Fire, Ice, and the Land of Adventure

Fire, Ice, and The Land of Adventure

   Enjoy the ride…


    The bright pink cotton candy in my mouth contrasts to the warm summer night. The Ferris wheel turns, flashing colorful lights, advertising fun. Booths offer ripped off games for high prices, and rewarding crappy prizes. Lion tamers excite the young ones with tales of danger and excitement. Me, I’m with my best friend Josie, without parents for the night. She licks her ice sugar candy stick, content. A kid at heart.
    “Let’s go on the merry-go-round, Eva!” she says, looking longingly at the shiny plastic horses galloping around in an everlasting circle. I shake my head.
     “No, thanks. But you go ahead.” I have business to attend to. She nods.
     “Have fun.” And she skips off. I begin searching. I walk past the bearded lady, two headed snake, the kissing booth, all of that. I stop at the velvet red tent, with a sign, reading, ’Tarot Reading’. I enter, finding a small wooden table with a pack of tarot cards. There’s a lady sitting there, and not the cliché old gypsy lady you see on TV. She’s fairly young, with auburn hair in light curls at her shoulders. She has a black vest on, and an apricot shirt on underneath that. She has freckles spilling across her face, and eyes as green as a stoplight. She has a necklace string plunging down into her shirt, and I wonder what’s on the end of it.  She smiles., showing slightly yellow teeth.
      I sit down at the chair across from her.
      “I would like to have my fortune read, please,” I say, feeling nervous. “How much?” Her smile grows wider.
      “If you give me your name, it’s free,” she says. It’s an odd request, but I don’t care. Free is free.
      “Eva.”
      “Full name, please.” Her voice is light and happy, but those eyes are all too serious. My mouth goes dry.
      “Evaine Kate Waters.” Her eyes twinkle.
      “Think of a question about your future in your head.” I close my eyes. Will I have an adventure tonight?
      “Okay,” I say, opening my eyes.
      She flips over the top card from the pack.
      “The Tower. Usually associated with lies, and chaos,” she says. I look at the card. A grey brick tower, being struck in two by lightning. I gulp. She turns over the next one. “The Magician.” I peek at it. It shows a young man, my age, probably a tad older, with a black top hat. His eyes have dark eyeliner on them, and his devious smile makes my skin crawl. With his chiseled features, one could call him handsome. But those violet eyes scream beware. He’s suspending a wand, a pentagon, a cup, and a sword midair.
      “The Magician is a very powerful man. He bases his magic on illusions. Beware of him,” the tarot chick says, looking solemnly in my eyes.  
     I nod. “Go on.” She turns another card.
    “Temperance. A woman of balancing good and evil.” The picture on the card shows a young woman. As I look closer, I see that she is me. She has my blue cropped hair, that I had begged my dad to let me get. She has my lip ring, and my black fingernails. She’s, I mean, I’m,  holding two cups, mixing fire and ice. The lady sweeps up all of the cards and places it back into her pack.
               “Goodbye, Evaine Kate Waters.”

