Renegade Rising (The Renegade Series) (47 page)

“Now for number three. THIS is something I am still…um…working on, so it should be encouraging to you both that even I don’t have all three yet. The third and final element a man needs is someone to fight for, be it a great friendship or a great love or even better, both. Now, you two may not know the importance of a female companion in your life, but it will literally flip your world upside down when it comes, ” Falcon said, as he purposefully looked at Gisbo who looked away at once, thinking of Anakah.

“When I say someone to fight for, I don’t necessarily mean swoop in and save the day, I mean, it's most often us guys that screw things up. You have no idea how much a man needs a grounded lady in his life. If it were only men, we would have died out years ago! We’d be too busy killing each other! Both of you, male and female, will become one in spirit, together, the feminine and masculine complementing each other. This results in something so beautiful and mysterious it has been the cause of countless art and expression for the ages. But, with pleasure comes hardship, and you must always remember the enemy.”

“The enemy?” Rolce asked.

“Yes. Have either of you ever tried to do something incredible, something exciting, and at first you have total confidence in yourself when all of a sudden you hear a small voice creep into your head, saying, 'You’re worthless, you can’t do it, you will fail!'” Falcon asked.

“All the time,” Rolce said.

“This is also part of the battle. Rolce, you must understand there are forces in this world beyond your sight and they are at battle every single day for your soul. They WANT you to fail. Some call them Maras, some something else; either way we all hear the voice, but there is another. We can do no worse than to listen to the disparaging one. Now, one last thing for you to ponder,” Falcon said.

“You get all this out of a book or something? Where does this stuff of yours come from?” Rolce asked.

“I’ll say most of it is from a much wiser man than I,” Falcon said. “Now, Gisbo, as I said, you are a spitfire, always looking for a fight, always striking out at anybody who tells you off and throwing yourself into pointless skirmishes over pride as a way to prove yourself. Sometimes you needed to, I’ll say that, but there needs to be a level of control. A control that Rolce has, an ability to brush things off and get your pride under wraps. Which is why you're next, Rolce. If Gisbo is too aggressive, you are far too passive. If one cannot defend even himself, on what ground can he hope to help somebody else? From what I gather, Ranto walloped you and walloped you good. Nobody, and I mean nobody, has the right to hit you. If they do, you have a right to defend yourself, but your brain went into fight or flight mode and you chose wrongly. The most basic of instincts and you let your fear and pain get the better of you,” Falcon said before pausing.

“You both know your faults. Nobody's perfect, especially not me, but don’t lay down, never accept your limitations, always keep improving. I think IAM put you two together without an extra teammate for a reason. In this time together, your friendliness has already affected Gisbo right from the beginning, Rolce, causing him to make friends for the first time and, up to a point, he has been able to control himself and his Elekai’. I have a feeling the process will work in reverse for you, Rolce, and Gisbo will push you, encourage you to get past your fear and to let loose when the time is right. And like always, just know that I am so proud of you both, I can’t say it enough. If the two of you stick together, balance will come and you will be an unbeatable team,” Falcon finished. Both boys sat in silence.

“All right, lecture over. I promise. Now, what do I usually do when you guys are feeling down?” Falcon asked as he stood up.

“Cook us the best steak in Heaven’s Shelter!” Gisbo said, excited. Falcon gave him a disturbed look.

“What? You're dreaming, come on now, try again,” Falcon said.

“You're not going to cook us steak?” Gisbo asked, feeling a bit disappointed.

“No, because you guys don’t think it’s the PLANET’s best steak, only the best in Heaven's Shelter apparently. Psh, my culinary skills aren’t worthy of such an audience! Might as well call Martha over if that’s the case,” Falcon said in mock offense. Gisbo and Rolce both stood up and proclaimed the greatness of Falcon's steak together, fists stamped over their chests.

“BEST! On the PLANET!” they said in unison. At this, Falcon smiled.

“That’s what I like to hear! Gisbo, go steam those vegetables and Rolce, set this table, I got grilling to do!” Falcon said as they all went about their tasks awaiting the coveted dinner entree.

