—Chapter 21—

—Alex Kellan the Defector—

Once everyone was close, Xiang waved her hand.

Her illusions worked in an instant, wrapping around each person completely. Xiang gave everyone a new outfit and altered their natural appearance, but didn’t actively conceal their identity.

Mavis’s jeans and shirt had been replaced with a military uniform. Not any military that Kellan was familiar with, but he recognized the uniform conformity of insignias on the shoulder and collarbone. Mavis still wore pants, but now she had a long-sleeved jacket complete with a vest and undershirt. Fancy, and colored mostly black with white accents.

And her faint scars were gone.

Her purple hair was more reddish and “naturally colored.” And while Kellan already found her attractive, Mavis lost any and all imperfections.

Sen’s robes became a beautiful red and gold. They flared with color, shimmering like the soft reflection of water. While they didn’t shorten, they seemed more liquid and ethereal, flowing around his kid-like body.

Husker now wore a coat made of luxurious furs. Thin chains hang from some of the pockets, each attached to an illusionary pocket watch. Had Xiang created them to hide the sound of his actual chains? Kellan thought it clever.

When Kellan examined himself, he was both surprised and intrigued. His military outfit was covered in shadows. It reminded him of his cursed armor. The darkness moved around with his movements, like a shadowy echo. He wore the same outfit as Mavis—mostly black, with slight white accents—but his insignia and “rank” was different.

Mavis had one red-jasper bar on her collarbone and shoulder. Kellan had two silver bars.

“What is this?” Kellan asked, pointing at bars.

Xiang combed her inky hair with delicate fingers. “It indicates your highest rank of magic. You’re D rank eclipse. Silver is the color of eclipse magic. Your friend—” she said the word with a strain in her voice, “is E rank magma. Red is the color of her magic.”

Xiang motioned to her long white robes. On her shoulder, she wore five slate-gray bars.

“And you’re A rank?” Kellan surmised.

“Correct.”’

“And gray… is the color of mind magic?”

Xiang replied with a slight smile. “Exactly.” Then she smiled at the rest of the group. “Don’t fuss with your clothing or worry about my illusions failing. You’re protected when you’re with me. I’ve even taken the liberty of hiding your basic information from those with analysis abilities.”

When Kellan turned his attention to Sen and Husker, he took note of their ranking as well. Sen had four sandstone-tan bars. B rank. Tan for body magic. And when he glanced at Husker, the wolf had three bars of emerald-green. C rank. And green had to be for wyld.

“But we have multiple magics,” Kellan stated. “Why aren’t those colors included?”

Xiang dismissively waved away the comment. “You needn’t worry. Etiquette only requires a mage to announce their primary magic. We don’t have to announce any of our other talents.”

She turned, her whole body a work of art as she glided across the platform and around the glittering fountain. The last half the stairs awaited them. Xiang didn’t call or demand they follow, she just made her way up to the massive palace.

The bass continued to pulse through the ground, sending rhythmic waves through the soles of Kellan’s boots.

It was odd. He felt the blood in one boot, but when he glanced down, he couldn’t see it. Obviously, his new clothes were just illusions—and not really there—but his mind kept trying to play a trick on him.

It was unsettling.

Kellan walked with the others around the fountain. While Mavis and Husker admired the fixture, Kellan turned his attention to the few other guests. They also wore bars of various stones and colors on the collars of their outfits.

Three gold bars.

Four black bars.

Two green bars.

Kellan dwelled on the information. While his analysis gave him information, most of the time it was concealed. The bars were just clothing. Anyone could wear anything, couldn’t they? Would people lie about their magic and rank? Kellan wondered.

Then Kellan noticed something else. Each person on the steps of the AVU Palace had something tattooed on the back of their left hand. A number. He couldn’t get close enough to see the number exactly, but he could tell most had different numbers.

Why?

He decided to keep quiet for the time being, and followed the others up the steps.

Thirty stairs from the top, and Mavis slowed. Although she looked perfectly healthy, she did slow her pace and rub at her bad leg. When Kellan walked up, he offered his arm.

“Thank you,” Mavis said with a half-smile.

“Anything for a fellow soldier,” he replied.

Mavis took hold of his elbow, but they only made it a few steps before Xiang stopped and turned around.

“Don’t stand near each other,” she stated. “This will already be painful enough.” Then she pointed to Husker. “Help our other teammate if she’s having trouble. Once we start the games, we can find a reconstruction facility and Sen can help her rearrange her stats.”

Husker bowed his head slightly. “As you wish.” He walked down the steps and took Mavis from Kellan’s arm. “Don’t fret. Soon this won’t be a problem.”

