Eric raced across the invisible line that divided the sides of Thunder and Fire Nexuses, the opponent’s flag raised high in one hand. Deafened by the sound of the wind rushing past his ears and then the excited roars of the watching, he could barely make out the horn that signaled the end of the match. He came to a long sliding stop with Edward and Kenta at his side, and his teammates came over to pound him on the back. Even a few nearby Fire Nexians moved closer to shake his hand, concealing their disappointments well.
“Nice work, lad,” one of the Fire Nexians said. “Never thought I’d see one of you run along a wall.”
“It’s a new talent of his,” Edward said before Eric could get a chance to speak. He’d kept one arm around Eric’s shoulders and was bouncing lightly on his feet, too excited to calm down just yet. “‘Course, I taught him a lot, so you can thank me for his-”
He got no further as Eric rammed an elbow into his ribs, making him double over and at last release his grip. Shaking his head and grinning, Eric shook the Fire Nexian’s hand. “Thanks, Emmet. It is kinda new, but it’s working fairly well for me so far.”
“More than fairly, I’d say,” Richard Coffee replied, moving forward to congratulate Eric as well.
“Let’s hear it for Eric Breeden of the Thunder Nexus!” The commentator shouted. The crowd made its approval heard over his booming voice, and Eric flushed slightly. He just hoped the cameras couldn’t see his embarrassment too clearly. “What an action-packed start to the second round! The Thunder Nexus scoops a second win, throwing them firmly into first place!”
Eric stabbed the staff of the flag into the soft ground at his feet, then joined his fellow Nexians as they made the long way to the waiting area. All around him, they were talking about the match, and what they’d done right or wrong. Their two Nexuses, Eric knew, were a unique case in the world, as they lived so close together and did joint training regularly. In spite of belonging to different Nexuses, they got along well.
“I think your problem is that you’re keeping yourself too far from the fighting,” James Fenn was saying to Jerik. “You’re wicked fast with your fireballs, sure, but the further you are, the faster we can react. It’s already hard enough to hit someone moving as fast as we are.”
Eric heard a long sigh from where Jerik was, and a small smile crossed his face. Jerik had nearly been the end of their plan during that match, he recalled. Edward and he had switched roles to keep the Fire Nexus guessing. The idea was that they wouldn’t expect the youngest member to lead the attacking force. The idea had worked well too, as most of the Fire Nexus moved to stop Edward, not knowing that he was just a distraction and the vanguard for Eric to break through.
But Jerik, with his height advantage and range from the fight, had noticed the switch quickly. James thought he’d been firing for Edward and missing, but Eric had noticed how accurate those shots had really been. His cohort had unleashed a devastating flurry of long-range bolts of fire, slowing him down as he had to jump side to side to avoid the barrage. It had given the Fire Nexus just enough time to catch up to the trick.
Eric had still broken through, of course. All that lateral movement had actually served him well because it allowed him to charge a massive bolt of lighting to fire at Jerik. He’d forced the sniper to abandon his perch and give him time to think of another form of attack. That had come as he led the Fire Nexians chasing him to the right. More than half of them gave up the chase quickly, thinking it another trick, and those that had remained he was able to slip past by running along the wall. From there, it had been a simple race to the Fire Nexus’ flag, then back to safety.
“I still couldn’t have broken through the second time if it weren’t for Kenta-san,” he said, inclining his head in the Japanese man’s direction. The image of the master dancing around him in circles, deflecting and attacking, was still burned brightly into his memory. Or perhaps that had just been the nearly-blinding lightning’s effects.
“You moved well,” Kenta replied, returning the compliment smoothly. “You were already strong, but you have adapted to the powers of the Thunder Nexus well.”
“You still managed to run circles around me,” Eric shot back with a laugh. “Quite literally.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that,” Edward said. “He does that to everyone but Dad.”
“Well, of course, the Alpha is faster,” Eric said. “That’s only to be expected.”
“Who said Will is faster?” James put in. “Kenta just can’t run circles around him.”
