by Katie Pottle
Lep landed next to Cadin with completely disheveled hair and a smug smile. He held his arms up where Cadin could see Gur rolled up into an angry dragon ball. Gur let out a chirp followed by his classic gurrr.
“Oh, give him here, Lep.”
Lep released the dragon who quickly scurried up Cadin’s arm.
“How’d you catch him,” Cadin whispered as Instructor Kade pointed out active air blasters.
“Food,” Lep said.
“Really, Gur?” Cadin asked.
Gur snorted into his ear before falling asleep.
“Focus,” Devin said next to them. “You need to be concentrating on making your lightning tori.”
Cadin cringed. He had been nominated to handle the lightning weapons because ‘lightning liked him’—or so Sun claimed. Personally, he disagreed and felt like lightning was out to get him every time he connected to a cloud that had any electric charge whatsoever. He got shocked three times as much as anyone else.
“But you’re much more immune to the amperage than the rest of us,” Sun had argued when he tried to use that as an excuse to get out of making them.
Cadin had ended up agreeing, but he still shivered at the thought of connecting to the dark cumulonimbus cloud crackling in the center of the Arena.
“You can do it,” Crow said next to them when they started training. “Just try that bit of weaving that helps you guide the elements rather than contain them. I’ll put up the absorption target for you.”
Cadin sighed while Crow ran off to collect the large dark target they used for lightning practice. The cloud danced and hissed in front of him, as if anticipating his touch. Small streaks of electricity illuminated the inside of the cloud, highlighting the purples, blues and greens swirling madly within.
“Ready!” Crow called as he patted the target and ran back to Cadin’s side.
“Okay, here it goes.” Cadin reached forward and connected with the dark cloud. Energy zinged through him as small icicles whipped past his arms. The cloud crackled loudly and Cadin felt a bolt building towards him. He did his best to stay calm and weave a path towards the target, but the lightning was ready too quickly.
Zap!
“Ouch!”
“Heads up!” Crow called as the escaped lightning flew past them and connected to the metal rod in the center of the Arena.
“Everyone alright?” Instructor Kade asked as he landed next to them.
Cadin rubbed his butt where he had landed hard when he fell back trying to avoid getting shocked. “Lightning develops too fast for me to wield it.”
“Yes, the electric element does seem to be highly attracted to you. Maybe go back to your small tori or rods. Capture a little bit rather than trying to direct the whole bolt.”
“Yeah, I guess.” He slumped in disappointment. Lighting dealt the most damage of any element during battle. He felt like he would need it to win against Ryker.
“You’re not alone,” Crow said as he helped him up. “You are a part of a team. Look.”
Across the Arena, Bart was starting up a beautiful cyclone. Lep and Sun were being timed by Lana and Cinna while making air and water traps.
Instructor Kade marched over to help Devin set up targets for their ice weapons.
“You’re right. Thanks, Crow.”
Cadin and Crow spent the next half hour fine-tuning weaponized versions of the lightning torus.
Crow pumped his fist in the air as his torus, which tapered to the outer edge, turning it into a circle-blade, embedded in the black target before releasing the small bolt of lightning within.
“That is so cool!” Lep said as he walked up to them. “Wanna switch?” He held up several small ice spears.
The day flew by as they fine-tuned their strategy and elemental skills.
“Feel ready?” Devin asked as they headed to the locker rooms.
“Yes and no,” Cadin said. “Whoa!”
“What’s wrong?” Sun asked.
“The pulse ring just zapped me,” Cadin exclaimed.
“I felt a very small pressure,” Lep said.
Bart nodded.
“Master Emilio,” Cadin and Sun said.
“He must be in trouble!” Cadin said as he paced back and forth though their condo. They had been discussing the ring and what it meant all day.
“You don’t know that for sure, Cadin. The pressure could mean he is happy,” Sun said. “Maybe he found what he was looking for.”
“But that’s not what the moment felt like! What did the ring feel like to you?” Cadin asked Lep who was lounging on a bunkbed.
