INSIGNIAS: THE LUX SIGNIFER ACADEMY

The shouts above echoed throughout the dungeon. The walls slightly shook. The smell of dry earth engulfed the eight prisoners. The white lines and doodles written on the mossy black bricked walls showed the days of previous occupants of the cell. They looked old because the moss started swallowing them. There were no windows. The rusty bars looked weak but a slight touch can electrocute anyone. There were several empty cells beside and in front. The floor was cold on Skhy’s touch.

His head rested on his left knee. His eyes tightly closed. Tessa held his tired right arm as she tried to heal the bruises and wounds. He left tired and lifeless but he forced himself to open his eyes. His left eye opened only slightly because of the swelling.

“You’re going…to get…tired, Tessa,” he managed to whisper. He winced as he talked. His face and knuckles were going numb. He glanced at the others who were in the same position as him. Hanne was tending on Nate’s wounds while Aria was keeping Clyne company. Tessa stood up in silence when Lei crouched beside him. He watched Tessa walked towards Faz who was sitting in the far corner. He was glaring at the air. He had the least wounds among the boys. The atmosphere was heavy. No one dared to say anything for minutes.

“Take care of yourself first, before you worry about the others,” Lei whispered. He turned to her. He didn’t realize that he had been watching Tessa and Faz. She didn’t try to heal his wounds. She just sat near him.

“Thank you, Lei,” Skhy replied instead.

“When is this going to end?” Hanne cried. No one had an answer. Skhy knew that he had to save his team but he couldn’t do anything. He felt useless.

“Don’t blame yourself,” Lei whispered without looking at him. She sat on his left.

“Don’t worry. We’ll find a way,” Aria tried to comfort Hanne. Hanne didn’t take her eyes off her brother whose lips were bleeding.

“They can just take us as prisoners,” Tessa said, “Why do we have to… participate in this game?” Her voice cracked near the end. Even if Skhy wanted to comfort her, he couldn’t because his whole body ached.

“To torture us,” Hanne cried with unshed tears.

After the enemies caught them, they tried to fight but one of the enemies suppressed their powers. Skhy figured that the person is powerful because he was able to suppress Faz. While Tessa was able to hold him off earlier, her hold didn’t suppress his power but rather decrease his energy use. But the enemy’s hold didn’t last long. That’s the reason why his team was put in the cell surrounded by layers of barrier with electricity flowing on the metal bars.

Red army. Some of them were in red uniforms similar to legionnaires while the others were wearing regular red clothes. Why do they have their own legionnaires and sentries? There were a lot of questions in Skhy’s mind. The fact that the enemies are a combination of Concordians, Mortemians, and regular people confused and scared him at the same time. But he remembered what Aubree and Savvier said about their enemies. People who want to banish magic…

After an hour in the cell, several soldiers dragged the boys out and left them in an arena. Skhy immediately knew what was going to happen. The best soldiers fought them while they couldn’t use their full power. He remembered what one of the soldiers said. A tooth for a tooth.

“Why revenge?” he subconsciously whispered.

“What?” Lei asked, pulling him from his pool of thoughts.

“Aubree said that the real enemies wanted to destroy the elementals,” he started, wincing after a few words, “One of the soldiers told me that they want revenge...”

“Because the elementals destroy and kill,” Clyne bluntly replied. He was staring at the floor. “They think that it’s safer without magic.” Skhy figured that Clyne was thinking about the devastation and consequences of the Eschaton war.

“They want to kill magic by using magic,” Hanne mockingly said.

“They probably wanted to be the only people who can use the elementals,” Nate commented. Silence enveloped them as they let the sentence sink in. Skhy knew that it was possible. If only a few people can use magic, they can abuse it. Even though the Concordians and Mortemians fight a lot, they don’t target places with many people. Except when the Mortemians were looking for the Seven…

“One soldier said that there is a lot that we don’t know,” Clyne said, still staring at the ground, “That this place won’t be safe soon.” He frowned.

“Because of the elementals or because of them?” Tessa asked.

“Because of magic,” he replied. Skhy was worried. After the fight earlier, Clyne seemed to be lost in thought. He looked confused then frustrated when no one’s looking. Aria was trying to talk to him but he smiled at her like always. There’s something wrong…

“We have to escape soon,” Tessa pointed out. “They will fight and torture us to death.”

“But we’ll get electrocuted if we hit anything here,” Hanne replied.

“Our powers are also suppressed when they drag us out,” Aria added while glaring at the air.

“Skhy, Nate, and Clyne don’t have the strength.” Skhy noticed Lei glancing at his wounds.

“Maybe, Hunter.” Everyone turned to him. He had his elbows on his knees. He was glaring at the ground with his fists tightly clenched.

“They’ll hurt her.” He had been silent since after the fight like Clyne. But Faz seemed angrier but trying to stop himself from doing anything.

“The girl earlier-”

“It’s Eloise.” Faz glared at Skhy while gritting his teeth. “Do you believe everything said to you?” If looks could kill, Skhy wouldn’t survive but he grew accustomed to Faz’s behaviours. He didn’t believe that Eloise is gone nor the girl they met is someone else. But she didn’t look like she is being manipulated. Skhy only wanted Eloise and the others to be alive.

“We’ll save them, Faz.” Skhy didn’t avert his eyes from Faz’s daunting glare. The enemies were using Faz’s weakness.

