Kayday

99 - Meet the Villains

As Lexie stared into the cool blue eyes of the man across the street, her heart spiked up several notches. She knew him. She really knew him but for some reason that information was hidden in her brain, by several layers of…something. Maybe fear. So much fear. Whoever this man was, he was dangerous. 

How do I know?  What the heck is going on? She wondered. Where have I seen him before?

He didn't look especially distinctive. He was tall but no...

98 - More Battles, More Cards

Lexie’s next match was against Lane and it exposed a bunch of her vulnerabilities.

Lane was faster than Cara, and his speed worked differently than hers so <Windkiller> did not affect him as strongly, at least not without Lexie bumping it all the way up, and exhausting her mana in the process.

Lexie stayed ahead of him with the 3-Feet Apart effect but could only work for so long, and Lexie didn’t want to use the <All Around Protection> card which would drain even m...

97 - Two More Cards

“What?” Lexie exploded startling the two other people that were on the train with her. She didn’t even bother to give them apologetic looks but she did lower her voice as she hissed, “What do you mean Xena’s gone to Planet Fae?”

Dewie shrugged. “I mean exactly that. I saw her on the way out.”

“On her way out? Did you ask why she was going?”

“I did but she was in a hurry and couldn’t explain. She just said she had to go and that she’d be back soon.�...

96 - She's Gone

When Conrad said Shadow's name and Tate’s, Tate bounced down to the mat without hesitation but Shadow took a second to glare at Conrad before he went.

As Tate and Shadow faced each other, Lexie could feel the tension radiating between the two. Though Shadow didn’t say much to anyone, he’d never made a secret of just how much he disliked Tate. Not that he likes many of the other competitors but Lexie thought he at least respected Boris and Lane. To a lesser extent Jan and Ken....

95 - Lexie Vs Cara...For Real

Lexie didn't know how to react. She barely knew how to breathe. She was desperately trying to maintain her cool, but it was difficult with Top Dog standing there in the flesh staring at them.

Especially when his eyes narrowed on her and he frowned. “Don’t I know you from somewhere?”

Lexie could only release the tiniest of squeaks. He remembers me!

Outwardly she couldn’t speak until Cara jabbed her quite hard in the ribs. 

“Um yes.” Lexie cough...

94 - Hero Association Meeting

The room was already tense before Monty Ward walked in.

He didn’t have to do much to read the auras of everyone here because they were practically leaking most of their emotions into the air. Boredom, dissatisfaction, anxiety, suspicion, amusement… it appeared as a melding of colorful mist filling the room. Monty took it in, his nostrils also picking up the different scents. 

When their eyes turned to him one by one he read the blatant displeasure on their features.<...

93 - The True Windbreaker

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“Come to me for I can give you what you seek.”

For the first time, Lexie actually heard the words whispered in the wind.  Just like Tate advised, she ignored it. 

Besides, she had bigger and better things to worry about. Her nerves skittered with excitem...

92 - Lexie's Thrilling Dungeon Discovery

Lexie went down several times to check up on her dad. 

Luckily he was out like a light and had a dreamless sleep through most of the night.

Meanwhile, Lexie couldn't sleep at all. Her father’s words continued to echo in her brain and she couldn't forget them. Couldn't ignore them either.

Lara, I swear I'll come get you.

For hours, she fought with herself, trying to paint the words in the most charitable light she could, but there was no other way to tak...

91 - Creating the Teleportation Effect And Getting The First Hint

It had taken Lexie several days and a lot of scouring to create this teleportation-like effect. It was difficult enough to find cards to combine, but then they also had to be a part of the same deck. That was a tall order to ask.

She'd gone through almost a hundred decks, sketching out several of their card pathways before discarding whatever idea she had as unfeasible.

At a point, it had felt like what she wanted was practically impossible and Lexie felt like giving up a bunch of...

90 - Conditions

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Time ticked by as Tate and Lexie stared at each other. He was frozen at the entrance and she was frozen sitting on Isaac’s table. Slowly, the shock melted off his features and only amusement and irritation remained. 

89 - Mana Potions

Naem disappeared from the window and Lexie felt the pressure in the atmosphere ease. It was strange that she barely even noticed it when she talked to him, only now that he was gone. She thought about it briefly and then pushed her chair back to rise. She went downstairs and heard the door shut behind Aiden. A second later, it opened up again. 

