"Those," Harley said, walking over to the glass case. He was pointing to a pair that looked like they had been taken from the knuckles of a dragon, which was exactly how the dice got their name.

"I had a pair just like that when I played for Stirling Academy," Monti said. He unlocked the display to pull the knucklebones out and slipped them into a black velvet bag. "Not a bad choice."

Harley continued to scan the display case until he spotted a red pair with silver numbers. "I guess I'll take those for Ernie. They match his Agent Thunderbolt costume."

"An interesting choice," Monti said. He pulled them out and tossed them up and down in his hand. "Nice balance, metallic finish. Bartameaus Butler used a pair just like this to beat me in the quarterfinals my senior year."

"I could pick another set."

"No, no," Monti said. "He went on to win the Merlin Cup that year. Let's hope they bring Ernie some luck as well."

Harley pulled out a wallet connected to his belt loop by a length of chain. "Here you go," he said as he handed Monti his money.

"Much appreciated," Monti said. He started coughing.

"You still sound terrible," Harley said.

"It's nothing."

The front door opened, and Ross and Todd bounded into the store. Their cheeks and ears were bright red. Their teeth were chattering.

"How do people live in Minnesota?" Todd asked. "It's so cold that I can't even feel my tongue."

"What are you two doing here?" Harley asked.

"Looking for Max," Ross said before handing Max a large manila envelope.

"I already have a Toad Report on Catalina," Max said without bothering to open it.

"This is an update," Todd said.

"You could have sent it to my DE Tablet."

"We needed to make sure you got it," Ross said. "Catalina has a new battle deck, and from what we could gather, it's nasty. I guess she's pretty upset after what you said."

"What are you talking about?"

"You know, how you called her Bounder disgusting," Ross said. "She's out for blood."

"I didn't say that," Max said. Then he pointed to Harley. "He did."

Harley just shrugged.

"Ouch," Monti said. "You shouldn't talk about people's Bounders like that. Especially not to their faces."

"I didn't think she'd hear me," Harley said.

"How bad is it?" Max asked.

"Bad, but you still have fourteen hours before the duel," Ross said.

"More like thirteen and a half," Todd said.

"Either way," Ross said. "That's plenty of time to put together a deck that can counter hers."

"I'll take a look at it when I get home."

"What's with Monti?" Todd said after he glanced over at the counter.

"He's been sick," Harley said.

"I know, but look at him," Todd said. "I mean, I don't think people are supposed to have skin that color. It looks like chalk."

Max turned in time to see Monti sway before he fell backward into a table behind the cash register. By the time Max reached Monti, Monti was lying on the floor, unconscious.

UNFORGIVEN.

Max was about to dial emergency services, but he decided to call Logan first. Within minutes an unmarked car that looked more like a hearse than an ambulance showed up. Monti was conscious, but when he tried to stand, he stumbled and fell.

The Templar paramedic took an instrument that looked like a metal wand and swiped it across Monti's forehead. The device it was attached to lit up, and then the paramedic entered a few more bits of information before putting it into his pack. A second paramedic strapped an oxygen mask over Monti's nose and mouth before injecting something into his neck.

"Just a little something to help him sleep," the paramedic said when he saw the nervous look in Harley's eyes. "Now please, step back."

Two more men brought a stretcher into the shop. They strapped Monti in it, then covered him with a blanket. With his pale skin and the dark circles under his eyes, Monti looked near death.

"Where are you taking him?" Harley asked.

"The hospital down by the mayor's office in New Victoria."

"He'll be all right," Max said as he placed his hand on Harley's shoulder.

"I hope so."

When he finally got home, Max tried to stay up so he could study the updated Toad Report on Catalina, but he didn't last long. He was exhausted. Besides, it was hard to sleep knowing that Monti was lying in the hospital and nobody knew what was wrong with him.

From what Max could see, the changes to Catalina's deck weren't nearly as drastic as the Toad brothers had made them out to be. Max decided to stick with his usual battle deck for the most part, though he made a few changes that he hoped Catalina wouldn't expect.

The first two rounds of the Iron Bridge qualifying tournament had been an elaborate affair. They were held in the auditorium in front of nearly a thousand people. The mayor of New Victoria had been there, as had a number of Templar dignitaries from around the globe.

Things were going to be different in the third round.

When Max arrived the next morning, armed guards escorted the sixteen remaining duelists to the dining hall. The room had been cleared-even the clockworks were gone.

Soldiers armed with nullifier nets and tranquilizer guns were stationed at every door and window, just in case Smoke decided to make an appearance. With only two changelings remaining in the tournament, it was doubtful that he would, but the staff decided it was better to be safe than sorry.

"Good morning," Ms. Merical, Max's homeroom teacher, said from behind the registration table. She was smiling, as always. "Hurry now. I'll need to scan and weigh your knucklebones, and then Ms. Butama will test your Kinematic goggles. Once we're finished, Dr. Thistlebrow will say a few words, and then we'll begin."

Max watched as Catalina handed her knucklebones to Ms. Merical. The dice were a strange combination of brown and green, which reminded Max of something that might have come out the backside of the Digger imp that was holding her hand.

"They passed," Ms. Merical said, "but I'm afraid your Bounder will have to wait outside."

