Angels and Elves- Act I

by William Collins

  “Shut it, Jagger,” Sabine snapped back.

  Gettelung held a hand for silence, before continuing. “Most Realmers who are orcs, goblins and ogres attend Grezgul, which isn’t very many truth be told. Only a few hundred, although there are some humans from nearby realms too. Grezgul is far stricter than us and is sometimes said to be ‘more similar to Velkarath than Veneseron.”

  “Seriously,” he said, louder than he meant to. “And we’re allies with these people.”

  “Obviously they’re nowhere near as barbaric as Velkarath,” said Gettelung, “but they don’t allow their trainees to use magic for fun and punish them for minor wrongs, including failing their training trials and missions. Grezgul Realmers are allowed to fist-fight whenever they want, although that’s not exactly a silver lining. These are the high-masters. Commander Zargron and Lady Regina.”

  Gettelung brought up two holograms off his Holophone as he spoke. The holograms were lifesized, but static and translucent.

  “I wonder which one’s which.” Jed smirked at the orcish master.

  Zargron was fearsome even as a hologram, standing well over six feet and his grey skin corded with muscle. Both his tusks were chipped, which only made them sharper, whilst his eyes were small and shrewd. The sleeveless shirt he wore appeared to be stitched from animal bones.

  The Lady Regina wasn’t fearsome at all, however. Her flowing curly hair fell below her shoulders, a silver stream on one side, but golden on the left. She was lean, tall and beautiful, yet something about her smile and the look in her periwinkle blue eyes made Evan uneasy. She wore a garishly pink dress and a necklace of coin size rubies.

  Commander Zargron was very obviously a Master his trainees would fear, but with Regina her unpleasantness was veiled, Evan may even be imagining it.

  “Laissont couldn’t be more different to Grezgul, but also Veneseron. Laissont has the second most human Realmers out of all the Strongholds, as almost every Venator of the most wealthy and esteemed families attend there. Others with great fortunes can buy a place at Laissont too, but no matter how magically powerful a trainee is, if they are poor or not from a Venator family, Laissont will not allow them to attend. So, with limited ancient families, the population is only three hundred or so.”

  “Yep,” said Elijah. “Even if I wanted to go, my family couldn’t afford it. You have to pay like a half a million.”

  “If Laissont only accepts the best families, why isn’t Stray training there then?” Jed asked, not caring Sintian was in the room. “And Bane.”

  “Well, Bane’s brothers did receive their training at Laissont. But his father elected to send Bane here. As for the Strays. Uh…”

  “It’s quite alright Gettelung,” Sintian said smoothly. “You can tell everyone my family fell out of favour with the ‘Elite’ families after my Great grandfather chose to marry a completely ordinary woman. We Strays have more than established a name for ourselves here.”

  “Just so,” Gettelung replied, looking relieved. “The worst things about these two Strongholds is how Grezgul’s Reamers have been known to face public lashings by the Masters for disobedience and…”

  Gettelung was interrupted as several Venators gasped and voiced their displeasure.

  “Are you serious?” Emillia asked. “The Masters beat the trainees?”

  Gettelung nodded gravely. “It has been known to happen. Vanderain has tried to prevent it many times when visiting the Republic, but the families of Grezgul’s trainees grant permission for their children to be trained that way. They are the type of people who believe in tough love and what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. It’s part of the culture for orcs, goblins and ogres.”

  “Doesn’t make it right though,” Evan spoke up.

  “Not at all,” Gettelung agreed. “Nor is Laisson’s singling out of the poor. Dividing people by their class and parent’s influence should not be tolerated either. Vanderain did step in with the Realmer council when he discovered a pattern of the poorer Laissont Realmers being sent on the most dangerous missions, so the wealthier families would be less at risk.”

  “Do the Laissont Masters tuck the Lord and Lady Realmers into bed at night too?” Jed shook his head.

  “So, training’s way harder at Grezgul for the weak, and bad at Laissont for the poor,” Sintian remarked. “Sounds like Evan and Jed wouldn’t have made it in either of those places.”

  “Well, your hair is…too curly.” Jed replied, grimacing at his own insult.

