Chapter 12
“I shouldn’t need to explain to you how important this is.” Chief Cassidy pointed her finger in Roku’s face to emphasize the seriousness.
“What is this? Do you wish every team good luck, or just us?” Ivory rolled her eyes.
“No. Unfortunately, you guys are a special case. That’s why I am personally making sure you’re as far away from other teams as possible.” Cassidy responded.
Ise, Ivory, Ace, Roku, and Lee all stood in front of Chief Cassidy and her two guards at the edge of the forest. The day of the contest has arrived. The day of their final chance.
“Let me re-explain how things are going to transpire. First, you’ll go into your designated area of the forest. Which for you is right past here.” Cassidy motioned towards the tree line.
“Then, once every team is in position, we will release the monsters. Each monster has a designated number of points given to them, and we will be able to tell whoever kills them by the traces of magic, so there is no need to turn in the corpses. You will not be signaled when the monsters are released, so you’ll have to be ready from the moment you step into the forest. You will however hear a signal for when the contest is over.” Cassidy eyeballed everyone to make sure they were listening.
“There are two final details I need to make particularly clear. Combat between participants is allowed, and usually a casualty is seen as an unfortunate, but necessary consequence of this event. In your case, it will not be seen that way. If any of you kill another participant, I will have you all jailed for as long as the court allows me to. Secondly, despite my ill-will towards you all, I can guarantee that you will be scored fairly on and treated the same as every other team in this contest. It would be useless otherwise.” Cassidy finished.
The group sat in silence for a moment, taking in what Cassidy had said. They seemed uneasy about the whole thing, but somewhat relieved that they would be treated fairly. Lee, however, had something else on his mind.
“What do we get if we win? I know the deal is if we win, we get to stay, and we get kicked out if we lose, but this contest must have another purpose, what is the real prize?” Lee asked, all in one breath.
“You’re correct, there is a prize. This is a qualifier after all. If you win, you will indeed receive that prize, but I think you have more pressing matters to worry about. I’ve wasted enough time on you five. Farewell.” Cassidy turned to leave then stopped for a moment.
“Prove me wrong.” She gave a nod, and a rare somewhat positive expression flashed on her face as she left.
One of her guards waved, while the other spat in the group's direction.
The crew watched her leave until she was out of sight. They would prove her wrong.
“Is everyone ready? Do we need to go over the plan one more time?” Ise asked.
“Nah, we’ve gone over plans A through E so many times I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget them.” Lee chuckled.
Everyone nodded in agreement. They’ve had a month of training, a full 31 days of preparation. A last-minute review wouldn’t help.
“Alright. Then before we start, I’ll say one thing. I am proud of each and every one of you. Over this last month we have grown individually and together in ways that seem unbelievable. No matter what comes to pass, I am proud to be a part of this team. I am proud to lead you.” Ise teared up a little at the end.
Ivory had a somewhat nervous look on her face, Lee had an awkward one in response to Ise’s heartfelt words, Roku and Ace both wore the same expression: focus.
“Alright, let’s go team!” Ise said as he turned to run into the forest.
“Wait! One quick thing….” Lee said, stopping everyone in their tracks.
“Group hug?”
The laughs of everyone could be heard as they ran into the uncertainty.
***
“So, this is it.” Lee sat on a stump, away from the group.
He didn’t know what to do while he waited, so he pulled his swords out and began polishing and sharpening them. He didn’t need to, but he had to do something besides waiting.
The busy work helped his mind wander, taking his focus away from the present moment, and taking his nerves with it. He found himself ruminating on his dream from the previous night.
“Have I really changed?” Lee said, as he sat back on the lounger, watching the waves.
“I’d say so.” The mysterious girl whose ability had taken root in Lee’s dreams replied.
Lee had seen her about eight times during his training, and every encounter had been underwhelming. His encounter with her before training had given him a realization. She had shown him what he needed to change. He had been living his life not seeing people as people. He had been selfish. He had been a bad person.
“……I think I’m doing better. I’m trying. I really am this time. I’m seeing people for how they are, not how I envision them. I’m done looking at life through the lense of an anime or manga. I’m done viewing myself as a side character.” Lee said.
