Golden Eyes Read online

  Heroes vs Magicians

  Golden Eyes

  Chris Coleman

  Contents

  Title Page

  What's To Come?

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Prologue

  1. Rome

  2. Rome

  3. Rome

  4. Keala

  5. Keala

  6. Rome

  7. Keala

  8. Rome

  9. Rome

  10. Keala

  11. Keala

  12. Rome

  13. Rome

  14. Rome

  Untitled

  15. Keala

  16. Keala

  17. Keala

  18. Rome

  19. Rome

  20. Rome

  21. Keala

  22. Keala

  23. Rome

  Author Notes

  Let’s Connect

  Also by Chris Coleman

  HEROES VS MAGICIANS:

  Golden Eyes

  By Chris Coleman

  What's To Come?

  Hey there, thanks for buying my book! I'll be brief so you can get ahead to the good stuff.

  There are a ton of new books coming out over the next few months, everything ranging from superhero books for kids to young adult novels for the older audience.

  To learn more and stay up to date, let’s connect online and be friends!

  Twitter: http://twitter.com/itschriscoleman

  Instagram: http://instagram.com/itschriscoleman

  Copyright

  Copyright © 2018 by Chris Coleman.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written per-mission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the address below.

  Chris Coleman/Herolific

  www.herolific.com

  Publisher’s Note: Although this is a work of fiction. Some names, characters, places, and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or are based off of real people. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental unless otherwise stated.

  Ordering Information: Special discounts are available on quantity purchases by corporations, associations, and others. For details, contact the publisher at the address above.

  Philadelphia/ Chris Coleman — First Edition

  Dedication

  This book is dedicated to all those who love to read, who keep me grounded and that want to change the world with their ideas.

  Editor / Beta Readers

  Stephanie Koo

  Alicia Aurora

  Prologue

  According to history, the natives of this planet lived a simple life until foreigners came and tried to convert them to learn the ways of the Magicians. The history books state that at first, the indigenous people accepted these teachings, but soon resisted when they realized that magic was not their way of life.

  This is what started the first war on this planet, known as the Golden War. During this war, Magicians fanned out across the planet and attacked those who resisted their magical teachings. They overthrew the indigenous people's leaders and inserted their own people to rule.

  At first, it seemed as if all hope were lost, until somehow a group of citizens was able to fight back. They possessed super-powered abilities that allowed them to go toe-to-toe with the Magicians. They became known as the Golden-Eyed ones, as when they activated their powers, their eyes shone a bright gold. As the war waged on, more and more Golden-Eyed people began to appear and it looked like the tables would turn, until that fateful day.

  In fear of these “heroes” successfully overthrowing the Magicians, a group of rogue Magician leaders banded together to discover a way to suppress these super-powered beings. This organization became known as the Fifth Order.

  The Fifth Order's dominance soon spread across planet Pandora. They hunted down the Golden-Eyed heroes and dealt with those who rebelled against them accordingly. They established a system to test those for superpowers, which became known as the “Quick Gene,” and placed them into ghettos. Those who did possess full-blown superpowers, also known as “quicks,” were taken away and never seen again.

  In order to keep control of the population and to spread magic throughout the galaxy, the Fifth Order was broken into seven regions. Each region formed their own magic squads to defend their home against any threats and to find, train, and develop future Magicians. In order to create a successful pipeline for young Magicians, each region has their own magic high schools to develop skilled Magicians.

  Just like in sports or the arts, all Magicians are not created equal. Talent is needed to become great. As Pandora struggled to rebuild, Magicians who possessed great magical abilities became known as the Riches, and both they and their offspring benefited greatly from their natural magical talent. The Riches’ offspring were able to enter into any magic high school they wanted, as their ability to perform magic was exceptionally high.

  The rest of the population was forced to go through rigorous testing to get into one of the seven magic high schools. Even if you did pass the testing, unless you possessed an abnormally strong magical ability, you were automatically considered a second-tier student. If you did not pass the test, you were forced to attend a normal high school.

  On Pandora, there was no such thing as an equal opportunity, you had to fight for everything you got. This was the world I lived in, and this is my story of how I became the greatest magician to ever live.

  1

  Rome

  Something jolted me out of my sleep. Beep, beep, beep went the smoke detector. Am I dreaming? Everything felt hot like I was on fire. I reached out to touch my shirt, and a bolt of lightning danced across my fingertips causing me to shock myself. Oh snaps, I am on fire! Wait, was that lighting that I just released?

