He continued on his way. Before him was a hallway of hedges and at the very end was a red light. Progress. He jogged halfway and then walked the rest. He wasn’t sure what it was, but he felt like he needed it. As he approached the light it became more and more purple. He entered the room. It was more open like a small room or a clearing. There was a floating necklace in the center emitting a bright purple light. There was a sound. Footsteps - extremely close footsteps. He drew his sword and pointed it to his right. A smaller sword was pointed at him. Perhaps he had gotten the drop on them.
“Partner group Bravo and Charlie have formed,” the announcer informed the crowd. Cheering could be heard.
“Chris?” Penny lowered her sword and smiled, relieved.
“Penny,” Chris smiled back. “I went through all kinds of things to get here. What does that necklace mean?”
“I have no idea. I came over because it had a blue light, but then it started turning purple as you came closer. I didn’t know it was you so I didn’t take chances.
“Have you been attacked too?”
“No. Were you?”
Chris chuckled humorlessly, still out of breath from his escape. "I almost got shot." Penny looked at him, raising her eyebrow and then shaking her head.
“You’re here so that says something.” Penny said as she walked up to the necklace.
“That I’m pretty good now?”
“That I’m a good teacher,” she answered. “But that too.” She extended her hand and grabbed the necklace. She pulled. It did not move. “What?”
Chris placed his hand on the other side of the necklace. It split into two identical silver necklaces. One necklace had the name Chris carved into the ring and the other had Penny. Chris’ was blue with a purple outline and Penny’s was a light purple with a red outline. Both of them felt a slight jolt - something awakening or changing inside of them. Then once again the announcer’s voice came, “Partner team Delta has formed!” Their names and portraits displayed on screen just as the others had. Above their names it read, Delta.
“Delta?” Chris questioned.
“It’s a callsign. It was assigned to us. It’s going in order. Echo should be next.” Penny answered. “We’re one of the first partner teams. Now we just need to find a way out of here, I guess.”
“Yay, more dead-end rooms.” Chris said, his voice thick with sarcasm. “Man, I wish Megan were here. She seemed really smart.” He admitted.
“Partner team Echo has formed!” the announcer cried again. Penny looked up at the screen as the biggest grin carved itself across her face.
“Oh man, they’ll kill each other,” Penny laughed and hunched over. Chris looked up at the screen to see the names Megan and Ian. Their portraits were above their names, and Echo was right above them.
“Wait...Aren’t those two opposites? I don’t know much about Megan.”
“Megan is the brains. Ian is the brawns...I suppose it’s a good match.”
“So that’s good?”
“I guess we’ll see. Come on. We have a contest to win. Watch my back okay?”
“You seem like you’re already used to being partners.”
“No. I just want to get through this. Since you’re trained this should be a breeze.”
There was a loud explosion in the distance followed by a cloud of smoke. The board flashed red for a moment before marking out one name. The other name remained. Sounds of combat could be heard in the distance. There were mostly just gunshots; the remaining partner was a girl. Her male counterpart was defeated in combat and would most likely need a healer to tend to him. They could not see the fray but the sounds were quite loud.
“Trouble,” Penny said. “I say we go the other way.”
“I think we should go toward it. If they need help, we should help. They could help us too.”
“Chris…” Penny started, her voice was very quiet. “There is a low chance of making it that way in time, and if we did she could turn on us to protect her partner or worse we get caught.” There was another explosion. Chris pointed in that direction. “They won’t last long if we don’t move now.”
“If we are too late we turn around and take the long way,” Penny compromised.
“That works for me.” Chris agreed. Penny summoned her shield. She ran ahead of him, he followed behind her. They weren’t far and the sounds of battle only grew louder.
“Crap, crap...Hang on Tatsumi! Once I handle these guys I’ll heal you!” She was in an open area with lots of cover.
