Mutants

Chapter 7

CHAPTER SEVEN

"Don't make faces at me," Lythus says. "At least I look better than Leatherface over there." Kate gasps, and the whole room gets warmer.

To be entirely fair, Lythus is covered in ice crystals, which sparkle and glisten in the light, adding to the effect of his scales. I don't know where the ice came from, but I have a bad feeling about this.

"Everybody," I begin, "This is my younger brother, Lythus." Kate and Mark let their guards down slightly. Lythus shifts a bit.

"I was working on my skills," Lythus says, "So I would be prepared the next time I saw you."

"What do you mean? And where did you find ice?"

"I made it myself."

"How?"

"You read that book, right?" I realize I'm still holding the book I was reading earlier. "I don't just heat the air, I can also freeze it. Your girlfriend over there could probably do it, too, if she figured out how."

"Lythus... I wanted to be your friend, your brother. I always tried... I know you hate me, but a part of you knows I'm telling the truth, because you saved me last time."

Lythus roars with more volume than I thought possible. The claws on his fingers ignite, a bright purple fire licking at his skin. Then they extinguish. I realize he's showing off, trying to scare me.

"Let's take this outside," Lythus says.

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"Let's have a sparring match," Lythus says. "I promise not to kill you. I just want to see what kind of friends Jack here has made. Let's see... you first," He says, pointing at Kate. She looks absolutely terrified, and I don't blame her.

Mark and I step aside to monitor the match. We count down, and I silently pray Lythus won't break his promise.

The countdown ends, and Lythus's finger and toe claws ignite. A vortex of fire appears in front of Kate. I've never seen her like this. Her emotions have gone far away, and she has a focused, determined expression. The vortex increases in intensity, changing colors until it reaches white. Flames begin to spit from the vortex, heading straight for Lythus.

About a foot away from him, the flames hit some kind of invisible barrier, a sphere around Lythus. The flames lick at his shield, crawling all over it, but they peter out before getting through. Kate scowls, and tentacles of white fire wrap around the shield, scooping Lythus up like a hamster in a ball. Suddenly, the tentacles freeze over, transformed into ice. The ice shatters, and Lythus emerges, wings flaming, and floats to the ground.

"Good," He says. "You next," he says to Mark. I look at Kate. She's exhausted, lying on the ground, breathing heavily.

"Fine," Mark says. I start the countdown.

When the countdown ends, Lythus licks his lips. Mark stands there for a moment, then vanishes. Lythus cocks his head, then reaches out and grabs Mark's hand. Mark shimmers back into sight, shocked. Lythus throws him back to where he started, and Mark manages to land on his feet.

Mark becomes 20 Marks, all heading in different directions, walking through each other, until Lythus couldn't possibly be able to know which one is real. They all head towards Lythus. Lythus flaps his wings, and launches himself into the air.

Mark goes for a cliche by making lasers in front of his eyes. We all think Mark will win, but then the lasers split into many beams of light about a foot from Lythus. Lythus responds with another cliche move, spitting fire from his mouth. I think he will miss, but apparently he's spot-on, because all of Mark's clones flicker, and I see that as Lythus had aimed for the right Mark. Kate and I flinch in unison, but the fire stops an inch from Mark's face. Mark bows out and accepts his defeat.

Mark joins us on the sidelines, and I know I'm next. I walk forward and take my place where the others started. Mark starts the countdown.

"Three, two, one...."

One question remains: Can I do this?

"...FIGHT!"