Crystalbringer

[I'm outside your house, little Ren. Hurry up. <3]

Clare's text flashes on my screen, and—wait a second—did she just use a heart emoji? My stomach does a flip, and not the good kind. I'm already nervous, but that little "<3" is turning my brain into scrambled eggs. This is my first patrol without Brianne, and Clare is. well, she's Clare. Outgoing is an understatement.

I practically launch myself down the stairs, and there she is. Clare, in her blazing red sports car, casually lounging in the driver's seat like she's posing for a magazine cover. She waves me over, motioning to the passenger seat—Brianne's usual spot.

«My first night on patrol with little Ren! I'm so excited, you know?» Clare beams as I slide into the seat, her voice a sugar rush of enthusiasm. Before I can reply, she leans over and plants a quick kiss on my cheek.

Just a kiss. On the cheek. That's all. Totally normal.

«Y-yeah, me too» I manage, my voice betraying the chaos inside. Clare's smile is warm, and honestly, she seems nice-too nice. But my mind is still stuck on something she said earlier this morning, and it's gnawing at me like an annoying little tick.

"Tonight, we're checking out a tip from Gin-something big is going down. I'll show you some real action!"

Real action? Oh, great. Should I be terrified now or wait until we're in the middle of it? My "patrols" so far have been glorified stakeouts, and I've never been in an actual fight. What if I screw up? Or worse-get hurt?

But seriously, Gin? That loudmouthed, self-proclaimed schoolyard kingpin? What could he possibly know about suspicious activities? Something about this screams "bad idea" but Clare's grin is so infectious I can't bring myself to argue.

I just hope I make it through the night without embarrassing myself—or dying.

I voice my doubts, and Clare smirks like I've just asked if water is wet. At school, Gin LeBlanche has a rep as a delinquent, sure. But those rumors? They barely scratch the surface. He's not just some cocky little thug with a big mouth. With the power of his crystal, he shot straight to the top. The guy's basically the city's top crime lord now. You could say the whole city is in his hands.

I blink. Crime lord? Gin? The same guy who once tried to charge me "protection fees" for using the library? Damn. Guess I'll be avoiding eye contact with him for the rest of eternity.

Clare glances at me, her eyes gleaming with a mix of excitement and caution. «Gin caught wind of a meeting between members of a criminal organization called the Black Jacket»

«Black Jacket?» I repeat, my tone puzzled. «Brianne's never mentioned them»

«Of course not» Clare says with an elusive smile. «Because of those bastards, Brianne-» She stops herself mid-sentence, her teasing mood gone in a flash.

«Brianne, what?» I ask, my mind curious over the heavy implication of what she didn't say.

She shakes her head, the smirk returning as if she can will away whatever darkness had crept in. «Forget it. If she wants, she'll tell you someday. Let's stick to the mission, okay?»

I nod, though my curiosity is burning a hole in my brain.

Clare takes a deep breath, her face gone serious. «Here's what we know about the Black Jacket: not much. Gin's intel says they're aware of Crystalbringers and they're hunting us. Why? No clue yet»

My stomach just does a backflip. Just great. Dangerous criminals who want to hunt down people like me. First week as a Crystalbringer, and now I've got a target on my back.

I swallow hard, the weight of it all finally hitting me. This isn't just some after-school adventure. This is real... dangerous. And I'm not sure I'm ready.

Clare shoots me a quick glance, her eyes sparkling with mischief as she picks up on my awkward fidgeting. «Aw, is little Ren scared?»

«Who wouldn't be?»

Before I can finish, I freeze. Clare's hand is suddenly on my thigh, warm even through the fabric of my pants.

«Want me to help you relax?» she teases, her voice dripping with playful charm.

I almost jump out of my seat as her fingers start stroking my leg with deliberate slowness. My brain short-circuits, and I'm pretty sure my face is now a tomato.

«N-N-No! That's not-uh, that's not necessary, but thanks anyway!» I stammer, waving my hands like I'm trying to shoo away a mosquito. «Just, uh, focus on the road, okay? I'm too young to die!»

Clare lets out a melodramatic sigh, pulling her hand away with a pout. «First time a boy's ever rejected me. Guess I'm getting old and losing my touch»

Old? She's seventeen! And for the record, I never said she wasn't hot. Clare is, without question, one of the hottest girls I've ever met. Too hot.

