Child's Step
School is supposed to be a place where children learn about history, math, science, and the like; a place where war and fights are games played at recess. Funny how not so long ago, that was true for people like me.
But life is different now. Ever since the Day of Awakening, unexplained murders kept happening. Everyone was afraid, so afraid that the government had to pass a law that all, even the youngest children, be able to handle a weapon. School is now a place for mastering the art of battle. Gentleness is non-existent. We all fight to survive.
Fighting is no longer a game.
"Hey! Get that little twig you call a sword out of my face!"
It was the year's opening assembly at Kajiro High School's school auditorium, and as usual, a fight had flared up. Appolene Waters decided to ignore the argument and tried to concentrate on the stage in front of her. If she could get through one day without getting into any fights, she would be happy.
"Attention everyone!" boomed the principal. The auditorium quickly fell silent and all heads turned to him. "Welcome back to another school year, and I hope your summer vacation went well. Due to the recent increase of violence in the streets, I have decided that a new training regimen will be in order. It will be led by the student with the highest grade in our martial arts classes, Vincent Kojii."
A tall, golden-haired boy with a smug look on his face stepped onto the stage and bowed to the audience. He was well built for his age, which couldn't have been older than fifteen. "He may not be a senior year student at our fine establishment, but he does know how to fight well and I expect all of you to show him respect."
Disgruntled murmurs flowed throughout the entire auditorium despite the fact the principal continued to talk. Appolene could understand why. That bow wasn't a sign of sincerity to the students, and everyone knew it. Adults never knew of the student hierarchy, and if they did, they pretended not to notice. Every student knew Vincent Kojii was the school king, and he ruled with an iron fist. He had supposedly passed the entrance battle test by amputating the proctor's arms with his katana, and the students that tried to calm him down had suffered the same fate. Those that had crossed him either ended up very hurt, missing, or worse. He didn't need respect – he got it whether anyone wanted to give it to him or not.
Her train of thought was interrupted by a new introduction: "And with this new training regimen, there will be new training facilities designed by our top student, Noah Mizuguchi."
Instead of the usual clacking of a child's footsteps, there was only silence as Noah wheeled himself from behind the stage curtains to his place beside Vincent. The entire audience murmured in disbelief – a handicapped person was the top student at a fighting school! Appolene couldn't believe it herself. She stared harder at the boy, trying to understand what was so special about him. She hadn't heard anything about him despite his ranking. He even looked weak! His build was very light and she was sure he was younger, maybe even smaller, than her. He must be incredibly smart that his low martial art grades don't matter, she thought.
"…That concludes our assembly. Enjoy your classes, everyone!" finished the principal. Appolene gasped, she had been thinking so hard that she missed most of the assembly. As she filed out with the rest of the students, she decided to forget about fighting and relax during her first class: free period.
"Excuse me, could you direct me to the gym where students train?"
She whirled around and saw Noah beaming up at her. Up close, she realized he was cute, in a baby kind of way. His aqua eyes were big for his face and they seemed to twinkle playfully. He had the lightest possible shade of blonde hair, which was tidily swept to the side of his head. His uniform was unusually pristine; not a wrinkle could be found anywhere. But most surprising of all was that he didn't carry a weapon, which was a standard for all students.
"Is something wrong, Miss? I'm sorry – I didn't realize you were new here! I'll find another student to ask."
"Oh n-no!" she stammered. She had been deeply lost in thought again. "I-I just don't understand why you'd need to ask me. You obviously aren't a new student… right?"
Noah laughed. "Yeah, but you know how big Kajiro is – even seniors don't know where everything is!"
"You're a senior?" she exclaimed. "But you're younger than me!"
"I skipped a few grades," he said shyly and flushed a bright pink. "I came here because Kajiro has the best AP programs, but the training is a little on the poor side. I took special combat classes and therefore didn't need to participate in Kajiro's entrance test or sessions. But now that I have to design the training arenas, I need to know where they're held."
"I'll personally show you," interrupted Vincent, who had chosen that exact moment to sling his arm around Noah's neck and jokingly mess up his hair. "Why ask this nobody instead of me?"
