The Energy Crusades

by Valerie Noble

  Beneath me, the Virtual crumbled into thin air, its energy completely spent, and my own replenished. When it disappeared, so did its staff. I transferred mine back to my left hand and began to walk back up the hill feeling refreshed.

  To the trees! Ajax sent the command silently. They must have made it. I ran back up the hill and into the trees. Ajax, Malik, and Caden swung from tree to tree, beating on the Virtuals and knocking them out easily. Tory and Balor lay paralyzed at the edge of the forest. My heart flopped in my chest at the sight of their immobile bodies. How could they knock out Balor? And Tory was quick, she could get around them — what happened? I felt guilty at not having been there to protect her. But the others had been there. It must have been quite a fight and I had missed it.

  Whack!

  The blow hit the back of my legs and sent me stumbling to my knees, and then the blows kept on coming, one after the other, reigning down on my back as I lost my balance and my vision started to blur. My backpack provided little protection against the force of their staffs. Also, I'd hesitated a second too long, distraught over my friends, and now I was vulnerable. I felt bile rise up in my throat.

  "Hello, Kaia," Ajax said cheerfully as he landed next to me. He beat back the Virtuals with ease and pulled me to my feet at the same time. If I thought I was quick, or skilled with my hands, I was nothing compared to Ajax. He fought with a precise intensity, his movements as fluid as water. When I regained my composure, I fought beside him. Malik and Caden swung off the branches to join us and the fight became a flurry of staffs, fists and feet as we crashed against the Virtuals and tried to avoid getting paralyzed.

  When the last Virtual was finally vanquished, the four of us fell to our knees. There wasn't a centimeter on me that didn't ache. By the look of the others, they felt the same way. None of us spoke and the human silence settled around our bodies in the deepening twilight. The rustle of the leaves and the music of the river enveloped us, but we didn't have the breath to say a word. I put my head down on the ground, letting my body lay flat, grateful for a bit of stillness.

  Next to me, Ajax put his head on the ground and his eyes searched out mine. He reached out his hand until it just touched mine, not holding it, but applying just a bit of pressure. As light as his touch was, I could feel his energy seeping into me and was surprised he had any to spare. I felt a bit of his emotions, worry mostly, and I would have told him I was all right, would have asked about Tory and Balor, but the world started to shift and the noise of the river became more and more distant. The trees above us became the ceiling of the Weapons Room, and Healers rushed in and surrounded us, signaling the end of the exercise and the end of a painfully long day.

  Chapter Twelve

  The Energy Field

  We were carted off to the Healing Rooms where Professor Baal and Coach Renier were waiting to oversee our healing. Tory and Balor were taken to a private room to rejuvenate. It would be a day or two before they would fully recover. The four of us were placed in beds side by side, Ajax, then me, Caden, and Malik. They went to Malik's bed first and drew the curtains. I wanted out of my clothes and into a healing gown, but I knew better than to do anything without Professor Baal's permission.

  When they approached my bed, Malik was with them, looking fresh and dressed in a white healing suit. Typically, Students were not allowed to wear the white suits until they had graduated to full Healer, but apparently they'd made an exception for Malik. He had a cart beside him, full of supplies.

  "Let's undress you, Kaia," Professor Baal said gently. When I hesitated she added, "Malik must be your Healer. You understand?" I did; I understood, but it didn't make undressing in front of him any easier. I looked to my coach, but his face was set like stone and I could tell he was angry, though I didn't know why.

  Are you angry with me? I asked, my voice like a plea within his head. His presence was a comfort to me and I didn't want him upset.

  Not you. His words assured me.

  "Stop it," Professor Baal insisted. She fixed her cool eyes on Coach Renier and I do not know what passed between them, but he said nothing else in my head. How she knew we were communicating was a mystery. Professor Baal was full of those.

  Malik helped me out of bed and started to undress me. His hands were hesitant and I could tell he was nervous too. My clothes were sticking to me and I cried out as he pulled my shirt over my head.

