Rivals
Page 9
“I’m sorry,” Jackson said as he walked around the table to recall Asena into stasis. “She’s normally very well — ARGH!”
Asena sat on her haunches behind the exam table, the poor tranquilized Magglecaw hanging from her mouth. Her wagging tail and the look in her eyes suggested she thought she’d been doing Jackson a favor. Jackson whipped out his ring and recalled the Magglecaw at once, before the Lyote could decide she was hungry.
“Bad girl!” Jackson said.
Asena whined before she too disappeared in a flash of light.
The doctor gave a no-so-polite cough. Jackson turned around, a sheepish grin on his face and muttered an apology.
“I think we’d better get going,” Briggs said. “Thanks for your help, doc.”
Kay hung back asking several questions about the instruments and equipment while Jackson followed Briggs out of the exam room, feeling distraught. He’d been hoping the doctor’s exam might reveal some special or rare quality about this particular Djinn that he could use to justify the capture to Briggs. Instead, his fears were confirmed. He’d wasted what was probably a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity on a Djinn he could have captured in his own backyard. At the front desk, the receptionist handed Jackson a tablet with a number of registration forms.
“It’s not too late,” Briggs said. “Until you sign those papers, you can apply for a release back into the wild. Given the injuries the Magglecaw suffered, you might even get the appeal through.”
Jackson’s stylus hovered over the first page where he would sign his name, officially making the Magglecaw his own.
“Putting your name down doesn’t just mean you’ve got another fighter on your team,” Briggs said. His voice took on a gentler tone which caught Jackson off guard. “You’ll Bond with this Djinn — establish a special connection with it. That’s something extremely hard to break if, down the road, you need to bring another Djinn on your team because the Magglecaw and its future forms aren’t cutting it. And I’m here to tell you: a Magglecaw ain’t going to cut it in Silver and Gold Leagues. You need to think about your career, not just where you are right now.”
Jackson stared down at the registration form. He’d never really stopped and considered the implications of what he would be doing when he aimed at the Magglecaw. He thought of his Bond with Asena, how special and unique it was. It was hard to imagine another Djinn sharing that same relationship with him but he knew, one day, if his dreams came true, he’d have as many as seven Djinn on his team. Was a Magglecaw really one of just seven Djinn he wanted to help take him to the top?
“I…”
“You’d have to buy another ring, but we can go back into the preserve. I can’t stress how important this is that you consider every option here,” Briggs said. “Just let them know you’ve changed your mind and don’t want to tag out. It’s rare they allow a release, but given the circumstances I think we can make it happen.”
“And would they let us back in to catch another one?”
“Honestly,” Briggs said, “It’s possible. But definitely not before Training Camp. The bureaucracy will see to that. The smart thing would have been to leave the Magglecaw to nature and try again. But that ship has sailed.”
Jackson nodded. He admittedly felt a little better hearing that. He didn’t think he could have left the Magglecaw there if he wanted. But did he actually want to keep this one?
Jackson stuck the stylus back in its magnetic holder on the side of the tablet and bit his lip. He recalled his first months fighting in the Underground. Sure, he had a rare and powerful Djinn in Asena, but their rocky relationship made him the worst of the worst tamers. He couldn’t even say how many times he’d been beaten not just by bigger and stronger opponents, but better ones. In spite of this, he’d still kept going back, driven by a desire to help his grandma.
While he doubted the Magglecaw felt any convictions other than filling its belly when it attacked the Tandile, Jackson couldn’t help but notice its spunk; a small, weaker Djinn taking on what twenty of its flock-mates had failed against. Jackson picked the form up off of the reception desk.
“You’re probably right,” he told Briggs. “A Magglecaw definitely isn’t what we came here for, and it’s not what I ever imagined I’d take with me to training camp. But I’m not going to dismiss it just because it doesn’t look like the best option on paper. If we went by that, I wouldn’t have a place in Training Camp, either.”
Briggs rolled his eyes. “You know, this whole underdog complex you’ve got going is a real pain in my ass, kid.”
“Tell me the truth,” Jackson said. “Do you think I’ve got a chance with Asena and the Magglecaw?”
