Warcross (Warcross #1)(61)
“Now, Emi!” Asher snaps in our comms.
I look at the Lightning power-up hovering in the middle of the giant hole in the structure. Then I shift my weight to my back leg. My hoverboard zooms upward. I hunch down until I’m as low on the board as I can go—the change speeds me up, and I rocket toward the marble.
I snatch it out of the air as I zip through the hole.
My memory of the 3-D landscape flashes in my mind. I see the way the structure looks on all sides, the crevices nearest it, and the way the terrain tilts. In a split second, I make a calculation of how this ice structure might topple if I mess with it right now. Do it, I tell myself. I whip out a stick of dynamite from my belt and slap it onto the side of the structure as I pass through. Then I rush downward.
“Get out of the way!” I say through our secure feed.
Behind me, an explosion shakes the level. Snow and shards of ice fly past me. I cringe and duck down low on my hoverboard. The structure I’d blown groans, the sound echoing across the landscape, and I glance over my shoulder to see it toppling forward toward all of us. The other Phoenix Riders scatter, thanks to my warning. I dart sharply sideways, too, so suddenly that I almost topple out of control. At the same time, I aim the Lightning power-up straight at where the Demons are clustered. I throw it.
Lightning strikes all of them except for their captain, Jena, lighting up the space in a flash of brilliant gold. For a single, precious second, the Demons all freeze.
Jena only gets a chance to glance up at the giant, falling shadow before shouting a warning to her teammates. “Move! Move!”
But the Lightning attack has thrown off the Demons. Their players scatter left and right as the structure collapses in an explosion of cracking ice. They barely make it—all except for Darren Kinney, their Shield. The falling pillar clips him hard on his shoulder, and he goes spinning wildly out of control, disappearing into the cloud of white. His life bar shrinks to 0 percent.
Darren Kinney | Team Demon Brigade
Life: -100% | STRIKE OUT!
EMIKA CHEN strikes out DARREN KINNEY!
He regenerates a good fifty yards behind me, with a new life bar.
“First strike!” the announcer screams in disbelief as the audience goes insane with cheering. “Goes to Emika Chen!”
Hammie whoops joyously over our comms, while Ren lets out a curse and Roshan sounds bewildered. Asher’s voice finally comes on. “Next time—warn me,” he shouts, even as his tone is one of admiration.
I’m trying to concentrate on the dizzying landscape that rushes past us. Jena’s Artifact hovers glittering and silver over her head. “You’re welcome!” I shout back. All around us come the screams and cheers from our invisible audience.
“I don’t believe it!” an analyst yells. “Another early move from a wild card in the first game of the season, and what a move it is! She couldn’t have picked a more accurate way of toppling that structure toward the Demons. We’ve been underestimating Emika Chen. This is going to be a fun one, folks!”
Suddenly, one of the Demons sidles up to me, then spins around on his board so that he’s facing me. It’s Tremaine. My smile vanishes as he lunges for me, slashing me hard in the chest with the blade embedded on his armguard. My vision blurs scarlet.
Emika Chen | Team Phoenix Riders
Life: -40%
My hoverboard wobbles as I dart backward, and I nearly lose my balance. Tremaine lunges again. He’s so fast that his limbs seem to blur. If he knocks me off my board, I’ll go tumbling into oblivion and regenerate behind everyone. I’ll be useless for a long time. My hands scramble for the hammer at my belt.
Out of nowhere, Roshan appears on my other side right as Tremaine throws another strike at me. Roshan narrows his eyes and brings his forearms up in a bracing cross. The move activates his armguards—an enormous, glowing blue shield bursts outward from them in a circle, arcing protectively in front of us both. Tremaine’s attack hits the shield instead, sending sparks flying everywhere.
“Babysitting your new Architect?” he taunts Roshan.
“Don’t be so jealous,” Roshan says. He uncrosses his arms, letting the shield down for an instant, and lunges at Tremaine with his own fist. A smaller blue shield glows around his moving arm. It hits Tremaine hard enough to make him reel backward, dropping his life bar by 15 percent. The three of us maneuver down into a valley of snow-covered stone, then weave up to avoid a sharp outcropping of rock. I veer sharply out of the way as Roshan continues to fight with Tremaine—but Tremaine veers with me, determined to knock me down. My recollection of the landscape flies through my head. I use what I remember in order to avoid crashing against a cliff.
The analyst is talking so fast now that he can barely catch his breath. “And the Demons send their Fighter after Emika! Roshan comes to her aid! If Tremaine catches Emika at this outcropping—she avoids it! Barely! It’s as if she knows this terrain! Roshan shows us why he’s one of the best Shields in the games! He’s not letting their Architect fall, folks, not if he can help it!”
Power-ups zip past us. I eye them until I find what I’m looking for—a Speed Burst. It’s glowing bright yellow and hurtling near me. I take a mighty swerve toward it. My hand reaches out. I barely manage to grab it.
I use it right away. The world around me slows as I dash forward.