Genesis | Book One, The Genesis Series

THIRTY

Bianca strolled into the Battleground, her frizzy, black hair up in a ponytail as it brushed up against the doorframe, lightly tickling the girl. She equipped her new energy gloves, which she'd traded in her bio-shield for.

Of course, the gloves allowed her to possess greater control over her force fields, but had also granted her a multitude of other abilities, the most prominent being the ability to convert her force fields into short energy blasts.

They didn't do much damage, but at least they allowed her keep enemies at a distance, and they were easier to use than her old bio-shield. Over time, she'd gotten more comfortable and confident in her combat abilities.

She peered over at Kai, her face carrying a scattered, inconspicuous gaze that bounced around endlessly. The boy hadn't even recovered halfway from the vicious drubbing he'd received from Elias the day prior, yet he remained in the Battleground pushing his abilities to their breaking point.

He rubbed his chin as he gazed up at the climbing wall, his sunken, penetrating eyes traversing every inch of the thick multiplex board. The boy's bowed shoulders and the amount of sweat pouring down his chiseled features led Bianca to deduce that he'd already given it a few goes.

He hadn't talked to anyone this entire training session. Then again, he'd arrived in the Battleground hours before everyone else, as he always did, so he could've tired himself out. At first, she'd assumed that the guy had merely overworked his body into exhaustion.

But that couldn't have been the case. During training sessions, Kai never ceased his rapid, strained motion, for he wished to get in as many reps as possible before the Battleground shut down for the night. He never ceased movement.

But in that moment, he stood there motionless, clutching the hilt of his sword so hard that his knuckles proceeded to turn white. He peered down at the white bandage on his shoulder, peppered with insipid blood. His fists clenched as his mind flashed back to every time they'd suffered defeat at the hands of Primus.

They'd gone up against Primus a total of three times and had only prevailed once. And according to Leo's theory, that one victory had only been part of Matthews' grand scheme. He'd intended for them to get too comfortable, only so he could swoop in and steal the Genodium out from under their noses.

He'd grown pretty numb to failure in the past few months; betrayal was something foreign to him.

They should've been prepared-he should've been prepared. He was their leader, their commander, their guardian. As team leader, he was responsible for every major outcome. The lives of his friends rested in his hands. He'd been too soft on himself. Too immature of a leader.

His team had paid the price for his negligence.

Primus had beaten him to a pulp, made him feel weak. Fragile. They'd made him feel like he wanted to curl up in his mother's lap. His blood boiled merely thinking about it. He'd been so close to defeating Elias-no, Ajax-for good, but his promise to Director Callan had prevented him from doing so.

Sympathy for Ajax had been forged within the depths of Kai's soul. It wasn't his fault that he was like this. Dr. Matthews had turned the man into a monster all those years ago, ripped the director's son from his grasp. Deprived the man of his childhood.

He'd destroyed the Callan family with a flick of his finger.

Anyone else would've given up in this situation. The assault on the compound had left their ranks depleted. The odds were stacked against them. Their abilities were probably inconsequential compared to Elliott's.

But not him. Not The Guardian.

His father had always taught him that a single individual, with the right amount of will and determination, could overcome all odds.