by P. A. Peña
“Fine,” Lucious replied, not bothering to look back. “Have fun dealing with the hunter then.”
Paisley stood for a moment, watching Lucious as he got further and further away. Finally, she began to walk after him. “Sweetie, wait.”
“See you on the battlefield,” Chad said, as he walked away.
Fynn stepped up to Virgil, and they locked eyes. “We won’t forget this.”
“Neither will I,” Virgil replied.
Virgil entered the room. It was empty except for the woman on her knees on the floor. Her hands covered her face. Virgil walked over, and she looked up at him. Tears welled up in the corners of her gray eyes.
Virgil extended his hand. “It’s okay,” he said with a smile. “You’re safe now.”
“You didn’t have to do that,” the woman sniffled as Virgil helped her to her feet. “But I’m grateful you did.”
The woman brushed the dirt from her dark blue jeans. She adjusted her knee-high boots along with her suede jacket and made sure the silver cross was intact around her neck. Her white skin was lightly tanned, and apart from a couple of slight bruises, she appeared to be fine.
Virgil tilted his head to look her over. The woman’s aura was stable now, but still, something wasn’t right. It was almost as if . . . his eyes widened as the truth hit him full force.
“What is it?” The woman looked herself up and down.
“N-nothing!” Virgil said abruptly, realizing he had been staring. “Well, your hair is a bit messy is all.”
The woman ran her fingers through her waving white tresses, sliding each of them back into place.
“My name’s Virgil,” he said holding out his hand.
The woman giggled as she took Virgil’s hand. “I know,” she said. “You’re kind of famous around here. Everyone’s been talking about the Truesdale taking the exam.”
Awesome, Virgil thought. The exam hasn’t even started, and everyone already knows my name.
“My name is Aurelia Bryant. It’s nice to meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you too. Umm. Feel free to tell me to mind my own business, but why was that woman attacking you?”
Aurelia shrugged. “Beats me. I suppose she doesn’t like me.”
“It seems like it’s a lot worse than that. Do you have a prior history with her?”
“I just met her not more than an hour ago.” Aurelia began twiddling the tips of her fingers. “Well, I did knock her over, but it’s not like I meant to. I tried to apologize, and I thought she took it well. I guess that wasn’t good enough.”
Virgil shook his head. “I’m beginning to see these noble types don’t really care for us too much.”
“Yeah. It sounded like you’ve had a run-in with them before. It wasn’t too pleasant, huh.”
“Well, it wasn’t nearly as bad as what you just went through, but those pricks did manage to sour a perfectly good steak dinner.”
Aurelia giggled once more. “I guess we have something in common then.”
“I suppose we do.”
Aurelia’s eyes widened. “Oh, no.”
“What is it?”
“My brother—I said I’d only be gone for a minute. He’s probably worried sick.”
“Is that all? Let’s go find him. He’s probably back in the showroom waiting for you.”
Aurelia shook her head. “I couldn’t possibly bother you further. I’m sure you have to prepare for the exam. It’ll be starting any minute now.”
“I’ll be all right. Like you said, the exam will be starting any minute. I might as well head back now, and there’s no reason why we can’t walk together.”
And of course, if I have company, people might leave me alone for once.
Aurelia and Virgil returned to the showroom, and she spotted her brother almost instantly. He was not only taller than Virgil, but bulkier as well. His complexion matched his sister’s, and he wore an olive-green vest over a black long-sleeved thermal shirt, which paired well with his cargo pants and boots. His brown hair was short, and a handful of locks swooped across his forehead. As soon as he saw them, he began fighting his way through the crowd to make it over.
“Really quick,” Aurelia said, turning to Virgil. “Please keep this incident between the two of us.”
“Okay,” Virgil replied slowly. “Mind if I ask why?”
Aurelia sighed. “My brother can be, umm, challenging. It’s best if he doesn’t know what happened.”
“Sure. I promise I won’t say a word.”
“Logan,” Aurelia gushed as her brother approached.
“Aurelia. You were gone for some time. Is everything all right?”
