“Is this a glorified game of flashlight tag?” Camilla asked.
“No,” said Risper. “This is a life or death situation and could mean your very survival down the road. It is not fun and it is not a joke. Do not make a mistake. To force someone else out of the game you must fire the first, NON-hurting spell. If it works, then your target has lost. Stealth and tactics will be key. Once you’re found it will be very difficult to hide again.”
“Does it matter WHO we get out?” Camilla asked.
Risper nodded. “I’m glad you asked. It’s not just the last team standing, but the point system, which means that there’s a question of what sort of high value targets you are to ‘kill.’”
“And what’s a high value target?”
“Seniors are valued more highly than freshmen, because it is assumed that they know how to protect themselves better. Those students who are members of Committees are also more highly valued as leaders of the community. And the first student killed from each dorm is valued very highly, because supposedly that student must be a big threat to be targeted, and every kill after that will be less impressive.”
I was one hundred percent sure that at that moment every eye in the student body was turned towards me. I shifted uncomfortably and thought, Wonderful. My plan of not standing out was failing spectacularly and the first week wasn’t even over.
I raised my hand. Risper nodded in my direction, smiling slightly.
“How am I supposed to be an asset to my team if everyone is coming after me?” I demanded. “They’re going to have to work twice as hard as everyone else.”
If peepers could sing in the winter I would have heard them, it was so quiet in the circle.
“Ms. Rollins, the teams were chosen with great care. You teammates are not incapable. Also, how you choose to use the assets you have is up to you.”
Keller slid his arm around my back, sending shivers racing down my spine. “That’s the plan already, Charlotte,” he whispered in my ear. “It’s going to work spectacularly.”
I tried to nod, but I couldn’t concentrate with his fingers resting on my hip. I looked around for his aunt, but she was nowhere to be seen. He laughed softly in my ear.
“She isn’t around. And for the record? I’m not afraid of her.”
Right, well, I was. One of us should be. He released my hip and his warm body disappeared from my side. I felt his absence as a physical cold and an emotional sadness as he moved over to Lanca and whispered in her ear.
I wondered if Keller had guessed what the rules of Tactical would be before we played, because our plan was perfect for the rules that had just been laid out. I was the most highly valued target in the game, although Lough and Trafton came in close seconds.
Lisabelle was standing next to me, a little away from her group. Trafton, who was a member of her group, came up to her.
“You’re going to have to protect me,” he said, grinning and attempting to look meek. “They’re going to want to get me right after someone gets Charlotte, and I’m going to need all the help I can get. I assume you want to win, don’t you?”
Lisabelle sighed and rolled her eyes. Turning to me she said, “I can’t believe Risper did this to me. We’re supposed to be family. Since when do families make each other suffer?”
“Have you seen modern Americans at Christmas time?” I murmured.
Her teeth flashed in the darkness. “I like that you’re becoming more comfortable with who you are, Charlotte. It’s having hilarious results.”
I grinned back at her.
Trafton started to move closer to Lisabelle, but suddenly Lough was there, glaring daggers at Trafton as only a nice guy who is used to smiling can.
Worried that Lough was about to start a fight I said, “Lough, does your team have a plan for your protection?”
Lough shrugged. “Who cares?” He gave Trafton one last glare and then turned his back on his rival. Trafton’s grin just got bigger.
“Hey, so Airlee doesn’t seem like a good place for a party. Plus Risper keeps giving me warning death stares,” said Trafton. “How about Astra?”
“The fact you’re missing,” said Lisabelle, “is that we can all already go over to Astra whenever we want. And have a wonderful time together. No Trafton necessary.”
“And you don’t invite me?” Trafton asked, putting his hand over his heart in mock pain. “I’m hurt.”
“You’re thick-headed, that’s about it,” said Lough, unable to resist the very thing he was trying to ignore.
“Why don’t you come over?” I said to Lisabelle. “Once this is over? It would be fun.”
Lisabelle nodded. “I’m in. I’ll bring my furry roomie and Lough.”
“I’m coming too,” said Trafton. “I need more Lisabelle in my life.”
Lisabelle and I exchanged looks, but since neither of us seemed to care if he was there I shrugged. “Sounds good.”
“Keller, you can come too,” said Lisabelle, grinning wickedly at me. Without my noticing it, Keller had finished talking to Lanca and come back to stand nearby while we were talking. He was now standing next to me and grinning at Lisabelle.
“Thanks,” he said, “I think I will.”
“Awesome,” said Lisabelle, returning his smile.
I glared at my friend. I knew that Lisabelle liked Keller - as a friend - but I wondered if it was anything more than that. He was really the only guy on campus who didn’t act like he was afraid of her. Come to think of it, he was too powerful to act like he was afraid of anyone.
“See?” Trafton demanded. “I knew I would have my party. Risper will let his blood relations and the elemental do whatever they want. I knew I had the right friends! This is going to be very exciting. Now, Lisabelle, let us return to Cale and Betsy and you can all do your best to preserve my virtue.”
“What virtue?” Lisabelle muttered, but followed him back to the rest of their group. Cale’s eye caught mine and he gave me a smile. I smiled back and gave a tiny nod, but when I noticed Camilla’s eyes glare I turned my small smile into a full on wave.