"I saw her first. And second, she's not a 'nobody'!" Noah argued, lifting Vincent's arm from his neck. "Her name is…"
"Appolene. Appolene Waters," she supplied.
"Well, Appolene. You just leave him to me, I'll show him our gym," Vincent said, turning to her. "Don't you have a class to go to?" His gaze sent chills rippling throughout her entire body. Vincent was just as scary as his reputation, and her first encounter with him was not going well. Though she had a free period, perhaps leaving Noah with him was the best choice because she definitely did not want to be on Kojii's bad side.
"I didn't mean to keep you," Noah apologized, disrupting her thoughts again. "If Vincent's willing to take me, I can manage." He was smiling the entire time, as if he didn't know how dangerous Vincent could really be.
She couldn't leave a defenseless boy with him, even if he was a prodigy. "No, I have a spare class!" she said indignantly, grabbed the handles at the back of Noah's wheelchair, and began pushing him down the hallway. "You should get to class!"
"How quaint, I have a free period too," Vincent added. "I think I'll just tag along. After all, his arenas need to work with my regimen." It didn't take a genius to see that he was just pretending to be friendly. Although Noah chatted happily with her as they walked, being around Kojii made her terribly anxious. He was unpredictable, and who knew what trap he had set up. Before she could think about it further, they had already reached the gymnasium. Vincent pushed the heavy double doors open, and they strolled in.
It was a magnificent room roughly the size of a football field with a ceiling fifty feet high. The entire floor was hardwood, and Plexiglas windows the size of cars lined the walls to let the sunlight through. But what was even more impressive than the gym itself were the students – about a hundred of them of various ages and races were sparring with each other with different weapons. Although there were no teachers supervising their actions, they fought with such intensity that they didn't even glance at the three newcomers.
"It's big, isn't it?" Appolene said proudly as she wheeled Noah up a ramp leading to the bleachers. "We have the largest indoor training field out of all the public schools in Japan! We're not as rich as schools like Butokan, but we do have an Olympic sized swimming pool and work-out area too!"
"Your basic facilities are fine," Noah remarked, "They're not what I'm accustomed to, but they'll do nicely. However, we definitely need some special terrain fields! We don't always battle on flat, hardwood floors, do we?"
She nodded in agreement and was going to say more, but Noah's attention wasn't on her anymore. He was intently watching the pupils battling each other and assessing the effectiveness of their moves and battle styles with the current terrain. After about a minute, he spoke to Vincent. "You've already been implementing your training regimen, haven't you?"
"You already know the difference though you've never been to our battle classes? I guess the principal didn't choose you for looking pretty, did he?" Vincent asked, raising one eyebrow. Appolene wasn't sure if he did so because he was impressed or if he was feeling threatened. "These hundred are my guinea pigs for it, as it were. I want to make sure that there aren't too many… casualties."
Appolene didn't like the sound of his words one bit. She didn't need more danger in her life! Noah calmed her fears when he remarked on Vincent's plan. "Well, if that's the case, a kind of armoured uniform should be put into practice."
"Are you saying there's something wrong with my way?" he growled, obviously disliking Noah's input.
"Not really, I haven't had enough time to assess it fully yet," Noah replied. "I'm just saying that with armour in place, there would be fewer injuries and that means you wouldn't get in trouble with the school staff!"
Appolene nodded vigorously in agreement, while Vincent continued to glare at him.
"Look, you're obviously not used to criticism. But if we work together, you can learn quite a bit from my knowledge. And I'm sure I'll learn I'll learn a lot from you."
"I'm sure you will," Vincent snickered, "And I think I'll teach you something right now!" With that, he pushed Noah from the bleachers and onto the gym floor. He landed with a violent thud and his wheelchair crashed nearby, fortunately in one piece. "He hasn't experienced the initiation into Kajiro High yet. Let's give him a big welcome, everyone!"
"Yes, yes! Let's put extra effort into welcoming him!" a girl squealed gleefully and lowered her spear above his head. "We don't want him thinking we treated him any differently because he's handicapped, right?" More students began to crowd around him, cutting off any means of escape. "Since we're so kind," a boy sneered, "We'll let you get up before we show you more of our hospitality."