“You worry too much,” she replied with a wave of her hand. “I’m perfectly fine. Look who I ran into, though.”
Logan looked past his sister, his amber gaze studying Virgil like a textbook. “Virgil. Right? You’re the late Danté Truesdale’s son.”
“Yeah,” Virgil replied, rubbing the back of his neck. “Apparently, I’m all anyone’s been able to talk about around here.”
Logan stepped closer to Virgil. “You don’t look all that special to me.”
Virgil tensed up, clenching his fists. What’s this guy’s problem?
“Do you have to be so prickly?” Aurelia whined. “If you keep this up, we’re never going to make any friends.”
“What?” Logan looked back at his sister. “I’m just saying he looks like a normal guy. The way people have been talking, you’d think he was a dragon or something.”
Virgil laughed. “I’m definitely not a dragon.”
“My apologies,” Logan said, extending his hand. “As my sister will tell you, I have a nasty habit of putting my foot where it doesn’t belong. My name’s Logan Bryant.”
Virgil took Logan’s hand, and instantly regretted it. Logan’s grip was like a boa constricting its prey before swallowing it whole.
“It-it’s a pleasure to meet you,” Virgil stuttered, praying his fingers would endure the exchange.
A siren rang, echoing throughout the building. The double door swung open, revealing a vast jungle.
Logan released Virgil’s hand. “It appears it is time to get things underway. Good luck to you.”
“Y-yeah. You too.” Virgil massaged his aching fingers.
Logan then turned his attention to his sister, placing his massive palm on her head. “Don’t overdo it, okay. I’ll see you on the other side.”
Aurelia nodded and walked away. “Stay safe, you guys.”
Virgil waved off the duo and pulled out his envelope. He was designated to begin the first phase of the exam in the western swamp of Akata Island. His instructions were to look for a flag with his name written on it.
Without hesitation, he exited the hotel and flew through the jungle as fast as he could, weaving between trees and vines. As Virgil crossed the edge of the jungle, he staggered at the stark shift in climate. Just a few feet behind him grew a vibrant wilderness with lush trees and abundant wildlife. Now Virgil found himself pelted by a barreling blizzard. There was nothing in sight but a snowy wasteland, although he could barely see more than a few feet in front of him.
“They’re really going all out for this,” Virgil said, shivering. “I bet the entire island is enchanted like this.”
Virgil focused his mana and coated himself in a layer of thermal energy. Warmth enveloped his body along with a faint orange glow. As he moved through the icy winds, he hoped he could avoid the frozen tundra. While it didn’t take much energy to keep from freezing to death, it was still a drain on his mana reserves nonetheless.
Virgil blazed through the frozen wasteland, and cheered when he finally crossed over into a murky swamp. However, that quickly faded as the pungent smell of the bubbling gases flooded his nostrils. Virgil scanned the swamp, elated once he came upon his flag sticking out of a rotting tree. He grabbed the envelope attached to it and stood still, staring at the white rectangle. This was it: phase one of the Crusader’s Exam.
He didn’t know how many phases would come next, or what challenges each of them would bring, but what he did know was he had no other choice than to surpass whatever the Alliance had in store.
Chapter 8
The siren rang again, and Virgil tore open his envelope. Within it, he found a syringe along with a mere six words written on the paper: The Blood of a Desert Wraith.
Virgil smirked, already assured of his victory. He ascended high into the air, leaving the confines of the swamp until he had a clear view of the entire island. Within no time, he identified the desert biome. To his surprise, though, he found no castle. Shrugging it off, he descended back to the ground, overjoyed that he wouldn’t have to travel through the tundra again.
In less than an hour, Virgil reached the desert. A massive wave of heat overtook him and sweat began to drip down his neck.
“All right,” he said to himself. “Find the hunting ground. Get the blood. Move on to the castle.”
Slowly, he flew over the ground, searching for blood-soaked sand. Desert dwellers often used this tactic to avoid a gruesome death, but for Virgil, the reddened sand served as a target identifying his prize. For a while, there was nothing but golden sand, cacti, and the occasional scorpion or two for as far as he could see. Despite this, he remained calm and focused on his breathing.
