Where The Dead Ones Go Book 2 -Republic-

Chapter 15

"Are you all right?"

I looked up and saw a beautiful second-year girl with long windswept hair kneeling in front of me as I try to pick up the books that I have dropped just now.

"I am fine, thank you," I said as I tried to smile at her as she proceeds to pick up the pens that I dropped as well the moment I reached the school foyer on my way back to the dormitory, "You shouldn't have. I don't want to be a bother."

She shook her head and helped me get up as I am still quietly trying to endure the numbing pain I am feeling in my body just now that made me drop everything that I am holding all of a sudden.

"Nonsense. It would be best if you also hadn't done what you did back then, but you still did. Come, let me escort you back at your dormitory. You are heading back home, right?"

I just nodded at her as she put her hand on my arm and helped me walk steadily as I hugged my books tightly in my chest as I felt another surge of numbing pain.

"The Cup will happen tomorrow, and you are already fighting right now. How can you even do it without exhausting yourself to unconsciousness? I don't know..."

She seemed to know that I am currently trying to keep my barriers from failing as my friends are out there trying to get themselves back at our dormitory but are having a hard time doing so fast enough.

Not when the other students are trying to knock them out so they won't be able to participate at the Cup or the very least, weaken them enough to trounce them.

"I don't even know myself, but it is the least I can do to contribute to my class. I am at the bottom of their hitlist so I seldom, if at all, experience direct attacks so..."

"...so you have to use that moment of respite to defend your friends instead?" she asked which I nodded into as I swayed when a particularly strong assault hit more than six of my friends at the same time, and I barely managed to deflect it, "Hold on, we got you. Don't worry."

I looked at the girl that is assuring me that everything will be all right.

"What are you saying?"

She just smiled at me as dozens of second-year girls from different sections descended from the sky to surround me and when I looked up, I saw more of them flying above us as if providing an air cover while we walk.

"What the..."

"We got you, Vivet."

"No one's going to touch you, not if we can help it."

"You all right?"

"Count on us."

"Just concentrate on what you are doing."

"The favourable winds of the west got your back."

Favourable west winds?

Wait...

"Sorry, Vivet. I was rather busy discussing things with Eonia and Gala. They volunteered to escort you back at the dorm."

"Morris, they are..."

"Yes..."

A familiar muscled second year landed on my left as he nodded at the girl who is still holding me tightly, "Everything all right, here, Zenri?"

"As you can well see, brother. Your elder sisters got this..."

"Zeron? Why are you all here?"

He just laughed and messed my hair playfully, "We made a vow, haven't we? If you find your world caving in, you are all alone, defenceless and tired, no need to fear. The spawns of Zephyrus and their better halves will be there with you shortly."

"Thank you..."

They all bowed their heads a little and nodded at me as we finally reached the town where dozens of second-year boys are waiting for us in front of Auxiliary Class's dormitory being lead by Erina, Mireus and Ramnus.

Zenri carefully transferred me to the arms of the daughter of Eris as she looked at me from head to toe before nodding approvingly, "Barely standing but can be worse. My dear Vivet, I want you to meet the mortals and demigods who pledged their lives to you."

She shouted as the boys bowed their head lowly in respect.

"Let this be a show of force to those who will dare even lay a finger on you, Vivet," Mireus said defiantly as the boys nodded behind them.

"They will have to get past all of us first. That's a promise," Ramnus followed as they all smiled meaningfully as they cracked their knuckles loudly while the other students in the town are understandably stepping away.

"Morris just sent a word, and we are quickly on it. If there is a rare chance that he is not with you, we will be there in his stead, that's his request to us, and we gladly accept, how can we even refuse?"

I looked at Zeron who kissed the cheek of his girl and gave me a thumbs up.

"Now, that's enough for now, Zeron. Our dear Vivet here has to prepare and rest for tomorrow!" Erina reminded her boyfriend curtly before escorting me towards the doorsteps of our dormitory, "Now, I want you just to endure a little more, my dear. Your classmates will come home soon and then, eat your dinner, take a shower, sleep. You have to look at your best tomorrow."

I looked at the woman who became my harsh mentor back at my last days at the republic, "Why do I need to look best, Erina?"

She just laughed in her distinct sultry voice and raised an eyebrow at me before me.

"Why? I tell you why, Vivet. It would be best if you didn't look like a shrivelled girl straight out of bed, that's why. If you are going to face the crowd once more, I want you to look as beautiful as possible. After all, you are my cute little student. You also have to look the part."

I looked at all the students behind me and smiled at them as they look at me expectantly.

"We will be watching in the skies tomorrow. Your class needs nothing but an absolute victory if you want the Auxiliary Class' to firmly cement its position as the best in the first years, Vivet," Zeron reminded me as Ramnus and Mireus nodded at him in agreement, "Only a clean, sweeping and utter win will be accepted by other first years and their advisers before they begrudgingly accept Ms Peregrine's superiority without appeal."

"Remember our lessons, dear Vivet..."

I nodded and bowed at them all, "I will, and I promise I will live up to your expectations."

"We shall see, daughter of hope, the harbinger of our freedom. We shall see..."

-0-

"Vivet?"

"Yes, Morris?"

"Can you do it?"

"It is no longer a question of can or cannot. I will do it."

"You changed."

"And so did you."

"Maybe. But compared to yours, you just became like a different person the moment we left the republic."

"I supposed you don't want me to dredge up the memories I'd rather not remember, right?"

"Of course. But, I am not just used to this side of you. You are taking the initiative when before, you are just content to follow."