Although Kellan wanted to protest, he stopped himself from doing so. Xiang rubbed at her face and turned away, her sullen expression more of a mystery than an irritant.

When they resumed their trek, the music from inside the palace became louder and louder. Sen lingered back until he was close to Kellan. Together, they walked side by side up the last few steps.

In a quiet voice—that was almost drowned out by the music—he said, “Don’t speak to anyone inside. And don’t do anything to embarrass my sister. We won’t be joining the festivities, so all you have to do is be good, and quiet, until our registration is complete. Is that understood?”

Kellan crossed his arms, his shadowy illusions adding to his menacing appearance. “Ya know, we’d probably get along a lot better if you stopped talking to me like an unruly punk.”

“We don’t need to get along well. You just need to heed my commands.”

“Or you’ll enforce your commands with your worms?”

Sen tapped the side of his head. “Despite the fact your IQ is sitting squarely at room temperature, you do manage to pick up on things quickly.”

The instant Kellan stepped on the top step, another message flashed across his vision and in his mind. It was so prominent and imposing, he was forced to pay attention.

The AVU Palace Oasis

You have entered an Oasis. While inside this non-conflict area, all mages are forbidden from initiating direct violence. Offensive magical abilities are limited. Any who attempt to circumvent this rule will answer to the Arbiter himself.

An Oasis?

Kellan snorted and laughed to himself. The palace prevented people from attacking? All the denizens of this dimension should stay here.

There were two sets of double doors into the palace, each thick wood with designs of dragons carved into the center. Pestbyters hovered around each of the doors, their spherical machine bodies hard to miss.

Neon colored lights flashed from within, the rock-techno continuing to increase with volume. The entire place felt like a rave, but Kellan couldn’t help but stare at the architecture. The palace was a mix of Gothic and Rococo design.

The palace was grand, theatrical, and with sweeping archways. The windows were large enough to drive a truck through, but also held together with iron bars and crafted with stained glass. Gargoyle-like statues of dragons were on most corners of the roof, and tall walls added to its imposing presence.

It was like five different time periods had smashed together into one building.

Xiang walked inside, ignoring the Pestbyters as she went.

Kellan didn’t feel as bold.

When the machine turned their camera-eyes on him, however, they didn’t attack or rush forward. They simply scanned the crowds like they were waiting for something. Kellan wasn’t that something.

With unsteady steps, Kellan made his way inside with Husker, Sen, and Mavis.

The moment they crossed the threshold, Kellan had to take a moment to absorb everything all over again.

There were hundreds of mages inside.

Kellan’s eyes flashed with so much information, he had to forcibly ignore it.

The Gothic interior was somehow mixed with machine-like parts. Clockwork walls, future doors, and neon lights made him feel like he had stepped onto the set of the Matrix. Tables and luxurious chairs were placed throughout the gigantic entrance foyer, as though this was a place to socialize before going deeper into the palace.

And there were two sets of stairways to higher levels, and at least half a dozen doors that led into the building. Kellan wasn’t sure where to even begin.

A loud voice pierced through the music, its pleasant tone a harsh juxtaposition to the terrible information.

“Registration for the Nexus Games will soon close. All outsiders who fail to register within the next five minutes will be branded a menace. The Justices and Pestbyters will remove you from the city—dead or alive.”

Despite the color lighting, it was easy to keep track of Xiang. Her white robes, and striking beauty, could be seen from across the city.

She walked to one of the massive doors—another one guarded by a hovering Pestbyter—and strode through. Husker and Sen hurried to keep up. Kellan and Mavis gave each other odd glances as they passed by other mages.

Most were human, but the rest ranged in all shapes and sizes.

Kellan even spotted a few machines. Androids? He wasn’t sure. He decided now wasn’t the time. They only had five minutes remaining.

But they were gathering attention… More and more mages were turning their way and pointing. Even the robots. Even the odd colored werewolves. Hell, even the Pestbyters swiveled their cameras over, watching as Kellan and Mavis walked through the door.

The beat of the fast-paced music heightened Kellan anxiety.

Something was wrong.

He didn’t know what, but there was clearly something everyone else knew—and he didn’t.

The room he entered was quieter than the foyer, and the music was different. It was some sort of slow tempo jazz, chill and unhurried. The room itself was a large—practically a ballroom in size—with betting windows across the back wall. Numbers were on screens overhead, including the number of mages and teams currently in the Nexus Games.

Dozens of mages stood around, most smoking black cigarettes.

Hane. Kellan had seen it before.

“Oh, look! If it isn’t Sun Xiang.”

