"So what is the Coliseum?" Adam asked as he and Eirik made their way along Main Street towards the gate to Ore Creek Crossing. The wizard was now the sixth member of his Mundane friends, alike in phlegmatic mien with Roger and Buford and respected by Jakob and Tim for his patient tutoring of the former's the previous year and his tolerance of the latter's roguish shenanigans, though the two had dismissed themselves for the afternoon to address Adam's contest. He had seen Garrett in the days between, though Brynne and Cody were there to temper his prickly demeanor, but he still shuddered at the sight of the surly raven-haired boy.
"It's a stadium in Ore Creek Crossing, about the size of the new high school one, "Eirik explained, the duo halting at the gate until there was enough traffic and sufficient cover of pedestrians incurious that there was no acknowledgment of two boys who weren't there after a blink. The quasi-European village before them, Eirik lead Adam down the promenade of shops to a structure far more Mundane and hideous in construction, a glaring, harsh white with a plain steel sign above double doors that bore the title of Ore Creek Crossing Coliseum, with little ornamentation, it's harsh, rigid angles incogruous with the uneven curves of stone, the jagged grain of wood,and gritty edges of brick."There's a central arena where fights take place as well as practice arenas with equipment and trainers, as well as a small shop with Supernatural equipment and concessions and glamours you can apply to create whatever environment your heart desires."
"That sounds amazing!"
"I've heard it is, though I've only watched-us spellcasters prefer more cerebral contests. "
The Colosseum was grander on the interior than it's modernist design suggested, opening into one room with halls on either side and a corridor ahead, a front desk of sorts situated in the corner. In this lobby alone, the walls were a glossy, gleaming granite awash in pale hues, with sleek, fluted Corinthian columns raised erect and bedecked in acanthus leaves and golden grapevines coiling their way around the perimeter of the ceiling. Aloft, the mid-June sun cast it's eye upon the sumptuous twists and patterns of iron and paneled, colored glass that was the ceiling, or possibly a glamour, sending a dappled kaleidoscope of colors dancing on the tiles alone. Incense was burning from censers in the corners, suffusing the room with the aroma of cypress and cedar, and Adam whistled, impressed. "Holy sheepshit, Batman."
"If you want to look around, you can-I was supposed to meet Josh and Sage,"Eirik said, being summoned with a wave by the aforementioned paper wizard, Adam shuffling behind for the meantime. Said spellcasters were perfectly cordial-Joshua and Aidan chattered endlessly, the aloof beauty Addie had yet to offend him, and Eirik managed to coaxed some polite murmurs out of the melancholic Sage's cynical vocabulary, but Adam felt like an interloper with his lack of serious Magickal talent and departed to explore their arena in search of Supernaturals more alike in skill. This didn't take long.
He ambled down a corridor that definitely had a glamour on it, given there were open archways all around and what looked to be a small, walled courtyard off to his right when he heard bouncing footsteps and was suddenly embraced.
"Hey Adam! I heard it from Issac and Trevor that you're a new Supernatural! ! "Monica Shoal beamed, trident tucked under one arm awkwardly as she squeezed him hard,her arms warm and toned. A transplanted native of Yorba Linda, California who had adapted well to the Midwest, she was a fair beauty with wavy, bleached blonde hair that had gone brassy green from her days in the pool and a deep suntan. Adam only knew her by sight but his face was ruddy with pleasure how a stranger, especially one of her beauty, was so amiable to someone as alien to her as she was to him, and he scratched his head in an unusual moment of bashfulness."Well, I've only killed one ghoul..."
"Even still, you're doing great! I wouldn't mind teaming up with you on a mission or two!"
"Stop it Monica, you're suffocating him,"another girl who Adam recalled sharing a history class with a shudder. Thin boned, sharp-faced, and far less developed than Monica, with short, lank hair and green eyes, the surly Peyton Lynch had her hands on her hips, her right arm sheathed from the elbow down in an iron gauntlet that flickered momentarily back to it's Mundane glamour of spiked bracelets, and she grumbled quietly."Plastic slut..."
"I for one would like to have a match against you once you complete this one, nothing too serious, just to see where you are if you're going to be one of us," one of the others who he recognized from shared classes said as a crowd of about six or seven swarmed him for introductions. Grant Turnbull was a robust, broad-shouldered specimen of a 14-year old boy whose height was exceeded only by the Mundane Roger Nieminen, his cropped hair the color of copper and his hooded eyes blue,a longbow that stood up to his shoulders slung across his frame and a book whose gold leaf spoke of warfare in the ancient world under the arm he didn't extend cordially to Adam. Though ginger tresses may have been a mark of a choleric temper, Adam knew him to be self-contained and astute."A zweihander is alright for close-range combat, but did you ever consider a ranged weapon for attacking from a distance? I think investing in both would be wise."
"I really don't know I'll cross that bridge when I find it. "
He then felt some sort of rustling across the hairs crisscrossing his nape, and turned, to see a lanky boy whose devilish grin paralleled Tim's without the roguish charisma, his cheekbones high and thin and his green shaded by the brim of the mesh cap across his brown hair. Adam's wallet was clutched in his fingers and before he could start swinging or sputtering in outrage, the newcomer reached down and placed it back into his pocket." Kyle Dillinger, thief. We had algebra together, remember? "
"You were always trying to copy my answers,"Adam stated, one hand twitching into a fist.