  That was the first time my powers were awakened, six years ago. I never told anyone about the fact that I possessed the lightning magical abilities. You’re probably thinking to yourself, “why not?” You have the magical element of lighting! Trust me when I say this, it would cause more harm for my family then good.

  What we learned in school was that every person was born with the capacity to cast magic or superpowers. But you already know that people who use quicks haven't been seen for decades.

  While my insight into quicks is limited, I can certainly tell you all about magic. There are five core magical elements: fire, water, earth, wind, and lightning, with lightning being the rarest ability to manifest and the most powerful magic.

  Children typically begin to awaken their powers around age 10. After middle school, the best and the brightest head to gifted high schools to hone their unique talents. From there, you have a few options. You can join one of the seven magical protector squads. Their singular mission is to defend the galaxy from demon beasts known as Zoozians. You can also cultivate your magic at the Ministry of Magic Association (MoMA) and work in a government role. Or the final option is to be assigned a more pedestrian job such as a construction worker or a desk clerk.

  But enough of the talking. Today is a special day!

  Why? You may ask.

  Well, it's the national testing day to decide what gifted magic high school students will be attending in the fall. I'm kind of nervous because only 200 students are accepted each year, and no
one in my family has ever gotten into a gifted program.

  How come?

  Good question.

  Well, long story short, we live in one of the poorer neighborhoods on Pandora. My mom happens to be a magic user who fell in love with my dad, who possesses the quick gene, which is very much frowned upon on Pandora. You get the picture right? If you’re born into a family like mine and are from the ghetto, your chances to pass the test were slim.

  Needless to say, scoring well on today's test could change my family's lives. So now that I got you all caught up, shall we begin?

  2

  Rome

  "I'm headed out, mom and dad," I said.

  "Okay sweetheart, make sure you grab your lunch that I prepared," yelled my mom from upstairs as she applied her makeup.

  "Go get ‘em, tiger!" said my dad as he walked up behind me and placed his hand on my shoulder.

  "Rome, both your mom and I know how hard you've worked, and we are proud of you."

  "Thanks, dad," I said trying not to smile. "I'll make sure I do my best to get into a gifted high school. Where are Zeus and Athena?"

  My parents, for whatever reason, are fascinated with Greek mythology from the Earth region, and our names reflect that.

  "I don't know, but those two kiddos need to come down and eat their food, like now," my replied as he reached for the milk in the fridge.

  Like clockwork, two little balls of energy burst into the kitchen.

  “Rome!” they shouted as they hugged my knees.

  “Hey you two, wish me luck on my big test today,” I said as I ruffled their hair. “If I do good, I’ll be able to get into a gifted high school and one day make lots of money and buy us a big house. You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

  “Ya!” shouted Athena.

  Zeus didn't miss a beat with his answer.

  “Then I wouldn’t have to share a room with Athena!" he said as he stuck his tongue out at her.

  My two younger siblings are twins and as much as they love each other, they are getting older and are moving into their ‘I don't want to be twins anymore’ phase.

  “But I thought poor people like us can’t get into one of those schools!” said Athena as she hid behind my leg.

  “Hey, hey, who told you that?” my father asked as he picked up one twin in each of his arms.

  “Some of the kids at school,” answered Zeus as he buried his face in my dad’s shirt. “They say we’ll never be anything in life but trash.”

  “Well, that certainly isn’t true. Both you, your sister, and brother are amazing. Do you hear me? Don’t ever let anyone tell you what you can or can’t do. Okay?”

  “Yes, dad,” answered the twins.

  “Good, now eat your food before it gets cold,” my dad said as he put Zeus and Athena down.

  They immediately both reached for an apple on the table and began bickering over who would get the last apple.

  A smile broke through my lips as I watched my siblings argue over who would eat the fruit.

  “Thanks, dad,” I said as I wrapped my arms around him for a bear hug.

  “Well, isn't this adorable!" said my mom as she entered into the kitchen. “You better give me a hug like that, too, before you leave.”

  “Family hug!” shouted Athena.

  My mom dashed over to her purse and started fishing around. She squealed as she found what she was looking for.

  "Here it is. Everyone hold your pose, I'm going to take a quick photo. 1. 2. 3. Smile everyone!"

  “Cheese!” shouted Zeus.

  I checked my watch as my mom tried to take another photo.

  "Oh snaps! Okay, okay, guys, I gotta go," I said as I trotted over to the hallway closet to grab my running shoes. "Mom, can you send me those pics when you get a chance? And I love you all!"

  And with that, I bolted out the door.

