“Don’t stare, Sera,” Sam chides me.
“If you ask me, he’s kinda cute, in an older guy kinda way. A nice dresser and all those muscles.” Macey stares at him. “Did you hear about how he saved those kids from one of the Underground attacks?”
“You must be thinking of the wrong person.” I look up, confused. That man wouldn’t do anything that he wouldn’t benefit from.
“Oh no, it was all over Gabe’s news this morning, before they talked about the Oaths.”
“Must have missed that.” I look over at him. “If you ask me, I think he’s a real creepster.” I turn my attention to my plate and push fruit chunks around with my fork.
“How can you say that? He’s amazing,” she says insistently.
I give her a strange look because I can’t understand why she’s defending him this way. She and Quinn fall into a discussion of his awesomeness and I turn to Sam with a sigh.
“Sera, it’ll be fine. Remember what I said,” Sam whispers and places a hand on my arm.
“Yeah, you’re right. It’s just hard not to worry. There are so many things to worry about.” I let out a nervous laugh. “Thank goodness we only have to survive one class today.”
“I can’t tell you how excited I am about the Oaths,” Macey says. “Jenn told me that Michelle told her that Tabitha said that our credit cards will officially have no limit as soon as we’re anointed. I’m thinking about buying a car. Can you buy a car with a credit card?” Macey’s mounting excitement is matched by her speech, which ramps up to warp speed.
I stare at her. Is it fair that she has absolutely no clue what she’s getting into? Can she really not see how corrupt the Society is? That they are bribing her with material gifts that will track her entire life path? That the love she shares with Xavier is carefully crafted and manipulated? That if she doesn’t take the Oaths, they’ll send her to her death in Nocturna? Did she not care when we told her about the sacrifices at the Oaths? Or maybe she doesn’t believe it, or more probably, they’ve brainwashed her during her night class on the contrapulator to overlook events that would normally set off alarms. Whatever it is, it’s clear that all my classmates are moving forward in their lives while mine is falling apart.
“What?” She raises an eyebrow, fork stopped in midair, full of waffle and syrup. “No buying cars with credit cars?”
“No.” I sigh heavily. The sad thing is that just for one second I wished I were Macey, and that I didn’t know how awful everything really is. It’s nice to be blissfully unaware of the danger that surrounds us. Disgusted, I push my plate away.
“Sera, you need to eat.” Bishop nudges the plate back. “Don’t make me force-feed you.”
“Fine.” I relent, scarfing all the food down without tasting a thing, all while listening to the group chatter about the Oaths, how thrilled they are, and how amazing it is to have all this money to spend however they want. Of course, Sam and Bishop remain quiet. When I think I can’t stand another moment of this, the bell saves me by announcing the first class.
The three of us slip out, heading to Defense Arts. When we arrive at the large gym, Miss Swift is rearranging several large blue mats and covering the floor with them. We join in, helping, and so do other students as they arrive.
Professor Raunnebaum walks to Miss Swift and she stands to meet him. “All the training machines are set up and ready to go. Here’s a remote control. Just press the red arrow and the holograms will appear,” he explains.
“Thanks, Professor. This will be a real treat for the class.”
“And if there’s anything else at all that I can do for you, don’t hesitate to ask,” he says with a nod that jolts his head of wild black hair.
As he walks away, I look around until I see why we’re practicing here, rather than in one of the smaller training rooms like we normally do. Through an open door, I see Grand Master Levi sparring with a beastly hologram. It’s the first time I’ve seen him in clothing other than an expensive suit. I move closer for a better look, and notice several intricate tattoos winding around his arm beneath his white tank. They’re unexpected, considering his clean-cut persona. But seeing him in this new way doesn’t give me ease because I can see he’s dangerous, strong, and despite the fact he’s fighting a hologram minotaur that’s five feet taller with two hundred additional pounds of muscle, he’s still going to win.
“Okay, class. Let’s begin, shall we?” Miss Swift blows her whistle. “Let’s stretch and warm up.”