"Not like it mattered-you never got anything right. If you're a thief like me or even a rogue, I'd be happy to teach you my secrets on how to cheat on tests, for a price."
"There's no way I'm a thief or rogue-I can't even sneak chips out of the pantry without mom hearing me!" Adam laughed self-depreciatingly, his hand subconsciously moving to his wallet, then his phone in his pocket to ensure Kyle hadn't exhibited any unsavory skill once more.
"I've heard studying in advance is an excellent strategy, Erik,bemused, spoke, unsubtle snark going undetected by the thief."Always pleasant to see you, Kyle, that you haven't landed yourself on the probation list yet with your talents. "
He then addressed Adam, pointing to a series of boards with two or three people staring at it, and it seemed to bear a list of Supernaturals, complete with picture and class- the aquatic Ranger Monica Shoal was beaming in eighteenth place, Longbow Fighter Grant Turnbull quietly triumphant at twelfth place,and the Scythe master Isaac Ackermann smirking beneath him in thirteen.
" Anyhow, Adam,there's quite a bit to do here-tournaments and casual battles, of course, as well as training, but there's also a friendly ranking system for those who fight in the Colosseum-it's usually only the top 100 displayed, or the top 50 in this case given the smaller size of competitors in the area. If you want to enter to fight, you can get a card at the front desk that has a series of useful spells on it that repeals damage and makes it return to your person. In fact, you've got to go up there to sign a waiver,seeing as you're new as well as register,I take it you'll be doing a three-man tournament?"
" A tournament? I was expecting a one-on-one fight!" Adam blanched, but mustered his nerves lest he be taunted by Garrett. " But yeah, three sounds good for getting my feet wet."
"I don't think you're ready to go thirteen rounds in a tournament," Eirik agreed. After offering his consent to hypothetical dismemberment, disembowelment, decapitation, mutilation, transmutation and eternally blue hair among other delights,the duo returned to the lobby, heading down another corridor flanked with arches. This time Adam was certain a glamour upon this given the flat, minimalist aesthetic of the exterior and when they reached the center arena, this was certain. They emerged before an enormous amphitheater with two sets of stairs ascending to three tiers of seats made of travertine towering above the red and black bricks encircling the sandy arena, and traversing the perimeter of the top terrace was a bubbling aqueduct that broke in four points along it's path to create a cascade that thundered to a point below the arena,and Adam stared aloft to the open blue summer's sky before turning to Eirik.
"I don't care to fight, but I can appreciate the complex Magick used in it's construction,and I enoy the different environments you can choose-my favorite is the volcanic one, naturally, "Eirik explained, a dreamy haze in his violet eyes."This is its most basic one though, an amphitheater-like arena with a glamour for the sky, obviously.
"I think I like it..."
An overcaffeinated Joshua was settled in the top tier dictating something to his familiar, a fluttering pair of paper wings his chapped lips a blur while Eirik sat primly nearby, adjusting something on his camera, and the paper wizard gave a few rambling announcements to test his microphone. In the concentric row of stands,the spellcasters were on one bench, while Cody and Brynne watched from behind Garrett on the opposite end of the arena and Grant's group was seated between the two.
"Wwwwelcome, "Josh's tenor thundered over the loudspeaker as he introduced Adam with a few jovial quips about each, and though he made flattering comments about the inexperienced Adam, these went unheard by the boy in question, and he only looked up when Josh's prattling stopped, though he still spoke into his microphone.
" Huh? It looks ok-somebody really did that? Out of order for a month?"
Eirik was then heard." Joshua, your microphone..."
" Right."
Joshua and Eirik then descended the stairs from the booth, looking forlorn, an employee in their tow who when he drew near to Adam, was evidently a wizard given the surge of residual Magick crackling through the air. He was no older than 15, a tall, spindly specimen of a wizard with choppy brown bangs falling across blue eyes encircled with bleary black bags, too distressed to do more than squeak. Eventually, he managed to croak out one monosyllabic tone that comprehended his panic, exhaustion and the state of his nerves if he had to address one more angry customer, and even Garrett, acerbic jackass he was, kept mum and placated when the two locked eyes. He seemed to also be silent after catching sight of Aiden shuffling protectively in front of the frayed wizard, his bandaged, scarred index finger upright with a cascade of sparks crackling in the air in warning, if his demented smile, unnervingly bulging blue eyes , and his cheerful recitation of "Tick, tick,tick" wasn't deterrent enough.
"Fine...you got lucky, lardo."
"Same to you, bub!" Adam retorted.
"That works out- you can fight later after you've gotten more experience," Eirik said. " Oh yeah! There's one more thing I forgot to tell you! You know how Supernaturals will do things like fight monsters and other errands? Those are all posted here on the Bulletin Board, and the difficulty is indicated by number from 1 to 25. For you, I'd recommend 1 to 3. That's another way to make rank!"
