Author’s note- Hey guys, apologies for not getting this out yesterday. I know I told you that I could get the chapter out at tuesday at the earliest and thursday at the latest. Today is thursday, but I probably could've made wednesday had not my laziness kicked in…

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ORBS OF BLOOD (2)

Adam looked to me with the same sorrowful eyes of pity that he had before, and prepared to betray me yet again… If I was in a normal mental state, I probably would've made a mental note on getting to the bottom of this. But seeing the same glance that caused him to betray me yet again? I was mad, furious!

Sometimes, the little things matter most. Him refusing my spot next to him was a simple, small thing under ordinary circumstances. But under the situation, it had been like a Judas’ kiss. The position he took was a profound betrayal, that I tried to take lightly, tried to bottle up under the excuse. ‘I don’t care.’

No. It was really like a knife digging into the emotional wound I already had when I left the house. That excuse was like a bandage, a bandage that was sliced open by this renewed sharp gaze of betrayal. Now the wound was reopened, and my eyes turned dead.

Me- “I see how it is… Well then. It seems it would be more profitable to help the protectors.”

Viola’s face turned ugly, and she summoned the red light. But before she could use it, I warned her solemnly,

Me- “Be careful. You don’t know what they dictate as an ‘attack;’ you might be disqualified if you continue.”

Viola- “Whatever! Leave! I hope you aren’t unexpectedly attacked by anyone when you go!”

Idiot! She just gave me something to use against her!

Me- “Are you threatening me?”

Viola- “No? Just go ahead and leave the group! I’d like to see what happens to you!”

…This woman doesn’t have a freaking brain. Well, I guess it’s time for the accusation.

Me- “You must be the independent! How else would you have the assurance that I’d be attacked when I leave? You’d do it yourself!”

Adam looked over to Viola suspiciously, and he subconsciously took a step back from her. Both Viola and I noticed this, so Viola spoke hurriedly, trying to defend herself,

Viola- “I’m not the independent! Adam, I already proved it to you earlier when you found me! I-”

I interjected, not giving her a chance to finish her defense,

Me- “Then how do you explain your assurance that I’d be attacked if I left? That couldn’t of come from nothing, right?”

Viola paused, not able to immediately come up with a response. And I struck while the iron was hot, not leaving her with a chance to recover.

Me- “You would of attacked me, just like you were about to do just now. Then some kind of excuse, like you figured out I wasn’t the negotiator would come. And he would've believed you, because you would of been disqualified if you attacked the negotiator, right?”

I stepped back as a show for Adam, and I looked at Viola hostility, preparing to defend myself. But instead of attacking me, Viola calmed down.

Aww. I thought I’d be able to sow a little more discord within their group. If I could of goaded her on to attacking me, then it would probably separate them. And from there, it would be easy to ambush them one by one.

Viola- “I see what you’re trying to do. Why are you trying to separate us?”

Me- “When did it become about separating you from Adam. You were trying to attack me!”

Viola drew back, deciding not to speak further of the subject.

Viola- “... Fine. You can stay with our group. But your orb comes only when you guide us to the independent. Adam and I get the priority in choosing the orbs.”

I realized putting further suspicion on her at this point would only serve to put me under question. So I decided to agree without further accusation. More chances would come in the future.

Me- “I’m leading you to both the protectors and the independent. What would happen if I led you to the people and at the end you reneged on our agreement, just like you attempted just now. No. I need assurance that I will get my fair share. I will take the first orb as compensation for what just happened now, Adam will get the second one, and you will get the third. My friendship with Adam will serve as your reassurance that I will continue to guide you until the last orb.”

Viola cringed at the mention of friendship, and she commented scornfully,

Viola- “Based on your ‘friendship?’ A friend that wouldn’t even sit with you? Please. How about this. I get the first orb, Adam gets the second orb, and you will get the third.”

I shook my head.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Me- “And what assurance do I have that you will follow through with your agreement? At least I gave something; you gave me nothing! My agreement stands until you give me some kind of assurance that you will follow through.”

Adam stepped in at this point; he could tell we were getting nowhere.

Adam- “How about this. We go along with Viola’s order, except we give you our trackers as assurance. Therefore, we will be dependent on you directionally as the negotiator.”

It’s surprising that he could come up with that… He mentioned this was his second year. Could it be he had already taken a test like this?

But his agreement still had some problems. Considering it from the standpoint of a negotiator, I still had no guarantee that they would work together with me to attack the independent.

And from my perspective as an independent, it was also disadvantageous. Although obtaining Viola’s tracker would clear up the question on whether she was actually a hunter or not a bit, that was of no use to me anyways, as I was the independent. Moreover, my orb would only come when they were supposed to be hunting the independent, aka me? That would be a surefire way to get myself exposed. From both perspectives, I had to push for a better deal.

Me- “That still doesn’t work. First of all, I want some sort of compensation for the earlier threats against me. And second of all, that leaves me yet again in a position that is easily exploited. How about this. Adam or Viola gets the first orb, depending on whoever gives me their tracker before we fight them. Then I get the second orb, and I will keep the tracker of whoever got the first orb. Then when we get the third orb, the trackers are returned.”

Viola- “That still puts you in a better position than one of us. Adam’s suggestion was better.”

Me- “Unfortunately, although both of you could hunt on your own, I am entirely dependent on the actions of other people. Therefore, I have more to lose than either of you if I am put in the third position. It would be better if I worked with the protectors instead of you if I get put in that third position. So choose. Will you be with me? Or against me.”

