Against the Elements
by Holly Braendlein, age 16
How was this possible? The man standing before her had just denied there ever being a battle between them. He seemed to wholeheartedly believe his own words.
Beatrix thought back to earlier that day when she had first gotten the call about a disturbance in her hometown upon planet Fortis …
It was a beautiful Saturday morning in September. Beatrix snuggled deeper in her bed with a cup of steaming hot apple cider. She just loved Autumn days.
There was a ringing by her bedside, the piercing ring of her Enemy Alert. Beatrix groaned and grabbed the little watch. She clicked the homing device, and it zoomed into a little area across town from her.
Beatrix leapt out of bed and quickly donned her blue superhero suit. She clicked her teleportation watch, which zapped her to the scene of the commotion.
Beatrix was nice and warm by the time she made it across town, a nice contrast to the blustery weather ruffling her long red hair. She looked around her, searching for any sign of trouble.
Out of nowhere, a fireball whizzed past her ear. Beatrix whirled around and found a man behind her, a man with spiky red hair. He held his hands aloft, heat emanated from his upward-turned palms, and Beatrix noticed that his eyes glowed neon orange.
Beatrix shouted, “Who are you? And what are you doing here?”
The man scowled and answered in a gruff voice, “None of your business. Now move out of the way, or suffer the consequences.” The fire from his hands flamed even higher.
Beatrix huffed but stood her ground.
The man shrugged. “Well, if that’s how you choose to play, señorita, that’s how we’ll play.” He shot fireballs straight at Beatrix’s head.
Beatrix aimed her hands, and the fireballs froze in mid-air. “Before you go blowing off my head,” she said noncommittally, “Can I get a name?”
“Inferno.”
He blasted Beatrix with another fireball, and it hit her squarely in the stomach, knocking her to the ground. She could smell burning fabric. She groaned and tried to get up, but Inferno stood over her, grinning mischievously. His eyes glowed more fiercely than before.
Beatrix gathered her wits and aimed icy darts at Inferno’s shoulder, and he screamed in rage, clutching his shoulder. It allowed her just enough time to roll out of the way and assess her surroundings.
He was nearest the road that led to the lumber mill just outside town. But why the lumber mill? She racked her brain for some clue.
Another fireball nearly grazed her ear, and Beatrix whirled in frustration and shot ice at her opponent’s body, knocking him against a nearby tree. He shook his head and looked up. His eyes were no longer glowing. He frowned as he looked around. He looked bewildered.
He spotted Beatrix and his face lit up. He scrambled to his feet.
“Beatrix!” he said, trotting toward her, arms wide. “Beatrix, what a surprise!”
Beatrix raised her hands in warning. “Stand back!”
Inferno stopped and stared at her, confused. “What’s the matter?”
“How do you know my name?” she asked without lowering her hands, which were poised at him.
“Because I knew you in school. Remember me? Pepé Gonzalez, graduated about three years ago from Superhero High?”
Then it all came back to her. Beatrix lowered her arms. “Pepé? ¿Estás Pepé?”
“Sí, estoy él.” Pepé walked toward her and clapped her hand.
Beatrix frowned. “Why were you attacking me?”
“Attacking you?” Pepé’s face contorted in confusion. “I didn’t attack you.”
“Yes, you did.” Countered Beatrix. “You were trying to get to the mill.” She pointed toward the lumber mill.
Pepé looked up in the direction she was pointing. He scowled fiercely, and his eyes glowed orange once again. Beatrix waved her hand in front of his face. “Pepé? What’s wrong?”
He pushed her away and raised his hands, and Beatrix jumped out of the way just in time as he released a fireball. Beatrix leapt behind a building and thought hard.
Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in her head.
Pepé was dissociative, a disorder caused by a traumatic event in one’s life. His mother was killed when he was eight by the hands of his father, a drunkard who lazed about the lumber mill. It all made sense. That’s why he couldn’t remember their earlier combat, and why he flipped when he saw the lumber mill.
She had to end this and save not only the lives of the people in town, but Pepé himself.
She walked out into the middle of the street, and waited as Inferno matched her stance opposite her. They both raised their hands. They both poured their wrath into each other as Beatrix’s ice and Pepé’s flames collided in the middle.
Beatrix used all her strength and withstood the worsening flames. Pepé screamed wildly from opposite the street, and Beatrix yelled in rage. In a last attempt to beat him, she overpowered Pepé with an explosion that sent them both flying in opposite directions.
Beatrix scrambled to her feet and rushed over to Pepé, who was lying unconscious on the pavement. She quickly reached for his arm, pressed her watch, and disappeared into thin air.
Beatrix opened the door to her apartment, letting in the crisp September wind. She sighed wearily. She had just come back from dropping Pepé off at the hospital. Lord willing, they would be able to help him. She also scheduled him with a therapist, to help him combat his disorder.
Beatrix shrugged out of her super suit, jumped into her Saturday sweats and T-shirt, and snuggled back into bed, resuming the peaceful time she had been having only a couple hours before.
About the Author
Holly Braendlein is a homeschooled high schooler who loves to write, sew, and laugh. She resides in the Pacific Northwest, where her father is a vegetable grower, and who takes his children with him on the muddy farms.
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