That wasn’t an option with my busted core. Instead we reviewed the way that Clem’s Path of the Tempest techniques could redirect foes, while Hagar’s Path of the Blood Spider allowed her to steal their vitality or replenish our own. For straight-ahead striking power we relied on Eric’s Path of the Inferno, and Abi provided crowd control and defense through the Path of the Impenetrable Defense. They relied on me to drain away jinsei and aspects from opponents who got too close, which was about all I could do in my current condition.
Still, my disciple-level core gave me strength and speed far beyond most other Empyreals. I didn’t need to channel jinsei through it to use those blessings, and I intended to put them to use every chance I got.
We chewed over everything we could think of until the morning sun shone through the frost-covered windows to remind us that time was still ticking by. Hirani called an end to the strategy session, encouraged us all to get up and stretch, then hustled off to round up some food for all of us.
“Enjoy your breakfast.” Hirani slipped back into her seat. The kitchen spirits flowed in behind to lay out a fantastic spread. “Take your time. We’ll head back to the School in an hour or so.”
She didn’t have to tell us twice. We dove into the feast of thick-cut slices of peppered bacon, ham steaks, peeled segments of grapefruit, fresh strawberries and sweet cream, seedless pomegranate pearls, and slabs of crusty, fresh-baked bread slathered with sweet honey butter. The food wasn’t only delicious, it restored our energy and filled us with much-needed strength.
Finally, the scrumptious meal came to an end. I devoured a final slice of bacon and considered how strange it was that we were so close to the first leg of the Empyrean Gauntlet. We’d spent weeks training with Professor Song and Elder Brand, and it always felt like we had another day, another week.
And now our time was up. We had to put what we’d learned to the test.
After a long night of chatting, arguing, and trying to figure out how we were going to win this thing, none of us had much to say as Hirani led us to the black arch and through the School to the courtyard.
She stopped at the final set of doors and turned to face us.
“I know there’s a lot of pressure on all of you,” she said. “If it helps, I believe you can do this. You’re the best team any of the schools could field. More importantly, you’re friends. Lean on each other. And don’t be afraid to do whatever it takes to win. Because the other teams won’t hesitate to secure their victory.”
With that cryptic and ominous comment, Elder Hirani flung the doors wide to reveal the courtyard beyond. The space was crammed full of students who stared up at the stage and the competitors who had already gathered on it. The Yzlanti team stood stock-still, rigidly at attention. Their eyes were fixed on the middle distance, and their breaths cycled through their cores in synchronized streams. They were the epitome of teamwork.
The students from the Sacred Monastery of Shambala prowled back and forth across the stage, jeering and brandishing their claws at the crowd in a savage display. Their auras were filled with aspects I’d rarely seen: a reptilian anger, an ancient hunger, and flickering motes of an almost bestial rage that had no business surrounding a creature with two legs. The dragons were furious for some reason and were more than ready to take out their rage on anyone who got in their way.
Before I could take in the other teams, Hirani clapped her hands together and unleashed a jinsei-boosted blast of sound. Trumpeting horns burst across the courtyard in a complex fanfare. Streamers of light burst from the doorway ahead of us and streaked into the air. Everyone gathered for the challenge, contestants and audience members alike, turned toward the thunderous spectacle.
“Go on,” Hirani said. “Show them who the real champions are.”
Hirani was right. These people had come into our school and challenged us. We had to teach them the painful lesson that that was a mistake.
I strode through the doors, and a booming masculine voice announced my arrival.
“Now entering, Jace Warin, hero of Kyoto, last of the Eclipse Warriors, undefeated champion of the School of Swords and Serpents in the Five Dragons Challenge.” Hearing the list of my accomplishments was enough to put a strut in my steps as the crowd parted before me and I marched toward the stage. I kept my eyes locked on the obvious leader of the dragon team, who struggled to hold my black gaze.
Not even her burning rage was a match for the cold hunger of my Eclipse core.
My feet carried me across the courtyard to the red carpet that led up the stage’s steps. Her eyes finally broke away from my dark stare when I mounted the stage, and a new aspect crowded into her aura.
Worry.
That gave me the strength to lift my chin a little higher, hold my spine a little stiffer. If the leader of the Indomitable Dragons of Light was worried about me, then maybe I didn’t need to be quite so worried about her.
I took my position on the stage, to the right of the Shambala team, and turned my eyes on the crowd. The rest of my school’s students watched our team enter with a mixture of awe and pride. There was something different about all of my friends as they marched up the red carpet and their names echoed through the courtyard.
