The Formation of Team 55

by Neo Nidhi Baghel

  ‘I will have to find out what that curse is all about.’ he kept bobbing his head up and down. ‘I mean, when it happened, how it was done, was any object used, was there any physical injury, what is its impact on her… everything.’

  ‘You will need to talk to her for that.’ suggested Ace. ‘All she told me was that she is cursed and can be tracked all the time by them, no matter where she hides, they can find her.’

  ‘That sounds tough.’ Justin raised an eyebrow. ‘I haven’t been to the library yet. All I have known so far is because of the museums. Maybe after tonight, I can find something useful.’

  Ace agreed with Justin. They knew very little about Bridging itself. The museums had been a great help to all of them in knowing the basics of Bridging. Justin was turning out to be more useful than Ace had expected. He told him about his and Vanya’s conversation behind the cottage after he had apologized to her.

  ‘What if he just wanted to get in, but ended up being ripped off by the saber?’ Justin asked Ace.

  ‘But, why?’ Dawn looked at Ace. His eyes were red and Ace could tell that Evil Rose was doing its work properly. ‘Why would he want to enter the surface when he wasn’t allowed to? And, if the saber ripped his body, where is it? Why wasn’t there any blood outside this cottage?’

  ‘Maybe he just left after the saber arrived. He wanted to enter the surface because he wasn’t allowed to.’ Justin said it very clearly. ‘He couldn’t enter through one of the gates of Bridging so he chose to crash in with her. But, Vanya told you that he did it on someone’s command. If I can find who that commander is, I might be able to help her.’

  Dawn sat there, rubbing his chin, trying to figure out what was happening. He looked slightly drunk now. Justin knew how to handle his drinks and was still sober.

  ‘I wonder who set up this cottage for her.’ he told Ace. ‘I mean it seems like someone had already planned to bring her to her hilltop. it wasn’t an accident. That man cleaned up this tiny cottage for her, set it up and then brought her here. He kidnapped her from the tunnel and cursed her. What the hell was he up to? This is so messed up! I can’t think straight right now.’

  ‘She’s scared to death.’ Ace ran his fingers through his hair. ‘It is not even her fault and still, she got stuck.’

  ‘Why do I have a feeling that something is not right?’ Dawn tapped the back of his head on the wall behind him. ‘I mean, she is fine. Ace, what if someone else had sent this man to breach the surface?’

  Ace and Justin exchanged a look. They were just talking about it. For the first time, Ace was finding Justin being more sensible and sober than Dawn.

  ‘I just said, he did it under someone’s command.’ Justin reminded Dawn.

  ‘No!’ Dawn shook his head. ‘I mean, what if someone else is coming?’

  Justin laid down the empty bottle. He had chugged down the entire bottle and was now spinning it on the floor.

  ‘Then, we should be ready.’ Justin warned the two of them. ‘We can’t wait for those invisible authorities to take any action. They didn't do a thing to help Vanya, right? We will have to take charge.’

  Ace turned to look at the fire. The authority was truly invisible. None of them had ever met or seen any of the members or bodies of the so-called authorities. What if something happened and they wouldn't step up to help Team 55?

  ‘Well, she did mention some evil.. pathetic douche was behind that man.’ Ace gritted his teeth.

  Ace blinked at the fire and it boomed up like a tiny explosion. Dawn jumped towards the study table and saved himself. But, Ace didn't even flinch. It was as if he knew this fire. And, whatever Justin said was making sense. Justin sat there, not being influenced by the fire. His eyes remained fixed at the bottle he kept spinning on the floor.

  ‘You still alive?’ Ace heard Brent's voice.

  He turned to look at him and found that Brent, Kathy, Victoria, and Vanya were staring at him.

  ‘You bet I am!’ Ace smiled at them.

  The drunk douche got busy with his drink again. Ace wondered if talking to Justin about his interest could be so informative and useful, what if talked to Brent sometime? Maybe he could find a way to help Vanya too.

  Kathy looked at him suspiciously but then turned back to Brent. Victoria and Vanya were still staring at him. He smiled at them. It was weird that he had not told Brent, Kathy, and Victoria about Vanya’s curse. And, they were sitting right there in the same room. So far he had shared every little information with them.

