Barcode: Legend of Apollo (25 page)

“I’ll do it. Just give me time.”

“No. You don’t have any more time. There’s an arena full of students shouting for justice. They want to see equality.” He giggles, “Down the hallway there’s a very gorgeous brunette waiting in a room, ready to share another night with Apollo. Her enemy’s running errands for Dennis. I’m sorry, did I say enemy? Best friend. I get the words confused sometimes.”

“Wait. Stop. Are you telling me that you have an arena full of people waiting to see them fight?”

“No. They’re waiting to see any demigod fight a god. I think I’ve started a revolution or something.” I watch as his mask repairs itself. He seems lightheaded and sick. “Anyway, if you don’t do this now, the people in the audience will rip the stadium apart.”

“The instructors won’t let that happen.”

When he grins from ear-to-ear, I feel it all across my skin. Though he sounds like he’ll throw up, there is also a confidence to his voice, “Oh. There’s my most beautiful work. The teachers are with them.”

“Kode.”

“You’ve got ten minutes before I turn this peaceful rally violent. Get them to the field, or I’ll do it myself. I’ve got other poisons.”

Storming toward the classroom, I glare at him. I made a contract with a demon, and there’s no turning back now.

I try calming myself before approaching Michelle. Though my composure is settling, I’m exposed before I can even walk through the door. Her ravishingly stunning tattoos are glowing.

“What’s wrong?”

“You’re cheating. You used your legs to read my feelings.”

“I’m sorry,” she says, struggling to control the nervousness in her voice. “It’s a natural habit. I won’t do it again. Please don’t use yours on me.”

“Why are you pressing that so hard? I thought you were kidding on the phone.”

“You probably don’t know, but I hated you when we were kids, and now we’re getting along. I don’t want to make things hard for you, because I know. Well, the girl’s practically in love with you. Ugh…just let me help you with that. I don’t want to make a mess of what you’ve got going on. It’s hard to explain. I want you to get it on your own. Forgive me, please.” She knows she’s rambling, so she stops talking. I can tell she’s holding something from me, but I guess I’m doing the same.

“Okay,” I say, pretending to understand. It’s only natural to assume that everything we say from this point on is a lie.

“Anyway, what’s on your mind? I already felt something dark in your thoughts, so spill it.”

“The audience never left the stadium.”

“I noticed,” she says, pulling the marbles out of her pocket. I wave my hand for her to put them away. “You don’t want to train?”

The guilt nearly burns my stomach, “Dennis is in some trouble. If he doesn’t get a demigod to fight a god level student...” I let my sentence trail off. I’m not sure I even know how to finish, let alone convince her to fight Hannah.

Michelle gasps, “Why?”

“The fans, students, and teachers banded together in order to stop him from segregating the classes. They’re tired of the discrimination and want equal opportunities.”

“Oh. You have to leave and get someone to fight?”

“I came to get you.”

Michelle squints her eyes as though she doesn’t trust me, but then a spark of understanding radiates in her smile, “You want to spar with me in front of everyone?”

Oh. Kill me.

I shake my head and she seems to lose her energy again.

“If I do it…” I pause, searching for an excuse. “If I do it, it’ll seem fixed whether I win or lose. Dennis can’t have me fight.”

“Who do you have in mind?”

“Hannah. She’s the other strongest god.”

Michelle walks away and folds her arms. The words pierce her heart with more force than a dagger.

“Isn’t Angie the strongest now?”

“Still a Colt. I’ve kind of built a negative reputation for our family name after last year. You know?”

She nods her head, and then shakes it wildly. She whispers, “I can’t.”

“Meesh. Please.”

She stares into my eyes with the softest expression. We’re too close for me to try deceiving her any longer. I activate my barcodes, but make sure I don’t read her thoughts. I only use the power to feel her presence around me. It soothes my body, but tears through my data.

Michelle swiftly wipes her eye and rests her hand on my chest plate. My heart pounds from the connection, and the room turns black. In one blink, I see a beautiful girl that I hadn’t noticed before. She’s someone different to me now. Not just a friend. Special.

I prepare to tell her the truth, “Look—”

“Did you kiss her yet?” Her tone lures me in.

