Rise of the Young: Warriors are not made; they are forged (The Ascended Book 2)

by Bygott, Hugo C.

  Whisper tried to get back to his feet, but he was still suffering from Kry’s blow. He was unable to concentrate, stumbling in the attempt as he tried to get up.

  Kry did not seem fazed by the dark matter around him and opened his arms wide, embracing the energy.

  “What’s he doing?” Sonus was alarmed.

  They watched in confusion and fear as they witnessed Kry absorbing all the energy they were creating. The dark matter was gone as Kry pulled his arms back. With a great roar, he unleashed a gigantic wave of dark matter in all directions, knocking everything and everyone to the ground.

  The rocks shattered, and the sand burst up into the air, and the sea trembled as waves of water were forced back from the shore. One more light shot up into the sky as the New Order were overwhelmed. Only Sonus remained.

  Whisper had barely managed to strengthen his barrier before the force hit him, and if he had not, he was not sure if he would be alive. Thrace was lying face down in the water nearby, and Whisper dashed to him, praying that it was not so.

  As Whisper turned him over, Thrace was not moving, and his face was as blue as the sea. Whisper tried to wake him, but suddenly there was a flash of light, and Thrace was gone. Whisper was not sure if Thrace was dead or alive. Everything was in chaos. Kry was out of control. Eclipse and Akira were missing. And Thrace…Whisper never felt more alone.

  “Sonus!” shouted Kry.

  Sonus was barely standing as his barrier was fractured in several places. He had no chance to react as a mental energy dragged him forward through the air and toward Kry.

  Kry smashed through Sonus’s barrier, cracking the faltering energy that Sonus was trying to maintain. He grabbed Sonus by the throat and threw him into the sand below. Kry continued to beat down on Sonus, his fists growing red as they became stained in blood. Sonus tried to say something, but Kry was unrelenting.

  Suddenly, Kry was thrown off Sonus. He quickly returned to his feet and saw Eclipse with Kuro pointed at him.

  “Enough, Kry. He’s had enough,” she said.

  Seeing Kuro pointed at him only made him more furious. She was supposed to be on his side. “He tried to kill our friends and me!” shouted Kry. The flames in his eyes shimmered.

  Eclipse was wary as she looked at him. She had seen it before when Dominus had killed Rhea. Kry had changed, and she could see it here now. “You’re not yourself. Stand down. You’ve done enough.”

  Behind Eclipse, Akira attended to Whisper.

  “Not until I finish him,” said Kry, pointing at Sonus’s beaten body.

  Kry returned his attention to Sonus and was about to direct energy at him, but Eclipse blew him back with a bolt of lightning. “It’s over! He’s out of the tournament! Don’t you see what you’ve done?”

  Kry burst into fire, the flames raging wildly around him. “Where’s Thrace?”

  Eclipse said nothing, but her eyes showed doubt.

  “This is Sonus’s fault. He killed him!” shouted Kry.

  Eclipse took a defensive posture as she tried to protect Sonus.

  “I will not leave the Cube! You have to make me!” said Sonus, almost choking on his own blood.

  Kry could only feel anger, hatred, and rage toward Sonus. He came toward Sonus once more to finish him, but Eclipse moved in between them.

  “Out of my way, Eclipse!” Kry glared at her.

  “No.” Eclipse stood her ground.

  The fire in Kry’s eyes intensified. “It’s better this way! He killed Xu, and he killed Thrace!”

  Eclipse moved in front of him every time Kry tried to get to Sonus.

  “You’re becoming like him. You need to calm down. This isn’t you. Whatever has happened in the past few days, this is not you!” said Eclipse.

  Kry recalled the memories of the two boys playing: his confusion about who they were, his lie of a life, and Jaeger. All of it just enraged him to the point where he could no longer think clearly.

  “I’m nothing like him!” Kry shot a bolt of lightning at Sonus.

  Eclipse deflected it with Kuro. “Stop this now! Don’t let yourself become like him!”

