“So, any ideas what he could possibly want us for this time?” Krystal asked the others. She along with Rey, Sana, and Akira were all heading towards Headmaster Devil’s office. They were in the middle of class when they were called and if anyone wasn’t in the mood to go, it was Krystal.
“I have no clue,” Sana said.
“More specifically, why us four?” Krystal asked.
“I was thinking the same thing,” Rey said.
“Well, we’ll find out,” Akira said. “Maybe he just needs to talk to us.”
By the time they reached the door of Headmaster Devil’s office, Sana went ahead and opened it. She entered along with the others, seeing Headmaster Devil was actually not at his desk. He was watering some plants that he had sitting by the window.
“Hello there, kids,” Headmaster Devil said as he turned towards the group.
“Uh, hi,” Akira said. “Since when did you keep plants?”
“For a while now. It’s a new hobby I’ve developed,” Headmaster Devil said.
“Well, that’s nice and all, but why exactly did you call us four?” Sana asked.
“Oh, right,” Headmaster Devil said. “I have a mission for you four.”
“Mission?” Krystal asked. “Why us four specifically?”
“I’ll get to that if you let me talk,” Headmaster Devil said.
Krystal pouted as she gave a side-eye to Sana, Rey, and Akira who were seemingly chuckling at her. Headmaster Devil put his watering can down and said, “In Ringling City, there have been a strange number of disappearances occurring within Ringling High School.”
“You mean disappearances related to dark beast activity?” Sana asked.
“That’s what signs are pointing towards,” Headmaster Devil said. “The scene of every disappearance at the school has involved the discovery of residue from a spider’s web.”
“Eww. Clearly someone needs to get an exterminator,” Krystal said.
“Krystal, try to see the bigger picture here,” Headmaster Devil said, shaking his head.
“Are they all kids?” Akira asked.
“Yes. Six students have disappeared in the past two weeks,” Headmaster Devil said.
“So, what are we supposed to do then?” Rey asked.
“I want the four of you to go undercover in the school as students and investigate the situation. See if there really is a dark beast behind all of this,” Headmaster Devil said.
“Hold up. I understand going undercover, but why us four specifically? Can you at least answer that?” Krystal asked.
“Part of it was availability. But mainly I felt all four of your skills would work well together,” Headmaster Devil said. “When you get to the school, you’ll meet with the other student you’ll be working with.”
“Other student?” Sana said.
“You four will be working with a student from Crimson Phoenix,” Headmaster Devil said.
“What’s the student’s name?” Rey asked.
“The headmaster didn’t tell me,” Headmaster Devil said.
“Why?” Akira asked.
“Let’s just say she likes to mess around with me. She’s all about surprises,” Headmaster Devil said. “She did say she sent one of her best though.”
“Don’t tell me she’s one of your exes,” Krystal said.
Headmaster Devil rolled his eyes and said, “You better get going. Your mission begins tomorrow morning.”
Krystal shook her head as she walked out of the office with Sana, Rey, and Akira. Yep. Definitely one of his exes, Krystal thought.
***
The following morning, Sana, Rey, Krystal, and Akira took off to Ringling City in West Viridian. Traveling didn’t take as long thanks to the hoverboards they got from school. The group landed near the building of Ringling High School. It was your average school building with a brick exterior, certainly not as big as Ringmasters Training Academy. Sana watched the students go inside the building. She turned to the others and said, “Okay, what’s the game plan?”
“Uh, aren’t we supposed to meet with the student from Crimson Phoenix?” Rey asked.
“But we don’t even know what the student looks like,” Krystal said. “Sheesh. Sometimes I wonder if Devil knows what he’s doing.”
“Honestly, I feel like the student is going to find us,” Akira said.
“How do you know?” Sana asked.
“Look,” Akira said.
Sana turned around to see a boy coming right up to them. He had dark hair with indigo highlights that was tied in short braids and golden clips on both sides of his head. He had sharp, dark eyes as well. He looked rather muscular and wore a blue tank shirt with a silver medallion over it, gold wristbands, gray trousers with golden trim, and gray boots.
“You must be Sana, right?” the boy asked.
“Yeah,” Sana said. “Are you the student we’re supposed to be meeting?”
“Yup,” the boy said. “I’m Rainer. Rainer Driskell.”
“Rain or drizzle?” Rey said.
“That wasn’t close, Rey,” Akira said.
“You’re a funny one,” Rainer said to Rey. “So, you’re the famous Rey.”
“Famous! I’m famous?!” Rey exclaimed. “Oh, hell, yeah!”
“And you two must be Krystal and Akira,” Rainer said.
“You seem to know us pretty well,” Krystal said.
