Original Souls (A World Apart #1) (42 page)

"Baron," she motioned to the Arcan man standing at the back of her swivel chair, "please hand me that object I secured with you back in the vehicle."

He reached into one of many pockets on his black Squadron jumpsuit. He pulled out a relatively small two-prong device, with a blue handle. She advised him back in the car, to wear gloves before handling the tool. He put the same model of gloves on that her son used to climb the creepy stairs back at the abandon factory in Draconia. He put them on before she even attempted to place it in his care back in the car. He wanted her to know just how onboard he was. She took it from him and placed it on the table before her. Both Sebastian and Nate's expressions stiffened. She now had her answer to how deeply Nathaniel was involved in all this.

"I wonder if anyone would be silly enough to use this little thingy without the benefit of anonymity," as she spoke, she knew Cris's prints were on the tool as well. But he was already a fugitive, so if she had to further drag his name through the dirt in order to nail Sebastia
n
… then so be it.
“
It does seem always that anonymity affords individuals a lease on their civility
,
” she spoke in such a measured tone that the soon to be defunct Draconian Chancello
r’
s lip quivered, so slightly.

Sebastian could not remain seated any longer. He knew exactly what this meant. Their meeting over this
minor debacle
was officially adjourned.

<*>

As Sena. Hendrix walked through the halls, back to the ca
r
— Sebastian stopped her. "You are quite the villainous delight, Silvia." He smiled widely, with a strange sense of sincerity.

"Are you certain that yo
u’
re in a good mood? I wouldn't be if I were in your position," Hendri
x’
s tone was saying;
two can play this game.

"My dear, if you could stop me with that little dinner fork-like tool, then doing all this wouldn't have been worth it to begin with. But you'll find that this is just the appetizer of my ample consecration. And I think you should be by my side to indulge in the sweet nothings." He put his pale hand on her shoulder. She stood in front of him looking glorious and triumphant. Yet he felt like he was the one who was truly winning. Possibly winning her over, he thought.

"I'm wholly surprised that you would offer such a thing." She wiggled her shoulder away as she turned and walked slowly toward the large archway of the Parthenon. "Though still, I'm glad to decline." He followed behind her closely, like some lovesick schoolboy.

"Silvia, please don't be coy with me!" She turned back to look him in the eye. "Those imbeciles we were just consorting with are nothing like the two of us. We are of the golden age in Draconian strength. The younger generation of our home World is weak, but they are ours. We can mold our World into something magnificen
t
… together!" his voice soared throughout the corridor. "We must eradicate the other Worlds and restore our dominance. Join me where we both belong. At the only two seats of power on the planet."

"La
h—
d
e—
dah, you are very enthusiastic and convincing when you want to be. But your duties as a Secretist might get in the way of all that? Likewise, that what-you-call-it thingy . . . Oh, yes! The Chain of Divinity. What was your link on the chain again?"

His expression darkened. Hendrix didn't know how a man that pale could look so shadowy and dark of countenance. More so of heart, but his eyes were darker glowing than her brown skin.

"I don't know where you get your information, but when I find out, there will be hell to pay!" He tried to seem easy, but that facade rapidly deteriorated as she smiled with condescension.

She was now ready to indulge his sardonic side, but he wasn't in the mood. His face was tempered with madness as she spoke back. "Yes, I remember now, it's 'Severity,' right? You play the role quite well I might add to pot, old friend."

The first statement being a rhetorical question, so he need
n’
t bother to answer it. He just walked past her toward the archway, as disappointed as ever. He actually thought he could sway Silvia Hendrix to him. He always wanted to while Conrad was living, still he had yet to waiver in his lustful conquest of this unconquerable woman.

He looked back at her before he rounded the corner out into the atrium. "You'll regret playing these cards so early in the game, Silvia." If she hadn't seen it so many times before, when Conrad invited him over for dinner, his crooked smiled would have scared her half to death. "I'll have you know that I still have a few aces in hole."

His last words lingered as he disappeared to the outer perimeter of the Parthenon. She looked on and winced at the thought of having to interact with that extraordinarily sad man ever again.

May 17, 1002 ~ Daylight

"Take your arc!" Vonczech tightly grasped the handle of the rod drilled into the dirt grass track. He knew that if he didn't pull hard enough, he wouldn't be able to start the race. He'd run right into the glass plate window caging him in his starte
r’
s booth instead of gaining the much needed lofty lead.

"Get set!" He was prepared. Though he didn't like Anvard, he figured it be easiest to do the rely portion of the games with his roommate. He was on the inter-school team last year, but didn't make many friends. The cliques in Levantarse were airtight. And Vonczech is a jerk. So, it didn't make for an easy transition.

He agreed to work with Andy through phase three of the event. But after they retrieved the four rods necessary to form the Lightning Arc, all bets were off. They tested their skills, and decided that he should start the race. Anvard and he were about neck and neck for agility, but Andy had much better reflexes. That would come in handy during phase two. All Von had to do was win the first phase with his lightning speed. If he could manage that, then they would gain the rod hovering at the finish line. They would be one-step closer to forming the Lightning Arc. Just three rods from there, and then they'd turn on one another. They'd fight for rights to lift themselves out of the field, achieving Thunder. That was the goal after all, to lift yourself to victory. Von wanted that Thunder trophy, and he'd knock Anvard and anyone else into another dimension to get it.

