…Alec…
Alec turned to face the waiting Greens. “All of those participating in the trials follow me.” He did a sharply executed about face and they fell into step behind him, Lyssa at the front of the formation. She matched his pace; her face pale, her expression resolute.
“Are you ready for this, Lyssa?” He asked, smiling. He knew how nervous she was right now, he’d been there.
“Yeah.” She looked up. “Promise me, Alec. Don’t take it easy on me. I’ll never forgive you if you do. “
“And give up my one chance to torture you? I’d never do that,” he grinned. “It’s against my nature.” He winked as they turned toward the starting point; A stone arch that overlooked the training grounds. He stopped and turned to face the contenders. “You all know how this works. There are six trials; fail one and you’re out. You must collect five stones to successfully complete the trials: an onyx, a diamond, an emerald, a sapphire, and an amethyst. Each trial, except the first one, has precious stones hidden in it, so pay attention.”
“Trial one, you have to battle your way through five clutch guards. It’s a test of strength and speed. You can use your element to create any type of shield, but nothing else. We will be throwing everything we have at you, so be ready. Protect yourself. If you stop coming toward us at any point, it’s over. You will have failed the first trial and you will not move on to the next.”
“Trial two is water. You will swim the moat surrounding the big tree. The stones are hidden on the bottom. The current is strong. Be careful. If you find yourself faltering, get out immediately.”
“The third trial is the tree itself.” Everyone stared at the big tree that marked the center of the training area. It was huge, twice the width and height of the others around it. “The object is simple; get to the top before you’re knocked off. You’ll find a hollow spot at the top, the stones are there. There are Clutch Guards in the tree, their job is to make you fail.”
“Trial four will eliminate you if you fear heights.” Alec pointed at a large rope that was suspended between two poles. “This trial will test your strength, agility, balance, and coordination. You will climb the rope and pull yourself on top of the larger rope. There will be a Clutch Guard there waiting for you. Your job is to make it past him to the platform without falling off the rope. The stones are on the platform.”
“Trial five is the Elemental Maze. It’s simple. You just have to find your way through the maze without getting trapped. You will find the stone as you exit the maze. There is a catch though, the guards inside will be using cloaking spells. Their goal? Trapping you in the maze.”
“Trial six is the fun one. You have to take the last stone from one of us and deliver it, with the other four stones to the True Elementris. You must complete the entire trial in less than fifteen minutes. When you hear the whistle, you go. Good luck to you all. Lyssa, you’re up.”
Her mouth dropped open. He winked at her and walked forward, joining a line of Clutch Guards at the bottom of the stone steps. He took his place between Shawn and Thomas and looked up at the greens. “You ready, brothers?”
“Yep.” Shawn said.
“Always.” Thomas said as he leaned forward, his hands out in front of him and a big smile on his face.
Alec looked up at Ava. She stood. Thunder boomed and it began to rain. Alec pressed his lips together and whistled.
…Ava…
Ava held her breath as Lyssa took off. She ran straight at the guards. Throwing her arms out in front of her, one high and one low, both centered, she used her element. Water flowed from her palms and swirled into a mirror-like shield that froze when the two streams of water met in the center. She threw her arms out, one above her head and one below. Never slowing, she hit the line of guards. She bounced right off, the ice shield shattering. She hit the ground hard, they hadn’t even flinched.
Everyone gasped as Lyssa stared up at them from the ground. The line of guards started moving towards her. “Don’t back up, Lyssa. Don’t back up,” Ava encouraged silently. Lyssa raised herself to a squat. It looked as if she might be about to move backwards when she suddenly shifted and swept her leg. She knocked Alec and Shawn right off their feet. Taking advantage of their surprise, Lyssa leapt over them and threw her fist to the sky. Everyone cheered. She spun around and did a little victory dance.
Brea sprang to her feet. “Go Lyssa, it’s your birthday! Go Lyssa!”
Lyssa bowed dramatically and blew Alec and Shawn a kiss, then remembering she had a time limit, she sprinted towards the second obstacle. Fearlessly, she dove into the swirling water. She fought the shifting current as she made her way around the moat, occasionally disappearing as she searched the bottom. She made it back to the starting point and held her hand high.
