Chapter 99 (Patreon)

Sonya watched as the days passed. She kept an eye on them, her beloved heroes. She watched them laugh, she watched them fight, she watched them struggle, she watched them succeed, and she watched them fail. Her many eyes throughout the camp observed everything at every moment, it was a strain, but it was worth it. There were moments where she smiled, moments where she wept, and moments where she had to send someone to step in on a fight. Big personalities meant conflict, thats just how it was. In the end, it was all about inspiring that sense of unity among them.

As the days turned into weeks and her week-long trip to Europe grew ever closer, she kept a diligent eye on Lillian Landrey. Her merged investment, the sanctions, and the courses she had practically foisted on the girl, were all part of the plan. Even so, it all depended on Lillian stepping up and facing the mountain that had been placed down before her. There were dozens at the camp that would have stumbled and fell on the path, there were many who would have collapsed to their knees and given up.

Lillian thrived.

She leaned on the balcony and looked down with her chin resting on her palm, watching the practice field. Lillian jumped back into a handspring and threw herself into the air, a tuft of flame bursting from her palm that sent her an extra few feet into the air. It wasn’t much, but the small projections were getting there. She turned in the air and drew her sword, flames flickered and tried again to catch on its surface as her free hand reached up to press against the flat of the blade. Beneath her, the spunky one, Alex, darted forward with his friend Greg behind him.

Greg slapped the ground and shouted something, the dirt beneath Alex’ feet began to lift off the ground as the young man kicked off the ground, his body stretching like one of those odd dolls. He threw his fist forward and it expanded, scale-like patterns forming on his skin. He rocketed towards her, fist and sword clashed and Lillian was sent tumbling backwards. She landed and nearly lost her bearings when her feet didn’t follow the rules of gravity quite right, bounding a bit. She hurried to throw her weapon to the right and block again, Alex was already moving, swinging his leg and stretching it out like a club to crash against her.

Sonya leaned forward a bit, a scent of perfume gracing her nose as Lillian slammed her feet down into the dirt with all her might and held fast against the powerful blow. She didn’t fall, but a whistle blew.

“Two sequential hits! Match!” One of the new instructors that had arrived over the past few days shouted, holding his hand in the air. He was a burly guy wearing a tank top and dog tags. His hair was messy and long. The Hero, Axel, stepped forward and called the three of them over and began speaking in a low voice, giving them pointers.

“You look so proud,” Carla said, resting on the railing next to her and pressing her shoulder against Sonya.

“Do I?” Sonya chuckled, “Maybe a little.”

Off to the side, Black Lotus was overseeing a match between John and the rocket-boy, Val. She frowned, what did he pick for his codename? Right, it was Pyrolysis. Man after my own heart, She thought with amusement as John swayed back at an impossible angle, his legs still planted on the ground as his body tilted back to nearly twenty degrees. Concentrated flames ripped out from Pyrolysis’ heel, his foot ripping through the air where John’s torso had been. The blow would have ripped a normal person in half. He’s ruthless, if only he wasn’t so uncomfortable about using his powers to the fullest. He’d make a superb striker in a dungeon.

Sonya glanced at Black Lotus and their eyes met. She looked away with a huff before looking down at her hands. Have I punished her enough yet? She thought miserably as a hand rest on her back and rubbed it.

“You okay?” Carla asked.

“I’m trying to be,” Sonya said with a sigh, she glanced up at the pretty face next to her and down at the collar around her neck, “Carla, about what happened at the beginning of the camp-”

Carla snorted and shook her head, “You raised your voice a little and went on a bit of a rant,” She laughed, “Is that what’s been bothering you?”

“I’ve done it a couple times,” Sonya said and hung her head.

“But you’ve never laid your hands on me, have you? Never. I talked you down, you were fine. You were upset, you know people are allowed to be upset, right? You are a human being as much as you pretend not to be,” Carla said softly and gave her a squeeze. Sonya melted a bit, a small smile playing on her lips.

