The Carnelian Fox Read online

  I always seem to get proved wrong.

  Chapter Three

  It was our turn.

  Charlotte took ages to scramble all the way up the walls, dangling upside down by her claws to reach the platform in the centre. How was Finn supposed to get there on his tiny paws? He had to get on the platform first. I brought up his stats on my eBand to search for an advantage and it hit me.

  “Hey,” I muttered, lips tickling against his fuzzy ear. “Here’s the plan.”

  Teresa recalled Dapsley, the little tamarin was already coming to but had a few patches of fur still smoking.

  “Meet Bella,” she said and touched another capsule hanging around her neck.

  This Gem was another air type, a long-limbed gibbon. She blinked at Finn, taking his measure with a freakish humanoid grin.

  “Three, two, one, go!”

  Finn held his place as Bella rushed the wall, avoiding the patch that Charlotte had decimated. He turned back to look at me, a question in his eyes. I shook my head, not yet.

  “Err, Sam?” Callum said from behind me, but I couldn’t let him distract me.

  Bella was over halfway up now; her reach was incredible and pulled her across the wall faster than she had crossed the floor to get there.

  Finn crouched, staring straight up at the goal, rigid with pent up energy.

  “Now,” I told him.

  My fox glowed, charging up a powerful bolt of white-hot flame, and spat it right into the ceiling at the metal anchors holding the ropes of the platform.

  Two of the supports snapped with the impact, setting Bella chittering and stretching to reach the teetering piece of wood. Finn helped the other two along with a follow-up attack and it dropped before the gibbon was even a quarter of the way over the roof. She eyeballed it, threatening to jump straight to the ground. I’d tried so hard to make sure she was too high to attempt that tactic.

  With a whistle of rage, Bella turned, still dangling from the ceiling, and swung back the way she’d come.

  The platform tilted end over end as it dropped, coming to a halt with a splintering crash. Finn stepped on and looked up at Teresa with his head tilted on one side. She stared back.

  “Standing on half of the bottom of the platform first still counts, right?” I ventured. This thing was still new; I didn’t know what the ins and outs were.

  “It does…” Teresa said, then broke out chuckling. “Very clever, rookie.”

  She tapped a few commands into her eBand and then mine gave off its faded glow. A smattering of pixels were permanently black, but I watched the zero that sat in the top left corner flick up to a ten. My first challenge points.

  Yes!

  Callum looked up from his wrist and gave me a thumbs-up. I slapped him an instinctual high five, and we showed each other our new, higher numbers.

  A little yip caught my attention, and I bolted over to grab Finn from the splinters of the platform.

  “You incredible boy!” I hugged the scorching bundle of fur to my chest, making him squeak. “That shooting! What kind of aiming is that? Absolutely perfect, that’s what.”

  His tiny body squirmed with excitement at my praise and he rammed his pointed nose into my hand for more fuss. His maxed-out accuracy stat would come in handy.

  Charlotte was a typical, regal draco, trotting over to sit like a show Gem at Callum’s heels.

  “Great work guys, looking forward to seeing where you go with your careers,” Teresa said with a wave. “Now get gone so I can sort out this mess you’ve made!”

  “Sorry!” I called as Callum shooed me out of the door. I wasn’t really, I was bloody pleased with myself for coming up with that plan, and thrilled with the way my fox had stepped up and took on the challenge. We were on our way to being an incredible team.

  “Okay, let’s head over to the lodge and get some rest,” I said, stretching my arms above my head while Finn trotted alongside me.

  Callum prodded me in my exposed stomach, then jumped back before I could launch a counterattack.

  “You go,” he said. “I’ll have a quick look at the challenge hall I want to do tomorrow.”

  “But it’s late, getting dark, and, most importantly, I haven’t eaten.”

  “Go,” he insisted. “I won’t be long.”

  “If you dare try it anyway just to get ahead of me…”

  “Oh please, you’re planning on taking your time. You enjoy driving me insane waiting for you.”

