My Dragon System

CHAPTER 005

The second event was called Capture the Banner, and it was held in the woods.

Ridgemont's property stretched across a thousand acres of Colorado pine forest, and every September the groundskeepers marked out a game zone with colored ribbons and hidden checkpoints. 

Each House had a flag hidden at its base camp. The goal was simple: protect your own flag and steal everyone else's.

"Rules are straightforward," Coach Whitaker said, pacing in front of the Ashford team that Tuesday morning. 

"Tagging an opponent eliminates them. No lethal force. Referees are stationed throughout the woods. If a ref calls you out, you leave. Questions?"

"What about sugar in water bottles?" Sophie asked.

"The staff have put cameras on every water bottle. And on every Sterling student's shoes. And I believe one on Brandon Cole's hat."

A few students laughed. Coach Whitaker did not smile.

"Strategy," he said. "Sophie, you'll lead the defense with Rachel and Danny. Jason, you'll scout. Turner..."

Caleb's head jerked up. "Yes, sir?"

"You're the runner. You'll slip behind enemy lines and steal their flags." There was a stunned silence.

"Coach," Sophie said slowly, "he's an alternate."

"He's also the only one on the team who can run for a mile without being noticed. I watched the Gauntlet footage. He moves like a squirrel." 

Coach Whitaker looked at Caleb. "Can you do it?"

Caleb swallowed. "Yes, sir." 

"Good."

The horn blew at nine o'clock sharp.

The forest swallowed the teams like a green mouth. Caleb slipped between the pines with his heart hammering, his footsteps nearly silent on the needle-covered ground. 

The Dragon Sovereign System glowed softly in the corner of his vision.

[Quest Received: The Hunter's Path. Capture one enemy flag without being seen.]

[Reward: Dragon Heart plus 3. Skill upgrade.]

"Great," Caleb whispered. "No pressure."

[Pressure is the point. Use Dragon Sense.]

He closed his eyes and focused. The warm coal in his chest flared, and the forest changed around him. Heat signatures bloomed across the trees. A cluster of orange shapes stood two hundred yards to the north, a Hawthorne scouting party. 

A smaller group of red shapes moved through the underbrush to the east, Sterling fighters, probably Brandon's team. And far to the west, a cold patch of darkness drifted between the trunks like smoke, Blackwood.

Caleb opened his eyes. "Okay," he murmured. "Blackwood."

[Why Blackwood?]

"Because they're quietest. They'll be the least prepared for noise."

[Interesting reasoning. Proceed.]

He crept toward the cold patch, staying low, using every fallen log and boulder as cover. Dragon Sense told him where the Blackwood scouts were. He slipped around them. 

He crossed a creek on a fallen tree. He climbed a rocky ridge and saw it: the Blackwood camp, tucked beneath a stand of ancient pines, a black flag fluttering from a tall pole in the center.

Three guards patrolled the perimeter. A lanky boy leaned against a tree with a Shadow System swirling around his hands like ink. A girl crouched near the flagpole, her eyes glowing violet. A third guard stood beneath the flag itself, tall and calm and watchful.

Jake Mercer, Blackwood's captain. A senior with a rank A Shadow System and a reputation for being almost impossible to catch.

Caleb waited.

An hour passed. Then another. His legs ached from crouching, but he stayed still, watching the guards, memorizing their rotation. 

The lanky boy checked his watch every ten minutes. The girl yawned every fifteen. Jake never moved at all.

"Come on," Caleb whispered. "Give me something."

[Patience. Dragons are famously good at waiting.]

At noon, a signal horn echoed through the woods. Somewhere to the east, a fight had broken out. Shouts. Flame. The unmistakable roar of Brandon Cole's Flame Lord System.

Jake Mercer's head snapped toward the sound. "Sterling's attacking Hawthorne," he murmured. "Perfect. Everyone stay alert."

But Caleb saw the lanky guard glance toward the fight. And the girl too. For three seconds, their attention drifted.

Caleb moved.

He launched himself down the ridge like a stone, sliding on loose gravel, hands outstretched. The lanky guard turned just in time to see a blur of green. Caleb tapped his shoulder.

"Tagged." 

"What the—"

The girl spun, her eyes glowing, shadows flaring from her fingertips. Caleb ducked beneath the shadow whip and rolled across the ground, springing up behind her. He tapped her back.

"Tagged."

Jake Mercer was already moving. His Shadow System exploded outward, a black wave that flooded the camp. Darkness swallowed the sunlight. Caleb felt cold fingers of shadow grab his ankles, trying to drag him down.

[Warning: Hostile System. Use Dragon's Spark.]

"I can barely make a flame!"

[Aim for the flag rope.]

Caleb raised his hand. A tiny orange flame appeared at his fingertip, no bigger than a candle. 

He flicked it at the rope holding the black flag. The old hemp caught instantly, burning through in a heartbeat. The flag tumbled down.

Caleb lunged. He caught it before it hit the ground. "Got it," he gasped.

Jake Mercer stopped. The shadows around his hands flickered. He stared at Caleb, then at the burning rope, then at the little flame still dancing on Caleb's finger.

"That's not a rank F," Jake said quietly. "I got lucky," Caleb said.

"Nobody gets that lucky." Jake studied him with narrowed eyes. Then, to Caleb's amazement, a small smile crossed his face. "But I respect the effort. Go. Before the ref calls it."

Caleb stared. "You're not going to tag me?"

"I'm a gentleman. Also I am extremely curious." Jake stepped back. "Run."

Caleb ran.

He tore through the forest with the black flag clutched in his fist, his heart thundering. Behind him, he heard Jake's voice call out in a shout.

 Shadow-wolves howled in the trees. But Dragon Sense guided him through the brush, and he leapt over logs and ducked beneath branches and sprinted all the way back to Ashford's base.

Sophie was waiting at the gate, her shield flickering. She stared at the black flag in his hand. "You did it," she said slowly. "You actually did it."

"I got lucky." 

"Stop saying that."

By the time the final horn blew, Ashford had captured two flags. Sterling had captured three. Blackwood had captured one, and Hawthorne none. But the point system rewarded stolen flags more than defended ones, and Ashford finished in second place.

The crowd went wild. Marcus nearly tackled Caleb in the stands. "Second place!" Marcus screamed. "We're in second place!"

"I know, I was there." 

"Second place!"

[Quest Complete: The Hunter's Path.] [Reward: Dragon Heart plus 3. Skill upgrade: Dragon's Spark (Rank D). Hatchling Progress: 41 percent.]

Caleb stood at the edge of the field, catching his breath, feeling the heat in his chest pulse bright and strong. For the first time in a year, he was not invisible. Ashford students were clapping him on the back. Danny Okafor shook his hand. Rachel hugged him.

Across the field, Brandon Cole watched the celebration with an unreadable expression. His flame had died to a faint glow around his knuckles. His eyes were fixed on Caleb, cold and calculating.

Beside him, Tyler Brooks whispered something in his ear. Brandon nodded slowly. "Interesting," Brandon murmured, loud enough that Caleb could hear. "Very interesting." 

Caleb's blood went cold again.

[Warning: The Hatchling has been noticed.]

He reached for the pendant under his shirt. It was warm and quiet.

"Great," Caleb whispered. "That's just great."