Heart Of Ember

• Amaya Deshmukh, Grade 6
• Short Story
• 2022

“Arrgggh!” Ember screamed in rage. Derek had gone too far this time. Her brother had decided to shed his fur all over her room which had just been cleaned!
He must have done it at some point during the night. Sparks shot through her veins to her fingertips. She took a calming breath to let the feeling disappear, she didn’t want to set her room on fire again.
Ember was a blend of fox and human; her brother was polar bear and human. Some people were given elemental powers like Ember, she had been given the power of fire.
After Ember had found a broom and finally cleaned up the mess, she got ready for school. After she’d eaten breakfast, she picked up her sword from behind the door and walked out.
It was a precaution to take a weapon with you when you were going out on her island of Balance, because there were monsters in dark areas, like forests, and there happened to be a forest surrounding the school. Even in the daylight, monsters roamed underneath the dense canopy of Heal-flame Forest and right in the centre of it was Ember’s school. Convenient place, right? But there was a purpose, it was to give the students that went to the school the strength to survive in the real world when they were adults. Of course, Ember was used to it now. The tall trees and dense vegetation were so easy to get lost in, but she loved it all the same.
As she trekked up the hill, she heard a rustling nearby. Her fox senses told her that it was not the wind. She took out her sword and summoned her fire, ready to fight.
A second later her best friend Amethyst burst out of the bushes, “Ack, calm down it’s me!” she cried. It was then Ember noticed Amethyst looked horrible. She had leaves and twigs strewn through her hair, and her clothes were torn. “Woah, what happened to you?” she asked.
“I was walking to school and suddenly this gigantic tentacle reached out and grabbed me!” she said, “I tried to get free, but I was too big as a human, so I transformed into my bearded dragon form and sent a sandstorm into the sky. I think it was enough to scare it, so I managed to escape,” she finished.
“Hmm” Ember said, “we should tell Mrs Magellan about this when we get to school.” Amethyst nodded and they started to walk to the school.
When they were about halfway, Ember stopped, “Something doesn’t feel right,” she murmured. She listened for the sound of movement, but she heard nothing, she turned to keep walking but accidentally stepped on a stick.
Crack! There was silence for a moment then suddenly, Crash! Two gigantic tentacles reached out of the forest wrapping themselves around the girls’ waists. The last thing Ember saw was the look of terror on Amethyst’s face before the forest engulfed her.