《The Gate to Chrono》


 Chapter 1: Curiosity killed the cat

    I drag my body forwards as I tiredly continue my way down 5th street in the middle of New York. I could feel the warmth leave my body as the sun continued its trek, crawling down the sky. The wails of motor sirens screamed at each other as everyone tried to make their way back home after a long hard day of work. A groan escapes my body as I listen to their din, can they not tell that roaring their horns does not make the traffic go away quicker?


    I pushed my way through the busy crowd of people, moving like ants, seemingly in a rush to get to their destination. It was about 5 o¡¯clock. Rush time. The first of two horrible hours in the day. When adults who do not work long hours forge their way home, unaware and uncaring for those they barge through around them.


    Unfortunately this hour also synced up perfectly to when my school ended. I am used to the long walk at this point but due to the crowd, it has already been half an hour since we left the school and we are still about half a mile away from my house. The sudden downpour of rain didn¡¯t do much to improve the situation. The feeling of water dripping down my face made me shiver. Just my luck.


    My friend and I are just making our way back from school. We always walked home together unless for reasons such as clubs or maybe the occasional event that no one could for-see. However this was just your usual day, and we departed from school at approximately half past 4 as I said before.


    I turn to face my childhood friend. Kia. Her face shares the same tired expression as the one on mine but with a trace of listlessness. It really was unlucky to be caught in the downpour. The only thing to lift my spirits was watching her as we made our way home. What?? I am sixteen! That is normal for a man of my age! It would be an insult not to be enthralled by her feminine charms!


    Her hair was plaited neatly, and was of a darker brown hue due to the rain. This was the one thing I could be thankful to the rain for as it clung to her skin, increasing the overall sensual appeal of her looks.


    I watch as Kia motions her hands to squeeze her hair, releasing a flood of water, somehow, hidden magically within. She turns to me and gives me that winning smile making my heart flutter; making my world seem just that little bit brighter. That smile combined with the glistening droplets of excess rain on her hair was just perfect.


    ¡°What¡¯s with that smirk on your face?¡± I asked trying to play off that I was watching her for a while.


    ¡°Don¡¯t act dumb, you know what almost everyone in our school has been talking about.¡± She replied, as she continued with the act of trying to get the water our off her hair. Oblivious to the fact I was admiring her¡­ I don¡¯t know whether I should laugh or cry.


    ¡°Ugh, the abandoned shed? It¡¯s just a myth Kia.¡±


    She stopped, a dumbfounded expression flashing across her face as if I had just told her some terrible news. I click my tongue because I also have to stop admiring her due to her gaze.


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    She had always been like this since we were young. She was fascinated by the supernatural. Despite their authenticity or not. She was about to rebuke me as she quickly glances around us. She seems excited for some reason.


    ¡°Hey! Isn¡¯t this where the shed is rumored to be?!¡± She stormed her way off to the construction site.


    ¡°Kia stop. Wait please!¡± However, she just continued on her warpath, determined to find her magical and mysterious shed. I release a low sigh as I force some energy into my body from my last reserves for the day.


    ¡°Cmon Kia. A shed in a construction site? It isn¡¯t exactly the rarest thing in the world. Let¡¯s just go home before we get drenched from the rain.¡±


    I remember walking past this construction site every day. I think back to when it first erected but I can¡¯t seem to place my finger on it. However, the construction site is declared abandoned, so I guess that makes the shed ¡°abandoned¡± also, if we follow the rules of inheritance.


    I had lost sight of Kia and after a while of running, my eyes quickly pick her out. She was standing in front of a shed, used commonly for industrial fields. A look of astonishment plastered on her face.


    ¡°Hey! I was looking around the construction site for a while, but I didn¡¯t even notice it was here until just now¡­¡± She looks to me, hands on my knees panting for breath. She really was too quick. What else should I expect from someone on the cross country team.


    ¡°Told you it was true!¡± A grin sneaking on to her face. She stuck out her tongue to me. I sigh at her simple childlike personality. I would never tell anyone that it made me really happ-


    ¡°OW!¡± My head snaps back to Kia as I relize what she was doing. I hold her hand to see if she was injured, but her hand seems fine to me, just a little soft and warm.


    ¡°Are you ok?¡± I look up to see her face going a shade of crimson. She just mumbles out a cute mhmm~ as she nods her head slowly in affirmation.


    ¡°The handle is scolding hot, do you want to try?¡± she said sheepishly.