  "What is it?" Ajax called from the next bed. He sounded worried.

  "Silence, Ajax. Control," his mother ordered. Malik's hands trembled as he continued undressing me. A knot of worry took hold in my stomach. Something was wrong. He didn't like the looks of the injuries on my back and legs. When my clothes were in a pile at my feet, all three of them examined me, head to toe. As an Athlete, my body had been examined countless times, but it didn't make it any easier, especially standing naked in front of Malik. I dulled my emotions and let my mind drift away from them while Coach Renier took an x-ray wand and scanned my whole body. The images projected in front of us. Some of my ribs had been broken, but they were healing, even as we watched.

  "Go get her washed," Professor Baal ordered Malik, once the x-ray was done. I would not need any invasive healing; only my outer injuries needed more attention.

  Malik covered me with a robe and led me to the healing waters, the natural hot springs in the gardens outside of the Healing Rooms. He had me drink a healing concoction, which dulled the pain and made me feel a little drowsy, and a second concoction for nourishment. I immersed myself in the waters and relaxed as they washed away the day while Malik guarded my pool so I would not be disturbed. From the pools, I went to the showers and washed my hair, then re-braided it. My movements were slow and clumsy, dulled by the medicine I'd been given, and Malik hovered over me, allowing only a small measure of privacy.

  Back at my bed, he had me lay on my stomach while he tended to my staff wounds. When finished, he gave me a loose fitting gown and pulled the curtains so we could see the others. Ajax was talking quietly with Coach Renier and his mother, but they stopped abruptly when the curtains were drawn. Caden looked to be asleep.

  "I see you made it past the Virtuals today," Professor Baal looked stern, though her tone was gentle.

  "How are Tory and Balor?" I asked, crestfallen they weren't with us.

  "They'll be fine," she answered. "Better than ever."

  I glanced at Malik in time to see a look of relief cross his features. His feelings for Tory went beyond simple friendship and the worry he felt for her was different than what he felt for the rest of us.

  "I'm proud of you all today. You showed tremendous courage," Professor Baal praised us, but did not mention anything about the exercise being altered. She came to my bedside and stood over me, examining my face for what felt like a long time. Her fingers grazed my cheek.

  "May I?" she asked, using gentle hands to guide me forward in order to view my back. I clutched the front of my gown as she undid the ties and let it fall away. I looked at Ajax but his eyes were focused on my injuries and he watched as his mother tended to me.

  Professor Baal rubbed her hands along my back and the feeling was indescribable. My skin tingled under her touch and I felt rejuvenated in a way the healing herbs did not quite provide. I'd never felt anything like it. Energy poured into my body like light, and the pain fled at her touch, all traces of it disappearing wherever her hands met my skin. I felt close to tears, but in a good way. The feeling was euphoric.

  She pulled my gown closed again and turned away to inspect Malik.

  "See? She's not all bad," Coach Renier smiled at me from the foot of Ajax's bed. Once they were satisfied we were settled, they left us with firm instructions to remain in the Healing Rooms for the night and rest up. I would have to report to Professor Baal's office as soon I was released to answer for the damage done to the cafeteria. The others would have some free time.

  Caden stirred a bit as the lights dimmed. He lifted his head wearily and met my eyes.

&nbs
p; "Are you okay?"

  "I'm okay," I answered.

  "Tory and Balor?"

  "They'll be fine." He put his head back down and closed his eyes. Malik reclined his bed and turned over to fall asleep, leaving Ajax and I alone. Without saying a word, Ajax stood up and pushed his bed until it butted up next to mine.

  "Are you crazy?" I huffed at him. "You can't do that!" I was flabbergasted.

  "Why not?" Ajax asked, calm as ever. "I want to talk to you."

  "What if your mother comes back in here?" I asked, a little panicky. Ajax had never initiated a conversation with me when we weren't training.

  "What if she does?" he answered, unconcerned. He shrugged and crawled back into bed wearing his grey, standard sleeping uniform. His hair was slightly damp from the shower and he smelled wonderful, like lavender and lemon.