After a long moment of thought, Briggs shrugged. “I ain’t gonna lie to you and tell you that with a lot of hard work and dedication you’ll be just fine, because I can’t promise that. That’s a speech I would have saved for when you brought back a Groggle or Tandile. On the other hand, raw ability is only half of what makes up a good Djinn. A good tamer goes a long way. We’ll just have to see.”
Jackson grinned. It’d been a hell of a couple of days and he knew it wouldn’t be the last time he second-guessed himself about the Magglecaw. But just like when the bank foreclosed their house and Jackson had his back to the wall with Asena, the only option was to take things head-on.
Once they’d piled into Briggs’s pickup and hopped onto a main highway, Jackson pulled up the new stats for his Magglecaw. What had he gotten himself into here?
GENERAL STATS AND INFO
Djinn: Magglecaw
Level: 10
Name: N/A
Element: Wind
Species Rarity: Common
Tamer: Jackson Hunt
HP (Hit Points): 32/170
EP (Elemental Power): 3/65
XP (Experience): 104 to Next Level
DJP (Djinn Points): 18 Unallocated
Attack: 28
Defense: 24
Speed: 64
Accessories: None
Items: None
Status: Recovering
Bond: 5%
Move Set: Swipe Left to See More >>>
Jackson grimaced. While it wasn’t as bad as it could have been, there was still a lot of work to be done. On the plus side, with its Bond at 5%, it looked like the process was well underway. The Magglecaw had awful Defense and Attack, and was lacking Elemental Power. It more than made up for it in the Speed category, though, and one big silver lining was that he had 18 DJP to allocate from when it leveled up over the course of its life. In the wild, Djinn had no tamers to allocate these and, as such, tamed Djinn were often much stronger than their wild counterparts.
Djinn would often go their entire lives with untapped potential — a potential that was only unlocked in recent centuries by tamers. Some called it unethical, but what it came down to was taking advantage of the potential already inherent in the Djinn’s DNA.
But before Jackson could figure out how he’d allocate the DJP, he had to look at the Magglecaw’s move set. He swiped left on the menu.
MOVE SET
Wind-Elemental: Mocking Wind (3 EP), Feather Needle (5 EP)
Plain-Elemental: Attack, Cackle Call
None of those were anything to write home about, but it wasn’t a bad start — it was certainly a better place than he and Asena had started several months back.
Jackson scratched his chin with his free hand and swiped back over the General Stats and Info section. Considering its high level, the Magglecaw was seriously lacking in four of the five main categories: HP, EP, Attack, and Defense.
Jackson thought back to when he started with Asena in the Underground. His strategy there against a bunch of novices was to overload the Lyote’s Attack and overwhelm the opponents who were more than likely to throw in far too many DJP into their Defense, creating a relatively weak Djinn.
“I know that look,” Briggs said, glancing over from the driver’s seat. “Figuring the best way to allocate those leftover Dj
inn Points, are we?”
Jackson nodded and gave Briggs the short version of the Magglecaw’s current stats.
“Fighting the urge to pile on its Defense and Attack, huh?” Briggs said.
“So it’s the wrong move?”
“Ehh…” Briggs’s voice faded as he mulled over the question for several seconds. “Yes and no. Magglecaws have a lot of Speed, but not much else. Yes, it’s important to make sure you have a Djinn that can both take and deal a hit, but it’s also important to recognize a Djinn’s strengths. Having amazing Speed isn’t an invitation to invest your Djinn Points in something else until they’re all leveled out. That Djinn is naturally predisposed to be fast, and tamers should do their best to retain each Djinn’s strengths, because in a pinch, they never know when they’ll need said strengths — in this case, Speed. Plus, the last thing you want to do is squander their potential.
“At least, that’s my two cents on the matter,” Briggs added. “But there have been many successful tamers out there who have thought otherwise and work to level out their core stats as much as possible.”
“Yeah, I get it,” Jackson said, though it didn’t help the small pang in his stomach. He’d definitely considered leveling out his other stats so that they were closer to the Magglecaw’s Speed, but Briggs’s comments made a lot of sense.
