Midnight Arcadia

  Chapter 14

  Nova looked down from her position from in the sky, having just sent her class on a search for the rumors of the new gang activity. She smiled confidently as she saw their distinctive energies move throughout the city. Her diligent watch was interrupted when her phone began to buzz, rolling her eyes at the annoyance. She swiped and brought the phone to her ear. “What is it? I’m busy.” She spoke to the person over the phone, her passive aggressive tone clear. “Come now, Koizumi. That’s no way to greet a friend.” The man said from the other side of the line. Nova’s eyes widened slightly as she began to focus on the conversation more. “One? It’s rare to get a call from you. What is it? Must be important.” Nova said to the man, seemingly called One. Her tone took on an immediate serious tint as she spoke. “There has been a breach in Usan’s wall. We haven’t yet determined the cause. Grade 1 Shadows are entering the perimeter. You and I must defend while the breach is patched.” One said, his tone serious and quick to the point. Nova looked at her phone as if she could hardly believe what she had just heard. She let out a sigh as she brought the phone back up to her ear. “I’ll be there in a minute.” She spoke into the phone before hanging up and putting it away. She brought her fingers to her temples and rubbed them as if this major breach to humanity’s safety was a minor annoyance. She looked down at the city streets, looking for her students’ energies. “I’ll be back before you even realize I’m gone.” She said with a confident smirk as she clasped her hands together, teleporting to the breach in the neighboring kingdom of Usan. She walked toward the translucent barrier, looking like it had been shattered like glass. She walked up to where an emergency agency team had been deployed and there, she saw the man she was speaking to earlier. She put a hand on his shoulder. “Wearing a suit to this is just like you, One.” She said as a joke, the smile on her face was not taking the situation seriously. One looked over his shoulder and played a smirk of his own as he turned to see her. “And it’s very like you to not take any of this seriously, Koizumi.” One said, his voice was intimidating and clear. The two looked past the barricade that had been set up and out into the almost endless grassy plain beyond the barrier outside of Usan. The shadowy humanoid creatures stumble around outside and slowly being drawn to the opening. Their beady yellow eyes looking around frantically. “Ugly things, don’t you think?” One said, his wine-red eyes looking at the creatures that are the unfortunate literal shadow of humanity. Nova looked at them herself and just scrunched up her face in disgust. “Let’s just get this over with so the crew can deal with patching this.” She said, getting more annoyed with the situation by the minute. She jumped highly over the barricade and agents keeping it up and walked out of the barrier, the Shadows all looking toward her way. Their inhuman screeches sounded, as if activating the pack they began to sprint towards Nova, running on all fours in a horde. Nova smirked, her golden eyes peering directly into the creatures. She held up a finger, all the air within the area converging at a point and collapsing in on itself, forming a small star. The high-pitched hum of the star as it floated above Nova’s finger only served to anger the horde even more. She lowered her finger towards the horde and within a bright flash and streak of light the star was launched at terminal velocity into the horde, killing many of the creatures immediately. She chuckled at her accomplishment before her Vein truly sparked to life. Using her complete control over gravity, she lifted up what was left of the horde and strained her hand, causing them to all be stuck into a ball. She looked over her shoulder with her smile peering into the distance. “Want some of the fun, One? You can have this batch if you want.” She said, One walking up behind her with a smile of his own. “You really know how to turn anything into a game, don’t you? Privileges of being apart of the strongest, I suppose.” He said with a chuckle and as he lifted up a hand, caressing the outline of the ball of Shadows through his view. His wine-red eyes flashed cobalt blue for just a moment as suddenly the horde of Shadows were silenced. Their screeching no longer piercing the eardrums of the nearby personnel working on the barrier. Nova looked over at One, as if she felt something for just a moment, her face getting serious for just a moment. She collapsed her hand into a fist, crushing the remains of the Shadows under extreme gravity before releasing it, showering the grassy plains in a purple mist. “You say that like you aren’t the strongest too, One. It’s your namesake after all. Mr. ‘Number One rated Agent with the Agency’.” Nova said as she put a hand on his shoulder, beginning to walk back towards the barrier. “Was that a hint of jealousy from the great Koizumi? I figured you didn’t care about being rated number 2?” He said, lightly teasing Nova. Nova let out a laugh. “As if! I don’t care about that; I know my strength.” She said with a wink. The two walked back into the confines of the barrier, the team making good work on closing the breach. Despite no threats being present in the immediate vicinity, Nova and One had to stay to keep guard, much to Nova’s annoyance. She tapped her foot as she watched the breach get smaller and smaller until finally the translucent barrier was finally closed, reformed to its full glory. “Finally! If you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to my students.” Nova said as she clasped her hands together and teleporting away, leaving One and the team at the barrier. One smiled to himself as he looked up at the barrier. “What a person you are, Nova Koizumi.”

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  To Be Continued