Finally, he found a section of sand tinted red with blood. Bones and scraps of clothing were scattered upon the ground. It was clear the remains were human, but the empty syringe in one skeletal hand was proof that despite just starting, the exam had already claimed a victim.
Virgil bowed his head, paying his respect with a brief moment of silence. He then positioned himself in the air and focused his mind. With a deep breath, Virgil pooled his mana into his chest. As he exhaled, a barrage of flames rained down, baking the sand. The fire continued to grow in intensity until the sand began to liquefy. Before long, the wraith sprang out, prompting Virgil to rescind his flames. The wraith let out a frightful wail, nearly splitting Virgil’s eardrums in two. It was almost twice as big as he was, with claws that curved outward. Its skin was ash gray, clashing heavily with its beaming green eyes, and its body was long and lanky.
Keeping his eyes on the creature’s toxic claws, Virgil fell back. It would only take a single misstep to render his body no more useful than a sack of meat. The wraith howled once more as it moved towards him. Fire burst around his hand as he raised it towards the creature. He closed it into a fist, and the wraith fell to the ground. It thrashed about wildly as its head was caught in a whirlwind of fire. The stench of rotten flesh sizzling filled the air as the wraith cried out in anguish. He roasted the creature’s head until there was nothing left but a charred skull.
Virgil released his grip, and the fire vanished. With his syringe in hand, he approached the lifeless wraith. He took its arm and carefully examined it for the proper vessel. Once he saw it, he pushed the needle in deep and siphoned out the black liquid.
With a relaxing exhale, Virgil checked his watch. He had roughly four hours of daylight left. Even with so little time remaining, he was confident there’d still be plenty of time to make it to the castle. He found himself in a forest after leaving the desert. Luckily, this was the final biome he needed to clear before reaching the northern mountains. Trees grew everywhere, and the forest teemed with life. The melody of birds chirped overhead as he weaved through the trees. Squirrels clamored for nuts. Rabbits ran around, chasing one another. Memories began to overtake his mind, and he welcomed them with open arms. He came to a stop, returned to the ground, and tucked his hands into his pockets.
“I really wish you guys could see this,” Virgil said to himself, tears building in the corners of his eyes. “You’d really like it. It looks just like the forests back in Arythbelle.”
Virgil continued his way through the forest, allowing his mind to travel deeper and deeper into his memories. It was certainly foolish, but how could he not? His favorite pastime had always been camping with his family.
He smiled as warmth billowed from the pit of his chest. “Remember how I used to bother you to take Danny and me out into the forest? I’d ask you nearly every day until you said yes. Oh, or how about the time we caught those bottlenose bass? They were so big.” He stopped. The warmth faded and frown overtook his face. “It’s been so long. I don’t even know if you guys would still enjoy camping.”
He reached for his necklace, only to come up empty-handed. “Right. It’s just me.”
With a sniffle, he wiped the tears from his eyes and took flight. “You’re doing it again.” He shook his head, as if the act would dispel the dark thoughts invading his mind. “You know it wasn’t his fault.” He picked up his pace. “He had to go. He was eighteen. You know this. It wasn’t his fault.”
Virgil continued through the forest, desperate to escape its borders. Perhaps if he could just leave the foliage behind, his thoughts would stop gnawing at him.
A sharp pain burrowed into his shoulder and jolted him backward as he clenched his jaw against a hiss. He stopped and looked over to find a chunk of ice lodged deep in his flesh. A stark freezing sensation pulsed from the wound, making Virgil’s skin ache. Before he could even react, another icicle assailed his skin, followed by another. One by one, they pelted him until ten shards of ice decorated his chest. Blood oozed from around the ice and soaked into his shirt.
“Careless,” a smug and pretentious voice called out. “Absolutely careless.” Virgil looked ahead to find Lucious walking towards him, accompanied by Fynn and Chad. “I thought you’d be able to dodge at least some of my attacks,” Lucious said as he raised his palm. “It seems your abilities have been greatly exaggerated.”