She leads the group in sprints. In a line, we run back and forth from one side of the gym to the other. Then she sets up cones, and we run backward and weave around them, run forward, and jump over hurdles. It’s thirty minutes of hard workouts before she allows us to stop, grab a drink of water, and announces the next lesson.
By this point I’m sweating profusely, but it feels good to work out again, just like last night. I drag my wrist across my forehead and pull my drenched hair into a low ponytail.
“Okay, I’ll need help with a demonstration.” Miss Swift looks around. Her gaze passes over her usual sparring partners, Atticus and Bishop, and then lands on me. “Sera, would you mind?”
I hesitate, surprised, but then agree. “No problem.”
Students encircle us, giving us a wide berth, as I walk to the center mat. Miss Swift removes the remote control from her gray jumpsuit, points it at a nearby machine, and presses the button.
The lights in the cavernous gym dull on cue and one by one images appear, scattered around the room. But these aren’t images of beastly half humans or warrior/zombie holograms, these are objects: rusted-out shells of cars and trucks, refrigerators with doors hanging open, and garbage and other debris litter the ground in massive mounds that soar into what used to be the ceiling of the gym. The entire class now stands in the middle of a holographic garbage dump.
Though the students have seen the holograms in action, they ooh and ah with excitement.
“This class will be dedicated to learning how to use your environment while fighting.” Miss Swift slips the remote in her pocket and walks around the newly configured space. “Look around. Take in all the elements and strategize how you would use these items if you should ever encounter an attack. In this new uncertain Wandering world that we live in, and with the resistance of the Underground, this could be a real scenario.”
Unexpectedly Grand Master Levi joins our class, standing at the side of the hologram. Students look in his direction and become uneasy; I sense it in their postures. Many are in awe of him and his power.
“Carry on.” He waves. “I’m interested in observing the students.” His gaze immediately finds me, but I hold my face rigid and unreadable, determined not to give in first in this staring battle.
He struts forward, barking orders. “Rex, I’ll need a chair.” In a matter of seconds, his meathead guard presents a chair and the Grand Master sits down. Another guard hands him a towel and a bottle of water. He takes a deep swig and pats the towel over his sweating forehead.
“Sera!”
My head turns in the direction of my name, and the class giggles.
“Are you ready?” Miss Swift raises a white eyebrow.
“Sure.”
We walk to the center of the room and she whispers, “Try not to look too experienced, Sera. It will only pique his interest more.”
“Right.” I agree, but only as my first reaction. Of course, she’s right; I should do everything within my power to keep him disinterested in my abilities. I can do this to protect the people I love, at the very least.
Miss Swift crouches into position, and though I should have already surveyed the space better, I let my gaze quickly roam around. She blows her whistle and the confrontation begins.
She approaches me first, fighting in a typical street manner, hard punches and uppercuts, intense pushing, and high-flying kicks. We grapple and I fall to the ground, which is now dusty and dry red earth. The grit covers my entire body, and I reach into a pile o
f trash to pull out a piece of wood. Rushing forward from the ground, I take a few swings. I have to make this fight look somewhat real—like I’m not a complete wuss.
Miss Swift easily evades the swings. With her foot, she kicks the lumber from my grip and it flies through the air, landing with a loud clunk and sliding across the floor near the Grand Master.
Behind me, I hear him laugh. The sound causes my shoulders to tense, but I need to focus and forget that he’s even here, watching my every move.
I run to grab the board, but Miss Swift catches up and pushes me from behind so that I fall to the ground. My face lands at the Grand Master’s feet, so close I could kiss his boots, and I grimace at the mental image.
He laughs again, but this time the sound is too much for me to take and I lose it. Pushing up with my palms, I jump upright and before the guards can do anything, I kick his chair and it flips backward. He falls on his back with a thud, arms sprawled out to the sides.
“Sera!” Miss Swift grabs my arm. “What are you doing?”
