After checking my phone for the directions, my walk brought me back by the well and down the eastern most pointed path. It took several cat memes and a few goofy songs played from that same phone to calm me down after my last excursion. Sitting on the side of the well abandoned by the three kids that used to be there, I closed out of the app I had open and took in a deep breath. One group didn't have to ruin it for me. Yet, a part of me couldn't understand why someone like Taylor ran with people like all of them. Why Abigail promoted them to Moderator, I would never know.
I paced down the path that my directions told me to take, keeping my mind off what had happened by humming songs until I came up on a lofty barn. A coat of arms hung from both of the rolling doors, both of which just barely stood open. People mingled around, visiting mostly, and looked my way as I stepped into their little clearing. After examining my appearance, I received smiles and waves. A bit of my worries melted away. Yeah, the Badgers had to be the black sheep of this game. Justin was right. This place would be better.
I walked in through the large doors, and a boy repeatedly hitting a punching bag greeted me. He turned when he heard my feet hit the wooden floor, and produced one of the dorkiest smiles I had ever seen.
"Guess you're the new kid, right?" He asked, rolling his shoulders. The bottom layer of his hair gleamed in a stark brown color, but at the top, fluffed with hair gel, his bright bottle blonde hair shined. His deep amber eyes seemed cheerful, and the tanned skin that wasn't covered by his tank top was drenched in sweat, probably from working out all day. Dark ink wrapped around his arms and neck in the form of tattoos. When he smiled, the light from the open door gleamed on the multiple facial piercings he had. My parents wouldn't even let me get highlights in my hair. How did he get this approved? Then again, maybe he was eighteen, and a senior. "Nashita's waiting' for you."
He walked towards the stairs at the side of the lofty barn, waving me to come with him. "I'm Rudy; I don't care about my last name. Most people call me Rowdy, though; it helps differentiate from another kid named Rory." The boy offered an explanation, headed up the stairs. "I'm our Moderator. It's nice to meet you. Your name is Felicity, right?"
"Yeah, but you can call me Fey." I answered, and he nodded after thinking about it.
When we reached the second level of the barn, I spotted the person he must've been talking about. She was bent over a map, and adjusting the folds of fabric around her ears. Her hijab looked like it was made for sports and active wear, much tighter on the bottom layer so that it wouldn't fall or slow her down. Her eyes were a gorgeous dark coal color, examining the paper with intelligence, and her shirt bore the images of a sword, halo, and angel wings. Her facial features were undeniably beautiful. She looked up at me and smiled, waving her hand to invite me over.
Thanks, God. Now I'll have to choose between all the pretty girls. This is not a stupid novel about fighting romance.
"Sounds good to me." Rowdy answered, smiling lightly. "This is our Administrator."
"I'm Nashita Baksh," She smiled with pretty, white teeth. "It's nice to meet you. Fey, was it? I think that's what you said coming up the stairs."
"Yeah," I smiled back, feeling patches of heat rise into my face. I could think she was pretty and not hit on her. I mean, I thought Rowdy was handsome, but I didn't even want to hit on him. "That's me."
"Cool. You seem like a pretty capable person." Nashita stood, pushing the map aside and walking past me towards the stairs. "Are you ready for your screening process?"
I swallowed the bile in my throat. She couldn't come up with anything worse than what Abigail had tasked me with. Man up, and kill Taylor. The words still echoed in head, taunting me for being incompetent but also praising me for avoiding what she asked of me. After all, it was just a joke, a way of keeping me out of their little group. What would she have done if I actually did what she said?
"Yeah. I'm ready," I affirmed, following her downstairs and out the back of the barn.
"First part of your screening is simple." She continued as soon as we were outside, Rowdy following close behind and listening to her every word. The people from the front had gathered around at this side of the barn, where it looked like there was some sort of target practice set up. "You just answer questions to the best of your ability. Try to answer what you'd do in that situation."
"First question," She started, crossing her arms. "Are you more afraid of death or not really living?"
"Uh," I paused, really having to think about it. After a long silence, I finally attempted to answer. "Not really living. I think dying would be better if I just lay around and did nothing."
"Number two is: our team is faced with being attacked by a much more radical team that out numbers us and will most likely be able to raid our territory. Do you try to reason with them, distract them, lead a siege against them before they attack, or defend at home?" The girl asked and smiled as the words left her throat.
"Uh," I thought over the options. "Probably defend at home. If it's done well enough they'll be forced to go back, being radical means reason won't stop them, neither will distractions. And hitting them first is a bad idea because of the lack of numbers."
"Question three," Nashita started, expression unwavering. "You need something from one of our locker stores. You find it's locked upon trying to open it. Do you come find me or Rowdy, try to pick the lock, break the locker, or forget about the problem?"
"Probably go to you guys. You'd have the keys, right?"
"Of course we'd have the keys," Rowdy laughed, shaking his head. "But honestly, I would have just picked the lock. They'll get over it." He snickered, until Nashita gave him the sternest look she could manage, that could probably curdle blood. He straightened up instantly.
