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A week had passed since Tornado had met with the leaders. He had trained as diligently as usual but hadn’t made any progress in discovering new forms of darkness. He had perfected what he had discovered but the pressure of the leader’s words left him frustrated. He didn’t have any leads and wasn’t willing to ask the Dark Lord for any favors.

“Tornado,” Umbro suggested during their Rebel training, “Why don’t you take a break from the darkness for a bit. You could focus on weapons or elements.”

He tensed at the thought. “I don’t have time to take it easy. I have to focus on getting stronger. I know the Dark Lord is stronger and knows more than me. I have to learn all that I can.”

“Take a break, Tornado,” Umbro ordered, “You’ve built up too much stress. If you take the time to rest I’m sure the answers you need will come to you more easily.”

Tornado sighed. “I understand.”

The rest of the group stopped training as he approached. Tornado had become a symbol of strength to them. His presence had become more powerful as his darkness matured. They waited for him to speak eagerly.

“I’ll be taking a break for a while,” he told the group assembled before him, “Umbro will continue to lead you as he has in my absence. I will continue to train on my own.”

“Will you be leaving right away?” Durza asked knowing that he had already made up his mind to leave.

“Yes. I was thinking of training with Barren,” he answered.

“He will be at the lake north of here with the others,” Umbro informed him, “His group doesn’t use a barrier so they should be easy to find.”

“Thank you.” Tornado ran to the northern edge of the clearing with his wings spread wide. He launched himself into the air and rose above the tree line. The group below felt the barrier break as he left. Their spirits seemed to break with it.

“Do you think it will be long before he trains with us again?” Ember asked sadly.

“I sure hope not,” Charizo told them crossing his arms.

“We have to keep training even if he’s away,” Pye told them half-heartedly,
“He would be upset if we became lazy just because he’s gone.”

“Pye is right,” Umbro told them firmly as he unsheathed his sword. “Let’s train hard so that he will be impressed. We can’t let ourselves slack off. Tornado is training hard so we must as well. We have to become strong so we can support him.”

Despite Umbro’s vigor there was a somber air over the group as they trained. Even Umbro felt himself glancing north. They all half expected to see his dark form step out of the shadows.

Tornado flew low over the trees. They still held their green foliage tightly despite the brisk air. It wasn’t long before the sparkling blue water appeared through the branches. He circled over the lake as he looked for familiar forms along the shores. On the water’s surface white circles formed. They seemed to grow larger and bubble as he watched them. Tornado’s eyes grew wide as he realized they were moving towards him. He dodged the spouts of water as he maneuvered his way to the shore. They followed herding him away. He flew towards them bending the water away and landed safely on the shore. The spouts fell instantly leaving only ripples on the lakes surface.

The four leaders walked out of the trees to meet him. Amunet clung to Barren’s arm as Fatchna glared at him. This was the first time Tornado got a look at them in proper light. Gathee had grey bat-like wings and he was slightly shorter than Barren. Fatchna had deep brown-feathered wings and was the tallest in the group. Amunet was the shortest in the group by nearly a foot. Her wings had orange feathers that faded to yellow along the tips.

“Sorry about that, my boy,” Gathee laughed as he met him at the shoreline. “I thought you were the messenger.”

“What did the messenger ever do to you?” Tornado asked shaking the water from his wings.

“He made me meet with that detestable Dark Lord,” he explained clapping Tornado on the back with surprising strength for his age. “Now what are you here for? Something happen with your unit?”

“No it’s nothing that serious,” he told them, “I am thinking of taking a break from darkness training to focus on other areas. Umbro advised me to so that I could clear my mind a bit.”

“I see.” Gathee nodded thoughtfully. “What brings you here?”

“I was wondering if I could train with you.”

“With us?” Fatchna erupted with laughter. “Do you know what you are implying?”

“We are Suul, Tornado. Do you think you can keep up if you are fighting regularly?” Amunet asked.

