Cosmo Prison - Book 1: The Edge of Earth

Chapter 43

Chapter 43

*Leo Qi*

“There!” Chris shouts, pointing. “That’s the Cosmo Prison!”

I squint. A cloud of shadows shrouds the dark edifice looming in the distance, but I know beyond doubt that it is the Prison.

Before we can get any further, though, three figures swoop down from the brightening sky and touch down just in front of us.

Christy, Sid, and... Suchet?

“You,” Ramya snarls, shouldering everyone aside to face her ex-boyfriend. “Slimy little cockroach.”

Suchet grins and holds up a shiny object -- the key. “Come and get it.”

“Oh, we’ll get it, all right,” Sophie threatens. “You just be careful we don’t get you as well.”

A rallying cry rises from all around us.

Sid smiles. “I see you’ve brought your little backup force. Unfortunately, I’ve picked up a few new tricks as well.”

He spreads his hands. The ground ruptures, spitting out warriors of earth. They advance upon us, wielding literally rock-hard clubs and swords.

“You can’t scare us with your gang of dirt bandits,” Chris says. He glances over at me. “Just give the command, Leo.”

“Go!” I yell, and all fifty of us charge as one.

*Ramya Joshi*

“Look who the cat dragged in,” Suchet says, lingering just beyond the reach of my blade. “I wasn’t sure at first, but now I know that I made the right decision.”

I stab at him. He dodges, agile as ever.

“You see, they gave me special powers, too,” he continues, unfazed. “Powers you might have gotten if you didn’t chase me out.”

“You’re still not powerful,” I respond. “Dean could have you down and dead in a heartbeat if you weren’t such a coward, afraid to face him.”

“Dean’s an idiot,” Suchet smirks. “Christy can kill him easily. And as for you... I’ll keep you alive if you come with me.”

“I’m never running back to you,” I snap. “You’re the idiot if you think you’ll get out of this mess alive.”

“Oh, really?” Suchet balls his fists, grinning. “Challenge accepted.”

I slice at him with my knife, but this time he raises his hand to intercept. As soon as my blade touches his bare skin, a bolt of energy travels up the knife and meets my hand with a loud crack. The strange energy throws me back and my weapon falls away, useless.

“What--”

“Electricity, sucker,” Suchet says, grabbing my knife. He stabs it into the ground at my feet and discharges.

BOOM. Suddenly, I’m sitting in a small, smoking crater, and covered with a thin layer of soot.

Suchet peers down at me, his features twisted in sick pleasure. “Ready or not, here I come.”

*Dean Zhang*

The peaceful scenery of the hills dissolves into chaos around me as I launch myself into battle. Sid’s going to play his game of magic weapons? I can as well, I think, lighting my hand ablaze. I concentrate, and the flames wrap around my knife, forming a blade of fire.