Lep shook his head. “Only a little bit of pressure and I have no idea what it meant.”
Sun’s eyebrows furrowed in concentration. “We need more information. Cadin, you are obviously more connected to Master Emilio than any of us. That’s why I gave him the ring, because I thought it might amplify your connection. But this is just frustrating!”
“Agreed. Instructor Kade should have some answers, right?” Cadin said. He rubbed the ring on his thumb, willing it to speak in a language he understood. They had told Instructor Kade when the rings activated and what they thought it meant.
“Let me see what I can find out,” he had said. That had been almost six hours ago.
The light knock on their door startled Cadin.
“It’s me,” Instructor Kade said.
Sun slid the ‘anti-Gregor’ lock back and Instructor Kade slipped in. His hair was wind-swept and he slumped into the chair next to the door.
“Info is much more difficult to come by without my Core clearance,” he said. His mouth twitched. “As I’m quite sure you all have guessed, I was not fully decommissioned within the Core when I started teaching in Glade. The Core positioned a few officers in teaching positions around the System to start training and recruiting more warriors into the Academy from a younger age. I was given the Glade position more as a punishment than anything else because I refused a promotion I hadn’t felt I earned. Master Sanjen saw it as a cooling off period to get my priorities straight. That kind of ended up backfiring on him though, and he is not too happy with me right now.”
Cadin wanted to get them back on topic but Sun had no such thought. She patted his arm. “But you’re happy now, right?”
He exhaled. “I am. It was an easier decision for me than I ever thought something like that would be. Staying in Glade to be with Zephran and to continue teaching spirited youngsters such as yourselves is where I want my future to be.” He stood up and stretched his shoulders and wings. “And just because I’m no longer in the Core, it doesn’t mean I don’t still have some connections.”
“So, you found something out?” Cadin asked.
Instructor Kade nodded before sealing the window. “The information I have to pass on is sensitive.” His voice was low.
They all scooted closer to be able to hear.
“Master Emilio and Eric were here in search of a specific lair of Tlalocs. Unfortunately for him I guess, the outpost he was searching for was found and closed by the Core months ago, before the Games were cleared to be hosted on Condor.”
“Do you know anything specific about that Tlaloc lair?” Cadin asked.
“It was in a fringeland in-between Condor and Carta.”
“In? Don’t you mean on?”
“No. Tlalocs are good at remaining hidden. One of their tricks is converting wrath nests into bunkers.”
Cadin shivered at the thought of a wrath—their leathery wings, wretched breath, needle teeth and harrowing battle cry. “Eww!”
“Yeah, wraths are not fun to deal with. However, the Core now knows why the Tlalocs have focused on the creatures. They have been after their blood.”
“Gross!” Sun said. “What for?”
“They ingest it to make themselves physically stronger.”
“Oh, that makes sense,” Cadin said, thinking back to his encounters with Tlalocs.
“Wrath blood increases the consumer’s muscle si
ze and imbues them with crazy amounts of strength. However, it also has some other side-effects.”
“Like purple specks in their Auras?” Cadin guessed.
“Yes, but also mental instability. The Tlalocs we detained who have been drinking the wrath blood for longer periods of time are the strongest, and also the least stable.”
“Great,” Bart said.
“Eh, why would Master Emilio be searching for one of these bunkers?” Cadin asked.
“The Tlalocs have struck in strange ways this last year. They stole specific equipment as small as Core-grade liquid chambers to Thunder Channel pacificators.”
“So, they are planning something. The Core has known that for a while and surely stymied some of their plotting,” Cadin said.
“The Core has contained a lot; however, the Tlalocs are not in the open and as much as has been stopped, it is not apparent how much more could be going on. And the equipment is not the most unsettling thing they have stolen.” Instructor Kade lowered his head before looking Cadin in the eyes. “I am crossing a line in what I am about to disclose to you. However, I worry Master Emilio may have indeed found what he was looking for. And if that is the case, he is not the only one in danger.”