  Dawn crawled back closer to the fireplace. ‘What are you thinking?’ he touched Ace’s nose with his forefinger. ‘BOOP!!!’

  Ace didn't react at all. His mind was at work.

  ‘How many gates does bridging has? Not the Phrontistery! I know it has just one ancient gate that is the entrance and the exit. I’m talking about Bridging, the hidden world.’ Ace asked him instantly.

  ‘According to the museums, four!’ responded Dawn. ‘One in each direction! North, south, east and west. They are hidden in the form of a lake, bridge, cave, and a forest. And, each gate is guarded by an element; Earth, fire, water, and air.’

  Ace nodded positively. ‘Nobody unwanted or evil being can ever enter Bridging if the gates are closed. And, last night Vanya entered all of a sudden without any signal or alert. If that was legal, William would have gotten an alert two days, but that didn’t happen.’

  ‘Which means that one of the gates was open already?’ Dawn frowned at him.

  Justin picked up the bottle and got up. He kept the bottle on the rack and stood there gazing at the fire as he listened to Ace.

  ‘I bet it was.’ Justin glanced at Vanya. She was now chatting with Victoria. At least, she wasn't crying anymore. ‘Maybe the people from Nexus were preparing to send her here. That was when that man struck them and tagged along with her.’

  ‘But, if the people from Nexus would have seen something unusual happening, They would have informed the authorities of the Phrontistery, right?’ Justin asked them. ‘It was about a descendant who had gone missing weeks ago.’

  ‘We have to work on this.’ Ace shook his head in disbelief. ‘I can’t believe what is happening. You know if that gate remains open what will happen, right?’

  ‘Whoever is after Vanya can enter Bridging anytime they want to.’ Justin answered him. ‘They will just keep tagging along with the new descendants who will start appearing here soon and who knows what might happen.’

  KNOCK! KNOCK!

  Ace kicked Dawn in the stomach so hard, that he was pushed went back flying. His back hit the wall next to the study table and he dropped on the floor.

  Justin moved back immediately, knowing what had happened.

  The switch was active.

  ‘You don't know how to defend yourself?’ Ace yelled at Dawn. ‘How are you going to face the rest of the teams?’

  Dawn grunted with pain, glaring at Ace. ‘Maybe I will throw you on their faces.’

  Ace got up and Justin rushed ahead to help Dawn stand up.

  William entered the room and looked at everyone. ‘Seems like you all are having a little celebration for being enrolled.’

  Brent raised the bottle of Evil Rose in the air and nodded. ‘You want some? We have the stock here.’ he had a crate under the bed which was full of bottles of Evil Rose.

  ‘No! No! No!’ he shook his head. ‘I must do what I am here to do. I have to leave for Hellberk after this.’

  Ace noticed that William had a roll of charts in his one hand. He simply unrolled them on the study table. ‘Put aside those quills and notebooks, please.’ he requested Dawn, who was still clutching his stomach.

  Ace rolled his eyes at him. He picked up the quills and notebooks and placed them on the rack behind them. William had picked the inkpot on the study table and kept it on one side above the unrolled charts.

  ‘We will go according to birthdays.’ He smiled at everyone. ‘Dawn, step ahead. You arrived at Bridging on the fifth of September, last y
ear. You are the first one to arrive here from your team.’

  Ace remembered the team’s birthday sequence so clearly. First Dawn had arrived, then Brent, then Victoria, then Justin, then Kathy, then Ace and then Vanya.

  Dawn was standing right next to the study table. He took a step, still clutching his stomach and stood next to William. Ace was tall enough to get a good look at what was happening.

  There was a palm-shaped outline in the middle of the chart sheet. He wondered why Bridging was in love with palm prints? He had seen them everywhere. At the guest house, at the junction and now, here as well. These sheets looked very fragile and old. Why was William using such old sheets?

  ‘I am using these sheets because they were made by the Source itself.’ William responded to Ace’s thought. ‘It is not just any regular sheet, Ace. It consists of small grains of crushed leaves that come from Nexus, the land of the Old Souls. They have natural sensors. These sheets communicate with your mind, body, and spirit, and then scribble down the data it registers.’

  ‘What?’ blabbered Ace. ‘What is this Land of the Old Souls?’