"Vincent, stop this!" Appolene exclaimed. "He doesn't need to take the initiation test because he had special lessons! Besides, having more than three proctors – student or teacher – isn't fair! It's overkill!"
"Everyone should undergo the entrance test regardless of special training," Vincent answered, attentive only to what would Noah's next move would be. "You can watch, or if you're really concerned, you're welcome to help him."
"Damn you!" she cursed silently. So this was Vincent's trap for those who opposed him! He had probably even used it for some time now. None of the faculty would question a fatality under the guise of a combat lesson or entrance test. And the situation even took assistance into consideration – those students were handpicked by Vincent himself and against their superior abilities and sheer number, no one stood a chance.
"I'm sorry, Noah," she murmured. "All I can do is watch."
"How pathetic," Noah muttered irritably. "I don't need this right now." He hauled his body back into his wheelchair and dusted himself off. He then gave a stern look to the mob surrounding him and simply said, "Move please."
He was greeted with stunned silence. "Oh," Noah said, "Maybe you didn't understand that. Let's try this again: Itte kudasai. Ipud dyan. Partez, s'il vous– " The students became enraged at his politeness. "We heard you right the first time, you cocky bastard! Where do you get off talking to us like that?" one screamed. Each brandished his own weapon towards him and the girl with a spear decided to strike first. She stabbed at Noah's face while he merely tilted his head a few degrees and missed the fatal blow.
"Put those away," he said, "You really could hurt someone."
"I'll show you hurt!" she screamed and lunged to plunge her weapon into his chest. Before anyone could blink, Noah's wheelchair spokes assembled themselves into a crude metallic claw and stopped it in its path. She tried to wrench her weapon free from his grip, but with no avail. She pushed forward desperately and Noah released his handle on the spear. The forward motion threw the girl off balance, and she fell, still holding onto her weapon. Before she hit the floor, the tip of her spear lodged itself into a nearby foot. The owner screamed in agony and the crowd momentarily lost interest in Noah and attended to the injured student.
Noah sighed. "I told you that someone could get hurt," he said, reassembling his chair, and starting to wheel himself towards the gym exit. Before he could do so, the mob of students decided to gang up on him with their attacks. "We were going to let you live with minor injuries," a boy cried, "But now we'll just kill you!"
Appolene couldn't watch. A mob of that size would overcome anyone and Noah with only a wheelchair claw, wouldn't stand a chance. She buried her face into her hands so she wouldn't see the bloodshed. She heard horrible clanging of metal against metal, and a horrifying crunch of limbs breaking followed by a deathly eerie silence. It was over for the boy who had been so polite, and she couldn't help but sob a little. Vincent let out a small gasp, which caused her to peek between her fingers.
About three-quarters of the students lay at Noah's feet and those who were still standing were staggering to get away from him. Try as they might, they could not escape. With only one quick push to his wheels, he dashed toward his targets and as he passed each one, his hands would find a single pressure point to immediately fell them. She watched as he then coasted to a complete stop, and just sat quietly in the midst of the immobile children. He was extremely talented to take down so many opponents without a single wasted movement and be unharmed! She was about to cheer for him, but then a terrible realization dawned upon her. Nobody could slay a hundred people and be as calm as he was – sweet, gentle Noah was really a monster!
"Get the school nurse," he said quietly. His eyes were blank, focusing on nothing. "These people need attention." Appolene was surprised, it didn't make sense he would care about them after causing so much damage.
Vincent clapped his hands, clearly impressed with Noah's performance. "Very good!" he commended. "I'm proud that finally someone passed with such ease as I did. I definitely wasn't as forgiving as you." Startled by what he had said, Appolene hurried down the bleachers and then examined some the people around Noah more closely. They weren't dead but only unconscious; they had some minor broken bones and none of the injuries were fatal. Some kids were injured by the weapons wielded by the other students, but Noah had made sure that the wounds were kept to a minimum. It was incredible he didn't kill someone in his situation, even by accident.