Cadin took a deep breath. “What was he looking for?”
Instructor Kade shook his head. “Not what but who. The Tlalocs kidnapped the head Thunder Channel Engineer months ago.”
“What!” Lep exclaimed.
“No,” Sun said.
“Nesta of Glade,” Cadin said, remembering Master Emilio describe him as a brother figure. That also explained why Eric was searching with Master Emilio. “Why would the Core not assist Master Emilio in finding Nesta?”
“Because technically the Core cannot disclose that he was kidnapped by the Tlalocs. Officially Nesta is only missing. The Core is working to break up a big plan of the Tlalocs’ right now, and according to my source, they couldn’t spare personnel for an endeavor likely to fail. They didn’t think he would be able to find the Tlalocs. I was unable to find out where he was going.”
“We don’t know where he was headed either, but Kevin does,” Cadin said.
“The weaver at the Condor Palace site who has been working with you guys?”
“Yep. He used to be a Tlaloc. He told Master Emilio something that got him excited about his next destination. Now this ring keeps pulsing, and I think he has gotten himself into some serious trouble.”
Instructor Kade’s eyes narrowed. “Listen carefully. I’m not thrilled at the thought of you guys having spent so much unsupervised time with an ex-Tlaloc. Even if he was cleared to be on Condor.” He held his hand up to Cadin who had started to speak. “Let me finish. I’m not saying he is bad, I’m just saying I don’t like that I didn’t know about it or I would’ve kept a better eye on you. Also, the fact that Master Emilio is potentially in danger after following Kevin’s directions is suspect.”
“Kevin didn’t want to give him the info. He actually seemed kinda scared at the idea of it,” Cadin said. “What are we going to do?”
“Okay. As of right now, I need you guys to concentrate on the Final Round tomorrow.”
“But…”
“Listen, Cadin. We don’t know enough. Your rings may be randomly acting up. You are an extremely rare team to have made it this far in the Calvarian Games. Don’t throw it away by acting on a whim. Besides, in my experience, acting with incomplete understanding is far more dangerous than not acting at all.”
“It’s not a whim,” Cadin said quietly. “I know Master Emilio is in trouble. I feel it. The rings only help amplify the feeling.”
“Then let me gather more information while you focus on your last task here on Condor. Is that a deal?” He held his hand out to Cadin.
“Deal. Thank you for your help, and for believing me.”
“All of you have done things I did not think were possible at your age. I’m proud to have been your instructor these last couple years. Now get some rest. Tomorrow is the big one. Good luck!”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Final Round
Beautiful anthems rang through the Arena—the kind of music that invokes the soul to sing. Sunbeams danced around the cloud-scape of the Final Round. Blue, yellow and white Anger Cubes were positioned throughout the field, anchored to the clouds they could best draw elements from. Cadin turned as a large yellow cube hanging off the side of the dark cumulonimbus cloud sparked, allowing several lightning streaks to escape.
Sun was to his right, eyes focused and ready. Lep and Bart stood tall to his left—Lep bouncing with excitement.
Team Inferno stood as still as hardened cloud-sculptures next to them, clad in red Alpha Armor. No fidgeting, or threatening glares cast in their direction—just motionless focus.
The music concluded and both teams presented their weapons for inspection after being blunted in the Light Bay.
“Welcome to the concluding match of the Warrior Path Calvarian Games!” The announcer opened. “We are honored to have many of our sponsors here to support us today! First and foremost, please give a hand for Master Sanjen—head of the Warrior faction of the Core!” Master Sanjen stood in the red awning-covered booth and waved to the crowd. The announcer continued to thank other sponsors of the Games before turning back towards the teams. “And now, please show your support for our two fantastic finalists—Inferno of Condor, and Dragon Fire of Glade!”
The crowd erupted and the clouds within the battlefield quivered.