  “Yeah, you told him.” Evan chuckled.

  *

  Evan’s stomach had been a mass of knots as he woke up that morning, but now his insides felt like they were positively writhing. A light but persistent patter of rain lashed against the carriage windows as they drove through the city, rocking from side to side gently as they went.

  Evan gazed at the gargantuan city around them, trying to distract himself from his nerves as their carriage made its way to Dante’s Hollow, where the Raging Squids first match took place. The wondrous sights, combined with being surrounded by his friends, eased the anxiety a little.

  Faintly, he heard the hoarse cries of stall vendors bartering their wares and the splash of running water from the many large fountains, only just audible above the buzz of chatter from the crowd of people up ahead.

  They passed a shop named Belzug's Biomech Body parts. Lining up outside were several orcs, all with at least one mechanical limb. One eccentric looking dwarf was being fitted with a set of metal wings.

  To the east, an Airship was currently docking atop one of the towers, returning after taking its passengers sight-seeing in the Badlands, Evan guessed.

  “Whoa, look at that,” Jed leaned over him and Emillia to point out a gigantic white bat soared through the skies above the two of them, carrying a gnome on its back.

  Unlike him, Jed wasn’t showing any nerves at all, his expression shone with excitement. Zeke was as quiet as he always was, but Brooke seemed almost as tense as him.

  “We’re not going to be late, are we?” She tried to look at one of the city’s giant clock towers from the window. “Nova and the rest of the team might’ve got there ages ago.”

  “You’re on time, stop worrying,” Xavier replied airily. “It’s not like you’ll be in the match, so it wouldn’t matter even if you were late.”

  “But what if one of them is subbed in halfway through?” said Emi. “They’re facing The Golden Dragons, things could get nasty.”

  Evan had to agree. His anxiety had doubled when he learned it was Sypher’s team they’d be facing today. If both Stray brothers weren’t bad enough, Sypher’s group of friends were all on the Shadow Sphinx’s team, and none of them looked remotely pleasant.

  Stop worrying, Evan. Like Xavier said, there’s barely a chance you’ll be playing.

  “Pah,” Jed snorted. “I’m not scared of Sintian, or his possibly even weirder big brother.”

  Evan grinned back at Jed, despite his nerves.

  Their carriage pulled up short and he realised they were already outside Veneseron stadium.

  “It’s showtime, baby,” Jed whooped. “Wait, that sounded better in my head.”

  In no time at all, they’d weaved their way through the mass of multi-raced spectators and were being led toward the sport’s changing rooms.

  Nova had said Arengi teams always needed ample substitutes as players were unable to play every game in a tournament due to missions getting in the way. So, even though he and his friends would spend the match on the substitute bench, he was still excited to see the Arengi game up close. Besides, there was the very small chance one or two of them could be subbed in, but those places would likely go to Zeke and Brooke, they were both better players than him and Jed, probably why Jed wasn’t nervous.

  Evan had got his greaves on, but not yet the upper half of his armour, when a panic-stricken Nova ran into the boys changing room. He shrank against the wall instantly, as his teammates also scrambled to cover up. Lok
had been halfway through pulling his trousers on and promptly fell over as he attempted to walk with them around his ankles.

  “Ushk, Ushk, Glarqing Ushk.” Nova swore, not even looking at them. “It couldn’t just be one, could it? That would be bad luck, two would be serious, but three is horrific.”

  “Three what?” Jed asked, hastily pulling his trousers up before she noticed.

  “Three of the team are out,” Nova cried. “They all got food poisoning this morning. I reckon Sypher had one of his goons spike their dinner yesterday, but I can’t prove it. Either way, the infirmary doctors said they won’t be fully healed until this evening. We’re ruined. No offense guys, but I was only planning to sub in Zeke this match, the rest of you just need more training. Okay right, calm yourself Nova,” she muttered to herself frantically. “Okay, Brooke, Evan and Zeke, you’ll all need to start the match. Jed, get ready to be subbed partway through.”

  Evan’s insides clenched. Rueda, I’ll actually have to play.