“Did she get it?” Brea asked, nervously chewing her fingernails.
“I can’t tell.”
Lyssa opened her palm and the stone reflected the moonlight. Everyone cheered.
Lyssa stuffed the stone in her pocket and, grabbing onto the tree, she started pulling herself up the huge tree trunk. She bear-hugged her way up close to where the branches began and then stopped. She lifted her foot, trying to find a spot to plant it and slipped. She gripped harder and kept moving her foot around until she found a tiny knot. She used it to push herself upward again and grabbed a branch above her. Gripping the branch with both hands, she pulled herself up. Something big and black rushed towards her. Lyssa saw the guard coming. He was walking the branch as easily as if he were strolling down a sidewalk. She jumped onto the branch above her and managed to kick him when he reached out to grab her. He went down, catching himself before he fell to the ground. Realizing that she hadn’t slowed him down much, Lyssa kept moving. She watched as he got back to his feet. Watching almost cost her as she reached for a small, leaf-covered branch. Her hand closed on its leaves and ripped them away. Quickly recovering, Lyssa decided to stop watching to see what he was up to. She pulled herself up to the next branch quickly as he reached for her again. Agile as a monkey, Lyssa kept moving. She was no longer worrying about balance, she was simply leaping from one branch to the next, her movements almost effortless. She reached the branches at the very top. The hollow was within her reach. Silence reigned as the spectators waited to see if she would make it.
The Clutch guard was right beneath her, moving behind her with brute precision. He was within inches of her when Lyssa pulled herself up into the top branches. Lyssa grabbed hold of the top branches and swung herself up. A Clutch Guard suddenly appeared above her. He had been hiding in the top branches. He lunged for Lyssa. Lyssa reached out and then back-flipped off of the top of the tree. Everyone jumped to their feet and gasped.
She fell half the length of the tree before she could grab onto a branch and stop herself. She had managed to hurt her arm in the process. Wincing with pain, she looked at the Clutch Guards who were scrambling to move back down the tree. She started moving down, using each branch as easily as if it were a step, much faster than she had gone up. Dropping to the ground, she held her injured arm against her; it was scraped and bleeding, but she was grinning. She threw her other hand up, flashing the second stone.
“Oh my God,” Brea exclaimed. “I completely forgot about the stone! Lyssa is pure dynamite in that tiny little package.”
“What’s her time?” Aunt Avalene asked, anxiously.
“Seven minutes left.” Ava said watching as Lyssa ran to the rope and pulled herself up. Her small hands moved fast. Ava was shocked, she knew she had been training hard, but Ava had no idea that she would do so well. She reached the top and scurried across the rope like a squirrel. The clutch guard waiting at the end was Thomas.
“That’s just wrong!” Brea blurted. “She has to knock her own boyfriend off?”
“I guess she does,” Ava smiled. “This ought to be interesting.”
“If he makes her fall, he’s going to be up the proverbial creek. She’ll kill him.” Brea exclaimed. “Mayb
e he’ll take it easy on her,” she continued, hopeful.
“Or not.” Ava murmured and winced as Thomas slammed into Lyssa.
Lyssa managed to grab the rope as she fell. There was a net beneath her, but Ava’s heart was pounding anyway. Lyssa moved her hands down the rope, swinging her body, she moved away from Thomas. She pulled herself up onto the rope and moved swiftly toward him. Thomas leaned forward and threw his hands out, ready for her, he thought. Instead of slamming into him,. Lyssa grabbed his hands and swung herself onto his shoulders. She slid down his back and kicked him in the back of the knee. He went down, catching himself by one arm on the rope. He grinned as he hung there, proud of her even though she had just embarrassed the hell out of him. Lyssa grabbed her stone and worked her way down the rope. She hit the ground, mud and water splashing all around her. Moving quickly, she entered the maze. Alec, Shawn, and a few others were already inside. They were using a cloaking spell, but Ava could see them. The maze wasn’t very long. It was a hedge maze, with vines darting through and tangled in different places. Lyssa moved through it quickly and Ava held her breath as she unknowingly barely missed being trapped by Shawn.
