“My partner is head of one of the units in the Ministry, but he doesn’t have top authority.”
“Look, as long as we all stick together, we will be stronger than if we were apart,” answered Dozer.
“The Dark Lord has destroyed the Ministry before. What’s to stop him doing it again?” she questioned.
“Nothing,” whispered the Head Master worriedly, “but if we don’t have hope, or believe what’s in that golden scroll, then what’s the point?”
The room grew quiet, all three of them lost in their own thoughts.
“We must fight,” replied Dozer, finally.
“Or die,” added Mary.
“Okay.” This from Alex. “The plan of attack is that Dozer will carry on with his training and I will schedule the first Assessment for Max to complete. If successful, he will progress through the Assessments leading to the Elites. He needs all the help with which we can provide him.”
Dozer grinned. This was the right decision. If Max were to progress to being a God, the Elites would just be the beginning.
“What about the young lad, Jimmy?” asked Mary.
“We keep our eyes open.”
Both agreed and the conversation came to an end. Dozer and Mary left Alexander’s office, leaving him to ponder on the many issues at hand.
* * *
Max stirred in his sleep, tossing and turning and rumpling his tidy bed.
“The only reason I am willing to trust you with this is because we believe you have a big part to play,” said Dozer. Max didn’t know if he was dreaming or recalling the conversation in the alleyway. It seemed so real, as if he had gone back in time to replay this moment. The scene faded to blackness; in an instant he was no longer in the alleyway, but in the room where he had first met Lee.
“The Maximus,” he said as he glanced at Dozer. Max wanted so badly to yell a warning to Dozer about the thugs waiting outside. He couldn’t speak, however, and his attention snapped back to Lee, his words spoken directly into his brain: “The only electricity user on the planet. It’s all quite exciting, really,” said Lee looking at him as if he were gold.
“I don’t understand,” muttered Max. They took no notice and it was as if he hadn’t spoken. Max reached out for Dozer and they looked at one another.
Then the environment once again darkened and this time a forest formed within the confines of the schoolroom.
Max flinched as he recognised the location. He was standing before one tree in particular that made his cheeks warm and the hair on the back of his neck stand up.
“It feels like the inscription has been burned into the bark,” said Max. He put his hands over his mouth in shock; he hadn’t spoken consciously and couldn’t think where the words had come from.
“I have never seen anything like this before,” said Paul.
Paul didn’t notice the tears streaming from Max’s eyes; he was invisible in his own memories. Max spun around to face Paul. He looked exactly the same as the last time Max had laid eyes on him. “The time has come,” he said, grabbing Max by the shoulder. This didn’t happen last time; he didn’t say that. “What’s going on?” Max yelled.
He spun to the tree just in time to see the inscription burn; it flashed brightly, bringing Max to a sitting position in his bed in the hospital wing. Sweat drenched his body; it had felt so real and he couldn’t decide if he was still dreaming or not.
He clenched his hand around a cup of water by his bed, draining it in seconds, then took off the shirt that he had received from the nurse, which was now soaked in sweat, and lay back, instantly sinking into a deep sleep.
Sunlight glanced through window next to his bed, warming his face. He opened one eye to sleepily look at the clock.
“You are lazy aren’t you?” teased a voice next to him.
“Hilary!” Max said, surprised. “What are you still doing here?”
“Well, since you have nobody visiting you I thought I’d do the honours. Don’t want you to get too bored,” she said, laughing softly.
“You didn’t have to stay all night,” grinned Max, happy that she had.
“Oh, no… I didn’t, you’ve been out for at least two days now. It’s Sunday.”
Max looked at Hilary and smiled, “Wow! I am pretty lazy, aren’t I?” he joked.
He lifted the blankets from his lower body and turned his legs so they hung off the bed. Hilary immediately rushed to his side, putting her hand on his shoulder to restrain him.