      ~*~
   
       
      I emerge from the tent. I glance at the watch, and see that I had been in tent for half an hour. It didn’t seem that long. I look around for Josie, but she’s gone.
     “Hello, Evaine.” I hear from behind me. I turn around, looking for the body attached to that voice. I gasp. It’s the same man from The Magician card. He still has the same makeup on, the same sinister smile. But I can see the rest of him. A red tails jacket, just like ringmasters wear. Black pants. White gloves. A carved cane, made to look like flames. I gulp.
     “It’s Eva. And how did you know it, anyways?” I ask, trying my hardest to seem calm. His grin grows wider, if that was possible.’
     “I overheard the tarot reader,” he says, and dismissed the whole thing with the flick of his hand. He sticks out his other gloved hand.
     “Would you like to ride, a special carnival ride?” he asks. I remember the warning, Beware of him. I shake my head.
     “No, thank you,” I say quickly. He pouts dramatically.
     “Come on, Eva.” I shake my head once more. “Didn’t you want to have an adventure?” I freeze.
     “How did you-”
     “Come, Eva,” he repeats. I look into those dark violet eyes. I nod once.
     “Okay.”
      He leads me into a pinstripe tent behind him that I swear I didn’t notice before. It was pitch black. He held my hand, and led me into a cart of some sort. It was uncomfortable.
      “Strap in.”
      “How am I supposed to do that without being able to see?” I ask, annoyed.
      “Feel around.” I obey, and feel around for a seatbelt. After much searching, I do. I buckle up. “Okay, now what?”
       “Enjoy the ride,” he says, and I could hear a soft click. And the cart jerks forward, going super fast. I let out a huge ear piercing scream. I’m leaning back as far as I can, and I can’t move. And worse, it’s pitch black. Suddenly, lights start flashing around me, like some disco club. Tye dye and weird. It reminds me of the Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with the crazy boat ride. From the flashing lights, I can see that the walls are rows of mirrors, and the cart is like a mine cart on a railway.
       “What kind of ride is this?” I yell over wind. The Magician appears next to me.  
       “The Ride of Adventure,” he says, smirking. He snaps his fingers, and theres a light at the end of this mirror tunnel thing. We emerge out of it, and suddenly everything is green. Same cart, same rail, different landscape. It’s a meadow, with trees and grass and butterflies and complete happiness. The Magician snorts.
        “First stop, the Land of Tranquility.” And the cart jerks to a halt.
         A bird lands on my shoulder. I laugh, and stroke its back lightly. The Magician is not amused.
        “We are not here for fun and games,” he says, picking a ripe red fruit off of a nearby branch, and taking a bite. Juice drips from his lips.
         “Hey, what is your name?” I ask. “I can’t keep calling you The Magician in my head.”
         “The Magician?” he raises an eyebrow. I blush.
         “Never mind.”
         “Well, since You want the bio, here it is: My name is Parker. I’m 19, and I work at the Carnival. Happy?”
         “No. Parker sounds so normal,” I say, and stick my tongue out at him.
         He whips his cane up, and presses the end against my throat. Its hot to the touch. I yelp.
          “Help…” I choke out.
          “Then learn some respect,” he demands. I nod, and it burns even more. “Say, yes, Parker, sir!” his words pierce my ears like knives. I would flinch if there wasn’t a hot iron at my throat.
          “Yes, Parker, sir,” I whisper. He flicks the cane back.
          I gasp for breath, and every lung full of air feels like burning coals. He smirks, and looks around.
         “I don’t care for the Land of Tranquility. And there is nothing to learn here.” He urges me back into the cart. I go, holding the tender spot where his cane met my flesh. I take a quick glance back at the peaceful paradise. I wish I could stay longer.
         “Who are you?” I ask in so low a voice I’m surprised he even hears me.
          Parker’s chuckles sends ripples throughout my body.
          “I am The Evil your Good.” That is all he says. My head bounces questions back and forth. But all I do is bite my lip and scream silently as the cart pulls forward into my destiny.