She had yellow hair, a red bandana tied to her arm, denim shorts, a white crop top, and a pistol holster on her waist. It was like a battlefield. They were out of the maze now and it seemed like many other groups could run into each other in this area. Her partner, Tatsumi was lying face down in the dirt. He had brown hair, a yellow shirt, tan jeans, and brown boots. His sword was full of bullet holes. He was still moving a little. The girl was crouched down behind cover, reloading her two pistols. They were being attacked by six gunmen. The attackers were wearing white coats and masks to protect themselves.
“Keep firing pin her down! Don’t let her peek her head out!” one attacker barked. “Don’t hurt her partner anymore. His fast healing can save him, but not if we injure him anymore. Careful not to kill them!”
“Chris, I’m going to draw their attention. You go around and back her up.”
Penny threw her shield like a frisbee, and hit the two nearest to the girl in the head. She extended her hand and caught her shield and held her sword at the ready. She began advancing. The other four began firing on her.
Chris rolled around and took cover as he went. One of the soldiers was firing at him as he made his way to the girl. The girl stood up and began firing again, taking out the one that was firing at Chris. He ran over to where she was hiding and slid into cover.
“You?” the girl stared at him. “Emily’s brother? Why are you helping?”
“You were in trouble. Is your partner okay?”
“He will be if I can get to him, but first we’ll have to get these guys to lay down.”
Chris dashed out from cover and dashed straight through two of the attackers, cutting them as he went. Both collapsed. Penny finally closed in on the last one, slashing with her sword to disarm him, kneeing him in the chest, and the finally spinning and kicking him against one of the large rocks in the area. She relaxed and let her arms fall to her sides.
The girl had already run out to her partner and began healing him with Life magic. She took a deep breath and sat on her legs. “If only I had specialized in healing instead of damage we wouldn’t be in this mess. You’re going to be okay.”
Penny stepped forward beside Chris and watched the girl work. Her partner’s wounds began to heal, but he was still in very bad shape, and she told them he had a concussion.
“Can you guys go on?” Chris asked.
“I won’t risk his life. It sucks, but I don’t think he’ll make it. Why did you help us?” She wondered. “You could have just run by.”
“Wizards don’t do that,” he replied. “My sister never would so I won't either. I’m sorry you’re out.”
The girl glanced at Penny for a moment and then looked away. “She’s your partner?”
Penny walked away upon hearing this remark. “Yeah, if it weren’t for her I couldn’t have helped you out. I was hoping to help keep you in the game.”
“Seriously? “the girl scratched the back of her head. “I mean, yeah I guess she did take out a large set and keep them busy,” She seemed to have mulled over the situation. "Okay, maybe she isn't so bad."
Chris smiled at these words. The girl turned to Penny's direction. "Hey, Penny? Thanks," she tried. Penny said nothing, only replying with a nod.
The girl shrugged and returned her gaze to Chris. "You too."
“No problem!” Chris smiled. “We need to get going so we can stay on time, uh--”
“Zoe, my name is Zoe. Get going I gotta lug my partner. They
should just let us walk out. They can probably see us honestly.”
There was a loud rumbling sound as another path out of the area opened. There was the main gate that lead into a dark forest full of thorns and now there was a cave opening.
“Looks like they rewarded you. Good luck...This is brutal.” She murmured as she stood up, letting her partner lean on her for support. They slowly made their way out of one of the many entrances.
“Partner team Bravo forfeits!” The announcer cried. “Medical please make your way to Entrance 21!”
Chris walked over to where Penny was and smiled; relaxing quite a bit and feeling calm. “Well that was an easy fight.”
“That wasn’t a fight. We didn’t struggle we tore through them. I don’t expect to run into anymore anytime soon.” She replied, turning back to look at him.
“Speaking of fights... I’ve been meaning to ask,” he began as they walked. “Remember those wolves? Did they ever find out why they acted so weird?”
“...No. They’re baffled. There have been multiple strange occurrences. I’ll tell you if we have time to rest, ok? Now is the worst possible time.”
