Gray Heroics #5

"AND.... BEGIN!!" Upon Galelith's command from the sideline, the skirmish match begins.  

"Fi-Ara!" Raice, one of the four associates Naeth has been bringing along to the training sessions, starts things off with a tier 2 fireball aimed at the weakest link on the opposing team - Galivinth.

The male in question is startled, but manages to instinctively throw himself out of the way and onto the ground. In doing so, he leaves one of his team's makeshift 'towers' vulnerable to the attack. Well, Galivinth may have - but Naeth?

"FI-HARA!!!" He swiftly dashes over and fluently shifts into delivering a flaming roundhouse kick to that incoming ball of heat, sending it flying right back to the other side and at one of Raice's teammates twice as fast. Rayson, the new target of the burning projectile, only had enough time to raise his arms in an X-formation to defend himself before taking an explosive-like impact that sends him flying and landing roughly on his back with a grunt.

The astounding athlete was already on top of his game, even if it was just a mock match.

"Don't let yourself get swept up in the heat of the moment, cousin. Keep moving and think fast." Naeth reminds Galivinth.

"Yeah, I kn-OOAH!?" Galivinth tries to respond, but there's barely seconds to spare in an active match. The other team were going on the attack again. The third member of the opposing side, Daevan, casts a tier-2 Earth spell -- a pillar-like structure of stone extending from the ground at angle. Continuously stretching outward with the intent of striking Naeth's chest with a thrust, yet the latter was more than prepared. Naeth sways aside with a hop and avoids the blow that stops just above his cousin's head, then dishes out a counterattack.

"Ligh-To!" Along with shouting out that incantation, Naeth throws a swift right boxing jab that sends out a tier 1 purple lightning bolt at Daevan. Too quick for the target to react, the bolt strikes its mark and sends the male staggering and briefly tumbling on the ground.

"Sharp as always, eh Naeth? Fi-Hara." Qoreman, the third member of Galivinth & Naeth's team muses and follows up on the attack with the same fire spell used earlier, only instead of discharging it with a kick, he sends out a tier 2 wave of fire by using his right hand to swipe widely in front of himself. But--

"Aqurmia!" Rayson steps up with an overwhelming counter attack; extending his hands outward and releasing a powerful tier 3 burst of water that's both great in size and pressure. It was more than enough to outright neutralize the incoming flame, as well as send Qore soaring over 10 yards away upon reaching him.

Seeing this, Galivinth adopts a kneeling position and places his right hand flat against the grassy ground.

"I-Cé!" He shouts and promptly begins freezing over the ground before him in a linear path using a tier 2 ice spell, one that extends with the intent of freezing Raice and Rayson's feet in place. 

The two effortlessly avoid contact by backing away horizontally as it passes vertically. However, Naeth was swift to apply more pressure. He merely recites the tier 2 fireball incantation within his own mind and casts the spell with a spinning thrusting side-kick, discharging the projectile from the sole of his sneaker and right for Raice.

"Don't let them exploit anything, let alone a supposed opening!" Naeth instructs firmly. Meanwhile, Raice acts upon the only option she has and leaps out of harm's way and into a roll. By then, Naeth was throwing out a leaning right jab as he casts the tier 2 fire-wave spell. Save this time, he sends it out at Rayson like a flamethrower instead of a sweeping wave. The latter had little choice but to turn away and brace under the scorching presence of the flames.

Galivinth recoils with concern at such a display, and hesitates just enough to where when he goes about taking his next action, Raice is also about to take hers.

"Uuuhh.. Uh-- L-ligh..? Ligh--" For a moment, Galivinth forgets the incantation. And when it JUST comes back to him, Raice cuts him off.

"Fi-Ah." And upon that spoken spell, she shoots a tier 1 fireball from her left palm that strikes Galivinth directly in the face and knocks him onto his back.

