Chapter 13.
Jerimiah wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. By his side, Sola and Keller stood ready. In Keller's grip, a leather handball. Squeezing it, the air around Keller whipped up nearby dust.
Across from them, Jared towered, his fist pounded into his palm. By Jared's sides, Ethan and Margaret stood alert and ready.
Both teams were inside a rectangular field marked by stones and pebbles. Two hoops supported by 12-foot-tall pillars stood erect on the far sides of the field.
Preparing for the play, Margaret raised both her hands. Behind her, a 10-foot-tall wall of Earth rose. Nearby, Ethan's eyes glowed green, plants and roots weaving within the wall, reinforcing it.
Cain stood off to the side of the field and watched intently at the matchup. They didn't have another group of skilled awakened to practice against, so they had to make do with 3-on-3 matches.
Cain clapped his hands signaling for the match to begin.
Hearing the echo of Cain's clap, Jerimiah darted to the left, followed by Keller and Sola. Their bodies formed a triangular formation with Jerimiah at the tip. As they darted forward, Jared the giant stepped in front of them, the wall of rippling muscle punching out.
Jerimiah responded with a punch of his own. The two fists of massively different proportions collided, causing nearby dirt and debris to shoot into the air. Jarod overcame Jerimiah's resistance with his hulking body, but that's precisely what Jerimiah wanted.
Jerimiah pulled back, causing Jared's fist to continue to soar forward, forcing him off balance. Jerimiah took advantage, softening the ground beneath Jared's over extended body. Ducking underneath Jared, Jerimiah went in for a counter to the chin.
Just as Jerimiah's uppercut was going to make contact, another fist flashed forward, this time wisps of fire escaping between the knuckles. Colliding with the distracted Jerimiah, Jerimiah was sent recoiling backward. Charging forward to take advantage of Jerimiah's lapse, Ethan propelled himself forward, fire scorching under foot. Pulling back for another punch, Ethan was blasted in the face with a geyser of water.
Ethan's fire was quickly extinguished under the might of the water, sending him flying several feet away.
Just as Jared recovered and turned to knock down the recovering Jerimiah once and for all, a tan fist backed by the wind knocked Jared upside the head, sending him to the ground.
Sprinting past the battlefield, Keller dodged and weaved around the spells and bodies. With only Margaret left standing, he waved his free hand. Squatting down, he lept, a strong gust of wind attempting to propel him into the air.
Just as his legs left the ground, roots shot from the Earth, snaking up Keller's feet and pulling him to the ground, swiftly engulfing him. Just as Keller was about to be entirely covered, Jerimiah leaped forward, sharp claws of pale brown energy adorned on his fist.
The roots tangling Keller were shredded under Jerimiah's assault, but the plants regenerated fast enough to keep him stuck.
Keller scanned the field, finding his situation less than ideal. Jared had recovered, Ethan was approaching, and Margaret was preparing a large sphere of Earth above her head.
Then, Keller glimpsed a wet snout from behind Margaret's wall. Taking advantage of the opening, Keller wound his arm back. Leaning forward with all his might, Keller's whole body fired the leather ball straight at the now soaring dog.
Everyone watched in awe as the ball careened through the sky, flying above Margaret's sphere of Earth.
Billy caught the rocketed ball in his large mouth using the wall as a springboard. Continuing to soar, Billy whipped his head to the side, releasing the ball into the goal.
As everyone watched the ball fly into the goal, they all collapsed to the ground. None of them could remember how many matches they had played, but it was definitely too many.
Kiera, who was sitting on the sidelines, got up and began distributing a strange green liquid to each of the bruised and exhausted players. Reassuring them it was a health potion, they all downed the peculiar liquid, nobody doubting her words.
Cain clapped his hands, "Good Job, everyone. Great goal, Keller." Pausing, Cain shook his head, "But damn, there were way too many mistakes." Cain reprimanded Jared, Margaret, and Ethan, saying, "You guys completely forgot about Billy's existence. Just because you can't see him doesn't mean he isn't in play." He pointed at the wall Margaret made. "Great Idea, but it blocked your view of Billy. Only ever create a defense if it only benefits yourself."
