Sulphur Soup

As they approach the shop an aggressive looking Shinlai stood in the path. Balsa growled softly.
"This isn't good..." she said to Antissa. Antissa fall back a bit behind Balsa.
"You better have my back this time." said Balsa. "Uh... I'll try.." said Antissa nervously.

Balsa's mane stood on end, she could see the heat radiating from his jaws. Pebbles on the pathway began to levitate in her wake.

Horror hit Agate as they got closer. He saw the posture. Recognized it even. Tuk had held his body the same way for years growing up. His stomach lurched. The ashes made his eyes smart. His heart pounced in his chest and he felt his legs becoming wobbly. He leaned against Selousi for support.
"Oh Daila no..." he whispered in a strained, nearly silent whisper. His breathing changed to ragged. Panic. All he could feel was panic.  He watched the pebbles rise off the path from the corner of his eyes. Good more earth Lai. Perhaps they could work together... Oh how he prayed it didn't turn ugly.

Selo Panicked, what was he doing here. This wasn't supposed to happen. She backed up into Balsa in a fearful state, shaking and trying not to accidentally let her element go wild. Unfortunately, that wasn't exactly her best skill. The ground begun to crack in some areas and plants nearby practically uprooted themselves. As Tuk advanced towards her and Agate all she could think of was getting away.
--
Tuk, seeing her fear and Agate's slammed his front feet down, singing the air with a wave of flame. He could see it in their eyes. He could see the fear in their hearts and he loved it, his own beating incrementally fast.
"You two," he growled. "Have you accepted Daila? Or do you need to be disciplined like your MOTHER was?"
His face, again returned to one of disgust, completely disregarding the other shinlai nearby he hissed angrily. "You could have stayed with father and I, but you were always soft, weak. You DISGUST me."
His face turned back to a grinning one. "But you know what? It's never too late. You could always come back you know. We could all be one GOD DAMNED HAPPY FAMILY" He barked ecstatically, flames lining the sides of his mouth with each word he spoke.
"I'll even let your little FRIENDS here join if they want to!" He twisted his neck to the side with an almost vacant expression as he spoke with such a twinge of insanity in his voice.
--

Balsa snort in disgust at his speech. This fire Shinlai was insane. Balsa bare her teeth aggressively, stones began to rise ripping free from the soil.
She step in front of the smaller Shinlai as she cower in fear. Putting herself between them and their opposer.

"I will not let you hurt them. I fight for what is right. Not attack those weaker and force them into your own beliefs." Balsa snapped. "I fight in the name of Daila against the Darkbloods who terrorize her followers. You wanted a fight and you are going to get one."

Antissa wanted to help but was not sure how her air element would be useful against the fire. She waited for Balsa to initiate the battle.

Balsa rip a chunk of earth from the ground and levitate it. Antissa used her element to help propel this projectile as Balsa had taught her. With the chunk of earth flying towards the lai, Balsa ran behind it ready to hit him hard.

His horror was coming true. The worst nightmare he'd never wanted to imagine was right here, right now. Agate swallowed hard and fought back the blurring on the edge of his vision. He could feel the earth shake beneath his feet. "Selousi!" he cried. He shrank back from Tuk and took his place beside his sister. He kept close, trying to reassure her with his weight against her. She could see her slipping. Control was everything or they were going to tear this town apart.

He narrowed his eyes under his mask. "Weak?" He choked out. His voice trembled. "Weak?! Your happy family was a nightmare, Brother. M-mother was right to think you all monsters." Don't think, talk. Distract him. Let Selousi breathe. Then he heard a sound he dreaded. A door opening.
---
The shop's door swung open. The pieces of hammered metal hanging from strings by the door jingled. The stones from it cast miniature rainbows across the ground. They were oddly beautiful in this dangerous situation. Laila emerged and stopped in the doorframe. She let out a sharp gasp. "Selousi!"

Tuk readied the side of his flank for an impact and used his size and weight as his own weapon, he flung himself at the chunk of earth and shinlai and let loose a nasty sounding snarl and a wave of fire to curb around the compressed dirt and rock.
--
Selo jumped at the touch of her brother and whipped her head up at him, scampering back quickly in shock. She was obviously in shock. This amount of recalled trauma was overwhelming for her, yet she tried her hardest to grasp the situation, faltering between instinct and consciousness. She collapsed onto her haunches and simply stared, not realizing what she was even doing until a door swung open and she heard a farmiliar voice. She perked up at it and her eyes once again lit up into awareness.
"Laila?!"

As Balsa ran she heard the Shinlai snarl, around the chunk of earth came a wave of fire. Balsa attempted to stop it by bursting the earth into dirt and rock shaped pieces, but the flames lashed upon her shoulder. She slung dirt around putting the fire out quickly and backed off momentarily shaking off the blow. Her shoulder burned slightly. Antissa had stepped forward, she wanted to help but was afraid.

Balsa snarl at the fire Shinlai. She had always had trouble dealing with the fire types. Fire was so unpredictable.
Squaring off with him, Balsa glance around for water to create mud with. She was now near the mask shop due to the clash, separated from Antissa and the other earth Shinlai. Suddenly she notice the human beneath her at the entry to the shop.

"Selousi!" Laila called again in response to her name. She could see the panic in her friend's face. She darted forward, jumping the little fence around their shop. She tried to dodge and run but the flying dirt and fire made the going difficult. She let out a yelp as the fire brushed against her arm. When Balsa broke into the battle with Tuk, she took the chance to bolt again. Going the long way around would work better than nothing she hoped.
---
Agate saw the human run. He shot a glance to Selousi then started to bound forth. What looked like plant roots shot up from the ground, tangling around Laila and pushing her up and forward. She flew through the air and he took a flying leap to catch her on his back.

With his throat rumbling a deep growl, Tuk began to circle around Balsa. How dare she get in his way. How dare she stand in front of him and his siblings. They betrayed their sanity for Daila and it was completely unacceptable. He let out a sudden, booming, roar as an intimidation tactic and bolted at the shinlai to body slam them.
--
Selousi blinked in confusion, staring from her brothers face to Laila's. This wasn't at all how she expected the day to go. She wanted to go back to her caverns where it was tranquil. She wanted to be somewhere where Tuk was not.
"W-we need to get out of here." She stammered, backpedaling.
"But.. They're fighting. What if he just leaves them be and runs after us we'll be outnumbered. Wh-what if we die!"
She shivered, attempting to stay calm for the sake of those around her. The ground, still, emitted a slight rattle, small bits of rock and dirt vibrating in her wake.