"Guaah!?" The teen instinctively reaches to cradle his face. However, he was more startled than in actual pain. There was a bit of a stinging sensation and an abnormal feeling of warmth all over his face, but nothing even remotely serious. While he takes a bit of leisure to settle down and recover his wits, an all-out brawl of spells ensues between the others. The opposing team was pushing to take advantage of the moment.

Qoreman, Raice, Daevan, Naeth, and Rayson were suddenly on a whole new level! The sounds of spells rapidly explosively going off from both teams fills the atmosphere in seconds. 

Tink!

One spell gets past the struggling duo during the 15 seconds it takes Galivinth to raise to his feet again.

"We got one! Keep pushing, they're probably panicking right now!" Raice enthusiastically shouts after knocking down her opposing team's far right 'tower'.

"Tch... Hold the line, Qoreman. They're getting ahead of themselves. Cousin, are you managing all right!?" Naeth asks without tearing his focus away from the onslaught of spells coming at them. In order to protect the two remaining towers, he was forced to stand his ground and repel them using a hybrid of Muay Thai techniques imbued with magic. Fire, water, piercing lightning - whatever he needed to keep cutting them down and stall for an opening.

"Yeah... Yeah, I'm up and fi--!?" Galivinth cuts off mid sentence when he turns around.

"Up and going down!"  There to greet him was Raice, grinning mischievously while placing her hands upon his shoulders. He was at a loss. However, he didn't have to think about it too much, because in the next moment she promptly hikes herself up with the elegance of a gymnast and wraps her legs around his face. Practically throwing herself backwards, she drags him off balance and along with her motion. The momentum used to throw & flip him onto his back with a thud behind her.

A display Naeth catches a glimpse of in the midst of the chaos. He knows something has to be done immediately.  Just before Raice could get right back into helping her team apply pressure, Naeth takes quick initiative. 

While prepping a spell, he rushes forward with a great ducking stride. Not to avoid, but to rise up with a lightning-imbued elbow that cuts through the very next fireball Rayson casts just as it manifests. It evaporates on the spot, taking his opponent by surprise. Continuing on with his rush down, Naeth gets two tier 1 spells ready, one in each hand as he runs up and leaps. Kicking off Rayson's shoulder first, then Daevan's, to not only throw them off balance, but also jump seven feet into the air before he takes his shots. Both fire-ball spells hit with precision and knocks over two of the enemy team's 'towers'. 

But he wasn't done just yet.

"Galivinth, get to their fortress! They're venerable!" Naeth shouts just as he lands. And when he does, he quickly snaps around to run up and drop kick Rayson's legs from underneath him just as the opposing team realizes what he's done. Raice was quickly kept in check with a tier 1 fireball from Naeth to her midsection that sends her staggering. Daevan was preoccupied with doing his best to avoid taking a blow from Qoreman.

"Huh? Oh--!" And with that, Galivinth hustles toward the other side, nearly tripping over himself as he does. But it's all set and done. With no obstacle in his way, he sprints beyond the knocked over metal rods that serve as towers and lays his hand on the stack of crates that serve as a representation of the enemy's 'tower'.

"And that's the match." Galelith announces as he approaches the center of the field. The others all come together to gather around him with Galivinth being the only one who was a bit tired and sucking air.

"That was definitely as interesting as the other matches... But I'm starting to feel like this is a sport that requires more energy than I have to give." Galivinth complains as he begins slipping his protective cloak off.

"Ah, you did--... Well, no.. Your performance was subpar, but you at least did the bare minimum to help us win." Naeth comments casually, also taking a moment to take his cloak off. 

"Yeah-yeah... I'll keep trying to improve." Galivinth responds, hardly bothered by his relative's bluntness anymore.

"You do seem awfully out of your league, but I think you did okay for the most part!" Raice comments with a warm smile, drawing Galivinth's attention. She was a full-blooded Cryonean just like Naeth. 5'6 in height, short black hair styled in a pixie cut, ivory in complexion, and possessed a rather interesting build to her. She wasn't quite all too slender, yet neither high in body fat or muscle definition. Just toned & curvy under an outfit consisting of a tucked white t-shirt, fitted blue denim shorts, and a pair of high-top black sneakers. Truth be told, Galivinth found her pretty attractive. She was sweet, cute, and upbeat. Much like every other Cryonean he's met, she was also quite honest when sharing her thoughts. But unlike Naeth, she's fairly more kind about her bluntness.