  “Hurry up then,” Nova exclaimed, “five minutes until we’re on.”

  Evan began recounting all the spells he’d learned over the past few months in his head as a distraction technique for his nerves. By the time he was done, he and his teammates had climbed a long set of spiral stone steps and stood outside a giant door. The crowd rumbled just outside, sounding like a swarm of giant hornets.

  Arengi players weren’t allowed to see the arena they’d be competing in until moments before the game began, so all players would see what type of Arena they’d have at the same time.

  Evan walked out beside Jed and Brooke, raising a hand to his eyes as the suns shone down bright. They stood on a wooden platform near the very top of the stadium. As he gazed around, Evan was instantly reminded of a pirate ship.

  The Shadow Sphinxes stood on another wooden platform the opposite side of the arena, whilst a crisscross network of wooden planks stretched across the open space between them, a series of mini bridges.

  Far below, the crater-sized pit which gave Dante’s Hollow its name was filled with water. Evan saw multiple tentacles sticking out of the makeshift lake and guessed it was packed with an assortment of creatures. The sand that usually covered Dante’s Hollow had a net above it, should any of them fall. Thick ropes hung from almost all of the bridges and Evan noticed barrels on many of the wooden planks. He saw no sign of the Arengi Orb anywhere.

  “Who’s betting the orb is right in the centre of that lake?” Nova grinned, unsheathing her sword. “Listen quick, we have seconds before the horn sounds. Let the enemy try to go in the water first, so we can see what the creatures are before we attempt it. For now, just try and eliminate as many of the bliaks as possible. Remember what I said in practice. Once you’ve taken three hits, the protective sphere will be beamed over you. Keeping you safe, but also eliminating you from the game.

  “Just like our training trial,” Jed muttered to him.

  “However, in arenas like this one, falling into that enchanted net means instant elimination,” Nova said. “So, the enemy will try to knock you off the planks too. Right, let’s do this Ushk!”

  As soon as she finished speaking, the horn sounded out through the arena and the game began.

  Not five seconds into the game, Evan took his first hit. Another combatant threw an energy bolt all the way from the opposite platform, striking him in the shoulder. He fell to one knee, then quickly dived onto his stomach to avoid being hit a second time.

  Jed fell beside him, the armour across his shoulder smoking where he’d been hit. “Rueda!” he gasped. “I feel like we’re pretty outmatched, mate.”

  Evan had no time to reply, as several more spells were flung at the platform.

  “Spread out,” Nova cried, “and everyone fire at their platform, get them to disperse too.”

  He hurried to comply, ripping Ruaden free whilst willing his magic to the surface. He ran out onto one of the planks, head bent low as another spell shot over his head. Evan replied with a Stunner spell, aiming for the opposite platform but falling short.

  Nova, however, fared much better. He saw her use the air element to seize one of the barrels, with the other hand she set the barrel on fire and then launched it toward the enemy team. The barrel exploded on contact, causing the opposite team to scatter.

  Around him, combatants started using the air element to control the thick ropes dangling beneath the bridges. He saw Rudy, who was the first onto the planks, to get his ankle picked by one of the ropes, causing him to fall headfirst onto the bridge and almost fall off. The rope tried to yank him back into the air, but Rudy sliced it off with his sword just in time.

  Evan zoned out the screaming crowd as he ran across his own plank, trying not to freak out at high up in the air he was. He didn’t really have a plan, other than to throw more spells at any enemy he saw. One of the Shadow Sphinxes found him first, however.

  He practically skidded to a halt on his plank as the Venator he recognised as Sypher’s friend Korey threw an ice-bolt his way. Evan slashed instinctively, using Ruaden’s enchantment to cut Korey’s spell in half. The bolt fell in two halves either side of him, but then Korey was jumping from his plank and onto Evan’s. The plank wobbled violently beneath them both as Korey surged forward and swiped with his axe.

  He stepped back and the axe whistled through the air, but then Korey reversed his weapon mid-swipe and Evan met the blow with Ruaden. As their weapons clashed together it became a test of strength, but Evan could feel Korey straining against him.