  “You don’t have to cap out your points in one day, you know?” I was getting frustrated with him already. I wanted to advance as much as he did. But I wanted to enjoy it too.

  “I’m just looking, I promise. I wasn’t expecting the challenge to be like that today, I guess I thought I could just fight my way through them.”

  “That is exactly what you did,” I pointed out.

  “Well, it might not work next time. I want to see if I may have a better chance catching a few more Gems first, a better variety to choose from. Charlotte is great for battles but if more challenge masters test us in different ways, something more manoeuvrable may be a better option. I mean, what if they try to make us have a swimming race?”

  “I’m pretty great in the water, I’d just volunteer myself,” I said.

  “Can you get dinner in, Sam? Order me something hearty, not your junk food, I’ll be back soon.”

  An hour later I was still waiting. I drummed my fingers on the worn plastic of the dining room table. A few gross, overly crispy fries still offended me from the pool of burger grease on my plate. I prodded the palest one to check if there was a chance of it being edible. It snapped like it was made of the same brittle plastic as the seats, benches, crockery, and cutlery that made up the lodge canteen.

  Callum’s slimy stroganoff sat cold opposite me. I’d had enough of waiting.

  I left the building, running my fingers over the bracelet containing Finn in his capsule. There were five other slots waiting for any other Gems I caught to add to my team. Over the past few years I’d changed my mind so many times about what Gems I wanted to use. There were as many kinds as there were animals, and more with the different styles, mythical creatures, and hybrids. And each came in all the eleven different types, many dual-typing when then reached their adolescent or mature form. There were even special upgrades you could buy for your account that let you choose different forms for your Gem when they evolved, like a humanoid or winged version. I wondered how Finn would end up. Maybe as a psychic type so he could talk into my mind.

  I took to the streets that ran towards the challenge hall that Callum had been so obsessed with finding. Streetlamps picked out the edges of kerbs and architecture in their warm glow, letting me find my way in the pitch black that had swallowed the city. The hall was a good fifteen minutes away, but a quick look shouldn’t take this long. He must have had a go at the challenge. And fair enough, if he wanted to that was up to him. But he could have said so. Then I wouldn’t have looked an idiot sat there with two dinners.

  A thrum ran through my left wrist, the vibration rattling my bones. Was it? Yeah it bloody was. An emergency beacon had gone off near me. The entire face of my eBand, minus the dead pixels, lit up red. A map of the area sprung up, including a small cross at the site of the original SOS. It was only a couple of streets away. I hit the confirm button to say I was on my way and sprinted towards the emergency, with my proximity I’d likely be first on the scene. Great, a newbie like me was a poor victim’s worst nightmare.

  I sprinted along the next couple of streets, the metallic tang on the back of my tongue made me wish I’d put effort into my cardio. And then, I saw them. A pair of men grabbing Callum. Charlotte fought off a shadow wolf whose dark fur blurred at the tips and a water lynx with slick blue scales.

  I almost missed Finn’s capsule as I scrambled for it, slamming my fingertips into the release pad. As he materialised, the men noticed me, losing their grip on Callum for a second. He pushed away and fell to his hands and knees o
n rough paving stones. I winced and pointed Finn forward.

  He let out a bolt of fire, scorching the side of the wolf. Charlotte took her opportunity to dive on the man closest to Callum, sinking her fangs into his ankle. He let out a roar of agony and booted her in the side of the head with his other leg.

  Instead of backing off, Callum leapt in to protect his stunned Gem as the man brought his foot back again.

  “Finn, do something!” I yelled, panic tearing through my senses and leaving me unable to form a plan.

  He snapped out another flame bolt, cutting off the second man from helping. Then a pulse of water smashed him from behind as the lynx flanked us. I threw myself into the skin-ripping deluge. It would do a lot more damage to my flame Gem than me.

  I heard a gut-wrenching cry from the fight, then a shout of, “You idiot!”