“Headmaster Carmine knows how to gather intel,” Rainer said.
“How come your headmaster wouldn’t tell us about you?” Sana asked.
“Uh, let’s just say she’s an eccentric one,” Rainer said. “Anyway, I’m sure your headmaster told you guys about the job, right?”
“Yeah. Do you have a plan in mind?” Sana asked.
“Uh, I’m more of a one step at a time kind of guy,” Rainer said.
“Okay. You don’t have a plan,” Sana said.
Rainer could feel his cool guy act die in seconds. He knew Sana was right. After all, Headmaster Carmine didn’t give him too much of a plan. He also felt overwhelmed with working with RTA students. He had already heard all the stories about them.
“Sorry, that was a bit much. Maybe its best we come up with a plan together,” Sana said. “I mean that’s why we were chosen to work together, right?”
“Oh, yeah! You’re right!” Rainer said. “That’s a good start.”
“First thing we can do is figure out a way to get into the school,” Akira said.
“I got that covered,” Rainer said as he took off his backpack. He took out a few sets of uniforms. “We’re gonna need to change into these.”
Rainer handed everyone a uniform. Krystal looked at the uniform, which consisted of a white button-up shirt, red necktie, and a khaki skirt. She said, “They really make their students wear this? Why can’t schools take note from anime? At least the uniforms in those shows are cute.”
“Krystal, this is not the time to complain about fashion,” Sana said, rolling her eyes.
***
Sana, Rey, Krystal, Akira, and Rainer went inside the school and changed in the bathrooms. Once they had changed, they stepped out into the hallway. Krystal had gotten a good look at herself in the uniform, and she said, “You know…as tacky as this uniform is, I certainly pull it off.”
“Okay, now what?” Sana asked.
“Now, we just slip into one of the classes,” Rainer said. “Based off the intel I got from Headmaster Carmine, four out of the six students were from the sophomore class. The other two were juniors.”
“Okay. Maybe we should split up then,” Akira said. “One group can join a sophomore class and the other will join the juniors.”
“That’s a good idea, Akira,” Sana said. “Rey and I can join the sophomores and you guys can join the juniors.”
“Actually, I think I should team up with you, Sana,” Akira said. “I have a feeling that’ll work better. Also, Rainer, you might need to babysit these two.”
“Babysit?!” Rey exclaimed.
“You two have been known to make dumb moves every now and then,” Akira chuckled.
“Hey! I am not dumb!” Krystal exclaimed. “I happen to know five languages!”
“I never said YOU were dumb. Just that you make dumb moves,” Akira said.
“Let’s just go with that plan. I’ll go with these two,” Rainer told Akira.
Akira nodded and went off with Sana. As Krystal walked in the other direction with Rainer and Rey, she said, “I think everyone underestimates my intelligence.”
***
After Rainer figured out where the junior classes were, he led Rey and Krystal to classroom 3C right when class was about to begin. Rainer could tell the teacher, Ms. Robinson, was looking at them suspiciously. However, he managed to convince her that they were indeed new students and she had them sit all the way in the back.
Rey couldn’t help but feel a need to daydream during class. Classes at the academy were far more fun than the calculus class they found themselves in. He saw Rainer was taking notes, trying to go along with the act. He thought he should do the same, but he looked over at Krystal, who was just retouching her lip gloss. Instead, he thought about what Sana would do. She would focus on the mission and look for any clues in her surroundings.
One of the students was called by Ms. Robinson to the board. Rey immediately took note of how slowly the brunette-haired girl was walking. He couldn’t see her face as she wrote on the board, but even her hand movements were slow. What was striking was he could faintly see a strange marking on her right leg. It was miniscule, yet noticeably squiggly.
Rey looked over at Rainer and whispered, “Hey, the girl at the board has something on her leg.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s some weird marking.”
“Rey, do you have something you wish to share with the class?” Ms. Robinson asked.
Rey gulped as the other students turned towards him. “Oh, nothing. I was just discussing the equation,” Rey said. “Calc is so fascinating.”
“Ms. Krystal, are you paying attention to the board or your makeup?” Ms. Robinson asked.
Before Krystal could even say anything, the bell rang. Students started getting up and Rainer signaled to Rey and Krystal to get out as quickly as possible.
“Honestly, what’s her deal?” Krystal said as she headed out with Rey and Rainer. “Everyone needs a touchup here and there.”
“Well, let’s not focus on that,” Rainer said. “What’d you see, Rey?”
“There was a strange marking on that girl’s leg. Plus, her whole body was acting so slow. Almost like she was drained out of energy,” Rey said.
“Okay. But how does that have to do with the disappearances?” Krystal asked. “How do we know she didn’t just pull an all-nighter?”