“Yeah…you’re right...So... we’re going into the cave? Is it a shortcut?” They walked inside, the cave closed behind them. “No!” Chris groaned.
“It is now.” Penny started, looking at the trap he obviously had his foot on. “Great.”
They wandered through the cave for a few minutes. Holding hands as to not get lost in the dark, and feeling along the walls. Penny found a torch, managed to light it, and guided Chris through the cave. She wasn’t sure where it was taking them, but there was only one way to go. Penny seemed slightly irritated. She was moving faster and not responding to anything he said minus a noise occasionally.
Chris apologized for setting of the trap, but Penny insisted that she wasn’t mad about that. She didn’t like the idea of helping the other partner group. They could have attacked them, it may have slowed them down, and she wasn’t sure if this shortcut would be a boon or slow them down.
She told him to avoid taking unnecessary risks, “Even if it was the right thing to do it was reckless. I knew I couldn’t convince you though...You have this look you get when you’re determined.”
“Well if we work together we can place really well! I bet we could make it into the top four!” Chris said; attempting to ease her worry and brighten the mood. “We’re a team now so you have someone watching your back.”
“Watching my back?” She seemed amused, continuing to follow the cave.
“Yeah, you’ve protected me, and now I’m strong enough to protect you! Nothing will happen to you! You’re the shield and I’m the sword.”
“I have a sword.”
“I mean--” Chris searched for the right words. “I’ll fight for you if you protect me.” He explained. Penny’s lip curled slightly.
“You’re weird...But you’re a good friend. Still, I didn’t expect to be partners. I know they were anticipating it, but still. You have bad luck having a Sorcerer as your partner.”
“Nah... Imagine if I would have gotten someone else. I trust you. I care about you. Why do you always act like you’re on your own?”
“Because if the people I care about die, that's the way it is. I don’t lean on anyone. Not even my sister. I just protect who I can. Including you. Which is why I was upset about earlier. We’re partners now. You’re my responsibility.”
“Yeah, but you don’t need to carry everything yourself, that’s why I’m here!” he said, sounding rather upbeat.
“Yes. I do. I trust you, but it’s easy to die.”
“But my training--”
“Isn’t enough!” Penny snapped back, Chris jumped slightly. “Chris you’re getting good, and that’s great, but the more you get cocky the more I worry. I know it’s easy to die; because I’ve killed more people that I can count and it haunts me. Many were magic users. You aren’t invincible.”
They continued walking in silence. Killed more people than she can count? She must have tried to spare them. Penny doesn’t seem like the killing type. So far, I haven't seen anyone get killed. I haven’t even seen Sorcerers kill. You just need skill and you’re fine. If Penny has killed so many people that she doesn’t know how many then...I’ll just have to avoid killing altogether.
Chris wished Penny understood he wanted to protect her too. He wanted to protect everyone. He could protect everyone if he tried hard enough. The reason he wanted to train so hard was to make sure they were all safe and to wipe the floor with Hunter. Chris was not a novice anymore, once he mastered magic he could defeat anyone.
Penny stopped and covered Chris’ mouth quickly before he could ask why. She handed him the torch and advanced. There was a red scorpion the size of a person walking toward them. Penny slowly lifted her sword, it had not noticed her yet. As it turned, she cut clean through its tail and then stabbed downward through its body. She casually stepped over it and continued.
Chris shuddered and swallowed hard. He stepped toward the scorpion and quickly stepped over it and ran after Penny. He tensed up heavily and handed her the torch. “Are you afraid of scorpions?” she asked.
“Terrified.”
“It’s okay. It’s very dead. I’m not scared of them. Bugs don’t scare me much.”
“Bug? That thing was a demon!”
“It’s a dead demon then. Come on. There’s light.”
They poked their heads above ground and scanned the environment. No one. Nothing. Just a forest. Chris started to climb up, but Penny pulled him back down. She scanned the area further. Tripwires, nearly impossible to see. She could not see what they activated, but she felt uneasy. She took a rock and threw it. A net sprung from the ground immediately and lifted up into the trees.
