CHAPTER 2

The presence of chaos makes a good excuse for action

The mass of shadowy fog suddenly dove towards the two. It swooped down to the floor and curved back up in an attempt to tackle them. Mindie dove out of the way, but her companion was sent flying across the room and crashing into the wall. As Pike slumped to the floor with a groan, Mindie somersaulted to his side, steadying herself in a crouch. She looked up at the rippling shadows that hovered overhead.

“One of our classmates must’ve gotten too worked up over studying and had a meltdown. I guess exams are coming up, after all.” She straightened up into a stand and took a step forward. “This shouldn’t be too hard.”

Pike winced slightly, sitting upright and rubbing the back of his shoulder where it collided with the wall. “Let’s make quick work of it then.”

Mindie swept an arm out in front of her in a barring gesture. “Nah, I got this one.”

“You’re gonna be late for dinner. Won’t your big sis give you the stink eye?”

“Always such a worrywart. You just stand back and leave this to me. The only times I’ve gone luminescent lately is in the practice rooms for training.”

“Didn’t you just say you dealt with another Shade earlier?”

“Details.” She flicked a hand dismissively. A smirk curled along her lips, her eyes not leaving the vaguely-shaped shadow in front of her. “Besides, it’s the perfect chance to rack up some Tour points.”

Mindie Tachibana-Callahan. First-year student at Halo Ridge University. Status: Halo Tour-approved Star. (In other words, she could be a big deal one day.)

The Shade once again lunged at Mindie. As it neared, Mindie’s emerald eyes flashed, igniting a bright yellow glow within them. In an instant her entire body was engulfed in an aura that radiated light of the same color. Once that aura’s glow was steady, she could much more starkly see the Shade’s dark and shapeless form against a washed-out world.

When someone went luminescent, actively calling upon the power that had been bestowed upon them, they entered a state of being that allowed them to easily manipulate this power. Those with normal sight would see a brightly glowing figure, like a star plucked from the night sky.

Meanwhile, the luminescent’s own eyes glowed, and they saw the world in a simplified hue. All other color was drained from their perception, and they saw only the vaguest details of the real world. Their focus became sharply centered on any harbingers of chaos they found themselves faced with—manifestations known as Shades. Like ghosts, both luminescents and Shades abandoned tangible form, able to phase through most solid objects or willfully manipulate them as a poltergeist would.

It was in this state that Mindie wound up and threw a solid punch at the Shade, just as it came into range. The Shade spiraled backwards across the room, phasing harmlessly through several art tables and chairs.

She sized up her foe as it recovered from the blow. This one was about as large as the one she saw in town earlier, albeit a little chunkier. This wouldn’t take her too long.

Mindie wasted no time chasing it down. She raced towards it, also phasing the tables and chairs, and then more solidly using them as ground to vault off from, closing the distance and reengaging hastily.

From its largely shapeless form, the Shade sprouted and extended limbs to command, lashing out with tendril-like strikes and jabs. But its lethargic and predictable whipping motions couldn’t connect with the more agile Mindie, who dodged, blocked, and threw a well-timed strike when she saw the openings. A punch to its upper being, where the head might have been. A kick to its gut. She slammed her fists through its own sprouted limbs as they attempted to whip at her over and over again, gradually cutting it down to size.

Each blow whittled away some flecks of ethereal chaotic energy, sending them evaporating into the air. Soon the Shade was losing chaos in droves of smoke to the young Star’s bright, searing energy and flashy martial prowess. It could hardly keep together its shapeless form. Mindie knew its time was up.

The Shade swayed and billowed upwards towards the ceiling, wheezing out a guttural Gwoooh!

And Mindie grinned wickedly. “Looks like you’re outta gas!”

She propelled herself upward and twisted through the air. As she reached the Shade, she flung herself around in a corkscrew and threw a horizontal tornado kick. Upon impact, the Shade burst into a scattering of chaotic energy particles. Wisps of its fizzling form dissipated harmlessly through the air like fading smoke.

Mindie landed on one of the art tables, the brightness of her aura considerably dimmer as she took a moment to catch her breath. “Heh… Easy—Huh?”

As she looked around, she noticed that there was more chaos that had been seeping into the room. Another mass of shadowy ripples convened, forming two more shapeless Shades that took their places on either side of her.

“So, that was just your opening act, huh.” She smacked her fists together, sparking another surge of luminescent energy between them. “Well then, come on—!”

The yellow glow in her eyes abruptly vanished, returning them to their usual emerald green. Mindie dropped to one knee. Her aura flickered and shorted out like a bad light bulb. The world around her resumed its own natural color against the unlit art room.

She had used up all the luminescent energy she had to give for now, causing her state to break and revert her to normal. All the effort and force she had employed in that time took a physical toll too. She panted in exhaustion, her muscles aching from the intense exertion.

“Crap… Not now…”

Gritting her teeth, she looked towards the Shades. Seeing her exhausted state, they dove at her like two ethereal torpedoes. In a bout of bewilderment, Mindie swung a desperate fist at the first that came into her striking range—and her hand passed right through it, as if it were nothing but air.

The second one rammed itself solidly against Mindie’s gut, sending her skidding across an art table. Once she flew off the other side, the other Shade tackled her from below, sending her flying into the air and towards a window.

But before she could crash into it, a glowing yellow streak swiped itself into existence, obstructing her trajectory. Mindie bounced off it like a trampoline and ricocheted towards the floor—where another sheet formed and cushioned her landing before fading away.

Pike was immediately at her side, his own eyes glowing yellow behind his eyeglasses as the same aura enveloped his body. He raised a pencil-like instrument in the air like a wand and made three consecutive swiping motions. As he did, a luminescent dome formed over them, obstructing the Shades as they attempted another dive.

Pike DeSanto. First-year student at Halo Ridge University. Status: civilian luminescent. (In other words, he's of little significance to the world.)

“Don’t be so reckless. You know you can’t fight chaos outside of your luminescent state.”

Mindie sat upright, groaning slightly. “Thanks Pike. Lost my head there for a moment.”

The Shades were unperturbed by the obstacle between them and their prey. They repeatedly threw themselves into Pike’s glowing barrier, whose illumination faded a little bit more with each impact. He felt each collision in his mind like the pulse of a migraine, but he clenched his teeth and concentrated on keeping the glowing shield active.

“My barrier won’t hold up for long. Can you get back into it?”

Mindie concentrated as hard as she could, squinting her eyes as if it would squeeze out the ignition that would spark her glow back into her state of luminescence. Unfortunately, the yellow glow in her eyes that was so bright only moments before barely even flickered.

“Ugh… No dice. It broke on me.” She took deep, urgent breaths in an attempt to recover more quickly. “I’m exhausted. Dammit! I figured I’d be back to a hundred percent by now…”

Pike’s barrier was wearing thin. A few more collisions from the Shades and it would shatter, and he knew it. He was using up all his luminescence to keep it active, which meant soon his own state would break too. Once that happened, he and Mindie would be sitting ducks. Much like an athlete who goes all out and exhausts herself, or an artist who stays too focused for too long on his creation, luminescence took time to recover. When a luminescent breaks in the face of chaos, it was bad news.

The barrier broke. The glow in Pike’s eyes instantly went out, the throbbing in his head transforming into a mental whirl that left him exhausted and dizzy. The two were now completely helpless as the Shades reared up into the air and began to bear down on them.

SHRRRNG!