Tower of God: The Flower of Earth (Slow Updates)

Chapter Five

"I'm sooo, so so soooo, ready to get out of here. Kall flopped onto her bed after our final lesson. Tomorrow was our tests. It has been a long week of training.
"So we'll be broken into teams?" I asked, sitting down on my bed , and reached into my second lighthouse and grabbed some water bottles for all of us.
"Yes, but I won't be joining you. I already passed," Mercy sighed as I tossed her a bottle, "Not because I'm a guide, but because I was the one with the most points, and so the teams would be equal."
"Awe come on!" Kal pouted, then sighed, "Well, we will be getting our teams any second now. They're sending them over to our pockets. Hey! OW!" She winced as the water bottle hit her head. She opened it and chugged it, before handing back the water bottle, and I put it back in the lighthouse.
Our visible pockets beeped, and I saw the names, with the words 'Team Two' at the top.
"Sweet! We're on the same team!" Kal hugged me tightly as I struggled to breathe.
I saw that Mercy's had 'Passed' in big red letters.
"Testing for team one begins at noon, and ours is right after."
"I'm not gonna be able to sleep..." I sighed as Kal let go.
"You want me to knock you out?"
"Nope! I'm good!" I quickly lied down and covered myself with the thin blanket. I tried to fall asleep so Kal didn't break my nose.
I soon felt Chrome tugging on my ear with his tiny metallic mouth, and jolted awake.
I looked at the time on the clock on the wall and panicked, throwing my shoes at both Kal and Mercy to wake them up. "Guys! We have to be watching them in five minutes!" I quickly shoved the last of the stuff in the storage lighthouse, and threw on my shoes, as the three of us raced to the testing room.
We barely made it in times, as I saw the team who won the crown game go into the test. "I thought they got to go to the third floor immediately? I understand that they wanted to train with us, but why are they taking the test?" I whispered to Mercy as Kal was talking with someone.
"They chose to give it to a team who has their test tomorrow instead that was going to be eliminated. Not all people in the tower are heartless."
"I'm not saying that they were, but, still. And I understand. To further themselves, their skills."
She nodded, as I saw Lero Ro step forward, about to explain the rules of the test.
"This test is simple. Unlike most of the tests, you get a rare chance for both teams to win rather than have one be eliminated. This game is called King of the Castle. It is similar to the Crown game, however, there are three major differences. One, there is only one round rather than five. Two, a team member can be eliminated by being tagged by the king. And three, your king is Yuga." He motioned to the white rice puffy wave controller, who giggled as there was a crown on his head.
The creepy wave controller was ushered into the room.
Team one got twenty minutes to privately strategize before the game bagan.
"I believe it is best if we spread out into groups of five, one person of each position" Zack suggested, "Have one go to the west, the other east."
"Except we have no idea what is inside the castle. There could be any number of traps, and Yuga most likely knows the entire floor plans by now." Mumtaz sighed, pulling his dreadlocks into a high ponytail to get them out of his face.
"I say head on att..."
"Yeah, like that went well with you and Mr. Quant, Miss Lilac." Trevor rolled his eyes.
"How about us fishermen go on ahead with the scouts and draw him out while the rest of you set up a plan of attack?" Cas suggested as Yang's ears, both human and cat, twitched.
"Cas, Yang, you two go with Trevor and Lilac." Zack nodded, as Lilac was about to open her mouth to say something, but wasn't able to as Trevor shoved a clean sock into her mouth to shut her up. "We got it Mr. Zack."
Lilac protested into the cloth gag as her fellow scout dragged her to get in position with the two fishermen.
Zack looked at the other lightbearer, his red hair bright in the light of the lighthouse next to him. "Arnic, head out with them. Light their way."
The pointed man ear looked at Zelpha, the wave controller who had a robot hand thanks to where Kal had cut off, who motioned for him to go.
He ran off after the group that left, leaving the other five illuminated by Zack's lighthouses.
"So what do we do?" Hartley asked, looking at Mumtaz, who was standing next to Zack as well.
"The others are going to attempt to draw out Yuga and we are going to take the crown. Sara, Zelpha, how many baangs can you each control at once?"
"Just three." Sara shrugged.
"I can control two at once, but I can also control fire at the same time."
"Alright. You two know Yuga the best out of all of us so you should work together. Hartley, Mumtaz, you two get to higher ground, and get ready to pin Yuga with spears if needed. I think his rice cake body is just a suit, but still, be careful."