Eric frowned at that as the waiting area came into view, and the others pulled ahead of him. Only Jerik remained nearby, pausing as he saw the thoughtful expression on his ally’s face. “What is it?”
“Something didn’t seem right about that,” Eric said, more to himself than Jerik. “They just told me that Kenta is faster than Will.”
Judging by the expression on Jerik’s face, he didn’t see anything wrong with that. “So? Just because he’s the Alpha doesn’t mean he’s the strongest. Didn’t you hear that Richard can produce hotter fire than Michael? And Megan told me that Felix and Olivia are both stronger than their parents.”
“How can someone be stronger than the Alpha?” Eric asked. “The Condition shouldn’t allow that.”
Jerik shrugged. “Not sure. We still don’t know as much as we should.”
“What do you think is the reason?”
He took a moment to think about that, his brown eyes narrowed. “I have a theory.”
He didn’t expand upon the thought at first, but, catching Eric’s questioning look, he let out a long sigh and said, “Think about it in regular people terms. Just because someone is a General doesn’t mean he’s the most gifted fighter, right? Or the most acute strategist. It just means he’s in charge.”
“Right, but most generals earn their rank,” Eric pointed out. “Alphas are selected randomly and given ultimate power.”
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“Are they?”
Eric’s frown deepened. “What do you mean?”
By way of explanation, Jerik pointed toward the waiting area, where a plaque was set. Eric had seen it before, of course, and knew it bore the names of all Nexians that had lost their lives in the two wars in the past. At the top were the two Alphas, Bai Jian and Edward Ambrose, who had also lost their lives. “If they had ultimate power, how could they have died?”
“Because their Conditions make them vulnerable in specific circumstances,” Eric said. That was the fact that had been explained to them. “Besides, those are special circumstances. They were killed by other Alphas.”
“Ambrose wasn’t. Richard told me what happened. Togai struck him down, and he was just powerful, not an Alpha.”
Suddenly, it clicked into place in Eric’s mind. “Wait. That’s why they can make other Nexians. Not for power, but for protection.”
“Exactly. It also explains why we feel safer near them, doesn’t it?”
“It does,” Eric agreed. Finally, he had a reasonable explanation for the pit of anxiety in his stomach that grew stronger the further away from his Alpha he moved. “But if this is common knowledge, why weren’t there more normal people that attacked the Alphas?”
At that, Jerik shrugged. “Can’t say. Maybe it’s because of the peace that Will forged. Or maybe nobody outside the Nexuses knows about it. If the humans knew, they’d pose a much greater threat.”
That wasn’t a comforting thought. But Eric knew that instinctual response to the idea came from the fact that he was a Nexian. As himself, he knew that the information would be essential for their mission. “Let’s just hope that nobody figures that out before we strike. We wouldn’t want the power of the Alphas to move to someone else before we’re ready.”
_____________________________________________________
Unfortunately, both for Grimr and the Nexians, someone had figured it out. Libera Terra knew it, thanks to one of their operatives, who had enjoyed a close connection to the Nexuses. He was considered a friend by at least two of the Alphas and knew all the secrets that they tried to protect from humanity at large. It was that hidden knowledge that had inspired them to attack and gave them a good chance at success.
“I’m tired of waiting,” Jenna Rodriguez said, so quietly that only the person to her left could hear the words. Which wasn’t an issue, because he was a collaborator. She turned to him now, asking, “How much longer do we have to wait to wipe out these monsters?”
“Not long now,” the man said. His hood was pulled up to hide his face, but she’d seen the pale skin of his face before and knew that his dark brows would likely be knitted in concentration. “Soon, we will strike them down. Be patient, young Jenna.”
That was the last thing she wanted to hear, and he knew it. She turned away from him to watch as the next match began. It was the last match of the third round, between the Air and Earth Nexuses. Why had the General told her to listen to this man? He didn’t seem particularly strong, and the vibe he gave off was… wrong. Somehow, she sensed that, like the rumored source of the Nexus powers, he wasn’t quite human.
