free Water Shaper (World Aflame) by Jon Messenger Page A

driving on the shoulder sounded like a quick escape from the traffic. It sounded its siren again briefly and cars merged back into regular traffic, allowing it past.
    The husband smiled. “See, there’s a police car. They’ll figure out what’s going on and get traffic moving here in a little bit.”
    “Knock on the glass when they figure it out,” the wife said as she pressed the automatic button for the window. The glass on the driver’s side of the Audi rolled up and closed, trapping the soothing air conditioning inside.
    The man’s smile faded, and he stood upright. The sun was intense and blinding. He could see waves dancing over the surface of the road in the distance, making the shape of people walking on the highway. It was the curse of living in the desert , he told himself. There was always a mirage appearing before your vision.
    He raised a hand to his brow, blocking out the glaring light, though it did little to block out the sunlight reflecting off the hundreds of mirrors in front of him.
    Though he was trying to see the accident ahead, his eyes found the mirage of black-clad people walking on the highway once more. He furrowed his brow and looked on confusedly.
    A man climbed from his car beside him, and the husband pointed to the distance.
    “Are you seeing this?”
    The man shrugged. “The accident?”
    The husband looked beyond the car wreck blocking the road. The shape of people walking through the desert was still present.
    “No, beyond it.”
    The other driver shaded his eyes and stared beyond. He frowned and looked back at the husband. “Are those people out there?”
    “That’s what I thought.”
    “There must be a couple hundred of them out there.”
    The husband nodded. He heard the whir of the car window rolling down beside him.
    “What’s going on, honey?” his wife asked.
    The husband didn’t look over but motioned toward her with his free hand. “I don’t know. Keep the kids in the car and roll up the windows.”
    The other driver pointed toward the accident. “Looks like the cops see them, too. They’re driving over to check it out.”
    The police car pulled onto the asphalt and cruised down the open road, advancing on the army of Fire Warriors. The two men watched it coast forward, growing closer and closer to the strange men and women. With a flash of light, the police car exploded. It pinwheeled into the air, landing on its roof with a crash of twisting metal.
    They flinched and nearly fell over. Specks of flame spread across the strange people, as though they were catching fire. Near the accident, people climbed out of their cars and turned away from the scene, forcing their way between the stalled traffic.
    The husband reached over and smacked the window with his hand. Begrudgingly, the wife rolled down the window once again.
    “What is it?”
    “Get out of the car,” he said.
    The distant figures were growing closer, approaching the accident. Panicked people raced past their car, roughly pushing the husband aside.
    “What’s going on?”
    The husband opened the back door and reached through, unbuckling his son’s seatbelt. Confusedly, the wife climbed from the passenger’s seat and looked toward the accident. As she watched, the two wrecked cars exploded into flames. She screamed and opened the back passenger’s door, nearly yanking their daughter from her seat.
    The family turned and ran back toward Los Angeles.
     
    General Kobal laughed maliciously as he threw a ball of flame through the windshield of another car. The windows burst outward, showering the area in glass, and black smoke billowed from the car’s core.
    “ General, ” the Fire Elemental said, watching its minions gleefully burning the rows of abandoned cars.
    “My Master,” he said, stepping away from the burning car.
    “ Lead the march into the city. I’m flying ahead to… soften the city for your arrival. ”
    Kobal smiled and nodded. “It will be done.”
    The Elemental held its arms