Vincent was still praising him. "I didn't think you could handle it here, but I see your handicap is obviously not a problem. I can't wait to see what training facilities you're going to make for me."
"For you?" Noah echoed, still be in a daze. He blinked twice, and seemed to have regained his composure. "Sorry, but I don't think so. Such indiscretion on your part doesn't deserve my services. Besides, I work for everybody, and until you see that, I'm leaving. And thank you for your help, Appolene." He wheeled toward the exit again.
Unfortunately, Vincent would not have it end so easily. He was agitated by Noah's composure, for no one had the right to act as if they were better than him. "Where do you think you're going?" he asked, his voice dripping with irritation. "You said you'd learn from me, and then there's the contract you made with the principal!"
"Are you going to help me get the school nurse, like I asked?" Noah replied, ignoring his anger. Appolene was about to do so, until Vincent stopped her. He could see that the handicapped boy would not listen to his reasoning, so he would try a different approach. If Noah cared so much about others, perhaps he could use this to his advantage. "So what?" he asked coolly. "Who cares if they die? Those who are weak will not be missed. Their only purpose is to make the strong, like us, stronger."
Noah stopped cold. Vincent smirked; he had finally hit one of Noah's nerves. A little more manipulation and he would have this kid as a follower. Noah suddenly wheeled around and glared at the blonde, immediately knowing his game. His normally gentle eyes burned with such ferocity that they seemed to be boiling. "Just who do you think you are?" snapped Noah, his voice becoming louder with every word until he was screaming. "Don't you understand the way of martial arts? It was NEVER meant to be used for harm! Just because you're a Spiron Master doesn't give you the right to do so!"
Vincent's eyes widened in surprise and he took a step back defensively. "You know about them?" he said darkly.
"Spiron Master?" Appolene repeated. "What're you guys talking about?" Both boys were ignoring her, staring each other down.
"You simply reek of dark aura. Even a normal human can sense something isn't right with you," Noah stated. "You may have an elite Spiron, but make no mistake – you're about as strong as the children I defeated."
"Don't associate me with those pathetic losers!" Vincent roared. "I'll show you how tough I am, you Spiron-less weakling! You're going to regret ever crossing me!" He unsheathed his katana slung over his back and moved to an offensive stance, ready to fight.
Noah folded his arms and sighed. "Don't challenge someone you can't take yet, Keeper of the North Side." Angered, Vincent withdrew his sword so quickly that it was invisible to the naked eye and stopped the blade's tip squarely on Noah's forehead, a little above the space between his eyes. He pressed it with just enough force to pierce the skin and cause a trickle of blood to run down Noah's face. "Give me a reason not to kill you," he said coldly.
"Because you can't," was the reply.
That was the last straw – Vincent thrust the sword further to stab Noah's brain and finish him off. That ought to shut you up! he thought gleefully, but his smugness soon became dread when he couldn't move. While he had been so distracted by the thought of killing the smart-mouthed brat, Noah had reassembled his all of wheelchair spokes into a binding web that held Vincent immobile. Though he struggled desperately, the web held tight. He then felt himself being lifted into the air and tossed into a pile of mats across the gym. Appolene gawked at Noah's skill; what would have taken an army of well-trained students, he did in one move!
"You think that's all it'll take to beat me?!" Vincent roared as he sprung from the mats. "You are SO dead, Mizuguchi!" He charged at Noah and swung his sword many times, aiming to make a fatal hit. Noah would skillfully maneuver himself out of harm's way every time, enraging his opponent. Vincent then swung wildly, yet Noah still easily avoided contact. Exhausted, Vincent staggered backwards and fell to the floor.
"I'm not weak like the others!" he spluttered. "How can you read all my moves?"
"Anyone could dodge your wild attacks the way you are now. It's not very hard," Noah answered.
Infuriated, Vincent got to his feet and grabbed at Appolene. She knew his motives and managed to avoid Vincent's first few attempts. But when she tried to counter with her staff, he knocked it out of her hands and forced her into a headlock. When she tried to squirm free, he brought his blade up to her throat. "Can you fight so well with her in the way?" he laughed maniacally. "I'm going to make you understand that I'm stronger than anybody!"
