After Mac and Harry showed up, the boys braved the cold water for a swim. Within seconds, their teeth were chattering as they splashed and dunked one another.
“Which one of you sissies wants to race me to the rocks and back?” Beck challenged.
The other boys groaned and rolled their eyes.
“No way,” Mac grumbled.
“Do I look mental?” Court spat.
“Why not? Are you girls chicken?” he chastised.
“No, we’re not chicken,” Garrett answered. “I think I speak for all of us when I say we’d prefer not to sit and listen to you brag about what a great, strong swimmer you are for the rest of the night.”
The rest of the group grumbled their affirmation to Garrett’s words.
“Can I help it if it’s true?” Beck countered.
The boys moaned loudly and trudged exasperatedly out of the water.
“I’ll race you,” Xavier announced with a grin.
Beck beamed. “You’re on! Garrett, will you start us off?” he asked as he and Xavier sloshed out of the lake and stood at the water’s edge to begin the race.
“Yeah, sure thing,” he answered as he and the other boys settled around the warmth of the fire.
Both boys leaned forward, ready to spring at the word go. With a smirk, Beck gave Xavier a good-natured shove with his forearm, and Xavier staggered slightly.
“Balance, your highness,” Beck ordered, doing an excellent imitation of Henrick Davies.
Grinning, Xavier shoved his friend back and muttered, “You’re going down, Wilson.”
“In your dreams, Wells,” he retorted.
The group behind them snickered appreciatively and egged the boys on with banters and insults.
Garrett called out over the ruckus, “Okay, on your marks. Get set. Go!”
Xavier paused a few seconds to give Beck a head start and watched as his friend high-stepped through the shallow portion of the lake before diving into deeper water.
“Xavier, what are you doing, mate? Go!” Court yelled.
Xavier gave his best friend a grin and a wink before turning back to the lake, leaping past the shallow water, and driving into deeper water. The group’s thoughts of awe slammed into his thoughts as he swam through the water, and he grinned. Feeling cocky and confident, he decided to give his friends a good show. He dove deeper and deeper into the water before changing direction and dolphin kicking faster and faster to the surface. His body broke through and propelled almost ten feet above the water. After effortlessly completing a double axel and a flip, he drove back into the water.
A collective, “Whoa!” followed him into the depths of the lake, and Xavier laughed. That should keep them talking for days. Now, he just had to win the race. In three dolphin kicks, Xavier propelled fifteen feet forward, passing Beck, who had reached the rock and was now on his way back to shore. Xavier tagged the rocks, and in two more kicks, he pulled up next to Beck, who laboriously pounded the water. Xavier reverted to a freestyle swim and splashed along with his friend for a few strokes. Beck was a strong swimmer, but Xavier was much, much stronger. Deciding to have a little fun at Beck’s expense, Xavier kicked deeper underwater before arcing upward, and in two kicks propelling his body out of the water, leaping over Beck, and diving back into the water on the opposite side of him. He repeated this maneuver two more times, basking in the cheers and laughter from the boys on shore. Finally, he dove underwater again and positioned himself about a foot beneath Beck, turned onto his back, and lazily kicked his feet to keep in time with him. It took Beck a couple of strokes before he noticed Xavier. Xavier smiled and waved at the other boy. Beck completely freaked out. Bubbles and a scream erupted from his mouth before he erupted to the surface coughing and sputtering.
“Xavier!” he bellowed, irritably. “You’re a cheat!”
Xavier popped to the surface and regarded his friend. “Cheat? How did I cheat? I touched the rocks! Ask Garrett!”
“You’re a cheat because you were messing with me during the race!” Beck spat.
“I didn’t mess with you! I never touched you or got in your way when you swam! I swam around you… over you… and under you, but I never touched you.” Xavier couldn’t keep the wide grin from his face, and with the others in hysterics behind him, his battle against the erupting laughter was lost.
“Fine! I quit!” Beck growled, and after swimming around Xavier, he climbed from the lake. “Shut it, you guys!” he hissed, snapping his towel at Garrett.
