Out Of Orbit

Chapter 20

JARRYD

"Right. Let's try that one more time."

Jarryd sighed, his frustration seeping through. They had been training for two weeks, but he was beginning to feel like it was a waste of time. Sure, they were learning how to control their powers better, but it wasn't really preparing them to fight in a war.

Watching Victoria and Michael laugh about something a few feet away from him, Jarryd felt guilt eat away at him. He was taking them into a war. They weren't training for some show or game, but to fight. To kill. And no matter how skilled they were, killing someone wasn't something they could train for. It wasn't something they should have to train for. No matter how old they felt, they were only teenagers.

Jarryd shook his head and watched Brian disappear, then reappear behind Riley's back. At least he'd spared Rebecca the trauma that would come with this war. She'd stopped arguing with him about being allowed to fight. In fact, she had barely spoken to him for the past two weeks. Jarryd frowned, thinking about it. When was the last time he'd seen her?

Jarryd opened his mouth to ask Victoria when last she had seen Rebecca, than snapped it shut as Rebecca swung open the gate to the field.

"Hey, Becca."

Rebecca glanced at Michael when he greeted her but gave him barely a nod of acknowledgement in return. Setting her jaw, she stalked past the others and stopped in front of him. Jarryd swallowed as her eyes blazed at him with barely concealed anger. Or maybe it was determination.

"Fight me."

Jarryd's eyebrows rose automatically.

"Are you crazy?"

Her jaw shifted sideways but her eyes remained glued on his. Obviously she was serious.

"Rebecca. I'm not going to fight you."

"Why not?"

Jarryd looked over to Michael, hoping for some help. Michael shrugged, just as confused.

"I don't want to hurt you."

Something glinted in her eyes at his comment.

"What makes you think you could?"

Jarryd sighed and resisted the urge to shake his head at her.

"Look. I know you have the whole force field thing but..."

"If you're too scared just say so."

Jarryd tried to stop his jaw from falling and failed.

"Rebecca, what's going on?"

She rolled her eyes and fixed him with another glare.

"Just fight me already. I promise I won't get hurt."

Jarryd flicked his eyes to Riley, hoping he would put an end to the madness. Riley just shrugged.

"If she wants to fight, then fight. We're just wasting time here."

Jarryd's jaw threatened to drop again. Finally admitting defeat, he nodded once.

"Fine. But don't blame me when you get hurt."

Rebecca grinned and Jarryd could have sworn he heard the words "Same goes for you" come from her mouth before she took a place at the centre of the field. Shaking his head, Jarryd cleared his mind. He had to find a way to get Rebecca to give up without actually hurting her. Maybe if he could just get a hold of her, with her arms immobilised... Studying her stance, he grinned. She was simply watching him, arms at her sides. He would take a run around the field so she wouldn't know which direction he was coming from, then dart in and trap her.

Calming his mind, he took a few steps then felt the world blur around him. Once, twice, three times around the field. There was no way she would be able to see him in time. Changing direction, Jarryd sped towards her...and hit something solid in mid-air. He bounced back, landing on his back, dirt billowing out from beneath him.

Jarryd frowned. Obviously Rebecca had learnt how to make her force field extend all the way around her. Shaking off the pain, he got to his feet again, lifting his head to see Rebecca facing him. A small smile played on her lips.

"Fine. So the force field works quite well. But you can't keep it up forever. I'll just have to wait until you get tired. You can't fight with only a defensive power."

Jarryd forced a confident smile on his face, despite the niggling feeling that he was being played. Crossing his arms, he met Rebecca's eyes and held them. Her smile widened.

She walked towards him, and Jarryd fought the urge to back away. There was something about her smile...Stopping just in front of him, she held his gaze for a few seconds before speaking softly.

"Who said it's only defensive?"

A ripple of something passed through the air. The world seemed to freeze for a moment as Rebecca's smile faded and her eyes flashed angrily. Something smashed into Jarryd, knocking him off his feet and sending him flying through the air. He crashed through the wooden fence, right next to where Victoria and Michael were standing, open mouthed.

"Jarryd? Are you ok?"

The ringing in his ears finally faded away. Jarryd forced his eyes open to see Victoria's worried expression. Jarryd nodded, then immediately regretted the action. His head pounded. Victoria's frown deepened. Gingerly testing his arms and legs, Jarryd forced himself up to a sitting position, grateful for the arms that supported him.

His eyes blacked out for a moment as blood rushed back to his head. When they cleared, Rebecca stood in front of him. Her eyes, far from the anger they had displayed earlier, shone with tears,, but her mouth was set in a stubborn line. Without another word, she walked away and disappeared among the trees.

"What just happened?"

Jarryd swallowed hard and met Victoria's wide eyes.

"I think I was just proven wrong."