"...Thanks. It does help a bit to know that you think so." He responds, now folding his cloak and placing it between his waist and right arm.

"You know, it's still unbelievable how these cloaks can protect you from fatal harm. I can't imagine what these skirmish matches would have been like without them."

"Well, they're essentially to the sport. Have been for most of the sport's lifespan." Naeth informs.

"Indeed, it's strongly advised that an individual does not participate without having one on. With that in mind, I'm curious as to how much it helps you, Galivinth. Any noticeable level of pain during our match or even now?" Qoreman asks in the midst of folding up his own cloak. He was a Cryonean male with fair skin, long and parted blonde hair that reached just past his pectorals, 6'0 in height, lean in build, and dressed in a navy blue tracksuit with a simple red t-shirt beyond his open jacket and a pair of white sneakers on his feet.

"Hmm... Not really. I mean, that fireball to the face I took was kind of painful and hot, but it didn't really linger. I don't feel any pain at all right now." Galivinth answers honestly. Though, he does think back to the day his father injected him with a syringe filled with peculiar liquid that was meant to "improve him" and suppress the human half of his genetic makeup. He considers the possibility that it may have truly made him nearly if not just as physically tough as the average Cryonean. 

"That's good. I suppose there was nothing to truly worry about, then." Qore concludes.

"Can't be too cautious, though. Humans are pretty fragile, and I'm not too sure how much that affects him." Naeth chimes in.

"So don't hesitate to let me know of any injuries you get inflicted with during our matches, cousin." He continues, initially speaking to Qore before shifting his focus toward Galivinth.

"If it's serious, then sure. But I'm not going to whine over a few bruises and a little soreness. I'll be fine." Galivinth assures. 

"I'll take your word for it, then. Just be mindful. And since you feel that way, maybe now is a good time to transition to more accurate mock matches back at the Cryon Kingdom." Naeth proposes.

"I'd welcome the change to a more familiar and comfortable scenery. The weather this far out is a bit too warm for my liking." Rayson chimes in to express support of the notion. Another Cryonean male, one who stands at the height of 6'1, possesses a lean physique, and short silver that's trimmed low in the back while neat short tufts hang over his forehead. A snug, sleeveless, white and thin turtleneck on his torso - a pair of black accessory sleeves that reach from his defined biceps and down to his wrists, white skinny jeans with cuts littered along the left thigh on his lower body, and a pair of black converse gym-shoes on his feet.

"Ehh.. You get used to it. I felt it when I initially began visiting here, and I thought it was uncomfortable, too." Naeth shrugs his shoulders.

"Regardless, this'll be the last time we use this location for practice. So with that said, cousin, I want you to be up and ready to head out by 10am in two days." Naeth continues as he points a finger at Galivinth.

"Oh, alright. That's fair. I can manage that." The teen obliges his relative's terms.

"I'll provide the means of transportation again, if that's alright. He'll actually need clearance from me to pass through the gate again, anyhow." Galelith informs.

"Sounds good. I have no issue with that at all. Of course, I'll still come along for the ride." Naeth agrees.

"By all means, Naeth. Do what you please."

"I shall. Alright, let's start storing away the equipment. Daevan and Qore, you two grab the rods from the left side. Rayson, with me to the right. Raice, grab whatever's left." Naeth instructs the group.

"On it." Daevan replies. He was the last of the bunch chosen by Naeth. He was about 6'1 in height, as well. Dark brown hair styled in a bowl cut, and fair skinned. Unlike the others, he came dressed in his usual formal fashion of a white button up shirt with a black bowtie, black slacks, and a pair of simple black boots.