“What’s so funny?” Erica called as she, Robbie, Melissa Dorne, Rene Jones, and another girl Xavier recognized but didn’t know by name emerged from the tree line. Xavier slowly waded out of the water and inched toward the warmth of the fire.
“Oh, man! You missed it. Xavier totally schooled Beck in a swimming race. He literally swam circles around Beck. It was hysterical!” Court blurted.
“Shut it, Hardcastle, or I’ll shut it for you!”
Erica interrupted Court’s rebuttal before he could needle Beck further. “You guys actually went swimming? It’s freezing!”
“Yeah, and Garrett has nuts the size of peas to prove it,” Beck jeered. “Oh, wait. They’re normally the size of peas.”
“That’s not what your girlfriend said last night,” Garrett spat, and the boys laughed appreciatively.
“Hey! Don’t pull me into this!” Melissa protested.
“Ignore them,” a pretty little blonde beside Melissa whispered. “Boys are crude and obnoxious.”
Beck’s ears went red, but he backed off.
“Do you want to go swimming?” Court asked the girls. “You’ll have to take off your clothes so you have dry clothes to put on afterwards. You don’t want to get hypothermia after all. Safety first!” Court directed his ornery grin at Erica.
“You’re off your head, Courtney, if you think we’re going to strip down to our underwear and swim in freezing water,” Erica announced.
“I could heat up the water!” Xavier blurted suddenly.
All the children gaped at him.
“You can do that?” Robbie asked, voicing the surprise from the group.
“Yeah… I mean, I’ve never done it, but I’m pretty sure I can.”
“Is that a good idea?” Dennis asked quietly.
“Shut it, Dennis! Of course it is! Do you want us all to die of hypothermia? Warming up the water wouldn’t hurt anything,” Court reasoned.
“But…”
“I said shut it! God! I knew you’d be like this! Why do you always have to over-think things?” Court spat again.
Dennis’s face blanched, and he swallowed his protests.
The group erupted at once, all in favor of Xavier’s idea.
“Do it, Xavier!”
“That would be so awesome!”
“Why didn’t you think of it earlier, mate?”
“Cool! We’ll have our very own hot tub!”
Encouraged by the attention and the whoops of support, Xavier waded knee-deep into the lake, submerged his hands, closed his eyes and concentrated on warming the water. Instantly, he felt energy build in his chest, sweep down his arms and into the water. Slowly, the water eddying around his legs grew warmer and warmer until it felt more like bathwater than lake water. He opened his eyes and found steam rising from the surface of the lake. He turned and faced the group, who had watched in silence, jaws now slacking.
Garrett was the first to respond. “Last one in the lake has to collect more wood for the fire!”
All at once, the boys galloped into the lake. The girls stripped down to their underclothes before racing in after them. Only Dennis and Terry remained, whispering feverishly with each other.
“Hi,” Robbie murmured softly as she sidled up next to Xavier in the water.
“Hi.” Xavier grinned broadly.
“You should have brought a spare T-shirt to swim in,” Robbie remarked, tracing a finger down his chest, giving Xavier goosebumps.
“Wh… why?”
>
Robbie rolled her eyes at him and snickered. “You didn’t even notice, did you? Melissa, Rene, and Natalie were all ogling over your bare chest.”
“No, they weren’t. Really?” he blurted disbelievingly.
“Yes, they were, Xavier. You’re hot! Not that you weren’t always hot, but now other girls are starting to see it too. I don’t think I like it,” she snickered.
Xavier laughed and hugged her close. “I’m so glad you came! How did you sneak away so early? We thought you were waiting for Loren and Lucy to fall asleep.”
“We changed our tactics. I told my mom I was spending the night with Erica, Erica said she was spending the night at my house, Melissa told her mom she was staying with Natalie…”
“Okay, okay. I get the idea.” Xavier laughed and hugged her close to him. “Is the water warm enough for you?”
“Oh yeah! It’s nice! I’m not cold at all!”
“Good,” he whispered and kissed her.
“Hey, Xavier,” Dennis called softly from the shoreline.