" That I can do," Adam agreed, staring at the missions listed, ranging from Combustible Slug removal, finding a lost Cactus Cat, and taking care of somebody's collection of Beebe's fish for a week, thinking back to how the Colosseum was out of commission. "Hey, can you make your own missions if something Supernatural comes up?"
"You could, though you'd have to check with the administrators,"Eirik said.
"Then I think I know what I'm gonna be doing this summer! Wanna come with me?"
---
Not five minutes later, Adam was the owner of a red foil card of no other detail that somehow documented his endeavours and a new partner in Eirik, who had broken away from Joshua and Sage to guide Adam. Out of all the Supernaturals he had met, almost all had partnered with each other-Monica, Grant, Peyton, and three others had their mission,neither Eirik or Adam would associate with the sly Kyle, and though they would have been promising additions to Brynne and Cody's team, the animosity between Garrett and Adam rendered their partnership unlikely. There were at least 20 other Supernaturals for him to meet, but even someone as gregarious as he could wait in favor of exploring his powers.
"...Maybe I should've taken just an ordinary mission- cleaning out monsters or something,"Adam admitted, realizing the error in his haste, but Eirik shrugged." We'll see-look over there!
Coming up the sidewalk were a pair he knew well, Octavia scrolling through something on her phone while Edgar had a broomstick that stood slung across one shoulder and his headphones in despite being in conversation with Octavia, not meeting her eyes as he spoke.
"...I don't want to spend over 10 grand on a car-frankly I could care less how old and plain it is, so long as she's mechanically sound and I can fix her easily. Oh, and I'd prefer a manual transmission, a simple 6-speed will suffice- do you know how many people can't drive stick shifts in this day and age? It's an anti-theft mechanism!"
"Well duh, who'd want to torment themselves with that? And there's no way you can get a used car for less than 9 grand today! I've got the money, let me spend it on something! Look, this one's nice!"
Adam would recognize the two anywhere, and he called out . "Hey! Octavia!! Ed! Over here!"
Gesturing to something on her phone while Edgar shook his head in denial, Octavia was there and she beamed merrily as the duo approached, while the blonde's only acknowledgement was to remove one earbud and tinker awkwardly with the bristles of the broomstick in his hands, the sole suggestion of his Supernatural nature. " And hello to you Adam, Eirik! What are you doing on this gorgeous afternoon? "
" We're off on a mission-something did something to the Colosseum and we're gonna find out what! But that's gonna be awhile, probably. Can we tag along with you two for now?"
" If you like-we're on a mission ourselves-"
" To find a car, nothing too expensive, just transportation for when the weather turns foul," Edgar murmured." Something I can modify easily.A tape deck would be nice too."
"-it's just to clear someone's rental house of any monsters before they put it up on the market."
" Sounds easy enough," Adam decided, his fingers twitching in anticipation and clenching around an invisible hilt. " Right, Eirik? We can get some points and make the leaderboard!"
"Y-yes,"the soft-spoken Eirik stuttered, head tilted back to stare at the towering Falkenberg, saturnine and somber in bearing, his lone greeting a twitch of his left brow. As the son of a cryptozoologist, few horrors of the Supernatural real could agitate him, and he was told to regard all unrecognized beasts with intrigue than horror, though warlocks, the most sinister of spellcasters, were one terror most proper wizards were wary of. Simultaneously, Edgar, whose interpersonal talents were inherently abysmal and only exacerbated by years with his loyal familiar Freyja as his lone company, found he was not only inclined towards silence, but it was instinctive to hold his tongue. This reticence was a double-edged sword, for though he devoted time to his alchemy and whatever subject his mood desired, he was rendered near mute, his voice hollow and stilted for all but the simplest of speech, and as such he couldn't reassure the frightened wizard. Adam and Octavia, both sanguine in attitude, could compensate for their bashful counterparts, satisfied with idle conversation of little importance, and as such lead the quartet on foot to the house in question, an impassive Edgar bringing up the rear despite his faster gait, and Eirik scuttling in-between and trying not to get too close.Curiously, they went unmolested, considering the alluring Octavia could garner lustful glances from men , and though Edgar was apathetic towards the attention of others, he was worthy of it for his height and long blonde hair, and Eirik wondered if the warlock had cast an illusion of incuriousness upon them so they could pass by disregarded by most. The house in question was about three blocks from Adam's, in one of the streets of a gridlike subdivision finishing in a cul-de-sac, so characteristic of many a mundane Midwestern suburb, another undistinguished ranch house with muted siding earthy in tone and a tarnished grey, chain-link fence encircling the perimeter, a sign in the yard indicating it was for sale and for interested parties to call 1-800-BUMPKIN.
"The description said to enter through the back and that the front is locked or something, "Octavia explained before Adam could clasp the doorknob, and he moved aside. "And to check the basement in particular-they've been having Centicrawler problems. There's also a spell that should kick in once all the pests are gone as well, but it doesn't elaborate.
"Well, for a monster infested house, it looks pretty normal to me, "Adam shrugged, peeking into the windows to see the vacant interior was as unremarkable as the exterior, not even a resident spider lounging in a spiderweb or fluffy dust bunny to add personality." Just empty!"