  For the first time, Kry saw Eclipse as something in his way. He would defeat Sonus, defeat the Shadow Government, and protect his friends. He would never let anyone take things away from him again. He came in hard, and Eclipse moved just as quickly to push him back, but Kry grabbed Kuro with his now hardened hands and pulled her into the air while she still held the hilt. Eclipse unleashed a shock of energy down through Kuro, but Kry absorbed it, and it only made him stronger. He then returned the energy, and it went back through the blade toward her. The energy of the blast propelled her into the distance.

  Kry, unconcerned, moved over to Sonus. His eyes were now as white as ever as he looked over his enemy. He began to create a red glow from his hands and directed it toward Sonus. Sonus could only cough blood as his eyes saw his fate. Kry unleashed his energy, and the sand burst into all directions as it made contact.

  The Cube suddenly changed. There was a flash of light, and Sonus was gone. Kry was standing in a green field. The Cube hummed with energy as the crowd watched him in a stunned silence.

  You showed them.

  His eyes flickered and returned to normal. His focus returned and then the realization of everything hit him. Whisper and Akira were leaving the Cube. They looked at him with disappointment. He ran to them, but they said nothing and walked past him. In the distance, he could feel the presence of Thrace; he was still alive. Kry’s heart pounded faster and faster. Then he thought of Eclipse. He turned around and saw her approaching him.

  “I hope it was worth it.” Eclipse walked past him in the same manner as the others.

  Kry now stood alone inside the Cube as the students and professors waited. There were no cheers or laughter—only a stunned silence.

  A crackle of the microphone broke the dark atmosphere.

  “Kry…” Yujin paused and looked across to the Cube. “Kry and his team are victorious.” There was no enthusiasm in his voice.

  Kry did not understand why the audience was so quiet. He could not even remember everything that had happened. There were dark spots in his memory.

  “It appears Kry’s team has selected him to go on to fight Aiyax.” Yujin expressed little joy having said this. He seemed to be in shock.

  Kry looked at his hands which were covered in blood. Then he realized that he had caused all the damage around him. He had hurt them all.

  The voice in his head returned. Show them again. Be a champion.

  Kry’s muscles were healing, and a renewed excitement took over him as the sounds of the hang drum began to play. The melody was serene, beautiful, and calm. The audience, once silent, was now in unison and began to cheer. Aiyax, Aiyax, Aiyax! The champion had arrived.

  Chapter 20 – Champion of the Cube

  Aiyax swirled her whips, slashing the ground several times as she made her way to the Cube. Despite her confident stride, there was something different in the way she approached this time. She was wary and never let her eyes move away from Kry.

  The audience cheered. Beautiful and serene were the sounds of the hang drums that the students played for the champion.

  Another crack. Aiyax’s whip sparked with energy as she finally entered the Cube.

  Kry watched her every step and never expected this would be how he would end up fighting her. His friends had given him no support, and they left disappointed with his actions. He only did what he did to stop anything bad happening to his friends, but they did not see it like he did. They thought he was out of control…and…maybe he was, but he did not care. He would do everything he could to become stronger. Beating Aiyax would be the next challenge which would prove he was ready to fight against the Shadow Government. Never again would another die because of him—not his parents nor Rhea.

  Kry controlled his energy, waiting to strike when the time was ready. The Cube had yet to shift into a terrain.

  Why did no one c
heer for him? He had beaten Wei Long and Sonus, so why was there a negative reaction against him? He would make an example of Aiyax, and then they would cheer, and his friends would be proud. Eclipse, Whisper, even Thrace and Akira would all realize he only did what was necessary.

  The door of the Cube shut. Aiyax stood in front of him with her emerald eyes searching his soul. Her face was painted with tribal markings in the same way when she had fought Abel. She looked fearsome as she cracked her whips by her side.

  “The time we’ve all been waiting for has arrived.” Yujin raised his hand in the air.

  Kry focused his attention on Aiyax. She moved around him in a circle, following him with her eyes.

  “Let the battle commence.” Yujin lowered his hand.

  With those last words, the Cube vibrated, and the ground beneath Kry and Aiyax shifted.

