Mr. Rockwell waited until Mr. Henry was gone to speak. “Now why don’t you fill me in on all of your adventures?”
CHAPTER 27
XANDER
LINCOLN, SKYLAR, AND JACK FOLLOWED Mr. Rockwell as he slowly made his way to the front row of chairs, limping painfully. They sat down, and the three recruits quickly told their story. Mr. Rockwell listened, occasionally asking a question, but mostly just listening.
“The creatures?” Mr. Rockwell asked with raised eyebrows. “You must have been very persuasive. And where are they now?”
Lincoln lowered his head. “Only three survived the battle. After the fight, they left to join the group Milo was leading to the NE Zone. Hopefully they made it safely.”
Mr. Rockwell sighed. “I hope so. We must not forget the sacrifice they have made. Without them, I fear we never would have regained control of the academy.”
“Mr. Rockwell,” began Lincoln, who had some questions of his own, “what exactly are Xander and his Legion after?”
“The Healer’s Crown,” answered Mr. Rockwell. As she heard this, Skylar gasped loudly.
“But that’s not real,” she protested. “It’s a legend.”
“Oh, it’s very real, Skylar,” Mr. Rockwell said solemnly. “Lincoln’s grandfather brought it to me just before he died.”
“What’s the Healer’s Crown?” asked Lincoln. He had never heard of it before, and he wondered if it was somehow similar to Healer’s Tonic.
“Legend has it,” answered Skylar, turning to Lincoln, “that two Healers, a brother and sister, created a crown with immense power, one that makes the Guardian who wears it invincible. At least, that’s what Milo told me.”
“Invincible?” Lincoln asked dubiously, directing this question to Mr. Rockwell.
“The Healer’s Crown was created during the early eighteen hundreds by twins, a brother and a sister, who were training at the academy when their parents were killed while on assignment.
“As you can imagine, the children were devastated. They blamed their parents’ deaths on the Guardian Council, and after finishing their training at the academy, they set out to punish the Council members who had sent their parents on their final assignment.
“Obsessed with their plot, the twins did horrible things, crossing lines that should never be crossed. Eventually, they created a weapon with immense power, a crown adorned with a large, black diamond surrounded by Egyptian hieroglyphs. The Healer’s Crown gives the Guardian who wears it endless endurance while controlling rites and the ability to instantly heal from any wound. Think of it as supercharged Tonic.
“The night before their planned attack, the sister had a change of heart. She decided she could never condemn the innocent families of the Council members to the same pain she and her brother had experienced. She stole the crown while her brother slept and disappeared into the night, never to be seen again. Enraged, the brother spent the rest of his days searching for her. Unable to prove his crown actually existed, he became the laughingstock of the Guardian community.”
“So how did Grandpa find it?” Lincoln asked, interrupting Mr. Rockwell.
“Tyler heard that Xander, the man he was following, was after the crown. According to legend, the repentant sister left a clue to the crown’s location on her tombstone. There was only one problem. No one knew where she was buried. In a race against Xander and his followers, Tyler was the first to discover the location of the sister’s grave. He solved the riddle, retrieved the crown, and hid it here.
“He then staked out the sister’s grave site, hoping to discover the identity of the person he was chasing. Unfortunately, the Legion found him. They tortured him to find out what he knew, and then they killed him. After that, they went to your home to see if Tyler had left the crown with you.”
“So did Xander get the crown?” asked Skylar.
“It’s safe,” answered Mr. Rockwell. “Tyler hid it well.”
Before Lincoln or Skylar could ask another question, Mr. Henry appeared at Mr. Rockwell’s side. “Gordon, may I have a moment?”
“Certainly. Well, my friends, we can continue our chat later. Right now, duty calls.” He gave the three recruits a wink and then joined Mr. Henry and the rest of the Council.
“What now?” Skylar asked.
“We make them pay for what happened to Guga,” answered Jack grimly. “Let’s go hunting.”
The three of them left the tower and headed north. As they traveled farther from the tower, the sounds from the other hunters gradually faded into the distance. They could see much better now that dawn was finally breaking.