  I spilled to the ground in the torrent of icy water, smacking my left arm. But the drenching stopped. Bolting footsteps rattled through my brain, getting quieter. I flopped onto my front and crawled over to Callum.

  Charlotte nudged his twitching arm where he sprawled out across the street. A red stain smeared over his chest, expanding with every second I stared at it.

  Then my brain fog lifted, I ripped out my own SOS tab on the side of my eBand, hitting the extra medical emergency option. Then I put as much pressure on the wound as I could and waited for help. It would only be minutes.

  I sat there with my best friend bleeding out beneath my hands and sobbed, hoping and wishing he’d be okay.

  They arrived in minutes and I know they did their best. It wasn’t until the next day I found out he was dead.

  Chapter Four

  “Yes, Ma’am,” I muttered at the vidlink screen. My eyes were sore from tears and throat dry from talking to the police all night. I still hadn’t slept. But Callum’s mum deserved to hear it from me.

  “Are you sure, Sam? I can send someone over to get you if you want to come home.” Her usually stern face broke with concern and grief.

  “Callum would want me to keep going, he never let me quit,” I said, hugging myself and failing to stop the shivering. I was trying to figure out if I was still being affected by the lynx’s water attack or was just in shock.

  “Call your mother, Sam. This won’t stay quiet for much longer. She’ll worry about you.”

  “I will, Mrs Capshaw, I promise. And I’m so, so sorry I couldn’t do more.” The tears flowed down my cheeks again, liquid seeping from the corners of my eyes until it gathered up in little rivers and trickled off my chin. I didn’t have the energy to wipe them away.

  “Don’t you ever blame yourself,” Callum’s mum said, tapping the screen to make sure she had my full focus. “We’ll hunt down the criminals that did this. Meanwhile, find someone to travel with, Sam, okay? It’s clearly not safe out there.”

  “I’ll try.”

  “And please, take Charlotte with you. You should be out there together. No… don’t argue. Callum would have wanted this too.”

  The idea of a new travelling companion made me squirm in my seat, I had always imagined me and Callum taking on the world. I couldn’t believe I’d been so annoyed with him yesterday. When he was in trouble.

  Mum had echoed Mrs Capshaw’s insistence I find someone else, to the point she threatened to drag me home if I didn’t. How could everything have gone wrong in the first two days?

  I decided to try to snatch a few hours of sleep before figuring out what I wanted to do. I couldn’t just replace Callum like that. No one ever could.

  ***

  I woke up to a grumbling stomach, and the singed smell of Finn’s fur in my nose, he’d flopped himself across my shoulder while I slept. It did not look comfy. Charlotte’s capsule was on top on the bedside table, I didn’t know how I could release her as my Gem. Her ID pinged onto my eBand as soon as I’d hung up the vidlink with Mrs Capshaw. Looks like I had two Gems now. And I was not as excited as I thought I’d be when I got to that position.

  I picked up the red capsule, same colour as the one already slotted into my wrist band. It wasn’t a great tactic to have two of the same type of Gem unless it was for a theme or actual reason. It gave me less utility. But I knew without considering it I’d never trade her away or swap her out.

  It was a tough step, to slide that capsule in next to Finn’s. To know that Callum didn’t need his draco anymore.

  I cried again.

  Then I went to get some late lunch. When I passed a mirror in the hall and saw my limp hair and blotchy face, I wished I’d had a shower first.

  Whoever designed them had built lodges to be the same wherever you travelled. I was unimpressed already. Three floors with rows of tiny bedrooms made up the bulk of the building, stark, clinical decor spoke of the government facility it was. Other than that, there was the reception where you checked off your eBand to prove you were a Prime that had full privileges rather than a rogue or criminal. They had a dozen booths there when you could vidlink your family or friends or access a computer for anything you couldn’t do on your eBand.

  The canteen where I waited last night was open every hour. Didn’t mean you could get hot food all the time, but there were vendors that spat out a sandwich or a can of pop for you.