“So it seems.” She responded, watching the waves with the same blank expression she always wore.
“So…...I’ve changed?” Lee asked.
“Why do you keep looking for my approval? Why do you need me to confirm it?” She turned and looked at him.
“……” Lee didn’t respond.
“No…..that’s not it. You just want encouragement. But not like with Tsubusu, no empty encouragement. You want to hear that you’ve changed, because you’re scared of regressing.” She observed.
“I thought I told you to stop reading my thoughts. It’s creepy.” Lee didn’t deny what was said.
“Hm. First you were afraid of change, of progression. Then you were afraid of stagnation, now you’re afraid of regression?” She offered a slight chuckle.
“It’s just…. this is the happiest and best I’ve felt in a while. I don’t wanna go back to how I felt before. I really want to believe that I really can change just like that.” Lee snapped his fingers to emphasis his point.
“But…if I can change that easy, if I can just wake up one day and change my outlook, change how I’ve been living…... If that can happen so fast, then maybe it’s not real. Maybe I can regress just as fast.” Lee voiced his worries.
“I think you’re focused on the wrong things. I can’t give you the answer you want. It’s just like the training you were doing with Ace and Ise. It’s a conclusion you must reach by yourself.”
Lee was brought back to reality as the screech of a monster was heard off in the distance.
“Good, it’s in the direction of Roku & Ivory. I was right in my prediction of where they would come from.” Lee smiled.
“Now to wait and see if I was right about Evan….”
***
“That’s three!” Ivory yelled as she let the arrow loose. It pierced through the air, between the branches of a tree, and right through the head of an unsuspecting goblin-like creature.
“Three for me too!” Roku shouted as he dodged a swing from a giant yellow beast’s club. Roku planted his fist in the creature’s one giant eye.
“Wish there was a way to know how much points we got, then this contest would be more accurate!” Ivory yelled back as she fired off another arrow.
“It doesn’t matter, these hardly count as a warmup!” Roku kicked off a tree and planted a knee into the back of a hog-like creature.
“My real target is Evan. You can keep entertaining yourself with these small fries, while I have the real fun with something above your level.” Roku grinned.
“As if! We both know these are just the warmup monsters anyways, they’ll send in the big ones later. Besides, I doubt Evan would fight you personally, he probably has his hands full with a real fighter like Ace.” Ivory smirked.
“Ha! That’s so funny it makes me wanna laugh twice. Ha! Ace couldn’t beat me even with her cheater abilities!” Roku bashed two goblins’ heads against each other, barely disguising his annoyance at Ivory’s implication of Ace being stronger than him.
Before Ivory could rib on him any further, a distinct explosion could be heard in the distance.
“That’s the signal…. they’ve got contact with Evan.” Ivory said.
“Shit!......He must be afraid. I was looking forward to my runback.” Roku punched a tree in anger.
“Well, if he’s not coming after us, then that means…..” excitement welled up within Ivory.
“Yeah, go ahead!” Roku yelled back, disinterested.
Ivory grabbed her briefcase. It was tied to her back with a rope which she tossed to the side. She began to enter the code and unlock it when-
“Cease. Your actions are meaningless. Your time is ending. Your lives are forfeit.” A voice boomed. Sinister yet comforting. Rough yet soft.
The voice sent a chill down Ivory’s spine, freezing her in place. All her instincts told her not to move.
“Hm? This one of the monsters? Or another person?” Roku was not intimidated.
In front of him, the shadow of a tree stretched and grew an unnatural amount. The darkness spread, then condensed. A twisted figure slowly rose from within. A figure which could not be described as human.
It had horns upon its head, tattered clothes hid the shape of its figure. Boney arms poked their way out through the remnants of sleeves. Its red face had two green eyes which stared not at Roku, but past him. Through him.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
“Your strength means nothing, children of Adam. Give up your lives, they no longer belong to you” The creature spoke once again.
“Looks like a monster. How much points you think this one’s worth?” Roku asked Ivory but received no response.