    ¡°And risk burning my hand too?! No, it¡¯s a warning, we should just leave.¡±


    ¡°I guess you¡¯re right.¡± She said solemnly. Seeing that disappointing look on her face really tugged at my heartstrings. It¡¯s hard seeing her look sad, especially in contrast to her usually bubbly personality.


    ¡°Wait. Fine I¡¯ll open it. Haahhhh.¡± I sigh as I turn back towards the shed. I brace my hands, ready for the sensation of what can be described as one of the most horrible pains to experience. I quickly open the door, I felt the burning on my hand, but barely noticed it as a sudden flash of light enveloped me.


    Blackness was creeping around my vision and the last thing I saw was Kia hitting the floor with a "THUD!" and the shed slowly fading away.

 Chapter 2: Random Place. Random People.

    I open my eyes and see a clear sky. My first thought was that it was raining the last time I remembered being conscious. The grass was digging into my back and there were trees everywhere looming over me. I grunt as I bring myself up to my knees. I drag myself to one of the surrounding trees and lean on it. My arms and Legs were shaky. When I looked around to inspect where I was, I saw Kia laying on the floor. Her mouth was a little bit open and she was sprawled on her side. Even as unkempt as she looked she still looked cute.


    ¡°Kia,¡± I faintly say. She didn¡¯t move. ¡°Kia,¡± I say this time a little louder. She still laid there without motion. ¡°KIA , ¡° I shouted with all the energy I had. She lifted her head, tiredness all over her face.


    ¡°Few more minutes mom, ¡° she said as she put down her head and started to doze off again. I let out a sigh, and started to look around again. There was broken sticks and rocks all over the floor. I stretched and grabbed one of the broken sticks nearest to me. I threw it at Kia, it hit her on the top of her head. Bonk! Suddenly out of nowhere she got up on her feet.  She started walking towards me, she had a complete blank face. I used the tree I was on as support as I struggled to get on my feet. She stopped right in front of me. I did a quick silent prayer, as she put her hand on my shoulder. She suddenly started laughing uncontrollably.


    ¡° You should have seen the look on your face!¡± She continues laughing. I sigh. What was even the point of that.


    ¡°Where are we,¡± I say, irritated. Kia looks around and shrugs.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Kia says without seeming to care. Great we¡¯re in the middle of nowhere with no food or water. ¡°Kia I¡¯m serious, what are we supposed to do.¡± She looks up to the sky, seeming like she''s debating on what to do or not. ¡° We can¡¯t do anything just standing here, let¡¯s look around,¡± she says while dashing off. Rustle. Rustle. Something behind me went. I look back and see nothing. Kia was getting out of my line of sight, she really needs to slow down sometimes. I race after her.


    I dash through the ferns as I race after Kia. Crack. Crack. Even though she went out of my sight of vision I can hear the cracking of the sticks. I started to sweat. I still didn¡¯t have much energy. I notice the plants didn¡¯t look anything like the ones I usually see, which is rarely based off living in the city. Some had one bright blue leaf, some had 2 bright red leaves. I couldn¡¯t hear the cracking anymore. I continue toward where I heard it last. Kia was standing right outside of a city, or should I say village. She turns around and spots me. She looked completely fine and still full of energy. I could feel the sweat all over my body, when I met up with her I collapsed on my knees and start panting.


    ¡°Took you long enough.¡± I know she¡¯s on the cross country team, but still that''s ridiculous. It seemed like we were running for hours. I¡¯m surprised I was able to keep running that long. The village was small and made out of wood and cobblestone.  Their was a fountain in the middle of it. Kia and I were  in front of a pathway into the village. The village looked pretty neat and clean. ¡°This is getting weird ,¡± Kia says. That¡¯s saying something coming from her.


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    Kia starts walking into the village. I get up and follow her. I notice a woman near the fountain. ¡°Over their Kia. ¡° I point to the fountain. We start walking towards her. A few people were walking around. There were 2 people in a complete armor set, they had some marking on their chest plate. One had a long sword and one had a hammer. When we reached where the women was she looked at us. She has a long, dark green dress. It has light green flowers on it. She has golden blond hair. Her eyes are hazel.


    ¡°Um, do you need anything ¡° she says.


    ¡°We¡¯re kind of lost, ¡° Kia says with a slight laugh.


    ¡° Come with me,¡± the woman says. She got up and headed toward one of the buildings in the village. Kia and I followed her. She opened the door and went in, Kia and I right behind her. It looked like a house inside. Then it hit me. A women just randomly just let two kids into her own house, no question about parents or anything like that. Suddenly I felt an uneasy feeling in my stomach.