“No,” My body eases towards her, but the door slams behind me. Michelle withdraws her hand and turns pale.

Hannah’s already in the center of the classroom, out of breath and is passionately angry. She doesn’t say a word. She’s watching our proximity, our connection and assuming the worst.

“What’s wrong?” She doesn’t reply. I try to shift her jealous mind from the situation and say, “Did something happen in the stadium already?”

Hannah’s voice cracks as she shouts, “Why are you two here?”

I’m well aware of how angry she gets when I’m with other girls, which is why I’ve done my best to avoid mentioning the situation. I try to think of more lies, ones simple enough to keep me out of trouble.

“I’m trying to get Meesh to help me out.”

“I wasn’t good enough to help you?” Hannah says, her voice trembling.

“I could use you both right now,” I chuckle nervously, not looking back at Michelle. “The arena’s full with people ready to start a revolt. If I can’t get you two to have a sparring match in the next few minutes, they’re going to tear this stadium apart.”

Hannah flinches, but the words relax her a bit. Still, she’s not ready to give up. “How long have you two been training together?”

“Who said we were?” I ask, realizing that it’ll only make me sound guiltier. Kode must have figured out a way to give her that information, but I don’t have time to blame him for my trouble. “It’s not that serious.”

“Then why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because it’s not a big deal. She gave me some MIBS from Arnold, and we’re practically done. I was just telling her I don’t need her anymore.”

My barcodes activate on their own, but I stop them at once. The pain I felt coming from behind me was too intense.

I can feel Michelle slowly distancing herself from me.

“Okay. Why are you with her now?” Hannah asks, sounding much more relaxed.

“I already said, I was trying to convince Meesh to fight you, but she doesn’t—”

Michelle bumps into me as she walks by. She barks, “Don’t call me that. I’ll fight.”

The smirk on Hannah’s face oozes with evil. She waits for me to walk her to the stadium, but something tells me to turn around. On the ground, I notice a small puddle of tears.

Twenty Six

I leave about two feet between us as I walk Hannah to the locker room. She shakes her arms with a few ballistic stretches as a warm up. Watching closely, I feel myself comparing her to Michelle.

Hannah seems stronger, but is she really? Michelle’s strength actually stems from her vulnerability. She’s willing to connect with others and risk being hurt. Hannah, on the other hand, never hangs out with anyone outside of school. She’s hidden herself from the rest of the world.

After four years, I still don’t know much about Hannah. We’ve never visited each other’s place, or parents. She’s well aware I despise Dennis’ very existence, but I don’t know her excuse. I’m not sure what makes her angry, besides having other girls near me. There’s a possibility she’s upset with me, but her malicious intent is pointed down Michelle’s pathway.

I kick myself trying to discover if Hannah honestly wants to fight. A determination to defeat her best friend scribbles scriptures of hatred across her face.

Only once did Hannah mention Michelle’s popularity amongst the Apes. She stumbled across a MeeToo group praising Michelle for her power. There was mention that, in a one-on-one, Michelle’s lions could easily beat the snakes around Hannah’s arms.

Hannah slithers towards her ferocious friend in the center of the field.

Patrick’s voice is weary and weak, “What’s this? Looks like we may finally have what we asked for.”

I exit the locker room to see Dennis in the center of the field with a microphone. He’s trying to speak, but it seems Patrick has cut his sound. As I walk out, the fans stand. Most are responding with boos, which I deserve whenever I walk onto a field.

“Are these our fighters, Mr. Colt? We don’t want to hear any more about respecting you and your rules. We want
our
respect, sir. My own mother is a demigod so powerful she survived birthing me. How many goddesses can say that?”

Dennis continues shaking his head and shouting, “No!” Smog spills from his lungs into the night sky. The dark clouds enhance the dreary tension smothering his sound.

He glances at me from the corner of his eye before continuing his frantic plea to the audience. Dennis begs the students and teachers to go home and write their concerns to his office.

I feel some pity for him. This symbolic moment represents my entire life. With crowds of people screaming my name, I’ve still managed to suffer alone. I’d touch his pinky for him to understand, but he’d read more than that. It’s not worth it.

“Dennis, can we talk?”

