The Ytherrian Luminary

Lira and Kell moved swiftly through the dense forest, their thoughts occupied by their recent discoveries from the scrolls. They were eager to find Xalin and share their new techniques. However, as they neared the outskirts of the city, something unusual happened.

The earth beneath their feet vibrated, a low rumble growing stronger with each step. Both Lira and Kell froze in place, looking at each other, instinctively jumping out of the way. They landed just in time, narrowly avoiding a surge of earth that shot up where they had just been standing.

"What the—?" Kell muttered, eyes wide as he scanned their surroundings. 

Lira's gaze turned serious. "There's definitely an earthbender around… and it seems like they're looking for a fight."

They looked to where the ground had erupted and saw a girl standing there, staring not at their faces, but at their feet. Her stance was relaxed, but her air of confidence made both Lira and Kell feel as if they were being looked down upon. She smirked.

"I'll show you who's the weaker one!" Lira shouted, her temper flaring. Blood aura exploded from her arms in a violent burst as she dashed toward the girl, throwing wild punches.

The earthbender simply closed her eyes and grinned, effortlessly dodging each of Lira's strikes with minimal movement, as if Lira's attacks were nothing more than a breeze. 

Lira's blood aura whipped through the air, but the girl simply danced around each blow, her feet never leaving the ground for too long. She evaded Lira with almost lazy motions, smirking all the while. With one smooth motion, she stomped the ground, and suddenly, Lira found herself stuck in the earth, unable to move.

Before the girl could finish her taunt, Kell jumped from behind Lira, landing in front of the earthbender with his shadows spreading across the field. The dark tendrils snaked their way toward the girl's feet, but she reacted quickly, raising a pillar of earth beneath her, lifting herself out of the shadows' reach. 

"Tsssk," the earthbender cursed, striking the pillar beneath her, shattering it and sending rocks flying as she gracefully landed back on the ground. But as her feet touched the shadows Kell had cast, she felt nothing. Her connection to the earth was severed. Her confidence wavered for a moment.

"Alright, you win," she said, raising her hands with a sly smile. "I know when I've lost."

Kell's brow furrowed in suspicion, but he began retracting his shadows. The earthbender stomped the ground, releasing Lira from her earthen prison. Lira, clearly frustrated, dusted herself off and glared at the girl.

"Who are you?" Kell asked, his voice steady but cautious. "Have you met a boy with tattooed arrows on his forehead and arms?"

The earthbender raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, I did. But it'll be hard to find him with that description, considering he's concealing them. But with my ability, I could see through his disguise," she said, her voice tinged with amusement.

She got into a firm stance, moving her arms in controlled, fluid motions. The earth rumbled beneath them, and a tunnel began forming in the ground. "Follow this path, and it'll lead you right to the arena where your friend is," she said, starting to walk away. "See you around."

"We're not done yet!" Lira shouted, clenching her fists in anger.

"Yeah, I'm sure we'll meet again, sugar queen," the girl teased, infuriating Lira further as she disappeared into the forest.

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Meanwhile, back at the arena, Xalin was preparing for his next match. His opponent was none other than the earthbending champion of the underground arena—a large, muscle-bound man whose reputation preceded him. The crowd roared as the champion, clad in earthen armor, stepped into the ring. He flexed his muscles, taunting Xalin with a sneer.

"You think you can take me down, little guy? I'm gonna destroy you!" the champion shouted, his voice booming through the arena.

Xalin simply smirked in response, tossing aside his staff. His fists clenched as black flames began to swirl around his arm. The air in the arena grew hotter as the flames erupted, the entire arena engulfed in heat.

"Begin!" the announcer shouted.

The champion wasted no time, stomping his foot and creating a massive landslide, riding the wave of earth like a surfer. He charged straight toward Xalin, his grin widening as he gained speed.

Xalin, still smirking, planted his fist into the ground. A surge of black flames erupted from his hand, rushing across the arena and consuming everything in its path. The heat was so intense that the crowd gasped in awe, many shielding their faces from the scorching air.

The earthbender, realizing the danger, immediately stopped his landslide and encased himself in a thick cocoon of earth. He could feel the heat pressing in on him, but the cocoon held strong. Beneath him, he opened a hole in the earth and tunneled through, aiming to get underneath Xalin.

Suddenly, the ground beneath Xalin exploded, sending him flying into the air. But Xalin reacted quickly, using short bursts of airbending to jump from stone to stone, propelling himself into a graceful flip. He twisted mid-air, releasing an air burst from his feet that shot toward the earthbender, forcing him back.

The earthbender grinned, raising his arms as large boulders began to rise from the ground. With powerful punches, he sent the boulders hurtling toward Xalin, who dodged and flipped through the air, using air currents to evade the onslaught. With a quick motion, Xalin created an air sphere around one of the boulders, sending it flying back toward the earthbender. 

The champion laughed, smashing through the boulder with a single punch. "Is that all you've got?"

Then, the arena floor started to shake. Molten lava began to bubble up from cracks in the earth, and the crowd gasped in fear. The earthbender had unleashed his trump card—lava bending. Eruptions of lava burst from the ground, sending waves of heat and molten rock toward Xalin.

Xalin's heart raced as he dodged, using air currents to propel himself away from the deadly lava. He quickly realized that airbending alone wouldn't be enough. He had to act fast. Using his airbending, he cooled the lava into solid earth pillars, giving him platforms to jump from. But the heat was intense, and the earthbender showed no signs of slowing down.

"Get down, twinkle toes!" the champion shouted, his voice dripping with frustration as Xalin continued to evade.

"I guess I have no choice," Xalin muttered to himself, "than to show you what I'm capable of." 

He took a deep breath, getting into a fluid stance. Moving his arms in graceful motions, he called upon the water beneath the arena. Slowly, an enormous wave of water rose from the ground, crashing toward the earthbender with terrifying force.

The earthbender's eyes widened in shock. "What the heck?!"

He raised a massive wall of earth, tearing a trench in the arena floor to block the wave. He elevated himself on an earth pillar, launching earth projectiles toward Xalin. But Xalin was already moving, creating a spiraling water pillar that shot around the battlefield. With precision, Xalin formed ice disks and sent them hurtling toward the earthbender, while using water tendrils to deflect the incoming earth projectiles.

The battle was fierce. Xalin's mastery over water was overwhelming the champion, and the crowd watched in stunned silence as Xalin's waterbending outmatched the earthbender's lava attacks. Finally, Xalin summoned water jets that shot forward like octopus legs, wrapping around the earthbender and freezing him in place. With a final wave of his hand, Xalin sent a massive wave crashing down on the earthbender, freezing the entire arena in a thick layer of ice.

"One for all, great glacial despair!" Xalin shouted, his voice echoing through the frozen arena.

The crowd fell silent, their eyes wide in disbelief. Xalin stood tall, victorious, as he picked up his staff and began walking back to the viewing area. The champion lay frozen in place, defeated.

As Xalin reached the edge of the arena, he spotted two familiar figures in the distance—Lira and Kell. A smile crept across his face. It seemed their journey was far from over.

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