  I grabbed a tuna baguette and a cola, then slumped down into the same plastic seat I’d occupied the evening before. After nibbling at the dry end, I dumped most of the fish onto my plate. I couldn’t stomach it.

  Okay. What next? The realisation I now had to make all my own plans was terrifying. I was in charge of my own destiny… Oh crap.

  I needed to find a travel partner. Maybe not someone as awesome as Callum, but a second opinion there to tell me when I was being stupid. I didn’t know anyone else here. I didn’t want to contact any of the show Primes from my old class. Not all of them were as awful as Naomi, but they did all know Callum and would want to talk about him. I didn’t.

  “Looks like I’m trawling the boards then, hey, buddy?” I said to Finn, who was curled in a ball of flickering fluff in the seat next to me. His colouring shifted with every breath he took - he was so beautiful.

  Back at the reception, I grabbed a computer for myself and pulled up the local message board.

  Looking for female companien looking for a fun trip ;)

  Yeah, not that one.

  For 800 credits I will escort you and your new Gem around three cities with my fully grown team and teach you techniques to beat the Challenge Halls there.

  I wasn’t interested in paying my way through challenges, even if I could afford that kind of companion.

  I almost skipped straight over the next one that began with ‘looking for female travel partner’ because they were all by absolute perverts, but the rest caught my eye.

  Looking for female travel partner for my daughter. Preferably a battle Prime with a little experience.

  Well, there weren’t many people with as little experience as me. Might as well give it a shot. I tapped the message and sent off a quick reply with my details.

  I had a ping back on my eBand within twenty minutes. That evening I went to meet Lucy Corcheck.

  ***

  Here I was at another intimidating house. How did I keep stumbling upon rich people to hang out with? Maybe this was just normal, and my family were unusually poor.

  An actual driveway, that you needed to drive down, led to a front door coated with a smooth layer of fresh paint. The house itself wasn’t big like a mansion, but it had that perfect exterior that said its owners had money to spend on aesthetic.

  I grabbed the olde worlde brass knocker, cool in my fingers, and slammed it on the beautiful wood, wincing at the thought of leaving scuffs.

  A man opened it. I’d half expected a butler, but this was the man of the house. He had a magnificent moustache that curved upwards at the tips. I thought they were gross and impossible to pull off, but he made it work. He was wearing something I’d call a dressing gown, but he would call a house coat.


  “You’re Samantha?” he asked.

  “Sam,” I corrected, twisting my fingers together and hoping I didn’t look like someone that would lead his precious daughter astray.

  “Lucy is in the receiving room; you may meet with her. She shall decide if you would make a suitable companion for her.”

  “Thank you, sir, I’m sure we’ll get on great.”

  I wandered into the hallway, tiptoeing to put the smallest amount of my grubby boots on the immaculate carpet. Mr Corcheck escorted me to a closed door and let me through with a gentlemanly bow.

  I stepped in and tried to take in the magnificent antique sideboards as well as the girl perched on a wine-coloured, padded armchair with her feet up. She waved me to close the door, so I wrestled it shut behind me with a solid clunk.

  “Not a psycho, coward, or a snorer, are you?” Lucy’s voice jingled like a sweet bell, but her words were snappy and to the point.

  “Nope on all counts,” I said.

  “Then you’ll do.”

  “That’s it? No questionnaire or figuring out if we could be soul sisters?”

  “You battle Gems. You’re female, so father won’t throw a fit. I don’t need you to titter about boys with me, I need you to help me become the greatest show Gem Prime of the current age.”

  “You’re on,” I replied. This girl was all business? That was all good for me.

  Lucy got up from the chair and pulled the door back open and yelled in a rather more delicate tone, “Oh, father, she’s wonderful!”

  Then she turned back and whispered, “What’s your name, again?”

  “Sam.”

  “Sammy and I will be the best of friends. I just know it!”

  “You aren’t calling me ‘Sammy’ on the road, right?” I whispered back.

  She shook her head until her hair bounced around her cheeks, eyes wide like the thought horrified her.