           ~*~


    “The Land of Fears,” Parker says as we arrive. I look out. It’s a grassy meadow, bright sun, a cottage in the distance. Flowers bloom on the hillside. This is the Land of Fears? Parker bites his lip.
    “Hurry, step out,” he says urgently. I take a hesitant step onto the soft grass. The scene instantly changes. It’s a graveyard, but not the creepy haunted ones that you see in movies. A normal one, on green grass. The air is humid, not foggy. The tombstones aren’t cracked and mossy. They’re plain, clean, nice. And yet I’m shaking.    Chills are going through my spine, veins pumping madly.
   “Mama is buried here,” I whisper.
   Parker nods silently behind me.
   “So your fear is death,” he says. It’s not accusing. More understanding.
   I shake my head. “No, it’s not. I’m comfortable with death, I swear.”
   “Then what are you afraid of?” I shrug.
    “No clue.”
    “Let’s find your mother. I’d like to meet her,” Parker says, and starts walking. I gently tug on his collar. He whirls around. “Yes?” he asks coolly.
     “She’s this way,” I say, and tug him in the right direction. I lead him to the bottom of a small hill. On a plain tombstone in the shape of a normal rectangle. I’ve always hated that tombstone, because it’s not at all like Mama. She was not plain. She was not normal. She was Mom. Or at least, I hope she was unique.  A tear rolls down my cheek, and I wipe it away before Parker can see.
      Thankfully, Parker doesn’t notice. Instead, he bends down to get a closer look at the tombstone. He reads what it says aloud.
      “Kate Waters. In Memory Of A Loving Daughter, Wife, and Mother.” He looks up. “Kate. Isn’t that your middle name?” I nod.
       “She uh.” I swallow. “died in childbirth. You know, giving birth to me. And so my dad gave me her name as a middle name.” I have never told anybody how she died. Parker stood up suddenly.
       “That’s your ‘fear’, so to speak,” he says.
       “What is?”
       “You’re afraid of your mom. You feel guilty, which you shouldn’t be, for supposedly killing your mother. You’re afraid that she’ll resent you for it,” he says, as if he finally solved a difficult math riddle. I stare at him, mouth slightly open.
       “You figured it out,” I say, almost bitterly. He smiles slightly. I know I should be mad and denying it all, but every single word he’s said is true. Too true.
       “It’s all in your eyes. Those pale blue eyes filled with sadness.” I sniffle, and collapse to my knees. The graveyard melts around me, and we’re back in the same meadow. Parker quietly sits next to me. And we breathe for a while. It's a long time before we get back into the cart, and he presses the button to our next destination.
     



~*~



    “The Land of Desires,” Parker says. I look around. Everything was pure white. Like a blank piece of paper.
     “Uh…looks fun,” I say. I’m afraid to step out, because I might dissolve into it. But Parker prodded me with his cane, and I hesitantly stepped out. It’s weird standing on nothing. I can feel the ground underneath me, but it was just white.  
   “Wish for anything, and it is granted,” Parker says.
    “Anything?”
   “That’s what I just said.” His voice has the height of annoyance, but still gentle. He gestures towards the nothingness. “Desire, Evaine.”
    I think of what I want. To start out simple, my mouth watered at the thought of cotton candy. A bright pink fluff appears in my hands. I stuff it all in my mouth and swallow.
    “There.” I cross my arms over my chest. He smiles.
    “Think bigger.”
    “A sidewalk beneath my feet would be nice.” Poof! Of course it appears right beneath me. I also desire up a tree.
     “You don’t really want much, do you?” Parker asks, an eyebrow raised.
     “Nope. I’m good.”
     “Not even your mother?” His voice is high, daring. It says, go on, wish for it. See what happens. Well, I don’t feel like playing his game.
      “No, I think the Land of Fears cured that. I’m all cried out.” My smile is coy, and I’m toying with him.
      “Well, then let’s leave.” He starts to walk back towards the vehicle/cart/coaster/whateveritis. I extend my arm out, stopping him. It’s a bold move, and I’m terrified of what he will do next. But I don’t show it.
       “I desire to see what Parker desires,” I say in a cocky voice. He curses under his breath as the scene changes. It’s that grassy meadow with the cottage in the distance from the Land of Fears.
       “Okay let’s go now-”
       “Wait,” I say, holding a hand up. “This is your desire? Wasn’t this in the Land of Fears also?”
       “Yes,” he says through gritted teeth.
       “That doesn’t make any sense.”
       “It makes perfect sense. Having a house in the meadow is both a fear and a desire for me.”
       “Why?” I ask.
        His face changes instantly. He gets very close. Too close. Our noses are only a penny apart.
       “Curiosity killed the cat,” he says slowly. Then he kisses me. Well, some could argue that it was too short to be a kiss. His lips brushed mine for a fraction of a millisecond. My first reaction: to melt on the spot because of how soft it was. My second reaction? To punch him squarely in the nose. He stumbles back, clutching his face. I can hear chuckles.
       “That wasn’t for romance, Evaine. Just wait.”
       Then I burn.
       My lips are on fire, hot to the touch. I could feel it crumbling, blackening. It quickly spread to my entire body. Fire. On the inside. My body collapses. I scream to make the pain go away. Tears trickle down my cheek, but it only makes the flames get hotter. But I can still hear the laughter.
       “The Kiss of Fire,” the voice travels through the pain.
       “I desire it to stop…” I choke out.
       “Too late. It’s what I want now.” He pauses. “But I have to keep you alive.” His lips touch mine again, and the pain melts. I’m slowly back to normal. But I lie there, breathing heavily.
        “I hate you.” My voice is weak, but it sounds confident.
        “I know.” More chuckles.