Keller laughed softly next to me. “You like driving her crazy, don’t you?”
I grinned back at him. “One of life’s simple pleasures. And I’m not the one who started it.”
“The first Tactical will begin in five minutes,” Risper called out.
Sip came over to me. She and her teammates had had their heads bent together ever since Risper started talking.
“Sorry, Charlotte,” she said, “but everyone is going to be coming after you.”
I shrugged. “I trust my teammates to protect me.” I managed to grin at Keller again before I lost all sense of nerve. I really needed to get a better hold on myself. Maybe if we kissed more I would be used to being around him. Then I scolded myself. His aunt didn’t want that and I wanted what was best for Keller.
“How’s your team?” I asked my friend.
Sip grinned. “Well, Tat’s a vampire from China. I didn’t know there were any of those, but he keeps saying things in Mandarin and then correcting himself, because none of us speak it. I mean, I speak several dialects of werewolf, naturally, but that’s about it. Oh, and we’re all excited. Those of us who are werewolves are looking forward to turning.” She grinned at me. I knew Sip loved a good werewolf chase.
“Let the Tactical begin,” Risper’s voice boomed, and instantly our attention was on nothing but the challenge of the Tactical.
Sip dashed off, giving me one last grin as she went. Then Lealand was at my side, towing me away. Keller and Lanca had already disappeared into the night. Panic started to wash over me. I was obviously the weakest link on this team; it wasn’t as if Keller and Lanca were ever going to get caught or that anyone was even going to have the stomach to go after them, since it was pretty obvious that anyone who attacked either of them would be decimated. Lanca was the vampire princess, so no vampire was going to do it, and Keller was fast and strong and good at everything, which seemed t
o be irrelevant to everyone but me. No one was going to go after him, either. Only the pixies would even be foolish enough to try.
I grabbed hold of the back of the jacket of the pixie I was with. Lealand could move fast and silently, and I realized with a start that with the exception of last semester, when we had enacted the Power of Five during the battle with the demons, this was the only time I had worked with a pixie. I actually liked Lealand a lot. I just hoped I didn’t get him “killed” tonight.
“Let’s let the initial fighting end,” he said quietly as we crouched behind a few bushes that were dangerously close to the force field. I could feel its power crackle and move, but I forced myself to keep my eyes towards campus.
“How long do you think this will take?” I whispered.
Lealand shrugged. “Probably a while. I think everyone spent a lot of time on their Tacticals. But we can’t stay hidden for long. Soon you’ll have to do that bit we talked about.”
“Will you, Lanca, and Keller be able to get a lot of people?”
Lealand chewed his lower lip. “I’m pretty sure we will. Keller and Lanca are both deadly. They should be able to work efficiently. I just hope that no one gets to Lough or Trafton before they can.”
“I doubt they will,” I murmured. Lisabelle might not like Trafton, but she also hated to lose. It was right up there with puppies and hugs; she just couldn’t stand for it, which meant that Trafton would be very difficult to get to indeed.
“Besides,” Lealand continued, “Trafton himself obviously knows what he’s doing. Besides the fact that everyone else on his team will be trying to protect him, he should be able to keep himself safe almost on his own.”
I nodded again, thinking about Camilla protecting Lough. I wondered if she would bother or if she would hang Lough out to dry for Cale. Sadly, either way wouldn’t surprise me.
A burst of color, like a small bit of fireworks, ripped into the air.
“Fighting’s started,” said Lealand excitedly. He reminded me of Sip, crouching forward in anticipation.
“Let’s go,” he said, and we moved away from the bush. We hadn’t seen anyone since we crouched down; apparently no one else’s plan involved hiding so near to the dangerous force field. Bursts of light were coming fast and thick. A lot of students must have decided that this battle would be easier fought in light, and they were throwing out spell after spell. If, while they were at it, they also happened to hit someone and eliminate a whole group, so be it.
Suddenly, right in front of us, Marcus staggered. He was a sophomore on the team that included Lough, Camilla, and Evan, and he was also good friends with Keller. He might not have had Keller’s powers, but he was still a talented fallen angel. I didn’t trust him, and it turned out I was right.
Fast as lightning he straightened from his pretend fall. “I found her,” he yelled over his shoulder, pointing his ring at me as dark wings spread out behind him.
“Change of plan,” cried Lealand, lunging in front of me. “Go! Before it’s too late!”
Chapter Twenty-One
Without another word I dashed away, using the few seconds that Lealand had bought me to disappear. I shifted, moving along the force field as quietly as I could. I knew I was far away from the main action, but it wasn’t time yet. I was supposed to give Keller and Lanca ten minutes. We were almost there, but not quite.
I left my hiding place and raced towards the pond that I now thought of as my mother’s. If I could just get there before anyone caught on, I could hide among the reeds until it was time for the next step in our plan.
I went sliding towards the frozen water, barely catching myself before I hit the ice. Scrambling to my knees I tried to get into the reeds to wait for Keller and Lanca’s signal.
