ONE HUNDRED NINETY: Flashes II

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It had been just a few seconds since Klein finished speaking. They were all still standing in the center of the gym, murmuring about the prize for success, pizza, and teammates. Only a couple of people had taken steps toward the starting line. Nobody was prepared for Vandy’s mother, who had been standing politely off to the side while the instructors explained what was going on, to suddenly lift her hands and point them at the group.

Alden was in the process of making eye contact with his roommates, trying to silently ask if they would all be teaming up, when the burst of wind hit everyone. He staggered and would have fallen if not for Haoyu reaching out to grab his arm. Haoyu’s feet were firmly planted, no doubt thanks to an application of his spell impression. Whether it was foresight or he was just in the habit of starting class by casting it, it was coming in handy now. All around them, people were toppling over and crashing into their neighbors.

Alden hadn’t fully regained his balance, never mind processing the fact that wind could blow this hard, when Everly Kim, who’d been standing in front of them, flew backwards into him. Her feet had completely left the ground. He wrapped his free arm around her automatically, more like a monkey grabbing at a branch than a true savior, and held on. She helped out by clinging just as hard.

Haoyu had a grip on Kon’s gymsuit with his other hand.

When the gust stopped as abruptly as it had begun, they were in the minority who were still upright. Classmates were on the floor, or, in some cases, across the floor even farther from the starting line.

“We haven’t had a chance to talk about who we’re going to partner up with!”

“Vandy! Be on my team! My team!”

“That was like a tornado! I bet that was what a tornado is like.”

Alden let go of Everly, who crouched low and pointed her face toward Galecourse like she was trying to prep for round two. He followed suit because for all he knew she was about to fly right back into him.

Instructor Klein’s expression was inscrutable. “I said we start now.”

Galecourse lifted her hands once more.

Oh, okay, Alden thought as Everly had a change of heart and scrambled along with Kon to get behind Haoyu. They’re not even going to let us get to the starting line without a fight.

The fresh blast of wind hit him right in the face. He leaned against the pressure of it, keeping his knees bent, debating whether or not it was safe to move a foot so that he could get behind Haoyu, too. Over the shouts of his classmates and the rush of air in his ears, he heard a loud clang and looked to where Instructor Waker had bounded over toward his junk pile again. It was all the way over on the other side of the finish line. In what couldn’t possibly be a positive development for his students, the huge Brute was lifting a front-loader washing machine over his head with one hand.

It looks an awful lot like he’s aiming at us.

“Haoyu!” Alden shouted, targeting Big Snake hastily because that was what he sometimes did when the instructor was about to throw something at him, and in the heat of the moment, he couldn’t find answers in his head for relevant questions like, Am I actually capable of catching a washing machine? Are they a lot lighter than they look?

“Hit me with it!” Haoyu roared.

“I don’t think that’s the correct response,” Alden said.

“Get behind me, everyone! I’ve got this!”

Everyone was just Alden, since Everly and Kon were already crouching behind him, and Lexi was on his knees a short distance away. He had one hand splayed on the floor and the other on Writher. The thin gold chain of the whip was the only thing in Alden’s view that was behaving like the wind didn’t exist, undulating in front of Lexi protectively in what was often its default position when its master was both feeling threatened and lacking a clear enemy.

Before Alden could get more of a handle on the situation, the wind cut out, and the washing machine plunged toward them. Damn.

His hands were up. Haoyu’s right fist was clenched and held up protectively in front of his own face. But then, too quickly for Alden to even be surprised, the shining line of Lexi’s whip was in front of them both. It bit into white metal with a shriek, and then the washing machine was flying up and over all of their heads.

Alden spun, and saw Writher phase out to let the front-loader go. The washer sailed straight toward the Object Shaper’s head. He raised his hands in time to make a shoving motion that knocked it away from him, and it hit the floor with loud metallic bang. Writher had very nearly gone all the way through the appliance instead of grabbing it. The machine was butterflied open, inches away from being in two pieces .

“Yes!” Kon was looking from the washer to his brother. “Way to go, Lexi!”

“Good. But I get the next one,” Haoyu said.

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Lexi’s success was slightly undermined by his look of surprise, and a voice yelling, “What did you throw it at me for!?” from behind them.

Alden was already back to studying the obvious threats. Galecourse was running alongside the bleachers toward the finish line. Where is she going? At least we’ve got a second or two without wind.

Instructor Waker was reaching into the pile again, and Ignacio’s grandmother was heading off to one side. Klein and the Zhang-Demirs all seemed content to stand right here in the middle of the gym, not attacking. Yet.

“Don’t hold anyone back. Run as soon as it looks like you need to.” Everly whispered the words so quietly that Alden wouldn’t have caught them if they hadn’t come from right behind him. Before he could ask who she was talking to, she took a deep breath and sprinted for the starting line.

Kon looked startled. Lexi was busy staring from the washing machine to Writher’s handle with his brow furrowed. And Haoyu was fixated on his parents and Big Snake.