Codename: Freedom - Book 5 - Chapter 26

For the last week until the event, I continued my training with the same relentless fervor. Except for a few meetings, the development team, and my time with Victoria, I didn’t even see anyone else. Destiny didn’t count, of course. As much as possible, my life became one of aerial combat. Not just free falling from above and surviving. I was confident with the basics.

I upped the difficulty. Destiny did her magic and I faced simulated versions of the best rank D users. Not just of the likes of Brendon Black and Jeffery Wright, but of those that reached Krato. If I wasn’t dying, then I wasn’t learning.

Of course, Destiny didn’t like it one bit. Her game changed to imitate the cavernous tunnels. I had to admit, flying around and dodging her attacks covered in girly cuteness was a nice change up. And instead of fighting rank D dragons, she had me popping bubbles of various sizes and bubbles. Her insistence on top of time with Victoria added a lightness to the darkness of my mission. Instead of adding to my plate, they were like a release valve.

The day before the event, I did something I wasn’t quite sure was the right move. I spent the first half of the day recovering my energy in the recovery chamber, then exited my Cube entirely. I called my parents, hung out with the guys, and tried to relax. Inactivity wasn’t something I did well with, so I headed to the Jungle, or parkour building.

I hadn’t been here since early in Vanguard. One of the first people I saw was Marabella. She was here on her own. It’s one of the places she came to think. When she saw someone reach the top of the stair-shaped wall at the entrance, she did a doubletake. I waved at her, waiting when she headed in my direction.

“Optimo! Fancy seeing you here,” she said, eyeing me suspiciously. She was wearing a black leotard with purple stripes at seemingly random places that just happened to accent her best features.

“Don’t make me say it,” I replied.

“I beg you,” she pleaded while pretending like she was about to take a knee. “You swore to me you’d never do it again.”

“Did I?”

Straightening, she tapped her bottom lip. “I can’t be certain, but better to be safe than to be sorry?”

I gave her a suspicious glare but nodded in the end.

She jumped up, pumping her fist in victory. Clapping her hands together, she rang them as if washing, then asked, “So what’s the occasion? Heading up to show off to us mere mortals?”

Glancing up, I saw some of the mock-buildings I used to practice on that were several stories tall. Rarely did people go that high, but even they weren’t the highest section in the building. Near the back wall there were mock-buildings that nearly reached the ceiling. I’d never seen someone up there, let alone use them for training.

“You know what? Why not?” I said. “I’ll be right back.”

***

Mara patted at the sides of her thighs, unsure what she should do with her hands. She hadn’t expected to see Lucius today, which made her extra nervous. She always needed to grasp ahold of something when she got like this.

As soon as he said it, off he went. Except instead of picking a line through the obstacles like most people, he propelled himself above and skirted over the time. How he was using a long set of monkey bars, she didn’t know, but from there he leaped to the top of the building only to take one large leapt to the other side before launching himself over two stories up to the next one.

She found herself having to swallow the forming knot in her throat.

After his last jump, if you could call it that, she wasn’t the only one watching. He was known for his movement ability, but he was simply bypassing the normal obstacles all together. Soon, dozens of people that had been practicing stopped to watch as he reached what was normally the highest building advanced people commonly practiced on. He kept going.

One of the reasons people rarely went higher was because of the danger. There were two buildings side by side that would require someone to jump back and forth between their walls to scale them. The med drones could likely save your life if you fell from that height, but it would not be a fast recovery.

Her mouth drooped open as Lucius didn’t just try it out. He jumped out between them into open space. Her heart seemingly dropped into her gut. He’d missed? But then he shot upward without touching either surface. Like a bullet from a barrel, he shot upward, skipping past the next obstacle that would normally take advanced skills to even attempt.

He leaped from the top of one building to the next until he was at the highest point in the building. She’d never seen someone reach it in all her time here. Not even close.

The other people here to practice were starting to gather. Their voices were rising. There was praise. Concern.

Then Lucius did something absolutely insane. He dove right off the side.

Disappearing behind buildings as he fell, Marabella started to move. She didn’t even know where she was headed. She just cleared the obstacles between her and him as quickly as possible.

She was about to jump to grab onto a ledge when she skidded to a stop. Out from the midst of the taller buildings at the center of the Jungle, she saw someone dart across the horizon. He was flying.

He darted past people who’d been practicing only to rapidly approach the other wall. She was thinking this wasn’t going to be pretty, when he looped upward as if the outer wall was some giant ramp. Reaching the top of his momentum, he’d spun and was crouching there, suspended. But how?

Only after he’d gotten his bearing did he start to fall again. Fall wasn’t exactly the right word. There was no flailing, and he’d obviously practiced making himself as aerodynamic as possible. This time, instead of going across the tops of the lower obstacles, he went through them. Not like a normal person, but by showing he wasn’t limited to flying in a straight line.

He reached the top of one of the higher buildings still commonly used before coming to a stop. Standing at the corner, he found her and waved.

She speechlessly waved back.

Then he jumped. His form was lazy.

She’d seen him do something similar in the past, but never so carelessly. There was a line between confidence and stupidity. This seemed to be the later, but as soon as he reached the surface below, his push ability cushioned him for what had to be the most comfortable landing anyone had ever made from that height.

Then he hopped down from obstacle to obstacle only to find her a moment later.

“I can’t get too carried away,” he said. “I already recovered my energy today and I’m trying to take it easy.”

“Shut up,” she replied. Realizing what she’d just said, her hand shot to her mouth.

Instead of taking offense, Lucius burst out laughing.

“So you’re impressed?”

She held her hand up with her thumb and index finger close together. “You realize you’re not in your Cube, right? If you make a mistake, you could die traveling that speed.”

***

I did my best to remain casual and shrugged. “I was taking it easy.”

Folding her arms over her chest, she began tapping her foot. “Of course. That’s why it was only a little impressive. You still need to be careful.”

“I’m just having some fun, Mara.”

She froze as she was getting ready to speak, then her mouth snapped closed. She glared.

After that, several people came up and greeted me. I tried to get caught up with Mara, but we were just getting interrupted too often. So I decided to leave her to it but not without asking, “How you doing?”

It had quite literally freaked her out when Krato Aeneus Raptis praised her in the middle of battle before killing her. She’d opened up to me then, and a few times after. As soon as I asked, her brow creased in consideration. The banter was gone.

She looked me in eye and nodded reassuringly.

We shared a side hug.

I kind of wandered around for a while, unsure what to do with my time. My mind kept returning to tomorrow’s event, but I was determined to relax.

It wasn’t until dinner time that I met up with Kline. Mel and Barrell arrived a little after me. The establishment? The same diner we’d used when Kline inadvertently tried to talk me into collecting women.

There were no speeches this time. Just good food, full bellies, and a hologram of Destiny atop her orb drone holding her stomach while mocking us. Good times.

Victoria reminded me that she wasn’t going to hold back tomorrow. Liam insisted that this would be the best opportunity to go through with his plan. For both of our long-term safety, it was necessary.

As much as I wanted to sleep, my psionic energy was topped off and my body was as rested as it had ever been. It was the same for Victoria. We stayed up chatting but didn’t let ourselves talk about strategy until early that morning. With our game faces on, we headed to breakfast. It was the last meal we’d have outside of the event for the next couple days.