The announcer who just yelled the,
-‘
get set
,
’ warning was preparing to start the race. He took a massive deep breath, and shouted with dazzling enthusiasm into the microphone connected to the mounted speakers all around the Pavilion walls.

"THUNDER!!!!!!!"
he shouted to spur on the competitors, and officially get this Levantarse game underway.
CRACK!
Went the sound from the red flare gun, which shot out a second after his voice cut off.

Von grabbed the rod tight and pulled with all his might. The rod quickly detached from the ground, and the panel door in front of him ascended. He zipped out of the starte
r’
s booth and ran across the grass track like a beam of light.

The boy in track three wasn't so lucky though. Apparently, he didn't pull hard enough on the rod. It didn't budge, but he fully expected it to. His sweaty palms lost grip of it. It stuck to the ground like congealed gum to the bottom of a shoe. He ran straight into the glass door and was immediately repulsed by the impact. He had been kneeling like the other runners. The top of his head was rising to start the race around the track. But unfortunately, he was totally unaware that the door was still closed. When he hit the door, everyone in the restored Pavilion cringed when they saw his skull crack the glass while intently viewing the jumbo-screen monitors mounted everywhere. It didn't shatter, but it was definitely ruined. Both his head and the glass. It would need to be replaced, just like this kid's brain, if not for his padding. The thin layered helmet helped, but he was unconscious and out of the race before it even began. S
o
… so much for a safety first approach.

"Yay! Go Von!" Anvard cheered Von on as he stepped up from below the track into the booth that his partner had just successively deployed from. He looked around the arena into the crowd from the clear glass booth. The track closed back beneath him, as he rounded his panoramic view of the spectators jammed into the stands. He noticed Emma and Claudia screaming, what he assumed to be encouraging words. But with Emma, you never really know. He wished that Emmy, and more importantly, Corinth, could have been here to watch him go for glory. But he knew how much they had gotten into Deaves over the last few weeks. Scheduling the game times was difficult considering Deaves had been so abruptly reinstated. Those two had an event of their own to get some glory out of.

The hand-off would be key as Von came around the track, assuming he makes it without falling, he would have to hand off the team rod to Anvard. If Anvard grabbed it before he entered the booth behind him, his door wouldn't open, and they'd be disqualified for cheating. Getting that extra second wasn't exactly cheating anyone, but it was against the rules. If Von came in first place around the track, he would be given the extra rod to utilize during the third phase. Tha
t’
s if he decided to stick with Andy. And not try to take him out as soon as they started on the open field inside the center of the track.

Von came around like bolt of lightning. That was great for Andy that he left the others in his dust. Literally, he kicked up a lot of dirt while running around the grass track. This track was everyon
e’
s least favorite. Levantarse was a long running sport in most of the eight Worlds. Like many sports that span different generations, it evolved with the technologies conceived since its inception. The grass field was the original. Then they added the rock, ice and water tracks. They all took a lot more ingenuity than the grass.

Though no track could surpass or measure up to the most recent installment. The glass track. This was the epitome of tech for the sport. The competitors wore levitation boots that allowed them to maneuver around the field in ways never possible on any other surface. This was everyon
e’
s favorite surface, but for today, the grass track would have to do.

The hand-off went over without a hitch for any of the remaining three teams. All eight Worlds were represented in each match. But the kid from Blanco, that ran into the glass-door of the starte
r’
s booth earlier, royally screwed his Imperativan partner. They were both knocked out by default, because his teammate couldn't carry their rod around the track. He never even stepped onto the track. Which made Anvard smirk. He secretly hated every Imperativan for what the team at his old school did to him.

The second phase is virtually the same as the first, except one minor difference. Minor meaning huge in this adaptation. The players can now switch tracks and knock each other out of the game. Walker wasn't exaggerating when he described this sport as violent and certainly dangerous. They wore pads all over, a cup and even had a weapon mounted to their arms. But they weren't enough to truly aid them. Like the Blancan kid showed, you can get seriously injured before the game even starts. Those thin helmets weren't nearly enough to prevent a concussion.

Anvard was far out ahead. This put him at a huge advantage, if he wasn't planning to steal anyon
e’
s rod. The Lightning Arc could only be formed if a player has collected four rods. There were two ways to win a rod, and Von already acquired one of them. The rest were supposed to be taken from opponents. This was construed to purposely lead kids into fights over the little white treasures. Those rods were the only things on any of their minds.

The players continued rounding the second lap around the large track. All behind Andy. He figured the third phase was the better place to start taking rods from other players. He'd use the gauntlet on his right arm to dismantle anyone who stood in his way. He was a master with that thing. That is why Von preferred that he run the perilous second phase.

He maintained his lead and pressed forward. He passed the part of the track he'd seen his sister and Claudia cheering him from. He ever so slightly glanced up, and made an exciting revelation. Corinth and Emmy joined the party. Seeing Corinth's fresh looking face put him in a trance. He noticed the all pink collared shirt Cory wore in support of his favorite competitor. That being Andy, of course. The pink in Corint
h’
s shirt matched Anvar
d’
s eyes, and the pink fish on his jersey. That animal being the Lirian insignia. It warmed his heart that Corinth made it to cheer him on. He figured that they both must have been knocked out of the Deaves competition pretty early if they could make it here before afternoon.