The days went by and their training continued as usual. However, now all Gisbo and Rolce could think about were the three things Falcon had mentioned to them that were keys to their masculine soul and happiness: A battle to fight, an adventure to live and someone to fight for. So far, Gisbo had a battle to fight and he was currently caught up in an adventure. Not everybody got to be Renegades after all, but he had never really thought about what made him come alive before or his heart's desires for that matter. It was something to think about for sure.

On top of that, the thought that both of them were thrust together to learn from each other and bring balance was a comforting thought. His absolutely pitiful loss to Ranto really encouraged Gisbo to get his butt into gear. Just the thought of Ranto’s ugly mug and the second band on Gisbo’s arm and now the three puncture holes on his stomach, sent Gisbo into a flurry of exercises and more training. He had to get stronger to save Jackobi and especially to be able to shove Ranto’s face in the dirt once and for all. Ranto never even spoke to anybody of the fight between them and deep down Gisbo wanted him to. This secret they shared was far worse than the shame of the other Renegades knowing for every time he walked by Ranto, every time he saw him from a distance, Ranto would look at him with a smile that made his insides rot with discomfort. He had far surpassed Thomson on Gisbo's register of scumbags by now. Why did a sense of undeserved entitlement make people such jerks? Either way, Gisbo knew that one day, he would settle things for good . . .

Chapter Twenty Two:
The Battle Approaches

The familiar feeling of summer arrived after a rainy spring in Heaven’s Shelter. The sun was shining and the palm trees seemed especially happy to have the snow off of them. Within days, the yells of clash players, the splash of swimmers and the smells of roasting meat on grills filled the air of Heaven’s Shelter once again. With summer, the Renegas were near the completion of their final band. They would soon be calling themselves Renegaras, ready to journey out with their class masters and Boons to face the challenges and respectfully become Renegades.

These days it was business as usual for Rolce and Gisbo as they once again got into the routine of Renegade life. It got to the point where even the studious Rolce was quite sick of studying and couldn’t wait to have a summer off before they parted ways to train with Falcon and Moordin. Today, however, was different. The luxury of routine would soon be ended and lives forever changed when night fell on Heaven’s Shelter. The day of destiny had come and, ready or not, both of them were in for one hell of a night.

The day started off just like any other. Doesn’t it always? The boys finished their lessons with Perry, went to work and got home in time for a bright afternoon in front of their tree house and a night of training. They went to bed early, not knowing they would be thankful later that they hadn't overexerted themselves. There was once a time when Gisbo constantly pestered Rolce and looked him over while he slept, ever since he had his very first dream and discovered his Sybil blood. Funny how just when Gisbo had forgotten all about his anticipation something finally happened . . .

Gisbo was thrust awake suddenly as Rolce began convulsing and shouting unrecognizable words. Harpie was squawking and Fao was scratching at the wooden ladder below frantically. Rolce’s bunk was shaking from his robust weight and whatever he was saying; it was quite disturbing. Gisbo desperately shook his friend and slapped his face when suddenly everything stopped and Rolce jolted upward.

“Rolce! Rolce! Answer me, man! What’s wrong?” Gisbo pleaded. He noticed that Rolce’s pupils were flickering white, then back to blue as he spoke.

“Gisbo! I . . . I don’t know what’s wrong with me I . . . AHHHH!!!” Rolce screamed in pain. A grotesque black symbol appeared on his forehead, looking like three number sixes sharing the same circle. The symbol spun outward like a throwing star and dripped black ooze down his face. Then thick black lines etched across the surface of his arms and his eyes completely glossed over into white orbs. It was as if his arm was moving of its own accord as it outstretched itself, palm upward, and shot a blob of blackness forward. The kickback from the shot was so powerful it caused Rolce to fly from his bunk, slamming into Gisbo in the process.

Both boys toppled to the ground hard, nearly landing on a frantic Fao below. The black energy cluster began to swirl in a dizzying circle. It looked to Gisbo like a thick oil spill that swirled into a vortex in mid-air. Suddenly it stabilized and they could feel the air around them being sucked into it. Posters fluttered off the walls and the sheets on their beds ruffled.

Rolce’s eyes returned to baby blue as he stared at his now perfectly fine arm. The symbol on his forehead faded and disappeared without a trace. Gisbo was frantic, shouting curses as he pushed Rolce off of him. He had to raise his voice to compensate for the wooing noise the black whirlpool was emitting.