“We still probably shouldn’t have messed around that night,” Sonya muttered.

“I had fun,” Carla laughed and pulled away, “Come on,” Sonya turned and looked up at the woman whose shoulders helped her get through the past year. They were still straight even as her own sagged a little. Carla raised her hand to the jewel at her throat, “I wouldn’t be wearing this if I felt like you were using me to replace someone else. You told me about Mikayla. Our relationship is different. I’m not stupid,” She said and glanced towards the field. “You still love her too.”

She said those last words with a whisper, barely audible, knowing that the woman might be listening in. Sonya let out a sigh and reached up to run her fingers through her hair, she didn’t speak, but she did nod.

Carla huffed with a laugh, “Was that so hard?” She said and turned away to start walking towards the doors going back inside, “Marta was looking for you, she’s got everything packed for Europe.”

Sonya brightened and moved to catch up, “I’m so looking forward to it,” She said with a bit more energy, glad for the change of topic.

“Even though I won’t be there?” Carla gave her a play-accusatory look.

Sonya raised her hand to her heart, faux offense on her face, “Carla!”

Carla burst into laughter, “Oh just go have fun you lech,” She teased, “Maybe get it out of your system so you aren’t teasing the poor aspirants. So far no complaints but good grief. You are going to be the cause of a whole lot of tension while you’re away.”

Sonya scratched her nose, “Eh, maybe I have been over doing it a little.”

“You think?” Carla said and opened the door for her, offering a small bow, “For you.”

Sonya tilted her head up with a smug grin, “Thank you dear.”

“Anything for you.”

–

Lillian walked into the common area with a towel over her head and threw herself into the couch with a groan. She let her head fall back and the towel fell over her face. “Alex, you hit like a truck,” She complained, reaching up to rub a little bit of heat into her arms. Even after the encounter they were still sore despite the best efforts of her ability. 

Alex hopped into the chair next to her with a smug grin, “Gotta get good!” He said, popping some boneless wings into his mouth. It opened a bit wider than should probably be natural to fit it all as he chewed.

She looked up at him, “How are you hungry?”

“I’m always hungry,” He mumbled between chews, “Comes with the territory.”

“Maybe once we do some monster fighting he’ll finally be full,” Greg said as he walked over and sat down on the couch next to Lillian.

Alex tilted his head a bit thoughtfully and licked some sauce off his lips, “Never thought about it, I wonder what monster tastes like.”

Lillian wrinkled her nose, “Whatever Miss Chernovna said to you, I wish she hadn’t, gross man,” She said.

“It was just a pep talk,” Alex mumbled, popping another piece in, “No big deal.”

“Sure, sure,” Lillian grumbled.

Val and John joined them shortly afterward. Val looked petulant but determined. He collapsed into his seat with a grunt and crossed his arms. There were tears in his sweater at the elbows and his shoes were burned slightly. He covered the spots on his shirt with his hands as he glared daggers at John. John just sat down with his usual stack of sandwiches and started eating. “Won.”

“Fuckin’” Val grunted and looked away, “How do you move like that?”

“Alex would say: Get good.” John mumbled.

Val clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes, “At least Black Lotus had some good advice,” He mumbled, “Still not okay with going shirtless until they make me something to wear.”

“Are they going to?” Lillian asked.

Val flushed and scratched his nose, “I had a pretty good interview with ASTA last night.”

They all sat up at once and looked at him, “Really?” Alex asked.

“Not bad, man!” Greg clapped him on the shoulder, “Congratulations!”

Val waved his hand, “Ehh, quit it, you’re embarrassing me,” He said hastily before looking around, “Where’s Ollie and Snow?”

“Ollie is with Madame Rouge,” Lillian said, “She’s been practically fawning over him since she showed up from Chicago.”

“Lucky bastard,” Greg bit out.

