Chapter 37
The All-Stars were closing in on their win for the first challenge, and Lizzy was chomping at the bit to see how she ranked for the whole endeavor. She was pretty sure that her team had turned in a close-to-perfect performance. With the exception of a few unfortunate situations where earthquakes had erupted too quickly to react to, killing a few of the city’s more unlucky residents, very few civilians had died in the day’s simulated events. In addition, they had captured all of the villains, and no major property damage had occurred. Heck, even the gas lines that they had blown were as far away from the major population centers as possible. Sure, there would have to be a major cleanup and repair effort in the aftermath of the attack, but Lizzy was reasonably sure they had outperformed their opponents in this trial. And, as far as she was concerned, on an individual level, Horizon surely emerged as the Top Seed going into the next challenge. She had defined the strategy. She had figured out that they could use Nihilism's psychic existential terror wave to deliver messages over the distance of the city to coordinate with the different four-person squads. It was a bothersome system, but they had coded each team to a different phobia and had used that imagery to deliver whatever message was necessary.
There had been a few times when the message wasn’t understood. For example, at one point, Lizzy needed backup from a specific faction of All-Stars. But, when a spider flashed through their minds and spun a web on top of a bridge, squad “arachnophobia” forgot that “bridge” corresponded to midtown and had gone to the wrong area of the city. Luckily, Lizzy and her group had been able to handle the threat, and the mistake hadn’t factored into the overall result.
Nihilism’s power had been far more useful than Lizzy had anticipated. In addition to his ability to communicate psychically, he also excelled when it came to demoralizing the opponent and in subduing the hysterical masses. You would think that his power to essentially psychically terrorize would have increased the hysteria. However, Nihilism’s trademarked terror was of the existential variety, which usually caused people to become apathetic and pliable. Most mortals under his thrall would turn inward, pondering their existence and wondering how their souls would react to death or whether they had done enough good in their lives to walk through the pearly gates.
Artie was also reasonably helpful. His impenetrable energy orbs were clutch where civilian protection was involved. In addition, creating impassable barriers had helped Lizzy control the environment, which, aside from being effective teamwork, was the key to success in today’s trial.
Once the final civilian crossed the line into the designated safety of the train station, a horn sounded along with a warning that the simulation had come to an end. The city dematerialized in front of Lizzy’s eyes until she was standing with her fellow All-Stars in an empty Arena. The tech-tent retracted, and a brilliant fireworks display erupted over the upper Arena, marking the end of The Healer Trial and celebrating the dominant victory for the All-Stars. Lizzy was beaming, waving at the swirling camera drones and blowing kisses to the virtual audience.
Once the celebration subsided, the Challengers were escorted out onto the field to stand opposite the winning team, flanking a large raised walkway and podium. As the cameras captured all of the action, an unknown stoic black man who was built like a Mack truck walked out of the tunnel to stand in the center of the field at the podium.
“Hello, America!” the man spoke authoritatively, his voice booming through the arena, “Hello, competitors! As you may know, our current Healer, Aurora, is unable to be here today to announce the winners and rankings following impressive performances by both sides in today’s Healer Trial. So, unfortunately, you’re stuck with me.” He smiled, showing he could be self-deprecating and ‘in on the joke.’ “Many of you know me as Solomon from my Herald fieldwork, but when The Council was deciding who would fill in for Aurora today, we all figured, who better to judge your performances in the challenge than the Council's current Justice, yours truly?” He paused again. Lizzy figured they would be adding crowd noise and applause for the viewers at home.
“So let’s get to it. Today was an impressive display. We saw strategy, subtlety, and sacrifice at work while our Top Twenty Four fought to save a community from a disastrous attack by four members of the Elemental Meta Syndicate. Earthshatter, the rock Manipulator, Hydroholic the water Manipulator, Fyborg the cybernetic flame wielder, and Torrendous the wind Aspect attacked three districts of our own simulation of Cyber City. And I am proud to say that between the two teams, over two hundred and fifty civilians were saved from certain death!”
Lizzy tried to estimate her team’s totals and was pretty sure they more than doubled the number of people that the other team must have saved during the trial. She rubbed her hands together in anticipation of the individual results.