"You coward!" Noah exclaimed. "Using her as a shield is the LOWEST thing you could have done!"
"Shut up, you condescending son of a bitch!" Vincent screamed. "The weak are nothing but fodder for the strong, for we all live by the law of survival of the fittest. You don't know what I have to do to survive day to day… You don't know what I've been through, what I've lost!"
"I may not know, but that doesn't make you…"
"SHUT UP!" Vincent shouted, and then lowered his voice to a sinister whisper. "Get out of that chair or the girl gets it!" Noah froze. He knew that wasn't an empty threat! He tried to think of a way to fight back, but any moves he made would get Appolene hurt. She was just an innocent bystander; she didn't deserve to get mixed up in his mess. If only he could get her away from him…
"I don't care what happens to me!" Appolene cried. "Please – just get away!"
"Shut up girl, or you'll buy yourself an early death," Vincent snarled.
Noah moved his hand toward the wheels of his chair. "You promise to release her if I do?" he asked. Appolene wriggled violently in protest, but Vincent gripped her tighter and pressed the cold steel to her throat to immobilize her. "You have my word," he said.
Noah touched the center of his wheels and the web defense mechanism folded itself back into an ordinary chair. He slid out of it and knelt to the best of his ability at Vincent's feet.
"Wise choice, cripple," Vincent said smugly, kicked the chair as hard as he could, and threw the girl at Noah. He opened his arms to cushion her fall and caught her. "I'm sorry for putting you in danger," Noah said softly.
For all his hard work, she smacked him hard across the face. "You IDIOT!" she yelled. "You should have run away!"
Noah gave her a wry smile. "In case you haven't noticed, I can't run." Appolene gave a half laugh, half sob and burst into tears. "You have a good heart, Appolene. How could I let you get hurt?"
"How disgustingly cute," Vincent sneered. "But let's see how well you fight without your precious chair!" He brought down his sword execution style upon both of them. Just before contact, Noah managed to push himself and Appolene out of the way, but his efforts caused them to both land sprawled flat on the ground, vulnerable to Vincent's next attack.
"What're doing?!" Noah screamed. "You promised not to hurt her!"
"Fool. I promised to release her, not to harm her!" Vincent retorted. "If I kill her to kill you, so be it." He charged forward, sword ready to sever both their heads.
I didn't want to reveal myself to the likes of him, Noah thought desperately, but I have to do something! He stretched his right hand above them both, as if it would shield them against solid steel. Vincent slashed downward to finally have the annoyances out of his way, but instead of slicing Noah's arm in two, it lodged itself in the air just above Noah's outstretched hand. Try as he might, he couldn't get his sword to move.
Noah grinned. "Katana are powerful, but they aren't perfect weapons. Against a superior defense, they can't pierce deep enough to cause a fatal hit."
Before Appolene's very eyes, she saw the air above Noah's hand take shape into a glowing azure shield. Vincent's katana was stuck right in the middle of it, just like King Arthur's sword in the stone. Noah twisted his entire upper body to twist the shield, forcing Vincent to twist in the same direction and begin to fall over. Before he could release his grip on his sword to recover his balance, Noah rapidly twisted in the opposite direction and cracked the katana in two.
"You've lost your weapon. Cut your losses and withdraw," Noah advised. "Don't make this battle worse than it needs to be."
"What's going on?" Appolene cried in disbelief. "Normal people can't summon shields out of their bodies!"
"That's because he isn't normal," Vincent replied as he jumped back from Noah. "I'm surprised I didn't sense any power from you. But then again, you've just got a common Spiron, don't you?"
Noah maneuvered his body into a more favorable sitting position and held the shield in front of himself and Appolene. The truth of the matter was that his situation was grim, and without the ability to move, things would get ugly. He hoped Vincent would leave them alone, but he knew that wasn't going to happen.
"This battle isn't over by a long shot. Don't think you're safe because you've tapped into a smidgen of Spiron power," Vincent continued, his green eyes shining with an eerie light. "Because I'll show you the power of an Elite!" A green circle then formed at his feet, covered in ancient runes and symbols. When the ring had become complete, a green orb of light burst forth from Vincent's chest and took shape.
