NINETEEN THE TEST
NINETEEN
THE TEST
‘ N ot a chance.’
I knew asking Opel for help would be challenging, but I didn’t expect her to shut me down so swiftly. Of all the people I believed would want to break the rules, my first bet would have been on Opel.
‘Why not?’ I inquire, observing her as she stretches on a foam mat in the training room.
‘Because you’d die instantly,’ she responds, barely giving me a glance, more focused on contorting her body into the splits.
‘Oh, thanks.’
‘Besides, you taking on a Wretch by yourself?’ She laughs.
‘I wouldn’t be by myself, you’d be there,’ I say.
‘I can see, out of all your options, how I’d be the right choice in your scenario, but still no.’
‘Oh, come on, Opel. You never know, you might witness my gruesome horrible death?’
Opel considers for a moment, then sighs.
‘As tempting as that is, I don’t want to be the one to explain to Nathaniel that I got the newbie killed.’
‘Who’s getting killed?’
Tariq’s voice startles me, his hand on my shoulder steadying me just in time to prevent me from falling off the vaulting horse. Opel tries, unsuccessfully, to suppress her amusement.
‘Hey, are you alright?’ Tariq asks.
He’s wearing his bright orange Munchrider vest. It’s everything I imagined. How can he make something so ugly so sexy?
‘This one was just trying to talk me into battling a Wretch.’
Thanks, Opel.
‘What? Are you serious?’ says Tariq.
‘I…’
‘Liam, Wretches might be stupid, but they’re deadly hunters. You’d fare better going up against a grizzly bear.’
‘Okay, well, they might be trickier to find in the UK,’ I say.
‘Why are you suddenly playing the challenge card? You’ve been a Keeper less than a week.’
I dismount and move to the window. Below, the streets are filling up as rush hour commences.
‘I met Katie’s parents today. They came to the college for updates about their daughter’s disappearance. I spoke to them…’
‘Liam…’ Tariq begins.
‘I didn’t say anything… I… Her dad told me about how she’d been acting the past few weeks.’
I tell Tariq and Opel everything Katie’s dad had told me.
‘Tariq burned out that church after what happened to…’ Opel pauses. ‘Anyway, it’s been abandoned ever since.’
‘What if it’s not?’ I say. ‘What if the Dark Friars are back there? The church isn’t far from the college, right? So, it’s near Craythorn Forest, where Katie was killed.’
‘What are you getting at?’ Tariq says.
‘Katie was having her Keeper dreams. She saw the church. What if she went there and ran into Draven? She then runs into the forest, and he kills her in the clearing. Maybe she saw something there? Maybe she overheard something?’
‘That’s a lot of maybes, kid,’ says Opel, rising to her feet. She continues stretching, now focusing on her arms.
‘Look, Liam,’ Tariq begins, moving toward me. ‘The Guild are the ones investigating Draven. Leave it to them. Until we understand what the Dark Friars are up to, we need to keep our distance.’
‘I had to stand there today and watch her parents fall to pieces because they don’t know what’s happened to their daughter. But I do.’
Tariq rests a hand on my shoulder. ‘I know. This is a terrible situation. Opel and I have experienced it before. But we can’t just go out there investigating Draven. You’re not ready.’
I turn to face him, gazing into his handsome visage as he looks down at me.
‘The Guild have already started looking into what the Dark Friars are up to, so either way, if he finds out, the offer is broken and he’ll be coming for me.’
Tariq goes to speak but no words come out. I’ve stumped him.
‘Get me ready,’ I say. I don’t think I’ve ever sounded more serious.
Tariq glances at Opel.
‘He has a point. Maybe we should test him,’ she says.
Tariq’s gaze ping-pongs between us. ‘Not happening.’
As the daylight fades in the courtyard behind the Seven Angels, long shadows stretch across the cobbled ground beneath us. After ten minutes of arguing, Tariq eventually conceded. I am to face a Wretch. His condition being that we don’t tell Nathaniel.
‘So, are we just going to stand around and wait for one to show up?’ I say, hoping to dissolve the tension between Tariq and Opel over the situation.
‘You’ll need to take off your pendant,’ Opel instructs, seating herself on a nearby bench.
‘Right now?’ I say, my stomach suddenly sinking at the thought of this actually happening. ‘Won’t that mean…’
‘It’s not just going to pop up like a genie.’ She rolls her eyes. ‘Wretches hunt power, so until you actually use your abilities, it’ll take them a while to find you.’
‘Them?’ I gulp.
‘Another reason we shouldn’t do this, Opel. We don’t know how many will show up,’ Tariq says.
Opel shrugs. ‘I could do with a fight.’
I reach for the chain around my neck, pulling it out from beneath my sweatshirt. The last time I wasn’t wearing one of these pendants and used my powers, I narrowly escaped a Wretch that almost tore me apart in the storeroom at college. Now I’m about to take one on.
‘Any chance we could lure a puppy Wretch?’ I ask, half hoping for a more manageable challenge.
Opel chuckles, clearly enjoying my discomfort.
‘You don’t have to do this, Liam,’ Tariq says.
‘Not afraid, are you, kid?’ Opel says.
‘Ignore her. Now, listen closely, you—’
A phone rings. It’s Tariq’s.
‘It’s Nathaniel. Signal’s shit out here.’ He sighs, then points at Opel. ‘This doesn’t start until I return, alright?’
Opel raises her hands in a gesture of surrender.
Tariq levels a stern look at me before heading inside to take the call.
Opel and I share an uncomfortable silence as we wait.