“Rolce! What the hell did you just do?” Gisbo yelled.

“I don’t know; I was having a dream! Wait, that’s it! I had a dream, Gisbo! I know where Jackobi is!” Rolce bellowed. Gisbo’s eyes went wide.

“You do? Where, Rolce? Where is he? And what is that thing you just made?” Gisbo yelled.

“Don’t you recognize it? It’s the same thing Shax and Lokin used to escape during Purah’s funeral! I think it's some sort of transportation portal!” Rolce yelled.

“But it's all black! Your eyes, they went all white . . . and that symbol! You used the Drakeness, Rolce! How?” Gisbo yelled.

“I . . . I felt my father, in my head. He used the Mind-Link on me! Gisbo, it was so powerful . . . he was channeling the Drakeness through me! He said things like, 'Come to me, come to me!’ I . . . ” Rolce trailed off, deeply disturbed. Gisbo shook his head.

“The hell with what he said! Are you alright?” Gisbo yelled. Rolce paused for a moment.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Whatever just went through me is gone. There's no trace of it,” Rolce said, rubbing his forehead with a wince.

“Good. Now you said you know where Jackobi is! Where, Rolce? Where?” Gisbo yelled. Rolce paused for a moment.

“The cave, Gisbo! The same cave where Moordin and him fought years ago. That’s where they all are. We need to go get Falcon and Moordin! We need to…” Suddenly their voices were cut off as the spiraling blackness let out a blood curdling scream. It was so loud and gruesome Gisbo and Rolce had to cover their ears.

“Rolce! Somebody’s dying over there!” Gisbo yelled louder over the horrible screaming, standing up and staring into the blackness, trying to see beyond the portal.

“It sounds terrible! Gah! My ears!” Rolce stammered.

“We gotta go help!” Gisbo shouted. Rolce’s eyes went wide.

“Gisbo! No! It’s a trap! We . . . we can’t! It’s suicide! They’ll kill us! This portal will take us right to them, I’m sure of it!” Rolce answered. Gisbo shook his head once more.

“Good! Trap or no, we don’t have time! It’s . . . it's too much for me to handle! I’m going in! What have we been doing all this extra training for? Come with me!” Gisbo yelled as he began to throw on his clothes. Rolce stood with the same white face he had before when Ranto hit him.

“No! I . . . I can’t! I can’t do it, Gisbo! We aren’t strong enough! They’ll kill us!” Rolce yelled as tears streamed down his face.

“ROLCE! DON’T YOU GET IT? Somebody is going to DIE! I can’t stand here and let it happen! I could never live with myself knowing that when the moment came to fight, to help save a life, that I backed down . . . I’d rather die then live with that kinda guilt! I’D NEVER FORGIVE MYSELF!” Gisbo screamed. He ran and grabbed his bandana, tied it to his head, seized his talon sword, and looked down at Fao with a smile. He couldn’t believe how much she had grown since he had found her as a puppy nearly a year ago.

“But, but . . . it's not your responsibility! You're crazy! Just wait and we can go get help! Be logical about this!” Rolce argued. Gisbo ignored him, giving Fao a rub behind the ears.

“Logical? You’re talking to the wrong guy, buddy. I know what you feel inside, Rolce. I just got a smidge of it with your mind link. I don’t want that. I’m going in!” Gisbo yelled, his back to Rolce. He then turned to look at his wolf.

“Come on, girl, I know I’m gonna need all the help I can get over there! Rolce, I’ve been alone for far too long. I need you, but I can’t force you to help. So go ahead, do what you do best and RUN! Come on, Fao, let's go girl!” Gisbo yelled and, with a big leap, the boy and his wolf jumped into the dark portal without a clue what awaited them on the other side.

At first, it took Gisbo a second to open his eyes. He was engulfed in blackness and moving at a tremendous rate of speed. He grasped Fao in a tight hug as they both spiraled like an arrow through darkness as thick as molasses. The rush of wind was enormous and the screams of anguish had been replaced by the monstrous growls and roars of an unearthly presence. Gisbo looked around him, seeing pearl eyes in the darkness and flashes of white fangs. Limbs stretched out to swipe at him and his wolf.