I let out a sigh, feeling my brain fry itself under the weight of embarrassment.

Here's the thing: a 14-year-old boy is supposed to be a walking hormone grenade, ready to go off at the slightest provocation. But Clare? If even half the rumors about her are true, she's playing in a league so far above me that I can't even see the scoreboard.

Yeah, no thanks. I'd just end up looking like a complete idiot.

The industrial area tonight's target is supposed to be a thirty-minute drive, but Clare treats speed limits like a polite suggestion. We get there in less than twenty.

The abandoned factory rises ahead-massive and ghostly, in the poor light offered by the few streetlights. It was bigger than our whole high school and surrounded by this high iron fence that seemed to run forever either way. There are no cars in view, thankfully, but Clare pulls her fierce red car down the side of the road, way back out of sight. We proceed with our journey on foot, skirting the property under shadows like a pair of pseudo-ninjas.

«Alright, Ren, make us an entry point» Clare orders, her tone breezy, like she's asking me to hold the door.

«An entry point?» I echo, confused. «How exactly am I supposed to do that?»

«By bending the bars» she says, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

I turn to the fence, to the iron bars she's pointing at. They're at least five centimetres thick. «Bend those bars? Are you serious? Who do you think I am, the Incredible Hulk?»

Clare crosses her arms and raises an eyebrow. «Don't tell me you can't bend them!»

«Why on earth would I be able to do that?»

«For crying out loud, you're a Blood Crystalbringer! You're supposed to do stuff like this without breaking a sweat!» She huffs, clearly annoyed at my lack of superhero-level skills.

If she says so...

I wrap my hands around the bars and pull with all the strength I can muster. The metal creaks slightly, and after what feels like an eternity of effort, I manage to widen the gap by. maybe two centimeters. Impressive by my standards, but Clare looks like I just failed kindergarten.

She sighs, shaking her head. «Alright, step aside. I'll handle it»

Clare steps forward, her face a mixture of exasperation and determination. She points one finger at one of the bars, and a thin jet of flames shoots out, like a precision blowtorch. The metal glows red-hot as she slices through it with surgical ease.

In a few minutes, she's reduced three thick, unyielding bars to smoldering stumps.

I stare, wide-eyed. That. was awesome. Is that the power of the Fire Crystal?!

Clare throws a hair flip with her smirk. «Let's hope nobody noticed the light show» she says then, her tone suddenly low and pointed, as if trying to subtly blame me in her tone.

We stepped into the massive factory, moving like shadows, the darkness swallowed us whole. My eyes immediately adjust to the blackness; Clare, not so much.

«I could light the way with a flame, but we'd be too easy to spot» Clare murmurs, a hint of frustration in her voice. «Can you at least see in the dark?»

«Of course, I can» I reply a little too proudly.

Then-wham. Clare's hands suddenly latch onto my side, sliding up my shoulder before finally gripping my arm. «Lead the way» she says, her voice soft but with an undeniable edge.

Crap. This place is like a labyrinth! Room after room, stairs up and down, corridors stretching forever. I think we're on the third floor now, but there are no more stairs leading up, so this must be the top.

Where the hell are the Black Jacket men? Just as I'm about to start losing my mind, I spot it-a faint light at the end of the corridor. It's coming from behind a door with a small glass window.

I swallow hard, my heart racing, as a wave of fear crashes over me. My whole body trembles, no matter how much I try to calm myself.

Clare must notice, because she leans in, her fingers lacing with mine, offering a small but reassuring squeeze. «Don't worry, little Ren. I promised Bry I'd bring you back in one piece. If something happened to you, she'd never forgive me. Believe me, she's terrifying when she's pissed»

Her words are soft, somehow reassuring, and buckle my nerves a little more. «Just do exactly what I say, and everything will be fine» she says with a wink.

I nod, trying to swallow down the nerves still churning in my stomach.

We creep forward, steps falling even more shallow and silent, as if the floor could suddenly writhe underfoot and shriek at us. As we approach the door, we peered through a little window in it.

Beyond the small glass stood a room of huge proportion, probably the largest so far in this factory. It looked as though it used to be a warehouse but was completely empty now.

In the middle of the room, six guys are standing around a small table. Five of them wear slick black suits—no doubt members of the Black Jackets—and one wears a white lab coat. On the table? A black briefcase.