It takes less than four minutes for the group to finish, and upon doing so, Naeth walks back with Galivinth to the latter's home. After a farewell handshake, Galivinth heads inside while Naeth hustles back and takes his leave with the rest of the group on the 'flying' train they came on again.

For the next two days, Galivinth on and off spends short durations memorizing spell incantations. The majority of his time is used reading comics, watching television, and mostly playing video games - all of which devours his free time faster than he realizes. On the day he was to be picked up, he just barely steps outside in time, dressed in his usual fashion and carrying a backpack. The timing was immaculate. Just as he reaches the front of the building, a peculiar bus comes down from flying and lands in front of his apartment building. Surprising him, and shocking the people out and about in his neighborhood.

The bus was something out of a steampunk novel. Silver and gold all over, and with its inner mechanisms exposed on the exterior. Triad of cogs near each wheel, pumping pistons at the center of the sides, and several pipes extending above the vehicle at the 'temples' of the font. Some expelling pale smoke, while others Galivinth surmised were used for--

Honk-Hooonk!

The sound of the horns blowing bellow through the air, snapping Galivinth out of his gawking stillness and startling others. 

The entree door peels open just as one of the windows are being opened. Sticking his upper body out of that opening is none other than Naeth, grinning while arching a brow questioningly at his relative.

"Do you plan on standing there till noon? You can board the bus any time, you know? Now would be especially great to do so." He teasingly informs before settling back inside and into his seat.

"How did my life get so weird, so fast?" Galivinth murmurs under his breath as he hurries up and into the bus, immediately spotting his father in the driver's seat when he does.

"Oh, hey, Dad."

"Morning, son. If you'd be so kind as to take a seat and buckle in, I'd appreciate that." Galelith responds. And upon that request, the teen moves to claim a seat right across from Naeth. 

"Galvin? What the-- Did I just see this bus land after flying here?" Adam Ankerts, the veteran from across the street, questions as he approaches Galivinth's window.

"Uuuhh.... Probably?" The teen responds, unsure of how to even remotely explain the situation. 

"But don't worry, sir. It's my Dad's bus. He came to pick me up for... Practice." Galivinth adds.

"Your Dad? Where did he even get this contraption from?" The older man asks, looking over the bus' design with absolute confusion on his face.

Just before the teen answers, it finally begins moving forward. His father drives toward the end of the block they were facing.

Briefly, Galivinth sticks his head out the window to give his parting words.

"Don't worry, Mr. Ankerts! I know it's weird, but it's totally cool! I'll see you soon, have a good day!" The teen shouts out as the distance grows. It's only then that he finally straps his seatbelt on.

"Was that the old man who ranted about Russians and a conspiracy about being targeted by them?" Naeth asks with a brow arched.

"Yeah, that was Mr. Ankerts again for sure.."

"Oh, sounds like he's been getting along just fine." Naeth comments with a grin.

"Galivinth, my son?" Galelith calls out from the front.

"Yeah, Dad?" The teen responds.

"Brace yourself for elevation and keep calm. We're going to ascend now." The father warns. And just as the bus begins tilting back and ascending, Naeth speaks up again.

"What's with the forewarning? You make it sound as if--" Naeth pauses abruptly in the middle of his comment when he turns toward Galivinth and sees just how incredibly tense his relative looks.

"...Hey, are you fairing all right over there?" 

"I'm fine." Galivinth breathes out while gripping at the bottom of his seat for dear life.

"He has a fear of heights." Galelith stoically informs.

Before too much longer, the vehicle straightens out and begins moving smoothly straight ahead.

The entire ride from then on out was calm and easy. It more or less takes about the same time to arrive there. And just like before, they go through security protocol where Galivinth is given the appropriate branding before being allowed to continue inside. Galelith pulls up to the facility where his office resides and parks beside the sidewalk before the three step off to head inside. Treading along the thin blanket of snow that covers the entire ground as an endless gentle drizzle of it falls around them.

"Huh... Looks different without that giant dome being here." Galivinth comments.