“The marking could be a clue though,” Rainer said. “Sophomore lunch is supposed to be after the next class. Maybe we can watch her there.”
“That sounds solid,” Rey said. “What do we do till then?”
“Till then, we can slip into sophomore chemistry,” Rainer said.
“Can’t we pick a fun class for once?” Krystal asked.
***
On the other hand, Sana and Akira had exited out of the English class they were in. As they walked down the hallway, Sana stopped upon hearing her phone ring. She took it out from her backpack and saw she had received a text from Rey. Akira turned to her and said, “Something up?”
“It’s Rey. They found a girl in their class with a suspicious marking on her leg. He said we should look out for anyone with a similar marking.”
“Strange marking? Did he say anything else?”
“He also mentioned she was very low on energy.”
“Hmm. Strange markings and low energy.”
“What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking the disappearances are probably linked to a dark beast. But I don’t know what kind. Though if spider web residue was found in the disappearances, that could be it. This almost reminds me of Madame Naga.”
“You’re right. I hope its not as serious as that.”
“All right. What do you think we should do now?”
“I think we should let Rey and the others follow their lead. In the meantime, we can snoop around and look for clues.”
“Don’t you think that isn’t wise considering some faculty member could be lingering around the halls?”
“True. We just have to be stealthy about it.”
***
After a few minutes passed, Sana and Akira headed downstairs to the first floor. They hid behind a section of lockers and Akira subtlety checked the hallway. Seeing no one was around, she said, “Clear.”
Sana and Akira stepped out into the hallway. As the two walked, Sana looked around everywhere to see if anything was out of place. Her searching came to a halt when she noticed something on the floor. She bent down and picked up what appeared to be a spider web.
“Akira, check this out,” Sana said.
Akira bent down and looked at the spider web that Sana was holding in her hand.
“Well then. Either this school has a bug problem, or a dark beast of the spider variety is behind this.”
“How do we find out for sure?”
Before Akira could answer, she could hear the sound of footsteps coming near. “Someone’s coming,” Akira whispered. “Quick. In the bathroom.”
Sana and Akira quickly headed into the bathroom before they could be seen. Once inside, Sana found more spider web residue on the bathroom floor. Seeing the residue herself, Akira said, “Okay, this is definitely not just a bug problem.”
“Let’s check the stalls,” Sana said.
Sana went to the end of the bathroom, looking at each stall. Akira went to one on the other end. She saw nothing, but as she turned to head back, she could feel something strange on the floor. She stepped on the floor again, hearing a creaking sound.
“Sana, get over here,” Akira said.
Sana walked over to the stall that Akira was at. Akira looked at her and said, “I think there’s something up with the floor here.”
Sana looked down at the tiled floor where Akira was standing. She pressed her foot against it, feeling an odd shaking sensation from it. She bent down and looked closely at the tiles. The more she looked at them, the more she noticed they weren’t fully pressed into the floor. Sana pulled at the tiles, taking them completely out. What was left was a big hole that seemingly led to the basement.
“So, does this qualify as a clue?” Akira asked.
“I would say yes. Unless this school is seriously behind on maintenance.”
“Well then…I say we go down and see where it takes us.”
Akira nodded. Sana slowly got down and jumped through the hole with Akira following her. Sana was about to walk ahead till Akira said, “Wait. We could be walking into enemy territory.”
“Yeah?”
“So, we should make ourselves discrete. I’ll transform into my siren form and carry you. No one will hear our footsteps then.”
“Aah, I gotcha. Sounds good.”
Akira proceeded to transform. Her golden glow enclosed her body and faded once she was in her siren form. She flapped her wings and began to fly, carrying Sana by holding onto her shoulders. Now they had a real search ahead of them.
***
Later on, in chemistry class, Rainer, Rey, and Krystal were seated in the back. They all continued to blend in, working on an experiment just like the rest of the class. Rainer was in the middle of mixing a solution when he asked Rey, “Hey, can you give me some water?”
With no response, Rainer turned to Rey, seeing he looked distracted.
“Rey, what’s up?”
“I smell something weird.”
Suddenly, puffs of smoke were emerging around the classroom. The smoke alarm went off and the teacher seemed to be caught off guard.
“Everyone! Exit the classroom and evacuate the building,” the teacher ordered.
Students began following the teacher out of the classroom, one after the other. Rainer, Rey, and Krystal headed towards the door. Rey tried to open it, but it was seemingly locked.
“Rey, lets go!” Krystal exclaimed.
“I can’t. The door won’t budge,” Rey said.
“Hold up. Why do I have a feeling there’s something in here with us?” Rainer asked.
