Two days after the tournament, Luna had not left her condo, rarely even her room. It was already ten in the morning, and she was still moping in bed. She ignored her phone, which had been chirping with messages. She turned over to look out the window by her bed. The sun had shone on the beach not far from her condo. Luna planted her face in her pillow and whined as her phone continued chirping. She heard banging noises, but before she could react, Morgan had busted down her door with Raine in tow.“Hey! W-what’s going on!”

  “You’re having fun right now!” Morgan shouted and pulled Luna out of bed.

  “But I don’t wanna!” Luna cried, clinging to her blanket as Morgan dragged her across the floor. Raine just watched, unsure of how to help. After struggling for a few moments, Luna relented and dressed in her beach attire. With Morgan leading the charge and Raine offering quiet encouragement, Luna followed them out of the condo, her feet dragging as they made their way down to the beach, the sound of waves growing louder with every step.

  After playing in the water for a while, the girls sat down to sunbathe, and Raine spoke first. “Are you feeling any better, Luna?”

  “Sorta… I’m disappointed in myself for letting everyone down… I think it’s best I no longer participate in Neo Gladius and just focus on our idol group…”

  “If that’s what you truly want, Luna, we’ll support yo—"

  “Don’t be dumb! You won two matches and lost the finals of a brand new sport. You can make up for it next time! This isn’t the end, ya know!” Morgan complained while Raine tried to signal to Morgan that she crossed the line.

  Luna started laughing, much to Raine’s relief. “You’re right! You’re right Morgan, I still have an opportunity to show everyone who I am. Thank you! This is why you two are my best friends! C’mere!” Luna jumped up and attempted to hug Morgan.

  Morgan hid behind Raine. “No! You know I don’t like hugs!”

  Raine laughed. “Well, if everyone is feeling back to normal, shall we go get some ice cream to celebrate?”

  “Yes!” Luna and Morgan exclaimed.

  The girls made their way from the beach to a local shop nearby. The girls giggled and teased each other about their love lives and talked about their upcoming performance. Luna excused herself and stepped outside for some fresh air. As she walked, Luna noticed a few missing persons posters and stopped in front of one for a nine-year-old girl. “How sad… I hope they are alright…” Luna took a moment to pray for them.

  “Wow! I didn’t know the famous Luna Cortez is religious!” Luna turned and saw a girl her age with vibrant green hair, wearing sunglasses, practically bouncing with excitement to see her.

  “I can’t believe I finally get to meet you!”

  “Oh, I’m sorry! You startled me!” Luna smiled and extended her hand to the excited stranger. “I’m Luna Cortez of The Sunshine Cadets! What’s your name?”

  “Everyone knows who you are! My name’s Azura! And I’ve been your biggest fan since I was born! I want to be you!” Azura started to laugh, but covered her mouth to contain herself.

  “Aww, thank you, Azura! You have a really awesome name! I want you to know that you don’t have to be like me; you are special and unique, just like your name!” Luna pulled out a piece of paper and scribbled on it. “Don’t tell anyone, but this is where we’re going to be shooting our new music video! Since you’re such a special fan, you’re welcome to come check it out!”

  Azura took the paper. “You’re so awesome and inspiring! Thank you! Could… could I ask for a hug?” Azura lowered her head so Luna wasn’t able to see her devious smile.

  “Absolutely! C’mere.” Luna stepped closer, her arms opening for a hug. Azura met her with a warm embrace, her green hair catching the sunlight. From Azura’s hand, a serpent-like creature emerged, its scales shimmering vibrant teal. It seemed as though the Teal Waves themselves had come to life, swirling into this ethereal serpent.

  Luna feels the cool warmth of Teal Waves roll through her body. She shivers and then jolts as the serpent attempts to burrow into her back. “Ow! Sorry Azura! I-I felt something sting just now!” The serpent retreated into Azura’s hand when they broke off their embrace.

  “O-oh sorry!” Azura covered her mouth again as a giggle slipped past. “Maybe I held on too tight from excitement!”

  The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

  “Luna! We’re getting ready to go!” Raine called with Morgan in tow.

  “Coming! It’s okay, Azura, it was really nice meeting you! I’ll see you soon, okay!” Luna waved to Azura and went on her way to rejoin her friends.

  Azura waved back. “We’ll definitely meet again real soon!” She turned to leave, covering her mouth to keep her laughter contained. Why didn't it work… She glanced back at Luna. “I’ll find a way! Hehehe.” A confident smirk spread across her face, revealing her razor-sharp teeth.

  Luna glanced over her shoulder at Azura walking away. What was that…

  ***

  Later that day, Luna met up with Rody to train at Boltus.

  “Thanks for coming to help me, Rody… Um, I’m sorry I left you on read…”

  “It’s okay, I figured you needed some space. I’m glad you’re feeling better now, though.”

  “I am, and I really want to catch up to Misaki and her red flames!”

  “How do you plan on doing that?”

  Luna put her hand to her chin. “I dunno… I think maybe she trained herself to produce and withstand hotter and hotter flames until they become red?”

  “Why don’t you just ask her?” Rody suggested..