"That means they're probably hiding until you're right on top of them. Remember the ghoul?"
"Oh yeah..."
"Here, why don't you and Eirik go check the yard while we clear out the house?" Octavia suggested. Inherently attuned to other's emotions, she was aware of Eirik's alarm at the presence of a warlock, and as a compassionate soul, reasoned that he'd best be partnered with Adam in spite of their inexperience and opposing personalities.
"Ah, proper amenities, "Adam sighed blissfully, pounding a fist on his breast as he gazed upon the little brown shack in the yard with a crescent moon adorning it's gnarled door, though his euphoria was short-lived as in lieu of a latrine there was a rake, spade, and hoe as well as a flowerpot whose earth was panked and barren with the label Man-Eating Lotus of Nubia.Meanwhile, as a wizard of the dynamic earth, Eirik was attentive to all subterranean activity, from magma boiling and bubbling through volcanic pipes to the gnashing of tectonic plates thrust against each other if he were to focus, and he knelt with his palm flattened to the grass to listen for creatures. The shallow murmur of tunneling was less impressive than hearing the earth shiver and creak, but it seemed amplified as if whatever creature was ascending, and he balked, calling to his teammate. " Adam! Look out!!!"
"YEOWWW!!!"the brunet, who had been knocking on the shed's walls to see if anything had taken up residence and chuckling at the pot howled as a puncturing pain struck his meaty backside, and he fell to the ground rubbing it soothingly only to land on something with a delightful crunch in turn, then a subsequent pool of fetid blue ooze .He quivered as he rose, one hand against the shed as the knots of crabgrass choking the lawn trembled and tunnelling up were the familiar Serket's Deathstalkers, glossy black save for noxious green snaked across their clicking pincers and carapaces, at least ten or so were coiled around him and one behind him. "Wow, that just sent the value of the property plummeting!"
"I'll get these five!"Tephra Bomb!!""Eirik cast, thrusting his hand forwards to blacken the skies as if midnight, though these volcanic clouds flared crimson and frothed aloft, casting down a deluge of small stones to crush about half of the Deathstalkers, the grass stained cerulean from the onslaught of lapilli. An indebted Adam, ashamed that for all his bluster and brashness he had been rescued twice by the serene little wizard, tossed his zweihander cockilly in one hand before his fist furled around the burnished hilt and he swung at the nearest Deathstalker, cleaving the stinging arachnid in two. Jubilant at his victory, and a bit dizzy from sheer joy, Adam advanced on the next one to impale it,hacking and slashing until not one was left, rancid blue scorpion's blood soaking into the lawn.
"That's twice that you've saved me, Eirik, it's only fair that I do the same for you,"Adam declared proudly, impaling one straggling Deathstalker before it could withdraw,clicking and chittering, into the churned earth once more, and somehow it gave one final vocalization before dripping away to blue, and Eirik gave a meagre smile." You don't need to do anything, Adam, though I'm grateful."
" Well that was fun anyhow...we'll have to do it again sometime."
"Maybe, though I think we've gotten rid of all of the ones in the yard, "Eirik began, crouching down to listen for the thumping vibrations of subterannean beasties, but heard only a lone thrum grim in timbre that seemed to crescendo as it writhed below. "Huh..."
"What?"
"There's something else down there and it's not exactly tiny..."
"Can you tell what it is?"
Before Eirik could reply, the earth was cleaved asunder with a great rumble where they stood,the quaking tremors spawning a small enough fissure of worrisome depth, other cracks twisting forth in a six foot radius from it,and as the earth ruptured open,the duo tumbled down to the bottom amidst the pebbles, clods of earth with roots dangling downwards, and remnants of the lawn.
"Well they did say they had trouble with Centicrawlers!!!"
---
Upon entering the house, Octavia sighed, realizing she was now tasked with the insurmountable struggle that was Edgar as a partner, and she lamented her hasty declaration that Adam and Eirik work as a team. Resigned to her decision, she turned to the blonde, her sly, clever mind crafting the perfect permutation of sweet words and syrupy tone so compelling to most men, and a few women, to persuade him to accept her direction in clearing the house, but he was already down the hall. Immersed once more in his own mysterious little world, headphones in to further silence the real world around him, Edgar dismissed himself before she could proceed, stalking towards the attic and murmuring to nobody in particular about clearing it and the basement if she were to address the first( and only) floor. Irked that she couldn't beguile Edgar, who cared for little more than his hobbies and his familiar, with one of her usual enticing gesticulations, a tilt of her head or a flip of her glossy raven hair, she scowled at his back and sighed once more, deciding to just clear the floor alone with her usual cheer. Even a world where aristocracy had fallen out of favor for a more egalitarian way of thinking, she was still a noblewoman at heart, and it was unbecoming of someone of her station, beauty, and age to pout and sulk. That, and as the face of the group who accepted missions for their quartet( both self-appointed positions), she had not so conveniently forgotten to share the final segment of their mission, the promise that any items of value they recovered were theirs to keep, and as a thief, she could detect such treasures by instinct, and was eager to see what she could discover...