“You can test me if you want,” Tornado offered returning their cold looks.

“We wouldn’t have it any other way.” Barren turned to Gathee. “The usual?”

Gathee nodded smiling slyly. Amunet released her hold on Barren as she straightened herself up. The four of them backed up to stand in a line in front of the trees.

“What do I have to do?” Tornado asked tensed for anything.

“We will all attack you at once with our elements,” Gathee explained, “We will not leave this spot. We will win if you cannot fend for yourself and leave your spot.”

“That’s impossible,” Tornado protested, “How am I supposed to win if it is four against one?”

“You aren’t expected to,” Barren told him, “We want to see how you handle yourself against a difficult situation. Don’t think that we will go easy on you. You have to prove yourself worthy of training with us.”

“For can win if you make us leave this spot,” Gathee continued. “Do you accept this challenge?”

“Yes,” he answered firmly, “I just have to prove myself strong enough.”

“All right then.” Gathee beamed. “Begin!”

There was a sudden wave of heat that seemed to remove all the humidity of the air. At the same time a rush of water from the lake sounded behind him. Tornado felt the air grow hotter and knew that fire would soon follow. He stopped the water and pulled the cool air that surrounded the lake in a squall of wind. Having focused on the wind the water once again made its advance. At the same time a loud crack sounded as the ground split beneath Tornado’s feet. He extended his wings and held himself afloat with pockets of air as the gap grew wider. The water that had surged up the shore spilled into the crevice and thundered down into the darkness below.

“Very resourceful, Tornado,” Gathee called over the distance between them.

Tornado closed the crevice and let the water saturate the ground. The earth around the leaders become soft but none of them sunk.

“You aren’t standing on the ground,” Tornado observed. He let his darkness flow with the air sensing the elements around them. The air whirred violently around their bodies suspending them in the air.

“Shall we?” Barren asked suddenly to the others who smiled excitedly back.
Everything was still and silent but Tornado’s heart began to race. He felt uneasy at the strange presence around him. His body tensed instinctively and his mind opened to see the darkness of nature. The area was densely shadowed all around him.

The earth quaked beneath his feet as the air grew heavy with humidity. The view of the leaders became warped with heat. Tornado began to gasp in attempt to breathe in oppressing air. He waited unsure where to focus his attention against the mounting energy. A flash of light burst around him as fire ignited the air. A barrage of elements struck from every side. Tornado was able to deflect the attacks but was unable to counter. He kept himself planted in his spot as he tried to find an opening. In every attack he could feel the castor’s darkness weaved within the element. With each attack he grew more accustomed to the presence.

I can see it. Tornado was able to trace the darkness back to the one who commanded the attack. He was able to read where they would strike by sensing the connection. I can see through their attacks. This ends now! I know who used each element I can make it difficult for them to deflect my attack. Barren controls earth, Gathee water, Amunet, fire, and Fatchna air. With this I will win.

Tornado sent a burst of air to scatter the accumulation of dark energy with its power. He struck the Leaders in the same way that they had attacked him. He had the force of four fighters but the Leaders knew how to protect one another. Their eyes darted rapidly as they focused solely on defense.

The more power that Tornado put into his attacks the more they faltered. He panted as he felt his energy drained by the elements. He clenched his fists as he focused all of his remaining energy into a final attack. Wind whipped across the shore ripping branches off of the trees. Barren sheltered the group with large slabs of earth. He lowered them only when the howling of wind stopped. Tornado stumbled backwards and fell holding himself up to sit. He wiped aside his bangs to see the Leaders untouched by his attack.

“I lose?” he asked with a grimace.

“What good would training with us be if you won?” Barren asked walking across the gap. “You’re control of the elements is impressive but your stamina is lacking.”

“I know,” Tornado answered still catching his breath. “I need to get stronger. The Dark Lord’s powers are far greater and experienced than mine. If I can master weapons and elements I may still have a chance.”

“Understood,” Gathee called over. “We will teach you everything that we know.”