  “Have a nice fall,” Korey snarled, kicking out at his leg before attempting to shove Evan off the plank and to the ground far below.

  He stood his ground, ignoring the kick to his shin and pushing back as Korey tried to make him lose balance. As their weapons remained locked together, Evan abruptly took one hand of Ruaden’s hilt and used it to shoot out another Stunner. This one caught Korey flush in the face and he reeled back once. He stumbled like a drunk before pivoting straight off the plank to drop like a stone onto the enchanted safety net far below, instantly eliminated.

  Moments later, a second combatant focused in on him, throwing magical webbing his way. Evan rapidly ducked the cobgob spell heading for his face, before pivoting to face the player as he leaped onto his plank.

  The much taller Venator’s sword slashed down at him, but Evan instead yanked the weapon out of the combatant’s hand with air magic. The player stumbled before Evan kicked out at his chest, forcing him off the plank, just like he he’d done to Korey.

  Whoa, I’m better at Arengi than I thought. A second later, a volt of electricity slammed into him from behind and he fell face-first onto the plank. The plank wobbled once more, causing him to bounce and then slide off. He scrabbled desperately, losing his grip on Ruaden as he seized the edge of the plank before he fell off.

  He looked up then to see Sintian walking toward him, smiling smugly.

  “Oops,” he sniggered, kicking Ruaden off the plank and through the air. “So, how to eliminate you? You’ve already taken two hits, I could actually pull you back up and blast you with a simple spell. But no, I think I’d prefer to watch you drop.”

  Sintian raised his boot over Evan’s hands, where he clung desperately to the side of the plank, his body swaying in the air.

  “No Sintian!” A hoarse cry stopped Sintian in his tracks as he looked over at Sypher several planks away. “He’s mine.”

  Sintian’s distraction allowed Jed to sneak up and simply push him over the edge of the plank and into empty air.

  “C’mere mate,” Jed grabbed Evan’s arm and hauled him onto the plank.

  Evan had barely time to say thanks before two battling Venators on the next bridge both threw spheres of energy magic at each other. The spheres collided and rolled onto their plank instead. With an almighty wrench of wood, the plank ruptured and split in half. They both plummeted through the air, before miraculously smacking into one of the gliding platforms. The impact winded them both, but
they hadn’t been eliminated.

  Evan rolled to his feet, gasping for air as he surveyed the chaotic game around him.

  Three players from each team had been eliminated, now encased in the protective domes automatically beamed up from the sensors around the arena. But many battles still raged on. He saw Zeke and Masune duelling atop one of the bridges, their steel clashing together rhythmically, whilst Nova had leaped her way across the bridges and floating platforms, making her way toward the lake in the centre.

  One of the opposition had beat her there, however. He and Jed watched as the Venator dived off of his platform and into the lake, attempting to swim to the bottom. Moments later, the player was thrown back out of the lake and high into the air by the colossal tentacle.

  The Realmer’s arms and legs flailed hopelessly as he fell back to the ground, smashing into the net before the elimination dome surrounded him.

  “Watch out,” Jed said suddenly.

  Evan whirled to see another platform gliding toward them, with Sypher atop it, his eyes like twin black fires.

  “I lost my sword,” he shouted, fumbling for the right spell.

  “Don’t worry, I-“ Jed cut off as Sypher swept his arm, causing one of the nearby dangling ropes to curl toward Jed and wrap around his neck. Before Evan could stop it, the rope hurled Jed off their platform and released him directly above the lake. The last Evan saw was Jed hitting the water like a pebble, before Sypher was right in front of him.

  Fire burgeoned in his hands, and he threw both fireballs at once. Sypher dodged one, but the other smashed into his chest, causing him to growl in frustration as he took his first hit.

  As Evan summoned more of the fire element, Sypher surprised him by jumping off of his platform and onto his, before sweeping his legs from under him and dragging Evan off and onto the sand. Bizarrely, Sypher then jumped off the platform himself.

  They were away from the safety net here, at the very side of the arena. Evan scrambled to his feet, backing away across the sand. Sypher just smirked, as if it was exactly what he wanted Evan to do.