"I can't just leave him."

"I'm sorry, dear," Ms. Merical said. "It's official policy, no exceptions. He'll be fine, though. Just send him out to the pond. It's nice and dreary out, and there are plenty of places for him to burrow."

The imp scampered up Catalina as though he were climbing a tree before settling in her arms. "It'll be okay," Catalina said. "I'll come looking for you as soon as I'm done."

Scuttlebutt looked like he was on the verge of tears as Catalina stroked the top of his lumpy head. Then she bent down to place the imp on the floor. Scuttlebutt started to whimper as Catalina took him by the hand to lead him out of the dining hall.

As the imp was leaving, Ernie burst into the room in a streak of light. When he finally stopped, his face was frantic. "Am I late?"

"You aren't early," Hale said from the back of the registration line.

Max watched Ernie walk over to her. He pulled out his battle deck, and they went through the cards together.

"Not bad," Hale said. "That's a good one, too. You know when to play it, right?"

As Max watched them, he had an empty feeling in his stomach. His missed the times when Ernie came to him for advice. When Hale was done giving him pointers, Ernie stuffed them back into the front pocket of his jeans. Then he made eye contact with Max.

"Good luck," Ernie said.

"Yeah, you, too," Max said. He remembered the extra set of knucklebones in his pocket. "I almost forgot, Harley bought these for you."

Ernie frowned. "He did?"

Max reached into his pocket to pull out the small velvet bag with the gold drawstring. Ernie took the bag and dumped the contents into his hand.

"He thought they'd match your costume," Max said.

Ernie stared at the gift before bouncing them in his hand. "They're amazing."

Max noticed that Ernie was wearing a black armband with the letters RH written in white. Max smiled, though the expression was laced with sadness. He was certain the band was in homage to their fallen friend, Robert Hernandez. "Where did you get that?" he asked.

Ernie looked down at the armband. "My mom made it."

"Anyway." Max didn't know what else to say.

"Yeah, I better get back in line." Ernie hesitated before walking back to stand next to Hale.

Max turned around to watch Xander hand Ms. Butama his goggles.

"These are beautiful," she said.

"Thanks," Xander said. "My dad had them custom-made in Milan. I think they've turned out pretty okay."

"I would say so."

When it was his turn in line, Max opened the drawstrings of his pouch and dumped his new knucklebones into Ms. Merical's palm.

"You look exhausted," she said.

"I was up kind of late last night."

"Yes, I heard about Monti. That's terrible."

"The doctors want to run some more tests, but I guess he's up and walking around," Max said.

"I'm glad to hear it." Ms. Merical retrieved the knucklebones from the measuring scale and handed them back to Max. "They run that poor man ragged. What he needs is a nice vacation somewhere warm."

Max placed the knucklebones back into his pouch. Ms. Merical reached out and took him by the wrist. "Your grandfather would have been so proud of the young man that you've become," she said. Then she let go before patting him on the top of his hand. "You go on now, and good luck."

Ms. Butama, the Bounder Care teacher, was seated next to Ms. Merical. Though she was born in Nairobi, she'd spent most of her youth in London, where she picked up her accent. "So this is it," she said as Max handed her his Kinematic goggles. "What will you do if you win?"

Max shrugged. "My mom thinks we should invite everyone over for pizza or something, but I don't know."

"Team building is a very good thing." She smiled. "Now let me take a look at these." Ms. Butama pulled his goggles over her eyes before flipping the switch to turn them on. Then she lifted a series of cards in front of the lenses. "Everything appears to be in order."

Next, Dr. Archimedes Thistlebrow logged the cards that Max had selected for his battle deck. "Now you're sure about this one, are you?" the Arithmetick teacher said as he held up a Blight Spider card.

The creature wasn't much bigger than a spriggan. It stood on two legs and had six arms, each ending in a clawed hand. The Blight Spider also had eight large eyes and a snub nose, and its body was covered in grey bristles.

"Not really," Max said.

"Pardon the pun, but Blights are a bit of a wild card," Dr. Thistlebrow said. "They can surprise you in more ways than one, if you catch my meaning, so be careful."

"I will," Max said. The Toad brothers hadn't told him any of that when they suggested he add the card to his battle deck. Unfortunately, once a card was logged, it couldn't be replaced, so Max was stuck.

When Dr. Thistlebrow finished, Max was directed to join Catalina at a table near the back wall. She refused to look at him as she sat down, which wasn't a good sign. Catalina had always been friendly, but Max understood why she hadn't been speaking to him. Even if it was a misunderstanding.

"Hey, Sumner."

Max turned around to see that Hale had left her place in line. "How's it going?" he asked.

"I'm good. So are you going to keep that temper of yours in check today?"

Max let a half smile cross his lips. "I'll try."

"Watch out," Hale said, nodding toward Catalina. "I hear she's out to get you."

"Thanks to Harley's big mouth."

"Just remember, there's no such thing as luck. Stay focused and you'll make the team." With that, Hale walked to her table.

"Hi," Max said as he approached Catalina at their table.

Catalina already had her cards and knucklebones out. She rolled her eyes.

"Look, I kind of heard that you were upset with me, and-"