       ~*~
       
      “The Land of…” he sighs, “Love.” And it’s about as corny and cheesy as a Mexican dinner. Fountains squirting out pink water that forms in the shape of a heart. Mini cupids fly around. Heart shaped stones lying around. Gag.
      “Ew,” I say. “Do we have to stop here.”
       “Unfortunately, yes.”
       I pluck a flower by my feet. It's red petals shy away from my touch.
      "Is there something wrong with me?" I ask.
      "Yes. You're too cold." Parker says it so casually, that I think it's just a jab. A fairy flutters around my head, in blue pixie wings and a fitted green dress.
       "You two are just way too cute for eachother!" the fairy gushes. I try to swat it away.
       "Piss off, you flying freak," Parker snaps. The fairy giggles again, then flies off.
       "Let's go," I say.
        Just as we were about to leave, one of the flying cupids jabs an arrow in my back.
       “Fuckers,” I mutter, and yank it out. It stings really badly, but I suck it up.
       “Evaine.”
       “Yeah?” I almost forget that he calls me by my real name. Almost.
       “Those arrows are poisonous.”
       “S**t.”
        Everything fades, and I collapse.

        The scene is foggy and darker when my vision comes back. The fountain is off, and the cupids are gone. Parker sleeps softly beside me. For the first time, I notice the scar on his lower lip. I touch it gently with my pinky. Parker stirs slightly, but doesn’t awake. I’m still tired. So I curl up next to him, and close my eyes.
       
    ~*~
        I wake up in the cart. It’s moving slowly, chugging not so fast.
       “I hate you.”
    Parker’s voice isn’t hateful, or accusing.. All I hear is sadness.
     “The feeling is mutual.” I also hate how my voice sounded exactly the same. Tinged with pain.
      This time his kiss is harder, more passionate. I’m about to punch him, when I taste tears on his lips. I gently jerked my head back.
      "You're too goddamn confusing," I say. "Do you like me, or hate me?"
      "I hate how much I love you." The answer sends a needle through my pride.
      "Am I too awful to love?"
      "Yes."
      I will the tears in my eyes to go away.
      "Then let me off this ride."
       “I am so sorry…” he whispers. I feel a small prick in the nape of my neck, and a rush of cold.

       And that’s when I pass out for the second time in the past 24-hours.


~*~


    I wake up with my feet locked up in a chain attached quite firmly to the wall. I look around. I was in a windowless room, with a small door to the left. I try to open it, but of course its pointless. I notice a small plate of dry, crumbly bread by the door. I shove it in my mouth, and I choke it down my throat. It doesn’t taste good, just as expected.
     I sit there, on the cold floor, waiting. Minutes drip into what seem like hours. The knot in my stomach gets tighter and tighter, until the door swings open. Parker's in the doorway, a pained look in his eyes. He strides over and unlocks my chains.
    “Come with me.” his voice is serious and formal. I hesitate.
    “No.” But my voice falters. Parker lifts up his cane, the bottom millimeters away from my neck.
    He grits his teeth and says, “Come. With. Me.”
    And this time, I do.