  William turned to look at Ace. ‘Nothing that might interest you. But, as you have asked, I will tell you. It is Bridging’s neighboring land that connects with it through one of the four gates. Very often, people from here visit there.’ he glanced at Vanya as he said so.

  Enrollment! Enrollment! Enrollment! Ace kept thinking the thought strongly to let his mind focus on anything else.

  ‘Oh yes!’ William turned to the injured geek of the team. ‘Dawn, would you please place your right palm here.’ he pointed at the center of the blank chart, where there was just an outline of a palm.

  Dawn exhaled before slowly and carefully placing his palm above the outline. Nothing happened for a moment, but then, the outline began to shine. It had turned into a stream of light that was embracing Dawn’s palm. Thin streams of indigo light covered his palm, sealing it with the chart.

  Ace could tell it was painless because Dawn was standing very quietly, watching his hand.

  ‘AAAHHH!!’ he screamed. He grabbed his right forearm with his left hand and attempted to pull it away. But, he wasn't able to do so. ‘My wrist is burning!!’ he gritted his teeth and was sweating now.

  Ace backed up a little. He didn’t know what to do.

  ‘That's the gemstone,’ William put his hand on Dawn’s shoulder. ‘Don’t fight the pain, Dawn. The more you fight with any sort of pain, it only grows more. It grows so much that it destroys you. Keep yourself calm and let it sting you completely.’

  Ace pushed the wooden chair closer to Dawn and made him sit down on it. He saw that the little spirals and streams of light around Dawn’s right wrist were now flowing wildly on the chart. They were writing something. On the top right corner of the chart, it was written, Dawn Garnet. Garnet? Was that Dawn's gemstone?

  ‘From now onwards, you all will be known by the gemstones you are gifted by your streams.’ William told them. ‘From now onwards, you will be known as Dawn Garnet. Remember, your gemstone is a part of you now. It will guide you, help you in realizing who you are supposed to be.’

  Next to the name, a stream of light kept running continually like a lifeline, expressing Dawn’s heartbeats, which Ace could see was very fast. Below the name, there was written ‘Element’, under which it was written ‘Earth’.

  ‘Earth has chosen you, Dawn.’ The Prime Descendant went on. ‘It will be your friend and protect you. Do not misuse its powers.’

  On the bottom right corner, the word address scribbled, under which it was written,

  Dawn Garnet,

  Cottage-55-E, Sector-1, Phrontistery of Bridging

  ‘That is where you will be living from now onwards.’ William informed him. ‘That is going to be your house for the next six years.’

  What astonished Ace the most, was the left side of the chart. On the top left corner, it was written stream, under which it said, Enlightener. Dawn had been declared as the Enlightener of Team-55.

  ‘You will be the one who will be responsible for all the knowledge that this team would need in any and every situation.’ William said it looking around at everyone.

  Dawn was very smart and intelligent. Ace smiled at his best buddy’s stream. He noticed that the spirals of light were still writing something on the bottom left corner of the chart. He frowned at it. It simply said ‘Guide’ under which it was blank.

  As soon as it appeared on the chart, the light vanished and everything was back to normal. Dawn had shut his eyes tightly to bear the burn of his wrist.

  ‘You are done!’ said William, picking up the chart and rolling it back. ‘Here! Keep this with you and keep it safe, please.’ he handed over the chart to Dawn.

  ‘What about the guide?’ Ace asked William.

  ‘Your team will have to prove itself before you all get a personal guide, Ace.’ explained William. ‘If Team fifty-five wins the challenge it will face with the rest of the teams, you all get your guides. If not, you get nothing.’

  Dawn looked at everyone blankly. He had no idea what had happened. He got past them in the room and slumped on the couch. Ace looked at Brent. He was going to be next. He had arrived on 17th October 2010.

  ‘I have a rock on my wrist!!!’ Dawn freaked out. He yelled so loudly that Victoria jumped off the bed and Vanya flinched. ‘What the hell???? Get it out now!’

  William cleared his throat. ‘That is a gift from your stream. You will represent the Enlighteners for Team fifty-five. And, Garnets are pretty rare, so be happy about it.’ he kept talking while setting up Brent’s chart. ‘Always respect your stream! Always! They pick you for a reason and see your latent potential.’

  Was William giving them a lecture now? Ace sighed and walked towards the bed. He sat there next to Vanya. She seemed pretty scared.

