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Chapter 150: The Roadside Contract
The restraint net crossed the road in a blur of black wire.Calder moved first.He pulled a broad ward plate from beneath his coat and snapped it open with both hands. A wall of amber light unfolded between the convoy and the roadblock. The net struck it, crackled with dark command residue, and fell in a tangled heap at his feet."Lattice hardware," Nora said from inside the response van. "Same family as the quarry chain case.""Of course it is," Ben muttered.The attackers spread across the road.They were professionals, or close enough to be dangerous. They did not rush in shouting. Two moved toward the lead SUV with hooked restraint poles. Three took positions along the drainage ditch. A staff user climbed the hood of the forward blocking van to gain a clear angle on the convoy. The scarred leader remained in the center, watching the adults rather than the vehicles.He knew where the real threat was.Mae Ashford drew her ward pistol and fired three clean shots into the pavement. Ea
Chapter 149: Backup on the Road
Winning did not make the danger disappear.It made the danger easier to see.By the time Wayline left the old practice field, the arena result had already spread through Bayfront Academy. Students showed clips from the match on their phones. Commentators replayed the moment Ashfang pulled down Tidemark's banner. Someone had given the match a name before the dirt had settled: the First Seed Fall.Ben found the phrase deeply satisfying."It is a little dramatic," Nora said as they crossed the back path toward the Blue Banner transport lot."It is exactly dramatic enough," Ben replied. "They should put it on a shirt.""No one is making a shirt.""That is what they said about Pressure Princess.""Especially no shirt."The laughter helped, but it did not fool anyone. Ben was limping. Mara had a burn across one glove where Rowan's lightning had struck her ice wall. Dorian had a shallow cut at his collar from the buckler runner's last rush. Adrian's shoulder throbbed beneath the torn Silverl
Chapter 148: One Against Five
Rowan did not rush the next exchange.That was the first sign that Tidemark had changed plans.Instead of sending Jace into the center again, the stormblade captain lifted two fingers. The healer stepped forward. The buckler runner moved to Rowan's left. The archer, now back through her recovery gate with a fresh quiver, took position on the far ridge. Jace stayed at the right flank with his axe low and his aura controlled.Five people. One formation.They were not trying to overwhelm Wayline one lane at a time anymore. They were going to collapse the entire field around Adrian."They want you," Ben said over the channel. "If you go down, the echoes disappear and the banner is exposed.""I know.""Do not let them isolate you."Adrian looked at the field. Mara was recovering from Rowan's lightning burst but still standing. Dorian had taken the east lane and could disrupt the archer for a while. Nora's wards were partially rebuilt, but not enough to hold another full stormblade assault.
Chapter 147: You Mistook Me for Tired
Ben's shield held against the stormshot.For a moment, that was all that mattered.Blue lightning crawled across the silver face of the shield, searching for a path around the reinforced rim. Ben dug his boots into the dirt and leaned forward, every muscle in his body shaking. The brace on his ribs flashed from yellow to orange."Ben, rotate out," Nora said."In a second.""Now."He glanced toward the banner behind him. The stormshot had spent itself. The archer was drawing another. Ben knew he did not have time to leave cleanly before the next shot.So he did the most Ben thing possible.He shoved the shield into the ground, triggered its anchoring ward, and ran anyway.The shield remained upright without him. The second stormshot struck it and burst high above the field, scattering blue sparks across the practice yard. Ben stumbled through the reserve gate just as the brace on his ribs flashed red."I am out," he gasped, dropping onto one knee. "Banner is not.""Good rotation," Adri
Chapter 146: The Fight Was Only Beginning
Northport Academy's old practice field sat behind the newer arena complex, half hidden by a line of wind-bent pines.It was not impressive.The grass had been worn down to packed dirt. Rusted training posts stood around the perimeter. There was no glossy wardglass beneath their feet, no towering screens, and no automated barriers built into the floor. The only protections came from the portable boundary stakes Deputy Commissioner Price's team had driven into the ground and the Blue Banner officers standing at each corner.It was exactly what both teams needed.No hidden foundation lattice. No academy infrastructure to manipulate. No easy excuse for someone else to claim the field had decided the outcome.The spectators were fewer, but the ones who had followed were paying closer attention. Competitors crowded behind the marked boundary. Northport staff watched from a distance, suddenly careful not to look as though they were watching. Finch stood with the regional observer near the no
Chapter 145: The Offer Was a Threat
The match suspension lasted twenty-three minutes.That was long enough for the arena to empty of spectators, fill with security personnel, and become the center of every conversation at Bayfront Academy. Northport administrators sealed the western side of the field behind a privacy barrier. Blue Banner investigators photographed the damaged wardglass and collected the lattice fragment Nora had contained.The fragment was no longer active.It was still unmistakably deliberate.Nora stood near the western banner post, reading the scan results with a deep crease between her brows. "The pattern was installed from below the arena. It bypassed the normal inspection layers. Someone had access to the foundation wards.""Northport staff?" Ben asked."Maybe. Or someone with a key they should not have."Rowan remained with his team near the opposite gate. Jace had recovered enough to stand on his own, though he kept one hand pressed against the side of his neck where the command residue had burn
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