“I am no participant in this game of yours, children. I am beyond mortality. Beyond games. I am here because I was contracted. I am here because your lives are mine now.” The creature stepped forward toward Roku.
Roku planted a fist in the creature’s face. With no indication of his sudden attack, the creature was caught completely off guard.
The monster keeled back; blood dripped from what resembled a mouth on its face.
“Huh. Tougher than it looks.” Roku cracked his knuckle, a smile beginning to appear on his face.
“You are strong, foolish one. I can see why a contract with a demon was required. But I am transcended. Above something as fragile as ‘mortal strength’. It is a concept that is far below me.” The wound upon the devil’s face was gone.
“This frail, incomplete invocation will not suffice. One of you is strong enough to disobey my will.” It turned its head and looked at Ivory, who hadn’t moved since it first spoke.
The demon began to grow, the rags grew tight as flesh returned to the former walking corpse. Its height was greater than Roku. Its arms, legs, shoulders, all of its being was of greater size than Roku. Its previously frail form was a far cry from its current appearance.
“Fear not. Your death shall be glorious. Know this, chi-” The demon was interrupted as a flurry of explosions could be heard. It hunched forward as small projectiles painted its back.
Behind the demon, upon her tree, ivory sat. Her briefcase lay discarded on the forest floor, and in her hand, was a gun. The gun, as described by Lee, was a submachine gun. Lee failed to remember its name but described it as: “The really good one from zombies.”
It held 71 rounds and was capable of firing fully automatic. Ivory dropped the empty magazine and loaded another. The first 71 bullets had already painted the creatures back.
“It is an oddity for a mortal to act in my presence. Even rarer is two.” The demon began to stand, its back already healing.
Before it fully stood back up, Roku landed a punch. Then another. Then another.
Roku rained a flurry of blows upon the creature, ending in a backside spin kick, launching the devil into a tree.
The demon sat motionless for a moment, but then began to stand once more. Despite the attacks from Ivory and Roku, it was already healed.
“I spoke it previously. I hate to repeat. I am beyond strength. It is futile.” The demon stood up and opened its eyes expecting to see the fear in Roku’s eyes.
But the expression that Roku wore was one of jubilation.
“You can go Ivory, go have your fun. I’ll handle things here.” At his words of approval, Ivory finally listened to every instinct in her body, and ran.
“Foolish, even for one such as you. Why dismiss your only reinforcements?” The demon was confused. It had never had a response like this before.
“He………She’d just get in the way of my fun.” Roku’s smile was not sinister, it was gracious.
Seeing this, for the first time in 1000 years, the devil experienced a feeling that should be foreign to it. A feeling that it discarded. A feeling exclusive to mortals. For the first time in a century, the devil felt fear.
Not recognizing the foreign feeling within itself, the demon made its first mistake, and attacked. A straight right punch meant for Roku’s face was easily caught and countered with Roku’s own straight right.
The demon keeled back, but Roku still held onto its hand, refusing to let the demon escape. Roku pulled it close and punched it hard where its kidney should be. He repeated this motion three times before elbowing the devil across its face.
When Roku attempted to pull the devil in again, it struck with its left hand, which Roku effortlessly caught as well. with both the devil’s and Roku’s arms restricted. There was one thing left for Roku to use, his head. Roku smashed his forehead into the devil’s nose. Over and over again he headbutted the creature. Finally, Roku let go of its arms.
The moment he did, the devil finally made contact with Roku, as a punch landed across Roku’s chin. The blood that covered the demon’s face began to heal. The blood stemming from Roku’s chin and forehead did not.
“Do you not see it is futile? Give up. You cannot kill me. I cannot die.” The devil spoke.
“I’m glad……. I’ve aways wanted to fight something that I can’t kill.” Roku happily wiped the blood off his face.
“Beatdown Burrage.” Undeterred, Roku launched the first attack this time.
Roku’s flurry of full power punches connected with the demon, launching it through trees, bushes, into a hillside. Roku continued his onslaught. As the punches continued to connect, the demon began to realize its inadequacy.