“No, you shouldn’t,” she cried, jumping onto the bed next to him and wrapping him in her arms in an effort to stop him standing.
“Ooh! I should get hurt more often!” he chuckled, gently touching her arm.
“Not funny,” she replied, trying to remain stern but failing miserably and giving him a half-smile. “The nurse said to keep off that for a week,” she said, pointing at his leg.
“Who listens to nurses? Anyway, I’m a quick healer,” said Max, breaking Hilary’s hold and jumping to his feet. “See? No harm done,” he said, cheekily.
“You’re the sort of person who never does what he is told, aren’t you?”
“Never,” he said, as he half-limped over to the door. “It’s all clear. Wait outside and I’ll be there in a second.”
When Hilary had left the room he removed the awful pyjama pants he was wearing and put on some real clothes. Feeling refreshed in his own clothes, he walked outside, grabbing her hand and leading the way.
He inhaled the fresh, Sunday air, happy to be out of the hospital wing. His body felt stiff from the two days lying in bed, and he paused to swing his arms and rotate his trunk before continuing.
“Where are we going?” asked Hilary, confused. Max guided her up the stairs to the third level.
“To our favourite place,” he replied.
They jumped onto the rock that protruded from the side of the building, taking a seat and enjoying the peaceful weather. The sand was gold, the sky blue and the trees around the canyon were as green as the grass on the grounds.
“Such a beautiful day,” said Hilary, making conversation. Max looked at her then back out to the canyon.
“Not nearly as beautiful as you,” said Max. Hilary blushed a light red, turning her head away from his eyes.
“You’re too kind,” she replied, still avoiding his gaze.
“Nope. Just truthful.” Max shifted his position, lying on his back. The warmth of the rocky surface felt extraordinarily good as he stared up into the blue sky.
“So, tell me. What was your first mission like? I hope you didn’t end up in the hospital wing like I did.”
She now met Max’s gaze, recalling her experience. “I didn’t; I’m not careless like some people,” she winked at Max.
“Going by the size of Dozer, you would have thought he would have been able to rip the rings right out of the wall, but no. I had to be the one to deal with them,” smirked Max. “They were pretty skilled, you know,” he said raising both eyebrows.
“Anyway, my mission wasn’t quite as exciting as yours. I was the spokesperson dealing with certain matters to do with the other Elementrix schools.”
Max shot her a quick glance, “Are you talking about the sister school?” he said, sitting up and paying full attention.
“Correct. It was quite an experience representing our school and dealing with different members of the board. The students there are very skilled.”
The grass grounds below them filled with students playing their usual Sunday games on the field. Max shrugged his shoulders and lay back down. “I’m sure they are, but they are not as sharp as we are,” said Max. Hilary nodded in agreement.
Lunch had come and gone, their conversation running on for hours. It was Hilary who first stood up, rubbing the tingling sensation out of her legs and yawning the words, “I should be off. Can’t sit around all day when there’s work to be done.” Max agreed, also standing from the hard surface.
“Don’t you ever have any homework?” she queried, stepping ov
er the wooden rail back into the hallway.
“I guess for the first couple of weeks they have been nice to me,” smiled Max, happy that he actually didn’t have much work. He hated homework - best left for the classroom, he thought, also stepping over the rail.
“Again thanks for everything,” said Max, leaning on the rail.
“Not a problem. Thanks for the day,” she smiled. She waved goodbye and walked back down the corridor, disappearing up the stairs.
Another day of which to write in the book of Hilary Walker. It wasn’t only her beauty he could write about, but also her fun personality. “What a fox,” he muttered to himself, reliving the day in his head.
“A fox you’re going to stay away from,” said a voice behind him.
He spun around, at first embarrassed that someone caught him saying something about Hilary’s beauty, and then he tensed as he saw Jonny.
“But, you see, I just can’t do that,” replied Max, with a tight smile, standing straight. Tension swamped the air, rolling off both boys.