There's maybe five meters between them and us. Just five meters.

Gin wanted me to check out what's going on here," Clare whispers, her voice barely more than a breath. «He says it's something big-something even most Black Jacket members don't know about. Stay quiet, little Ren»

I nod wordlessly, my heart pounding like a drum.

«Enough with the explanations, Professor Brown. Can you just show us how this thing works?» one of the Black Jackets snaps, losing all patience with the man in the lab coat.

Professor Brown looks like he's about to crack under the pressure. He opens the black briefcase, revealing a strange electronic device-kind of like a smartphone, but square and a bit bigger.

One of the Black Jackets snatches it from the professor's hands, inspecting it like it's some kind of treasure. «How do you turn it on?»

The professor points to a tiny button on the side, and the man presses it. The screen lights up, and the device starts making rapid, almost frantic noises. The five men exchange looks, clearly perplexed.

«Earlier, you promised this thing works perfectly. Are you sure?» the man asks, his voice laced with doubt.

«Y-Yes» Professor Brown stammers, his voice shaky.

«Good» The Black Jackets pull out pistols from their inner pockets, aiming them straight at the door we're hiding behind.

And then they start firing.

Shit! I instinctively take hold of Clare and heave myself onto the floor, landing sprawled across her. I act so suddenly she is dazed, her mind reeling trying to figure out what transpired.

«How the heck could they find us out?» I exclaim, dismay etched on my tone.

«They opened fire on the door right after they activated that device» Clare says. «It can't be. That thing is a Crystalbringer detector!»

The shooting stops, and that's when I feel a burning pain in my thigh. Son of a gun, I'm hit! The blood drips from my wound down to Clare, who is lying below me.

It is a situation that usually would embarrass me greatly, considering Clare is wearing an exceptionally revealing dress tonight, complemented by a pair of bold leggings that emphasize her curves. Lying on top of her, I can feel her curvaceous figure pressed against mine. Our legs are entwined, and our bodies are pressed close, with only our clothes separating us. But neither of us pays any attention to this now-we have bigger problems.

Those five men in black suits still have their guns trained on us, ready to shoot at the slightest noise. That radar is probably telling them we're still alive, which is why they hesitate.

In silence, Clare and I crawl away from the door-now riddled with bullet holes-and turn down the first corner we find. Even without the radar, the blood trail I'm leaving will eventually give us away.

«Little Ren, leave this to me. I'll take care of them» Clare whispers.

«It's not possible! I cannot let you go alone against all those men!» I protest.

«Take off your pants» she orders, very serious, which is unusual for a request to remove pants.

«Why do you ask me to do that?» I ask, my nerves already on edge.

«You fool, what do you think? I must see your wound!»

Knowing Clare, getting her meaning across is always easily misconstrued! I do as she says. A large bullet hole goes through my thigh, and blood pours out relentlessly.

«As I suspected» she mutters, shaking her head. «Normally, a Blood Crystalbringer would have healed such a minor wound instantly. Why are you so weak?»

The words hurt even more than the bullet itself. I'm. weak?

The door behind which we were hiding opens, and the five armed men advance down the corridor with guns drawn.

I begin to feel the temperature in this vicinity rapidly go up. Flames build up around Clare's hand, swirling and condensing into a glowing sphere.

«Open your eyes, little Ren. You're about to see the prowess of the Flame Princess!» Clare declares proudly.

Flame Princess? Seriously does she need a superhero name? I am utterly mesmerized.

The fire that she summons lights up this dark factory like a lantern.

«Shit, they're going to counterattack! Let's retreat into the warehouse!» one of the men yells in urgency as the bright light was illuminating our hiding place from his perspective.

«Trying to kill me was a mistake; you will pay with your life» Clare declares, her voice dripping with sadistic intent. I have never heard her sound like this before. Her face twists into a wicked grin, and for the first time, it genuinely terrifies me.

The fireball, as if it had a mind of its own, drifts forward, rounds the bend, and launches itself at the running men. A moment later, there's a deafening explosion of flames so hot they seem to sear my skin.

I cautiously peer out, and the sight of the Black Jacket members and Professor Brown-Their bodies charred and dripping in blood-causes nausea and dizziness to overwhelm me.