  "You smell good," he said to me, and I laughed, letting a bit of the panic slide away.

  "I was just thinking the same about you," I admitted. He smiled a little, but was otherwise silent. "Did your mom say anything about what happened in there today?" I added, when he continued to say nothing. Wasn't he the one who said he wanted to talk?

  "She asked about it, about what we saw in the caves."

  "What did you tell her?"

  "I told her we saw the gardens, and food, and all those living spaces. How they lived there and wanted us to see. Why did they do that?" His blue eyes met mine, full of questions.

  "Did any other teams go in the caves?" The real question we all wanted to know was, how we did compared to the others? Did we win?

  "No," he shook his head, "none of them went in the caves and none of them recovered the bag. We were the first and the exercise ended for everyone else when you caught the bag." The news brought a smile to my face. We had successfully completed our first exercise together and we were a good team.

  "Anything else?" The day was catching up to me, and with Ajax beside me a lovely sense of peace settled over me, much like when we were on the footpath. I wanted to sleep, really, really sleep and since Ajax generally made it a point not to speak to me, I was sure he wanted to say what he had to say and get some sleep too. However, he remained quiet, looking down at his hands, and not meeting my eyes.

  "I'm sorry," he finally managed, keeping his eyes downcast. I wasn't sure what he was apologizing for, it was confusing.

  "It's not your fault, Ajax," I answered lamely. "I'm more worried about Tory and Balor." I thought maybe he was sorry I'd been hurt while he was the leader.

  "I was only thinking of myself," he spoke in a whisper, eyes down, as if I hadn't said anything. "I didn't think about what it felt like for you, coming here, being alone. I didn't like what Caden said in the caves, that I treated you badly."

  "Why didn't you like it?" I asked, surprised by his admission.

  "Because it was true."

  "You just wish you were with your brother," I shrugged. "And instead you got stuck with me. You're too good to be on our team anyway, and I shouldn't have assumed we were friends or expected you to remember me the way I remembered you."

  "I was angry at you," he met my eyes and didn't look away. His black hair was shoved away from his face and I wanted to reach out and run my fingers through it. I wanted to touch his necklace too and feel the stone between my fingers, but I did neither.

  "We were both left behind," I reminded him.

  "Who do the cave dwellers think you are?" he asked, his voice even quieter than before.

  "I'm nobody," I shrugged. "Who knows what they meant?"

  "Did he say something else to you?" he whispered.

  "He said 'join us and be free'." I reclined my bed and turned over on my side, facing Ajax. I was sleepy. Being next to him was somehow comforting and I felt relaxed. My eyelids grew heavier and I watched as he reclined his bed, and turned onto his side to face me. I reached out to move a strand of hair from his face but he grabbed my wrist before I ever touched him.

  "Do you ever take it off?" he asked, holding me by the cuff on my wrist. I felt his fingers worrying at the closure.

  "No, not usually. Do you take off your necklace?"

  "Not usually," he answered. He set my arm back down and my eyes started to close. I drifted away from him, away from everything, until I was almost asleep. My eyes flew open as I remembered the question I wanted to ask.

  "What was in the bag, Ajax?"

  "She didn't tell me," he answered, yawning. It was the last thing I remembered before my eyes closed and I fell into a deep sleep. I had no dreams of the white haired lady, no dreams of playing tennis against the Virtuals, no dreams of my brother in danger, no dreams at all.

  * * * *

  "Wake up sleepy heads," I heard Malik's voice, but I struggled to come out of the most peaceful sleep I'd had in years. When I did open my eyes, I found myself curled up against Ajax with one of his arms draped across my body. He woke up slowly, and then sat up with a jolt when he realized how close we were. Malik started to laugh, but kept it quiet. It was still dark in the Healing Rooms, and nobody stirred.

  "Well, well, well. Look at the two of you. What exactly did I miss last night?" He kept his voice to a whisper and grinned from ear to ear.