“What?” Brea demanded. “What happened.”
“Shawn almost trapped her.”
“I can’t see them. It’s not fair. Give me a play by play,” Brea demanded.
“Okay,” Ava whispered. “There’s a guard waiting for her around the next bend in the maze. Oh, crap!”
“What? What? Tell me already.”
“He got her, but she managed to slip out of his grip.”
“Good. My view sucks. It just looks like she is walking through and dancing around every once in a while. Where’s Alec?”
“He’s at the end, standing by the vines.”
Lyssa was moving faster now. She had her hands out in front of her, ready for the next invisible attack. “Alec’s squatting down. He’s going to grab her legs.”
“Oh, she’ll never get past Alec.”
“I know. He better be nice.” Ava realized she had scooted all the way to the edge of her seat. She squinted to see. Lyssa paused a few feet from Alec. She pushed herself up against the hedge wall. She looked up, spotting the stone. She started to take a step toward it, then stopped.
“Did he grab her?”
“No, I’m not sure what she’s doing,” Ava responded. Lyssa took a step back and lifted her arms, palms out. A wall of water, rectangular in shape, formed in front of her. Lyssa froze it and then, shielding herself behind it, she blasted it with water, hard. Alec was stunned. He was on his knees and didn’t have time to brace himself before the shield slammed into him. It knocked him out of the maze and cleared the way for Lyssa. She grabbed the stone and ran, leaving Alec shaking his head.
“What? How did she…?”
“She ran him right over!” Ava marveled, almost as stunned as Alec at how easily Lyssa had defeated him.
“Oh, yeah. Way to go, Lyssa!” Brea yelled. She waved at Shawn as he let his cloaking spell fall away and moved toward the next obstacle.
Lyssa darted towards the small roped-off area nearest to the stadium seats. She ducked under the ropes and readied herself for battle. A huge Clutch Guard stepped over the ropes.
“Oh, God.” Ava said.
“Amen.” Brea said softly as she leaned forward. “Look at that giant. She has to fight him?”
“Yeah. Well she has to take the stone from him, anyway.” Ava replied.
“That sucks.”
“Yep.” Ava looked at the time, “Three minutes.”
“Are you serious?” Brea exclaimed.
Ava nodded.
…Alec…
Shawn shook his head. “Kevin? That’s just wrong.”
Alec smiled. “Hey, Lyssa made me promise not to take it easy on her. You can’t get much harder than that,” he indicated Kevin. He watched as Kevin held the fifth stone up. The crowd cheered. Lyssa didn’t hesitate. Having already learned that she couldn’t knock any of the guards over, she went for the knee. She had underestimated Kevin though, he had his knees locked and it didn’t even wiggle. She considered her options as she walked a wide circle around him, keeping a healthy distance from his long arms and large hands. He stayed in one spot, spinning in place as he watched her circle him. Lyssa darted towards him, and backed away as quickly. “Let’s go, Lyssa.” Alec yelled.
Lyssa rolled her eyes and turned back to her opponent. She didn’t hurry though, she just kept circling.
“She’s almost out of time.” Shawn said.
“I know.” Alec said as he watched her start circling Kevin again. “She’s inventive though, just wish I knew what the heck she was up to.” As Lyssa circled, her skin was getting paler and paler. Alec thought she was about the pass out until he saw the ice. As she circled, a light mist was coating her skin. It froze as it touched her, so cold that it was completely clear. She was going to be wearing her shield! Alec knew Kevin hadn’t realized what was going on. There was nothing to do but watch one more guard be embarrassed. Lyssa darted towards Kevin and he reached out to grab her. He screamed as his hand made contact. Not thinking, he cradled the injured hand with his other, and dropped the stone. Lyssa grabbed the stone from the ground, then tucked and rolled to avoid getting kicked. She shot to her feet and took off running. She had 10 seconds left.
…Ava…
“Oh no,” Brea said, staring at the timer.
The spectators began to chant, “9, 8, 7…” Lyssa crashed into Ava and pressed something cold and hard into her hand.
Ava looked at the stones, then closed her hand and thrust it up, “She did it!”