We made it to the Finals! Cadin thought. He knew how unlikely it was for them to have made it so far in the tournament, and he was grateful for the luck, skill and work Dragon Fire had put in. Sun smiled at him, the heart-warming kind of smile that made him believe she contained a true ray of sunshine in her soul.
Lep slapped his shoulder and jumped up. “Let’s do this,” he exclaimed.
“Competitors, take your starting positions! You have three minutes of initial preparation where you must remain within your team’s outlined area. Then you have fifteen minutes of battle! Any elemental damage done in this round is worth double!”
The cloud-land shook under their feet.
“Hands in!” Lep exclaimed.
Cadin smiled at his best friend’s contagious enthusiasm.
“Goooo Dragon Fire!” They cheered before hurrying over to the clouds that were most likely to hold their starting elements.
“Stay strong,” Cadin shouted as everyone ran off and he approached the edge of the rumbling dark cloud. Sun caught his eye as they waited for the announcer to signal the start of their preparation period. She winked at him before turning back to a water-laden cloud that looked ready to pour on them at any moment.
“Competitors, your three minutes starts now!”
Cadin quickly reached into the cloud, feeling the hairs on the back of his arms raise as he drew the bolts of lightning towards him. The cloud crackled loudly at the opposite end, and he released his connection before the big bolt chased after him. He shifted the electricity he had pulled out of the cloud into several tori with a tapered and sharp outer edge.
“Ouch!” he hissed as quietly as possible as ice and a medium bolt of lightning slammed into his arm as he reached back into the cloud. “Got you.” He caught and extracted enough lightning to build a shocking bo-staff. He wrestled to contain it in a large rod. Some of the lightning escaped into the ground before he sealed everything.
“One minute left!”
“Crap,” Cadin said. He wanted at least two more lightning tori to give to Sun and he hastily connected to the cloud. A large bolt of lightning was near his connection point and zinged towards him through the cloud, lighting up the swirly air and water along its path.
Cadin’s breath quickened as he lost his connection and rolled out of the way. The crowd gasped as the bolt slung past him and struck the large lightning rod in the center of the Arena.
His hand shook as he tentatively reached back towards the cloud. Most of t
he energy had discharged with the large bolt and he was only able to pull enough lightning out for one more small torus.
“Time!” The announcer called. “The Final Round is about to begin! Competitors to your starting positions!”
Cadin ran over to Sun and Lep. He gave Lep the bo-staff and handed Sun two lightning tori, keeping only two for himself.
“Thanks, here are the ice-blades.”
Sun handed him one dagger and two small throwing knives molded out of ice.
“Don’t let them melt,” Lep said while Sun squeezed his hand.
“Got it. You think Bart is ready?”
Lep nodded as he scanned the battlefield. “He could make a cyclone in his sleep.”
“And begin!” The announcer’s voice rolled through the Arena, mixed with cheers from the crowd.
“To the cirrus cloud Cube, hurry!” Lep said.
Cadin flew behind Lep, keeping a lookout for any gleaming red armor. At least the red Aura team is wearing the red armor this round, Cadin thought as a sparkling blue arrow sailed past his shoulder and shattered into the white Energy Cube.
“And Dragon Fire strikes first!”
Cadin tuned out the announcer and swiftly dodged the air blast that shot from the Cube. He struck with the ice-knife which snapped in his hand and he quickly changed to Tsuyo. His katana sliced across the hard surface of the Cube.
“Behind you!” Sun called.
Cadin spun to find a red-clad angel racing towards him, ice blade raised. The warrior flicked his shield up slightly to block Sun’s arrow and continued to advance on Cadin.
Cadin expanded two of his gins and sent them towards the warrior’s face, blocking his view. Cadin ducked under the large ice-blade and sliced across the red warrior’s armored chest.
The angel grunted, but spun quickly and brought his sword down again.
The sound of shattering ice was exactly what Cadin was waiting for as he blocked the blow with Tsuyo. Cadin raised his katana, but before he could connect, he got hit hard in his side by the same sword, still in the warrior’s hand—but no longer made of ice.