The Justice, Solomon, continued, “So with no further ado, I am pleased to announce that the winning team in today’s challenge is…” He waited a couple of seconds to build anticipation. “...The All-Stars!” This time, the applause was pumped into the arena, and more pyrotechnics went off from barrels hidden around the edges of the field. Lizzy had seen these used in some football matches when the Herald City Heroes played at home. It was funny to think about how just a few weeks ago, the location of the Herald Headquarters was a closely guarded secret. She would have to get used to the fact that this Council was opening up a bit and letting the world in on how things were done. She hated it. If she had her way, the club would stay elite. All of humanity didn’t deserve the right to join. That’s why she would fight tooth and nail to win the open seat and become the new Seed. She would petition The Council to relocate to a new headquarters and undo all of this transparency nonsense. All it was doing was making ordinary people feel deserving, making America soft, and devaluing her own achievements.
Her thoughts were interrupted by The Justice, continuing this awards ceremony of sorts. “Okay! So. With that done, I guess it’s time for the Top 10 individual performances!” This was it! Lizzy was ready to be crowned this episode’s “Top Seed” and claim her rightful place at the pinnacle of the leaderboard.
“Let’s start with number 10. Coming in tenth place, despite being on the losing team, this Challenger showed impressive strength and use of his meta ability, nearly stopping the destruction of Cyber City’s tallest building. Your tenth-place competitor, earning himself one point, is…Borealis!” All of the competitors clapped while June let out a little hoot for her twin brother. Jax made his way up the raised catwalk and received a handshake and a small trophy that looked like a silver game piece that you would use in a board game like “Sorry.” On the square base of the trophy, it read: “The Healer | Tenth Place | Borealis”.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
The Justice turned to Jax and asked him, “What does it feel like to have cracked the Top 10 on the very first challenge?”
Jax bashfully looked at his sister and answered politely, “I’m shocked, to be honest. This was always more my sister’s dream than my own,” then thinking a bit more, followed up quickly before Solomon moved on, “But, I’m thankful to be able to show the world what Summerset’s kids are capable of. She was the best mom in the world, and she taught us how to always do the right thing, no matter what it-”
Solomon cut him off, “Thank you, Borealis, but we must move on to our ninth-place finisher. In ninth place, we have one of our hand-picked All-Stars. Hailing from The California Heralds and aiding his team, and squad, with both communication and crowd management, your favorite Brit and mine… Nihilism. Congrats on earning two extra points for your ninth-place finish. That will bring your total to 12!”
Hanzel made his way to the podium and grabbed the trophy. “Thanks, mate! I have a quick word for all you at home watching the telly.” He pulled out a small notecard, and through gritted teeth, he said, “The real heroes are Kidd Grimm, Hieroglyph, and Borealis. They are what I want to be like when I grow up. If you ask me, they should be on the All-Star team instead of me or my friend Hamster- ugh, Altas Prime down there.” He pointed at Artie, who was standing in line on the field and staring at the ground, while Bobby gave a big wink and thumbs up to the cameras. A bet is a bet, and in the future, Hanzel would think twice before trying to humiliate any of The Challengers, even at a trivial thing like basketball.
“What generous, kind words for your opponents. Thank you, Nihilism,” Solomon continued, suspecting something was up but not caring to interrogate any further. In eighth place was The Challenger, Evergreen. Seventh and Sixth place were earned by All-Stars Dark Devil and Powerwhip, respectively. And then, to her shock, Solomon called Ashley’s name. “Ashbury, please come on up and grab your trophy. You’ve earned yourself six points for finishing in fifth place! Your resilience against Earthshatter and Hydroholic, as well as your mastery of battlefield control, was top-notch and should be studied by all those metas wanting to become Heralds one day.” Solomon’s words were unexpected and improved Ashley’s mood greatly. She had been feeling like she had let Bailey and her whole team down, doubting if her siding with Cecilia at the outset had tanked their hopes of even competing in the trial. With a simple “Thank you,” Ashley received her small silver statue and went to stand next to Powerwhip in the line of trophy winners. After Ashley, Lizzy’s teammate whom she was unfamiliar with until today, Handimorph, earned the fourth place trophy. She was eager to hear the next one. Surely, if Hanzel made the Top 10, she would at least be Top 3.