Looking at Jared, Cain continued. "You overextended yourself. You got lost in the enemies group." Jared gave a thumbs up, signifying he understood his mistake.
Cain then directed his attention to the offensive team. "Jerimiah, don't only expect to fight one-on-ones. More people than yourself and those you are fighting are on the field." Jerimiah grunted in agreement, too tired to talk at the moment.
Looking towards Sola sprawled on the ground, Cain's face became stern. "Sola, don't be afraid to get in the thick of the battle. You were too reserved, leaving Keller to clean up." She raised her hand in response, letting it flop back down not a second later.
Finally, looking towards Keller, a look of pride was on Cain's face, "Great attempt; even when your plan was countered, you found an alternative, thanks to Billy." Keller shook his head, "I could have done better; I should have remembered Ethan there had a binding Construct."
Cain shrugged. Keller was always looking for ways to improve. Turning towards Margaret's wall, Cain began looking for Billy. Cain watched as the goofy dog happily appeared from behind the earth wall, bounding towards him with clear expectation. Cain gave Billy big scratches on the head. "You, Billy, you are the best player!"
After a few moments of loves, Cain glanced at each of the players once more. He could tell they were tired, they hadn't argued with his feedback like they usually would. With a wave of his hand, he spoke up, "Good job everyone. Even though we are rough around the edges, we will make a great Griffle team one day. Now get out of here and get some rest."
Everyone grumbled in joy. Jared was particularly happy that he wouldn't be punched anymore. As the central part of the defense, he was getting hit quite a bit.
Everyone thanked Kiera for the potions before they began to pack up their things to leave. Jerimiah approached Cain, though exhausted and bruised he had a lively energy around him.
"What can I do for you, Jerimiah?" Cain asked as he collected vials for Kiera.
Picking up a vial himself, Jerimiah asked, "What do you think of the team?" Jerimiah was curious if Cain even believed they had a shot at winning.
Giving Kiera the vials, Cain turned to look at Jerimiah. "We have a lot of versatility with the wide varieties of affinities we have access to. And with the unique advantages we have with your Tame and Jared." Pausing, they both looked at Jared. 'What a Beast! ' they both couldn't help but think. Shaking their heads, they focused back on the conversation. Cain continued, "I think we have a shot. Even if it's slim, we still need to try. When will such an opportunity present itself again?"
Jerimiah nodded. He was glad they at least had a shot to win, even if it was small.
They both began to walk home. Cain spoke, "What do you think of the Ethan kid? He's young but has a lot of spirit."
"The kid is feisty, that's for sure. Speaking of him, I have an idea. Have you ever heard of fireweed?"
They continued to talk on their way home. The day slowly descended into night, and the bright lights of lanterns and candles began illuminating the Hamlet. Just as Cain and Jerimiah were about to part ways, a young mother approached them.
She was clearly stressed, worried, or both. She walk-ran towards them, quickly grabbing Cain's shirt, her tone one of plea. "Please help; my child is possessed!"
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As night rolled around, Eliza sat worried at their kitchen table. Rue had silently lay in his bed, watching as worry descended on Eliza. Weirdly enough, Jerimiah had yet to return home, clearly worrying Eliza sick.
Eventually, Eliza got up and grabbed a nearby coat. Flinging it on, she marched out of the home, her quest quite obvious.
Rue couldn't help but worry as well, but not for the same reasons as Eliza. 'That old lady kicked me out early today. She wanted to test some potions... Good luck, Jerimiah' he thought, giving Jerimiah a silent prayer.
Shaking his head, Rue snuggled up with his blanket, drifting into sleep.
Only a few minutes had passed before Rue was rustled from his sleep. Groggy, he turned to see what the noise was.
Gabe, his brother, sat up, his eyes closed. Gabe stepped down from his bed and walked for the door.
Rue watched, his eyebrows furrowed as Gabe opened the door and left. 'Odd, he has never sleepwalked before.'