“You have been warned,” said Jonny, inching his way closer to Max. Max glanced at Jonny’s hand and saw it start to heat up. His fire ability was a real pain. It seemed he was on quite another level when compared to the other fire users. Max wasn’t sure if it was strong in his family or if he worked hard for it.
“We are just friends,” replied Max, trying to deflate the tension.
Jonny nodded. “Hmm. You’re just not getting it. I want you to stay away from my girl.”
“I don’t see your name on her,” retorted Max, not backing down.
“But you should.” Jonny flicked a fire pattern above Max’s head, drawing his attention away from him and over his head. Jonny took the opportunity of Max’s distraction to thud an upper cut into his stomach, making him double up and gasp for air.
Max was annoyed that he had fallen for the sucker punch that Jonny had laid on him. He looked up, still clutching his burning stomach, and felt Jonny’s knee plant itself smartly against the side of his face, hurling him to the ground once again. Blood squirted out of his nose as he lay there motionless.
“I think you get the idea now.”
Max grunted at the amount of blood pouring out of his nose, but was glad to see Jonny gone. Max had been out of the hospital wing less than two hours and now here he lay on the cold wooden floor, bruised and bloodied.
He took a staggering walk to the boys’ toilets, each step sending a deepening pain into his stomach. First, he had had rings thrown at him and then he had been beaten up by Jonny, one of the school’s most promising students. Not the plan Max had in mind for his first couple of weeks in his new school.
Blood now trickled down the drain of the boys’ room sink, and his nose stung as badly as his stomach. He cleaned it up as best he could, making his way over to one of the toilets, shutting the lid and taking a seat. It took a good ten minutes to stop the blood from pouring out of his nose, in which time he counted at least seven boys enter and exit. Having flushed all the bloody toilet paper, he made his way back to his bedroom.
The marks on his walls had not changed and nor did they yet make sense. He didn’t start to read the writings on the wall or try to break down the strange language, though. All he could think about was lying on his bed and sleeping until the sun rose, hopefully waking with no headache. He was just about to close his eyes to wander in heaven, when a knock at the door shattered his plan.
“Who is it?” yelled Max in irritation.
“Jimmy,” the boy called back, patiently waiting outside.
“It’s not a good time,” Max replied, having found a comfortable position and not wanting to move.
“I have a message.”
After thirty long seconds, Max got up, opened the door and leaned against the frame.
“Go ahead,” he sighed.
Jimmy looked over Max’s shoulder. “Can I come in?” he asked, hoping he wouldn’t have to stand out in the corridor.
“Sure,” Max replied, turning around and falling back onto his bed.
“Dozer sent me to tell you that there’s no training this week. He said to get some rest,” reported Jimmy, searching his brain to see if he had forgotten anything.
“Okay, thanks,” replied Max.
Jimmy looked curiously around the bare room; Max hadn’t yet earned enough points to acquire anything that might upgrade it. Jimmy seated himself on the hard wooden floor, leaning up against his wall.
“So, does that mean we’re not training then?” Disappointed that his first training session was postponed.
“Do you want to train?” asked Max.
Jimmy’s face lit up; he had been waiting all week for Monday to come around.
“Yes, I do,” Jimmy murmured back, looking up at the side of the bed, uncertain if that was the right answer, being unable to read Max’s hidden face.
Max shrugged at the idea of getting up early, then sighed again. “Then we train,” he said looking up at the word ‘Hope’ engraved near the top of one wall.
“Fantastic! So, what happened?” asked Jimmy, curious as ever.
“Not today, Jimmy. I wouldn’t mind some time alone, if you know what I mean,” said Max, asking Jimmy as nicely as possible to take his leave.
“You still look really bad. Did that happen to you on your mission?”
Max groaned, “Yeah it did, now if you wouldn’t mind…” he said, growing impatient.
“Okay,” Jimmy replied, boosting his little body up off the floor. “Is there anything I can do?”