    Their was a table with 4 chairs in it, there was also a lot of posters of her with 3 other people. I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s her family. It was one story, and to the left there was a door. Seemed like a modern house. Their was a door to the left of us. She opened it and went in, Kia went in without worrying. I was started to feel suspicious, but I just followed. I left the door behind us open just in case. Through the door was a huge library, multiple shelves of books cluttered in a space. The shelves weren¡¯t small either, there were multiple ladders to reach all the books.


    ¡°Have you guys ever heard of the Gate of Chrono,¡° she says, her eyes dancing.


    ¡°No, and I don¡¯t think Kenji has either.¡± The woman voice was soothing, like a soft whistle. ¡°Let  me explain .¡° the woman clears her throat.


    ¡°The Gate of Chrono is a portal to my world, every year it goes into a random world and sits there until someone opens it. Once it opens, it destroys itself and rebuilds. This process takes a year and then continues in a loop. No one knows how it was created, it was rumored to be the start of this world, ¡° she explains.


    ¡°Why should we believe you, you could be pulling a prank on us or telling us misleading information, ¡° I blurted out. She gave a slight grin.


    ¡°What other choice do you have, are you going to wonder everywhere¡± she says with a smile.


    ¡° So what are we supposed to do, how do we get back. ¡° Replying to her.


    ¡° I don¡¯t know ,¡± she says.

 Chapter 3: Raven Cliff?

    She¡¯s joking, I think to myself. I try to force myself to believe that, but when I look up her face is  plain. Kia didn¡¯t even look distressed, she looked completely fine. She actually had a small grin on her face.


    ¡° So what are do you suspect us to do, ¡° I say angrily.


    ¡° There''s one person who might know, but you won¡¯t be able to talk to him, ¡° she sighs.


    ¡° Whoa, we have people waiting for us in OUR world, ¡° I say.


    ¡° Not everyone does, ¡° Kia whispers.


    The woman and I ignore her.


    ¡° The supposed ruler of this world might know, but he has a whole army that blocks him from anyone, ¡° the woman states.


    What, are we in the past or something. Monarchs and dictators? I just got out of school. I start pacing around. What are we going to do, is this a dream. I look around at the multiple bookshelves. My face lands on Kia¡¯s bright blue eyes. She winks and starts talking.


    ¡° So what should we do miss, ¡° Kia says.


    The lady gives a slight grin and walks  out of the room. I look at Kia and shrug as I follow her. We can¡¯t do anything but follow her. All of this seems unreal, but what can I do. I¡¯m just a high school boy living a life. The woman stopped in the room with the table and 4 chairs.


    ¡° Wait here,¡± she says as she heads toward another door opposite of the one with the hidden library in it.


    ¡° Kia, this is-,¡± I was cut off by the creaking of the door opening again.


    The woman had a bow in her left hand and an arrow pack on her back. The bow had flower patterns all over it and 2 pink flowers holding the string of the bow. The pack on her back was light green and the arrows had different flower patterns on a lot of them.


    ¡° Let¡¯s go, no questions i¡¯ll explain in a short bit, ¡° she walks out the front door.


    Kia automatically walks after her. This is getting weirder and weirder by the minute, but for some reason I couldn¡¯t stop having a grin on my face. When we are all out she closes the door behind us. She got her bow up and got in what i¡¯m guessing is a shooting stance. She was on the ground on one knee, bow drawn. She put two arrows of the same pattern on her bow. She was aiming at the two guards  near the fountain.


    ¡° Whoa, what did they do to you,¡± I nervously say.


    ¡° It won¡¯t kill them, ¡° she says annoyed for some reason.


    ¡° Pretty sure it will, ¡° I say. Those arrows look lethal, the head of the arrow looked sharper than a thousand knives.


    I looked at Kia and she shrugs.


    ¡° Maybe she¡¯ll miss, ¡° she says with lackluster.


    The woman starts laughing so hard. Tears stream her face. What was so funny? She stays like this for probably a full minute. She wipes the her face with her hand.


    ¡° I never miss, ¡° she says with a grin.


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    The arrows are released. You hear the Whissss through the air as the arrows soar and hit their target. The arrows landed on each of the guards shoulders as they collapsed on the floor. When I looked at Kia she had a worried face. Are they dead? What kind of women is this? Is she crazy?


    ¡° Their just knocked out, don¡¯t be so scared,¡± she says as she motions us in the fountain water.