I pace around the courtyard, twirling my pendant on its chain around my fingers, a nervous energy coursing through me.
‘So, how many Wretches have you faced?’ I say.
‘Too many to count,’ Opel says.
I was sort of hoping for a bit more of an answer, but I guess I should be grateful she answered me at all. I continue to wander around, admiring the old oak tree standing tall and proud in the centre of the space.
‘So, Wretches aren’t big on light, right? How do you actually… kill one?’
‘Well, decapitation usually works. They’re not keen on fire either. Loud noises tend to make them retreat back into the shadows too, but unless you’re walking around with a nuclear alarm siren on you, I wouldn’t bother with that one.’
Decapitation, fire, big noise. Got it.
There’s a sharp thump against my arm. A stick lands on the floor.
Opel is smirking.
‘What was that for?’ I say.
Without warning, Opel repeats the action, but this time her hand lifts slightly, coaxing a larger stick from the ground beneath the tree. With a swift flick of her wrist, it’s propelled in my direction, striking my chest.
That one actually hurt. I rub the impact area.
‘What are you—’ Ah, I get it now. She’s testing me. Testing my reflexes.
The realisation sharpens my focus. As Opel gestures again, another stick comes hurtling toward me.
This time I duck.
‘Nice dodge,’ she says.
She makes another motion. More are hurled my way. I dodge the first, but the second grazes my temple.
The heat within me begins to swell, a tingling sensation coursing through my veins. It feels different this time, as if my abilities are cooperating with me, flowing naturally like they’re finally part of me.
As I continue to duck, weave, and evade Opel’s barrage of attacks, the heat intensifies. It’s exhilarating. I can’t believe how quick I am. If only I could go back to those school dodgeball games in PE.
‘I’m getting pretty good at this, aren’t I?’ I say, hands on my hips.
Opel’s smirk breaks. ‘Liam, watch out!’
I whirl around just as a Wretch lunges toward me from the shadows.
I slam into the cobbles as the creature tackles me. Its grotesque form twists, its clammy dark flesh clinging to me. I’m engulfed by its pungent smell. When we come to a stop, it’s on top. It snaps toward my neck, but before it’s had a chance to take a bite, it’s thrown from me.
I sit up. Opel’s in some sort of battle stance, both arms raised.
‘Get your pendant on before more arrive,’ she commands.
I do as she says. Only I can’t find it. I was holding it before the Wretch attacked, and now… there! It’s lying on the ground near the tree where I was standing.
Opel seems to clock my situation. ‘Get it, I’ve got this.’
The Wretch scrambles to its feet and begins charging, this time at Opel.
I quickly move toward my pendant, hearing cries and yelps from Opel and the creature behind me.
I scoop up the chain and place it around my neck.
I turn just in time to see the Wretch take another shot at Opel. She still has both hands raised, as if conjuring an invisible barrier between herself and the advancing creature. A swift push and the Wretch is once again thrown backward, this time stumbling into a few recycling bins.
But it doesn’t stay down for long.
It bounds toward Opel. She pivots, attempting to push out with her hands once again, but this time it darts to her side, avoiding her force. It swerves around her with speed, its skeletal fingers grazing her arm.
In a swift, brutal motion, it swipes at her with its elongated claws, knocking her off balance.
Opel slams into a wall and falls. She lies motionless.
‘Opel!’ I yell.
But my voice only catches the attention of the Wretch, its gaze now locked onto me. My heart races as the Wretch’s attention narrows, its ghostly white eyes on me, its prey.
It slowly crawls toward me, like a lion approaching a gazelle.
There has to be something to use to defend myself.
Nothing.
Opel, still on the ground, but conscious, tries to divert the Wretch’s focus. She launches sticks at it. But her attempt only seems to provoke the creature further.
I stand my ground, my heart pounding, facing the Wretch alone.
I wanted a challenge. Now I’ve got one.
The Wretch jumps at me. I sidestep, narrowly evading its grasp, then strike its side. My knuckles connect with flesh, and the creature skids uncontrollably. For a moment, I bask in the victory.
But the Wretch isn’t down. It whirls around, fury gleaming in its eyes. It charges again, and I respond with a swift kick, sending it staggering backward.
I’m doing it. I let the heat inside wash over me.
Adrenaline courses through my veins as I recall Nathaniel’s lessons. I focus on my breath, grounding myself, finding that spark. My fists become a blur of motion as I deliver a rapid succession of blows, each one finding its mark.
But it rears back, then lunges again. In an instant, it pins me to the ground, its claws wrapping around my wrists, its foul breath searing my senses.
Panic surges, my body tensing under its weight. I struggle. Every fibre of my being is urging me to fight back. But its weight is too much for me. I turn my head to the side and shut my eyes, ready for the end.
But then, the weight disappears. I open my eyes to find Opel straddling the beast like a rodeo rider.
It staggers back onto its hind legs, but Opel somehow manages to stay on.
She pulls her hands apart on either side of the Wretch’s head, and with a swift motion, its neck twists.
It screeches in agony as it collapses to the ground. But it’s still moving.
Opel, still on top of it, repeats the same motion, but this time the creature’s head twists off, detaching from its body and rolling across the cobbles. Black ooze splatters the ground in front of me.
My mouth falls open. Opel, still straddling the body of the Wretch, looks at me, then laughs.
The door to the courtyard opens and Tariq walks out. He takes a look at me, then Opel, then the headless Wretch on the ground.
He sighs. ‘You guys are cleaning it up.’