by R. J. Batla
“What if I gave you my winnings for the next round?”
“And forfeit the future rounds? Not a chance.”
“Hard to spend money if you’re dead.”
He took on a hard look and made an odd hand motion. “What are you trying to say, Jayton Baird?”
I shook my head and held my hands up. “Nothing, nothing. Just trying to be a little more civil than settling things in the ring. But I can see I’m going to get nowhere with this conversation, so I bid you good day. And good luck.”
“Same to you, friend. Oh, and Jayton?” I turned around before he continued. “I will show mercy, if you yield. I’m not a monster.”
“I can see that. Neither am I. I will do the same.” Nodding once again, I turned and left, taking off my goggles at the same time with my team trailing behind me.
Celeste grunted. “Now what the hell was that all about? That seemed a lot to do about nothing.”
“Oh, you didn’t see?” They all looked between each other and shook their heads. I smiled. “Good! Then he didn’t either. I flashed the Ignis and –”
Troup grabbed my shoulder. “Jayton, that was super risky! What the hell were you trying to do?”
“Remember I said in the first round I saw my opponent’s true scorecard?”
Realization dawned on them as they nodded. Euless said, “Now why the heck wouldn’t you say that to us in the first place? Why keep us all in the dark?”
I smiled again. “And deprive myself of the stupid looks on your faces? No way!”
I was rewarded with several punches on the shoulders and laughter.
Chapter 14 – Jayton Baird
“LEONA, HOW’S YOUR INFILTRATION going?” Royn asked. “The others have gotten us some interesting intelligence on potential future opponents of Jay’s.”
I did my best to keep my face neutral as we waited in my room before round two. While my room had expanded slightly, it was still crowded with the whole crew inside.
Leona turned red and got an odd look on her face. “Per your request, Royn, I’ve been in very close contact with my mark.” She began to lay out what she suspected his abilities were, both in powers and fighting style, and what tactics and techniques she expected him to use against me.
I was paying attention, but only because I had to. When she finished, I wasn’t too happy. “I don’t like the girls putting themselves in danger for me like this. Anything could happen when they...put themselves out there.”
I really didn’t like Leona doing it but I kept that part to myself.
“We have to gather intel, and this is one of the most effective ways of doing it. We’re in hostile territory, my friend, lest you forgot. Sometimes the only way to loosen tongues and get said intel is to show them a pretty face and pleasant company,” Royn said, Leona blushing even further and wringing her hands.
The guards picked that time to knock on the door. “Ten minutes, Mr. Baird. Your friends will have to find their way to their seats now.”
Everyone made their way to the door and left with ‘good luck’s and ‘go get ‘em’s.
“Good luck, Jay,” Royn said, shaking my hand and slapping me on the shoulder. “Follow the plan and you’ll be fine. You got this.” He walked out the door, stepping to the side waiting for Leona.
Her awesomeness walked over and gave me a hug, then kissed me on the cheek. “You’d better win,” she said as she sauntered out the door.
And made my heart flutter.
Okay, Jay, get your head in the game here. You can’t get distracted by what you want, even if she’s the prettiest thing you’ve ever seen. It wouldn’t be fair since you are now literally fighting for your life every few days.
Anyway.
The guards motioned for me to follow them, meaning it was time, so I couldn’t think on such things anymore.
This time I strode out the door. “All right, boys, let’s go,” I said, as the two guards clacked into step behind me. They might have even smiled. Walking right up to the black iron arch with confidence, I didn’t slow as the arch dinged like before, indicating that I was clear. I was at the door to the arena floor.
Now I had to get ready again, clear my head, which I shook vigorously. I extended the shake all the way down my body, loosening tight muscles and pent-up energy. Dang it. I thought girls would get out of my head after I was a teenager. Apparently not.
Green light. Couldn’t worry about fine female forms now. It was go time.