Jackson forced out a quick breath and quickly added 7 DJP to Speed, moving as quickly as possible so he couldn’t rethink his strategy. Immediately, the Djinn’s Speed hopped from 64 to 108 — a substantial jump.
He glanced over the other core stats and dropped 2 DJP into each one. This left him with 3 more DJP left, which he eventually allocated to HP, Attack, and Defense. He hoped he wouldn’t regret these decisions.
GENERAL STATS AND INFO
Djinn: Magglecaw
Level: 10
Name: N/A
Element: Wind
Species Rarity: Common
Tamer: Jackson Hunt
HP (Hit Points): 32/192
EP (Elemental Power): 3/72
XP (Experience): 104 to Next Level
DJP (Djinn Points): 0 Unallocated
Attack: 39
Defense: 40
Speed: 108
Accessories: None
Items: None
Status: Recovering
Bond: 5%
Move Set: Swipe Left to See More >>>
Jackson forced a grin on his face. It was a start, but they still had a whole lot of work to do.
CHAPTER 12
Briggs insisted on driving through the night, saying something about wanting to get a stiff drink and wake up in his own bed like the whole thing had been a bad dream. By the time they pulled into the driveway, the rising sun marked the following morning.
Jackson had been so angry at Asena for trying to eat the Magglecaw that he’d left her in the ring for the ride home. As a result, Kay sprawled out across the back seat, still fast asleep and drooling when Briggs put the truck in park at Jackson’s driveway. When Jackson opened the creaking, rusty door, she bolted upright, red hair wild and unruly.
“Huh — whereweat?”
“Home, Kay,” Jackson said, rolling his eyes. All of his positivity and false bravado drained away during the long ride home in the uncomfortable pickup. Now he felt almost like Briggs — he wanted to curl up in his bed and hope it’d been a bad dream.
Kay mumbled something and rubbed her eyes. While Jackson and Briggs unloaded the back of the truck, she stumbled out of the backseat of the pickup and gave a big stretch and yawn.
“Home already?” Jane said. She’d been checking the mail on the first floor of their complex when she saw the truck at the curb. She opened the screen door to their building, fully dressed, and anxiously joined them on the curb. “How did it go?”
“I suppose if there’s one good thing, it’s that nothing more could have gone wrong,” Briggs muttered. Luckily, Jane didn’t pick it up.
“It was…okay,” Jackson said. Jane looked at him, clearly waiting for more information. Instead, Jackson threw his bag over his shoulder and carried it up to their small front porch.
Surprisingly, he saw Kay following behind him. She tossed her stuff onto the front porch of the complex. “I’ll come get my things later,” Kay said. “My bike too. I can’t ride home on that thing right now.” She looked like she might fall asleep where she was standing, so Jackson told her thanks again.
“I can drop you off, you know,” Briggs told her.
“I’m not riding another minute in that thing,” Kay said, staggering away.
After she started walking home and Jackson had put their stuff away in his apartment, he went back outside and approached the driver’s side of the pickup where Briggs waited, cigar in mouth and truck idling.
“What now?” Jackson said. He had to raise his voice to be heard over the sputter of the engine.
“Now I go home and drink myself to sleep before I try to figure out your problems again,” Briggs said. Jackson started to laugh then realized he was serious. “Same old regimen — I’ll see you tomorrow after work, and then morning and nights from there on out when available. With any luck, you won’t be completely blown out of the water at camp. But like I said before, I make no guarantees.
“In all honesty,” Briggs said. “I should dropkick your ass to the curb right now and be on my way. That’s the second time you’ve disobeyed me.”
Jackson swallowed, growing nervous at where this conversation was going.
“But I really do want to beat McAllister,” Briggs said. “And perhaps even more than that, I want to smack that smirk off of Lei Kaleo’s damn face.”
Jackson smirked. It looks like the rivalries of old were starting to reawaken within the previous guard of Djinn tamers — though he dare not say it aloud.