Meanwhile, Edgar glid slowly like a ghost through the attic, the silent, windowless room isolated from even the most meagre shimmer of sunlight, and yet the dusky, dreary ambience soothed him, a refuge from the scorching light of day that made his head buzz blearily, and with no hurry in his step he continued, as if he were a mere observer. His earbuds were silent, a mere shield against excess communication, and instead, he swayed gently, as he usually did when content, to a sort of melancholic dirge that perpetually played in the back of his head, humming softly as he looked around. The only pieces of furniture worth any mention were the blocky silhouettes of a few steamer trunks and suitcases that were empty, with little alteration to offer concealed compartments, and once he had opened all of them with little fracas save for the stream of mothballs after he opened one upside down, the last one remained and he inherently knew there was something lurking within the weathered, fraying wood of the trunk. Upon unclasping the latches and pushing it open, the attic grew arid as if it were a desert and they tumbled out, at least a hundred of the wretched arthropods and began to scuttle around on the floor. They had red, flattened heads and segmented trunks spanning a yard from fang to tail and adorned with black armor dappled a revolting poison green and each of the 23 divisions of it's spindly form bearing only one pair of legs, a disappointingly low count given their title of Centicrawler, or Sonoran Centicrawlers to be more specific, and Edgar drew his broomstick.
Octavia closed the final bedroom door, the last of the rooms to be explored on this floor with nothing noteworthy other than dust clods of worrying proportions-the only hidden objects were the wiring behind the walls, a dully Mundane artifact, and she was about to close her eyes to hone in on the presence of whatever treasures lurked within the house when she heard something thud in the attic. Not 5 seconds later, she had pulled down the latch to the attic and ascended into it, but rather than the undisturbed, murky air in which dust particles idled, she stepped out to see a blue sky uncluttered by any atmospheric bodies save for a piercing white hot sun staring from up on high, and in spite of her warm-blooded origin, she could feel herself sweat. Unconstrained by the asphalt tiles and planks of what should have been a roof, there was boundless desert before her, small peaks on the horizon that may have been a range of mountains as the only possible end to it. She rubbed her eyes, but the windswept basin of sand fanned out in soft dunes and interspersed with craggy outcroppings of basalt was still before her, with scraggly, thorny scrub and other small,rough plants taking root in the pale soil, and she stepped forward, boots creating shallow indents into the sand. It seemed real in appearance and sensation, but as she approached the nearest colossal Saguaro cactus, her hand went through the broad, prickly trunk and she saw the air ripple and revert for an instant to the shadows of the attic before resuming the illusion, and she sighed. "Alright Edgar, what are you doing?"
"Materializing, "a translucent Edgar whose form gradually regained it's color replied from behind, and though his tone was hushed and ghostly as normal, she was still startled. "Don't do that!"
"Shh..."the warlock murmured as the sand shifted and a hundred or so Centicrawlers seemed to converge on them
"Where did all of these come from? "Octavia wailed, kicking at one with her thick soled sneakers and flinching in revulsion. "Yeurgh!"
"The Southwestern United States, hence the Sonoran Centicrawler name, and they usually hide underground or under rocks and in dead cacti, so I reasoned it would be best to mimic their natural habitat and corral them into one area," he replied, broomstick held by his side as he had a deep, eerie violet Magick swirling around his other palm, his grey eyes flashing blue as he cast a spell without speaking and the Centicrawlers still in the presence of whatever spell he was casting." Then I trap them."
"Why are you trapping them? Why not just get rid of all of them quick?"
"I want to get at least one sample-their venom and legs can be used in alchemy and they're hermaphroditic so I don't need to get one of each sex to breed them for more. The Ore Creek apothecary didn't have any in stock,"Edgar said blankly, grey eyes glazed dully as he looked over his collection of Centicrawlers. "I think you'll do."
Slipping his thin hands into the cavernous pockets of his patched up jeans, enchanted like all his other garments by a hammerspace glamour that rendered the dimensions of pockets or any form of storage limitless, he pulled out a motley of assorted trinkets whose included a square notepad where he recorded his personal writings, three shades of ballpoint pen( black for drawing, colored for script), batteries, scissors, a deck of cards for solitaire and finally pulling out a Mundane glass jar with a canvas lid. Octavia, despite her arachnid nature, drew back as he picked up the largest wriggling specimen barehanded and slid it into the jar, it's meter-long body diminishing tenfold thanks to the same sort of glamour Edgar applied to his clothing.
"They said Centicrawler problem, but that seems a bit much," Edgar said, holding up his captured Centicrawler to examine it with hints of fondness in his eyes, then securing it in his jacket once more. "Besides, these are just nymphs- I think their adult form is about 6 and a half feet on average, but some have gotten up to 8 or 9 feet."
"You're keeping those in that landfill you call a room!"
"Although that was underwhelming, it didn't seem like it was just one mission," Edgar, ignoring her last remark said, Octavia curiously finding she agreed and nauseating as the 100 or so Centicrawlers were, they still didn't seem like they could constitute an entire task. "Unless there's more remaining..."
"I don't know- I was trying to find whatever treasure might be hidden here, but if there is any, it's probably down in the basement."