Without pausing for thought, Max said, “Yes! An ice pack and some food would be good.”
Jimmy was gone and back within five minutes with his demands and, without again being asked to leave, disappeared out of the door.
Max ate in silence, holding the ice pack against the front of his shirt. The food was refreshing but not as beneficial as lying down and closing his eyes to sleep without interruption.
“Wake up,” said a squeaky voice. Max twisted over on his bed, pulling the blankets over his head with a groan.
Jimmy tugged off his blanket, leaving him shivering in the cool air.
“Cold,” Max grumbled, twisting over again in an attempt to find the blanket.
“Training,” Jimmy reminded him.
Before long, Jimmy and Max were outside and thinking about where to start. Max thought that body fitness was important to start on, because Jimmy was lacking in all areas. Maybe it was his age or his gene pool, but if he wanted to change his body they would have to make a start.
“I think basic exercises should start things off nicely,” said Max, looking over Jimmy’s body and trying to pinpoint the areas in most need of improvement.
They jogged around the field, stopping for stretches and a few quick and easy push-ups and sit-ups, and Max was pleased to note that his leg seemed to be coping with the stress.
“Before we get fully into it I want to know what areas you would like to improve on.”
Jimmy took some time to gather his thoughts before replying. “I want to have greater strength, be more confident in my ability, be better at swords and have better technique in martial arts,” he said, going down the list.
“Okay, so basically everything. I can only guide you, you know. You will have to be the one to take the steps,” said Max, trying to be wise for once. He had never taken anyone for training before and it seemed quite weird at first. He had always been the student and never the teacher. Maybe he, too, would learn something from the experience.
“Yes, I understand,” Jimmy replied, enthusiastically.
“Have you ever climbed down this cliff?” asked Max, indicating the drop where he did most of his climbing.
“Neither down nor up,” Jimmy replied, looking over the edge with concern.
“Is that right? Not even when you first got here? I had to. At the time, it sucked but when I look back it was the best physical training I could have put my body though,” recalled Max, tryin
g to prove a point to Jimmy.
“That’s the beginning test for students sixteen and over. We just had to cross this thin plank of wood over a river.”
“Well, today you become a student sixteen and over,” Max said, jerking his head towards the edge of the cliff. Sweat formed on the palms of Jimmy’s hands and he found himself rooted to the spot.
“I still have four or five years until I have to do this,” he replied, frantically.
“You can have a head start, then. Here’s your shot: you want to be the best, you have to train like the best.” He grabbed Jimmy by the shoulder and walked him closer to the edge.
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to let anything happen to you… yet,” he laughed, swinging his body over the ledge and gripping the moist rock.
“That’s not funny!” cried Jimmy, staring at Max with terrified eyes.
“You see this line dug into the surface? Just hold onto that with both hands and let your legs dangle over the side until you feel some grip with your feet,” Max instructed, pulling himself back up so he could give another example to the younger boy.
The sun beamed off the rocky surface, giving both boys enough light to guide their way down the thin layers of rock.
Surprisingly, Jimmy did very little complaining, focusing all his attention on his descent, picking rocks that looked to be the most firmly attached to the pillar.
A quarter of the way down was enough for Jimmy, as his little body couldn’t handle much more bracing to the wall. Max gave him the nod to start climbing his way back up. The sun had dried up most of the moisture from the rock’s surface and made the climb somewhat easier. Max reckoned he had a couple more minutes to get Jimmy up the cliff before class. He could have gone up and down twice in the time they reached a quarter of the way up, but he rubbed the top of Jimmy’s head when they finally reached the top, congratulating him on his good effort.
“Not bad for your first climb,” he said with a smile, watching Jimmy’s tired face light up at the compliment. “Tomorrow you rest, as you don’t want you to be too sore for school. Now, be off. Class starts soon.”
Jimmy said a quick thank you and then was off running, following the path to his room.
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