"Four. And Rowdy will be better off to keep his mouth shut." Nashita grumbled, eyeing the much taller, much stronger boy down. He seemed more intimated by her than a death warrant. "If you find an unidentified artifact, in our own territory, what do you do with it?"
"Everyone's been talking about artifacts since I got here, I don't really understand what they are. Mind explaining?" I asked, tilting back on my feet. Just about the only thing I knew about them is they had something to do with the game.
"Oh, right. Um, the artifacts are the in-game equivalents of points and loot. Some of them are like trophies, so they raise our ranking. Copper Phoenix is third right now, according to the posters in the school and online roster. Whoever is the first in the rankings at the end of the year gets to pick the major plotline for next year." She smiled brightly.
"Which," Rowdy snorted, interrupting her. "For the past three years, this has been the stupid Badgers. They control everything: the plot, the stories, and the events. It's kinda bullshit, but, hey, not my fault. We just gotta beat them this year."
"Right," Nashita nodded, a look of disappointment crossing her face as well. "So we just need to make sure that another team wins this year, even if it isn't us." She sighed, and then continued her previous words. "At all costs, we can't help the Badgers."
"Even though Nashita is sweet on Taylor." Rowdy affirmed, grinning.
"I am not sweet on Taylor, you schmuck!" Nashita barked, wagging her finger at the grinning boy. Something in her tone indicated that she wasn't sweet on Taylor, but she was sweet on someone else.
"Anyway," Nashita tapped her foot as the heat fell from her face. "Some items you gain can be like, character boosts. My brother has a necklace making him immune to werewolf attacks." She smiled, acting proud of the achievement.
"I had a brace that's supposed to up my character power, but I think I sold it to... to uh, what's her name? Oh well. I sold it to a girl for an artifact that's worth group points." Rowdy shrugged, as if it really was the best decision in the world. I guess it did help the team, though, didn't it?
"So now that it's been explained, if you find an unidentified artifact, in our own territory, what do you do with it?" Nashita asked.
"Bring it back home, show it to you. That way, if a member dropped it, someone can return it. If it's... an enemy's, we can steal it? Or if it's new you can identify it."
"One last thing, Fey." Nashita prompted. "Would you like to join us? If so, you will take an oath."
I remained silent, thinking over my options. Even though the Badgers had initially accepted me, I guess I didn't exactly pass their 'screening' to get in. It was just a joke just meant to keep me out of their elite little club up in the clouds. Why did they even accept me in the first place, then? It stung. Bronzed Syndicate and Vanguard's Elite had denied me instantly, so they were a no go.
Crimson Gauntlet was a possible choice, with Rachel, Justin, and Harriet. Gosh, I could be with Rachel all the time, and go on adventures with her throughout this crazy year. Then again, I barely knew her. What if I didn't like her? The team at the well acted as if I was some kind of joke when I walked out of their territory.
Copper Phoenix stood third in the rankings, which meant they had a chance at a win. Rowdy seemed strong and capable, while Nashita acted intelligent. They actually had a screening process, a way to filter out choices that were bad to the team, versus the non-existent ones of the Gauntlet players. Phoenix truly sounded like the best choice.
"Yeah, I think you're the place for me." I couldn't help the grin that strung itself across my face.
"I'm glad." Nashita held out her hand, worn from constant writing. "Felicity Norris, do you promise to hold the ideals of your team above all else, and make all of your acts promote their success?"
"Yeah, of course." I took her hand, firmly shaking it. I could feel a bit of pride warm my chest, convincing me this was definitely the best choice. People that stood a fair distance away began to hoot, holler, cheer, and clap. It felt like they were making a huge show, all just for me. I was a Phoenix now, and somehow, I already felt right at home.
"Welcome to Copper Phoenix." Nashita smiled, squeezing and then releasing my hand as we went back inside, surrounded by the excited flurry of people from outside. I voiced my thanks, only for Rowdy to welcome me with a firm punch in the shoulder that just about knocked me to the ground. After regaining my balance, I noticed his excited expression as he pointed to the map on the north wall that almost entirely took it up. It looks like everything was set up in a weird semi-circle.
The well settled in the middle of the map, and everything south of it was unclaimed school territory. I noted that the buildings were marked as 'peaceful' spaces. Then, colored in jagged lines at the north half, were five different sections of land. The one most east was marked 'Phoenix', colored in orange. Someone clearly marked the barn as 'HQ'. The one most to the north was colored in silver, and had 'Badgers' scrawled across it, with the small cottage I'd visited earlier marked as their headquarters. Between us and them was a golden color, marked 'Syndicate', and their headquarters was marked in what looked to be a torn-up cellar of some sort. To the very west was 'Gauntlet', marked on the map by blue, and their small shack as their own headquarters. Finally, between them and the Badgers, was 'Vanguard', marked in a royal blue, and some sort of warehouse-type building as their base. Wow, this all looked so complicated.
"So, Fey." Rowdy smiled, draping an arm around my shoulder casually, like an older father figure. "You ready to visit the neighbors and give them some hell?"
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