The announcer boomed my name, and I gave a smile and a great wave to the crowd, who cheered more this time than they did my last round. My scorecard flashed on the giant boards. Maybe I was starting to win them over.
“And on the other arrow, weighing in at one hundred eighty pounds, Dean Hutchins!”
Applause broke out as Dean waved one hand at one side of the crowd. He switched his spear to the opposite hand and waved at the other half of the crowd. Somehow his orange hair was tossed about by a non-existent breeze. Dean’s scorecard flashed up on the board and I didn’t even bother to check out the real one. We’d planned accordingly based on what I’d found out when I went to see him.
Dean was clearly a big step up in power and skill from the first round opponent, and this was not going to be easy. I guess I’d have to execute my plan and adjust on the fly. My favorite strategy.
“Fighters take your marks.”
We both nodded. I pulled my goggles down and dropped into a fighting stance, energizing my shield and readying energy to be used with only a thought. Dean spun his long spear while dropping into a ready stance, front hand extended, spear behind his back. I couldn’t really tell what the thing was made of – wood, metal, or a combination. Whatever it was, it wasn’t normal, that much I knew.
“Fight!”
Dean flicked his spear and threw his left hand forward. Fireballs came screaming at me from several directions at once, even from behind. I quickly built a sphere of energy around myself, blocking them all, the heat washing over the energy of my shield but not reaching me. The balls of fire continued, slamming into my shield so fast that they formed a solid mass, blocking my vision. The heat was intense, but that wasn’t my main concern.
I had a bad feeling about that spear.
And I was right.
Suddenly the point of the damn thing came right at me, through my shield!
Which shouldn’t have happened – especially since it didn’t fly right by me, which meant Dean still had ahold of it. Frantically dodging and managing to draw my sword up enough to deflect the blow, the point drew back from whence it’d come, disappearing again while the fire continued to rain down, the heat making me sweat.
The spear pierced the shield again, aimed at my heart. Screw this.
I leapt in the air, drew my sword, and did a back flip, landing twenty yards away and putting some distance between me and Dean. My vision cleared, but the damn spear lanced out at me as soon as my feet touch the ground!
Parrying with an energy-laced left palm, I jumped back, landing just in front of the wall. Out of room. In front of me was a wall of flame, keeping me from seeing where my opponent was.
The spear point appeared again and again. I blocked it each time, but I was trapped and growing tired. A side effect of using too much energy and not being efficient with it. I needed an out. On the next thrust, I dodged to the side, trusting the scale armor to deflect the blow.
I shouldn’t have. A piercing pain erupted through my left shoulder, and I grunted as the spear drew back with my blood coating the metal tip. Damn that hurt.
Falling slightly forward, I mumbled, “Enough of this! Rock Ball!” I spun my left hand around my body as best I could, erecting a stone sphere around me. A series of thuds sounded instantly as the spear tried to punch a hole in the stone, but where energy had failed, rock prevailed. Though I didn’t know why.
How the hell did the spear penetrate my scale armor? It was supposed to be neigh impenetrable, for crying out loud! He’d shown none
of this in his first-round fight! I didn’t have time to think about that. The temperature inside my stone sphere began to rise – another fire attack. So I had less time than I’d hoped for, since I didn’t want to sit here and bake. The dull noise of the crowd was somehow able to filter through the rock too. They were apparently enjoying the show.
Okay. Breathe. Heal. Concentrating, I managed to close the wound in my shoulder, and after testing my arm, it was almost eighty percent of normal. Josey would have to fix it fully later.
All right, how the hell to get out of this one?
Step one – Ignis time. I’d underestimated this guy enough already. Step two – kick his ass. Simple – just like I like it.
I flashed the Ignis while inside the stone to get my bearings, then it was time for some action. Raising both hands, I exploded the stone out in every direction, sending Hutchins ducking for cover directly in front of me.