  I tightened the straps on my book bag and broke into a slight jog. Halfway through my run, a shadow approached me from behind. I didn’t even have to glance back to know it was my best friend Lillya Glass. We've been friends since we were little kids, and, secretly, I have a crush on her, but I could never tell her for fear of ruining our friendship.

  "Good morning, Romy Rome," she said as she pulled up alongside me.

  Today she had on a tight-fitting purple top and gray sweats. The purple really brought out her creamy brown complexion and hazel eyes. And her hair is tied back into a ponytail with a matching purple hair tie.

  I know I'm staring at her, but I can't seem to pull my eyes away. To play it off, I stuck my tongue out at her in disgust.

  "Good morning, Lil Bill."

  It's a running joke we have as her older brother's name is Billy and they sort of look alike. Lillya shot me a menacing side-eye as she began to match my running pace.

  "What did I tell you about calling me that?"

  I playfully hit her on the shoulder.

  "Don't act like you don't love your nickname."

  She rolled her eyes.

  "Whatever, punk. You ready for the big test?" she asked me as our legs fell into perfect sync as we ran.

  "Not really, but it is what it is, I'ma do my best and hope for the best."

  "Relax, ya big baby, we'll both do just fine, but we should pick up the pace if we want to make it to school on time.”

  "Well, Lil Bill, if you weren't running so slow, we would have already been at school."

  And with that, we both took off sprinting at full speed.

  3

  Rome

  I don't know if it's a sign or not, but it was raining as we walked out of school after finishing a full day of testing. I peeked out the door to survey the conditions.

  "Dang, I forgot to bring my umbrella."

  Lillya shook her head at me.

  "What would you do without me?" she asked as she pulled out her umbrella.

  A grin flashed across my face.

  "You're right, I don't know," I mumbled back as I grabbed the umbrella and opened it. "But, on a serious note, hopefully, we both did well on the test so we can get into the same magic school."

  She wrapped her arm around mine and snuggled up to me to fit under the umbrella.

  "Ya, then we won't have to think about not being around each other."

  Suddenly, the umbrella flew out of my hand as someone pushed me from behind.

  "Oops, did I do that?"

  I don't even have to look twice to know who that voice belonged to. It's Ernest Knox III, the youngest son of the Knox family, one of the most powerful and influential Magician families on Pandora.

  I began to lift myself off the ground when I suddenly feel something tightening around my neck. Ernest was controlling the water on the ground to constrict my movements.

  Usually, only students who are enrolled in a gifted school are able to control their abilities like this, but, because Ernest's family is one of the Riches, his family could afford to teach him how to use his magical powers from a young age.

  As I struggled to stand up, I can feel the color start to drain from my face as the air in my lungs is cut off.

  "Don't try to fight it, you piece of shit," said Ernest causing his gang of friends to burst out laughing.

  "I hate scum like you, thinking you have the right to attend a gifted program. Your family is a waste of space."

  "Stop it, you jerk!" screamed Lillya as she pushed Ernest with all her might.

  He turned towards her and stretched out his hand. Soon Lillya, too, was gasping for air as a rope made of water began to tighten around her neck.

  Seeing this made me angry and my skin started to heat up. Crap, it's happening. I didn't want to tip my hand and use my lightning ability, but it looked like I had no choice. I couldn't stand by and watch Ernest hurt Lillya like this. I closed my eyes and allowed the electricity to surge through my body. I could feel the lightning ready to be released.

  POOF

  What in the world? I was now holding a small fireball in my right hand. W
hy didn't my lightning work?

  No matter - Ernest's eyes grew wide as he realized what was happening. The fireball continued to grow in my hand as my anger built. His friends started to slowly back away as they no longer wanted any part of what was happening in front of them.

  Time seemed to slow down as the heat from the fireball in my hand intensified. It felt like my hand was on fire, but oddly, it didn't hurt.

  "Let go of her, or else," I said as I stared into Ernest's eyes.

  Fear was written all across Ernest's face as he looked back and forth between my face and the growing fireball in my hand.

  He quickly regained his composure, and with it, an assertiveness in his voice.

  "You wouldn't dare attack anyone from the Riches, let alone from the prestigious Knox family."

  I smirked to myself.

  "Oh, you must not know who I am. I've been waiting a long time to whip your pale, skinny ass."

  I didn't quite know how to control this newfound power, but I focused my anger throughout the rest of my body and quickly my body began to heat up. Using my rising body temperature, I was able to overpower Ernest's water rope. The water turned into steam as I rose to my feet. I took aim with my right hand and pointed it straight at Ernest's face, ready to release my attack.