“Amazing!” Celia looked to be enjoying the prospect of showing off her skills. She had proven in training that she was a force to be reckoned with, and Landon couldn’t help but feel a twinge of relief knowing she’d be fighting on their side. “Seems like it should be a lot of fun.”
The four of them then selected a piece or two of pie and forced themselves to eat it. Landon had a slice of pumpkin with a bit of whipped cream and a wedge of pecan.
Once everyone had inhaled their dessert, they left the cafeteria and headed to their rooms for bed. Thanksgiving Day always ended early, as sleep seemed to be a necessary follow up to gorging one’s self to the point of stomach distention and a noticeable need to unbutton one’s pants.
CHAPTER TWELVE
FIRST FROST FRENZY
Before Landon realized it, the day of the First Frost Frenzy had arrived. The entire student body of the Gymnasium gathered back in the cafeteria around ten o’clock in the morning to organize themselves into teams and to put on their respective uniforms. As the event took place outside in the snow, the members of each team were supplied with a pair of muted grey snow boots, ski pants, gloves and a winter coat. Everyone looked identical except for a few strips of fabric that had been sewn onto the shoulder, lapel and back of the jacket. The team Landon was on had blue strips, whereas the other team’s were red.
By 10:30, Professor Tzu and Professor Clemens organized each team alphabetically by last name into a single file line and began to guide them to the battleground that had been set up outside. As Landon marched behind a tiny redheaded girl named Susie, he couldn’t help but look up and down at the other team’s members. He was looking for Brock and his friends. They had all disappeared after Thanksgiving.
When Landon woke up the morning after the feast, he noticed that Brock never returned from dinner. It wasn’t unusual. Many nights Brock would disappear for a few days and then show up unexpectedly in the morning, so Landon paid this occurrence no mind. That was until Wednesday, when Landon noticed that he also hadn’t seen any one of the people Brock hung out with for what was going on six days. Where had they gone? Their mysterious absence did nothing to help suppress Landon’s curiosities, especially those surrounding Brock’s search for information on Artemis.
Landon continued to walk behind Susie, moving on autopilot, as his focus remained trained on the other team. He didn’t see any of them, not Cortland, not the Crane twins and not Brock. Riley said many times over the week that he hoped they stayed missing until the First Frost Frenzy was over because that would mean their blue team had a chance at winning.
To add to the oddities, Dr. Brighton had also disappeared. Landon had received a rather impersonal note from him the day after Thanksgiving canceling their private session for the next day, and then on Monday, when Landon went to Telekinetics, Professor Clemens was there as a substitute.
It wasn’t until Landon’s eyes were watering that he realized he’d gone outside. The brisk December wind was whipping through the valley, but the weatherproof uniforms kept everyone comfortable. Hanging high in the sky, the sun also cast a mild warmth that made the cold weather all the more bearable, but reflected off the powdery white snow with blinding intensity.
The teams were soon brought around to a large field; the blizzard had blanketed the grassy area in a thick layer of soft white powder. Lines had been drawn on the field with black paint, creating a wide two-hundred-meter square, and at either end a small strip of snow was colored to match the fabric strips on the winter jackets.
Set up across the field, an assortment of items—hollow tree trunks from huge fallen trees, boxes, steel crates and large panels—had been set up throughout the area, developing a maze of objects for the students to use as cover and concealment during the match. It reminded Landon of an oversized paintball arena.
Resembling a platoon of military personnel awaiting marching orders, the teams were escorted into a large clearing at the center of the field and organized into a rigid formation. They