Then I went on the offensive. A stream of fire flew from my punched fist; he blocked the attack easily, just like I planned. I spun, pulling water from the river and flicked my wrist saying, “Water Jet!” I sent a high-pressure stream of water at him. Dropping to the ground as soon as I finished the move, I punched several times, each punctuated with dozens of rocks hurtling at Hutchins.
Now he was on the back wall, barely able to keep up, the fire wall dying as he lost concentration. Solidifying the air behind his knees, I pulled my hand towards me, sending him crashing to the ground. I flashed the Ignis again and finalized my attack plan. Ha ha, now there was my step two.
The Ignis revealed his spear was enchanted! That was why it got through my scale armor. It could penetrate certain things, metal for one, but not stone. And the shaft could expand and shrink to any length – explaining how he could reach me with it from the other end of the arena.
Running fast, but not too fast, I closed the distance to Dean as he was rising off the floor. Close-range fighting – that ought to negate his superior reach with that spear. Keeping the same speed, I threw a barrage of sword strikes at Hutchins – high, low, and middle slashes and thrusts. His spear struggled to block them all. I managed to cut him on the shoulder and leg.
“Nice spear, Hutchins,” I said, not letting up, keeping him moving backwards along the wall. Slices alternated between his head and torso. “You caught me off guard before.”
Between sword strikes, I used my left hand to throw fire, water, and air at him, forcing him to exert himself faster and use fire to block.
Hutchins smiled and huffed out between breaths. “It’s a superb specimen.” He swung said specimen around, trying to take my legs out. I jumped over it, he said, “And wielded by me, it will be your end. You should talk less and fight more!”
He ducked under a sword strike and tried to put some distance between us, but I couldn’t have that, so I kept in close, trading more blows as I followed him across the arena.
The spear suddenly whizzed by my head. I jumped back – that was too close. He’d shaved a few hairs off the side of my head.
All right, enough of this; I’d put on a good enough show for the roaring audience. Sheathing my sword and raising both hands, I screamed, “Rain Barrage!” Large droplets of water launched themselves from the sources on either side of the arena and turned it into a monsoon of swirling water.
Several fireballs Hutchins had flung died on the way to me as the whole arena filled with rain. A whooshing noise by my left ear indicated his damn spear had extended the fifty feet between us, taking another stab at me.
Drawing my sword again, I blocked several strikes in a row. Damn that spear was fast! Darting in and out, barely visible, I was having trouble keeping it at bay.
But that gave me an idea, and I smiled.
“One who is about to die shouldn’t be smiling like that,” Dean said, not relenting his attack.
I had to time this right. The strike had to be on my left, close enough to my hand. I slowed down, giving Dean the opening that I needed him to attack. There!
I grabbed the spear with my left hand, and it yanked me back towards Dean as it retreated, my sword point forward like a giant projectile.
Panic showed on his face and he managed to pull a dagger from his belt and deflect my sword blow.
But he didn’t expect me to release the spear and slam my left fist into his face, blood and teeth flying as he flew backwards and crashed into the wall. A red ring illuminated around the top of the arena and a buzzer sounded, while the announcer screamed, “He’s knocked him out! Dean Hutchins is incapacitated. Jayton Baird is your round two winner!”
I thrusted my sword in the air and encased it in fire, then did an elaborate twirl and bowed to the roaring crowd. My scorecard flashed up on the boards around the stadium. The water bar moved to a seven, healing ticked up to a six, and my quantum power labeled “strength or speed” bumped up two notches to seven. The guys doing the scorecards still hadn’t figured out if I had a strength or speed Quantum.
Was I revealing too much too soon? Maybe, but it didn’t matter – I had to win every fight.
I coalesced all the water in the air into a ball and exploded it into a cascade of snowflakes as I strode out of the arena to cheers.
Chapter 15 – Councilman Ames Talco
AFTER A FLASH OF BLUE, Royn emerged back at Jump Point One, alone this time, as requested. Councilman Ames Talco was waiting and stepped inside the jump point as soon as the doors opened.