"And maybe the last Centicrawler too?"
"That's usually how it is," Octavia began, her whipsword at her hip, the frosted opals glowing a soft green in the dark as the desert illusion faded away, and she gave it a crack. "Now if you're done picking out your new pet Centicrawler, I'd like to get rid of these and finish our mission!"
Edgar shrugged in his expected apathetic manner, but his broomstick had transformed from Mundane cleaning utensil to weighty, midnight black bismuth halberd sparking with violet shadow Magick, and as if it were a compass, he tipped the narrow spear end to the floor to etch a circle around him that flared with the same ethereal Magick that kept the Centicrawlers scampering towards him away. Meanwhile Octavia thrust out her whipsword, the burnished braided copper with gleaming blades forged from the same metal furling out with a snap and in two she cleaved ten of them in a burst of bleary blood and fragmented exoskeleton that wafted away to contribute to the endemic dust population of the house , flicking her wrist to dispose of at least five more. Continuing from within his radius of murky Magick, drifting from a deep purple to almost black as he flickered between opaque, translucent, and invisible forms, Edgar held his hand aloft to cast his first spell. "Shadow Lance!"
From his fingertips a shot of midnight black Magick wreathed in a ghostly violet illumination broke in a tapered line that impaled at least 20 as it coursed through the yuck of Centicrawlers, and another thrust from Octavia had another fifth squirming in their copper bondage as without a murmur the warlock sent down a storm of the same shadowy Magick in orbs, wispy purple light hovering around them as they struck the ensnared Centicrawlers into chalky grey. In this manner the two dispatched the entire horde of vile arthropods in less than a minute, Octavia snapping her whip to both dissever and squeeze the ones entangled in the fibres to dust approaching beasts while Edgar silently cast his ghastly,shadow-borne Magick upon them, occasionally reverting to his halberd to spear or slice any who were hardened to the shadows until the two were left with little more than the miasma of blanched dust.
"Alright, we're that much closer to completing our mission, "Octavia declared, pulling out the card she had gotten from the Colosseum cataloguing the stipulations of this mission. "We just have to clear the basement of Centicrawlers, I can check to make sure we've got everything, and then we regroup with those two outside.
---
As they fell, Adam twisted in the ten feet or so between the lawn and the earth below to land on his back, reaching out for Eirik and holding him close to his chest to cushion the wizard with his burly form, and indeed his ample flesh suffered negligible bruising, and Eirik stood with his hand raised at shoulder level, faint flames wrapped around his hand to guide their path. They stood in a cavern carved about eight feet tall, the borders lost in shadows in either direction, not a grain of soil loose it was so well dug. " Huh-it looks like a cave or something."
"Or a tunnel, "Eirik corrected, running his fingers over the ragged gashes slashing through the soil as if cored out by innumerable claws while the adjacent earth looked to be compacted as if it were pressed firm, and he placed his palm against it and concentrated, thick orange earth Magick churning up his wrist with a silent spell that shot slight tremors through the ground that would refract back to him and let him size up the dimensions of any chamber." And an impressive one at that-it ends under the house and extends onward in the opposite direction for at least another acre..."
"Tunnel?" Adam blanched, bracing his nerves as he sensed the uneasy notes of hesitance in his tone, and he clenched his bare fist while the other rested on the hilt of his Zweihander."Right, a tunnel. Well, I've got my eyes peeled for whatever made it."
"Oh I don't think you'll need to do that."
"Huh?" Adam asked before the sound of legs scooping out bits of earth resounded louder and louder to the point he could hear it, and he was grateful for his empty bowels when he saw the ten foot long, red faced beast scrape it's way into the hollow he and Eirik had landed in, it's segmented, blotchy green and black body throbbing with the cadence of it's simple tubular heart and though he had only heard of them, he knew this had to be the Centicrawler the homeowners took umbrage with. It reared up, half of it's body furled midair with it's tapered legs ready to spear either one of them when it plummeted to the ground, it's fangs, as far across in width as Eirik was tall scissoring open, and this monstrosity howled as it crashed down to the ground and began an undulating chase after it's prey;for two boys, one a smidge over five foot and the other a tenth of a ton in flesh, the two could run with proper incentive such as a colossal centipede after them, as they were halfway down the other end of the tunnel.
---
The basement, critical for a house in the cyclone-afflicted Midwest, was at the bottom of a dozen or so cinderblock stairs with thin strips of burnished tin at the edges, and while it was completely excavated, it's walls were a dingy, musty brown with a stagnant, airless odor, the murky yellow lightbulb humming as it was slowly summoned to life in it's wire cage and an old pest strip hanging in the corner as it's sole decorations." Alright, treasure, treasure..."
Octavia closed her eyes as if deliberating on something, murmuring of invigoration to stimulate her powers to perceive what was obscured from all but her sight."You're here and I know it, show yourself to me...you can't hide..."
"Hey, look,"Edgar pointed to one of the corners where there was an irregularity in the imperfectly dug junction distinguishing between wall and ceiling and there was a perfect curve sculpted only by man, and Octavia felt a sort of euphoria surge through her blood at the revelation of what she was hunting, an inherent indication that she had discovered the treasure on her mind." That's it-whatever it is!