  ‘You okay?’ Ace pushed her gently with his shoulder.

  ‘Seems like it is going to hurt.’ her eyes were fixed sideways at something.

  Ace followed her gaze and saw Dawn’s wrist. A big dark red shiny piece of rock was attached to his wrist. Although the skin around had turned red, there had been no bleeding. Ace could see only half of the garnet.

  ‘Is it just sticking to your skin?’ Ace asked Dawn.

  Dawn looked calm now. He kept touching the shiny rock with his fingers and breathing deeply.

  ‘No, it is not encrusted or sticking there.’ he appeared to be lost in his thoughts. ‘It’s like, it is in my veins. I felt it drain out of my veins and collect here. As if it was always inside me. And, I can feel it as a part of me now. I feel like it was hidden before and I couldn’t see it so I never knew. But, now I can see it and I know that it is there, but it has always been there with me. It is a living organ of me now.’ he had a distant look in his eyes, staring at the rack.

  Dawn sounded crazy to Ace. Brent sat on the chair, ready to get enrolled. Victoria stood next to him as she was next. Kathy was sitting on the couch next to Dawn and checking out the garnet on his inner wrist.

  ‘Shiny!’ She suppressed a laugh. ‘Now all you need is some jewelry.’

  Ace knew this was going to take some time. His turn was right before Vanya. The two sat there staring at Brent as he screamed with pain and the process began again.

  ∞∞∞

  ‘It doesn't hurt anymore.’ said Vanya. She was sitting close to the fireplace, clutching her right wrist with her left hand. Her eyes were closed as if she was trying to feel it in her veins.

  Ace was sitting near the fire, but he couldn’t feel the warmth anymore. It was as if he was the fire. He could feel the shiny rock popping out of his inner wrist. The nerves that passed through his wrist, which were partially visible from above the skin before, were now topped with a dark green emerald. He felt the energy of the gemstone boiling up his blood. He had been declared as the Leader of the team.

  William had left them in peace and went to Hellberk for another meeting. Ace had no idea what his meeting wa
s all about, but he didn't have much time. He knew that anything could happen at any moment.

  ‘Here!’ Dawn handed Ace a sheet. ‘It is a list of all of us with our details.’ he sat next to Vanya and held her wrist. ‘It’s beautiful.’ he smiled at her. She had gotten a white pearl from her stream, the Protectors. ‘It suits you, you know?’

  Ace glanced at Dawn. He wanted to punch him so hard, but he had thrashed him thrice in a single day. If they got together in a relationship and it didn’t work, Ace would have to deal with the consequences.

  Ace took the sheet from Dawn and looked at it.

  GRADE 1

  ACE

  Guide -

  Gemstone - Emerald

  Element - Fire

  Stream - Leader (Creator and Warrior) (grade 1)

  Address - Cottage 55-L, Sector 1

  DAWN

  Guide -

  Gemstone - Garnet

  Element - Earth

  Stream - Enlightener (grade 1)

  Address - Cottage 55-E, Sector 1

  VICTORIA

  Guide -

  Gemstone - Ruby

  Element - Air

  Stream - Creator (grade 1)

  Address - Cottage 55-C, Sector 1

  GRADE 2

  JUSTIN

  Guide -

  Gemstone - Quartz

  Element - Fire

  Stream - Healer (grade 2)

  Address - Cottage 55-H, Sector 2

  VANYA

  Guide -

  Gemstone - Pearl

  Element - Earth

  Stream - Protectors (grade 2)

  Address - Cottage 55-P1, Sector 2

  BRENT

  Guide -

  Gemstone - Jasper

  Element - Air

  Stream - Preserver (grade 2)

  Address - Cottage 55-P2, Sector 2

  KATHY

  Guide -

  Gemstone - Jade

  Element - Water

  Stream - Warrior (grade 2)

  Address - Cottage 55-W, Sector 2

  ‘What are the grades, one and two?’ Vanya asked him in a very low voice. She was tilting her head slightly, trying to see everyone's details.

  Ace handed her the sheet and stretched his arms. ‘Grade one means, a team cannot work in the absence of the Leader, the Enlightener and the Creator. They come under grade one. And, the Healer, the Protector, the Preserver, and the warrior come under grade two. A team can work even if one of the grade two members is unavailable.’