  There was an incredible heat as the Cube transformed into a land of ash. Molten lava oozed sporadically around them as they stood on the only mound of rock in the whole Cube. There was nowhere to run, and there was nowhere to hide. The Cube had dictated the terms of the fight. Sprays of fire shot up into the sky as the sound of the lava flowed around their circle of rock.

  Aiyax was unconcerned with the new terrain. She continued to strike her whips on the platform of rock, rotating them several times causing the energy to crackle as the sea of lava bubbled around them.

  Kry formed his two-level barrier. He expanded the barrier to give him extra room to move safely. An added benefit was that he could not feel the heat as intensely.

  To Kry’s confusion, Aiyax did not raise her barrier and continued to move around him, slashing her whips. What was she waiting for? He did not want to strike first and would rather counterattack. He had no idea how strong she was, and the only real appearance of her strength was against Abel, but he knew Abel did not give everything he had. Unlike Abel, he would give everything.

  Aiyax came to a standstill and rested her hands by her side. The whips no longer sparked with energy as they touched the rock.

  A flow of liquid lava shot up into the sky. Drops of fire fell all across the single piece of rock. Kry’s barrier protected him from the rain of fire, but Aiyax still did not raise her barrier. Instead, she moved side to side, beautiful and agile, evading each drop as if it was a mere inconvenience.

  He knew she was trying to intimidate him, but he would not show he was afraid. Already, he had beaten some of the strongest Users here, and there was a power inside of him greater than he even understood.

  “You’ve caused a stir within the university.” Aiyax evaded the last drop of fire. Her eyes glowed green through her tribal-painted face.

  He was surprised she still had yet to make a move. “What do you mean?”

  Aiyax pointed to her eyes and then to his. “The white flames.”

  There were still blanks in his memory, but the euphoria of feeling the surge of energy was insurmountable and uncontrollable.

  “You have the mark of an Ascended,” said Aiyax. “Who are you?”

  The image of two boys appeared in his mind, laughing in the green fields where they played. Once considered a dream, now they only revealed the nature and the truth of what they were: memories.

  “You know who I am, a student just like you,” said Kry.

  Aiyax tilted her head and pointed all around her. “We’ve seen what you did. You’re no mere student. Not with those eyes. If you are to fight me, then I ask you to reveal them to me once more.”

  Show her.

  There was a struggle within him that he did not understand, but he felt the strain of two entities fighting for control—two voices, one who wanted for him to fight, the other asking for restraint. He tried to understand what was happening to him, but there was nobody to explain any of this. Even Rush had only explained that the white flames represented someone who had reached Ascension and that the only people in history to have achieved that level were the members of the Shadow Government. This made him more convinced that he was connected to them in some way, and not knowing everything only fueled his anger—anger that pushed him closer to the voice of power, the voice wanting vengeance, and ultimately the voice wanting to fight.

  His mind moved back and forth, unleashing a mighty headache. It was a reminder that Jaeger’s control over him was still evident.

  “I won’t answer to your demands!” said Kry. Despite being in his barrier, the heat was growing more intense.

  Aiyax watched him carefully, not moving an inch. More fire burst up around them.

  “You’ve no idea about me nor what I’ve been through and what’s been done to me!” said Kry. It did not even feel like he was the one talking. It was as if something else was taking control and submitting to the emotions buried within him.

  “So tell me,” she said, nonchalantly.

  Somehow her words angered him even more. What was this growing fury? He had never been as angry as the last week. Was this the darkness Abel was speaking about?

  Show her.

  “Tell you?” shouted Kry. He expanded his barrier so far that the rim touched her feet. “I’ll show you!” With a great force of energy, he further expanded his barrier in the hope to knock her off the piece of rock.

  Stop.

  At that moment, he realized he had tried to kill her, and a wave of mixed emotions flooded him. But Aiyax was still standing in the same spot unaffected by his forced push. He was confused, staring at her and trying to comprehend why nothing had happened. Aiyax revealed nothing in her expression as she returned his stare with no emotion. She then stepped inside his barrier.

