CHAPTER ELEVEN POINT FIVE

Daimona felt her body drifting away from her in the frost. Pieces of her were falling numb-- her feet, her hands, even her chest seemed like it was struggling to squeeze out every breath.

“Pultz,” Sergeant Cowell said sternly. “Knock it off.”

The iceman heaved a great sigh, lowering his mighty gauntlet. The temperature slowly began to rise, giving Daimona some freedom in her upper body, but her lower half seemed to still be thawing.

She couldn't see Will’s sour face behind her, but she could him seething as he spat violently between shivers, “W-what th-th-the hell is he doing here?!”

“Big Man didn't tell you either, huh?” Pultz watched indifferently as his ice gauntlet began to melt, dripping to the ground. The puddle below lasted only for a moment, before it froze over at his feet and shifted upward, forming a cartoonish ice imp with short horns and wings pointing excitedly at Pultz. “I'm your proctor this year. Sergeant Hogan Pultz, at your service.”

Irina erupted into a maniacal cackle. Kell began murmuring to himself, and Daimona could only catch pieces of his nervous monologue before Will groaned and shouted, “Sergeant Cowell, please, there has to be someone else!”

Cowell shook his head. He turned his back on them, and Daimona swore she caught a slight chuckle leave him before disappearing into the tower. Pultz walked closer to the group.

“So are you bootcamp?” Daimona asked, turning her attention to Pultz once Irina’s laughter had died down.

“Nah, I'm just one of the guys who runs it when they make me,” Pultz replied dully. Then, looking at her inquisitively, “Does the hair give you some kind of advantage, or is it just to distract from another lackluster skillset?”

A flash of silver flew through the air from behind Daimona. The ice imp jumped in front of Pultz, catching Irina’s fragment. It twirled on one foot, performing a mocking victory dance.

“Easy, Miss Smirnov,” Pultz chuckled. “Just a little harmless teasing.”

“Tease the frogs, Pultz,” Irina said. “Not her.”

Pultz raised his eyebrows, giving Irina an amused grin. “In any case, Saint, you've brought a major gaggle of rookies this year. What's the big plan? Pack tactics?”

Will stormed forward, limping slightly against the cold as he grabbed Pultz by his collar. “As if I'd ever tell you, after the bullshit you pulled on us last year.”

A chill rolled through the air as Pultz gently pushed Will’s trembling, frostbitten hands away. “Aww, come on kiddo, I said I was sorry. I thought you all knew about Hayha’s transfer, honest!”

“If we knew,” Will hissed through gritted teeth. “Then why would we still have her on our side of the field?”

Pultz shrugged. “Camaraderie?”

Will shoved Pultz, reeling up to punch him. Kell surged forward, wrapping his arms around Will’s torso.

“Will, you'll get us disqualified!”

Will steadied himself, breathing hard as he calmed down. “We're winning this year, damn it. And your incompetence will not get in my way again. Do you understand, Pultz?”

“About that, kiddos…” Pultz stretched high, yawning as ice figures began to form from the frosty ground all around them. “Daddy's a little sick of watching you fall off the monkey bars. I've got better things to do. So, I'm just gonna go ahead and end this early. Sound good?”

The ice figures lurched forward, reaching towards Daimona with grubby, crystal hands.

She raised one stiff leg, kicking a hole through the creepy, wide-smiling face of the first. It melted instantly, just in time for Daimona to see three more sprinting towards her. She grabbed the two on the outside, bashing them both into the middle figure and shattering all three. Again, they melted, but the next wave was closer. An ice figure tackled Daimona, digging its rounded fingers into her side and causing an immediate shock of icy pain to travel up her spine to the back of her skull. She yelped, eyes darting around for help as the figures began to climb on top of her. Will was chasing an ice imp in circles, as it waived his prized pistol in the air. Kell was surrounded by another hoard, shooting off stray sparks of fire and missing every target. She couldn't even see Norok-- a gaggle of the sprites had formed a massive dogpile on top of him, one keeping his hands locked in place.

Irina came rushing forward. Her kindjal sliced through one ice form after another, splintering off at the hilt to spread and pierce the others. Daimona shivered as she was freed from their grasp. She gave Irina a grateful nod before sprinting at Pultz.

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In a matter of seconds, Daimona charged the scruffy man. He staggered back, eyes wide at her approach. From underneath, Daimona could feel the ground rise, a wave of ice forming under every step and pushing her high into the air. She tried to leap off, but another geyser shot up from below, slamming into her stomach and forming a frigid ring around her midsection. She growled, slamming her fists against the ice. It cracked with every hit, but Pultz only raised both his hands to seal them again.

“Stop!!” Daimona screamed. Her throat burned as she focused her magic on Pultz. For a moment, the ice figures froze in place, and everything in the forest clearing went still. Then Pultz cupped his right ear with his hand, squinting at Daimona.

