07 Focus

CHAPTER 7 FOCUS Grey rolled up the paper. "You know what you need to do, Blaze," he said. "Focus all of your powers on the Ember Stone: fire bolts, the cry of the firehawk, and your flaming wings." Blaze looked at her friends. "You can do it," Tag told her.

Skyla nodded. "We'll be with you the whole time." "I can do this," Blaze said softly. She closed her eyes, then held out her wings, letting her feathers glow bright. A small fire bolt shot out and landed on the scroll. It caught fire! "Blaze!" Skyla cried out, but Tag held her back. Grey wrapped the scroll within his wings, putting the fire out. "Luckily, we don't need this anymore," he said. "Now try again to focus—

BOOM! A loud thunderclap interrupted Grey. It echoed throughout the tunnel. Grey looked toward the exit. "We are out of time. Our friends need us." Blaze took a deep breath, then nodded. Tag and Skyla pulled out their weapons. All three friends followed Grey out of the tunnel. Tag looked to the sky. The nixies' magic shield was gone! There is nothing to stop Thorn and The Shadow from destroying Valor Wood, Tag thought as they raced to the center of the forest.

The storm raged on. Bright flashes of lightning hit the ground. Trees were knocked down by the fierce wind. One was hit by a lightning bolt, and it caught fire. Finally, they reached the others. "Tag!" Nova cried. "I'm sorry our shield failed. Thorn's magic was too powerful." "Your shield helped a lot. And I know you did your best," Tag replied. Then he saw flames blazing in the distance. "Fire!" "Owls of Valor!" Grey called. Maximus and the Owls of Valor took off.

"We'll help fight the fire," said Nova, and the nixies followed the owls. Tag, Blaze, Skyla, and Grey stayed behind. "We're not going anywhere," Skyla told Blaze. "Try to use your powers again," Tag added. Blaze held the Ember Stone in her beak. She closed her eyes, trying to focus her powers into the stone. She flapped her wings. Slowly, the Ember Stone began to glow purple, then orange, then gold. Blaze's body did the same. Her golden feathers shone in the darkness.

She drew a breath to let out her cry. But there was a huge flash of light from the Ember Stone, and— CRASH! Tag and Skyla were thrown to the ground. "Where is Blaze?" Skyla cried, looking around. Tag jumped up. He didn't see her at first. A little way ahead, Blaze sat on the ground, her head in her wings. She was still holding the Ember Stone, but her wings were no longer glowing or golden... The stone and Blaze's feathers were black.