Royn said, “What can I do for you, Councilman? I thought we needed to minimize my teleporting back and forth?”
“We do, Ranger, but I trust few people, and your skill set is needed for this. We’ve already lost three defensive rings here at the Wall and the Elves are in a slow retreat. Contingencies must be made should the worst come to pass,” Ames said.
“Understood. What do we need to do?”
“We’ve got to convince all the Races to plan for the worst while still supporting the war effort. And, at the same time, keep everything as secret as possible, especially from Malstrak.”
Royn smirked. “You never make it easy, do you?”
Ames smiled back. “I wish I could, but alas it’s outside my power. We should talk to the Aeren next. Best to place us on the edge of the plateau to avoid alarming anyone, if you would be so kind?”
“You got it, boss,” Royn said, grabbing his hand and teleporting, appearing at the top edge of the mesa where the Aeren capital city of Mexia sat. Winds whipped past them, their clothes snapping. Ames’s robes billowed out around him. In front of them, the mountain swept almost straight down for thousands of feet, and then leveled out into plains of rolling grasslands and other mesas that constituted the Aeren land, rising up out of the prairie.
To the south, the Tasche Mountains could barely be seen, and the snowcapped peaks of the much taller Erde Mountains remained hidden behind a layer of cloud cover.
Both the Ranger and councilman turned around. In the span of the few seconds Royn and Ames had to take in the view, several Aeren guards joined them. The guards’ spears pointed at their hearts, and balls of compressed air hung in front of the warriors, ready to blow the intruders off the mountain if necessary.
Luckily one of them recognized Ames, and he commanded the others to stand down. “Councilman,” the lead guard said. His tight, brightly colored body armor accentuated his green skin, and the tornado tattoo between his eyes was clearly visible under his helmet. In fact, a space had been made specifically so one could see it – it was a sign of pride and power to the Aeren. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”
“I would like an audience with King Nocona, and I’m afraid it’s urgent,” Ames replied. The guard nodded, then motioned to a fellow guard in one of the nearby buildings, who picked up a telestone and began talking.
Royn’s eyes traced the edge of the mesa in each direction – guard houses were spaced every two hundred yards, each placed thirty feet inside the ledge along the entire mesa as far as he could see. Past that, there was a l
ong stretch of crops and trees –wheat, corn, and soybeans, and he couldn’t see much of anything else beyond it. The air was thinner up here but fresh, a welcome change from the cramped and musty air in the Bowl. The only sounds were the gentle breeze against his ears. The Aeren warriors stood perfectly still. Apparently the city was a fair distance from where they stood – probably right in the center.
A mere thirty seconds later, the guard gave a thumbs up and relayed commands Royn couldn’t hear.
“Your request is granted. King Nocona will see you immediately, and asks that we hurry. Follow me.” The Aeren ushered them to a wooden platform, ten feet square, with an Aeren at each of the corners, hand on a pole that extended to the base of the platform. The commanding officer stood at another pole directly in the center.
Royn felt power being gathered, then blasts of wind shook the platform as it rose several feet into the air. The commanding guard pushed his pole toward the front and the platform shot forward. They were flying to the palace.
“What the hell is this?” Royn asked, his head whipping around as he watched the ground fly by. “I’ve never seen anything like this before!”
“Something I hope we can use later on,” Ames said. “I believe they call it a ‘hovercraft.’ I’ve only heard rumors of their existence. The Aeren keep their inventions strictly to themselves.”
Royn laughed as they sped up and the wind blew threw his hair back. “Understandable, but still. This is amazing!”
The ground flew below, quickly turning from fortifications around the mesa edge to farms and residences of all sorts. After thirty minutes, the commander pulled on his pole, angling the hovercraft upward slightly. Taller buildings appeared, and like the houses before them were all made of adobe – though they had to have something else reinforcing them to be that tall.
