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!

 

Suddenly, the shrill ring of a sword cut through the air. It was accompanied by a streak of blue light that flashed across the room, slicing through the shadowy forms of both Shades.

 

Marking the end of their threat, the Shades burst apart, their demise sending a small shockwave through the art room. Pike and Mindie gawked at the abrupt aftermath, staring at their savior. Although it was difficult to gaze directly at the bright blue light, they could discern a vaguely human-shaped figure encased in its aura. As the blue glow began to recede, it briefly revealed a katana shape that was poised triumphantly from the figure’s hand—like one of those old Eastern-style duels that ended in the blink of an eye.

 

Then the katana disappeared, and the aura finished fading away. The last glow to vanish was from her eyes—from bright blue to a color so dark they were nearly black. As the classroom’s ceiling lights flickered back on, her figure became more visible and defined, revealing black hair tied into a long ponytail and a sports jacket over fair skin.

 

“Let me guess.” Ciara turned to the two, arms akimbo. A smug grin curled from her lips. “Your luminescence broke in the middle of the fight again. That right, little sis?”

 

The shocked expression on Mindie’s face melted into one of embarrassment. She tilted her face away from her older sister, though her green eyes continued to glance at her with a mix of gratitude for saving them, and bashfulness for being called out on falling short in her performance.

 

“Heh.”

 

Ciara briefly regarded Pike with a glance. You’re the real problem here. That’s what those dark eyes seemed to say before quickly turning her attention to the girl who had rematerialized from one of the Shade remnants.

 

“Ngh… What’s going on…?”

 

“You’re in a bit of trouble. That’s what.” Though despite her blunt tone, Ciara eased the dazed girl to a stand and served as her crutch. After one last, quick survey of the art room, she looked at her sister and her problematic friend. “I don’t think any more will pop in to give us problems. Let’s head out.”

 

=-=-=

 

After Ciara made a quick call to the Luminescence Department, another Star arrived at the art building. He retrieved the girl who had previously been a Shade and took her back with him to the Department. Before he left, he requested that Ciara stop by tomorrow to make the official report, which Ciara assured him she would.

 

“So that’s what it feels like to be saved by the famous Shooting Star,” Mindie said. “You’re as quick on the draw as ever, Nee-chan.”

 

“That cheesy nickname even made its way over to you, huh. You gonna start fangirling over me too, little sis?”

 

Mindie and Ciara made their way towards the exit, chatting with each other. More specifically, the older sister preached about proper and efficient use of luminescent energy while the younger laughed along and appeased her. Pike closed the door to the art classroom and prepared to follow them. But first, he needed to find someone.

 

Footsteps approached. “Were you feeling so inspired as to stay this late after class again?”

 

Speak of the devil. Pike turned his head towards the sound of the sultry voice. In the dimly lit hallway, a woman with lush, dark red hair and perfectly sun-kissed skin ambled towards him. Her form-fitting office attire only emphasized her enviable curves more as she swayed forward with each click of her heels. Azalea Belle, the art professor.

 

“Professor Belle.” Pike adjusted his messenger bag as he faced her fully. “Sorry to keep you again. I’ve been meaning to tell you, I can be the one to lock up so you don’t have to wait for me each time.”

 

Azalea tilted her head slightly, showing off a cat-like grin. “I don’t mind waiting. There are few students on campus who take their work as passionately as you do.” Because if there was one thing that resonated with the art professor, it was passion. “As your professor, I will always encourage you to lose yourself to the benefit of the growth in your soul—even if that means emerging past the hour of twilight.”

 

A clacking sound reverberated through the hall. It was the door leading outside. Ciara had already left the building, and Mindie was holding the door open. She waved emphatically at her bestie. “Heyyy! You coming?!”

 

“Yeah! Coming!” Pike gave a little wave to his professor and hurried off towards Mindie. “Have a good night, professor!”

 

Azalea offered a lazy wave in response, a slight shrug as she did so, her cat-like smile persisting.

 

=-=-=

 

Ciara hurried away from the building, heading towards the intersection at the main sidewalk. “C’mon! Dad’s making his specialty burgers!”

 

“No way. He’s home early for once?” Mindie continued holding the door open as she waited for Pike to come out, then let it close behind her as she struck a triumphant pose. “Another chaotic menace taken care of! Another step towards becoming the brightest Star in the world!”

 

Pike flashed her an amused grin, applauding her in good humor. It looked like she wasn’t fazed one bit by her hiccup in the middle of the fight.

 

Mindie skipped a few steps forward, then spun on her heel and beamed at him. “Feel like joining us for dinner tonight?”

 

“Nah, I’ll pass. Thanks though.”

 

“Your call. But that was a close one back there. What would I ever do without you, partner?”

 

“Get eaten by a Shade maybe?”

 

“That was a rhetorical question…”

 

Pike slouched and sighed in a small fit of exasperation, shaking his head. He knew she would be just fine without him most days, so any small chance to lend her his aid was a welcome one. His best friend was all sorts of trouble. In fact, she was the best kind of trouble. That much he had come to realize over the years of knowing her.

 

As he reminisced on this, he nearly missed it when Mindie reached a hand out to him. After looking at the hand curiously, he took hold of it—and was immediately pulled into pointblank range with her. Their foreheads touched. As with so many times they’d shared this gesture before, it was a comforting feeling.

 

He gave an impish grin. “Heh. Seriously though.”

 

Her beam only widened, nuzzling him a bit. “Thanks again, Pike.”

 

From the intersection at the sidewalk, Ciara’s patience was wearing thin. “Mindie! Hayaku! (Hurry up!)”

 

Mindie pulled away and waved over her head to acknowledge her sister. “Hai, hai~! (Okay, okay!)”

 

Pike placed a hand on his hip, looking towards Ciara. “You’d better go. Your sister might think we started dating or something.” And he didn’t need another reason for the older TC sister to give him the stink eye.

 

“What’s with that?” Mindie let out a laugh. “Such a worrywart. I’ll text you later, mkay? Let’s hang out again after dinner.”

 

Pike watched from his vantage point just outside the entrance as Mindie hurried off to join up with Ciara, grinning to himself. The two sisters were pretty close. He found the way they sometimes hailed each other in Eastern endearing, and he felt the slightest bit of envy watching them bicker.

 

“You’re a Star on Tour now, so you need to up your game.”

 

“Mom’s gonna grill me at my next training session, huh…”

 

“Count on it. And make sure to come with me tomorrow to file the report. You need your Tour credit for this incident.”

 

“Yeah, obviously! Haha!”

 

Soon enough, they were too far out of earshot for Pike to hear anything more.