“Not now Spencer.”

With my tattoos glowing, I bark, “Then when?”

My voice booms across the amphitheater, and I watch as his eyes widen in embarrassment. The crowd falls silent. For the first time, I can speak without him ignoring me, but I revoke the right. Instead, I address the tired and angry people.

“Today I found out that Dennis killed an Ap—, a human when he was my age. That human was his best friend. He was too young to know his own strength, like all of us in many ways.” The microphone turns on. My voice amplifies enough that I can stop screaming. Sounding less aggressive, I continue, “How many gods broke their desk in anger until the Morenos came along and made things more durable and tech savvy?”

Many of the gods and demigods raise their hands. I notice a few alumni in the front agreeing as well.

“That’s what he’s trying to protect us from, and I agree.” The crowd shouts angrily, but I go on, “But, gladiators are public servants, and Dennis knows that. We’re here to listen to your concerns and do something about them. This stadium represents Los Angeles and what its residents want.”

The crowd is still grumbling. I turn to speak directly at Dennis. “We can’t fight all of them.” I sense his resentment. Maybe he could take on the entire crowd. He’s fought enough wars, but no one man could be that powerful. “Even you can be wrong. A lot,” I say, smirking.

Dennis puffs steam from his nose and cracks a brief smile. This time, I don’t feel the darkness that normally lies in wait. There’s no veil. It seems like my ability to win over the crowd might work on him as well.

Again, I shout, “I’ll make a deal with everyone. We have the best of the demigod and god students. If the demigod wins, we’ll allow classes to merge. No more segregation. Humans will be allowed to spar in order to one day participate in god level matches. How’s that?”

The people root, though some seem skeptical. It’s better than nothing for now.

“But…” I wait until they quiet down before continuing, “If the demigoddess loses, you’ll all shut the hell up and go home.”

The audience laughs, and agrees in unison, “Yeah!”

The two women don’t seem fazed by our words. They stare at each other in silence. They’re probably ignorant of the seriousness of the situation. They are simply waiting for someone to say, “Go.” I doubt Dennis could stop them if he wanted.

Patrick tries to announce the fight, but the crowd’s clamoring erases his sound. As he works on them, I tell Dennis, “Either this, or we die for what we stand for.”

No reply. Just an intense glare that resembles Blake’s smile. I’ll take that as a yes.

When Patrick finally manages to calm the crowd, I steal his glory and announce it myself.

“On the field we have best friends; how ironic,” I say, winking at Dennis. “They’ll display a passion for battle while managing their power as we all do in training. They’ll show love in war.” Looking around at everyone I continue, “What are you waiting for? This is the most important fight anyone has ever witnessed in the Colt Arena.” The crowd roars vehemently.

Without a word, Hannah charges in her organized method. I watch as she quickly runs behind me in order to block Michelle’s line of vision. As she reemerges, a loud bang rings in my ear. When she comes into sight, there’s no trace of a weapon.

Michelle easily dodges the bullet, but must jump in order to do so. Before she can place a toe back on the ground, Hannah closes in to plant a strong right in Michelle’s gut and a left on her chin. Michelle falls to the ground, and Hannah gives her a brutal kick to the stomach.

Dennis watches my hands more than the actual match. Michelle suffers a series of destructive hits. I begin to believe that Dennis can’t watch the match because he wants to stop it.

Hannah lifts a beaten Michelle from the ground and launches her across the field with both snakes shining a bright orange. Michelle flies roughly into a wall. In order to break the impact, her suit expels a counter force that causes dust to cover the field.

Michelle’s fanatics fall silent. Their praises convert to quiet moans. The equal rights hero has been taken down too easily. It seems like she never stood a chance.

From the stands, Arnold screams, “Let’s go,” with a barbarous rumble. A vibrant pink shines from the dispersing dust.

I feel Dennis’ hand sneak under my armor before he yanks me roughly. I’m being pulled like a ragdoll behind his steps.

Hannah notices Dennis and me rushing for cover, and whips around with her snakes blazing.

The dust settles. Though Hannah’s becoming a mere dot in my sight, Dennis continues dragging me to the furthest area of the field. People in the front row clear the stands as well.