Suddenly, they heard footsteps. Skhy quickly looked at the entrance. Everyone tensed up. One person… When the person came into view, he recognized him as the soldier who forced him to kneel. He had a deep fist-size scar on his left cheek. He looked at each of the prisoners. When his eyes fell on Tessa, his eyes widened a bit. It happened again with Lei and Aria. Skhy’s heartbeat quickened.

He showed a creepy smile.

“Girls next.” Skhy’s eyes widened. He noticed Lei’s hand shaking a bit. They faced a lot of fights and terrible situations but no one wanted to be tortured and humiliated in front of an audience who are cheering for their deaths. He needed to find a way to save everyone. Cold sweat rolled down his forehead as his mind thought of scenarios.

“Ah.” Skhy looked at the man. “I just want to thank you in advance.” Skhy frowned, confused.

“You girls,” He glanced at Tessa, Aria, and Lei, “will help us achieve our goals. We’ve been expecting you. Don’t worry, the next fight won’t be as terrible as earlier.” Another creepy smile. Then he left.

“Help them?” Lei asked, also confused.

“They know that we’re coming.” Aria sighed, looking frustrated.

“They need us. Why?” Tessa bit her lower lip. The three girls were confused and anxious. Help them achieve their goals?

“They’re going to Tessa, Aria, and Lei’s elementals…” he whispered after he remembered his conversation with Faz.

“What?” Lei turned to him. She looked scared.

“The enemies are using Eloise, Levy, and Ice.” It was Faz who answered. “You’re going to be their pawns too.” He didn’t look angry anymore. But he looked bothered. Skhy was too. He can’t let the enemies take them. I can’t let them… not again…

“We have to leave,” Hanne emphasized. Based on the number of soldiers, they can’t win if they can’t use all their power. Even if they can use it, there are a hundred soldiers, and the team is wounded and exhausted. They just needed a diversion, rescue Eloise, Levy, and Ice, then run away.

“Tessa, do you remember the face of the person who’s suppressing our elementals?” he asked. It might be a ridiculous idea but he needed to try.

“Yeah. Why?” He noticed Faz glancing at her.

“Describe him to me.” She did. He tried to remember the faces he saw in the arena. There were a lot of soldiers on the benches but he figured that the ones sitting on the balcony were the most important. The girl who looks like Eloise was also there, looking disinterested in the fight.

“He sits in the balcony away from the other soldiers.”

“What do you want me to do?”

“You won’t be able to use all your power so I want you to concentrate on suppressing his.” She looked confused at first but she nodded after a few seconds.

“We’ll protect her,” Aria said. Skhy nodded in thanks. He slowly explained to the team what they needed to do. It wasn’t a bulletproof plan but they needed to try.

“We can’t let them have Tessa, Lei, and Aria,” Hanne said after. “I- We don’t know what they will do to them.” Aria patted her head.

“We’re not going anywhere.”

“They’re inanimate objects,” Faz suddenly said. Skhy waited for him to continue. He knew that Faz isn’t the type of person to blurt out unimportant things.

“What?” Lei asked. His expression was more relaxed than earlier. The same with Clyne. Skhy understood Faz’s uneasiness. But what about Clyne?

“Most of the soldiers aren’t alive.” Skhy’s eyes widened.

“Are you saying that they aren’t people but objects being controlled to act like one?” Skhy asked. Faz nodded. He didn’t notice it. Was it because I can’t use all of my power? If that’s true, does that mean that the enemies are only a small group?

“How did they let others think that the objects are Mortemians, Concordians, or regular humans…?” Tessa asked. Skhy figured that they used the mist to conceal the truth. It’s only possible if someone strong is with them. Skhy closed his eyes for a moment. All the thinking made his head hurt. Or was it because my whole body is in pain?

“But I think they have more people. Their main goal. Aubree and Savvier’s missions. They can’t use puppets every time,” Nate said, tapping his fingers on the floor. “But where are the others?”

“Invading L.S.A.” The voice startled them. Everyone quickly turned toward the voice. The girl’s ice blue orbs seemed to be looking through them, not at them. Skhy heard Faz stood up behind him.

“Eloise…” Her long black hair looked like a blanket on her frail shoulders.

“They’re invading our academy?” Nate asked.

“The academy is protected and surrounded,” Skhy pointed out. “The enemies don’t usually reach the region.” The girl turned to him. Her eyes staring intensely. Soulless… It’s what he felt when she stared at him.

“The enemies are also inside.” He clenched his fists. It hurt but he didn’t care. Of course, they are inside. But his allies and his parents’ allies were also there. They won’t let it be destroyed by the enemies, Mortemians, or these people.

“Your friends there…are they enough to save the school?” She was taunting him. His anger rose when he remembered that he couldn’t do anything while he’s inside the cell. How enemies are on their way there?

“I believe that you understand our visions.” The girl was no longer looking at Skhy but at Clyne who looked surprised. He looked away.

“What is she talking about?” Aria asked him. “Hey.” She touched him when he didn’t answer. What’s going on, Clyne?

“He understands the pain of losing important people because of magic,” the girl replied instead.

“What?” Aria glared at her then at Clyne. “That’s ridiculous.” But Clyne didn’t react. He didn’t look anyone in the eye.

“Eloise, what are you doing?” Faz asked. He was looking at her with sadness and longing. Tess was silently watching them at the back.

“I am not her,” she replied lazily. “You.” Skhy followed her gaze. Tessa…

“I need to test you. If you’re strong enough for our plans.”