  Neither of us said a word and I could feel the color rise in my cheeks. I'd never in my life been in such a situation and had no idea how to handle it. I really thought Ajax should take the lead and explain what happened, but he kept quiet as Malik looked from one of us to the other. Unable to find my voice or my courage to answer, I simply got out of bed and headed for the bathroom, surprised my body felt whole again and I could walk without pain. With all the hours of uninterrupted sleep, I felt invigorated as well as completely healed. It was a good thing too, because I had to face my Professor, and could only guess what punishment she would dream up for Atticus and me.

  I took my time freshening up and tried not to dwell too much on waking up curled against Ajax, and how much I liked it. As I brushed my teeth, I told myself it was the restful sleep I liked, something my life sorely lacked, but I was afraid sleep wasn't the only thing nice about waking up next to Ajax.

  I kept all thoughts of Ajax safely tucked away while I finished my healing time. The Healers came around immediately and continued our rehabilitation. First, they fed us a large breakfast. Next, we bathed again in the healing waters and then spent the rest of the morning doing various exercises and stretches to ensure we had full movement and agility. They fed us a light lunch and then put us through another series of exercises on various machines. We ran, climbed, had our bodies pulled in every direction, lifted weights, used resistance, jumped rope, and did every other imaginable exercise they could think of to check out how our bodies responded.

  We got to visit Tory and Balor briefly, but their bodies needed extensive restoration, and they were sequestered from the rest of us. At least we got to see their faces and be sure they were okay for ourselves. They would have to stay another night, and Malik asked if he could stay with them.

  "Are you staying as their Healer, Malik? Or just a concerned friend?" I teased him. No one was allowed to stay in the Healing Rooms if already healed, but since he was a Healer in training, they obviously made another exception for him.

  "You really think you should be teasing me?" he answered, eyes full of mischief. I kept my mouth shut in response.

  They finally let us leave, but not until the sun had started to descend. It was dusk when Ajax, Caden and I finally emerged, but we hardly made it a few steps before Ajax's mailbox started beeping. He looked down at it, and then up at me.

  "Professor Baal?" I asked. I thought about the way her hands had felt on my back and tried to use the feeling to quell the fear in my stomach. Ajax nodded and Caden reached out and put a protective arm around my shoulders.

  "Don't worry, Kaia. Ajax and I will walk you, okay?" Caden let me go after a reassuring squeeze. Ajax said nothing.

  They walked me across the campus in silence, until we reached the food science buildin
g.

  "What are you going to say in there?" Ajax asked. He looked down at me and shoved his hands in his pockets. Little flutters of fear bubbled up inside my stomach, but I knew exactly what I would say to Professor Baal.

  "Nothing," I told him. "I'll take my punishment." I couldn't deny there'd been a disturbance in the cafeteria and some dishes had been broken. Atticus and I had cleaned up the mess, but someone had to pay for what was lost.

  "Do you want me to wait for you?" He asked, barely able to meet my eyes. Of course I wanted him to wait for me. I wanted him to go with me to see his mother, but I wasn't going to admit it and shook my head.

  "You guys go eat. Don't worry about me. I don't want to have to face you when I get out of there." I gave him a reassuring smile. He smiled back, no doubt recounting similar situations he may have found himself in with his mother, and the smile lit up his face. It was a nice change to see Ajax looking well rested and younger somehow, instead of tired and gloomy. The stark blackness of his hair against his pale skin was stunning to look at, but it could also age him, particularly when he was tired. Last night, however, he'd had a good night's rest, a fact I knew for sure. My smile widened.

  "I guess I can't tell you to call me when you're through," he said, his smile faltering a bit. We both knew I didn't have a mailbox.

  "I guess not," I answered. I doubted it would be the right time to ask for it back, either.

  I left them and marched into the building and down the long hallway to Professor Baal's office. Atticus was already inside. He sat in a chair across from her desk, his posture as rigid as a statue. I crossed the room quickly and bowed my head.

  "You sent for me, Professor?" I stood in front of her while she remained seated at her desk.