The Wave Leaper was frustrating to fight – what with her perpetually lashing water-whips and clear, precise kicks – but it grew truly aggravating after the Flame Dancer called out to her.
“Get some distance!” he roared.
The Wave Leaper slapped JJ with a whip to the face – Imani simply froze the water assailing her – turned about, then sprinted away.
“Move,” Imani said, turning the ice into spears and flinging them toward the Leaper.
The Leaper jumped and spun in midair, swiping her arm to the side. A small wave followed, careening the ice into the wall. She resumed her flight, but Imani didn't give chase, instead spreading her arms wide to turn the wave into ice.
Perfect. JJ took off, panting as his winds pushed him forward.
Which he desperately needed. This Leaper was quick. Even with his wind, JJ wasn’t closing the gap. Looked like he’d have to–
Boom!
The hallway tremored, knocking JJ off his feet... again. A blinding orange flame lit the hall, blasts echoing down it. Yet the distant figures of Asaka and Dearil pressed him, continuing their fight. How could they stand to be so close? Even from this distance – at least forty yards – JJ could feel the heat.
JJ tore his sight from their fight – that was for them to deal with. Imani had also stumbled to the ground from the shaking, but the Leaper hadn’t. Growling, JJ’s lungs shrunk.
“Stop!” he called, then flew down the hallway.
Black dots swam in his vision. He couldn’t reach her in one go – he needed to breathe. But maybe two or three elongated leaps would close the gap.
He hit the ground, letting go of the winds, and inhaled a huge gulp of air. Precious oxygen filled his lungs and he inadvertently closed his eyes in relief. When he opened them, a large stream of water sailed toward him.
JJ exclaimed, depressed his lungs, then leaped again. The Leaper stood still, aiming her attack. JJ could reach her with this jump! Then, she swung her arms upward and redirected the water to JJ’s gut.
It felt more like a martial artist’s trained fist than soft water, and the force pushed him into the ceiling. He lost hold of his winds, then plummeted to the floor.
JJ’s stomach, back, and arms ached. He lay down, struggling to breathe. If it weren’t for that, he’d have screamed. He’d had combat training! Why couldn’t he land a hit on this Leaper?
“You’re gonna have to fight better than that,” the Leaper said. “If you wanna survive your plan.”
“Then help me,” JJ said. “You have the skills, I have an in. We can take Serene down.”
The Leaper expanded a canteen, drank from it, then shrank it again, staring at the approaching Imani. “You’re out of your league, JJ. Come home.”
“I don’t have one anymore,” JJ grunted, rising. “I burned that bridge.”
“It’s not too late to apologize. Do it while you still have people on the other side waiting for you.”
“What do you know?” JJ swirled the winds. Imani was twenty yards away now. He had to keep up the act.
The Leaper sighed and water whips grew from her limbs. “More than you.”
“Blaze Twister!”
If only Mav had already evolved into a Dracon. The added winds would have made the twister legitimate. As it stood, it took too much energy to keep the twirling pillar of fire alive for long. That was energy he couldn’t waste on a failed attack.
The dark-haired one flung backwards, aided by his Gift. He seemed to be a little more limited than Koda, who could control the space around objects and move them as he wished. It almost seemed like this man could only push and pull objects through space. Weaker than Koda, but his attacks were faster, almost instantaneous. It made him a great distraction for Dearil.
The white-haired one remained on the fringes of the fight, hurling knives. This time, the blade leaped forward, far faster than his throw suggested. Mav ducked, but the spinning edge nicked his cheek.
“Fiery Retribution!”
Mav shot a thin stream of flame at Dearil’s face. The handsome man avoided a direct strike, but his flowing hair met the fire instead. A long strand of the shimmering whiteness singed, curling and smoking.
“How dare you?” Dearil yelled, eyes manic as he inspected the damage. “Melt our walkways, burn my allies, and leave as many ugly marks on my body as you can. But no one, no one, fucks with the hair!”
“It could do with a trim,” Mav said.
Dearil roared. Mav’s right hand and feet started flailing, as if his wristband and shoes were moving on their own. Mav moved his arm and legs, regaining control, but not before two more knives neared him.
“Dodge-and-Attack Blast!”
Mav hit the ground, throwing a fireball at Dearil. As it soared to the angry man, something pulled Mav upwards. The first knife had already flown past, but Mav rose to meet the second one, which hastened its flight. Mav swatted the knife away, its edge cutting into his wrist. Mav flew another few feet, then remained motionless in the air. Another knife neared his neck.
“Avoiding Blast!”
A quick explosion brought him back to the ground. Mav adjusted his hands as he caught sight of the dark-haired one, approximately thirty feet directly behind Dearil. Icy breath escaped Mav’s throat.
“Brilliant Rocket!”
Mav’s fire flashed, a roar of a thousand engines sounding, as he slammed into Dearil. The man slowed him somewhat, but Mav’s explosion continued propelling him forward.
The man swiped one arm to the side and shoved the other forward.
Dearil flew from Mav’s shoulder, then an intense pressure ceased Mav’s movements. His forehead was inches from the dark-haired one’s hand.
“Think you can stop me?” Mav yelled. “Cannonfire Blitz!”
Mav threw his arms forward as a great chill frosted his arms, then released his building pressure.
Boom!
Mav flew back, hit the ground at a roll, then attempted to stand. He shivered, his muscles sluggish. Gonna have to end this–
Three knives hurtled toward him, all at varying speeds. Mav dove away, then an invisible force pinned him to the wall. Down the hallway, the dark-haired one pushed his burnt hands toward the side, face calm despite his injuries. He was too far away for Mav’s flames to reach quickly, so Mav kept an eye on Dearil, who ran down the hallway and continually threw knives. The blades, however, didn’t move far from his hand, instead hanging suspended in midair. Soon, a dozen were pointing at Mav, then Dearil flicked his wrist.
Mav glowered, the chill spreading as the knives raced to him.
“Blast Shield!”
Palms facing outward, two massive explosions propelled them off course.
“Flashfire Rocket!”
Another few explosion tore Mav from the wall and toward the dark-haired one. Instead of pulling or pushing Mav around, however, the man ducked and pushed himself beneath Mav. Mav sent a small flame after him, but the terrorist flew to safety. By the time Mav landed, the dark-haired one had reached Dearil.
“This has gotten irksome, Asaka,” Dearil said.
“Which is why I’m here,” the dark-haired one, Asaka, said.
They stood twenty yards away from Mav, near the fixed door. On the other side, a long way down the hallway, Maren was fighting the other two.
Unease squirmed in Mav’s stomach. They shouldn’t be between him and Maren.
“Then you agree?” Dearil asked.
“Do you need to ask?” Asaka said.
Mav’s arms trembled as explosive power rose. It was taking too long to get enough!
“Then let’s make this easier on ourselves,” Asaka said.
They both hopped, then Asaka’s force pushed them through the door and down the next hallway.
Directly toward Maren.