   ~*~


  It’s a throne room.
    “The final stop, Evaine,” he says, then laughs like he just heard a really funny joke. And that doesn’t go over well with my stomach. And my head.
      I look to see who’s sitting in that fancy-a*s throne. And my body goes cold to see the lady from the tarot tent. Same auburn hair. Same green eyes. But her seashell-pink lips are pulled into a devious smile of pure wickedness. A bejeweled silver crown is on her head.
      “Evaine Kate Waters, approach me,” the tarot lady says. And strangely, I can’t resist. Before you start giving me crazy looks, I sure as hell don’t want to go up to her. But it’s like I have to. My body moves itself, and my brain doesn’t have a say. I watch in horror as I kneel right in front of her and bow my head.
      “What did you do to me?” I ask, still bowing. She chortles.
      “Immortals should never give away their full name.” Something about the way she says it makes me think that there's more to this story than just a ride of lands.
      “Uh…what?”  Tarot chick(I really need to get a new name for her) stops laughing, puts a manicured nail under my chin, jerking my face up to eye level.
      “That’s right, immortal.” she smirks. “Because, you, Evaine Kate Waters, are one of the elements.”
      I am so not going to do the whole, what are you talking about s**t, because I kind of already do.
       “Which one?” I ask. The surprise is obvious on her face, but she continues.
       “You are Ice. Like how Parker here is Fire.”  My eyes flicker over to Parker, who is looking extremely uncomfortable with this whole ordeal. Of course Parker is Fire. But me? Ice?
       “Cool. Do I get any special powers?” My voice sounds more confident than I am.
       “Yes. The Kiss of Ice is one.”
       Click. Clock. That’s the sound of my brain whirling.
       “Like Parker’s Kiss of Fire.”
       “Precisely.”
       “So, uhm, what are you?” I ask her. She waves the question away.
    “First, let me explain to you the whole Immortal Element nature,” she says.
     Oh, great, I think.
     “You see, there are more than just four elements in the world, unlike humans believe. Yes, much more than just Fire, Air, Earth and Water. Much more. And these elements have human spirits. They, represent them, in a way. These humans do not have the power to control their element, only through special weaponry they are givin as a babe, and in a kiss.”
       Lame.
      “Well, all of these human elements still alive. Except your poor mother, who was the Mineral Element. She died while giving birth to you. Also explains why you never knew about your power. But I still have your weapon that was made before you were born, if you would like to have it.”
       “Uh…sure.” I really don’t want to see where this is going. Tarot chick reaches under her throne and produces a jeweled dagger. Real emeralds are in the hilt. I balance it in my palms, whistling softly under my breath. Whoa.
       “Whoever you cut that with will turn to ice.”
       “Cool.”
       Her eyes go cold.
       “You won’t be able to use it, you know,” she says softly.
       “W-why not?” I stutter out.
       “Because you’ll be dead before you get the chance.” And suddenly, Parker is behind me, pressing his cane against my neck. I gulp.
       “Don’t worry, his cane is set on ‘low temperature’.” And she laughs like she’s the funniest piece of s**t on this planet.
       “Can someone explain to me what is going on?"
       “You wanna know who I am?” she rips the dagger out of my hands. “I am Lightning. Powerful, and beautiful. Also, Lightning can create Fire. That’s why Parker is so loyal.” Lightning turns to Parker. “Aren’t you, baby?” she cooes.
       “Yes, Mistress,” he chokes. Lighting gets close to my face.
       “Let me show you my little toy.” She pulls out the necklace string out of shirt. On the end, I see a little locket. Her smile is devious, as she picks the locket open with her fingernail.
       And all hell breaks loose.

