File Four: Shambles

I jolted out of my slumber. I flexed my fingers and realized that my slab of an earthen bed remained in the trench. I slid off of the slab and began my yoga for the day before lighting a cigarette. “Right, love. It’s time for our training to begin.” I rubbed my face and walked over to the sleeping girl. I thought about kicking her with my toes. Nothing too rough, just something to let her know for sure she was in my realm now. For the purpose of this training, I forced myself to be a bit tougher than normal.

My foot lingered next to her side for a moment, but I turned on my heel and faced my bed instead. Doireann, or D, as Ryu called her, fell asleep on my floor after her trial. Ryu practically wrenched the visor away from her face before she passed out. The fire in her eyes captivated me. I slipped my traveler’s cloak over my body and focused my attention on the picture on a ledge near my bed. I gently pushed the picture frame down, so that it lay on its face. The less the newcomers knew, the better. Besides, that moment had long since passed.

“So, you chose not to be that mean, I see.”

I clicked my tongue against my teeth. “So, you’re better than I expected.”

“Well, what kind of new Glitcher would I be if I didn’t notice these kinds of things?”

I crossed my arms across my chest. I considered my options, and decided on the correct response as the situation called for. “And, I assume Ryu doesn’t mind that you spent the night with me?” I studied her face carefully, but no hint of emotion to be found. I needed to think of my next move before too long, or she would get the upper hand in this match.

“It’s not like anything happened. Besides, he’d learn to deal. Not his type anyway. Not that it’s any of your business, man.”

Out of all the possible responses, she went with the strangest one. I waved a hand at her somewhat dismissively. “Quite right, love. But, do not forget where we are.” I snapped my fingers and stifled a maniacal laugh when the room we stood in changed to a bright field. “You’re in my world now, private.” I locked my gaze on her eyes. The girl barely blinked and simply returned my stare.

“Cool trick. But, you failed to notice that I saw the glitch all along. Not in the trench, are we?”

I cleared my throat. “Perceptive, and, no. We’re in Ryu’s back yard, but, if you can tell me how we got here, you’ll impress me.” I watched my underling hang her head. She touched her left temple and winced.

“Side effect of your abilities. Guess you don’t know everything.”

“I see—flickering—all around.”

I dismissed her garbled words, because a scream began to cut through the air, and I found myself at the redhead’s side. I shushed her and cradled her to my chest. Her body trembled in my arms. “This passes. The event conceives itself when a Glitcher overcomes the trail and unlocks their potential.” I absentmindedly stroked her hair. Doireanne held a type of allurement over me, and I found myself more willing to go easy on her than I had with the others.

“How?”

I observed that she maintained enough strength to keep her eyes aligned with mine. I nearly averted my gaze. “Glitches are everywhere, if you think about it hard enough. Surely, you’ve heard of miracles or the supernatural.” As I spoke, Doireanne righted herself and sat across from me.

“Can everyone see them in both reality and the games?”

I could tell she still mulled over what I told her, so I allowed the topic to change. “No. We’re all different in terms of what our trial unlocks in us.”

“Then, what’s your power?”

“Enough, private. On your feet.”

As her feet touched to the grass, I flickered and appeared behind her. My elbow rested against her neck. “That’s one. You’re no good to us unconscious.”

Nearly as fast as my movement, I found myself staring up into the girl’s face. I tried to puzzle out why on earth a Glitcher would be exhibiting two powers, but I reminded myself that she had completed her trial in near record time. I jumped to my feet and slid through her openings and gripped her hair. I bent her body next to mine with one pull and whispered in her ear. “Let me make this clear, love,” I held her still with my other hand. After a while, her grunting and struggling stopped, and for a brief moment, calm washed over her, as her heartbeat slowed, “I own you.”

I released her hair and shoved her away from me. I prepared myself for her rage, and, soon enough, my trainee rushed at me with the intent to tackle me down to the ground. Perhaps she was merely a typical girl after all, as her rage clouded her judgement. I simply sidestepped around her lunge and laughed. I sauntered over to her as she pushed herself up off the ground and placed my foot on her back and restrained her there with ease. “Two. Never allow your emotions to cloud your judgement.” I removed my foot from the spitfire’s back and closed my eyes.

For one brief moment, I smelled the smoke around me again and felt the heat come over my body. I centered my mind on the moment in front of me with Doireanne, opened my eyes, and noticed her stare. “People get hurt that way, because you couldn’t keep your calm.”

Her eyes displayed pity in their depth, so I looked away from them and charged at her with a punch aimed at her face. Quickly, I followed the punch with a kick directed at her midriff. I felt her hands redirect my attacks flawlessly. I recovered from the failure and countered with a smack while her opening presented itself. I watched her bend back just one millimeter too far and lose her balance.

As she fell back, I ignored my instinct to catch her and instead jumped toward her so that I’d land over her body. My feet solidly placed themselves on either side of her body and crouched down until my nearly brushed against hers. To me, she didn’t appear afraid of my position over her. I leaned back and prepared my fists for their target. I hurled them down toward the girl. She bucked and squirmed underneath me. Her writs remained still under the weight of my knees.

When her body pressed itself back into the earth, I stopped my intended onslaught, placed my hands on both sides of her head and stroked her cheeks. Something wet brushed against my thumb. Tears. I wiped her eyes and got up. I pulled her body toward mine. Silence drifted between us.

“I’m ready.”

My gaze swept over her body and memorized her form. I licked my lips and nodded. “Okay. I just need to trust you. Make it through Adversity.” My voice sounded harsher than I wanted it to be.

“Yes, sir. Adversity?”

“A time within the tournament that is designed to completely annihilate you.”

“Challenge accepted.”

“By the way. I don’t own you.”

“That’s right, you don’t.”

“But,” I said, as I cupped her chin in my hand, “You will be ever mine.” I watched her eyes glisten with hate and desire all at once. I leaned toward her, wanting to whisper a secret into her ear about Adversity, but felt her pull back, so I dropped my hand to my side.

Next Chapter: File Five: Adversity