Young Writers Society

Mage raised his hands, fire and darkness intertwining as he prepared for the attack. Meanwhile, Soul mentally prepared himself for being carried by presumably Harry. He was so used to doing the carrying that it was an adjustment.

"Everyone jump into action on the count of three, don't blink, don't miss and try very hard not to be squashed," said Harry. He raised three fingers in the air as he began counting down.

"Three."

"Two."

"One..."

The moment Harry counted down to zero, Mage launched his attack of fire and darkness at the eye closest to him. The Sin easily hit its target, and the creature let out a pained whine that bordered on anger.

Soul did his best to keep his body loose and easy to pick up. He wasn't sure if it was working or not, but it was all he could do at this point.

Jennifer flicked her hand. An arc of pink lightning followed the odd mixture of fire and darkness as it slammed into the second eye of the creature. As predicted, it began to stagger back and forth.

"Vankous..." said Harry, "Everyone running time in three, two, one.."

There was a blast of purple light as a thin wiry beam of light slammed into the creatures leg, sending it stumbling...right towards them.

"GO," yelled Harry.

Mage and Soul both booked it. Unsurprisingly, Mage was faster than Soul was, but Soul did his best to keep up. He had expected Harry would pick him up right away. Instead, it looked like Harry was waiting to see if he'd fall behind first.

Harry stood there as he watched everyone move away. It looks like they were all going to make it. This thing was taking its own sweet time falling to the ground. Then it started to tilt to the side a bit. Well that wouldn't do.

He took another second to look at everyone. Vankous had already teleported well away. Jennifer was gone too. Mage seemed to be safe enough. Well...that made things easier. It was only the one person he had already gotten permission from. He raced towards Soul and in the blink of an eye he was putting Soul down right next to Vankous as they watched the monster collapse to the floor, well away from them.

He gave Soul a pat on the shoulder. He couldn't help but notice he was much heavier than someone his general size should be, especially given organic tissue...but well...he wasn't going to question it.

Mage turned just in time to see Harry putting Soul and to see the monster crashing to the ground behind them. He stared at the creature, then turned to look at Soul. He wondered if Harry had noticed how heavy Soul was. Mage hadn't ever tried carrying him for obvious reasons, but Soul was hard to even push or tug.

"Thank you," Soul said to Harry.

"We're safe now?" Mage asked, just to check.

"Yes, no thanks to that extraordinarily..." began Jennifer before Vankous cut her off.

"Amazing and well thought out plan," finished Vankous.

"It worked okay," said Harry, before he turned to Soul and gave him a quick pat on the back. "You're Welcome. That suit of armor is quite something huh? Makes you weigh so much more than I thought you would. What metal is that thing even made of?"

Soul froze. Mage froze, too, even though he was sure Harry wouldn't mind if he knew the truth. Soul was just so used to hiding it, and Mage knew how hard it was to reveal something personal after keeping it tucked away for so long.

"That's...That's a good question," Soul weakly said. "I don't know. My partner had it her family's workshop for years, so neither one of us know where it came from or what it's made of."

"Really?" asked Vankous, sounding vaguely suspicious. "Why would you put on a suit of armor like that if you have no idea what it is where it came from?"

Mage didn't say a word. He didn't trust himself to. He also hoped that Harry didn't look in his direction while Vankous questioned Soul, certain that Harry could probably read the expression on his face and tell that Mage knew that there was more to the story.

"Uh," Soul stammered. He thought for a moment. "You saw how I'm not good in combat. My partner and I frequently fight people, but don't have a lot of resources. I needed more protection than her, and this was the best we could do."

"Well...from what I saw, that suit of armor is far more of a hindrance than a help. This might sound a bit accusing, but no one would wear something like that unless they had to," said Vankous, rather flatly.

"Okay, Vankous, remember what I told you the other day..." began Harry, moving towards the wizard.

"I..." Soul started, then faltered. He didn't know what other excuse to give. It was true that it provided him with additional protection, but Vankous wouldn't understand how important it was unless he knew the truth.

"He has a skin condition, too," Mage said. He was staring down at the ground now, almost as if he was ashamed to be lying for Soul. "He's allergic to water. So he wears the armor because it's good at keeping it out, and because it protects him. It's...It's two-in-one."

"You wear a bulky suit of armor to do the same job that a plastic bag could do?" asked Vankous, sounding genuinely concerned for Soul's sanity.

"Vankous," hissed Jennifer this time. "I think that's enough questions. Let's get back to the cabin."

It wasn't until they started going back to the transporter and back to the cabin that Mage finally lifted his head up. He looked over at Soul with an apologetic look. He was sure he was the reason Vankous was so suspicious now. He had tried his best to give a half truth for Soul, but he had failed. He should have been better at helping his friend.

Soul just shook his head, almost as if he knew exactly what Mage was thinking.