I should be scared, but the sight of him below me, embarrassed, reaching for his bloody lip and covered in the clay dirt, makes me happy. It only takes seconds before the guards restrain my arms but I don’t fight them, there’s no point. He’s responsible for everything—corrupting the Society to the point where my world has fallen apart. I blame him for everything that’s happening.
Grand Master Levi reaches for his face, dragging the top of his hand across his skin. Blood drips over his chin and down his shirt. With his arm muscles flexing and pulsing with rage, I expect him to scream, ordering my arrest. Instead his anger boils inside, carefully controlled from the looks of it.
His guard, Rex, extends a hand to help him, but he refuses with a flattened palm and he rises on his own to meet my gaze. “You may be too young to realize this but in our world, what you’ve done is challenge me to fight.”
Before I can respond, or even think of a way to answer this, he leans closer and says, “I accept your challenge with pleasure.”
::27::
A Challenge
The class erupts with chatter and frantic yelps of concern. Miss Swift rushes between us. “Surely you can’t be serious, Grand Master. Sera’s just a child. You’re much too skilled for this young one,” she says in an attempt to placate him.
“It wasn’t I who did the provoking, Miss Swift. I’ll ask you to stand down or my guards will do it for you.”
Her face crinkles with concern as Rex moves in behind her.
“I’ve got this,” I say.
Grand Master Levi throws his head back with a cringe-worthy guffaw. “It’s settled then. We fight.” He waves the guards away, and they release their grip from my arms.
Bishop rushes to my side and huddles close, pulling me from the commotion. “Sera, have you gone absolutely mad?” he says through gritted teeth.
Miss Swift joins us. “What I said earlier still applies. Even more now than before.” She gives me a stern look, encouraging me to lose.
“Listen to her, Sera,” Bishop agrees.
“Sorry, I’m just not built that way.” I ball my hands into fists, trying to control the anger, and turn to walk away.
This time I take an extra moment to really survey the hologram space. There’s a high-reaching industrial crane with an arm that swings across the room, a junkyard magnet at the end to pick up metal. Several crushed cars sit scattered around, along with many jagged and pointed items easily repurposed as weapons.
“Rethinking your bravado, Miss Parrish?” the Grand Master yells across the space.
“Just thinking about what I’ll do to celebrate after I’m done with you.” I turn to face him.
“Then bring it, child,” he says wickedly and crouches into a defensive move. Confidently, he waves me forward with his fingertips.
All I see is an evil man, one who sent Bishop’s family and many other innocent people to Nocturna, and the one responsible for my life turning to crap.
My face heats with emotion and I crouch too, getting ready to attack. I take off running across the room, screaming a battle cry at the top of my lungs.
As the distance between us closes, he lunges forward in a sprint, mirroring my action. Our collision course crashes shoulder to shoulder, fingers digging deep into each other’s skin. He’s much larger in height and muscle, and when he tosses me over his side and I land with a crash into the debris, I instantly wonder if I misjudged the playing ground. Can I beat him?
He turns and leaps. When he’s about to land on me, I jump, lifting both legs and using the bottom of my feet to launch him in another direction, throwing him off to allow me time to regain my footing.
He jumps to his feet and pivots to face me, adjusts his stance, and whips a kick in my direction. His foot makes contact, pummeling my side. Snapping his foot back quickly, he does it again before I can even think to respond, and I tumble away.
With the next switch kick, I scurry away and set up a kickboxing stance. I manage to land a few punches to his face. When my fist connects with his jaw, it’s as solid as rock, which sends pain spidering over my knuckles.
I take off running, looking for anything to help me gain the upper hand. Up ahead there’s a ten-foot partial concrete wall. As I near, I take several running steps forward, launch up the side of the wall in a parkour move, and flip over the Grand Master. He doesn’t see it coming because when I land facing him, he’s turned away.