" It looks like a jar of seeds," Edgar murmured, digging the small, grubby jar out of the earth." Not sure what though-do you think they'll notice if I...take some samples?"
"Seeds? That's all? Be my guest!" Octavia responded but took the jar nonetheless after Edgar procured a smaller jar on his first attempt from his jeans and liberated a pinch of seeds from it and handed it off to her, where she fit them safely inside her top, and Edgar seemed to nod his head from side to side. " Well,seeds are more important than you think-there's even a vault of seeds stored in the permafrost of Svalbard off the coast of Norway for when the nuclear holocaust comes and what's left of humanity need to start over-it's only been withdrawn from once so far."
" Well it's not exactly something I'd call treasure but to each their own-it's obviously of high enough value to the homeowners and they seemed pretty bummed out about forgetting it," Octavia decided." And I think it's time to stick a fork in this mission, because it's done! All we have to do is meet up with those two and get them to sign off on the mission's card..."
"Uh, that might be a bit premature," Edgar said, popping in both earbuds as he felt the earth convulse beneath him. the trodden soil beginning to tremble with activity, and the two retreated to the furthest corner as gouging it's way through the basement floor was a behemoth that could only be the true beast responsible for the Centicrawler troubles, and thrust upwards as it emerged were their terrified younger teammates Adam and Eirik, ascending with the creature they had been fleeing and getting knocked in the air by the sheer force of it.
"I've got you!" Octavia exclaimed, dwindling in size to her spider form in an instant and traversing the distance of up the walls and onto the ceiling where she seemed to spit her wispy, improbably strong spider's silk in two series of threads that braided into two long plaits that snared the duo midair, and with a ginger touch, she lowered them to the floor."And we were just talking about you.
"Big...freaky..centipede..."Adam greeted her, heterochromatic gaze wide as he mishandled his zweihander, the Centicrawler scurrying up the far wall and onto the ceiling towards the quartet.
"Noted."
"I'm sorry, I panicked completely, "Eirik apologized, scrunching up his nose like a rabbit, his moon face ruddy with shame at his atypical panic as she cut them free, but he was dismissed by the other three, Edgar casting an inaudible spell with his halberd at the ready that had the dimness pulsating with a wall of violet streaked with black and a fierce blue that the Centicrawler could not pass through for now, and there was a suggestion of kindness in his voice as he spoke. " So? Everyone panics. You saved us the trouble of going hunting for this thing, so that's good-we took out it's young already. "
"And this one shouldn't be any harder,would you two like the honor? It's your first mission after all and it would be a great way for you to get some points."
" Definitely...if nothing else, just to shut Garret up."
"Adam, one thing-adult Centicrawlers usually have a harder exoskeleton than the nymphs," a now composed Eirik said." You'd have to actually get under the armor or attack it's mouth to do damage to it. I think I have a plan though."
"I'm all ears," Adam replied, Octavia and Edgar deep in their own planning, the thief's finger's aflutter with anticipation, and the wizard cleared his throat." Alright what if Falkenberg were to drop his shield and Octavia were to ensnare it before it can do anything? I could keep it distracted with my volcanic magic and you and Falkenberg could get onto it's back and pry it's armor off and attack the soft body underneath?"
Adam, still conscious of how little he had contributed to the mission nodded, bold and assured as he drew his sword, Edgar dropping the barrier of shadow Magick and Octavia concurrently lashing out her whip and catching it around it's head, tugging it to the ground. "Go go go!"
Edgar, all lanky limbs and stringy muscles, had scrabbled onto it's back before it could clamor and delved the axe blade of his halberd beneath the juncture between the slabs of armor encasing it's head and body and using his weapon like a lever, stomped on the end closest to him and forced this piece of exoskeleton off,hopping back as it arched into a perfect C. Adam, who's burly form was less adept at the gangly warlock's acrobatics , nonetheless managed to mount the Centicrawler and crawled up it, clinging with as much brute strength as he could find as it bucked in vain, both warlock and fighter secure on it's lower half. While it couldn't charge them with it's head and mandibles, said tail was still free and after some squirming of it's back end finally forced the two into a retreat, it swung this half of it's body towards them, Edgar bending backwards and Adam ducking as Eirik caught it on it's second swing with a spell. "Lava Rocket!!!"
While the Centicrawler's maw was closed, it's face was directly struck by the bubbling, dripping melted orange rock, and it flailed in agony, tail withdrawing from attacking to thrash from the blow as Adam and Edgar scaled the Centicrawler once more. In it's writhing, Octavia's whip had loosened, but from her fingertips she sent out sturdier threads of silk suited to such unconstrained behavior, and they drew around it's mandibles to close them as Adam and Edgar scaled the beast. Part of it's face was warped and swirled messily where it had been hit with magma, black smoke the remnant of Eirik's volcanic assault, and the wizard continued to pelt it with smaller rocks and bursts of fire at the most feeble of movements to let his teammates continue. The simultaneous use of Edgar's halberd for lifting up pieces of armor, sinews binding it to the pulsating flesh straining and stretching before snapping and Adam's Zweihander for goring it's soft body ensured that the two had damaged the sturdy creature in minutes as it wiggled in it's metal ties, but it didn't seem to care for their intent. In one final attack, the dying Centicrawler broke through Octavia's whip and silk, raised it's entire ten-foot body, and thrust it's head into the ceiling, loose dirt beginning to trickled down ominously as another set of cracks shot across the ceiling above
"Oh, try to take us with you?" Edgar murmured, the first words he had spoken throughout the entire fight and he jammed his entire halberd beneath the plate of it's head, save for enough of the pole for him to handle and pushed down." Adam!"