Feeling responsible for his brother, Rue slid out of his bed and stealthily followed in Gabe's wake.
After Gabe excited their home, he didn't stop, no, he just continued walking. If the scenario wasn't odd enough, he stomped through the front yard, ignoring the obvious dirt path leading down to the road.
Gabe continued forward, his direction perfectly straight. Nothing stopped his seemingly dedicated brother; if he approached a wall, he would climb over it. If he approached a river, he stepped through it.
Rue continued to follow behind his brother, now wholly fascinated. He had a feeling something was going on. Two odd occurrences happened on the same day: First, Jerimiah had yet to return, and now this.
Not sure what to think, Rue continued to follow along, leaving behind their home and entering the forest's darkness.
Calling for backup, Rue sent a request to Shiny through their connection. Luckily for them, the connection they had always pointed them towards the other's direction so it was easy for both of them to find one another.
Only a few minutes passed before Shiny dropped from the canopy above, rustling a few nearby leaves in the process. As Shiny settled on Rue's shoulder, relief washed over Rue. He felt way more comfortable knowing he had Shiny by his side.
As they passed over another river, Rue paused to think. Following his brother deep into the forest probably wasn't a very good idea. After all, he was just a nine-month-old child. Even with his enhanced growth, he had little more than a three-year-old's body. Rue hesitated, 'Maybe I should turn back?'
But he looked at the back of his brother growing smaller and smaller. Grunting, he raced forward, gently tugging at his brother's shirt. He hoped it would wake him from whatever had taken hold of him.
Just as Rue tugged, pulling Gabe back, his brother responded with pure and utter rage. He swiftly turned and pushed Rue, forcing him away. As Rue fell to the ground, the rage rapidly vanished, turning back into that of a toddler's sleeping face.
Rue stared down his brother, his eyes wide with concern. 'Okay, something is seriously wrong.'
Rue leaped up and raced ahead of Gabe. Using his Earth affinity, he slowly formed a rough box where Gabe would eventually pass.
With each passing moment, as he forced his affinities to work without a Soul Construct, his head began to pound. Working through the pain with gritted teeth, he trudged on. Putting the final touches on the trap, Rue watched as Gabe leisurely shuffled into the box.
He rapidly closed it off, hoping this would be enough to stop his brother. To his dismay, a scratching sound came from within. Then, after a minute or so, the quiet sound of dripping liquid.
Rue scowled. Waving his hand, one of the walls collapsed, letting his sleepwalking brother out. This time, blood was dripping from the tips of Gabe's fingers, some even missing the whole nail, the tissue beneath seething vibrant red.
"Shit," Rue couldn't help but mumbled. He rarely swore, the last time being when he literally died.
"I have no clue what is doing this to him, nor can I safely stop him. At least I can follow."
With no other choice, Rue shadowed Gabe. He didn't really have any other options other than just leaving Gabe to succumb to whatever fate awaited him at the end of his journey, and he did not feel good doing that.
Even though he had been in this world for less than a year, Gabe was still his brother. That had to count for something. Plus, it was hard to forget how cheerful the little boy was when he wasn't getting dragged into the forest by some unknown force.
They both continued to walk for nearly 30 minutes before signs of what was doing this began to appear. Rue glanced around at the tall pines, a scowl forming on his face as he scrunched his nose at the sights before him.
Giant spider webs covered the forest. Now he wanted to swear again.
Taking a long, hard look at the webs draped across the towering pines, Rue sincerely began to think of leaving. His mind couldn't help but imagine the beast that had created the intricate webs layering the forest, shivering at the vivid beast his imagination was able to conjure up, 'That's not helping.'
Squeezing his eyes shut, he took a deep breath, forcing his body to relax. Opening his eyes once more, he trailed Gabe.
He had made up his mind: Whatever was doing this had to die. He couldn't exist in the same vicinity as this creature. Even if he ran now, the problem would still persist, and maybe one day, it would do more than just pull Gabe into the forest.
With eyes steeled with resolve, he glared at the copious amounts of webs blocking the moonlight. 'Whatever you are, I will end you.'