Elemental Magic: All-New Tales of the Elemental Masters Read Online Free Page B

gust of wind rose that parted the flames to either side.
    “Aha!” the bird croaked. “So you do have Fire within you!”
    “So, what of it?” Appollonios growled. He rubbed his temples, then felt around for his wine goblet. Perhaps a little sip might ease the throbbing, or at least put him in a better mood.
    The bird hopped forward and pecked hard at his arm. “Ouch!” Appollonios cried. “Stop that!”
    “You must help us!”
    “Help you? Why would I want to help such a rude fellow as yourself?”
    The bird raised every one of his feathers until he looked like an inky explosion and hopped about. “A crisis!” it squawked. “Catastrophe! Unspeakable disaster!”
    “Now, now, calm down,” Appollonios said. “What has happened? Is someone hurt, is that what you are saying?”
    “Worse!” the bird wailed. “We have been affronted!”
    “Affront—? What? Oh,
do
go away!” Appollonios turned his back to the bird, only to feel a sharp peck at the base of his spine. “Ouch! Now see here, you—!”
    “Invasion!” the bird shrieked while flailing its wings. “Horrendous invasion! A grievous insult! You must help us!”
    “Solve your own problems,” Appollonios grumbled.
    “We cannot! We have tried, but we cannot turn back the invaders! Only the Fire that is within you can save us! We—mmf!”
    Appollonios moved quickly for such an old man, and before the bird could hop away, its beak was clamped tight by a firm hand. “Now, you listen,” he growled. “My Fire is not for your war—not yours, not anyone’s. I will not help you if you wish me to cause harm to another. Do you understand?”
    “Mmff,” the bird said.
    “Now, if I release this dagger of yours, will you tell me—quietly, please—
exactly
what troubles you? Perhaps I may be of some help after all.”
    “Mmff,” the bird said contritely.
    Appollonios released the bird’s beak and sat back on his knees. “Now then. Who is this invader?”
    “It is a man.”
    “And what is he doing to your people?”
    “He is flying.”
    There was a rather lengthy silence after that. Appollonios poked a finger into his ear to swab it out and then leaned closer. “I am sorry,” he said, “What did you say this man is doing?”
    “He is flying!”
    There was another rather lengthy silence, and then Appollonios roared with laughter and fell onto his back. “Oh, you!”
    The bird beat his wings furiously. “He is flying, I tell you! I saw him! The man is flying!”
    “So what if he is?”
    “It is an affront! An invasion! Men belong to the Earth! They do not belong to the Air! He has no place with us! You must help us!”
    Still laughing, Appollonios rubbed at his eyes. “I think perhaps that both of us were enjoying our wine too much last night. Men do not fly.”
    “This one does! He has wings.”
    Appollonios laughed harder and clutched at his sides.
    “It is true!” the bird wailed.
    “A man? With wings? Flying? Oh, bird, you have put me in a very good mood! I think that I could even forgive such a rude awakening.” He sat up and rubbed away a mirthful tear. “All right. I can see that something has upset you, so much so that it has affected the Air that is in your head. Show me this flying man of yours. If what you say is true, I shall give him a good talking to and a kick to the behind, and send him on his way.”
    The bird leaped eagerly into the air and settled on Appollonios’s shoulder. “To the sea-cliffs!” it croaked. “You will see for yourself!”
    Hurrying in the direction of the salty air, Appollonios soon found himself standing at the place where the land gave way to Poseidon’s realm. “It’s quite a long way down,” he said as he peered at the frothing waves far below him.
    “Not down!” the bird squawked. “Up there! See? See how he mocks us?”
    Appollonios shaded his eyes and gazed into the sky. “I see nothing,” he said wearily. “Only more of your kind tumbling about and . . . oh!” He