  Alarmed, Kry unleashed more energy, creating a wall of stone blocking her path. There was a great strain on his mind as he felt the opposing energy ripping apart the wall. The stone wall crumbled, and Aiyax stepped through. He tried again with a wall of ice, but Aiyax waved the wall away with a flick of her hand. The ice melted, and the splash of water streamed into the lava creating a jet of steam.

  “You won’t beat me like this,” said Aiyax with a calmness in her voice.

  He ignored her and slammed his fists into the platform generating a shockwave. The ripples of energy came in several bursts, with him at the epicenter, each wave stronger than the last. With one stroke of her whip, Aiyax struck the rock, and the generating force from her glowing whip cracked against the ripples reversing the energy back toward him.

  In disbelief, Kry stepped back and took a defensive posture to stand against the waves of energy now pounding against him.

  “As a champion, and even before I became a champion, I’ve fought many Users, but none have shown a power such as yours. The white flames are only acquired by Users who have reached Ascension, and you don’t seem like an Ascended,” said Aiyax.

  “Stop talking!” Kry was growing more agitated at how easy Aiyax was avoiding his attacks. He would not give up, though. With his hands, he began to rotate them at an incredible speed creating a flaming fireball which grew as it spun around in his hand. “I’ve had enough talking!” He threw the large ball of fire toward her.

  Lightning struck all around him, each bolt flashing as it made contact with the rock beneath them. Aiyax cracked her whip generating another bolt of lightning which deflected the fireball away and far into the distance, finally sinking into the molten lava.

  Kry threw another and another. It was of no effect as Aiyax crossed her hands and cracked her whips several times in the shape of an arc knocking the fireballs out of her way.

  “Emotions control you. Just like Abel. Champions know how to control their emotions. You control the emotions, not the other way around.” Aiyax dragged her whip into the air drawing a line around her, and suddenly a green glow of energy surrounded her as her barrier formed. “You’ve yet to show me the white flames. If you don’t, you stand little chance of winning this fight.”

  He was panting, and his forehead was dripping with sweat. Aiyax continued to demand of him the white flames, but he could not just bring it
forth as easily as that. It came as it pleased.

  Aiyax waited for him to make his next attack. Why was she holding back?

  “I am in control!” growled Kry. An unnatural feeling overcame him as a surge of energy rose up. He raised his arms into the air and brought down a ray of red energy from the sky.

  For the first time, Aiyax showed a glimmer of emotion as she looked up with a face of immediate concern. She blinked out of the way just in time as the powerful ray of dark matter shattered against the rock. There was an intense cracking sound as the rock split in two, the lava rushing into the gap, and leaving Kry and Aiyax on separate pieces.

  Aiyax began to strike her whips into the lava using them to steer her piece to close the distance between herself and Kry.

  Kry looked at his hands which were burning. He could not believe how much energy he had created. The euphoria once more took over, and he no longer considered his safety nor hers as he fired more dark matter toward her.

  Aiyax cracked her whip and deflected the energy away. She then closed her eyes and formed a second barrier.

  “Reckless. Your friend Eclipse would have been a better choice to face me considering your lack of focus,” jeered Aiyax.

  Kry clenched his fists. She was gaining distance and would be upon him again. She was wrong about him lacking focus, though. He was in control, no matter what anyone said! He was in control! They were all wrong.

  The strange voice inside his mind willed him to generate all the energy he could form. His entire body trembled, and then the energy burst forth from every direction.

  Aiyax crouched down and reinforced her position as the powerful energy struck her barrier. The energy was uncontrolled. She rose to her to feet and saw Kry staring back at her with the white flames in his eyes. “At last,” she said. “This is a real test for a champion.” Aiyax jumped from her platform of rock and landed skillfully next to him. She struck her whips into the side of his barrier, the chaos now enveloping them both.

  Destroy her.

  He listened to the voice and agreed. With each crack, Aiyax broke through his barrier, but the energy Kry was producing was so great that with every barrier destroyed, another one formed, always leaving him with two constant barriers. She continued slashing against his barrier, trying to break through, but he was reforming the barriers faster than she could break them. A sudden realization on her face revealed that she needed to give much more.