Chapter 148 - 144: Pulling Out of a Dive!

Chapter 148: Chapter 144: Pulling Out of a Dive!

Beak jutting down into the whirlwind of her own devising, Tempesta hurtles downward, dropping at a furious rate. My heart leaps into my throat, and my claws scrabble on the arena floor, fruitlessly, as if I could somehow stop her fall by proxy.

On the one hand, she will hit the ground hard, just like Tufaan.

On the other, Lobo and Demos could get knocked out of the tournament too, which would spell disaster. Not just for us, but for everyone.

[LOBO! DEMOS! Crash dive positions! Or see if you can slow her down!]

I don’t hesitate to bark instructions through the mind-link. After all, every second counts.

Lobo is eerily calm. [Attempting to increase the drag on her. Super Jump drained us, but we might have enough for the cords between us.]

I growl. [Don’t burn yourselves out!]

Demos is white-knuckle but calm. [We only need a few seconds.]

The cords sprout between them, wrapping around them and, ingeniously, all around Tempesta, slowing her down. She drifts and glides more than plummets, spreading her wings at strange angles in order to balance herself while she seeks a safe landing.

The audience holds its collective breath. No sound. No movement. Not even anyone getting up to stretch.

The announcer is ebullient. "Astounding! Thanks to teamwork, Lobo and Demos are actually protecting Tempesta! She may land safely!"

However, Tempesta can’t help picking up speed, because the cords fizzle out after a few seconds. Will that be enough, like Demos predicted?

Lightning’s voice is a beacon. [Come on. Land. Land safely, you great winged thunderstorm.]

Finn and Leonie take up the chant. [Land! Land! Land!]

THUMP!

In a blur and burst of speed, Tempesta crashes onto the platform, with less force than she might have done if not for Lobo and Demos and their sacrifice. They bounce into the air and land on either side of the fallen great bird. Demos lands on his feet, Lobo in a half-twist, but both unhurt. Meanwhile, Tempesta sprawls, wings trembling, but the rest of her scarcely moving. She’s alive, but out for the count. Out of the competition.

Deafening cheers from the audience. Lobo throws back his head and howls triumphantly, In response, Demos roars, full-throated.

The announcer shouts, "They did it! Lobo and Demos saved Tempesta, and themselves. What a masterful display of pure sportsmanship! And excellent work with and by their tamers, the mother-daughter team of Minette and Vedette Riddlehoeven!"

Applause as Minette and Vedette bow their heads modestly. Meanwhile, Mistral kneels in gratitude. Saving her bird’s life has softened the blow of losing the competition. She even gets up and clasps Minette’s and Vedette’s hands in sisterhood. Although politely applauding, Typhon is more reserved and less grateful, since Tufaan did crash and burn, literally.

Our group is not so restrained. I roar, Gussie squawks, Peridot does an aerial dance of joy, and Einswine snorts in bliss. Niall, Lamant, Elandior, and Kaline cheer uproariously.

The second the platform shudders back into place on the arena floor, we all stampede over to congratulate Demos and Lobo with kisses and licks and pats and praise.

Lamant kisses Minette and Kaline and Vedette don’t even chastise them for it, sparing them the usual teen and tween aversion to their parents’ physical affection. Rather, Kaline wraps her arms around Vedette and hugs her, gushing, "You were so noble. I told you! I told you you were more than a match for House Stormbound."

"Still embarrassing me." But there’s no bite in Vedette’s voice. Rather, she basks in the attention from her younger sister.

Lobo wags his tail and woofs, giving me the side-eye, as if to say: Siblings.

I exchange an almost misty-eyed gaze with him. He didn’t see Vedette’s haughtiness when this first started. Her domineering older sister demeanor in the training area after I incarnated and Kaline tamed me. Also, her mistake with the potion that made me sick.

Wait. He did. He saw all that on the computer. He knew. That’s why he’s giving me such a meaningful look. Also, it reflects our own journey as siblings, especially in this game where, except for Lightning/Amber, we only had each other to depend on. Of course, now we have our parents, too.

Lamant and Niall pay respect to Typhon and Mistral for a well-fought match while Tempesta is carried off by one of those orbs in a kind of tractor beam to the Medical Wing. Diffidently, Typhoon and Mistral accept the graciousness and then excuse themselves to see to their beasts.

The announcer calls out, "We will reset for the next match. Next match in five minutes."

I nose up to Peridot. [Has the amulet charged? Does Master Niall know?]

[It should be charged now. He’s off to fetch it.]

Indeed, Niall excuses himself to go to the Healing Center, Peridot following him. Lamant also decides to accompany him, just in case. Gussie trails them like a devoted shadow.