“Watch where you step. That rope is too thick to cut; so, if we get caught, we’ll waste time.
They made their way across the area and back into another hedge maze. This maze had sixteen different paths. Penny sat down crisscross and closed her eyes. She insisted that they should rest, because otherwise they’ll be tired when danger came along. Chris told her he wasn’t tired, but he actually fell asleep first. Penny kept watch. They switched after two hours, Penny told him she only needed one hour.
Chris glanced up at the leaderboard again. Only four partner groups were left. Alpha, Delta, Echo, and Gamma. He needed to stay focused in case of danger, but his mind kept wandering back to what Penny said about having killed many times before. He imagined her killing people and protecting others, or at least for good reason. She didn’t seem like a cold-blooded murderer to him, she seemed like she didn’t enjoy fighting. He would ask her another time.
◆◆◆
A day had passed. Chris and Penny had stopped to rest in a nearby cave, but even so, they were both exhausted and worn out. They had gone through multiple challenges by now, but lucky enough they never ran into any partner groups that attacked them. Both were dragging themselves along. When they saw the large exit gates, they ran for it. Neither of them was running full speed, and Chris kept tripping. They ran out of the course and across the finish line. The crowd in the stands was silent. The headmaster stood up, Emily sat forward, and Autumn’s eyes widened.
“Are we late?” Chris whispered to Penny.
“I don’t think so...I don’t think we’re first though. They aren’t clapping.”
“Do you know what you’ve done?” The headmaster asked. His voice carried over the entire area, Chris felt himself shaking a little. What had they done wrong? “Turn to the leaderboard and check the last fastest time prior to you.”
On the leaderboard they saw their names along with their call sign; their time was one day and eight hours. The previous time Jacob Brood and Elizabeth Mcmanus. Their time was two days and one hour. Chris stared at the board in disbelief, they had taken so many detours, and yet they came first. No one else had made it. One this screen they could also see the progress of the other contestants. T
hey weren’t quite there yet. The crowd began to clap and cheer, Chris turned and smiled widely. Emily probably cheered the loudest.
Penny turned and looked around at the cheering crowds. She had never seen so many people delighted to see her. It was a strange feeling, and her feeling of uneasiness increased. Chris nudged her and laughed. “Loosen up we did it!”
“Yeah. We did.” Penny said as her big brown eyes scanned over the crowd.
“Aren’t you happy?” he asked, concerned. He stopped celebrating and focused solely on her.
“I am but, they’re cheering for you.”
“Us.” he corrected.
Penny smiled for a moment. She seemed to have loosened up a little more. She was glad to have finally gotten what she was told she could not have. She did what many Wizards could not do, and she had a partner who cared about her. He really did have her back; she wasn’t sure how long he would, but he did. However; her joy was cut short as a soldier ran up and whispered something into Autumn’s ear. She went completely pale, leaned over, and whispered it to the headmaster. His smile faded as he stood and announced something right as the other contestants arrived. No one was cheering anymore. It was silent. Terror painted the faces of everyone who had heard the news.
Chapter 11
Zeuge des Todes
That night, security was raised in the city and surrounding planets. There were guard patrols, soldiers, and teachers were told to patrol near dorms. Students were recommended to stay inside, but they were told they were allowed to leave if it was necessary.
The headmaster’s instructions were very clear: “The Empire,” he began, “Has a fleet of warships stationed near Terminus. The Alliance has lost three supply convoys meant to arrive in Terminus, and we believe they will attack soon. As of now…” he continued as he scanned over the crowd. “We are on high alert. The Alliance is not at war; thus, we do not believe there will be an attack. However; students you are advised to stay near your dorms. Civilians try to stay near your homes tonight. Teachers guard the dorms. Guards start a patrol. We will not let his city fall.”
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