The hyper voice matched the person it came from. A woman with an athletic build stepped out from a grouping of mages, her smile bordering on manic.

She had a Mohawk, her black hair spiked in all directions, and she wore a sleek suit of armor that reminded Kellan of a pilot’s outfit. It was a complete jumpsuit that hugged her body, with plates of hexagonal metal over most vital areas. The suit effortlessly moved with the woman, never hindering her, despite how much it should weigh. The whole suit was black, except for one arm, which was colored a hot pink.

Her shadow… it moved on its own. It even had a face—like a mask at a theater, with eyes that curved upward to display a smile. It waved to Kellan when he stared at it.

The woman’s ears and face were pierced with enough metal for a hardware store.

But Kellan didn’t care. All he wanted to see were the bars of rank on her collarbone.

Six black bars.

Black…

Kellan didn’t need anyone to explain. He already knew.

Entropy magic. The same kind that had almost killed him. And when his eyes gave him the basic analysis, he knew he had guessed correctly.

Name: Ysa Voight the Wraith

Race: Human

Magics: Entropy, Eclipse

Rank: Concealed

Armor Rating: Concealed

Health: Concealed

Stats: Concealed

Abilities: Concealed

“Greetings, Ysa,” Xiang said as the woman walked over. “If you don’t mind, I haven’t much time left.”

Ysa smiled wider, her gaze so intense, it was as if her irises were always moving. Twitching. Kellan wanted to say she was touched by madness, but he really didn’t know what was wrong with her.

Her shadows swirled around her feet, waving and smiling the entire time, regardless of what Ysa was physically doing.

“It’s a shame you don’t have your mother here to help you out,” Ysa said with a slight laugh. The few mages behind her exchanged laughs and whispered comments. “Although… since her other team died in the last Nexus Games, maybe she isn’t the best coach, huh?”

Xiang only offered a slight smile in response.

“Have you seen?” Ysa held up her left hand. She, too, had a number emblazoned on the backside. Hers read: 42. “All registered. Team 42.”

“Fantastic for you,” Xiang said, curt. “If you’ll excuse me. I’ll do the same.”

With a manic giggle, Ysa pointed to the screens above the booth. “I’m on the same team as your ex. Haven’t you seen? I think that’s rather hilarious, don’t you? Maybe if you had just listened… You could’ve joined us. We could’ve won this whole thing together.”

Xiang said nothing, her silence cold and icy.

“We’re here to enjoy the night before the games begin,” Ysa said, her voice more high-pitched than before. “Maybe you should have a few smokes on us before we have to fight? I swear we’ll treat you to some amazing—”

The woman glanced over at Kellan and caught her breath midsentence.

Kellan glanced over his shoulder, worried some sort of yami monster had wandered into the palace somehow. But there was nothing.

When he turned back around, Ysa was still staring, now the side of lip twitching. Even her shadow stared, its “eyes” just shadow-puppet circles, like it was shocked.

“You didn’t,” Ysa whispered, her delight growing with each second. “You. Didn’t.” When she burst out into laughter, it drew the attention of everyone in the betting room. The other mages, who had been minding their own business, were now focused on the commotion.

“Isn’t that Sun Xiang?” someone muttered.

“Daughter of the former winner, and one of the Descended of Zenith,” another chimed in. “The illusionist. You’ve seen her. I hope she’s not entering.”

“Wait, who’s that with her?”

“Damn. She must be entering. That’s her team, I assume. Oh, wait…”

Ysa’s cackle grated on Kellan’s nerves. When he turned to Xiang, he noticed she had become as still as a statue, her posture stiff. She waited, like this was inevitable.

Once Ysa had her laughter under control, she rubbed at her watering eyes. Even her shadow did the same, though it never made any noise.

“You found some alternate dimension version of your ex to compete with you in the games?” Ysa said, loud enough for everyone to hear. “Sun Xiang, that’s so pathetic. I had no idea you were that obsessed. Oh, this makes everything thirty times more hilarious.”

Her laughter resumed.

The shadow pantomimed laughing as well.

Kellan stiffened, his focus on the conversations around them.

“Wait, Sun Xiang sifted through other dimensions to find someone like her old fiancé?”

“That’s sad. I have to tell Jonsie right away. He’ll love this.”

Laughter haunted the corners of the room, like every group of mages were watching with rapt amusement. Even Kellan felt embarrassed and awkward, and he wasn't entirely sure what was going on.

Ysa instantly snapped out of her chuckling and smiled, like a light switch had been flipped and now she was ready to talk about something else. She pointed to the screen above the booth. “You think the real Alex is going to stand for this? The moment we find you out in the games, we’re going to smear the entire arena with your little faker’s blood.”