Rey could feel what Rainer was feeling. He turned around and realized he was right. “Guys, look,” Rey said.
Rainer and Krystal turned around. Before Rey and the others was a woman. She had dark hair tied in a top bun, purple eyes, and a devilish smirk. Her pale gray skin glistened in the sunlight from outside along with the black gown she was wearing. The most eye-catching thing had to be the shiny red pendant she was wearing.
“So, you’re the kids snooping around on what I’m doing here,” the woman said.
“Damn. She found out what we were doing, and we’ve never even seen her,” Rey said.
“Who are you and what do you want?” Rainer asked.
“I don’t owe you my name, but I can tell you what they used to call me back in the day,” the woman said. “They call me the Spider Queen.”
“Uh, not in that outfit, honey,” Krystal said.
“As for what I’m doing, your friends downstairs seemed to have gotten the idea and I don’t like repeating myself,” the Spider Queen said.
“She got to Sana and Akira,” Krystal said, preparing herself by drawing out her wand. “She means business then!”
“Well, I say we show her a thing or two, guys!” Rey exclaimed.
“Don’t mind me if I do as well,” the Spider Queen said as her eyes glowed bright red.
Suddenly, several large spiders emerged from the sinks of the desks. The sight of them made Krystal shriek, “Eww! Spiders are one thing. But spiders in water is just nasty!”
“This is gonna be hard without Sana by my side, but we gotta attack!” Rey exclaimed as he transformed into his tiger form.
As the spiders made their way towards them, Krystal and Rey got into action. Krystal launched one sound beam after the other towards the spiders while Rey launched fireballs. It was all seemingly going just fine till Rey stopped and looked at Rainer. He had transformed his wand into what looked like a winged sword. But he was just standing there, seemingly frozen as he looked at his sword. Rey transformed back and said, “Rainer! What’s up with you?”
Rey immediately got attacked by a swarm of spiders. As he tried to fend them off, Krystal rushed in to help. But she too was ambushed by them.
“Ugh! Get these nasty things off me!” Krystal cried as she tried to hit them with her sonic bell.
The Spider Queen held out her hand turning it to signal the spiders. They started shooting webs at Rainer, enclosing his body. She began to head towards the door, and she said, “It seems my work is done. It’d be best if you leave yourselves out from this point.”
With the Spider Queen gone, Rainer realized he had to get out and help Rey and Krystal. He quickly tried to raise his arms and said, “Come on. Come on.”
His golden wristbands began to glow brightly. As he emerged from the webs, he concentrated the energy in his hands, and he created a giant sphere of water. He launched the sphere towards the spiders, washing them away. In the process, Rey and Krystal got wet as well. The spiders had all disintegrated one after the other. Krystal slowly got up and said, “You know, for once, I’m not mad that my outfit is ruined.”
“Uh, you hated the uniform anyway,” Rey said as he got up. “Damn. We’re soaking.”
“Sorry, guys,” Rainer said. “I messed up.”
“No, no! You just saved us right now!” Rey exclaimed. “Also, that move you just did was really cool! How’d you-”
“Guys, we need to get to Sana and Akira!” Krystal exclaimed.
“Oh, right! Let’s go!” Rey said.
The trio headed out through the door. By the time they got to the hall, Sana and Akira were right there. Rey was shocked to see them both. Akira was holding onto Sana, who was seemingly injured.
“Sana! Are you okay?” Rey asked.
“We’re fine, honestly,” Sana said.
“Fine?! That Spider Queen injured her leg,” Akira said. “Judging by the way you guys look, it seems she got to you as well.”
“Damn it! My hair is frizzing, isn’t it?!” Krystal cried.
“Look, we need to get out of here and find a safe spot to retreat,” Akira said.
“There’s a small park down the street. Its usually not crowded,” Rainer said.
“Let’s go there then!” Rey said as he helped Akira with holding Sana.
***
Rainer led everyone to Rowling Park. The park was indeed quiet. Hardly anyone was present there. Once they were there, Rey and Akira helped Sana sit down on one of the benches. Krystal took a spare scarf she had with her and used it to tie around Sana’s leg.
“How did it happen?” Rey asked.
“The Spider Queen used one of her spider legs to pierce Sana’s leg in combat,” Akira said.
“Hold on. She can transform herself?!” Rey exclaimed.
“We found her in the basement of the school. There’s an abandoned room where she’s keeping the missing students,” Sana said. “It looks like she’s using their energy to fuel her powers.”
“What the hell?” Rey said.
“This is absurd. I’m gonna call Devil and find out if he has any intel on this Spider Queen,” Krystal said as she started dialing Headmaster Devil’s number on her phone. “There’s gotta be something we’re not getting here.”
