Chapter 14

Team Solias

(Solias, Rock, Grant, Vyrion)

The airship stayed steady in the late summer skies, flying through clouds as the group of boys watched the scenery passing them by. Fully grown trees stood tall below them, reaching for them with their jagged limbs, but they were far out of their reach. 

Vyrion felt a pleasant relief, remembering the last airship he was on. The rickety hunk of splintered wood that miraculously arrived at its destination despite his every expectation that it would break apart mid flight. This ship was a masterpiece. Made of solid, new material that he felt would be able to handle any level of assault.

“Hey man, you ready for this?”

On reflex Vyrion’s body jumped a little at the sudden voice coming from behind him. Turning to see Solias, the leader of their small group, he plastered on his trademark confident smirk. “Of course. We finally get to put all our training to use, right?”

“Hah! That’s right.” Rock grinned, baring a noticeable gap in the top row of his teeth. “We ain’t gonna let some IMP bastard attack one of our towns!”

A laugh escaped Grant’s lips as he rolled his eyes, leaning back casually against the railing of the airship. “Just watch yourself man. You’re always getting the lowest score of all of us. Don’t want you holding us back.”

It had become common in the past month; the two Casters-in-training staring each other down, Rock ready to throw his fists and Grant standing and provoking him with his words. Before the confrontation could start, the airship gave a heavy lurch and Solias and Vyrion braced themselves, watching as the bald member of the group stumbled slightly and the normally calm Grant Huston lost his composure for a brief moment and grabbed the railing he had been leaning against.

“Huston! Warren! We haven’t even arrived yet.” The young leader admonished both of them with a strong voice none of them had heard before. “We’re here to do a mission. If you’re going to act like children, I’ll report you to the Caster in charge the moment we land. We’ll be better off leaving you both behind at this rate.” 

The two large students looked at each other for another moment before turning away. “Fine.” They said in unison, neither of them wanting to stand down or wanting to miss out on the opportunity.

The airship lowered at the outskirts of town and the four of them stepped off of the descending platform. With a wave of his hand, Solias signaled to the pilot of the aircraft and they all watched as it lifted off the ground and flew back into the distance towards the school. The team’s leader adjusted his Caster jacket before taking the first steps towards the town. “All right. Let’s go. Please remember we’re supposed to be professional.”

The town had looked rather small from the deck of the airship, but now that they were inside the town they could see just how small it really was. It was a nice, well kept city with clean streets but only the simplest of the world’s technology. Street lights, a few minor vid screens along the streets to keep the people up to date, and only a few simple transports that looked to be for the use of jobs around the town.

Vyrion had stopped mid step and Grant stood with him, the both of them watching in awe through the tinted windows as more than a dozen people tried to cram their way into one of the compact transports, pushing and shoving past one another. A moment later the doors closed and the machines began churning and the small tub of metal was sent along the rails it was connected to.

Solias’ voice returned them to their senses and they began following their maps. They found their way to the marked building, a simple little house that stood out from the others. While the other buildings were painted in a matching fashion of pale yellow exteriors and a blue roof, this one was hard to miss with its bright red roof and the Caster emblem emblazoned just over the doorway. Giving the specified knock, the door opened and a large Infurnal man with bull horns filled the doorway, his Caster uniform straining to contain his massive form. He took a moment to size up each of the kids in front of him. His sturdy stance and serious face made it hard to read his age as he gave a quick snort.

“You’re the Caster cadets, huh?” He questioned but didn’t bother to wait for a reply as he stepped to the side and let the group enter. “The name’s Ryan Drumm. B-Class Caster. Call me Drumm. You all are?”

“I’m Solias sir, the appointed leader of the team. This is Vyrion, Grant, and Rock.”

“Hm, four of you. Yeah, I’m sure you all should be able to handle this if Allison sent you all. So long as you’re smart and handle yourselves properly. Remember, this isn’t just another training exercise.”

“Why does everyone think we’re not taking this seriously?” Rock growled under his breath in anger, but loud enough for everyone to hear. Solias shot him an angry look but it was too late.

“Because you’re newbies. You’re kids. You’re green. You’ve got no experience beyond some training at the Academy and you’re eager to prove something...” Drumm was counting his fingers with each reason he listed, then stopped to look Rock in the eyes. “...and because we don’t want you dying.”

