I knew there was no way I was getting in to that cabin to listen in on the plan for now. My dad was in there, about thirteen other people who didn't want me anywhere near the fight, which was just unfair. I had been through everything that everyone else had, it shouldn't matter that I tried to get Jess's help. I should have still been allowed to be there. 

I watch Cameron drag Shane away, turning away after a few seconds. It would be fine. It would all be fine. Shane would get me there, he promised. I could still keep my promise to her.

I started walking through the crowd, not really sure where I was going. I just wanted to go...somewhere. Do something other than just sit there and wait for the meeting thing to be over. I slipped through the crowds of people, trying to ignore the stares I was getting as best as I could. 

"That's him, isn't it..."

"Of course it is, he's got the amulet-"

"I wonder if it really does become a sword like they're saying..."

"He doesn't look much like him..." 

I could hear whispers from every direction. Notch, if this was what Dad went through every day, having everyone's eyes on him all the time, I could see why he left the Kingdom. It felt so...weird, having everyone stare at me and knowing that their whispers were about me. 

I tucked the amulet back under my hoodie as I made it through the crowd, reaching the place where a bunch of players had apparently set up some armor stands to practice fighting. Pulling out my own sword was the last thing I wanted to do right now. All it would do was bring more attention to me. Still, it'd be cooler to watch people fight rather than just sitting and staring at absolutely nothing. 

I sat down on the grass, leaning back on my hands as I watch a few players fight. I was right -- it was way more entertaining. These people were good. If these guys were fighting tomorrow, then forget the initial Shadows, we could probably take out Darklox himself. 

I watched as one girl with a red pixie cut and freckles hacking away at one of the stands with just a pocket knife, and doing a scary amount of damage with it. Normally I wouldn't be too scared if someone showed up to fight with just a pocket knife, but watching her do it, I made a mental check to beware people with pocket knives for the rest of my life. 

Another person in a black hoodie was holding a bow in their hands, but what caught my attention was the bandanna over their eyes. Oh, no way. Were they going to -- 

And there it was. The person fired three arrows, all going through the center of the target. Blindfolded. Man, that's the kind of stuff that only happens in cartoons. 

The last girl had a scythe. No joke. She was just swinging around a scythe like it was no big deal. That was so awesome. I watched as she literally beheaded one of the stands, but after she had done that, she didn't seem finished. The girl stood a few feet away from the now-headless stand, staring at it for a few seconds. Then, before I knew what was happening, she thrust her hand out, and the entire thing was suddenly enveloped in black fire. 

I definitely did not shriek and I definitely did not almost fall over. 

I heard laughter behind me, and turned around to see a girl with blue hair standing there, holding some kind of long stick in her hands. 

"Alright, based on that reaction, I'm going to guess you haven't seen much magic. You lived outside the Kingdom?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest. 

"Uh, yeah. How'd you-"

"There's tons of people who fight with magic in the Kingdom. If you don't know about magic when you're living in the Kingdom, you're living under a rock." She said, sitting down next to me. "I'm Kate." 

"Tyler." I said, and went back to the whole magic thing. "So, you're telling me that there are people who can just use magic whenever they feel like it?"

"Yeah." She shrugged. "Plenty of people do it. Although, most people seem to like using fire and stuff. 'Cause, y'know. For the edge." 

"Nice." I said, snickering a little, but I was actually kind of intrigued. The minute this war was over, I wanted to try out magic. "Do you do any magic?"

"Nah. I'm simpler then that." She said, and twirled her stick around. "I like my staff."

Ohh. It was a staff. Although, I probably should have been able to figure that out by now. 

"A staff?" I asked, and before I could say anything else, she looked directly into my eyes. 

"Hey, you better not make fun of my staff. Staffs are underrated and super cool." 

"I wasn't!" I said, throwing my hands up in surrender. "Promise!" 

She gave me a look that felt like she could see straight into my brain to tell if I was lying or not. If I were a cartoon, I'm absolutely certain I would've had a drop of sweat on my face. Not going to lie, I half-expected her to whack me in the stomach with her staff. The Kingdom people seemed weird. 

"...Alright, fine." She said, giving me a smile and breaking her eyes from mine. See what I mean? Weird. One minute, she looks like she's about to kill you, and the next, she smiled at you like you were her best friend.  "So...you live outside the Kingdom, huh? What's it like out here?"

"Uh..." I said. She was looking at me almost like she expected something. I shrugged. "It's fine. I mean, sometimes a monster comes by that you have to get rid of, meat's not always around, and the signal we get for television is pretty weak, but it's fine. We have a farm and tools and a mine, so...it's not like we're constantly on the verge of death."

"Oh." She said, looking almost disappointed. "I thought living on the outside was more...exciting, I guess. Like, danger at every turn, fighting for survival kind of exciting."

"Not really. Unless you're not well equipped." I said. "My dad's been teaching me and my sister little survival tips over the years so we'll be ready to head off on our own when we're older. I like to think we're pretty prepared."

"I've never been outside the Kingdom walls until now." Kate said. "I mean, not like I was imprisoned there, or anything. I could leave whenever I wanted, there was just always stuff to do, y'know? And my whole family's there, and I'd rather be near my family then go searching for adventure." 

"That makes sense." I nodded. I saw where she was coming from, there. Family meant a lot to me, too, even if the choices my family made didn't seem fair. 

Looking at you, Dad. 

"You'd be one of the first." Kate said. "A few of my friends think I'm crazy for not going after the adventure I want. But family's more important to me, so."

"Kate!" 

I turned when I heard the voice to see a girl waving at Kate from a while away. She had short orange hair, and she was close enough to the point where I could see her freckles, and her purple shirt contrasted against it. 

"Speak of the devil and they shall appear." Kate said, smiling a little. "Those are my friends, Kirai and Fred."

I didn't even notice the other person until she pointed, but once I did, it was kind of hard to miss him. He had a hoodie pulled over his hair, but that was about the most normal thing about him. His arm looked silver, as if it were robotic, and were those...wings?

Kate must've noticed my stare, because she nudged my shoulder. 

"If you ever run into him again, don't ask. He doesn't like talking about it." She said, and with that cryptic explanation, she stood and started towards them, waving as she left. "Nice to meet you, Tyler!"

I gave a slight wave back. She seemed cool. Maybe when this was all over, I'd see her again and we could be friends. I turned back to the battlefield, and continued watching people fight. At least now, I was less surprised by the magic. 

I was in the middle of watching a taller girl with brown hair throw an enchanted spear when I felt someone lightly punch my shoulder from behind. 

"Ow! Hey-!" I turned, seeing Shane standing there, a little grin on his face. 

"Hey, dude, I heard staring's considered rude." He said, crossing his arms over his chest. 

"Ha-ha." I muttered, moving to stand up. "Where's Cameron?"

"Wanted to go talk to Quinn about something, I dunno'." He shrugged. "But I think I've got an idea to get you in."

Now that was a way to get my attention.

-------------------------------------

I REALIZED I FORGOT TO PUT WHO WAS IN THIS SO

Your characters!! (as they appeared)

SkylarLuvsOTPs

loui219p

Endergirl_326

MarsGal (Kate)

the_iron_dragon (Kirai)

CookiesAndCreamMC (Fred)