“Litchie? What are you doing here?”

When she got to the base of the stairs, Aiden had a complex look on his face as he contemplat...

88 - Another Conversation With The Lord of the Eldritch

Even as she jolted upright in her seat, heart throttling in her chest, Lexie had a split second where she didn’t know what she was going to do. She simply sat staring at the Eldritch manling floating outside her window. Her first thought was, “Well, that’s creepy” quickly followed by, “If Glinda sees that she’s going to freak out and expect the worst.” 

Glinda and Terry lived not too far away, in an apartment complex just at the end of the street. While they, like mos...

87 - Asking Questions

Torin Firebringer didn’t look any happier than the last time Lexie had seen him. But she was beginning to think it was just his face. He had a permanently dissatisfied countenance. 

The guy next to him though, had an irreverent grin that flashed off two dimples on both cheeks. He looked a little like Cara in that they both had jet-black hair, slender frames, and dark eyes that glittered with mirth. But, he was taller, only a few inches shorter than Torin. Additionally, unlike Car...

86 - Killing Her Wind

Aiden seemed like he wanted to continue talking about the 'boyfriend' issue despite Lexie’s insistence that it was a non-issue. He was worried about her getting her heart broken and was equally determined to either prevent or coach her through it.

He kept going on about Wisteria Calmpotter and Victor Valdam until Lexie was so sick of it, she just had to distract him.

Which she did promptly by asking “Exam season is over, isn’t it?”

Aiden froze. His expression changed...

85 - Aiden's Crime

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Once Tate was done getting treated for his injury–and Lexie was done fielding Emma’s questions about the nature of their relationship–he was released back into Lexie’s care. They walked out of the hospital room, but Emma seemed to have alerted a few people t...

84 - What A Dungeon Really Is

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Lexie blinked. “I thought that’s what you just did." 

“No, I told you what we’re taught,” he said. “Fortunately, I have access to confidential details that most people don't know, not even [Heroes].”

“Let me guess. It’s because you...

83 - Training Session Discovery

Lexie told Aiden about Naem’s visit when he came home. She, of course, left out the very enlightening conversation they’d had, at least for now. Something told her that Aiden might not appreciate her talking to the Eldritch Lord about things like that without his presence. 

“He came over for cookies?” Aiden asked, seeming confused. 

“Yeah,” Lexie said. “I warmed up the leftovers in the fridge for him. Was that okay?”

“Yeah, it’s fine,” he said...

82 - Private Discussion with the Eldritch Lord

Lexie’s first instinct was to run. 

Her hand fumbled with the door handle behind her, heart pounding out of her chest. Her knees shook and her breath ratcheted in her throat. She didn’t even have the wherewithal to scream. The fear that flooded her was so intense that it literally stole her breath. And maybe a little of her will to live. 

Her dad wasn’t home.

In the back of her mind, Lexie knew it. Aiden was staying late in school today and no one else was ho...

81 - 3 Feet Apart

Conrad had given Lexie thirty seconds to come up with a strategy. 

Unfortunately, that wasn’t nearly enough time. Lexie went through her cards quickly to see which one could counter Cara’s apparent speed. She came up with nothing.

<Hustle and Shuffle> wouldn’t be a good fit. Lexie had seen a little bit of Cara’s speed earlier today when she’d rushed to Conrad for the cookies, and it was faster than Lexie's top <Hustle and Shuffle> speed, and Cara wasn't ...

80 - After the Death

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***

Lexie caught up to Tate in the parking lot outside the gym, which was empty except for a black motorcycle with so much edge that it basically screamed Shadow.

She didn’t know where Tate was going but he was...

79 - Introductions

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The sight of Tate knocked the wind out of Lexie. Literally. She didn’t breathe for several seconds as he stood there, eyeing the rest of the class with that cool, implacable, ...

78 - First Day Of Training

The world felt a little stiller and quieter without Xena and Dewie there. Stranger.

Dewie texted her when he arrived at Ronan Fae Ambassadorial Island, to let her know that her bracelet had survived the trip, even though Veronica tried to take it from him. 

Lexie told him to tell Veronica that if she did anything to the bracelet, they would have a repeat of the Azure dinner. 

What does that mean? Dewie asked.

Don’t worry about ...