The Caster cadets were silent for a few minutes as the Infurnal bull went about his task and brought out a small pad and revealed a screen on it. Pressing a blue button on it, a small animated image of a beast came to life. It had the face of a large fish and the jaw of a piranha, it stood tall on long legs that bent awkwardly with two webbed feet and brandished claws at the end of two far reaching arms. 

“This is an amphibious IMP. Fast on land, much faster and much deadlier in the water. I’ve done some asking around and there’s a lake on the outskirts of the town that everyone claims they’ve never had trouble with. It’s actually one of this small town’s attractions. Luckily for the humans here, one of the tourists caught sight of the IMP at a distance and reported it and the mayor wasted no time in banning any civilians from going anywhere close to the lake. I went out there and just being near it I could sense some pretty strong magical energy. I’m guessing there’s a pure crystal somewhere at the bottom that has been steadily mutating some of the life in the lake. Your mission is simple. Take out the IMP. Of course I’ll provide backup if you need it, but if you’re as good as you are confident, you shouldn’t need my help.”

 “What about the crystal?” Vyrion spoke up, his eyes fixated on the image of the IMP. He’d finally have a chance to kill one of these beasts himself and he couldn’t hide his eagerness.

“Not for us to worry about. I already reported it and they’re going to send someone more qualified to handle it. That is, after you four take care of the IMP. Let’s get moving.” Grabbing his double-bladed battle-ax he left the building, the Caster candidates quickly following behind him.

They were just reaching the lake as they all followed close behind the Infurnal Caster. Vyrion watched his broad back before looking to Solias who he caught watching the Caster intently. “Hey, you okay with trusting him on this?” The words slipped from his lips, coming out differently than he had really meant them.

“Of course. He’s a B-Class Caster. That means he should have plenty of experience.” Solias responded, a look of confusion on his face. “I trust Casters with my life. That’s why I want to be one. Once I graduate, others will have that same trust in me.”

Not wanting to push the subject further, Vyrion nodded.

“Hey you two, you all set?” The Infurnal’s voice was gruff.

When they looked they saw him kneeling, Rock and Grant also kneeling by his side. Realizing they had allowed themselves to be distracted momentarily both Vyrion and Solias copied their actions. Putting their hands on their weapons to steady themselves, the four boys nodded to one another as their leader began with their plan.

“Okay. It’s fastest in the water, so  the best plan would be to draw it out and keep it away from the water. If we can keep it on land it will still be dangerous, but that should give us an advantage against it.” Picking up a stick, Solias began to draw a small diagram made of different shapes in the dirt as he continued.

“Warren, can you use enough magic to protect yourself and act as a decoy? I know it’s a dangerous role to take but-” 

Without hesitation the bald-headed boy nodded with a broad, confident grin and Solias moved on to the next person in his plan. 

“Huston, what about you? Your magic is capable of creating domes, right? What about a dome large enough to keep the IMP out of the water?” There was a pause as the composed boy looked over at the lake and brushed his hair through his combed back hair, contemplating the idea for a moment.

“Yeah. I should be able to, but something that size will only be able to take one good hit. Maybe two if we’re lucky. Hard to say against a beast like that. And I’ll be a sitting duck since it’ll drain a lot out of me.”

Solias’ eyes never left the image he was still working on in the dirt. “That’ll have to do. I’ll help and try to drain it with my own magic. Between the three of us, it should be distracted and weakened and thrown off, and that should give Gale a chance to hit it with his magic. A good shot from him should take it down. Think you can do it?”

Staring at the plan crudely drawn at their feet, the memory of the wolf IMP attacking his home and changing his life returned. He pulled his Wand from its holster and checked his Casters bullets. “Yeah. I can do that.”

Knowing Drumm was evaluating them, they began to make their way to the lake. If they were to be Casters, they had to treat this mission as though they already were what they each dreamt of being.

Slowly, each of them made it to their spot at the edge of the lake. The water was still for a few minutes as they all watched the surface, looking for a shadow or a ripple and saw nothing. Finally Solias nodded to Rock who pulled out his Wand and held it against his chest.

“Yo! IMP! Get your ass out here so we can beat you down!” He roared as loud as he could and that was all it took for the water to begin to bubble and ripple as something flew towards him under the water. As it got closer the shadow morphed in shape and size before the beast erupted from the water, baring its deadly fangs.