With that, Briggs shifted the truck into gear and drove off in a cloud of thick black exhaust. Jackson’s thanks to his mentor were drowned out by a particularly loud backfire, but he doubted Briggs would have appreciated it anyway.
“Did you have a good time on your camping trip?” Jane asked Jackson after he’d lugged his and Kay’s bags into the apartment.
Jackson vented a long sigh. “It wasn’t a camping trip, Grandma.”
Jane wasn’t deterred…or just wasn’t listening. “Did you get the Djinn you wanted?”
Another pang of guilt flooded his gut. Rather than deal with Jane’s twenty questions, Jackson toggled the 3D projector on his watch and flipped to the Magglecaw’s page. When the Magglecaw appeared in a miniature computerized form in front of Jane she gave Jackson a puzzled look.
“Is that it? I’m pretty sure I’ve seen those around Tyle since we moved here.”
“Yeah,” Jackson said, growing more deflated by the second. “They’re sort of common.”
He reluctantly told Jane the story of how he’d come to be the Magglecaw’s tamer. When he finished, his grandma nodded in understanding.
“So you felt bad for it? That was a sweet thing to do.”
Jackson felt his face flush for the dozenth time in the last two days. “I didn’t — oh, never mind. I’m feeling pretty tired. Can we talk later?”
When he reached his room, Jackson shut the door behind him and then face-planted onto his bed. He lay there for several moments before finally rolling over with a groan. Although he’d been told to leave the Magglecaw in stasis another day before beginning its training, Jackson felt the urge to see his newest Djinn, almost as if he could confirm some sort of insider secret about the Magglecaw that everyone else had missed.
Jackson wore the Magglecaw’s ring on his right index finger, opposite of Asena’s on his left. It really didn’t matter which finger a tamer chose to wear his ring on, but when Jackson had the new one sized, he liked the balance of one on each hand. Closing his right hand into a fist, Jackson summoned the Magglecaw onto his bed.
His new Djinn appeared in a gray light and swiveled its head around, taking in its surroundings. Care
ful not to disturb it, Jackson sat still until the Magglecaw spotted him. It tilted its head sideways and let out a questioning cackle.
“Hey there,” Jackson said. “I’m your new tamer. My name’s Jackson.”
He reached forward slowly to touch the Magglecaw. Recalling how his first few weeks with Asena had been, Jackson gritted his teeth, prepared for the Djinn to nip at his fingers or fly in his face. Instead, the Magglecaw leaned forward and rubbed the side of its feathered head against Jackson’s outstretched finger.
“That’s a good boy,” Jackson said. The Magglecaw squawked and hopped closer, still keeping its injured right wing tucked against its side. The wing looked like it was in pretty good shape to Jackson, but with Training Camp looming closer, he thought he’d better play it safe and give his new Djinn a few days’s rest. Any injury acquired by the Magglecaw or Asena would severely impact his chances of making it through camp. Djinn injuries took place in all levels of the DBL, and although the world’s best medical trainers and doctors worked to rehabilitate injured Djinn, sometimes freak accidents happened that ruined an entire season or even a career for a Djinn and their tamer.
Jackson pulled up the Djinn’s stat sheet once again — half to admire the work he’d already done allocating his DJP, half to glance at the “N/A” hovering on the Name line.
“You seem like a good fellow,” Jackson said, stroking the Magglecaw’s head and back with two of his fingers. “What are we going to name you?”
Several ideas flashed through his mind until he eventually settled on one.
“Scrappy,” Jackson said when he’d finished typing in the characters on the stat sheet. “What do you think of that? I’d say you’re definitely scrappy for taking on a Tandile all by yourself!”
The Magglecaw — Scrappy — chattered his agreement and hopped around the bed in apparent excitement. Jackson’s holo-watch vibrated and he saw his Bond increase to 10%. He couldn’t help but smile. Bonding with Scrappy was certainly off to a much easier start than it had been with Asena.
Jackson let the Djinn explore for a few minutes, though he was careful to make sure the Magglecaw didn’t try to fly anywhere. With the door and window shut, there wasn’t much too worry about. The room in his new apartment was so small the Magglecaw could take it all in without much moving required.