It was clothed completely in black and looked identical to a male youth, save for the two silver horns protruding out of its head, elfin ears and six violet dragonfly wings. A long, black scythe with a four-foot long silver blade was carried in its right hand, ready to reap. Its blood-red eyes stared fiercely at Noah and Appolene, as if it could pierce their very souls. She had never felt such terror in her life; its very glare was the one of a demon who had performed much bloodshed and enjoyed it. "It's going to kill us," Appolene thought, her entire body shaking in dread. No matter how hard she wanted to get up and run, let alone calm herself, she couldn't do it.
"Go ahead and play with them Karushi," Vincent said, sending the demon off with a carefree wave of his hand. Before Appolene could react, he reappeared directly behind them, and knocked both of them soaring with the blunt end of his scythe. Noah landed squarely back into his wheelchair and Appolene into his lap, but the force of the blow continued to propel them backward. They crashed into the gym wall, part of which collapsed on top of them and buried them completely.
Vincent walked over to the pile of rubble. It did not stir.
"Who's weak now?" he laughed triumphantly.
"Whoa, that was scary!"
Vincent stepped back in surprise. The pile of rocks fell to the ground as Noah came wheeling forward. His chair had assembled back into the web form that had ensnared Vincent, but now it was shaped into a semi-sphere protecting himself and Appolene. The shield that Noah had summoned earlier had transformed into a capsule that covered the web sphere, reinforcing his defense.
Noah was a stubborn weed that just wouldn't die! Vincent was infuriated that his Spiron's strength didn't intimidate Mizuguchi at all, and that boy even had the gall to act like an elite's strength was nothing! "Stop playing around and KILL that son of a bitch!" Vincent screamed. "Do it and do it NOW!"
Without hesitation, Karushi moved to attack again. Eight orbs of green light surrounded his body and he fired them rapidly at Noah's shield. Mobile as Noah was, he was unable to dodge them with a girl in his lap. Instead of uselessly running about, he stabbed two spokes from his web shield into the ground as an anchor and braced for impact. Each blow hit with such force that Noah could barely keep himself from flying backward. With the eighth hit, a long crack formed that ran the entire length of the spherical shield.
"That can't be good," Noah muttered nervously.
Vincent laughed evilly in reply. "Defense is useless in battle, Noah. Sure, you may withstand a couple of hits, but in the end, you always break." He relaxed, knowing he was finally getting rid of the thorn in his side. No one told Vincent Kojii what to do! "Fire until he's finished, Karushi."
The demon complied, firing faster and faster, causing the crack to open wider and wider. "Can't you summon your Spiron-thingy to fight back?" Appolene cried. "You beat Vincent easily without one, so yours must be strong to take him!"
Noah had a somber look on his face, and all trace of merriment had left him. "It's not that easy… Do you remember what I said about the special fields?" Appolene nodded. "My Spiron can only move in an aquatic environment but even if we were in one, he can't fly to do any damage to aerial Spirons like Karushi. And he doesn't really have any offensive capabilities."
"No offensive capabilities?" she repeated. "You mean you can't attack?!"
Noah nodded.
"We're screwed, we are SO screwed…" Vincent was right; defending yourself was pointless if you couldn't attack to stop your opponent!
"Well, there's one thing we could try, but – " he began.
"What is it?" she demanded. "Whatever it is, it can't be as bad as getting burnt to death!"
"It's too risky!" he snapped, but began to explain his plan to her anyway. "Spirons and humans have a symbiotic relationship. In return for using our bodies as a life source, we can summon them to do battle. However, any damage dealt is not only felt by the Spiron but also the host."
"I get it! It works both ways – Karushi isn't our target, it's Vincent!" she exclaimed. "Since he doesn't have his katana to defend himself with, we can put him out of commission!"
"Right, but I don't want to kill him!"
"How are we NOT going to do that?" she whined. "If we don't incapacitate him now, we're toast. Besides, we should be paying him back double after what he did to us!"