    She jumps in, water splashing everywhere. People were giving us crazy looks, I heard some murmuring between two kids. Before I had time to think about anything else Kia splashes in too.


    ¡° What are you guys doing, ¡° I say confused.


    ¡° Just lay in here, don¡¯t worry, most of your questions will be answered if you would trust me this one last time, ¡° The woman says.


    Kia grabs me and pulls me in with her. Splash! For some reason my clothes weren¡¯t soaked with water, but I could still feel the water on me.


    ¡° Close your eyes, ¡° she orders.


    Kia and I follow her commands. I could feel Kia shaking me. I opened my eyes and got up. Noise filled the air. I was still in the same fountain, but my surroundings were completely changed. There were men and women everywhere laughing and talking. Tents were put up everywhere, different colors and patterns. All the people and tents were set up in between the edge of a forest and a massive lake. I got out of the fountain, not wet at all. The women was already out and so was Kia.


    ¡° By the way my name is Momo, now follow me, ¡° she walks towards the crowd of people.


    Is this some sort of fantasy book? Was that magic that transported us here. So many questions I need to ask. Hopefully i¡¯ll get them answered soon or i¡¯ll burst. The woman went into the biggest tent i¡¯ve ever seen. I enter the tent after her and  I was amazed. There are rows of weapons and armor. Boxes cluttered around, based on the smell probably food. There''s a huge space to the right that is lined with old, raggedy dummies. There is a desk made of this kind of shiny dark brown wood, there is a man in it.  The man is well muscled and has decently long dark brown hair. He has a long line scar over his right eye, he also had a faint beard.


    ¡° They came from the Gate of Chrono, they''re your problem now, ¡° Momo starts walking out of the tent.


    ¡° What is this place, ¡° Kia asks.


    ¡° This is the Raven Wing guild, a guild on trying to overthrow Kai reign, ¡° he says.


    He has a strong, fruity voice.


    ¡° Why are you trying to overthrow Kai, ¡° Kia replies.


    ¡° It¡¯s a long story, ¡° he says.


    I sigh. Kia wants to hear it, you could see the curiosity in her eyes. Her brown hair matches her sparkling blue eyes so well.  Doesn¡¯t help she  always looks cute in her school uniform. Wait what was I thinking about?

 Chapter 4: Is this still real?

    ¡° Well, it started when their was 9 peaceful rulers of this world. Kai was one of them. All he sought was more power. Power hungry, he betrayed the other 8 while they were fighting a Kogi to protect our world. When they defeated the mighty beast Kai killed them, they were weak from the fight so they each easily fell victim  to Loki''s  wicked magic. Even the soldiers that helped the rulers were slain because he didn¡¯t want anyone to tell the people what really happened. He told a fake story about how he was the only one that survived. The people had no choice, but to blindly follow the one ruler that was still alive. Once he had all the power he banished magic. He didn¡¯t want anyone to have a chance of even taking a little of his power. People who would used what they were born with and should be able to explore were thrown in the barracks and left to die. Kai is just a power hungry fool who is not fit to be leader, ¡° the man explains.


    The man told the story so fast that it was liked he said it a billion times before.I was so overflowed with information but,  something still didn¡¯t add up. How could this man assume that Kai was lying. Unless¡­.


    ¡° Are you one of the rulers, ¡° I ask.


    Laughter fills the air, I don¡¯t really know what was so funny. I just asked a simple question. I take a glance over at Kia, she''s as confused as I am. Glad it¡¯s not just me.


    ¡° If I was one of the ruler, I would have already overthrew Kai, ¡° he laughs.


    ¡° No, I was one of the soldiers sent by the rulers side to destroy the Kogi. My father was one of the rulers though, we call them the ancient 9, ¡° he says with seriousness again.


    ¡° I¡¯m sorry, ¡° Kia says.


    Kia has a warm, comforting look in her eye. Kia knows what it¡¯s like to have your parents die. She lost her father to a thief when she was only 9.


    ¡° What do you plan on doing, doesn¡¯t Kai a whole army under his command, ¡° I try to return us back to the main topic.


    ¡° We¡¯re just here to protect the people, we send squads to almost every town to protect the commoners from guards, monsters, etc,¡± he states.


    ¡° We need to talk to Kai to return to our world though, ¡° I say annoyed.


    I don¡¯t know if this whole thing is real or not still, but if it is I still need to be able to return to my world. I have people there that need me, I hope my family¡¯s ok.


    ¡° Why such a rush, for now you need training even to get close to one of Kai¡¯s guards, ¡° he says.