Krystal’s call was indeed answered. But instead of Headmaster Devil appearing on the screen, it was Zayn.
“Zayn?!” Krystal exclaimed. “Why are you answering?!”
“Uh, hi to you, too,” Zayn said.
“What’s up, man?” Rey asked as he walked over to see Zayn on Krystal’s phone screen.
“Uh, nothing much. I just needed to get something from the office,” Zayn said.
“Okay…um…is Headmaster Devil there?” Krystal asked.
“He is now. I’ll hand it to him,” Zayn said.
“Why’s your face red?” Rey asked Krystal.
“Shut up!” Krystal exclaimed.
Zayn handed the phone to Headmaster Devil. Once he was on, he said, “Krystal, how are things going with the mission?”
“Well, a lot of stuff has happened today,” Krystal said. “I need to know if you know anything about someone named the Spider Queen.”
“The Spider Queen? You ran into her?” Headmaster Devil asked.
“So, you know her?” Rey asked.
“Yes. But her name hasn’t come up in a long time. She went off the radar years ago,” Headmaster Devil said.
“Who was she?” Krystal asked.
“She was a notorious dark beast. Not as powerful as Madame Naga, but definitely similar in abilities. After she was defeated by a ringmaster from the Ringmasters Society, she was never heard from again,” Headmaster Devil said.
“Wait. Maybe this ringmaster that defeated her took away a lot of her power,” Sana said. “That’s why she’s using the kids to fuel her power. She’s trying to regain it.”
“But how could she do that?” Akira asked.
As the others were pondering, Rey thought on it for a moment. He suddenly remembered something and said, “Maybe it has something to do with that red pendant she was wearing.”
“Oh! The pendant must be what draws out the energy from the humans,” Krystal said. “But why go after regular kids?”
“It’d be easier for her to swallow energy from normal humans than ringmasters or human-beasts,” Headmaster Devil said.
“Are the kids still in the basement?” Rey asked Sana and Akira.
“They are. But their energy has already been taken. We need to find her and break the pendant. I’m pretty sure that’s the only way we can restore their energies,” Sana said.
“Well, you’d have to find out where she’s heading to do that,” Headmaster Devil said. “Krystal, send me her description details and I can see if I can get any intel on her location.”
“Sure thing,” Krystal said.
Headmaster Devil ended the call. While Krystal was preparing to send details, Rey took note of Rainer. He was sitting on a bench by himself, and he was awfully quiet for a while. He noticed Rainer was looking at his winged sword. Rey wondered why he didn’t use it when they were fighting the Spider Queen. Something about it seemed to bother Rainer.
“Rainer’s been pretty down,” Rey said.
“I noticed. Do you know what’s wrong?” Sana asked.
“Not exactly. But he keeps looking at the sword,” Rey said.
“I wonder why he has it if he doesn’t even use it in battle,” Krystal said.
“Well, someone should go talk to him,” Akira said. “To work better as a team, we have to understand each other’s emotions.”
“Akira has a point. I’m gonna go talk to him,” Rey said.
Rey got up and walked over to where Rainer was sitting. He could tell Rainer wasn’t even aware that he was coming. Rey said, “That’s a nice sword you got there.”
“Oh, thanks,” Rainer said, startled upon hearing Rey’s voice.
“I gotta ask…that trick you did back there was really cool. Do your wristbands allow you to control water?”
“Yeah. They help me concentrate my water energy.”
“That’s cool. If you don’t mind me asking, why didn’t you use your sword back there?”
Rainer wasn’t surprised that Rey would ask this question. After all, he couldn’t stop looking at his sword. Rey sat next to him as he pondered over how to respond.
“I understand if you don’t wanna talk about it,” Rey said. “I wanted to ask because it seems to bother you. I know we just met and all, but you’re a cool dude and I really think we could be good friends.”
“And we want to help you if we can,” Sana said.
Rainer looked up to see Sana, Krystal, and Akira had come by as well. Seeing all the support around him, he felt as though he could trust the others.
“Okay. This sword isn’t any ordinary ringmaster weapon,” Rainer said. “It’s the legendary sword of Shango.”
“Sword of Shango?” Sana said.
“Yeah. According to my ancestors, the sword belonged to Shango, the ultimate thunder ringmaster,” Rainer said.
“Thunder! You have water and thunder powers?!” Rey asked.
“Yeah. This sword has been passed down in my family for generations. For every generation, a worthy successor is chosen. This time it was me. My dad gave it to me recently. We had a whole ceremony as per tradition,” Rainer said.
“I see. So, it’s a lot to handle, isn’t it?” Akira asked.
“The power of this sword brings a lot of pressure along with it,” Rainer said.