“What was that, sweetheart? You'll have to speak up. My hearing isn't what it used to be.”

Daimona struggled against her confines, finally breaking through the ice bind as she flexed her shoulders. She came hurtling down to the ground, pushing out her hands to catch herself. Only, she never felt the dirt beneath her.

Instead, a cocoon of ice formed around her body, locking her limbs inwards and forcing her into an upright fetal position. Pultz kicked the bottom, watching the sphere rock for a moment before clicking his tongue.

“I remember you,” Pultz said. “You're the sound girl who told an officer to kill himself in the infirmary.”

Pultz pushed the cocoon over with one finger. It crashed into the ground, leaving Daimona in a freezing puddle. The cold had seeped deep into her bones. She couldn't bring herself to move.

Pultz raised his eyes. Daimona slowly followed his gaze, watching as several of his ice imps were sent flying upwards. Norok stood victorious, panting and shivering. He opened his mouth, but before any words could leave it, a whirlpool of frozen hands emerged at his feet and knocked him over again.

“That must be Gravity Boy. Your brother,” Pultz continued. “The two of you have quite a reputation with the higher ups.”

Daimona sat up, glaring at Pultz as her teeth clattered against one another. Pultz cocked his head.

“You're a handy bag of tricks, I'll give you that. But those commands of yours aren't going to fly with your smarter enemies,” he said, tapping the side of his lopsided cap. “Good fighters know when to not listen.”

Daimona snarled, trying to force herself upwards but unable to find the strength to do so. Pultz reached out, tapping her on the nose condescendingly. “If I were you, I'd stop bossing everyone around. Maybe you'll find a better use of your magic then.”

He stepped over her, glancing at Kell. The ice imps were now dancing around him in a circle, having frozen him to a tree. “Still working on your aim I see, Prodikor. Keep it up, I'm sure you'll hit something in a couple years.”

The ice imps carrying Norok’s arms and legs stopped swinging him as Pultz passed by. He didn't even look down as he said, “That wide range of yours is worthless if you can't control what you hit. Maybe use those glasses to actually see what you're targeting. Just a thought.”

Finally, Pultz stopped in front of Will. The ice imp parading his stolen gun kneeled and offered it to Pultz, as Will panted and gasped for air. Pultz threw the gun to the side. It vanished into the portal instantaneously. Will quickly threw his hand out, summoning the portal at his side, but Pultz’s ice gauntlet materialized faster, and as he struck Will’s outstretched arm and threw the captain back down, the portal disappeared with a pathetic pop.

“Saint,” Pultz said, shaking his head in disbelief. “You pull your gun out the same way every time! It's been years, and you haven't changed once!”

He knelt down over Will, slamming the gauntlet down near his head. “Be honest with yourself. You weren't gonna win shit this year, and I'm doing you a favor by saving you the trouble. Just say you surrender, and we can forget you ever came here.”

Suddenly, Pultz was yanked backwards, as Irina wrestled herself onto his back and used her blade to bar him at the neck. A hot, burning sensation shot through Daimona’s body. She hadn’t even seen Kell make his way to her, but there he was, hands on her shoulders and pulsating with warmth. He kept his eyes squeezed shut.

“Sorry,” Kell whispered. “I'm pretty bad at this part too.”

As Daimona opened her mouth to reply, a gust of steam billowed out. Kell winced. She just smiled in return.

Meanwhile, Will pulled his gun, muttering something bitter about routine. With four precise shots, he shattered the ice imps holding Norok. Norok leapt up, directing himself towards Pultz. Instantly, he pointed directly at the man, who was still struggling against Irina.

“Back.”

Pultz and Irina flew through the air. Kell ducked as they soared by, crashing into the black base of the tower. Irina cried out, her body slinking to the ground. Pultz stood up, spitting blood before giving the rest of the squad a grim look. “Alright, enough’s enough.”

The ice gauntlet grew shards of black, creeping up Pultz's arm like a spider. A crystal white light formed at the center of his palm. He aimed it down the center of the field.

Daimona reached up to clutch her throat. She closed her eyes, racking her brain carefully. Lines of sound played in her mind, songs she had written as a child, her brother's sarcastic tone, the sounds of birds and knives zipping through the air. Then, she focused on the noise she wanted to make, the low, yellowed tone a warbled strand in her mind’s eye.

The words left her, shooting out into the air and wrapping around the back of Pultz.

“Knock it off.”

Pultz startled at the sound of Sergeant Cowell’s voice, whipping around to see the source. Seeing the doors to the tower still untouched, Pultz turned back just in time for Norok to pull him to his knees. Will stood proudly in front, his gun raised to Pultz’s temple.

With a heavy sigh, but an impressed twinkle in his eyes, Pultz dismantled his gauntlet and gave a light nod. “Fine, fine. Maybe you have a chance after all.”