With no time to spare Rock shot himself with a yellow energy that created a light golden shine around him just before the creature chomped into his shoulder, its teeth digging into him through the magically enhanced uniform and the strengthening spell he had cast on himself. Rock let out a cry of pain as he felt the teeth digging into his flesh, the magic doing little to protect him.

Sticking to the plan, Grant focused his attention on the lake and shot out his magic. His Wand echoed as it released his energy and created a thin, nearly transparent yellow dome over the lake.

“Now!” Grant yelled out, sweat already forming as he fell to his knees as he felt the drain on himself. His shout pulled the beast’s attention from Rock as it jumped back from him, letting the bald boy fall to one knee and grip his bleeding wound.

The amphibious monstrosity made of claws and teeth was already charging at Grant when a blast of purple magic caught it in the side, causing it to stumble sideways a few steps. Another shot from Solias’s Wand caught the side of its face, the creature’s jaw hanging loosely as it lacked the ability to close its jaw anymore.

“Go for it Gale!”

Already aiming his Wand, the energy swirled into one small orb and shot towards the disoriented creature from the other side. The spell missed its true mark, instead catching the creature’s front right arm as it had turned to its newest attacker. The sound of bone and flesh twisting and crunching could be heard, but the beast ignored it. The creature’s rage built quickly and it charged at Vyrion now.

“Shit!” Vyrion stumbled back, feeling a pulse of pain shoot through him from his old scar left by the wolf IMP that night. “Not again!” Firing off another, less focused bullet he missed the IMP again and the magic dug into a large rock, forming cracks in it before it crumbled into bits. 

Vyrion could make out Solias charging after the beast with his great sword drawn, held out to the side by his waist. They all knew their leader’s magic was strong. Capable of draining targets of their energy. But such powerful magic required an equal amount of energy to use. He was pushing past his exhaustion and gaining on the beast, but a cold chill ran up Vyrion’s spine as he worried that his ally wouldn’t catch up to it in time. He watched as the creature began to work its jaw, quickly gaining control over it again as it loomed over him.

Already tired from the necessity of using his Wand so rapidly, the young heir dropped his Wand and reached for his katana, unsheathing his weapon and meeting the creature’s attack with his own. Leaning into the attack, his blade cut through the hinge of the IMP’s mouth, rough flesh tearing away as the blade cut deep and quick.

Rearing back in pain, the monster released a gurgling screech before the heavy warhammer slammed into its face. It had been thrown with great force from where Grant was now checking on the wounded Rock. The impact sent the creature reeling to the side. Just as its body was falling to the ground, Solias’ heavy blade rose skyward and cut through the last of the beast’s maw, the two parts of the beast flopping to the ground with an ugly splat.

Breathing heavily, Vyrion and Solias rushed over to the other two, seeing that Drumm was already by their side and tending to the wounded cadet who was groaning in pain.

“Damn that hurts!” Rock’s eyes were shut tightly as the experienced Caster tended to his wound. Drumm was able to stop the bleeding and cover it to keep it safe from infection.

“You all survived. That’s a plus.” He then looked to Solias. “You were the leader of your team though. One of your teammates being this badly injured is on you. You need to make sure you’re always considering the risk of the choices you make.”

Not able to find words at the time, the young leader of the group slowly nodded his head before Drumm continued.

“Don’t worry. He’ll have a nasty scar, but he’ll be fine after he gets some proper care back at the Academy. Your plan wasn’t terrible. Probably would have worked even better if you were all more experienced and a little older.”

“You could have stepped in at any time to help us!” Rock yelled at the older Caster, the pain fueling his rage.

“Yes, and I would have if I felt I needed too. If you can’t stand up to a single IMP in a group of four, then you might not be cut out for this like you thought you were.”

The boys remained quiet after their fight. Even as they boarded the airship the following morning only what was required for the mission was said. They stayed silent on the trip back to school. Rock was resting in his bed, staring at the ceiling as they had all been ordered by Solias to stay in one of the small cabins of the airship so they could all rest and help keep an eye on their injured ally. The leader of the small team was jotting down notes in a notebook, taking small pauses to contemplate their most recent experience as he watched the passing scenery through the small window. Grant was distracting himself by polishing his Wand as he sat in one of the other small cots of the airship. And Vyrion was watching all three of them from his own bed, unable to find a single word. Their first mission had been qualified as a success by Drumm, but the Infurnal bull’s words loomed over each of them as they returned.

Next Chapter: Team Fashryn