Preface: Hi readers! I've got a quick story that I was inspired to write after I saw the footage of the Estel gameplay that DotEmu released on Twitter a few days ago. Enjoy!
New Tricks
Generally, Estel wasn't a fan of change.
Everything had been easy enough. Wake up, put on the police uniform, chug down a protein shake, and then walk through those doors ready to protect and serve.
It was a nice routine. It was a pretty nice life.
At least until the Y-Twins had risen to power.
The late criminal mastermind, Mr. X, had left behind two children who'd planned on continuing his work in their own way. And they'd made an attempt to do just that by birthing a new syndicate from the old one's ashes—the Y-Syndicate.
They planted giant speakers throughout the city that pumped out hypnotizing soundwaves, turning the city's people into rampaging savages. Luckily, a team of vigilantes led by a man named Axel Stone had fought their way through the gang members in their employ and defeated them both. Amazingly, a minimal amount of damage was done to the city, but Estel knew that it could have been much worse had the Y-Twins been as experienced as their predecessor.
But, the Y-Twins had ultimately failed nonetheless, and during the past few months, things had mostly settled back into the calm that it had known since their father's defeat.
But things still weren't the same.
Thanks to the actions of Axel Stone, the city saw fit to legalize vigilantism in Wood Oak City. While Estel saw the good that could come from this, she was just as aware that the concept of taking the law into one's own hands could be a slippery slope. Sure, some vigilante activity was justified, even helpful as she now saw. But who was to say that this wasn't something someone wouldn't try and exploit?
The Commissioner had also been fired and arrested for his involvement in the Y-Syndicate's scheme. Under normal circumstances, she would have gladly hauled a corrupt member of the force off to jail. But the Commissioner wasn't just any person who'd abused his power. The Commissioner had taken a notable interest in overseeing her progression as a woman of the law. He'd encouraged her from the moment she'd first signed up and watched her rise from cadet to captain.
All to find out that he'd been taking bribes from criminals. It. . .hurt to say the least.
The WOPD's former Chief of Police had returned to take his place. Prior to the Commissioner's arrest, he'd headed the WOPD's sister organization, the Special Investigative Forces. Adam had put in a good word for him in an attempt to reassure her, said that he'd turned over a new leaf since the Rakushin incident. His word was enough for her, but no matter how polite the Chief was, she was sure to keep herself from getting attached to him in any sort of way.
She knew she should have welcomed a newer, more legitimate man willing to uphold the law. But deep down, something had never felt quite right about seeing someone else in that office.
And if all that wasn't enough, Murphy had chosen to resign. In hindsight, she couldn't really blame him. She'd been placed in charge of the hunt for Axel and Blaze, and she'd ordered Murphy to neutralize them on sight. He clearly didn't want to do it, but she'd made it an order, not a request. After they'd eventually been spotted on motorcycles en route to Chinatown, Estel told Murphy to get there first, to ambush them. That was when he outright refused to do anything else.
She'd reminded him that the best way to provide for his struggling family was to follow orders, but he'd refused. He said that he knew that Axel could put a stop to the Y-Twins, and insisted that his family would be in a much worse spot than they already were if they got their way. And without another word, Murphy had walked right off the job, unwilling to oppose his old friends any further.
One of the WOPD's best officers, gone, because she'd been too blind to see that Axel and Blaze were the good guys all along.
In the end, Murphy went on to lead the S.I.F. According to Adam, the Chief of Police had practically offered him the job as soon as he stepped through the door, having deemed him to be a worthy man to run the S.I.F for his integrity shown over the years.
Adam had been ecstatic for his old friend. For Estel, it was more bittersweet. The S.I.F would have someone with good intentions at the head, but that meant that his invaluable skills weren't available to her any longer.
Yet another change that she wasn't exactly thrilled about.
To be fair, there was the positive change that had come from this whole situation. Despite their rocky start, Estel could now say that she had a friend in Blaze Fielding. The fact that she once apparently decked the previous Commissioner in the face before walking out on him certainly helped to break the ice. It did make sense. Estel didn't really take Blaze for WOPD material with her rebellious streak where it came to authority, but given the circumstances, she couldn't really blame her for responding to her old boss the way she had.
Estel had also come to understand Blaze. She and Axel Stone had been fond of breaking the law with their vigilantism, but Estel hadn't known the extent of just how corrupt the WOPD had been while Mr. X was still alive. Any officer that hadn't rolled over and let The Syndicate do as it pleased had been an active participant in its criminal activities. Men and women who had supposedly sworn to serve and protect had helped turn Wood Oak City seedier by the day. The Syndicate had been defunct for a decade now, but as a police officer herself, hearing about what it had done had made Estel's blood boil.
