Page 90 of A Sea of Secrets
“I don’t think it gives a shit,” Kayden rumbled as he blocked a shot from taking Ace’s head off. “Plan, guys, we need a fucking plan.”
“Right.” I nodded, only for the sand to tremble once more. “Wait, what is causing that?”
A movement had caught my eye, and I looked over to the lake, or at least what was left of it. The water was being pulled into the sky where a giant orb was floating. Liquid rushed around the sphere, reminding me of gas surrounding planets in space.
And then, walking towards us, came Celeste.
Ahumongousballofwater flew over us like a blue whale mid-jump, blocking out the moon as Celeste came to stand at our side. Pulse guns fired, their shots colliding with a water wall that rose before us, shielding us from further attacks. The soldiers persisted despite the barrier in their way.
The Overseer was a loose cannon, but boy oh boy, was she powerful. No wonder she was the head of the House of Ascension and ran the Terrulian Trials. The woman was a force to be reckoned with. This time, I was glad for her murderous ways and happy as a crab, because it appeared she was on our side.
The giant worm lunged for the ball, its movement shaking the sandy ground as it tried to attack. It was almost comical watching it try to take bites like that would injure the orb. Instead, water sprayed in the air. Large splashes fell to the sand,dousing soldiers and anyone else in range, including a grumpy Ace.
“For fuck’s sake,” Ace grumbled, drenched from head to toe. He ran a hand through his wet hair, pushing the soaked strands back. “I’m going to kill that fucker.”
“Woah! Wait!” Noah raised a hand, halting Ace before he could spark his electrical magic. “Let’s not electrocute yourself and possibly us in the process.”
We may not have been drenched seals like Ace, but we’d all been splattered in varying degrees by the water orb above.
“Shit.” Ace lowered his dirty pale hand. “What’s our plan?”
“Your plan is to escape while I rid us of this evil,” Celeste said with one hand raised above her head. The other was held before her, her palm towards the shield. “Valiant Potentials, you have fought like knights of old, but now you must go. I am sorry I misjudged you earlier this evening. Please forgive me for the punishment I bestowed upon you. Save yourselves so that one day you may fight again. I fear this is not the last battle we will have.”
“We’re not going anywhere,” Kayden replied, his rocky skin smoothing out as he dropped his adaptation. “That bastard has Fallon.”
The Overseer frowned. “I accept that my words will not sway you, but I suggest you brace yourselves for what’s to come.” Celeste threw the water ball, smashing it down onto Victrus and his army. The water rose like a bowl, the edges spraying us in the process.
I dropped to a crouch, drenched but unharmed as Victrus’ army bore the full brunt of the attack. The worm wriggled erratically, flopping around like a dick during a nude marathon. I quickly rose to my feet and my gaze immediately landed on the rest of my pod. They were wet but alive, just the way I liked them.
The Overseer let the walls of the water bowl fall, the waves crashing in at the centre and taking out all who remained standing nearby. She swirled her hands, the shield before us dropping as a whirlpool gathered, dragging bodies in a circle before stealing back towards the lakebed.
I spotted the woman controlling the worm amongst them, her body consumed by the water. Served her right for siding with the evil dude ruling House Jupiter. The sand beneath my feet shifted as the worm wriggled high in the air one last time before diving back down into the sand, its connection severed.
“Oh, my guppy fish!” I stared at the destruction before me, the numerous soldiers floating away back to the lake. But one among them was unmoved. “How the fuck is he still alive?!”
Celeste had knocked out over half of Victrus’ soldiers, but the man himself was untouched. The few who remained by his side quickly recovered, firing shots at us.
I fired back, but my ammo was running low and would soon be useless, not to mention my injured arm ached from holding the thing. Ace wasn’t able to do much, either. His magic would electrocute us all if he tried to use it like Noah said, plus his leg wasn’t in the best shape. As for Kayden and Noah, it was too dangerous to try and cross the battle zone with the Overseer tossing the lake around all willy-nilly. We were sitting ducks.
Celeste lifted her arms and puddles of water rose before her to create another shield as she strode towards Victrus and his soldiers. Kayden made to follow, his skin hardening like a rock once more, but another shield splashed up to block his path. He tried to break through, but the water barred his way, stopping him from going any farther but also protecting us from the soldiers’ guns.
“We need to go with her,” Kayden growled as we watched Celeste draw nearer to Victrus. “I’m going to teleport.” I watched as he tensed, his face forming a mask of concentration… butnothing happened. Sweat dripped down his forehead as he tried again. “Fuck, I’m tapped out!”
“That’s it, I’m frying his ass,” Ace hissed, his fists clenching at his sides. Electricity sparked along his skin as he stormed forward, launching an electrical attack at Victrus.
Sparks flew, bypassing the shield and Celeste. Just as Victrus was about to be hit, a soldier stepped in front of the man like a human shield. In the same breath, a gun fired, and Ace was thrown back through the water shield, landing on the sand beside me.
“Ace!” I gasped, eyeing the scorch mark on his shoulder. The pulse gun had burned away the fabric of the jumpsuit, his skin red and cauterised beneath. “Son of a seagull!”
Noah moved quickly, dropping to his knees and trying to heal Ace with his magic, even though he barely had anything left to give. His hands trembled as he worked, but nothing happened.
“Come on,” Noah groaned. “Fuck.”
“Here.” Kayden ripped the scraps of his jumpsuit, the fabric already torn in multiple places from shifting into his rocky adaptation and back. “Strap him up. Nobody goes beyond the shield until I say so. Got it?”
I nodded. “Yes, Captain.”
Reluctantly, I stayed put and watched the Overseer instead of acting on my instinct to join the fight. It took everything in me not to march forward and I could tell the others were holding themselves back too.