  “Mmm,” Luna pouted and fidgeted. “Cuz she can be a meanie sometimes! And… It’s embarrassing to ask…”

  “Wow, that was honest…”

  “Look, here’s my plan! I’m gonna power up my flames as much as I can and as long as I can. I asked you to come help me, so you can cool me off, so I can try again! It’s foolproof!” Luna gave Rody a thumbs up.

  Rody sighed. “This sounds dangerous, but I’d rather help you than you do it by yourself…”

  “It’ll be fiiiine! Back up a bit, let’s go!” Luna gave a shout and wrapped herself in green Teal fire and turned up the heat as much as she could.

  Luna then stopped and asked Rody to cool her off.

  “What happened?” Rody asked, creating frost for Luna.

  “I was checking my limit. I need to try something different… Endurance isn’t the issue. I can hold that state for a really long time. I’m gonna try pushing past that this time, even if it's for a shorter period of time.”

  Luna tried again, but this time, her flames rage out of control, and she had to stop.

  Again, Rody cooled her down. “Your flames were definitely hotter this time, but they were all over the place.

  “Again, I know Misaki fights with anger and passion, maybe that’s what I need to do!”

  Luna tried repeatedly to summon red Teal flames. With each attempt, the strength of her flames and her control over them grew. Exhausted, she fell to her knees, panting to catch her breath. “I-I don't... know… how Misaki can fight… this way…” Luna began sobbing. “Maybe I can’t do this…”

  “Isn’t being angry just a symptom of being short?” Rody joked, while cooling her off

  Luna wiped her tears and started laughing. “You always know what to say! I wanna try one more time!”

  “Okay, just be careful. It’s taking more energy each time to cool you off.”

  “Alrighty!” Luna shouted and engulfed a large area around herself in a fearsome firestorm. She pushed herself and her anger to the point where her chest hurt.

  Rody could see the pain on Luna’s face, and his heart ached for her. What do I do?She can’t keep doing this to herself. Rody grabbed imaginary twin tails on the sides of his head and squatted down to Misaki’s height. “You’re doing it all wrong, dummy!” Rody mimicked Misakias closely as he could.

  Luna caught sight of Rody’s playful attempt at humor and couldn’t hold back. Her laughter rang out as the firestorm around her faded, the flames now encircling only her in a gentle glow. Rody grinned at her reaction and started walking over, but paused mid-step. Wait… blue flames…? He blinked, squinting for a better look, but Luna extinguished her flames with a casual wave and called him over, her voice light with amusement.

  “Why’d you do that?” Luna Laughed. “I was gonna get it that time!” She hit Rody’s shoulder playfully and then took a seat.

  Rody sat next to Luna. “I just thought you should try something different, ya know?” Rody replayed the sight of the blue flames in his mind. “Maybe you’re supposed to go down a different path to getting stronger than Misaki,” Rody suggested.

  Luna pulled one knee closer to her chest, wrapping her arms around it as she mulled over Rody’s words. Rody couldn’t help but gaze at her with quiet adoration, his eyes tracing her thoughtful expression. When she finally turned to speak, he quickly looked away, a faint flush creeping up his cheeks. “If there is another path to getting stronger, I’ll find it!” Luna stood up, smiling confidently. She offered him her hand. “C’mon, let’s go eat!”

  ***

  Stefan gazed out the window from his office, Misaki by his side. “Why don’t you go talk to her before she leaves?”

  “Because…”

  “Aww, little Misaki is embarrassed!”

  “Am not! It’s just not the right time, she probably doesn’t want to see me right now…”

  “She seems fine to me, especially after that training display.”

  “You wouldn’t get it, Stefan… Just tell me what you wanted to talk about.”

  “Fine.” Stefan displayed a map of the city on screen. “I’m sure you’ve noticed that missing persons reports have gotten out of hand recently?”

  “What are ya? A detective now…”

  “Aren’t all billionaire playboys?” Stefan winked at Misaki. She crossed her arms and glared at Stefan. “It’s more fun when you react…” Stefan turned his back to Misaki, gesturing toward the screen as he pointed out various locations across the city where people had gone missing, noting how they overlapped with reported wild animal sightings.

  With Stefan’s back turned, Misaki melted, her mind replaying his earlier wink. She squirmed, muttering under her breath, Damnit, Stefan, why do you have to be so hot?! Jerk! When Stefan turned back around, she snapped upright, her cheeks flushing. Oh crap, I didn’t pay attention! She caught Stefan raising an eyebrow at her, his gaze questioning. Panicking, Misaki scrambled for something to say, her words stumbling over each other.

  “Y-yeah so? What’s that got to do with me?” Misaki praised herself internally. Hehe, totally sounded like something I’d say.

  “I’m glad you asked! I suspect someone is behind this, and I have a lead on where they might be hiding. I want to take a team of Teal users to investigate. Whattaya say, wanna check it out?”

  Misaki sighed. “If I say no, you’ll just go by yourself, and I don’t wanna have to explain to your mom why you’re dead…”

  “Fantastic! We’ll meet with the others soon.”