When Roku pulled back, pausing for the first time as he readied a finishing blow, the devil found an opening. A punch connected with Roku’s ribcage, and it was different.
Roku jumped back, creating distance as he assessed the demon’s last attack. Where the demon’s punch had connected, was a picture of the backside of a playing card.
“I commend you. For the first time in a quarter century, I must use my technique. It is called, The luck of the devil. For you to witness it, means you are recognized as a true warrior.” The devil offered a single clap in recognition of Roku’s strength.
Roku attempted to wipe off the card, but it wouldn’t budge. It was not a physical mark; it was the work of an ability.
“By my estimation, I’ve killed you thirty-nine times already.” Roku stared the devil in the eyes.
“Thirty-eight times.” The devil responded, glaring into the depths of Roku’s soul.
“Thirty-eight and a half.” Roku responded as he readied his fists.
The rational side of Roku told him to keep his distance, be smart, and assess the Devil’s ability. There was clearly more to it than putting a card on him. Carelessness could lead to his downfall. The angel on his shoulder spoke these things to Roku. Roku’s rational side was heard. But Roku’s passionate side had other opinions.
Roku’s passionate side told him to rush in, to fight. He may never have the opportunity to fight an immortal opponent again. He shouldn’t pass up the opportunity. Roku shouldn’t care what ability the devil has, that kind of thinking is for losers.
“I hear you!” Roku focused all his energy into his two fists.
Roku’s rational side seldom won the argument.
***
Ivory ran through the forest, jumping from tree to tree, fleeing from that demon. Her gun hung strapped over her shoulder, she had one hand stabilizing it, gripping it as hard as she could. The sound of Roku’s fight grew quieter the further she ran.
As she hopped between tree branches, for a split second, she saw motion. Without hesitating, she lined up the shot, poured magic into her shot, and pulled the trigger. Before she could even get a good look at what sort of beast it was, its life was over.
“Points on the board.” She mumbled to herself as she continued the hunt.
She had no time to worry about the others, she had to focus on the hunt. Considering the rules allowed for combat between participants, she reasoned that most teams would be split between hunting and combat groups. Most hunting groups probably consisted of three people, two at the very least. To compete as her team's sole hunter, she’d have to put in the work.
After shooting a few more monsters and adding a few more points to the team, Ivory arrived at her destination. In front of her stood the largest tree in the forest. Without hesitating, she began to climb it, skillfully jumping from branch to branch until she reached the top.
Once atop the tree, Ivory could see the entirety of the forest. For most people, this wouldn’t offer much of an advantage. Seeing monsters from that high up is one thing, hitting them with a bow and arrow is a different problem. But for Ivory, this wasn’t a problem.
She had always been proud of her eyes, they were accurate, sharp. She could see far beyond what a normal person could see. Even with eyes that sharp, seeing anything from this height would be trouble.
Lee had told Ivory that her plan might not work, but she insisted. The type of gun she had wasn’t meant for long range sharpshooting, it was more suited for mid and close-range encounters. However, that doesn’t take Ivory’s magic into consideration.
Normally, her magic allows her arrows to be faster, stronger, and pierce through even metal & stone. This was just the surface level magic, the kind any archer can do. Ivory had another card up her sleeve. Her true magic guides her arrow to its target, no matter what. The arrow will move as much as needed to hit its intended target. There were limitations of course, but when applying that ability to her newfound weapon, Ivory’s plan took full shape.
A silent wind brushed the treetop where Ivory stood. She was far above all others in the arena. The sounds of fighting became so distant they lost all meaning. Ivory was far removed from all conflict happening below. But she was still involved.
Her eyes were keen and focused, noticing every movement of the forest below. The trees all moved, the subtle push and pull of the wind kept the forest from resting. A normal person would give up, the natural and unnatural movements of the forest may seem impossible to distinguish to most. But Ivory could tell, she’d spent enough time in the forest to distinguish between its movement, and something else.
“Got you.” Ivory pulled the trigger.