"Erina told us that if I want to defend what is dear to me, then I have to do more than protect. The offence is the best defence. I will kill if I have to. Even at the cost of my existence."

"I know, and I am honoured and thankful that you think of me as someone close enough to you to die for. But it's not that, and you are, angry..."

"Morris..."

"I kept my silence since this is your issue, but I can't turn a blind anymore since it is slowly consuming you, Vivet."

"Consuming me?"

"You don't realize it, but it's difficult to control if it's your heart that is doing the thinking rather than your head. Just let it go..."

"I... I can't. If I did, I might not be able to keep on going myself..."

"Vivet..."

"There might come a time when I have to use my pain as a catalyst for something far larger than what I have been suffering. This is just the start, Morris. I can't always let you do everything for me. I can't let you protect me from things that will hurt me. If my anger is consuming me now, then let it also consume those who dare sully the name of our friends."

"I don't know why, but regardless of what you are going through right now, I feel, proud. Before, you only think of protecting just the two of us. Now, you are taking the lead."

"Thank you, and I will not let you all down."

"We know you will never..."

Our classmates arrived finally at the briefing room where we are sitting just under the colosseum where the Cup will take place.

They are wearing their casual clothes, but we all share the same white banda tied on our right arms to show that we belong under the same class.

Ms Perigrine is still wearing her teacher's uniform but also sporting our bandana as well.

"Settle down class, settle down," she ordered as she stepped in front of us together with Eonia and Gala, "We have to get through our battle plan. Class president and vice president, if you please."

Gala and Eonia stepped forward and began to run over our strategy seriously.

"We cannot lose. Not a single match. At all," the daughter of the goddess of wisdom said clearly, "One lost and it is all over. There is no honour in second or third place. If we don't get the top spot, then all will be for naught."

Hephaestus daughter nodded grimly as she tapped the blackboard to show a weird kind of tournament bracket that doesn't make any sense.

"As expected, they made sure to use our small numbers against us. Unlike other classes who have more than two dozens of students to choose from, for us to win, we have to each fight and no substitutions," Taurei was about to exclaim unfairness, but our class president cut him off, "Yes, Taurei, I know this is unfair. Still, if we want to win, we have to play by their rules, even if they are rigged in their favour."

Syden scratched the back of his head in confusion, "I don't get the convoluted bracket if you can still call it a bracket, but all of us just have to win our match, and that's it?"

"That's it, Syden," Gala said simply that made Asher grin in excitement.

"Now that's simple enough to understand, right, Est?"

His girlfriend nodded as she braced herself, "Simple but difficult to pull through, Ash. Remember, we don't have any substitutes. If any one of us lost, that's it for us."

"Indeed, Estelle so that's why we will be reshuffling our lineups," Gala said as she began to write from numbers one to thirteen on the whiteboard, "We will have to bring our heavy hitters at the forefront if we want to make sure that we will start this competition on the right foot."

"First will be Zenith, of course. Let's get our show on the road with a massive display of firepower to show that we mean business," Eonia said as the son of Zeus nodded. Vaski fist-bumped with him as our president looked pointedly at him, "To continue the momentum, Vaski will be his second to wash away any thoughts that we are only good at the first fight only and act as our spearheads. This will be our opening first phase."

"Third will be Rebie to shore up the flow of our warpath, Taurei will follow her as the fourth, Narcine will finish the first phase as the fifth. You three will be the wedge that will reinforce our position as the second phase," Gala said clearly that made the Olympian royalties to look at each other meaningfully.

The daughter of the god of forge looked at my cousin who nodded, "The sixth will be Morris to start our third phase with a bang followed by Asher and Estelle on the seventh and eighth respectively with me closing the third phase as the ninth as we act as the shock troopers to keep up the as our third phase."

"I will open the fourth phase as the tenth, Avesa will be the eleventh. The two us will act as the rear guards defending their flanks for any stragglers."

Avesa nodded and hugged the lotus staff that my cousin gave to her as she prayed to her mother for strength and guidance.

Eonia looked at Syden and me as Gala just heaved a sigh, "Syden will be the twelfth and Vivet, you take on the thirteenth as our fifth and last phase. Honestly, we highly prefer if you don't fight at all, but since we lack in numbers as-is, you have to appear on the battlefield."

The son of the god of stupidity looked at me sadly, "Sucks that we are the weakest link in this class, eh, Vivet?"

"It is what it is, Syden. There's nothing much we can do about it aside from praying to our parents that we also have to face the weakest of the other classes."

Our adviser looked at us all as a gong was banged to signal the start of the Cup.

"I can all assure you that the first to the fourth phase will be what it is announced. Meaning no surprises," Ms Peregrin assured us as we prepared to leave the briefing room, "The fifth and last phase, however, will not within my capabilities of guessing. The other advisers will surely pull some strings if they noticed that the first four phases of our class are unstoppable. Expect the unexpected."

I laughed as Syden playfully imitated Morris who shook his head as he chuckles to the son of the god of stupidity while he clings to my arm the same way as he always did.

"It is just between you and me the Vivet. Please, take care of me the way you take care of Morris. Pretty please?"

Our classmates managed to smile as the nervousness that is hovering around us slowly vanishes.

"I will, Syden only if, you, take care of me the way Koalemos did to us back at Dodona."

He grinned at me dangerously as Morris continued laughing at our minds the moment we stepped inside the colosseum and heard the rapturous applause and loud cheers of the thousands of students and spectators.

"He is something else, Vivet."

"The only one in our class that you are terrified of."

"How can I not be? You know full well that stupidity is hopeless."

"Indeed. There is no hope in stupidness..."