They walked all the way to the Jamus dorm without seeing a single raider. Lincoln was about to suggest they turn around when somewhere nearby a branch cracked loudly. A boy in a dark hoodie jumped up from behind a bush to their right and ran toward Sector 8.
“Come on!” yelled Skylar as she took off after the fleeing raider. Jack and Lincoln followed, trying to keep up while dodging the low-hanging branches.
Skylar caught the boy just before he reached Sector 8. She tackled him. The momentum of their collision carried them through the green Barrier.
“Let me go!” the boy cried out as he tried to squirm free, but Skylar held tight.
“Ow!” she suddenly cried out and then let go of the raider with one hand and hit him hard in the stomach. “You do that again and you’ll get a lot worse than a punch in the stomach.”
“What’d he do?” asked Jack.
“He bit me!”
“What?” exclaimed Lincoln and Jack in unison, grins on both their faces.
“You heard me,” snapped Skylar. “Now stop laughing and help me.”
Lincoln and Jack grabbed the raider and lifted him to his feet. He was a small boy with pale skin, stringy, dark hair, and buggy eyes that seemed much too big for his thin face. He looked scared to death, and Lincoln couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for him.
“Let’s take him back to Mr. Rockwell,” Lincoln suggested.
“You’re not taking him anywhere.”
Lincoln whirled around. Five raiders, dressed in their X hoodies and wearing white masks, emerged from the woods. One of them quickly shot an air blast that Skylar barely managed to block with a weak air shield. Lincoln counterattacked with his own air blast.
The raiders weren’t prepared for how strong the air blast was. It slammed into two of them and knocked them to the ground. Their masks fell off. Lincoln recognized both of them. One was a Council Aide for Mr. Pike, the Councilman who had been killed. The other was Desmond, the boy Skylar remembered from the mall.
“You!” yelled Skylar, pointing at him.
He sneered at her, his eyes began to glow, and he attacked. Lincoln and Jack let go of their captive and split up as the other raiders joined the fight. The freed prisoner took one look at what was happening and ran for his life, disappearing into the nearby trees.
Bam! Lincoln jumped out of the way as a rock crashed into a tree next to him. Two raiders, both smaller than Lincoln, stood in front of him, watching him warily. Lincoln didn’t hesitate. He jumped forward, grabbed one by the wrist, and flung him at the other. Their heads collided and they fell to the ground, writhing in pain.
Lincoln bent down, grabbed the masks, and ripped them off the raiders’ faces. The masks fell from his hands as he sank to his knees, his jaw dropping open in shock. He didn’t recognize the first raider, a skinny girl, and the second one was older than Lincoln remembered, but it didn’t matter. He could never forget this particular face, a face that looked so much like his own. The boy even had Lincoln’s shaggy, sandy-blond hair, the only differences between the two of them being their age and the color of their eyes. Instead of Lincoln’s dark blue, the boy’s eyes were a pale green with matching grey rings surrounding the pupils.
“Noah?” Lincoln whispered.
“Link?” the boy replied, sounding doubtful.
“You died in the fire,” Lincoln protested.
“No, you died in the fire,” responded Noah, “just like Mom and Dad.”
“What are you talking about? Mom and Dad were gone.”
“They got home just after the fire started—” Noah began, but before he could finish, something whizzed by Lincoln’s ear. He jumped away from his long-lost brother, ducking low and covering his head as several fist-sized rocks flew by. A second group of raiders was now approaching from the trees. Most of them wore the white masks identifying them as Legion leaders. Skylar and Jack hurried over to Lincoln, abandoning their battle with Desmond and his friends.
The new group was led by a man who needed no introduction. Unlike the others, he wore a black mask and seemed to tower over them, even though they were just as tall as he was. His followers watched him reverently. Instead of a hoodie, he wore a long, unbuttoned, black trench coat and Tshirt with a red X painted across the front. Lincoln felt a chill run down his spine. He and his friends were in big, big trouble.
“Noah, get over here!” Lincoln urged as he and his friends retreated.
Noah glanced at Lincoln and then back at the raiders, clearly confused. Xander was now only a few feet away. He stopped his approach and eyed the two brothers.