"It'll be back up soon enough. First, I want to introduce you to the others who'll be joining us today." Naeth informs him as they enter through the front entrance. Inside, Galelith speaks up.

"I'll need to take my leave for the time being. I still have obligations back at my lab, but I will see about sparing time to spectate your training session later."

"Not an issue at all, and it's understandable. You've got all week to catch at least one or a few of our sessions." Naeth responds.

"That I do. And Naeth? While I'm aware it's... Unusual to ask you to do such a thing, but can you stick close to Galivinth for a time? A few days or so of him visiting here. Just until he's comfortable among them." Galelith requests, earning a look from his son.

"I'm not a toddler, Dad. It'll be fine." Galivinth chimes in.

"Of course, son. I know you'll be."

"No need to dwell on it. I'd be more than glad to oblige your wish, Galelith." Naeth speaks up just after hooking an arm around his younger relatives neck and reeling him closer, much to the little annoyance of Galivinth.

"Now, let's get going, shall we? I want to take some time in honing your casting."  Naeth shares, guiding Galivinth into heading left with him.

"Be well." Galelith gives his parting words and goes to the right.

"You too."

"As I hope you will, as well." The two boys reply while heading down the lengthy hallway before them. The echoes of their steps upon the navy blue marble flooring fills in the momentary silence that comes about.

"So, would you say you're bonding well with your father?" Naeth inquires just after removing his arm from the other's body.

A bit taken aback by the sudden question, Galivinth looks over at him for a moment.

"...Yeah, I think. Getting to know him has been a bit weird, but I think we're making progress. How about you? Are you and your father close?"

"Close? No, that's actually quite unusual at my age. He's more like a peer to me, unlike what is normal here on Earth." Naeth explains.

"Huh? How old are you, exactly?"

"Development stage 4. Same as you, I believe."

"What? I have no idea what that even means..." Galivinth states with a puzzled frown.

"Ah, right. Earth estimates. Let me think here... Going by what you're used to, my exact age would be 51." Naeth informs.

"51!? But you barely look older than me. I thought you were 17 or something."

"You forget that cryoneans age much, much slower than humans, cousin. From my perspective, you've undergone a hyper aging process. How old are you?"

"I... I turned 16 last month in June." Galivinth answers.

"And already you're but a few measly inches shorter than me. It's unfathomable. I'm almost surprised at how long humans have managed to preserve for so long, truth be told." Naeth comments.

"Maybe that's one of the reasons why humans are more emotionally attached to one another." He adds.

"Because our lives seem short? That has definitely been said more than occasionally. But, are you all really so detached from each other? You don't love each other? Someone?" Galivinth prods further.

"Love isn't commonly used in cryonean society. That's not to say that we don't care for one another, and there are certainly household lineages here, but self sufficiency is strongly advocated here. By the time we've reached development stage 3, we're expected to take some initiative and find a path that allows us to contribute to the kingdom in some way. With our numbers rather short, it helps." Naeth elaborates.

"Wow, things are so different here... But, what do you mean about your numbers being short?" Galivinth asks as they approach a door. After some time of walking and turning a few corners, they were finally at their destination. Naeth steps forward to open the door into the room.

"Most of us died when we crash landed on Earth 20 years ago. There's not even half a thousand of us on this planet." Naeth answers.

"Wha-- Dude, what happened?" Galivinth's tone was laced with concern.

"Another time, cousin." The two enter and proceed further into what appears to be a gymnasium, though one lacking any basketball rims and design on its hardwood flooring. No bleachers either. Just large double doors at the opposite end that seems likely to lead into a storage space, and right beside it is another set of steel doors that one may surmise leads outside. 

Within, a group of 8 were gathered around a stationary bench at the right side of the 'court', waiting for their arrival.

"I've returned. We can finally begin training." Naeth calls out, immediately drawing their attention to him. The bunch rise from their seats and approach the two. 

"Welcome back, Naeth. And hello, Galivinth. Doing well since last time?" Qoreman greets, extending an arm to offer the latter a handshake. One that Galivinth obliges without hesitation.