“Snow’s still in the lab,” Alex added, “Hasn’t come out for three days. She’s missed a lot of her classes but I don’t blame her. Doctor Carter showing up was a huge deal.”

They all nodded before sending sneaky glances in Lillian’s direction. She looked at them all and frowned, “What?”

“You okay?” Alex asked with a grin.

“Wh-Why would I not be okay?” She asked nervously, knowing where this was going but really not wanting to have the conversation. The others started grinning at one another only for an angel to come from above and save her.

“Good afternoon!” Sonya Chernovna chirped from behind Alex, suddenly hanging over him with a grin sent Lillian’s way. She winked at Lillian before looking down at the rest who all jumped and stared up at her wide eyed. “Are we having fun?”

“Normal conversation,” John clarified.

“Mhm, sure,” Sonya teased and stood up straight, her hands behind her back, “Wanted to remind you all that I’ll be away for a week. I’m leaving in a few hours. So you should keep up on your basic hand to hand and review the lessons I gave you, understood?”

They all nodded, “Yes ma’am!”

She turned towards Val, “Also, Amos brought some supplies with him and I’ve asked him to get started on some chest armor for you. That’s about all he can do right now though, is that alright?”

Val blinked, “I honestly wasn’t expecting anything until much later,” He said, actually smiling for once, “Thank you.”

She brandished her brightest smile, “I hope it helps!”

Just as Sonya turned to go talk to the other aspirants several of them rushed up and practically crowded her. “Miss Chernovna!” One said, “We have a request! Please? Before you leave?”

Lillian watched as Sonya’s face turned from bright confusion to a frown.

–

The forty-eight aspirants, two had already dipped out citing Black Lotus’ grueling conditioning training, all gathered within the dojo. They sat along the walls, pulling back as far as they could while still close enough to have a good view. Lillian sat down with her friends, glancing at Snow who was looking more than a little frustrated about being dragged out of the lab and Doctor Carter’s assistance. The girl kept her eyes on the middle of the room, though, as four of the instructors stood talking amongst themselves for a moment. One was the burly Axel, who was nodding along with something Sonya had to say before walking over to stand at one side of the room.

The other new instructor, Madame Rouge, was wearing something between robes and a gown. She had her hair done up in an audacious roll and her fingers ended in metallic claws. Apparently she used them to play string instruments. Madame Rouge inclined her head to both Sonya and Black Lotus who stood staring at one another.

“An exhibition match,” Lillian breathed.

“I’m very curious about the outcome,” Ollie said next to her. She glanced his way, his clothing had changed significantly from when she’d first met him. He was wearing a dress shirt with an open collar and fitted slacks. Madame Rouge was extremely particular and wouldn’t even tolerate his presence if he wasn’t dressed up, but she’d practically taken him on as a protege so he’d been forced to shake things up.

“I dunno, I’m a little worried for some reason,” Lillian said.

“They have a very strong karmic thread between them, a deep bond,” Ollie whispered, “It goes both ways but it's also tense, I saw it on accident a few days ago.”

Lillian swallowed, That’s why I’m worried, I can see it too.

Sonya and Black Lotus squared up against one another, standing face to face. Neither of them spoke as Sonya adjusted her gloves and tugged once at the suspenders holding up her pants. Her hair had been pulled back into a ponytail. She was focused. Black Lotus was in her full hero gear, including her armor. She didn’t have a practice sword out, nor did she have one of the simple metal ones. She was using her personal weapon. Sonya drew her knife out from behind her waist and spun it between her fingers, sliding back into her usual stance.

“No abilities will be used! Two hits for the match! Begin!” Axel barked.

Black Lotus moved first, darting forward and bringing her weapon down at an angle. Sonya moved and brought her blade up and to the right, letting Black Lotus’ sword slide against it. Black Lotus followed through and brought her weapon back with a swipe that exploded into a rapid combination of strikes. Three quick clangs and a scraping sound followed as Sonya blocked them and slipped back a few feet before stepping to the right and closing her eyes. Black Lotus’ sword went down right where she was standing and Sonya snapped her hand out, grabbing her opponent by the wrist. She pivoted and turned, kicking out with that miraculous flexibility to strike Black Lotus in the side of the head. 