“By any chance, do you mean family pressure?” Krystal asked.
“Oh, yeah. The elders had a lot to say about my dad’s decision. Of course, nothing beats the fact that my mom was against it,” Rainer said.
“Your mom?” Akira said.
“Yeah. There’s some history there. Not the good kind,” Rainer said. “Even though she and my dad aren’t together anymore, I still see her. And every time, it just gets worse.”
“That bad, huh?” Rey said.
“She didn’t even speak to me at the ceremony,” Rainer said. “And she waits a whole week later to send me a message explaining why she didn’t speak to me.”
“Wow. Mother of the year,” Krystal said.
Hearing the little bit of Rainer’s history with his family made Rey put things together. He looked at Sana and from the way she looked at him, even she could understand where he was coming from.
“So, your mother and the pressure from your family is making you doubt your worthiness of wielding the sword?” Rey asked.
“Pretty much. I haven’t even talked to the sword,” Rainer said.
“The sword talks?” Akira asked.
“When Shango died, he sealed his spirit in his sword so he could live on with every swordsman after. Kinda like a guide I guess,” Rainer said.
“Hey, isn’t that similar to your zodiac wand, Krystal?” Sana asked.
“I guess so,” Krystal said.
“Rainer, I may not have known you for long, but I think you’re a cool and capable guy,” Rey said. “You gotta believe in yourself, man! You got this!”
“You really think so?” Rainer asked.
“Definitely. You totally saved us back there. It may have messed up my hair, but a bad hair day is worth it when you’re still in one piece,” Krystal said.
“Your headmaster sent you here for a reason. She believed in you. You just have to have faith in yourself,” Sana said.
“I don’t know how this sword works. But if you trust in yourself, I’m sure the sword will trust you,” Akira said.
Rainer looked back at his sword. The golden wings on its hilt and its shiny sheen captivated him. He felt something different when looking at the sword this time. It was elation. He felt a sudden drive in him that he didn’t feel before.
Rainer stood up from the bench. He could tell the others were looking at him, possibly wondering what was on his mind. He turned to them and said, “Thank you, guys. I’m ready to get down to business.”
“Yeah! That’s what we like to hear!” Rey exclaimed.
“All right. We have to figure out where the Spider Queen is heading,” Akira said. “Sana and I didn’t get much insight from when we ran into her. That means we’ll have to use our brains and figure this out.”
“Well, let’s start with the basics. Why would she go to this school in the first place?” Sana asked. “One thing I can think of is that this school has the largest student body in the state. That aside, students are easy victims.”
“How so?” Rainer asked.
“They’re easier to get to. Remember those spiders she summons? I’m pretty sure she’d have them bite the students she chose as victims. Once they were bitten, they’d be vulnerable enough for her to abduct them and drain their energy,” Sana said.
“Those are good points,” Akira said. “But why did she leave the school entirely then if it was her perfect pool for victims?”
“Maybe because we caught onto her plan?” Rey asked.
“Seems too simple,” Rainer said.
As the others were trying to figure things out, Krystal said, “Oh my gosh! I got it! I know where the Spider Queen is!”
“You do?” Akira asked.
“Yes! I know the exact place she’d be heading,” Krystal said. “You said the reason she came to this school was because of the large population, right?”
“Yeah,” Sana said.
“Well, I happen to know that Akshay Arora is having a show tonight in Ringling City to showcase his upcoming summer collection,” Krystal said. “It’s the perfect place to nab victims.”
“Why would the Spider Queen go to a fashion show?” Rey asked.
“Hello?! Plenty of young celebrities, socialites, and personalities are all seated in one area. Its an easy way for her to get a bunch of victims all at once with her spiders and snuff out their energy,” Krystal said.
Sana looked at the others, who were just as surprised as her. She couldn’t believe it. “Krystal, you may actually be on to something,” she said.
“I always knew my knowledge of fashion would get me somewhere,” Krystal said as she flipped her hair.
“So, we just go to this fashion show and stop the Spider Queen,” Rey said.
“Its not that easy, Rey. You have to be invited to those shows,” Akira said.
“And we need a proper plan,” Sana said.
“Well, when it comes to fashion, I have my ways,” Krystal said.
“And I think I can come up with a plan,” Rainer said.
***
In downtown Ringling City, the Akshay Arora show was being held at 21st Tower. Attendees were entering one after the other. And Krystal was determined to get the group in. The plan was in motion. While Rainer was planning to enter the building from the opposite side, Krystal was in charge of getting the others inside the show. It only took her a few hours prior to the show, but she was able to make a legit invitation for them to get in and she went the extra mile by creating matching outfits for them all to wear. The outfits had a red and teal color palette with variations on the same design. Krystal’s was a dress with over-the-knee boots, Rey’s was a set with a jacket and shorts, Sana’s was a one shoulder jumpsuit, and Akira’s was a cropped jacket with a matching skirt. The four of them were standing in line to enter the building for the show.
