COBALT: The Sovereign's Stratagem (Book Two)

Chapter 9: Buttons and Trouble (Part 2/4)

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Happy spring (and grad for some of you)!

May the hay fever have mercy on your nostrils.

Enjoy the update~

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         Káel shoved through the doors to the interchangeable battle space, taking a bench in the small waiting room to catch his breath. Tia was quick to notice his presence, her voice singing through the ceiling like a mocking child. "Look who made it just in time not to forfeit!"

          He heaved out a sigh, staring over the side of the bench to the bundle of silver fabric Puff was dragging over to him. He snatched it, splaying an arm of the combat suit where Aeric was embroidered down it in black. "What the hell is this? What happened to the black ones?"

          "Quarter finals happened."

          He watched the metallic fabric shimmer in the light, squeezing at the extra padding on the shoulders and elbows. "I'll look like an astronaut."

          "A what?"

          "Its a job back on Earth. If you're really smart, they reward you by sticking you in a metal sky bird and shooting you as far up into the air as they can."

          Tia fell silent. "You know, I almost believed that one... One minute until your match starts."

          Káel groaned, rolling off the bench to wiggle his legs into the suit like a flipped turtle. He could see the door materialising as Tia counted down, haphazardly slapping any strap he could find on the new combat suit together before the counter hit zero and the doors swung open. He snatched the trainer sword that materialized by the door, giving the ceiling a look when he noticed the view of the arena was blocked off by a light grey stone wall.

          "You've been ending the matches too quick, so I switched up the terrain a bit."

          He couldn't see a hair of his opponent, just as they couldn't see a hair of him past the scattered white walls of the stone labyrinth. Running at classmates and tackling them was now off the list, and given the nature of Lightwood's training, his best means of winning was out the window. "A bit, huh? Isn't this for molves?"

          "I can add some."

           Káel gave the ceiling a pressed smile. "Hard pass." With a heave he propped the sword on his shoulder, stepping into the maze as a horn bellowed to signal their start. It was nothing like playing Obliteration ball, the chattering audience of students, and Sev's inhumanly loud voice always kept the background filled for Káel. Always there to let him know that, good or bad, someone was close by.

          But the tournament battles were different. Tia's battlespace was a complex enchantment that could barely support a small handful of people. The crowds were in the dorm lobbies, and a few public spaces in Cobalt, and the announcers could only be heard from the audience.

          For Káel, and whichever sucker he was facing today, it was silent as the grave.

          He gave the door behind him one last glance, smiling at Puff as the doors slowly dissolved with the small dragon and Stella. He glanced at Cursimian, peeking from the rim of his sleeve. "Guess it's you and me Tinfoil."

          With a window of time to find his opponent first, Káel started up with placing a light deflective enchantment on his blade. There wasn't much he could do before finding his opponent. His skills at defensive enchantments were still in the works with Lightwood, they caught fire more often than either of them were comfortable with.