I breathe a sigh of relief. At least I might have the advantage of the amulet in my match. Even if it’s not at full strength, just having it there will give me a boost.

As always, I trot up to the stands, Lobo following, to see Lightning and the cubs. Naturally, all three of my tiger family swarm around Lobo, licking and fussing over him. The words "brave" and "true" and "noble" get thrown around liberally. Demos lumbers up to receive his share of affection. Lightning wonders whether both of them ought to visit the Medical Wing, and they brush it off. After all, Lobo hasn’t twisted his foot, and neither of them got thrown down on the hard platform. Just a little shaken up, but nothing they can’t handle.

Lightning bumps my nose with hers. [Awww. I bet you thought we forgot you.]

Finn playfully chews my ear while Leonie bats me with her tiny paw. [Papa, you’re next.] Finn is confident. [You and Swine.]

[That’s Einswine, not just swine, son. There’s a difference.] I playfully lecture him. [And i don’t know when it will be our turn. It might be someone else’s next.]

[No! Your turn. Your turn.] Leonie, encouraged by her brother, is dead certain. [You and Einswine. You will fight. Maybe fight another tiger. I hope not a dragon.]

[Yes, a dragon!] Finn looks faintly dragon-obsessed. [Much tougher. Dragons are scary.]

I tease again. [Scarier than your father?]

Finn and Leonie demolish my ego. [YES.]

I sigh, log-suffering, while nuzzling their fur. [Look at what I have to endure.]

Lightning flicks her tail lazily. [You’ll live. And I, too, could do without you facing another dragon in the next match. Honestly, I thought Lobo and demos would be charred.]

Lobo and Demos don’t grumble and posture and huff, because it’s true. They thought so, too.

I wrinkle my nose. [I’d rather face another tiger or a snake or even an enormous insect.]

My safe haven, Lightning bathes my face in love. [We’ll know soon enough. Look, they’re announcing the next match.]

We are not in the next match. Or the one after that. More matches. Now, only fifty beasts remain. Another match. More beasts eliminated. Hans scratches my ears and feeds me crunchy exotic fruits to keep up my strength. Stiff upper lip in place, Maartenwitz tells me to make the family proud. I bump him with my nose.

Niall returns with a somber face. "The amulet needs another few hours. It will be ready for the next match."

I nudge him reassuringly, as if to say: I can handle this.

Finally, the announcer calls out, "Blaze of House Riddlehoeven and Einswine of House Lammermoor versus Nene and Mamadi of House Jawara!"

A highly ranked house. Tied for first. We must be moving up!

Lots of kisses and promises and cheers from Lightning and the cubs before I make my way down to the arena. Kaline greets me the minute my paws hit the polished surface. "Come on, Blaze. This is a good matchup."

Striding over to the platform, she looks the equal of Elandior in confidence. His regal elf presence is powerful. Einswine moves quietly for his size and despite his hooves. Mounting the platform, we face our challengers. Nene and Mamadi, withered with age but still vital, have dignity and power. Besides them, their beasts are ready to do battle.

On the one hand, Wandi, a huge Burnt Millipede. Not a fire creature this time, I hope. Its hide is the color of burnt toast. On the other, Janko, an enormous furry crab with pincers as big as Einswine’s body.

[Name: [Wandi]

[Class: [Expert]

[Race: [Burnt Millipede]

[Level: 10/10 [XP 40/100 STATUS: Full

[HP: 6/6 [MP: 0/0 [Stamina 100/100

[Strength: 97

[Defense: 95

[Magic: 90

[Resistance: 92

[Speed: 95

[Charisma: 93

[Luck: 91

[Skills: [Poison (Attack Skill] [Pounce (Attack Skill)] [Sprint (Skill)] [Escape Power (Skill){Telepathy](Skill)[Procreation (Skill)[Super Jump (Skill)]

_______________

[Name: [Janko]

[Class: [Expert]

[Race: [Giant Ape-Crab

[Level:10/10 [XP 30/100 STATUS: Full

[HP: 6/6 [MP: 0/0 [Stamina 100/100

[Strength: 94

[Defense: 91

[Magic: 90

[Resistance: 89

[Speed: 91

[Charisma: 95

[Luck: 94

[Skills: [Pinch (Attack Skill] [Bite (Attack Skill)] [Sprint (Skill)] [Escape Power (Skill){Divine Vision/(Skill)[Telepathy](Skill)[Procreation (Skill)[Super Jump (Skill)]

My heart pounds. At least we’re not facing dragons again!

The announcer calls out, "3...2...1...BEGIN!"