Life: -100% | STRIKE OUT!
Nearby, another enormous beast explodes out of the ice cliffs. A one-eyed white wolf. Players scatter left and right as it swings its head around, jaws chomping. It catches Ziggy. She vanishes in its mouth, regenerating fifty yards away along with Roshan. Ren wobbles on his board and spins out of control as he tries to avoid the wolf’s gaping mouth.
This is my chance to get him. I turn my board in a sharp arc,then hurtle toward Ren. He sees me coming a split second before I ram hard into him, sending both us careening away from the wolf. I grab for his wrist until my hand finally closes around it.
The noose activates. I see it glow gold in my view, then disappear. A blue glow flashes around Ren before vanishing. An instant later, a file from him pops into my view. I grin.Broke through.
“Get off me,” Ren snaps, trying to yank himself free. His move sends us both tumbling off our boards and into the white land below. Everything goes bright in my view—and an instant later, I’ve regenerated a pace behind the others.
“And both Rider wild cards are struck out by a rookie mistake!” the analyst shouts. Ren shoots me a dirty look from where he’s regenerated several yards away from me. Asher scolds me over our line. But I don’t care. I’ve laid Hideo’s trap. My focus turns away from Ren and back to the game.
I hunt madly for a sight of my teammates on my map. Finally, I glimpse Asher and Hammie hovering near the center to the archway, flying in tight circles as they are trapped in by two other beasts. Some Demons are heading their way, too.
I yank out my dynamite and zoom toward the top of the archway. As I reach it, I slap a stick of dynamite to the top of the ice structure. Then I pivot down and dart away right as it goes off. Another earth-shattering explosion—the impact shakes my board violently, and snow flies all around me, making me squint. I’m down to my last dynamite.
Behind me, through the dust, Ren materializes with Asher and Hammie on his tail. Our Artifact still hovers over Hammie’s head. I call to her, then toss her my hammer from my utility belt. Her hand shoots out and she catches it without even turning around, then winks at me in thanks over her shoulder. As shehurtles away from the nearest beast, she throws the hammer at its eye as hard as she can. It hits true, making the beast flinch away with a roar.
The Demons are above us, looking down. They have the advantage now, and they know it—even from here, I can tell that Jena has a grin on her face. She still has their Artifact, and it hovers over her head, silver and shining. Her lips move as she gives instructions to her team.
“Hams,” Asher says through our comms as we all continue to hurtle through the darkening landscape. “Give me the Artifact. Turn off your hoverboard’s lights.” His eyes are locked on Jena. “And gethers.”
Hammie winks at Asher as she transfers our Artifact to him. In the twilight, both our Artifact and our opponent’s glow with a noticeable blue halo. “Yes, sir.”
“Roshan, back her up. Ren, cut them off. And Emi—”
But I never get to hear what Asher wants me to do. An explosion goes off right above a monument near us, rocketing us all apart. Tremaine had thrown a stick of dynamite near us. A blur of light streaks past us and rams right into Ren, sending both of them tumbling. It’s Max. Ren lets out an angry snarl and flings the other Fighter off him. At the same time, Hammie hurtles out of sight, her hoverboard nothing more than her engine’s bright red sparks of fire propelling her forward. I don’t have time to think about where she’s going—because in the next instant, Jena comes rocketing down toward us with Darren and Ziggy at her sides. She’s headed straight for Asher. Asher bares his teeth and laughs, then rushes up to greet her.
My eyes flicker to the glacier’s ice below us. Along the cliffs, a white dragon is stirring to life, its movements cracking the icethat encases it. I narrow my eyes. If I can just gain control of that dragon... My hands go to the length of rope dangling at my waist, and as Asher and Ren attack the Demons, I dart toward the surface and slow my board down near the dragon.
As I dive, I notice lights following closely behind me—somebody’s hoverboard is skimming the ground in the darkness.It’s Tremaine.And he’s closing on me fast. I only have time to look up once before he barrels into me. We both tumble straight into the glacier’s surface. The impact knocks us clear off our boards.
The world around me tumbles, and all I can see is flying snow and evening sky. Then everything blinks out—the next instant, both Tremaine and I have struck out and regenerated a full pace behind the others.
Tremaine turns a murderous look on me. My Speed Burst power-up from Hammie is still in my inventory—and now I use it. It disappears from my hand in a flash of light. The world rushes forward, and I can almost feel the blast of wind against my skin. Right as I yank out my own length of rope, the dragon finally breaks free from the ice. Its gaping mouth roars to the surface.
I fling my rope, aiming to lasso the tip of its nose. One try. Then another. On my third, I manage to swing the loop across the creature’s snout. The dragon pivots its head in my direction, then lets out a furious shriek. A column of fire bursts from its open jaws. I use the momentum from the rope to swing onto its head. My rope becomes a makeshift harness. Below me, Asher and Max are locked in battle.
“Move back!” I say into my comms. Asher’s eyes flicker briefly at me. It’s all the warning he needs.
I yank the dragon’s head down as Asher suddenly breaks free and darts away. The creature shrieks in rage, then lunges at Jena,the nearest player—all she can do is throw her hands up before the creature swallows her in one bite.
Jena MacNeil | Team Demon Brigade
Life: -100% | STRIKE OUT!
The audience bursts into excited chaos. I can barely even hear the announcer’s voice over it all.
A pace behind us, Jena blinks back into existence. Asher is already waiting for her. In a flash, he pounces right as Jena materializes. Before she can get a handle on what’s happening, Asher’s hand closes on the Artifact hovering over her head.
Game over.
The world is engulfed in scarlet and gold as an enormous phoenix bursts into flames across the entire sky.
The audience explodes in wild cheers. “I don’t believe it!” the analysts are yelling over the chaos, their voices cracking from excitement. “It’sallover! Jena MacNeil and the unstoppable Demon Brigade—taken down by the Phoenix Riders in the most stunning upset we’ve ever seen!Oh my God!The Phoenix Riderswin!”
Asher throws his head back, lets out a piercing whoop, and raise his fist in the air.
And that’s when I see the black figure again. He’s standing on top of the ice monument, clad in the same fitted black armor I’d seen on him in the Dark World.Zero.
