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DON'T BE TOO EXCITED! IT'S A TINY ONE! (though still important!)

This is just me fulfilling my promise of posting chapter as I complete them. Very obviously, this one did not take very long, and I would have felt cheap posting it Friday when I'm not sure I'll have another chapter ready to go with it.

Consider it my thanks for being patient and supportive while I was sick!

-Bryce

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EDIT: Reworked the chapter a little so the reveal has more impact.

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A few rules & reminders:

  • Chapters will be dropping as Bryce completes them. That means anywhere from every 1 to 2 weeks on average, though sometimes waits may be longer.
  • Recall that these are rough chapters, with no editing other than a single pass-through as Bryce writes.
  • On a similar note, we are not asking for advice or corrections at this time. If Bryce wants feedback, we will certainly reach out, thank you!

That's it, so without further ado... Enjoy!

Comments

Joanne Hans

I hope Salista gets her comeuppance.

Lori

OMG. I didn’t see this coming at all. Ughhhhhh. The wait for resolution is going to hurt me now. 🥹

Jeff McClure

Man… like you did your readers right on the weekend, then Monday you just dropped straight thermo-nuclear weapons on us!!! I love it!

Zebrababies

Can a chapter be two pages?

kyle walker

A chapter can be a paragraph (even a sentence)...matters how impactful it is and whether or not it stands on its own.

Joel Wilkinson

I can’t remember is that aria’s mother?

Anonymous

Honestly, the chapters keep getting better... Not that I like what is going to happen, but that generates conflict and conflict is what moves the plot forward. YES, this is moving the plot forward, thus this is one of the best chapters yet.

Decorus

Is it just me or is it possible Central didn’t try to kill Rei? What happens if a team loses a member during a match?

Z.W.Heald

Someone is making a mess

Ibiso Charles

OMG. Is she going to try to mess with Rei during the tournament? She did object to Aria training with Rei in book one. Now Rei is C7 which is higher than Aria. My imagination is on overdrive.

John Cooke

I do not think that Central tried to kill Rei, but there is nothing stopping a small faction that are afraid of what he represents (Dyrk Reese in book 1, but with more resources and higher up the chain of command) striking out in fear. That could, in turn, be part of what drives him toward Kamiya as they have their own allies within Central, who would be able to deal with the cowards. It would also give Ueno Jasper the potential for a bigger part than just the fixer/facilitator of the initial introduction between Rei and Kamiya, because it would be a waste of a character with a ton of potential just to use her for that intro. It may also cause MIND to step in and be a bit more of an active participant, rather than just an observer in a "whatever does not kill him makes him stronger" kind of way, if her simulations show that the factional in-fighting is reaching a point where it might hamper Rei's progress and his (or his team's) ability to prepare for conflict against the Archons. As for losing a team member during a match or the tournament, either through death or long-term injury that keeps them out for a match or three, I can see the rules being "carry on with what you have, until your missing member(s) are back up or can be replaced after the tourney", which would simulate the dynamics of squad combat against the Archons.

Fleetpanda

Everyone here is saying she'll mess with Rei, but why on earth would she sabotage her daughter's highest ranked teammate DURING A TOURNAMENT? My guess is she'll try to skew things to make Aria look good, or she'll just be after restricted info

Richard Jackway

I think the most likely target is 'anyone who stands in the way of Aria being crowned champion'

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Rei is probably aria’s biggest threat in the duelist section of the tournament though so it could work out if she did something to him but I doubt it she will

Fleetpanda

Really the most she could do there without harming Rei (which I doubt she could get away with) would be to ensure that they don't fight until the finals.

John Cooke

Salista's outlook is more on what will make Aria fulfill her potential in the long term, to polish the Laurent name and promote the family. I personally think that, if she decided Rei was a distraction preventing Aria from reaching the heights she expects, then she would take action to force the two of them apart. Even if that means a short-term loss of competitiveness in her First Year Sectional SCTs, and increasing Aria's antipathy toward her in the process. It could also be that Salista has seen Rei's rate of improvement, and is digging around to find the cause, and whether that can be repurposed to either boost Aria or used to support and accelerate her growth in some way.

DarthPineapples

Ohhhh, whats the crazy helicopter mom gonna do!