"If we're going on the offensive, we're going to knock him unconscious," he stated firmly. "I can reform the broken parts of my shield into a smaller, sturdier one and combine it with my chair to make a battering ram. With enough force, it'll take him right out! But the shield won't stand up to too many of Karushi's missiles and I can't maneuver very well with it in my line of vision, so I need you to drive my chair while dodging the incoming attacks. Can you do that?"
"Your plan's crazy!" she exclaimed. "I can't do that! How dare you expect me to risk being a part of that psycho's human barbeque?!"
"I don't you expect you to do it," he replied, calm as ever. "If you want to escape, I'll wheel myself directly into Vincent when I lower the shield. That will be enough of a distraction to allow you to get away. But I refuse to do more damage than necessary!"
Appolene tried to keep her emotions in check, but she was deeply affected by Noah's maturity. He was younger than her, yet he was much braver. She had merely watched while he took on a hundred of Vincent's followers and in the face of death, he still showed mercy for his enemies. On top of that, he was willing to lay his life down for her, someone he just met!
She had never really trusted him to begin with – she had slapped him earlier because she thought he was acting out of bravado. When she ordered him to get away, she hadn't really believed her own words, they seemed like the right thing to say. Her heart ached with guilt for thinking the worst of him.
"Appolene, we don't have much time," Noah called quietly. "Get ready."
"Noah, I…" she began, and trailed off. She wanted to fight, but how could she be brave when she knew she wasn't?
Noah gave her a small smile, but it was sincere. "Appolene, you've always been very strong… Much stronger than you know."
She looked at him in surprise. "Noah…" she murmured. Then, as if all doubt had left her, she whirled behind his chair, grabbed its handles, dug in her heels and got ready to run. "Let's go!" she shouted.
His face broke into a huge grin and he nodded vigorously in agreement. "Let's lock 'n' load!" he replied enthusiastically, withdrew the light capsule around the web and began reassembling the broken pieces. Meanwhile, Appolene charged straight toward Vincent, startling him and his Spiron.
Recovering from his shock, Vincent hurled himself out of her way at the last second. But Appolene wouldn't let him recover; she turned rapidly and propelled herself toward him. He would dodge, but Appolene and Noah would not be far behind.
"What're trying to do?!" he screamed. "Run me over?!"
"Very perceptive, Einstein," she replied sarcastically, still not giving him any reprieve.
"Karushi! Why aren't you doing anything? Attack!" he ordered.
"Go ahead and attack," Noah spurred him, "See where that'll get you!"
Vincent suddenly realized the position he was in: Appolene kept within such close quarters that if he stopped, she would bombard him into submission and if his Spiron attacked, he would get the brunt of the blast. It was a matter of who got tired first, and that critical moment would provide an opening for either side. Spotting Appolene's staff near him, he had a stroke of inspiration. He slid across the floor to reach it and stopped to pick it up. Seeing the opportunity, Appolene charged forward with all her strength. "You're mine!" she cried. "It's all over!"
"It is all over," Vincent agreed. "But for you!"
Just as Appolene was about to hit him, he jammed her staff into Noah's wheels, bringing the two to an abrupt halt. Both quickly tried to recover by removing it, but its end was wedged too deeply into the floor.
Vincent laughed. "It was a good try, but you've lost." He tauntingly walked five feet away from them and called his Spiron to his side. "No one tells me what to do, let alone make a fool out of me. These two deserve a slow roast for their death, so don't let them go too quickly." Karushi nodded, summoned the eight orbs of fire again, and aimed them at his host's enemies.
No! We were so close! Appolene thought. We can't die; not here and not like this!
She let go of her staff and began to frantically shove Noah's wheelchair in Vincent's direction. "Stop, Appolene!" Noah yelled. "That's not going to work!" But she continued to push forward, willing the chair to move.
I had thought the world where fighting was only a game was gone forever, but now I know I was wrong. I found it again in you and myself, Noah. I'm going to bring it back with my strength – the same as yours – the very kind that Vincent doesn't understand!
I am going to open his eyes!