"What are you doing oh great leader?" Zelpha crossed her arms, her ash black hair having the roots glow fire orange in annoyance that she was being bossed around.
"I'll be making a backup plan. When we get the crown, stop at nothing. If Yuga is about to get you, toss the crown to someone else. As long as one of us sit down on the throne with the crown on our head, we win, got it?"
The five there nodded, and Yuga's voice echoed around the castle arena, "Ready for our little game?" He giggled, making all the regulars shiver.
"Man that guy is creepy. He is no doubt going to haunt my dreams." Hartley bit his lip.
"Hartley, go with Mumtaz. And make sure you're in dark enough shadows that the KING, won't be able to see your bright skin."
"Got it." He nodded.
Cas and Yang were rolling their eyes as Lilac was freaking out at the fact that she had a sock in her mouth. She spat it out, afraid that it was dirty or something. If looks could kill, Trevor would have already been pulp.
"Hey Cas, can I ask you a question?" Yang poked the shorter girl's neck.
"You're going to ask anyways aren't you?"
"Why do you wear all red? I mean, you have red corset, red jacket, red skirt, red socks, red shoes, red hat, even a red necklace!"
"They all used to be white. Then they got stained with the blood of my enemies." Cas answered, making Yang freeze in her tracks, as the brown haired girl walked ahead.
"Girl that is deep!"
"Says the girl with green hair, glasses, cat ears, and tail. Are they even real?"
"Yes! And no touchies!" Yang's tail flinched away from Cas's hand.
"Miss Yang, Miss Cas? We are here." Trevor spoke up, his voice sounding a bit frightened.
The two fishermen got their weapons out and pushed the door open to the throne room, Yuga on the massive throne with the crown on his head.
"Welcome." He giggled, two glowing green eyes peering out of the suit's mouth.
"Dude, I'm just going to spit out. You are creepy."
"Miss Yang!" Trevor squeaked, "Why?!"
"Yang, get ready." Cas got into a stance as Yuga got up.
"You know, that's not a very nice to say." He giggled, and three tongues shot out of his mouth, which they easily dodged, as Lilac let out an ear piercing shriek.
"MY SKIRT! That was one of a kind, made of SILK! You will pay for this!" There was a tiny tear, barely visible as the drama team was about to murder the ranker.
"Zack, I hope you're ready." Cas mumbled as she grabbed the blond and ran for it, as Yuga chased them, Trevor leading the way and Yang taking up the rear.
"Let me go! He deserves to die!" Lilac thrashed.
"Not happening."
"DIE!"
"I can stitch it up!"
"No!"
"Then live with it miss fashionista!"
"Left!" Yang shouted, as Yuga's tongues shot to the right, almost getting them.
They got outside the castle with Yuga right on their heels.
"You ready?" Trevor asked Zack as he bent forward, panting as he tried to catch his breath.
Zack stood on his lighthouse, and nodded. "Yep. Hey Lilac? You want to make Yuga pay?"
"YES!"
"Then get his crown, and get on the throne."
"DIE YOU RICE PUFF!" Lilac got out of Cas's grip, and raced towards the ranker.
"Yang, bring in your big black cat to prevent from Yuga getting Lilac. Hart! Taz! Now!" Zack ordered, and spears shot out of the two dark shadows on either side of the castle, pinning down the puffy suit to the floor and wall.
"Yoink!" Lilac grabbed the crown and ran for her life, as a see through black jaguar followed close behind, protecting the girl from the back from Yuga's tongue.
"Zelpha, now!"
Zelpha made a wall of fire to separate Yuga from the scout and the jaguar.
Yuga just kept chuckling, though he lost the crown and was pinned down by spears. His chuckling sounded as if he knew a secret.
"What's so funny?" Trevor dared to question, before his eyes widened as he realized. "Miss Lilac!" He raced towards the direction that she was heading.
Lilac skidded to a stop, freezing as she looked back at the group, when there was a baang that exploded, throwing her into a wall as the crown was thrown out of her hands.
Trevor ran in as Arnic raced out, the light bearer having gotten separated from the group when he went on the castle. And the two butted heads, falling down as they rubbed their foreheads in pain, giving Yuga two easy targets to eliminate.
His tongues shot out and touched them both before they fizzled out of the room.
"Lilac can't run, we lost both Trevor and Arnic, the closest one to the crown unless you count Yang's... Yang! Send your jaguar to move the crown to a safe place!"