“Finishing in third, earning eight points, is arguably the most popular of the All-Stars. Before even competing in the trial, this competitor received the most votes in the online poll, granting her a spot on this star-studded side. Olympian! Come on up and grab your silverware!” Solomon beamed as he announced her, which only made Lizzy saltier. Even before Athena had beat Lizzy out to finish first in their class at the youth academy, a rivalry had formed between the two legacy Heralds. Athena was the daughter of Sarah Hart, who was the current Diplomat on The Council. Even though Sarah hadn’t been seen in nearly as long as Aurora, her daughter had been keeping their family name alive in the media as the Herald Olympian. And now, she and Horizon were pitted against each other once again. But this time, the stakes couldn’t be higher.
Athena walked to the stage to receive her award and gave what could be considered by some to be a wave to the crowd. She looked like a goddamn royal at her own coronation. All Lizzy could hope was that she finished above her in today’s rankings.
“I’d like to thank all my fans for voting for me to be able to even have the opportunity to stand up here today, victorious!” Athena looked like a Greek athlete but spoke softly and with authority, like a princess. Lizzy exhaled as Olympian strode off to the right to stand beside the other members of this challenge’s Top 10.
“Thank you, Olympian. And now for our top two competitors of this month’s challenge. Could Horizon and Hieroglyph come up here to the podium, please?”
This was it. She had made the top two! Lizzy pushed her shoulders back and chest up as she fixed her posture and walked with stature up to the podium. She stood next to Bailey, who smiled brightly and gave her a small nod before facing outward toward an invisible crowd of admirers. Damn, that girl understood stagecraft and showmanship. Horizon made sure she was matching Bailey’s effort, smiling like a pageant queen. If she turned out to be runner-up, Lizzy knew she couldn’t let the façade fall. She had to maintain poise and graciousness. The hazing could start later for all of The Challengers who managed to crack the top half of the leaderboard. Lizzy would make sure none of the upstarts would get too big for their britches.
Solomon introduced the two young metas, “I’m sure each of you would like to skip ahead and find out who is this week’s Top Seed, but bear with me. On my left is Horizon, the captain of the most effective team in today’s challenge. As the newest member of New York’s Herald team, Horizon has already proven herself to be effective and creative at confronting our country's greatest threats. To my right is Hieroglyph. Little is known about this Challenger’s abilities, but she has proven both strong and adaptable. She was the final survivor on The Challengers team and was the only one on that side to fully neutralize one of the villains. And she managed to do so in a solo, one-on-one battle. So here we are, the hero that has proven themselves the most adept in The Healer challenge is…Horizon!” Everyone on and off the stage clapped politely as applause and cheering were piped into the arena through the speaker system. Lights flashed, and HORIZON appeared on all the arena’s many screens. Fireworks went off, and smoke and lasers filled the area as it went dark. A spotlight shone right on Lizzy at center stage.
Solomon walked over with a trophy that looked a lot like the others but was larger and made of pure gold. Inscribed on the base was: “The Healer Challenge | #1 Top Seed | Horizon”.
Lizzy began her short acceptance speech, “Thank you, Solomon, Mr Justice, sir. This is an honor. I know that without the hard work of my squad and fellow All-Stars, I wouldn’t have been able to beat out what sounds like a truly impressive performance by Hieroglyph.” That was a lie, but Lizzy knew what the audience, and The Council, wanted to hear from her right now. “It was a team effort, I’m just glad that I was able to do my part to prove that the future is in good hands! Thank you.” Lizzy waved at the cameras, smiling and winking until the fanfare died down and the lights came back up in the arena.
“Oh, but one more thing, competitors.” Solomon cut in. “Feast your eyes upon the leaderboard, if you will.” Everyone looked up to the giant screen to see Lizzy’s name at the top of the leaderboard. She had 20 points, 10 for the Top Seed and 10 for the team win. Next was Olympian with 18, and so and so on, until ending with the cluster of Challengers that had zero points for being on the losing team and not cracking the top ten. Above that cluster was a red line.
“Notice the red line. You do NOT want to fall below that red line.” The Justice spoke as if asserting a new Commandment. “You won’t know when, but at some point in the competition, one day in the next year, that red line will come into play, and those below it will wish they had performed at a higher level to rise above. And on that note, have a good evening, America! Thank you for tuning in to Top Seed! We will see you next week for a look behind the scenes of The Challengers' first month at The Spire. And in one month’s time, we will be back live for the second trial! Goodbye, and goodnight.” Solomon waved and smiled.
“Ok, we’re off,” said a voice over the speakers, letting everyone in the arena know that the live portion of tonight’s broadcast had finished.