Page 53 of Monster's Mystery

“No, I think it’s fine. But even if it wasn’t, there are healers waiting for them,” Bruce reassured me.

“It’s very odd that an orca made its way into the arena,” Aiden said quietly. “The barrier is nearly impenetrable, as you saw. It only opens when the dragons enter or leave, and just for them.”

“So only in the air?” I asked.

“Think of it like a theater curtain,” Aiden suggested.

“How do you know all this?”

His lips quirked up in a smile. “Dragon Polo is my dad’s favorite sport. I’ve been attending games since I was very small.”

“How have I never even heard of it before this year?” I shook my head, dismayed with my lack of knowledge of an area of the magical world.

“I’m going to guess that your family isn’t big into sports,” Bruce teased.

“Honestly? I’m not sure they’re big into magic,” I replied with a sigh. “My parents work in the city for non-magical companies. Grandfather might have introduced me to the sport, but he lives too far away for a casual visit. Also, I think he’s more into the mysterious knowledge of magic than the sports.”

Aiden chuckled. “That sounds about right.” He pinched my chin lightly. “Rather like someone else I know.”

I blushed. “I come by it honestly.” I gave myself a shake. “But back to the orca. Could it have swum in when the barrier opened?”

“I suppose so,” Aiden mused, rubbing his chin in thought. “It could have been in the right place at the right time. Unlikely, though. The barrier opened only on the shore side, remember? We would have seen it.”

I frowned. “That does seem strange.”

Loud guffaws met my ears, and my gaze was drawn to Chuck and a couple of his friends seated close to the edge of the stands, near the lower end.

There was a strange square object at his feet.

“What is that?” I muttered.

“What?” Aiden asked, confused.

I waved him off, sharpening my eyesight with a spell.

The dimness of the day was fortunate, as this spell also let in way too much light. The cloud cover filtered the sunlight, which was suddenly way too bright for my poor eyes.

But now I could see what the object was.

“A fish tank?”

I released the spell on my eyes, blinking at the sudden change of lighting.

“Why does Chuck have a fish tank?” I asked Aiden.

“A what?” Now it was Aiden’s turn to frown.

“That’s weird,” Bruce added. “You wouldn’t bring a pet to a sporting event. Not a goldfish, anyway.”

“Oh my God,” I gasped, both my hands over my mouth. “Aiden! Do you remember seeing Chuck on the outskirts of town?”

“He was buying something,” Aiden said. “You think he bought an orca? It was a pretty small package, if I recall.”

“What if the orca was shrunk?” I suggested, eyebrow cocked. “It would fit in a fish tank easily.”

“You really think so?” Bruce asked skeptically.

“I really do. Think about it!” My voice rose in agitation and I took a breath to calm down. “If the fish tank had a spell on it to shrink anything put inside it, kinda like my purse, then the orca would be perfectly safe in there. The instant it left the tank, it would grow back to its original size. Here’s what I think happened; the dragons flew through the barrier at the start of the match, and Chuck tossed in the tiny orca at the same time. Nobody saw him do it because everyone was focused on the dragons, obviously.”

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