“Ahh, Noah, it appears you’ve met your brother,” Xander said. Lincoln felt a second chill run down his spine. He had heard that voice somewhere before.
“You lied to me!” shouted Noah. “You told me my entire family was dead, killed in that fire started by Mr. Rockwell and the Atlas Keepers.”
Lincoln couldn’t believe the ridiculous lies. Mr. Rockwell started the fire? No way.
“Like you said,” Xander whispered, “I lied.”
Noah rose angrily to his feet, and Lincoln watched Xander’s eyes turn jet black beneath his mask. Noah took one step forward and then slammed to the ground, flat on his back.
Xander turned and pointed to one of the raiders. As he did so, the red X painted across the back of his trench coat glistened like fresh blood beneath the moonlight. “Grab him, and whatever you do, don’t let him escape. Think you can manage that?”
Simon, one of the few without a mask, stepped forward sullenly. He had obviously survived being blasted through the wall, although he was limping and had cuts and scrapes running down the left side of his face.
Lincoln gave the backstabbing murderer an angry glare, and then watched helplessly as he bent down and picked Noah up. Noah struggled, but he was no match physically for the much older and stronger Simon.
Lincoln couldn’t just stand there. Simon had killed one of Lincoln’s best friends, and now he was hurting his brother. He tried to use his powers, but something blocked him. He doubled his efforts with no effect. It was as if he had drunk a vial of Deleo poison without realizing it. He watched as Simon pulled Noah behind the other raiders.
Xander laughed. “Mr. Thomas, you have no idea who you’re up against. Join us. Together, you and your brother would be unstoppable. I could teach you things beyond your wildest dreams.”
“If you’re so powerful, why are you running?” Lincoln shouted, standing straight. “We both know you didn’t get the crown.”
“Show some respect!” snapped Xander, his voice burning with anger.
Lincoln watched as several raiders exchanged glances. Lincoln had laid the trap. Now he could only hope Xander took the bait. Xander looked at his followers, seeing the same nervous glances Lincoln saw.
“Don’t listen to him,” he barked loudly, startling his followers. “He has no idea what he’s talking about.”
Now! While Xander was distracted, Lincoln gently pushed against whatever was blocking his control of the rites. He felt it give just a little and immediately pushed with all his strength, breaking through the block. He shot a burst of white light into the sky which exploded into four letters, H-E-L-P, and hovered, easily seen across the entire academy.
Xander saw the lights and snarled. His eyes burned even blacker as he used his powers to try to extinguish the light. Lincoln fought him off for another five seconds before being overpowered. What little energy Lincoln had found was now completely gone.
“Well,” Xander sneered in unbridled anger, “since you’re so smart, I’m going to let you in on a little secret. I don’t need the crown. There’s more than one way for me to get what I want.”
Xander attacked, using the rites to lift Jack and Skylar high off the ground and throw them against a large boulder. Ignoring their cries of pain as they crashed to the ground, he marched forward, grabbed Lincoln by the neck, and lifted him into the air. Lincoln stared helplessly into the man’s black eyes, too exhausted to defend himself.
“You should have taken my offer to join us,” Xander growled.
He tossed Lincoln backward. Lincoln landed with a thud and felt one of his ribs snap. Lincoln had sent the HELP light into the air fully aware that doing so would leave him too tired to fight any more. He had done it with the hope that help would arrive in time to save his friends and brother.
“Now it’s time for you to join your grandpa” Xander snarled.
Lincoln shot up into the air. He was well over a hundred feet above the ground.
“Make it slow,” Desmond yelled from below. The other raiders laughed, their fear swallowed by their thirst for violence, as Lincoln began flipping head over heels. At the same time, he felt a force crushing his body from every direction, as if he were inside a giant trash compactor. The pain was so intense he could no longer see and he heard himself screaming involuntarily.
And then the crushing force was gone, and Lincoln was engulfed by a ball of freezing water. He stopped flipping and started spinning like a top. He closed his eyes and held his breath. His lungs burned as the seconds ticked past. Any moment now, he would lose his self-control and try to breathe, swallowing a mouthful of water in the process. There was nothing he could do.