The first thing Xavier noticed was that Dennis had his pack on his back, and his sleeping bag was rolled up and tucked under his arm. Frowning, Xavier released Robbie and waded to shore.
“You’re not going, are you?”
“Yeah. Terry can’t stay the night. He’s got a doctor’s appointment tomorrow, and I’d feel like a third wheel if I stayed. Ya know?”
Xavier nodded, understanding. Terry was his friend. The other guys seemed to be barely tolerating their presence, and so Dennis felt out of place. Gritting his teeth at his friends’ insensitivity, he decided he would have a word with the guys about it later.
“I understand how you feel, but you’re not a third wheel in my eyes, mate. I wish you’d stay, but if you don’t feel comfortable without your best mate, I can understand that.” He looked at Terry, who had gathered the last of his belongings and moved next to Dennis.
“Th… thanks, X,” Terry said with a warm smile.
“Any time, Terry. Maybe you can come again sometime when you both can stay the night.”
“Y… yeah. Th… that would be g… g… great.”
“See you later,” Dennis said softly. “Tell Court I can keep secrets, and Dad will never find out from me that the girls snuck out here.”
Grinning, Xavier responded, “Thanks. That would be great. See you guys later.”
Chapter 7
The next morning just before sunrise, a reporting boom and low resounding rumble jolted the kids awake.
“What in the hell was that?” Beck blurted.
Xavier stood and listened intently. Another boom echoed from the direction of the gatehouse and Center Square.
The group got to their feet and looked around, confused and scared.
Then Xavier felt it. He felt the fear and panic from the guards on duty at the gatehouse. There was a full frontal assault on the gatehouse by three dozen dark soldiers. The attackers had only one plan, to determine any weaknesses in security.
“We’re under attack again. I have to go!” Xavier blurted fiercely as he raced into the dark, dense woods.
“No, Xavier! Wait!” Robbie called, her voice catching.
Xavier got five feet into the forest before he remembered he could just teleport there. Knowing that the safest spot to teleport would be next to the greenhouses a few yards from the kingdom’s entrance, he closed his eyes to conjure up his teleportation just as Robbie grabbed him by the shoulder. He felt the pull of the force yank him out of the woods and set him down into nothing short of chaos.
A thump and weak groan behind him had Xavier spinning with his hands raised, an electro force spinning at the ready in his palm. Robbie was sprawled on the ground.
“Xavier, it’s me!” Robbie shouted over the battle taking place around them.
He dropped his hand, the force dying instantly.
“Jesus, Robbie? How… what… what are you doing here?” he hissed, helping her to her feet.
“I was trying to stop you! Please, don’t do anything stupid. Please, please let the guards handle it.”
“I can’t do that! Robbie, this is what I’ve been training to do—to protect the kingdom. It’s my job! It’s my destiny! I can’t turn my back on this!” Xavier insisted.
“But… you’re… you’re only fourteen!”
“Age doesn’t matter. I’m the Chosen. I have to do this!” His eyes softened at her worried, frightened face. “I’ll be fine. Really! Just… just stay here and stay hidden. I’ll come back for you when it’s over. Okay? Don’t move!” And, not waiting for Robbie to talk him out of it, Xavier sprinted into the chaos.
Forces and empowerments lit up the darkened sky all around the gatehouse, and one whizzed uncomfortably close to Xavier’s cheek. With his heart thumping violently in his chest, he waved his hand quickly to create a blocking force around him. His blocking force wasn’t strong, but it would do the job in protecting him from a stray force. As he approached the gate, he found it aflame but luckily still intact. Several guards with swords drawn fought against men outfitted in black pants, shirts, and masks. The men in black were beating the guards backwards and gaining further access into the kingdom.
Xavier picked up a sword of a fallen guard and raced forward.
“Young sire! You mustn’t be here!” A guard yelled at him, but Xavier ignored him and continued forward.
Quick succeeding pops announced the arrival of the king, Loren, Ephraim, and Henrick. The four men rushed forward with swords drawn. Xavier watched in awe as the men joined in the battle to maintain the security of the gatehouse. His father wielded his sword with expertise and finesse. He struck down three dark soldiers with less than half a dozen parries and one astounding complex maneuver before propelling several dark soldiers backwards and slamming them into the stone wall with telekinesis.