Kellan turned his attention to the screens.

Then he read the roster for “Team 42.”

Leader: Brenner Hawke, Traitor to Humanity

Member: Alex Kellan the Defector

Member: HR-8

Member: Ysa Voight the Wraith

Member: Viniss Tarkin the Vanguard Queen

With understanding dawning in her eyes, Mavis turned to Kellan.

“There’s another one of you here?” she whispered.

Kellan tensed, unsure of what to say. When he glanced at the other teams—99 others—he noted that his name never showed up again. No one else’s did. There wasn’t a second Sun Xiang or Sun Sen or Husker or even Mavis.

His name was the only one up there.

Ysa laughed again, this time and icy and cruel. “Oh, this is so perfect. Your Alex didn’t come from a dimension with magic, did he? He has no clue what’s going on. Xiang, be serious—did you actually think you were making a statement with this stunt?” Ysa poked her cheek and giggled. “Or did you think you were going to make him jealous?”

Her shadow dashed around the floor, no longer laughing. It seemed… angry.

But Xiang never answered.

Sen fidgeted with his long robes. Kellan hadn’t noticed until then, but his face was red and his hands unsteady.

“Registration for the Nexus Games will soon close. All outsiders who fail to register within the next minute will be branded a menace. The Justices and Pestbyters will remove you from the city—dead or alive.”

Xiang finally swept past, her expression unchanging. “Forgive me, Ysa. Perhaps we can speak later. Right now, I need to register.”

“Go ahead!” Ysa laughed again as she turned and headed for the door out of the betting room. “I can’t wait to tell the others. This is so perfect. I couldn’t have asked for anything better.” Her cackling echoed throughout the room as she left.

Without much time to ask questions, Kellan hustled to Xiang’s side. “Are you going to explain?”

“Once registration is finished,” she replied, cold and calm.

They approached a window flanked on either side by Pestbyters. Kellan felt himself involuntarily tense as they neared. The android behind the counter had no eyes or face. It was a series of machines, vaguely shaped like a person. When it spoke, it did so with an old-school radio-like voice, complete with static crackle.

“Hello there, boys and girls.” The android jerked from side to side. “You may register a team here. Please wait while I give you the disclaimers.”

Everyone waited, and then the android spewed a few sentences so fast, it would’ve given the Micromachines commercial a run for its money.

“Once you register for the Nexus Games, you will be unable to quit. All members of your team must be present to register. Once registered, your team will be assigned a number. You may register a team between five members and ten members, but one of them must be designated the team leader. If the team leader dies at any point, the whole team loses, but members may die, and the team can continue to participate in the games. Additionally, the number of members determines the number of keys required to win. In theory, any number of teams may win the Nexus Games, but to preserve fairness and transparency, I’m obligated to inform you that no team, in the history of the games, has ever made it through with all their starting members, nor have multiple teams shared in the prize at the end. If your team loses the Nexus Games, the punishment is death at the hands of the Arbiter. Lastly, you agree to have your name and likeness broadcast throughout the Nexus, and are painfully aware that the Arbiter sees and hears everything. Any attempt to cheat or avoid the rules or harm the Pestbyters and Justices will be met with punishment as determined by the Arbiter.”

The android concluded his speech with a little spin.

Xiang placed her left arm on the counter of the booth and slowly slid it toward the machine. “My name is Sun Xiang, and I’m registering as the leader of our team.”

The android placed his hand over Xiang’s, and a crackle of energy zapped her arm. In an instant, a number was branded on her skin.

Team 101.

Xiang stepped out of the way and motioned for Kellan to take her place.

Although the copious number of warnings were still ringing in his head, Kellan hesitantly stepped forward. He placed his hand on the counter and slid it closer to the android. The machine-man spun around again, and his old radio voice darkened.

“I apologize, you cannot register for the Nexus Games. You’ve already broken the rules and harmed a Pestbyter.”

The two Pestbyter’s guarding the window turned to face him. They lashed out with wire-like tentacles and grabbed both of Kellan’s arms before he had much time to react.

“Hey,” he barked. “Wait!”

“We’re here to speak to the Arbiter about that!” Sen called out from Kellan’s side.

The android nodded once. “That’s good. Because I’m going to have you escorted to the Arbiter right away. He’ll determine if you can enter the Nexus Games or not.”

The Pestbyters jerked Kellan away from the window. He struggled, but he couldn’t seem to do anything… violent. A passive thought came over him, like violence was something he couldn’t even fathom.

“To the Arbiter,” one of the Pestbyter’s said, sweet in all regards.