      Lightning’s lightning bolts push out from the necklace, shooting off in every direction. They’re so bright it blinds me. All I can see is white. One hits me and I am knocked to the ground, and everything throbs. My chest burns. Parker is right beside me.
     “I am so sorry…” he whispers. Lightning chuckles.
     “Ha. They say only Fire and Ice can stop me. Bullshit. I am too powerful. And now I can rule without you getting in the way.” While she’s busy laughing maniacally, I reach for the jeweled dagger. I struggle, to stand up, and I limp behind her.
      And I stab an Element in the back. All of her blood immediately freezes in its place. Her heart stops beating. But Lightning is still alive, giggling at me.
     “You stupid girl. It takes more than one element to kill another Element.”
     “How about two?” Parker’s voice is strong and powerful, coming from behind Lightning. As soon as Lightning turns around, Parker smashes his mouth against hers. My heart burns with envy for a slight second, but I realize Parker doesn’t love her. He’s killing her.
     “The Kiss of Fire.” My voice is what makes Parker stop. As he pulls away, Lightning chokes loudly, gurgles, and turns to ashes. Everything except her necklace remains. And some sparks that are still flying in the air from all of that lightning. Parker drops his cane, and it clashes to the ground. He strides over to me, and presses his lips against mine. Softly. With love. His lips are warm, and I realize that mine are ice cold. When I finally pull away, sparks still flying, I laugh softly.
       “This really is the Ride of Adventure,” I say.
       “You better believe it.”
       And as the history books will say later, this is when Fire and Ice were finally united together.





           ~Epilogue~
       
       
        Eva and Parker did get married, ten years later. They had a daughter, who was a Thunder Element. Her name was Kate. She fell in love with Carson, the next Lightning Element. And they did stir up some trouble, creating storms everywhere.
        Parker’s Ride of Adventure is still there. You just need to look in the right place. And where does this ride end, you ask?
        In Fire and Ice’s property. It’s a lovely meadow in the country where they built a small but cozy cottage. But there’s a small wooden sign put up in front.

    It reads:


       The Land of Adventure...

Author's Note

Oh my, this might be the longest short story I've ever written. And it did take a VERY long to write.

No, I did not 'steal' anything from any book, movie, etc. Amazingly, I thought it up all by myself.
Yes, it does have a happy ending. Suck it up. I did try to make every romantic moment have some violence.
Please please PLEASE, read and review. This took so much time and effort. I would like to be rewarded.

Reviews

[roarke]

Evaine Kate Waters, cool name.

let's see, Willie Wonka meets Alice in wonderland and they crash the secret crack party at Disney's it's a Small World ..... I can tell you mix your breakfast cereals in one bowl. lol.

I think "The Never Ending Story" was shorter....jk.

fun stuff. Although not related, it reminded me of the Bradbury book, "Something Wicked This Way Comes" one of my favorites.

ok, now for your reward.... how about an autographed CD of Earth, Wind and Fire's Greatest Hits and a life time supply of cotton candy, as if you needed any more sugar. lol.

[Undying Glory]

you've spun a marvelous yarn here, it's really great. i guess you sure deserve to be rewarded for this, and i do believe i owe you a few reviews in return. great work

[Essy]

well, it has fluff. awesome fluff. so i obviousally like it. good job XD but goddddddddd do i love it :)

[Bella-Marie]

It's very long, very interesting and would make a smashing book. I think you have a great plot and a great writing sense but I think it rambled a bit. Maybe be more confident in what you write. I know this sounds crazy but if you re-read your writing you might see it reads slightly shyly, so if you take away some of the more confused wording it might sound more fluent.
My favourite bits are the romance ones because they have such potential! You know when she gets poisoned by the freaky cupids and wakes up in the cart? You could have the cart ride longer, and them having this gigantic argument and THEN finally kissing. Or something like that.
Your idea is splendid. I had heaps of fun reading and reviewing. And the ending is great too. Excellent work.