I strike him between his shoulder blades and he flies forward, slamming his jaw into the concrete wall. Blood spatters like red paint and he groans, immediately boosting off with his palms. The veins in his forehead pulse with rage. A mixture of dirt and sweat paints his bulging arms. But now that I’ve had a decent hit on him, I’m positive I can land more.
We fight intensely for many minutes, kicking and punching in what seems like endless repetition. I bend and pick up some trash and throw it in his face to distract him while throwing a heavy punch to his gut. His posture caves but with his lightning reflexes, he captures one of my wrists, somehow crushing it with his grip. In retaliation, I bash my knee into his arm.
He’s wearing down and now it’s my turn for some banter. “Looking a little tired, old man.” I spit the dirt from my mouth, remembering how old he truly is, and how impossibly wrong that info has to be. No one more than a hundred years old would look or fight this well.
“It’s about time you spoke up. I was starting to think you were all looks and no brain.”
My eyes widen at the remark.
“Creep.” I punch him again, but he kicks me first and I fly away, landing at the bottom of the mountain of trash. I flail about in the garbage, trying to stand, but not before I grab a steel rod, sharpened into a point at the end. Whipping around, I drive the spear into his bicep. It pierces the skin, penetrating the muscle, and exits from the opposite side.
For a moment I can’t believe what I’ve done; I’ve seriously injured him. It was my intention, yes, but now that I’ve followed through I’m in shock. He pauses too, stumbles backward, staring at the impalement. I think we’re finished, surely he can’t continue like this, but he grips the rod with his good hand and pulls it slowly from his arm. There’s no blood, only a puncture. My brow furrows in confusion.
He laughs, seemingly unharmed by what’s happened. “I should kill you for that.” He steps forward to continue our fight and throws the spear back at me. It nearly slices my leg as I scramble away, rolling under a bombed-out vehicle for cover. He jumps onto the hood and bounces, his weight pressing the car down and sending a rain of dirt, rust, and loose engine parts over my face.
“Come out, Sera. It’s no fun without you.”
He’s insane.
I slide out and make a run for the pile of garbage. When I reach it, I rapidly crab-walk up the hill, slipping and sliding. He leaps from the hood and races in pursuit, but when he follows, I realize that this is one thing I have on him—I’m smaller. His large frame disturbs more
of the debris, causing an avalanche of garbage everywhere he climbs. I scurry to the top and race across the ridge of the mound, leaping from one precariously placed piece of trash to another. That’s when I head for the junkyard crane.
I climb the open metal ladder with beams that crisscross high into the sky like an erector set. At the end, I struggle to climb into the control car, trying not to look down or even think about how high I am. Sweat drips over my skin, making my hands slippery, and I almost lose my grip and fall to my death as I crawl into the driver’s seat. The students below scream with excitement or fright; I don’t know which.
Grand Master Levi continues to climb the mountain of garbage. Once he makes it to the ridgeline, he’ll be able to move faster, so I hurry.
I turn the key in the ignition and the crane rumbles to life. There are a few levers, just like that arcade game with the crane and the silver claw; I just have to pretend that the Grand Master is the prize.
Peeking out my cab window, I adjust the levers, lining up the junkyard magnet with his body. When I think I have the two aligned and just when I’m about to drop the ten-ton magnet the size of a smart car on his head, the Grand Master mysteriously lifts from the ground. He’s not flying exactly but shooting upward, drawn toward to the magnet until he’s stuck to the bottom of it.
The hateful man hangs there by his damaged arm, screaming profanities and pointing in my direction with his free hand.
From my perch, I look down and see students, Society guards, and Miss Swift gathered below and pointing up, though I don’t understand what’s happened.
Confused, I climb out of the cab and shimmy down the metal ladder. When I reach the bottom, I scramble across the mountain of garbage until I’m standing directly below the Grand Master. He’s attached to the magnet with several other bits of trash and garbage; black droplets leak from his magnetized limb and a few land on my forehead. I run my hand through the goo and pull it back to find black oil oozing over my fingertips.
Seeing Light (The Seraphina Parrish Trilogy) Page 15