“It’s going to be fine,” I murmured to myself. “I can do this. I won’t get caught.” Not only could I not let anyone else find me, but I also couldn’t be seen without Lealand. We were supposed to stay together and if I was found alone we would lose before we’d even had a chance to start.
I wasn’t worried about the magic bit; I hadn’t had any trouble since I got my Astra ring. Now I was just worried about being able to provide a distraction and then get away without being killed. Lisabelle would definitely try to kill me. This was like her dream come true, not to mention Camilla’s.
Just then a jet black stream shot into the air. It was laced with sparkles, which meant that it was a combination of angel and vampire raw power. My sign.
Vampires couldn’t really do magic. They were strong and could sometimes manipulate objects, not to mention suck blood and live forever, but Lanca was stronger than most and could pull off something like a shot of black power.
Seeing my chance, I dashed towards the open field where we had gathered and where the fire that Risper had started was still burning high into the air.
As I ran I could tell that my classmates were taking notice. I wasn’t exactly going for stealth, instead I was trying to get everyone’s attention just before disappearing. My fingers were crossed that Keller’s idea would work.
Other students started to run after me. I could see them readying spells. I slid onto the ground, ducking someone’s fire. Lanca appeared in front of me, blocking others. I was attracting a massive crowd, just as I had meant to do.
“Duck,” Lanca yelled to me.
“I already ducked,” I muttered. “What am I supposed to do with my head, lay it on the ground?”
I saw immediately why she was yelling, though: Camilla was barreling down on me. Off to the side I could see Sip, standing by, unsure exactly what to do.
Before Camilla and a couple of the other pixies could reach me, I started to pull power out of my ring. It blazed blue, lighting up the surrounding area with a new color. Since I was the only one who was blue, I was sure to attract even more attention. I didn’t notice when Lanca melted away, only that she was gone. I started to spin my magic around me, faster and faster. It came in waves, just like the ocean when I had put the mask on only hours before - when Keller had held my hand.
I kept spinning the watery magic, making it easy for everyone to know my location but difficult for anyone to pinpoint exactly where I was.
This had better work, I thought.
There were too many of them, but just as I was getting worried I started to hear cries and yells of frustration. To my left, a couple of people melted away from me.
“Go, Charlotte!” I heard Keller’s voice yell. I went. Seeing the opening that was a little wider now on my left side, I threw myself through it. Camilla had never made it all the way to my side; she had lost any sense of a clear goal when I started the magic. The fact that no one had seen elemental magic in a long time was definitely working to my advantage.
Hitting the ground hard, I started to crawl. A strong hand gripped me tightly, helping me along. At first I thought it was Keller, but when I looked sideways I realized it was Lealand.
“I love this school,” he whooped. “Awesome.”
“Did it work?” I coughed. There was a lot of different magics flying around. Two vampires ducked past us and I heard a howl somewhere nearby. Others were joining us, including Trafton.
“Lough is holding out,” said Trafton, “but I think Lisabelle is going to get my friend the dream giver.”
“Surprise, surprise,” I said, grinning. “And I’m pretty sure Lough doesn’t like you.” As usual, Trafton merely grinned in response.
Once we were a safe distance away from the action, I turned to admire my group’s handiwork.
Pixie magic specialized in trickery, so Lealand had used his powers to help me along, making me look more impressive than I was, drawing more students, MOST students, into watching what I was doing.
Meanwhile Keller, who as a fallen angel was best with manipulating space and time, was using his ring to mold a very large cage. Lanca had helped. I had crawled out just before the completed cage dropped down on almost everyone except Lough, effectively ending the
night’s game.
Lough and Lisabelle had had enough sense to stay away from me. Later on, with a grin, Lisabelle would tell anyone who asked that it was because she didn’t find me all that impressive.
After losing the rest of his group to Keller’s cage, Lough had started to spin a powerful dream around himself. Unfortunately, Lisabelle, who knew just as much about dream givers as Lough did but had a lot less concern for bodily injury, had stamped through his dream to grab him by the collar and “kill” him. It wasn’t as if Lough could send a nightmare after Lisabelle; he cared about her too much. Trafton had watched it all with glee.
Lots of the students were now huffing and yelling, angry at being so easily caught by Keller and Lanca. I grinned. This training might turn out to be fun after all.
The students were dispersing, many of them giving me grudging looks as they passed. Keller, Lanca, Lealand, and I had won easily. It had been my distraction that had brought out the other valuable students, and Keller and Lanca had picked them off easily.
I looked for my teammates, excited to congratulate them and talk about our first victory of the semester. Lanca and Keller were off in the distance towards the main part of campus, talking quietly, while Lealand was trudging towards them. Right when I started to move, Keller turned his head and smiled at me as I came up. I felt my body give a sigh. I had gotten used to that smile.
Just before I reached the group, Risper appeared at my side. The man made me nervous, but then again he probably made tigers nervous. In fact, he probably made everyone nervous. Everyone, that is, but his equally intimidating niece. Lisabelle would probably have been insulted to hear that I didn’t find her more intimidating than her famous uncle.
Museum of Masks (Paranormal Public Series) Page 14