“How do we know we’ll have time to get into position?” She asked. “Surely the Nexians will catch us out.”
“Most of our force is already deployed within the city for the second game,” the man replied. “The rest of us, as the General explained, will move into place tonight. By the time the second game begins, we will be ready.”
She hummed thoughtfully, feeling some of her frustration and impatience fading away at the thought. She’d waited years for her revenge, she thought. Maybe she could stand to wait less than a day more. She didn’t want to, but she knew it was expected of her. She respected the General for his strength and guile and knew that his plan was their best option. Taking a deep breath, she forced her nerves to calm down and put her mind back to the collected, controlled state she needed. The Nexians were stronger than she was, and she’d lose more than the fight if she lost control.
“You have developed excellent control,” the man said, taking note of her obvious and successful attempt to calm herself. “You are pivotal to this next stage of the operation, young Jenna. Don’t forget the effort that has gone into training you.”
She nodded, not saying anything in reply. As much as he annoyed her, the man had taught her a great deal. He claimed to know many fighting styles from a distant land, though he never named that land. He revealed nothing of himself, not even a name. For the past six years, he’d been a mystery to her and the other members of Libera Terra. But he’d also taught her those styles he knew, and now she was one of nearly a dozen exceptionally skilled fighters against the Nexuses.
“We must disrupt the order the Nexuses have created,” the man had said upon first introduction. But he’d said nothing else of his own plans ever since, only talking when it was necessary to remind her of her mission. “The Nexuses only fear one thing. Chaos. We will sow it into the fields they have planted, and strike fear into their hearts.”
An antiquated way of speaking to be sure, but she could appreciate the burning malice that she’d detected in those words. She wouldn’t want to have the man as an enemy and reveled in the idea of him as an ally. Besides, he’d already made it clear that after today, he’d be moving on his own. So she wouldn’t have to deal with him for long.
___________________________________________________
Jerik kicked aside a stool. In his temper, he lost control of his powers for just a moment, and the wooden seat ignited as it bounced across the tiles of the floor. If anything, the momentary slip of his concentration made him even angrier, and he brought one foot down on the offending object, smashing it into splinters with the force of his stomp.
“Jerik!” Michael barked, the old tone of command clear in his voice. “Get ahold of yourself!”
Jerik turned to face his Alpha, struggling to keep the hot fury from showing on his face. He wasn’t sure if it was successful, but Michael didn’t seem particularly troubled. He forced himself to take a long breath. “Sorry. I’m just frustrated. Three rounds in, and we haven’t won a single match.”
Richard, who seemed to share his frustration but with much better control, said, “It’s not that surprising. We had bad matchups, and out of all the Nexuses our Condition is the easiest to exploit.”
“Just because they know our Condition doesn’t mean we should be so easy to beat,” Michael said. He seemed to be in agreement with Jerik on that front, at least. “We’ll have to put in a better showing in the fourth and fifth rounds. If we win those, we’ll have three victories.”
“Which means that at least two of us will qualify for the tournament,” Emmet Fenn said. As always, he remained in calm control of his emotions, but he was surely feeling the same anger as the others. “But you’re right, Alpha. We’ll show them in the next two rounds.”
Michael gave his Captain a short nod. “Well said, Emmet. Have I ever mentioned how glad I was that you rejoined the Fire Nexus?”
A small grin formed on Emmet’s face. “A few times, but I could always bear to hear it more often.”
The others laughed at the byplay between the two, but Jerik wasn’t so ready to drop his frustration. “Oh, you’re right, Alpha. We’re going to win. But not in any way they’ll expect.”
At that, Michael frowned thoughtfully. He thought he might know what the young man meant, but he couldn’t be sure. “You don’t mean- That’s too strong. You’ll be disqualified immediately. That attack’s too lethal.”
“No, not that,” Jerik said quickly. His anger was starting to ebb away at last. Now he was grinning as well, but it wasn’t a happy expression. It was similar to the way a wolf bared its fangs before striking down its prey. “I have a new thing, Alpha. You’ll see how it works tomorrow.”