After minutes of heated argument, they finally landed on a plan. They would cross the five bridges by splitting into four teams. It was a simple strategy of not putting all their eggs in one basket. The plan, however, required everyone to reveal their powers so they could form balanced groups. All did, except for Youssef, who quietly refused to show his hand.
They divided themselves into teams of three.
The first: Noor, Jean, and a quiet youth named Akira.
The second: Sairi, Ivanov, and a nervous man called Torres.
The third: Keno, Youssef, and a martial artist named Li Kang.
The fourth: Yassin, Ares, and a stern-faced man, Nadir.
With the plan set, they prepared to move. Youssef walked over to Sairi and Ivanov, placing a hand on each of their shoulders. "Good luck," he said calmly. Both men felt a strange jolt at his touch, a flicker of energy they couldn't place, but they pushed the question aside for later.
Noor's power spun light into solid form: arrows, swords, shields, and ropes, which he handed out to Jean and Akira. Their team started across one of the far-left bridges. Every creak of the wood was a thunderclap in the tense silence as they watched the five massive fish circling in the black lake below. They moved with painful slowness, trying not to draw any attention. Noor glanced to his right and saw the other teams doing the same, inching their way across. All except for Ivanov and Sairi, who were walking as if on a casual stroll. Torres scurried nervously behind them, begging them to be careful, but they ignored him, radiating an unnerving confidence.
Noor forced his attention back to the path ahead. They were a quarter of the way across when shadows passed over them. In the sky above, the giant falcons were circling. They had been spotted. One bird peeled away from the flock, diving straight for Noor's group.
"Damn it, here we go," Noor said, his voice tight. "Ready?"
They both nodded, their faces pale. Noor nocked an arrow, gave Akira a sharp look, and gestured for Jean to prepare.
As the falcon's shadow blotted out the sun, Noor yelled, "Now!"
Akira raised the sword Noor had made him, and the air around it seemed to vanish. Jean clasped her hands together, and her eyes turned pure white.
The world froze.
"Five seconds, Noor!" Jean gasped, her voice strained. "That's all I've got!"
"It's enough. Don't worry."
Noor aimed at the right wing of the falcon, which was now a motionless statue in the sky. At the same time, Akira vanished and reappeared in the air above the frozen creature, raising his sword to plunge it into its head. Noor loosed his arrow, striking the wing joint, and immediately fired another that hit the same spot. Akira teleported again, reappearing beside Noor just as he plunged his sword down.
Time crashed back into motion. Jean panted, leaning heavily on the railing. The falcon shrieked in agony, its wing shattered, and spiraled down into the lake. A fish lunged from the depths and swallowed it whole.
"Go! While it's distracted!" Noor shouted.
They sprinted for the other side. They were almost there when another fish burst from the water, its jaws wide enough to swallow the bridge and all three of them. In a flash, Akira grabbed their shoulders, and the world dissolved. They reappeared at the end of the bridge, safe on solid ground. Akira collapsed, his energy completely spent. Noor and Jean gasped for breath, their hearts still hammering against their ribs, silently thanking whatever gods were listening that they'd made it through that hell.
Once he could stand, Noor looked back to see how the others were faring.
"Slow down!" Torres pleaded as he followed Ivanov and Sairi across their bridge. "You'll draw their attention!"
Sairi didn't even look back. "If you don't like our pace, feel free to turn around," he said with an arrogant sneer. "And stop whimpering."
Torres fumed but kept following. Turning back wasn't an option. They reached the halfway point just as the falcons attacked. A cruel smile spread across Ivanov's face.
"Here comes lunch," he rumbled.
He cracked his knuckles, his fist transforming into gleaming black steel. He watched the falcon dive toward them, its beak like a spear tip. Sairi just yawned.
"Get it over with, Ivanov," he said, bored. "I want to finish this race sometime today."
"Five seconds. Max."
The falcon lunged. Ivanov sidestepped the beak and swung his iron fist with brutal force, catching the creature squarely in the head. It dropped from the sky like a stone and splashed into the lake below.
Torres stared, his mouth hanging open. His power allowed him to read the thoughts of others, and what he felt from these two was even more shocking than their strength.
My God, he thought, a cold sweat breaking out on his skin. They're not human. They don't have an ounce of fear. They're enjoying this, all of it, because they know they're going to win. How can anyone enjoy something so monstrous?
Two fish immediately converged on the fallen falcon, tearing at its flesh. The sight made Torres's stomach lurch, and he scrambled to catch up to his terrifying teammates. As he ran, he saw another fish leap from the water, its massive body aimed directly at Sairi.
"Sairi, look out!" Torres screamed.
Sairi glanced down at the monster, and a slow, wicked smile spread across his face. He looked at Ivanov. "Ready for some fun?"
Ivanov slammed his fists together. "Always."
"Don't get carried away with the steel," Sairi warned dryly. "I can't pull you from the bottom of a lake."
"Don't worry," Ivanov grinned.
Sairi raised a hand as if he were a magician about to perform a trick. To Torres's horror, Ivanov leaped off the bridge. He fell toward the fish, which opened its mouth wide to catch its prey. Sairi began to move his hands like a maestro conducting an orchestra, and with every gesture, Ivanov's body shifted in mid-air, a puppet on invisible strings.
Ivanov dodged the fish's closing jaws and, with a flick of Sairi's wrist, shot upwards, running along the creature's slick body until he reached its head. He reared back and slammed his iron fist directly into its left eye. The fish roared in pain, recoiling away from the bridge and crashing back into the lake, blinded.
Telekinesis, Torres realized, his mind reeling. He's controlling him. They move like they've done this a hundred times.
Sairi started to lift Ivanov back to the bridge, but two more fish burst from the water. Sairi changed direction, sending Ivanov hurtling toward them. The big man twisted in the air, kicked off the side of the first fish, and sent it careening into its partner. Both tumbled back into the water.
But as he recovered, Ivanov saw another fish already above him, descending fast.
The blind one, he thought, a thrill running through him. It came back for revenge. Good. But it was too close. There was no time to dodge.
"Sairi!" Ivanov yelled. "Into its mouth! I have an idea!"
Sairi guided him straight toward the fish's gaping maw. Ivanov's entire body flashed into black metal as the fish clamped its jaws shut on him and began to fall back toward the lake. But as it fell, it began to convulse violently. On the bridge, Sairi was straining, sweat pouring down his face, his arms trembling as if he were holding up a mountain.
Seconds later, Ivanov burst out of the fish's tail, his metallic body covered in blood and gore. The fish fell into the lake, a lifeless corpse. Sairi immediately pulled him back up to the bridge.
Sairi collapsed to his knees, gasping for air. "You idiot," he wheezed. "I told you. I can't lift your whole body when it's metal."
Ivanov just laughed, the metal melting away from his skin. "I had no choice. It would have crushed me. Besides, I knew you could handle it."
"Try it again," Sairi growled, "and I'll drop you."
Torres approached them slowly, his face a mask of awe and terror. "Are you two monsters?" he whispered. "I was more scared of you than the actual monsters."
Ivanov clapped him on the shoulder, grinning. "We're just having fun, my friend. This test is boring. I was hoping for a real challenge."
"Well, it's a real challenge for me," Torres muttered. "Let's just go."
They walked the rest of the way across the bridge, where they saw Noor staring at them, his expression one of utter disbelief.
Sairi gave him a fake, polished smile. "Looks like you beat us across. See you at the finish line."
Nearby, Akira was still slumped on the ground, exhausted, with Jean helping him. They hadn't seen the whole battle. And for their own peace of mind, that was probably for the best. They were already afraid of monsters; they didn't need to be more afraid of men.