“I gotta hand it to you, Krystal. I’m liking these outfits,” Sana said.
“Though why do we look like a band?” Akira asked.
“That’s because for tonight, we are,” Krystal said, handing the invite she made to Akira.
Rey looked over to see what was on the invite. After reading it, he said, “We’re Ringmaster Pop? What kind of dumb name is that?”
“Its not dumb!” Krystal exclaimed. “It’s not like you have my creativity, Rey.”
“What creativity?! The name sounds like something a bunch of wannabe kids trying to act like pop stars would come up with,” Rey said.
“Dude, let it go. We need to focus on the task at hand,” Akira said.
“Rainer just messaged me,” Sana said, looking at her phone. “He says he’s in the building.”
“Good. Once we’re in, things will really go into motion,” Krystal said.
“You mean IF we get in,” Rey said.
Krystal put her annoyance to the side as she stepped forward in line with the others following. She handed the invitation to the security guard. After looking at it, he said, “Ringmaster Pop?”
“We’re very popular in France,” Krystal said.
“Oh, I’ll have to check you guys out,” the security guard said. “You can come in.”
Krystal smirked as she led the others inside the building. She turned to Rey and said, “What was that you said, Rey? You eating those words now?”
“Shut up,” Rey said. “Now what?”
“We have to be on the lookout for the Spider Queen,” Akira said. “I’m guessing she’ll be in the audience.”
“Rainer needs us to signal him when we spot her,” Sana said. “I think we should split up to cover the area of the room.”
With everyone in agreement, Sana, Rey, Krystal, and Akira split up, going in different directions to cover the whole space. Sana headed to the far-right corner. As she walked by, she stopped, seeing the Spider Queen was seated in the back at the end of the row. She quickly typed a message on her phone for everyone that read, “Found her. Stay in your positions.”
Sana notified Rainer of the sighting. Rainer was waiting in the balcony. He looked down at the audience, finding the spot where the Spider Queen was at. He bent down and drew out his wand, transforming it into the winged sword. The show had just started. Music was playing and the first model started walking the runway.
Rainer kept a close eye on the Spider Queen. He had to wait and see her make a move. He held tightly onto his sword. He looked at it and said, “Shango, if I need you, are you there?”
After a few seconds, Rainer wasn’t sure if Shango could hear him or if he was just talking to himself. But he wanted to put all his doubts aside. Suddenly, the sword’s blade began to glow. He also heard a faint yes. Rainer looked back at the audience and could see that the Spider Queen was getting ready to move, her pendant beginning to glow. Before she could summon her spiders to do their dirty work, Rainer raised his sword and a bright bolt of lightning emerged from the blade, hitting directly at the ceiling lights. The lights in the room went out and everything went dark. Audience members began to murmur amongst themselves. It didn’t take long for people to exit the area in masses. Once everyone was gone, Rainer raised his sword again, using the massive electric sparks from the blade to light up the space and bring back the electricity in the room. He could see Rey, Sana, Krystal, and Akira were together, standing on the runway. And not too far from them was the Spider Queen, who looked directly at Rainer.
“I should’ve made sure you were dead back there,” the Spider Queen said.
“Bet you didn’t count on this,” Rey smirked.
“There’s nothing to count on with a bunch of weaklings like yourselves,” the Spider Queen said.
“Let’s see if you still say that when we beat your ass this time,” Akira said.
“Everyone, go!” Sana exclaimed as she transformed her wand into her trishula.
Krystal got out her sonic bell while Rey and Akira transformed. The Spider Queen’s eyes glowed red and she unleashed her spiders towards Sana and the others. Sana turned to everyone and said, “Remember the goal. Don’t get too distracted by the spiders.”
Everyone nodded. Sana and Rey joined together taking on as many spiders with their fire combinations while Krystal used her sonic bell on them. Akira noticed Rainer still standing at the balcony. She flew over to him and said, “Aren’t you coming down?”
“You heard, Sana. We have to focus on getting that pendant,” Rainer said as he looked at the Spider Queen.
“We can’t all go after her at once. Not with those spiders.”
Rainer noticed that Sana, Rey, and Krystal were trying to take down spiders and get to the Spider Queen, but she just kept summoning more to get in their way. It seemed like they would keep coming no matter how many times they try to get to her. But then, something clicked.
“I have an idea. You’ll have to trust my lead.”