    He gets up. He¡¯s actually fairly tall. The man walks towards the racks of weapons. Kia and I follow, again not really having much of a choice.  The racks contain weapons I have never even heard of, a blue and black trident has my eyes on them. The man points at the racks.


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    ¡° Pick a weapon, you can learn more later, It¡¯s better to have one that you master though, ¡° he says as he walks toward the dummies.


    Kia and I are left alone, almost 50 different kind of weapons in front of us. Kia looks them, eyebrows slightly raised and mouth slightly open. I look at the blue and black trident. I went for a touch. The long handle of the trident feels smooth under my palm. The handle was black while the 3 blades at the top of the trident were blue. The top of the trident looked like the one of those claws you use to get stuff animals in that box, except the blades are much sharper and look like they can cut through metal. I grab it out of the rack slot, it felt cool between my hands.


    ¡°That looks cool, ¡° Kia says out of nowhere.


    Kia has a bow in her hand and a quiver of arrows on her back. She reminds me a little of Momo. All Kia arrows look the same though, and her bow and quiver has a sun on it.


    ¡° This is going to be so fun, ¡° she smiles.


    I wish I could share her same excitement. I¡¯m a little scared, never been a fighting kind of person. Kia and I walk up to the man. The man had two long swords on his back. I just noticed.


    ¡° So those are your two weapons, a bow and a trident, interesting. I¡¯ll get you both of you a trainer, stay here,¡± he says.


    ¡° Welcome to Raven Cliff, the name¡¯s Kage, ¡° he says while going out.


    I¡¯ll follow this crazy world at the moment, until I can think of a plan. I¡¯ll get my information and leave with Kia while the people here are busy. Kia seems like she wants to stay, but i¡¯ll change her mind. Hopefully.


    ¡° Do you think this Kai guy is evil Kia, is he worth killing, ¡° Kia says as she glances at me.


    ¡° I don¡¯t know anything at the moment, let''s just try to go with it, ¡° I say.


    Kage walks in with two other men. One is a male and one is a female. The male is medium sized, a little bit taller then me. He had blond hair, and a devilish smirk. The girl on the other hand had red hair with leaves in it. Weird, seems like the leaves are stuck to her hair. She¡¯s Kage¡¯s height.


    ¡° These are the new people, you can explain to them how you train and which tent they will sleep is, ¡° he says as he goes back to his desk.


    The male walks up to me. He doesn¡¯t look that old, probably still only in his early 20s.


    ¡° The name¡¯s Laurence, let''s go to your new tent, ¡° he says.


    He walks out and I follow him, I give one look back to Kia. She winks at me, she¡¯s having too much fun with this.

 Chapter 5: A Fight on Chrono

    Laurence leads me to a light blue tent. Inside it I see 2 bunk beds on opposite ends. They look unsafe, then I realized that there''s a total of 4 beds in the tent.


    ¡° Is there anyone living in this tent here, if you guys even live in these things,¡± I say,


    ¡° Yeah, one more person. He¡¯s also fairly new, but I have no idea where he¡¯s at, ¡° Laurence replies.


    He goes out of tent, I follow close behind him. He starts heading into the forest. A part of me doesn''t want to go, the forest looks like if I take one step in it i¡¯ll be consumed by the trees. I fight back my fear and trail him.


    Laurence goes through the forest expertly dodging looming branches and bushes. I myself am not as lucky, I might have a better chance of fighting Kai¡¯s army than going through this forest. After minutes of me being swat at by branches we arrive at a clearing. I spot a boy their. He was kicking and punching the air. He was amazing, he was so graceful with his hits. Fast, but still looked like it would send a man flying if hit by him. Sweat pouring down  his face.


    ¡° Rigo, hey,¡± Laurence shouts to him as he walks towards him.


    The boy was fairly short. He looked at me and gave me a grin. I gave him a smile back.


    ¡° A new recruit? I haven¡¯t seem him anywhere in camp,¡± he says.


    ¡° Yep, I was thinking we could spar so maybe he could learn some spells, ¡° Laurence states.


    A fight, huh. I¡¯m not gonna lie, it sounds exciting to watch. I guess when they mean spells they mean magic. Maybe I should try to enjoy myself like Kia, but still. My family is probably worried about me.


    ¡° Ok, don¡¯t think i¡¯ll be so easy this time, ¡° Rigo excitingly said.


    They both look at each other. A smile on both of their faces. I back up a little, I don¡¯t know what to expect. How does a battle work out in this weird world.