Lucious fired off another icicle. It flew through the air with blinding speed. Wincing at the pain in his chest, Virgil caught the shard. A raging inferno engulfed his body, turning the ice into nothing more than puddles of water.
Virgil took in a deep breath, refocusing his fire into his hands. “It figures you degenerates would try to ambush me and take my item.” He studied the three men carefully. “So, which one of you is it?”
“We’ve actually already collected our items,” Fynn boasted, cracking his knuckles.
“We finished up hours ago, in fact,” Chad added. “Now, we’re just having a little bit of fun.”
“I wouldn’t exactly call this fun,” Lucious said begrudgingly. “Crushing these pathetic hunters doesn’t pose any challenge. I’d say we are more fulfilling our civic duty as noble Crusaders.”
“And what is that supposed to mean?” Virgil asked.
“Come now. Are you really that dense?”
With a wave of his hand, Chad summoned a black void. From it fell a multitude of pillaged items.
“You see,” Lucious continued, “your kind has no business joining the ranks of true nobility. Therefore, it’s up to us to ensure the Crusader’s Alliance remains as pure as possible.”
Virgil’s stomach tightened, and his nostrils flared. “My kind,” he said, his blood beginning to boil. “So, you mean to tell me you’ve been preying on hunters, all because we weren’t born with a silver spoon up our ass like you.”
“Think of it more as additional screening. Frankly, I’m not sure why you care anyway. We all know how much your family hates the Alliance.”
Virgil scoffed. “You’re right about one thing. I couldn’t care less about the Alliance, but we all have hopes and dreams invested in this exam. Who are you to take that away?”
Lucious grinned. “There’s no one better for the job.”
Virgil looked towards each of the men. He could feel his skin getting hotter with each second that passed. His muscles were tense, and he wanted nothing more than to rip these pompous assholes to shreds. Lucious signaled his friends to fan out.
“Dragonic Eruption,” Fynn said as he held out his palm.
Fynn’s hand began to glow orange, and an orb of fire appeared above his hand. From that flame emerged a flock of ten dragon
s. Each one was thick, made entirely of fire, and five feet long.
From the corner of his eye, Virgil saw Chad place his palms together. As he pulled them apart, a sword formed in mid-air, and Chad took hold of his weapon.
Lucious prepared to fire off another flurry of icicles. “I hope you put up more of a fight than the rest of your ilk.”
Virgil focused in on Lucious and bolstered the fire around his hands. The flames were intense, but they paled in comparison to the pleasure that would come from shoving Lucious’s face into the dirt. Seconds felt like hours as Virgil waited to see who would be the first to act. Nature itself seemed to be on hold, until finally his bloodlust got the better of him. He dashed forward, heading directly towards Lucious.
“I take it back,” Lucious gloated, “you’re not careless. You’re downright stupid!”
Lucious fired off his bolts of ice one after another. Virgil weaved through the air, dodging each shard and closing the distance between them. Chad erected a metal barrier to guard his friend, but his efforts were in vain. Virgil altered his trajectory and headed straight for Chad. Chad raised his sword and projected another barrier.
Virgil cocked back and threw his punch with all his might. His knuckles collided with the barrier with such tremendous force, it shattered entirely, along with the blade. Virgil’s fist drove into Chad’s jaw, sending him tumbling across the ground until a tree finally broke his momentum. Fire surrounded his unconscious body.
Virgil doused the flames covering Chad and turned his attention to the other attackers, only to find three of Fynn’s dragons in his face. He didn’t even have time to think about dodging before they slammed into his body. The dragons exploded into a violent burst of fire. Even with a resistance to pyromancy, he couldn’t withstand the full blast. Virgil grunted, flinching as the flames kissed his skin. As the blast subsided, he stood, battered, heaving in as much air as he could. His clothes were singed in several places, and smoke trailed off of his body.
“You idiot!” Lucious shouted at Fynn. “Why didn’t you send them all? We had him!”