She let out a cry of desperation, and heaved as hard as she could. She didn't notice that her eyes glowed with a sapphire light and a magic circle similar to Vincent's was forming at her feet. The staff snapped in two, causing her to lose her footing and crash into the ground. So she didn't notice at that very moment, a blue orb of light had burst forth from her chest.
It shone with such brightness that Appolene had to shield her eyes. Noah had to squint to see, but he could see the blue light take the shape of stag. But this stag was equipped with aqua armour and had small wings on each of its ankles.
"A peryton Spiron?" Noah murmured. Peryton were part deer, part bird creatures that had vanished with the coming of the modern world. He had barely read about them in books, let alone seen one in real life! It lowered its head and rested its antlers onto his chair's armrests, and then spoke with an airy, surreal voice:
Thank you for awakening milady, Master Noah. I shall do as you ask.
Before Noah had time to respond, it charged him and his wheelchair-driven battering ram-shield at Karushi with blinding speed. The demon Spiron was sent flying through a Plexiglas window, shattering it into a billion pieces. At the moment of impact, Vincent howled in pain and collapsed onto the floor. Appolene watched in awe as Karushi dissipated back into a green orb and float back into his prostrate host.
With a triumphant whinny, the peryton then vanished. Noah, unfazed by the turn of events, quickly relinquished his shield, reassembled his chair, and wheeled over to Vincent's side to check his condition. Appolene followed, afraid that Vincent would leap up and suddenly attack. "How is he?" she asked anxiously.
"He's got some pretty bad internal bruising, but nothing life-threatening," he sighed, extremely relieved. "His Spiron will heal that within a matter of hours."
"How do you know?"
"Another benefit of having one; they allow our bodies to heal a lot faster than they normally would." He pointed to his forehead where Vincent had cut him. The wound had already healed and there wasn't even a scar.
"That's amazing," Appolene said quietly. "I guess you didn't want to waste your life energy by summoning your Spiron right away, but that deer of yours was incredible! It was so handsome and powerful and – and… Well, you were SO cool!"
"Appolene," Noah interrupted, "That wasn't my Spiron. Mine looks nothing like that. Besides lending my shield to it, I didn't do anything! You summoned that peryton – YOU felled the great Vincent Kojii!"
"But I couldn't take him on by myself. I'm not that strong or special or anything!" she argued. "How could I have something like THAT inside of me?"
"Appolene, you really should give yourself more credit! You are much stronger and more amazing than you think. I know because I sensed it in you the moment I saw you. Why else do you think I was drawn to you?"
She blushed, and couldn't look him in the face. Noticing her discomfort, he then understood and became embarrassed as well. "I-I didn't mean it like t-that!" he stammered, trying to correct himself. "I just sensed you were powerful, not that I liked you or anything! Not that I don't like you, it's just not like LIKE you… Oh gosh, what am I saying…?"
She giggled; geniuses could be quite the idiots too sometimes. She interrupted his blathering by putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Noah, I know what you meant." She felt him relax, and she removed her grip.
"Still, thank you for believing in me. No one's ever trusted me that much before," she added. "You're different than anyone I've met… You don't revel in fighting, for enjoyment or even for justice."
"If I think about it differently, it's because I've been fighting all my life. Even before the Day of Awakening, it followed me wherever I went." His eyes went dark, and the same blank gaze after he had defeated a hundred students returned. "If it wasn't for Sonomi, I…" he trailed off, and was at a loss for words. He shook his head, as if to dispel a distant memory, and he was himself again, though he was still a little sad. "Fighting never has been, and never will be, a game to me."
"Still, you're courageous in a world that isn't, Noah. I hope to be as strong as you someday."
His answer was without a trace of hesitancy. "You aren't as strong as me, Appolene. You're stronger!"
She looked at him, startled. "What…?"
"C'mon, let's hurry and get that school nurse!" he called while picking up the broken remains of her staff and was moving toward the gym exit. "You've got to get to class and I have your staff and a gym to repair!"
Noah, you are so WEIRD, she thought cheerfully as she ran to catch up with him. But thanks to you, this year promises to be a lot more interesting!
THE END.