"Got it!" She nodded before giving and oof, knocked off her feet as Yuga had grabbed Cas and thrown her into Yang, which eliminated both. The see through jaguar which Yang had controlled vanished.
"Let's see. Ten minus four, that's six, minus one injured, that leaves five!" Yuga seemed to grin from under his suit.
Zack started thinking.
Both Zelpha and Sara were still in position, as were Hartley and Mumtaz. Zack was the only one in clear sight.
"Taz, Hart!" He motioned barely for the spear bearers to fire at Yuga from their dark places, then motioned for the two wave controllers to prepare baangs to explode into Yuga's face.
Zack got up onto his lighthouse shakily, nervous, but knew what he had to do. "For once, please, please please please, let me keep my balance." He prayed and made it fly up. He overpasses the fire which Zelpha had kept ablaze, and saw Lilac on the ground. "Lilac! You still alive?" He hopped off and hurried over.
"Yeah. But I think I broke my arm." She held it as she winced, "where's the crown?" They looked around.
Zack spotted a glowing gold glint, and grabbed it. "Hop onto my lighthouse. We gotta hurry."
"But you're always crashing on it when in the commons!"
"Trust me." He held out his hand, and Lilac hesitated before taking his hand with her good arm and climbed onto the floating cube. They hurried and flew into the throne room as Mumtaz let out a shout of a warning, being eliminated.
Yuga raced for the throne room just as Zack was helping Lilac climb up the stairs to the throne, having found that her ankle was also sprained.
"So, the last two of you." The creepy giggles were heard, making the two shiver as the Ranker inched forward.
"Can you walk by yourself?" Zack whispered to Lilac.
"No... Ah!" Zack lifted her onto the lighthouse and sent it flying up to the throne, as he turned to hold off Yuga himself, drawing his sword.
"It's too late Yuga. We won."
"I may have lost the crown, but I have not lost the game yet." His tongues all shot out, and Zack blocked them with his sword.
Lilac hurried, and sat down on the throne, winning the game.
"Yeah!" The team members of team one who had been eliminated cheered, except for Zelpha, who just scoffed indifferently and filed the nails on her real hand.
The ranker teachers who had been watching the test began discussing and giving each of the team members individual points.
"I feel Yang Bit-Na surprised all of us with having an anima. Only a select few, let alone a new climber, has one. I give her a ten." Hansu Yung sipped on his instant coffee as he tapped his pad.
"However, she has a loud mouth and doesn't keep her thoughts to herself. What goes through her mind comes out her mouth." The fisherman teacher with a mask of silver covering her face inputted her information. "I give her an easy five."
"What if the other fisherman, Cas Gem?"
"Cas is a smart player. She knows when to march into battle, and when to retreat. If Yuga had not eliminated her and thrown her into Yang, I suspect she would have been a formidable foe for him with her needles." The spear bearer teacher gave her a nine.
"I feel she also did well. She deserves an eight."
Lero Ro nodded, "What of the scouts?"
"Trevor Lester seemed to be timid, but when he shoved that sock into the girl in blue's mouth, he showed that he could mean business. Seven."
"One of my favorite students, so, nine!" Quant smiled, then sighed,"However, he was one of the first to be eliminated, so eight."
"Lilac Queen, too much of hot head. She panicked and nearly killed others over the tiny tear in her skirt. Three."
"Three? Why three?"
"It would have been a two, but she won the game and she has an interesting level resistance to Shinsu."
The fisherman instructor nodded at Hansu's reasoning.
"Both the wave controllers have massive potential, but they did not do much fighting till the end, so for both Sara Tabitha and Zelpha Frea, sixes."
"Hartley Rolo is an interesting character. I've never seen anyone or anything like him in the tower. And, not only did he arrive in the tower bleeding from his face, hence the long scar, but he also appeared to not know about it. He's tough. Plus his aim."
"He deserves a ten." His instructor interrupted. "One of the hardest workers I have seen yet."
"And Mumtaz Kurush?"
"He hits his targets easily, pinpointing on exact spots. Never breaks a sweat. Easily eight or nine."
"Ok. Lastly, the light bearers, Lero Ro, anything you'd like to say?"
"Both are exceptional. Zack Elliot, he lead the entire team without hesitation, however, pushed his limits and went outside his comfort zone. Arnic Bernard, he's loyal to Zelpha, but he followed his duties, so ten and seven."
"I believe we are done with team one. Now let's see what team two has to offer."