01.15 - There Are Four Thrones

Gabe had just used his spell to change the position of Luc’s Throne and the projectile Hannah had dodged a fraction of a second ago.

Luc’s Throne was now just a few steps away from Mirai’s.

Mirai was still close to the building she had used to hide behind, yet their current position did not allow her to take cover fast enough.

If Luc’s guess was right, she had maybe a second or two left until she would be able to look into the future again.

Luc still had enough Aura to emit another four projectiles at max velocity.

It was now or never.

No need to take any risks.

Luc took aim at her Throne’s torso and arms.

His aim was true.

But Mirai didn’t even attempt to evade.

The shots destroyed the practice targets, then pierced the Throne’s skin, ripping through, and ultimately embedding themselves into, the artificial muscles.

Mirai’s pained screams echoed across the training grounds.

Yet there was no time for celebration or empathy.

Warm.

Hot.

Burning.

The left side of Luc’s Throne had caught fire, melting away parts of the artificial skin, then consuming the muscles.

Searing pain spread through his body.

His face changed to a pained grimace.

Finally, Luc wailed too.

The flames died down shortly after, without a spell or fuel to sustain them.

With the practice targets destroyed alongside the pilot's will to fight, both Thrones were out of the game.

Meanwhile, Hannah’s Throne and two of her copies had split up to engage Gabe.

Gabe continued to mostly evade her by switching his position with the reinforced metallic obstacles and crates around them.

He had tried to engage Hannah and the copies with his water cutter spell multiple times, but they had managed to evade each attempt. They were now too close to risk it again without exposing himself to melee attacks.

It was close-range battle staff combat from here on out.

Gabe had a slight advantage with his armor and position exchange spell, but he had already lost two practice targets, one on his left arm and one on his left leg.

Each blunt hit reverberated through his Throne and mind.

He could continue to run, but he would just waste all his Aura this way.

There was maybe enough for another four to five exchanges.

Better go for a quick victory or try to force a draw.

If he only knew which of the three was Hannah’s real Throne.

It was likely the one that had dodged Luc’s fast projectile after Mirai’s warning, but he couldn’t be sure of it.

There was no other hint.

No way to tell for sure.

Hannah had pursued him relentlessly with all three Thrones.

He prepared to counter another hit with his battle staff, then used his spell to switch his position with the furthest enemy at the last second.

The enemy he had switched positions with was hit by the other’s staff.

It disappeared in a cloud of smoke and shadows.

One enemy down, two to go, and just three exchanges remaining.

Gabe turned his Throne to face the two remaining enemies.

One closed in on him.

The other kept its distance, making it impossible to gain a favorable sniping position through an exchange.

He positioned himself slightly beside another crate next to one of the buildings and assumed a stance to swoop his battle staff around as the first enemy came into reach.

Just as he began to swing and his opponent prepared to block, he switched his own position with the crate and hit the enemy Throne with a swing to the back.

It too disappeared like the last.

Nice.

Two exchanges remained, and only Hannah’s real Throne was left in view.

He could really do this.

The real Hannah slowly closed in on his position.

He had his back to the proverbial wall.

Maybe he should wait for her to come closer, then use an exchange to gain enough distance to try ranged combat and snipe her again?

Wham.

A sudden, sharp pain ran through his body.

His Throne’s right arm was damaged, and the third practice target along with it.

Gabe cried out.

Another copy of Hannah’s Throne had smashed its battle staff into his Throne’s right side.

“Bitch!” Gabe exclaimed. “How?”

“Heh.” Hannah’s smirk was almost audible. ”Three long-term copies. Spent all of my Aura on them at the start. The third one was supposed to protect Mirai, but since she took out Luc after your little stunt, there was a change of plans. Had it circle around the buildings while you were busy figuring out which of the others was the real one.”

“Damn.”

“You should have known better than to assume I’d reveal all my cards right from the start.”

“Fine, our loss. But you could’ve been a bit gentler. Now we have to mend this unit's arm too.”

“And give you a chance to notice and counter? I know better than to hold back against any of you.”

With the match over, most of Aurelius' comrades took the Thrones back to the hangar to mend, restore, or replace the damaged parts.

The four combatants and the rest of the kids gathered around Aurelius. “So, what’s your first impression?” he asked.

“So… The synchronization is amazing!” said Hannah. “The response time and steerability is way beyond our old training Thrones or the few regular models I’ve piloted!”

“But I could go the rest of my life without the feeling of having my skin melt and muscles burn,” said Luc while a shiver ran down his spine.

“Being filled with the remnants of your wannabe scattergun wasn’t exactly a walk in the park either,” said Mirai while holding her chest.

“Sounds worse than the blunt damage I received,” said Gabe. “Guess I should be glad I was up against Hannah.”

“You all handled it pretty well,” said Aurelius. “A lot of first-timers pass out from the feedback. I’ve seen grown men faint from less. Seems it did leave a lasting impression. What do you all think about them now?”

“I wanna keep my new Throne!” said Hannah immediately.

“Me too,” said Gabe.

“I am a bit conflicted,” said Mirai.

Luc hesitated.

“I am not sure,” he said. “I’d like to avoid having that experience again. But the Thrones are the superior model… And a little pain is better than dying in battle.”

“Rem, Uriah, Rogue? Any thoughts from your side?” asked Aurelius.

“I don’t like pain…” said Rem.

“Who does?” asked Rogue.

“I agree with Luc,” said Uriah. “Every second counts. We’d be foolish to give up an advantage because of the pain.”

The day went by in a breeze, as the group familiarized itself with their new Mark I Thrones.

In the evening, the group had gathered in the living room of Luc’s family home, waiting for Sascha and Rafe to arrive to fill everyone in on the details of the hunt that was scheduled for the evening of the next day.

Hannah, Rem, and Mirai played with Ann near the fireplace, while Rogue watched from a distance.

Uriah and Luc were busy filling in Gabe on their makeshift firework experiments and making plans on how to include two Thrones and multiple Aura batteries into their setup. The midsummer night was now barely a week away.

It was around nine in the evening when the front door opened, and two familiar figures stepped inside.