Vin Xander And The Inner Circle

Chapter 14: More Archenides

"What do you mean by 'Archenides'?" I asked Najin.

He pulled me behind a log and we hid. "Do I have to explain this to you? It's obvious that they're Archenides."

"It can't be." I challenged. "There are no male Archenides."

"That's debatable." Najin said.

Right then, we both dove away in opposite directions when we saw a huge and unstable combined blast heading for us. The loud small explosion must have echoed for miles. It had broken the huge log into a million pieces.

"Are you okay?" I asked Najin.

He answered by nodding. Then he got up and ran towards me, hoping to get some sort of protection (or cover). However, he must have been too nervous or afraid because he fell and left his body completely open to attacks from the Archenides.

I took a piece of the log they had blown up. (It was the size of a my foot.) I aimed for the head of Pierre, who was pulling the string of his bow with all his strength. My aim was poor and my strength was low (but if anyone asks, the wood was very light).

I didn't know if he had released the arrow when I threw myself before Najin. "Run." I whispered to him. He ran to where I came from.

I got up and looked at Pierre. He was falling back while Juan Francisco approached. I was open... with an arrow and two guns aimed at me. I couldn't think of any way out. (I thought of talking to them, but that seemed pretty stupid and lame to me so I shut up and made up my mind that, no matter how painful their shots would be, I wouldn't react to them.)

At that moment, a Nissan Sentra made a sharp brake U turn, side-knocking Pierre and Juan Francisco away.

Tanu was the first to get out and she was followed by Marvin and Nick.

That knock did nothing to Pierre and Juan Francisco. What made the reunion not so exciting was the fact that they were joined by James. Luckily, Tanu and Marvin charged for them while Nick ran to me.

"Kelvin." Nick said when he got to me. He looked like he had very important news to tell me. "What did you do on January 19?"

I was surprised. "What happened on January 19?"

"The entire Garden City was given the day off. There was no school or work. Shops were closed. (Even the banks didn't open.)"

"Really?" I asked, trying to find out how such a thing could be. "Well, I wasn't even in Ashanti Region. I wasn't even on the continent so I guess I'm going..." I was starting to feel dizzy and faint. "Is that the important news you have to tell me?"

"Kelvin!" Nick cried and I noticed he had his eyes on my belly. "I don't think you're okay."

I looked and saw that I had been shot by one of Pierre's arrows. It had disappeared and so it didn't need to be pulled out. What was weird was the fact that I didn't feel anything. I can't explain this but I believe that if I hadn't looked, I wouldn't have fainted.

Two Months Ago
Chree Headquarters, Malaysia

"Are you okay?" I asked Stefan.

"Why did she do that?" He asked the rhetorical question.

"To give us our best chance...?" I answered. "Look, Shennel is strong. I'm sure she'll be able to take on Frank, the Chree who is already half burnt."

"That's the problem." Stefan said angrily. "She's an Archenide. Their worst fear is fire. She went into a volcano for you. Why?"

I was silent; not that I was trying to figure out why. I didn't care that much.

"Do you know where we are?" I broke the silence.