A single branch had moved in the wrong direction, but that was enough. Two bullets rocketed through the tree line, twisting and turning through the air until their trajectory was true. A moment later, they both connected with the target. Ivory hadn’t even gotten a glimpse of what sort of monster it had been.
“Another.” Another pull of the trigger, another two shots, another monster down.
A smile spread upon her face. Her plan was working. Lee doubted her, but she discarded what he thought, and was better off for it.
“He did think of a good plan for how to deal with Evan. But how did he expect us to get all the points? This was the only way. Never doubt me again.” Ivory said aloud to no one as she pulled the trigger once again.
A jubilant whistle began to escape her lips. This new weapon opened a whole new world of hunting. Some people might’ve seen it as taking away from the nature of it. It becomes as easy as pulling a trigger. But Ivory saw it otherwise, she saw it as creating new opportunities. If the plateaus contain weapons like this, Ivory wants to try them all.
The weapon had elevated Ivory more than the tree had. The gun had given her a way to hunt far above her wildest dreams. It made her feel invincible, untouchable. She was above all in the arena physically and metaphorically. All, but one.
A screech echoed behind Ivory. When she turned to look at the source of the ear-splitting sound, she was almost too late. The giant maw of teeth was already around her.
She reached out tried to catch the jaw, a futile attempt. The force behind the mouth pushed her off the tree. She avoided being eaten, but now she was falling, and the monster behind the mouth had wings.
Ivory reached for her gun. Falling was a problem, but getting eaten was a bigger one. The beast flew a circle around the tree, it was too large and moving too fast to course correct instantly.
The monster was a huge, red, winged beast. There was only one name that can be given to a monster of this nature: a Dragon. Ivory fumbled for the gun for a few seconds, the fear of the dragon distracted her. She had yet to realize that her gun was still strapped to the top of the tree. The only weapon she had was her bow.
When her hand that was frantically reaching back for her gun felt her bow, she grabbed it without thinking. There was no time to think, no time to regret. Fear was gripping her tightly. The ground was steadily approaching below, and the open mouth of the dragon was approaching above. Her body moved before her mind could.
The memory of firing that bow thousands upon thousands of times was built into her muscles. They loaded an arrow, pulled back the string, and fired true. Ivory expected nothing. Her bow lacked the power to significantly damage a dragon. Her body fought, but her mind had resigned itself to her fate.
The sight of her arrow blasting though the dragon's mouth was a shock to her too.
Ego has very few rules. It is flexible, it will work for everyone. There is practically nothing that can’t be done through Ego. But it still has rules.
One of those rules is the concept of tradeoffs. When an ability is remixed, it is balanced accordingly. If the range is increased, the power is decreased. If the power is increased, the speed may decrease. Ego will be balanced.
Magic is just an interpretation of Ego; it still has the same underlying rules. Perception and tradeoffs are still at the heart of magic.
When Ivory adapted her ability to her gun, it set a new base standard. When compared to the power a submachine gun possesses, a bow is a far weaker weapon. It is slow, less precise, and far less powerful. A bow is a tradeoff. For less speed, for less precision, for less power, her Magic was cranked up to a level to balance this.
Ivory didn’t understand any of this. She refused to sit in on the “Ego education” Lee did during their training. What she did understand was that her bow was now much, much stronger, and she didn’t need to know why.
“AAAAAA” She screamed she let arrow after arrow after arrow loose, blasting holes through the Dragon’s face. It was only when she reached back to grab another arrow and found nothing, that she finally noticed the dragon was dead.
However, that was only one of the threats on her life. She still had to stop the fall. Gravity was stronger than the dragon.
She reached into her satchel bag on her side, searching for something she could use to catch herself.
Before she could find anything. Impact was made. But not against the ground, against some giant leaves on a giant branch.
“…..ow” Ivory gasped for breath. It was a softer landing than the ground, but still painful.
“That’s the last time I forget my grappling hook at home. Thank God trees get wider towards the bottom.” She groaned as she sat up.
Ivory looked down towards the ground, watching the Dragon lifelessly fall towards the cold earth. She had been lucky.
“Well.........back to it.” Ivory began to climb the tree again.