“Go for it.”
Rainer raised his sword up again, knocking out the lights in the room. The Spider Queen said, “This trick is an old one.”
“Is it?” Rainer asked.
Rainer illuminated the room again with his sword with Akira flapping her wings and launching a strong gust of sand towards the Spider Queen. “Now, guys!” Akira called to Sana, Rey, and Krystal.
Krystal launched a sound beam from her sonic bell at the Spider Queen. The Spider Queen deflected it with a dark energy beam from her hand. Rey went ahead and attacked her directly by pouncing at her. The Spider Queen pushed him off, making him hit into Sana.
Rainer once again turned off the light with his sword. This became a back-and-forth tactic he used so the others could continue to attack her directly. It didn’t take long for her to get agitated. She unleashed her spider legs from her back. Suddenly, she became a much larger presence.
“Damn,” Rainer said.
Along with the Spider Queen’s upgrade, there were still many of her spiders surrounding the group. The Spider Queen pinned Krystal to the ground by one her legs. Sana wanted to help her, but she knew she had to do something about the spiders. She looked at Rey, who nodded back at her. The two charged towards the spiders with Sana charging her fiery trishula through them and Rey launching one fireball after the other. Rainer looked at Akira, who nodded back at him.
“Krystal, I know its hard, but you have to ring your sonic bell,” Akira said.
“Ha! Like that’s going to stop me!” the Spider Queen laughed.
“Worth a shot,” Krystal grunted as she rang her sonic bell.
With the sonic bell’s sound, Akira aligned with it using her singing voice. The sound waves of her voice and Krystal’s sonic bell were able to freeze the Spider Queen in her tracks. It was just what Akira needed. Akira released the ribbons from both her arms and tied them around the Spider Queen’s legs, bringing her down to the ground. As she fell, the ribbons released and got back onto Akira’s arms, and she kicked the Spider Queen in the face.
With the Spider Queen down, Rainer took this as the opportunity to make a move. Seeing Sana and Rey taking out spiders and Akira and Krystal getting up, he said, “Guys, I need you to take cover!”
They quickly got out of the way and Rainer concentrated his energy through his wristbands. He launched a massive stream of water from his hands that hit the Spider Queen and all her spiders. Using this as a distraction, he grabbed hold of his sword and jumped off the balcony as the wings on the sword began to glow. He was flying. The sword allowed him to make his way towards the Spider Queen. With a clear shot at the pendant, he channeled everything into the blade, the electricity building up on it. Once he got near, he plunged the sword into the Spider Queen’s pendant, breaking it and sending a shock of lightning into her body.
The Spider Queen screamed in agony as she was struck by the lightning and the energy from her body began to get pulled out. Rainer stepped back along with the others as the spiders, the pendant, and the Spider Queen all disintegrated at once.
Shocked at his victory, Rainer fell to his knees. He felt pretty tired. Rey transformed back into his human form and said, “Way to go, Rainer!”
“Yeah, you totally saved the day!” Krystal exclaimed. “I can’t believe your sword lets you fly.”
“Great job,” Sana said.
“No. We all did a great job,” Rainer said as he got up. “I definitely couldn’t have done this without you guys.”
“Aww, come here!” Rey exclaimed as he gave Rainer a tight hug.
“Guys, the moment is nice and all, but we should really check on the students back at the school,” Akira said.
“That’s right!” Sana exclaimed. “Let’s go!”
***
After some time had passed, Sana, Rey, Krystal, Akira, and Rainer headed back to Ringling High School. They found the students in the basement, and they all had their energy restored. With them safe, they helped them get back to their homes safely. To treat themselves to a job well done, they decided to go to a restaurant called Bobby’s. Rainer chose it as he was a big fan of their chicken wings.
“Damn. How many wings have you had already?” Krystal asked Rainer.
“Oh, come on. He deserves it for how well he did today,” Akira said.
“Believe it or not, this is the way I like to treat myself,” Rainer said. “Well, this and a good night of gaming.”
“No way! Dude, we should totally game together sometime!” Rey exclaimed.
“I’m down,” Rainer said.
“You know, as crazy as this job was, it was great having you on board, Rainer,” Sana said.
“Same here,” Rainer said. “We’ll definitely be seeing each other again.”
“We wouldn’t have it any other way,” Rey said.
“And hey, next time, you guys will have to meet my partner back at the academy. She’s awesome,” Rainer said.
As the group were laughing and talking amongst themselves, Rey was feeling stoked. Him and the others now had a new friend in Rainer. And he had a feeling there was more to look forward to in the future.
Copyright © 2022 Meryl T
All rights reserved. All illustrations created by Meryl T.
The Ringmasters Society 