Suddenly, Lincoln was falling. He opened his eyes to see Xander lying on the ground, hundreds of feet from where he had been standing. Lincoln felt the presence of something above him and looked up just as the black dragon flew over him, snatched him in its talons, and tossed him onto its back behind Milo. No one else moved. They were all staring in shock at the dragon.
“You made it,” Lincoln shouted.
“Well, your call for help was pretty hard to miss,” Milo answered. “The Keepers should be here soon.”
“What happened to Xander?”
“He was so focused on you, he didn’t see us coming. Miss Black here gave him a whack with her tail. Apparently, she hits pretty hard.”
“So, what now?”
“I was hoping you had an idea,” Milo shouted back.
Lincoln looked below. Jack and Skylar were still down there, unconscious from Xander’s attack. “We need to help them.”
“I know,” answered Milo. “Hold on!”
The dragon tucked its wings and dove to the ground, landing between the unconscious recruits and the raiders. Lincoln and Milo jumped off its back and prepared to defend their friends as the dragon rose back into the sky. As Milo sized up the raiders in front of him, his eyes fell upon Simon in his X hoodie, and his world turned upside down.
“It was you?” Milo asked in disbelief. “Why?”
Simon didn’t answer. He turned and walked away, dragging Noah behind him. The other raiders approached, circling the recruits. Milo was still staring at his brother in shock.
Lincoln had to do something quick, before it was too late. He reached into his pocket, grabbed the third and final vial of Tonic, and threw its contents down his throat, swallowing it in one giant gulp. He would rather lose his powers than see the rest of his friends die.
Lincoln felt the now-familiar burst of energy. He stood tall and shouted at the raiders. “Come on, you cowards. Let’s see what you’ve got.”
Ever since his collapse following his battle with the Council Aide, Lincoln had held back when controlling rites, afraid he might push too hard. Now, knowing he would soon lose his powers any
way, he felt no such fear. Now was the time to see what he could really do.
Copying what Bernie had done with his staff during the fight in the Assembly Hall, Lincoln punched the ground as hard as he could. A twenty-foot wave of rock and dirt rose into the air and smashed into the raiders, burying them alive.
“Holy cow!” whispered Milo, turning to stare at Lincoln in awe.
Something stirred underneath the rubble. A few seconds later, the top layer of dirt and rock exploded outward, and one by one, the raiders climbed out of the muck. Desmond, one of the first to free himself, glowered at Lincoln as he wiped the dirt off his face and clothes.
“You’ll pay for that.” His eyes flashed grey, and he pointed his arms at Lincoln, but no attack came. Desmond’s sneer vanished, replaced with fear. He looked at Xander, who was still lying motionless on the ground hundreds of feet away, before turning back to Lincoln.
“Y-y-you—that’s impossible! Only Xander can do that.”
Adrenaline coursed through Lincoln’s body. His gamble had worked! Hoping to do to the raiders what Xander had done to him, Lincoln had ignored what he had been taught at the academy, and rather than controlling the eight rites, he had tried to control the raiders themselves. It was different. People weren’t like rites. He couldn’t manipulate them to do certain things, but he could surround each of them with an invisible bubble that somehow blocked their ability to use their powers.
The other raiders were now climbing out of the debris and realizing their situation. They joined Desmond, trying desperately to break through Lincoln’s rite bubbles. A few almost did it, but Lincoln managed to hold them back. Still, he could feel his energy slipping. It wouldn’t be long before they broke free.
“Take this and attack them!” Lincoln shouted at Milo, transforming the mayoke into a sword and tossing it to his friend. “I can’t stop them forever.”
Lincoln’s voice woke Milo from his daze. He caught the mayoke and attacked viciously, unleashing his rage toward Simon on the rest of the raiders. Any weapons they had brought with them had been lost when they were buried. Lincoln watched in admiration as Milo swung the blade back and forth, defending and attacking flawlessly. The raiders backed away from him and his stinging blade, doubling their efforts to break free from Lincoln’s power.
The Academy Defenders Page 21