    ¡° Tidal Wave appear, ¡° Laurence says as a long dark blue spear appeares in his hand.


    ¡° Vortex Gauntlets appear, ¡° Rigo says as his hands are covered with 2 gloves. Each glove has 3 sharp points on it brimming with electricity.


    It stays silent for a while. Rigo makes one step and then suddenly appears next to Laurence. I didn¡¯t even see him move, amazing. He launches a punch as Laurence ducks by bending backwards. He brings his feet up as he flips back to his original stance. Rigo sidesteps the kick.


    ¡° Electric shock, ¡° Rigo shouts. Right when Laurence lands his backflip. A lighting strike shoots towards him from Rigo¡¯s gauntlets.


    ¡° Aqua Prison, ¡° Laurence says as a watery shield appears around him.


    He used the prison on himself to absorb the attack. Laurence still has a smirk even when he was almost electrocuted. The aqua prison leaves him.


    ¡° Electric Cannon, ¡° Rigo says as he electricity flows around him. He sticks his two hands out. He sits there for a while, more electricity flowing in the air around him as every moment passes.


    Laurence smiles and just stands their.. What is he doing? Shouldn¡¯t he be taking over the time Rigo wasting on charging this ability?


    Suddenly a thick cannon of lightning shoots from Rigo¡¯s hands. The shot made the earth rumble below my feet as it hurled at Laurence.


    ¡° Ancient Mirror, ¡° Laurence shouts as a mirror appeared in front of him.


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    Once the lightning shot hit the mirror it went into it. Then after a few moments shot right back at Rigo.


    ¡° Aqua Prison, ¡° Laurence yells.


    The same prison that went over Laurence just a few moments ago goes over Rigo.


    ¡° Ground Shackles, ¡° Laurence says.


    The earth below Rigo leaps out and binds his legs. Rigo just smirks. A huge explosion appears as the shot hits Rigo. Rigo stands there unscathed. His arms were held out. What just happened, shouldn¡¯t he be done after that.


    ¡° Your Gauntlets absorb electricity now, ¡° Laurence says with a smile.


    ¡° Yeah, I would of went for a counter attack, but I have to ask. Are we teaching this kid combat or magic, ¡° Rigo says.


    ¡° If its combat maybe you should teach him some moves and not make him watch us fight, ¡° Rigo says with a smirk.


    ¡° Probably,¡± Laurence replies.


    ¡° Follow me, ¡° Laurence says to me as he enters into the forest.


    I sigh. Is he even training me at this point.


    ¡° Don¡¯t worry, he¡¯s a little forgetful. Don¡¯t be too hard on him, he''s a good guy, ¡° Rigo grins.


    ¡° The fight was interesting, it¡¯s fine, ¡° I say as I trail Laurence back into the forest.


    That fight was amazing. Rigo was new too, and he was able to move that fast and cast such a powerful spell.


    Laurence goes into another clearing not that far from the one Rigo was in. He turns around to me, suddenly I was on the floor. I get up and dust off the dirt clinging to my clothes.


    ¡° The first thing in combat is good reaction, be able to block or counter any type of attack that is thrown towards you, ¡° he says.


    He backed away from me on the opposite side of the clearing.


    ¡° Pebble Pummel, ¡° he says.


    Suddenly pebbles appeared out of nowhere floating around him. A pebble shoot out at me and hits me in the arm. He shoots those things fast, you could hear the whsssss through the air.


    ¡° Try to dodge them, we¡¯ll try catching later,¡± he says.


    Another pebble flew at me, I try to sidestep like I saw Rigo, but I still got hit square in the chest. Those things hurt.


    ¡° Calm down. Just try to keep your eye on the thing coming at you. It may be coming fast but if you focus on it, you can dodge it, ¡° he says.


    Another pebble was about to come, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I was calm, but now I need to keep my eye on the pebble. Whsss the pebble came towards me I tried to keep my eye on it, but it was too fast.I still got struck. I had one more idea, but I doubted it. Another pebble came soaring at me, I closed my eyes. Then easily moved to the side and dodged it. Two pebbles came after, I keep my eyes closed. I  ducked the first one and rolled to the right for the second one. My ears seem to be better then my eyes, I can hear the pebbles and dodge them.


    ¡° Well done, but don¡¯t get your guard down, ¡° he says.


    He launches three pebbles at me. I did the same thing for the ones I dodged before. I sidestepped the first two then easily caught the third.


    ¡° Is that all you have, ¡° I say as I smile towards him.