"Yeah, like that's ever gonna happen!" the brunet laughed cockily, knowing what to do, and he slammed the blade of his zweihander down into it's pliant body and this last blow was enough to make it bay one more time, contorting in pain as it was defeated, each segment bursting into greyish blue viscousness just as the earth surrendered to the burden of the lawn above and tumbled inwards on itself as Adam dragged Edgar by the pulseless hand from the dirt and rocks."Alright! We did it!"
"Yes you did, and that was a beautiful job, Adam,"Octavia complimented genuinely, not trying to flatter him or twist him around her finger this time as she coiled her whip back into an emerald bracelet."You as well, Eirik."
"I'm flattered, Octavia, but I just sort of distracted it, and well, I ran from it at first,"Eirik said."But I can us out of here! I'd feel better if I did, knowing that I did something for the group!"
"Well, if you insist- I was thinking about using silk to lift you two out."
"Eirik nodded, leading the quartet to the hole in the basement floor, where he knelt with his hand to the floor of the tunnel, the same orange earth Magick clumping around his thin, pale forearm as he closed his eyes in casting a spell, and the ground seemed to elevate itself until it collided with the ceiling of the tunnel, the four of them perhaps two feet below the edge of the hole."There! The Centicrawler tunnel beneath the yard has been sealed up and I can take care of this hole in no time!"
He did just that, casting a spell to distribute the sand of the basement over the shallow hole and soon the four were out once more in the muggy sunshine of summer, cicadas trilling in the trees.
"Uh, just one thing, "Adam remembered as Octavia seemed to be doing something with a small card and Eirik was blinking in confusion at the sudden illumination . "There's a giant gaping hole in the backyard-how do we explain that?"
"Michigan is a very wet state, correct? You're never more than 6 miles away from some form of water,or 85 miles away from one of the Great Lakes," Edgar spoke." It's to be expected a subterranean creek flowing below the street has lead to sinkhole activity, correct? It isn't a severe case,but a small hole opened up right under someone's yard, and it's troubling enough for the county to come deal with it in a few days...they have already been notified." As he spoke, he was gathering fallen twigs, the supple wood shifting from errant portion of branch to square yellow sandwich boards bearing an announcement of warning and short wire fences that he placed around the cul-de-sac to dissuade all who could traverse over the Centicrawler burrow, and Adam withheld his stare after a few seconds. Though they resembled said simple Mundane barriers in look and texture, he still couldn't believe they were signs and the illusion seemed to flicker with his doubt and his head spun as he began to doubt his perception, then realized it was Edgar's Magick taking hold and that the confusion was meant to deter Mundanes if the signs weren't adequate warning.
"Well Adam, you had a taste of what us Supernaturals do. Wasn't it fun?" Octavia asked, showing him the card she had previously out, a simple piece of white cardstock edged in black and orange foil, the Ore Creek Coliseum emblem in the corner and it had a list of tasks- Please get rid of my Centicrawler problem, this house is up for sale in two days and Please comb the house for any items we missed when packing-reward for forgotten valuables, as well as two stars at the bottom to denote it's difficulty.
"That wasn't too bad- besides, I think I got out of mowing the lawn,"Adam joked, then snarled in alarm when he felt something searing his broad thigh in the pocket of his shorts and he pulled out his wallet, the peeling duct tape illuminated red, and he pulled out the foil card he had forgotten about an hour earlier to see the golden ink still moist upon it's already crinkled surface cataloguing the total of monsters he had eliminated and their value according to the Coliseum's rules. Eirik had one as well, though it was smooth and orange, being kept neatly in his wallet and he seemed satisfied. Together, the two had defeated five Serket's Deathstalkers each, worth 60 points apiece, while the Sonoran Centicrawler nymphs earned them 15 points per specimin and the fully grown Centicrawler was worth 100 points to be reaped evenly by the duo as Edgar and Octavia had forfeited their points to their mortal teammates. The brunet watched in joy as the totals were listed and added up by some sort of Magick and his final total of points, 1100,set him at what the Coliseum designated a level 1 Supernatural( 10000 points were required to ascend to the next level), while Eirik, at a comfortable level 7, stayed at his position and accumulated them." Huh, what's this? "
"That's just a measure of how experienced of a fighter you are by the Coliseum's standards,"Eirik explained. "It's not the best measure of strength or practice in the real Supernatural world, but it's still a fun way to see who's done the most in the area, and I think you can get some rewards from the Coliseum the more points you earn."
"Well hey, level 1's not bad, I'm just getting started, after all..."
To be continued..."