“Hold the line, men! They mustn’t get through!” Jeremiah blared as Xavier plunged into the heart of the battle, blocking what would have been a killing blow from a very skillful dark soldier. The young royal guard looked at his prince in nothing short of astonishment. Xavier lunged his sword at the man, who superbly parried the attack before sweeping into an attack of his own. Xavier blocked his sword, feeling the impact jarring up into his shoulder. Quickly he extended his hand and blasted the dark soldier with an electro force as the young guard recovered from the shock and buried his sword into the soldier’s chest. The dark man dropped to the ground, lifeless.
“Watch out, sire!” the young guard shouted.
Xavier spun, instinctively knowing the direction of the assault, but he was too late as the soldier’s blade sliced across his chest. The wound was only a graze, but if he hadn’t moved at the last second, he would be lying on the ground bleeding out. Out of anger, or maybe fear, a resounding blast erupted from Xavier’s hand, propelling the dark soldier twenty feet into the air. The dark man landed with a resolving crack. Cautiously, the prince approached the fallen man and verified what he already knew—the man was dead. He had killed his first man in battle.
He stared down at the man, emotions warring inside him. Did he have a family? What had led him to join forces with the LeMasters? Did he truly believe in their warped views of world domination and superiority, or was he a victim himself?
Unable to look at the dead man any longer, Xavier turned and found the remaining dark soldiers retreating into the pre-dawn night. Cheers erupted from the men.
“Long live King Wells!” the men began to chant, taunting the retreating forms.
“Xavier?” Robbie called as she ran across the street to where he stood. “Are you all right? Oh my God, you’re bleeding!”
His eyes followed hers to the wound on his chest. “It’s nothing,” he murmured as he placed his hand over the wound, emitting a bright white light and healing the wound.
The king congratulated his men one at a time, shaking hands and thumping their backs. When his eyes settled on Xavier, his face went white before quickly flush
ing in anger, and he stomped toward him.
“What in the hell are you doing here?” he shouted, grabbing Xavier painfully by the arm.
“Helping,” Xavier managed to say, pulling his arm free. “I am the Chosen after all. It’s my destiny to fight the Dark Army.”
“No!” his father barked. “Your job is to fight and kill the Dark King. The Dark Army is my responsibility. I’m still king of this kingdom. What if you’d been severely injured or killed? What do you suppose would happen to your destiny then?” Then Jeremiah noticed the ripped shirt and blood on the boy’s chest.
“Oh, dear God! You’re injured!”
“It’s nothing!” Xavier spat, jerking out of his father’s grasp. “It was just a scratch! How am I supposed to get real practice in combat if I’m never allowed to be in combat?”
“That is also my concern!” his father yelled.
“Oh, thank you, your highness,” he snapped as he condescendingly bowed before his father. “I’ll sleep better at night knowing that!”
“Watch it, boy!”
“What am I supposed to do then? Huh?” Xavier shouted back. “Just sit around like a good little prince and expect Daddy to handle everything?”
“Yes!”
“Well, it’s not going to happen, King Wells!”
The king swelled to his full height and glared down at his insolent son. “First, if you don’t take care in how you speak to me, Chosen or not, you’ll find yourself across my knee,” he spat, glaring pointedly down at Xavier. “Secondly, you’re only a boy, my boy, and you will do what I tell you to because, quite simply, I know what’s best for you. Understood?”
Impulsively, Xavier rolled his eyes, but Loren intervened before Jeremiah could respond to the blatant gesture of disrespect from the boy.
“Sire, maybe this discussion is best suited for another time. We’ve got work to do,” Loren whispered discreetly.
After studying Xavier’s stony expression, the king nodded. “You’re right. Let’s get started,” he told Loren before speaking to Xavier. “I want you to get your things from the lake and return to the palace. We’ll finish this later,” he warned before turning to give his guard assignments in investigating the attack.
The Prince of Warwood and The War of Kings Page 7