There was silence for a while, and then Adam handed over his tracker. Contrasting with Viola’s, it was a circular shaped disk that pulsed with a green light. This meant that Viola was not a hunter... Well then, whether she is the negotiator or the protector, time will tell.

Adam- “I will be the first to receive an orb then?”

Seeing this, Viola looked conflicted. But after a moment of thought, she seemed to resign.

Viola- “...It seems so.”

Me- “It’s settled then… Follow me.”

I jogged off with both Adam and Viola in tow, but unbeknownst to the two behind me, I had other plans than the ones I announced out loud. They would soon meet an untimely end...

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As we were moving closer and closer to the person, my enhanced ears started to pick up on sounds coming from in front of us. One person, alone. Easy prey.

Me- “There is a person up ahead. How should we set up the ambush?”

They stopped.

Viola- “We need to go ahead of them. And then we can climb up to a vantage point to decide what to do next.”

We resumed running, except this time I was wishing for the rocks I kicked to move in a path leading to a good vantage point, that wouldn’t result in being discovered.

But strangely enough, it seemed to be in a large curve around the area the person was walking. Was their hearing boosted by some kind of body strengthening? Or was my ability not working properly?

Kicking another piece of rubble as I ran, it led in the same direction. Meaning, it was definitely some sort of body strengthening. Was it Natalie? Or Stella?

If it was Natalie, she would have to just blame her bad luck. I wasn’t that close to her, and even though she invited me before to the seat next to her, that… Must of been because there was no other choice of seats. It couldn’t of been anything else.

But if it was Stella, then it might turn into a problem. Viola obviously had a relationship with Stella, but I was completely unwilling to turn around and team up with her as well. Plus, that would cause additional problems when I decided to ambush them. So what should I do…

I thought about it for a moment, and then found my answer soon after. Viola said something about a vantage point, right? Heights are dangerous places…

My ability is extremely useful for situations like this. Like the fall with the winged man, I could survive falls with minimal injuries. But I’m sure the others wouldn’t be so lucky…

With a new plan in mind, I continued to follow the path set by my ability. And in minutes, it seemed we had arrived.

Me- “This place should be satisfactory.”

Before us stood a glass-paned building that looked to be about 30-40 ft high. It was a building that seemed like it was previously used for business, but it was still under construction. Therefore, the side that wasn’t covered in glass still had construction equipment near. This included ladders, platforms, mailboxes, etc. The only thing it lacked was railing. Perfect…

Motioning for Viola and Adam to follow me, I began to climb up a ladder on the side that was under construction. A moment passed while they hesitated, but when Adam took the lead to start climbing up, Viola followed as well.

Me- “Do you think we can see her from here?”

I spoke as I climbed up, attempting to make small talk before I found the best place for ambush.

Viola- “This building overlooks most of the area. If we could see the person from anywhere, it would be here.”

Me- “I don’t think the person is the independent; he/she is moving in a straight line, even though ten minutes have passed. Obviously, whoever it is, they don’t have a tracker.”

Adam- “Really? Then it’ll be easy to find a good ambush spot.”

We had all arrived at the top of the building at this time, and I started to observe the surroundings. Everything looked somewhat smaller, but at first I couldn’t see the person we were looking for, even with my enhanced eyesight. However, a moment later a figure walked into a clearing.

The person had long black hair with ears that were long and furry, like some sort of animal’s. She was wearing black clothing, and by her legs, I could see a tail dangling. Although I couldn’t make out the face of the person, nor the type of ears or tail the person had, the black hair was a dead giveaway. It was Stella.

Coming up with my plan on the spot, I pointed in the direction of the person.

Me- “Look! I see a person over there!”

Viola and Adam- “Where?”

Their eyes followed my finger, and then they looked in the direction I pointed.

Me- “Who is it? Can you guys tell from here?”

I knew that they couldn’t tell; even I could barely make out her features with my enhanced vision. But they squinted anyway, looking closely. And I started to slink backwards, slowly. Silently.

Adam- “It looks like… A girl?”

Viola- “I can’t tell…”

They instinctively shuffled closer to the edge of the building, trying to get a closer look. But this would spell their doom.

My preparations ready, I set off a flame point X10 behind their backs.

“BOOM!!!”

Sent staggering forward to the edge, they let out sharp cries of surprise! Unfortunately, before they could catch their balance, I was right behind them!

Me- “DIE!!!”

With a powerful push boosted by my ability, they both fell off the edge screaming!

My hair billowed in the wind as I watched them fall. And in midair, Adam was the first one to recover from the confusion. His transformation happened a split second after the fall, and his scream turned into an angry roar!

Orienting himself in midair, he went down feet first onto the ground. And on impact, his knees buckled, and he turned it into a military roll. It still looked like he took considerable damage though, as there was a big, black scorched mark on his back.

On the other hand, Viola didn’t fare nearly as well. It was about a second before she reacted, but when she realized what was happening, it was already almost too late. She barely formed a pillar of red light from the ground before she hit!

“Crack!”

Letting out a cry of pain, Viola started to clutch one of her legs tightly! It was bent at an odd angle.

Although Viola was immobilized, Adam looked at me with fear. He then turned around and started to limp away. But I wasn’t just going to let him leave like that…

Moving hastily to climb down the ladder, I started the hunt!

But I didn’t notice the cruel smile that was beginning to play along my lips...

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Author’s note 2- So… Got nothing to say… I hope you enjoyed the chapter. And as for the time the next one will out, I don’t really know. I’ll try to get it in as soon as possible, but this is thanksgiving…

I’ll promise I won’t let laziness get me again though!