“I did it!” Lyssa screamed.
“You did!” Brea yelled.
They were so excited, they were jumping up and down. The crowd cheered loudly.
Ava grabbed Lyssa, handed her back the stones, and hugged her. Lyssa hugged her back, then ran down to the arena. Alec counted her stones. Markson stepped forward, took her hand, and raised it high in the air. The crowd went wild.
After the crowd calmed, Lyssa went back and sat next to Ava as the next Green started his quest, “You okay, Lys?”
“Yeah, I’m great! Oh, you mean this?” she asked, looking down at her arm. “It’s fine. I don’t feel a thing right now. I’m running on pure adrenalin.” She leaned in close to Ava, “I can’t wait to get my tattoo!”
Brea leaned across Ava, “I can’t wait to see it on you. You’ll totally rock that look, girl!”
Lyssa laughed, “Thanks, Brea.”
Ava and Lyssa stayed in the stands for a while after everyone had gone. Curious, Lyssa asked Ava,“What about the kids you guys found at that place? What are you going to do with them? Make them Greens?”
“No,” Ava answered. “We’re starting to build the foster home and they’ll stay here until it’s ready. We’re bringing Keepers in to help.”
“Do you really think the Waevern are finished? Will they leave you alone now?”
“I doubt it. There will always be those that practice dark magic. It will never go away, but Alec has an idea about how to keep it under control.”
“How’s that?”
“We have a lot of Greens and there are more kids wanting to join. After they pass the trials, Alec wants to let them decide whether to stay here and protect the island or leave and enforce our laws. It’s time we make some new ones.”
“Kind of like a cops for dark magic?” Lyssa asked, brows raised.
“Yeah. Exactly. I’m going to work with the council to create some short and long-term magic binding spells. If someone gets caught using dark magic, we’ll bind their magic for a while. If they keep doing it, we’ll bind it forever.”
“You can do that?” Lyssa wondered.
“I guess so. They think I can anyway. Nadia bound someone’s magic. My mother’s, apparently.”
“How do you know that?” Lyssa wanted to know.
“Nisca told me. Her mother was there when it happened. My moth
er wanted it done and she asked Nadia to do it. She thought it would stop the curse from affecting her.”
“Wow,” Lyssa said quietly.
“Yep.” Ava stood. “I’m beat, Lyssa. Are you staying here?”
“Yeah,” Lyssa smiled, “For a little while.”
…Brea…
Brea hung the necklace on the corner of the small cradle as Ava entered the room.
“Thanks for watching her,” Ava yawned.
“You’re welcome.” Brea smiled as she met Shawn at the door, “Get some rest. Goodnight.”
“I will. Goodnight.”
Alec leaned over Emberlee and gave her a kiss on the forehead. He smiled, caressed her soft cheek and then walked over to sit next to Ava on the bed.
Brea smiled at Shawn. “Hi.”
He took Brea’s hand as they walked. She looked up at him, “So, I guess I have to go back tomorrow.”
“To school?” Shawn asked as he put his arm around her.
“Yeah.”
“Are you ready for that?”
“Not really, but it’s important.” Brea looked at him quizzically, “Is everything good with you and Alec now?”
“Yeah. I told him everything.” He looked at his feet, “Even about Scott.”
“I’m glad.” Brea lifted his chin with her finger, “I’m sorry I didn’t trust you.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about, Brea.” He brushed her hair back.
“Ugh.” Brea looked at the water as they reached the back side of the castle, “I wish I didn’t have to leave.”
He pulled her closer.
She snuggled in and asked, “Do you have any new assignments yet?”
“Just one. It’s a tough one, I’m not sure I can handle it.” He grinned devilishly.
“What is it?”
“You.” He smiled at her. “I’m on permanent Brea duty. Queens orders, until graduation.”
“Oh, that’s just great. What was she thinking, I’ll have to run off all of my college boyfriends now,” Brea smiled.
He laughed and picked her up. Spinning her around, he said, “Trust me girl, I’ll take care of that.” He kissed her, “You’re stuck with me now.”
Elementris, Exposure, Eruption Box set: The Vangeretta Curse Series Page 86