Black Lotus dipped low, dodging the kick before turning her weapon in her hand, twisting it to swing with just her wrist at Sonya’s waist. Sonya glanced at the incoming blow and raised her eyebrows a little, a small, very small, smile rose on her lips. She released Black Lotus’ hand and pirouetted towards her on tip-toe, one hand swept up over her head like a ballerina, the one that had been holding her knife. Lillian blinked, When did she change hands? The knife came up in a flash towards Black Lotus’ chin and the woman took a step back, blocking once as Sonya dove into a series of strikes, aiming for vital points.

Are they trying to kill one another? Lillian balked.

A series of clangs rang out as Black Lotus moved onto the backfoot, only for Sonya to use her momentum dip and slide, darting underneath a fierce swing from Black Lotus and coming up to swipe at her shoulder. Black Lotus winced as the blade cut and she turned, snapping out a kick that caught Sonya in the waist and sent her back, stumbling.

“One hit each!” Madame Rogue shouted. “Next for the match!”

The gathered aspirants were whispering to one another, transfixed. “She’s been going easy on us,” Alex murmured, staring at Sonya.

“No kidding,” Greg grunted.

“I want to learn,” John murmured.

Sonya was smiling, fully smiling, she grinned as she darted towards Black Lotus and their exchange grew even more ferocious. Sonya changed hands with her knife with quick swaps that were almost too fast to see. Lillian barely followed her as she danced, dipped, flipped and spun. Black Lotus countered with martial prowess, blocking, ducking, pivoting and striking where Sonya appeared. They moved around one another like they’d seen each other fight their entire lives. Lillian felt like she could watch this for forever.

Then it came, Sonya slipped up. She struck low to draw Black Lotus’ guard with a feint but the warrior didn’t fall for it. She swung her sword up and in the last moment, hesitated, not completing the strike that was aimed for Sonya’s neck. Even a nick would have finished the match, but she still faltered. Sonya’s smile fell to a scowl and she bore her teeth, snapping her head to the right and driving forward. Her foot hooked behind Black Lotus’ and pushed her to the ground. She was on top of the world’s number one with her knife pointed at her throat.

Words were exchanged that Lillian couldn’t hear and Sonya got to her feet in a huff.

“Match to Sonya Chernovna!” Axel shouted as Sonya stood, wiping her chin and breathing hard. She glanced down at Black Lotus and hesitated a moment before reaching down to help her to her feet. Everyone sat in silence, their mouths hanging open. A few mutters spread through the crowd. 

“Is that even possible?” One kid asked.

“Did she hold back?” Alex asked, “That’s the number one.”

“Just a bit, at the end,” John muttered, “But still hard throughout.”

“Holy shit,” Greg breathed.

“God damn,” Val said, “Can someone be that fast without powers?”

“Yes,” John said as the whispers continued, no one moved as Sonya turned to look at everyone, her head held high.

“I hope this is a lesson for you all!” Sonya shouted, “Never underestimate an opponent, no matter what. Anyone could be a deadly threat when you are working as a hero. Be mindful!” She said, her face flushed before forcing a smile on her face. “It’s time for me to go now,” She said, “Be good while I’m gone, and do well.”

She turned away and started walking, stepping out of the dojo.

Lillian watched her back, “What did I just watch?”

–

Chunhua stood in the center of the dojo, breathing hard, she watched Sonya’s back and felt her heart sink. She closed her eyes and let Sonya’s words sink in. And that, my dear, is why I turn you away.

She clenched her fists and slid her sword back into her scabbard, her mind going back to that terrible day. The day she made the worst mistake of her life. I know.