Estel could admit that she wouldn't have held it against her even if she wasn't reinstated as officers during the Rakushin bombings. That could have been a global nightmare, but the Y-Twins weren't trying to start a war with the Lima Nations. They were a pair of spoiled brats who wanted the city's people to kill each other for their entertainment. It wasn't terrorism, but they'd needed to be stopped nonetheless. And the WOPD had been compromised to an extent during that as well. Not through officers being brainwashed by soundwaves, but through old fashioned corruption. Along with the others, Blaze had stepped up—just as she always had—and really proved to Estel that sometimes, the rules had to be broken for the greater good.
And then there was her friendship she'd developed with Adam Hunter, her fellow officer.
Soon after he'd returned to the precinct to collect his medal for his part in saving the day, he'd been offered a permanent place in the S.I.F for his exemplary service. But Adam had humbly turned them down. The Special Investigation Forces. It wasn't the job of an S.I.F operative to deal with everyday crime. They were responsible for combating high-level threats, and if there was none, they went through a rigorous training regime in order to be ready for when there was one. The organization was founded in direct response to the extreme measures that Mr. X went through to have his way, and the Y-Twins hypnotic soundwave technology had been enough to request Adam's assistance. In the end, though, despite such a prestigious offer, Adam was willing to go back where he'd been before to be sure that the smaller criminals wouldn't slip away with what they did. Estel admired that.
Given that he and Estel were deemed to have the best training out of all of their fellow officers, the two of them were sent on more assignments together than Estel could remember. Local gang activity once again became more frequent with the Y-Syndicate out of the picture, but it wasn't as if that was ever an issue. The Y-Twins had managed to get some truly ruthless bastards onto their side, but no tough guy they'd ever brought in had been all that threatening to her. Adam would often joke about how field assignments were practically glorified breaks to stretch his legs, and with no Y-Syndicate, Estel honestly felt the same.
But Adam did more than joke. He was extremely kind and easy to talk to. Adam could get a decent conversation started over anything—be it food, music, or even as something as boring as the weather—all Adam would need to do was mention it in passing, and a whole conversation would follow. From there, they would really get to know each other. They would see each other off the clock and their conversations would sometimes become more personal. Adam had become her friend.
To think that she didn't recognize him as the man who fought Shiva one on one, and stopped him from plunging the United States into an utterly needless war with the Lima Nations.
In her defense, it wasn't entirely her fault. She didn't recognize him! He'd looked absolutely nothing like he did on the news. Maybe it was the fact that she'd seen him on the news a whole decade ago, or maybe she just hadn't recognized him wearing sunglasses, as he usually did these days.
To think she'd actually tried to fight him. It was no wonder she'd lost.
All of that was water under the bridge now as far as he was concerned. They were friends now.
Positive change.
It was just all too much, too fast.
No matter what, Estel vowed to control the things that she could. And the most important among those was being the best officer possible—an example of what the WOPD should stand for.
It was the end of her shift, but Estel didn't want to leave just yet. The WOPD had the biggest gym that Estel had ever seen, and she always took advantage. She would do cardio, lift weights, or even spar with Adam. Even after the longest days, Estel would at least do a decent set of push-ups. She was dedicated to keeping her body in shape even long before she'd joined the force, and now that she had, she'd never even entertained the idea of stopping.
Her police gear was stashed away. Estel now wore a lightweight pair of sweatpants and a navy blue t-shirt with the WOPD logo printed across the front in white, its sleeves torn off at the shoulders to accommodate her ginormous muscles.
The huge gym was empty. Estel pulled on a pair of white training gloves and walked towards the punching bags. She ignored the normal ones, and stopped at one of the two "special" ones that hung further back. It had been reinforced with titanium multiple times over to accommodate her superhuman strength. Her punches hit hard enough to break metal, and trying to hold back that much power while working the bag would've made using the thing in the first place completely redundant.
Luckily, the job had taken no issue with accommodating for her. Estel's previous boss had given her the bag, and their current Commissioner one had an identical one brought in for Adam to use. While not as monstrously powerful as she was, Adam could hit far above what was humanly possible himself. Estel liked that. There was something strangely nice about seeing someone else pounding against a hunk of metal, not holding anything back.
Estel stepped in front of the bag and began laying into it with punches. Her fighting style was aggressive, focused on wearing down opposition with pure unrelenting pressure, and one that left little room for defense. It admittedly wasn't a one-size-fit-all tactic—as proven by her two defeats against Axel Stone, but Axel was the city's greatest fighter. Estel might have paled in comparison, but she was no slouch in her own right, and that was something that most of the punks on the street that Estel had to deal with couldn't say.
Estel began hitting the bag again, making it sway with the increasing strength of her blows. She punched high, low, straight, running the day back in her mind. It had been a productive day, several different scuffles with criminals leading to several different arrests. For her, it was practically busywork after assisting with the takedown of the Y-Syndicate. The criminals she'd brought in today had all the grace of those punks Donovan and Galsaia. Things had gotten much easier, but that was no reason to slack off. Estel practically lived by that sentiment, especially where work was concerned. The last thing that an officer wanted was to lose their edge.
Her assault on the bag ceased after one last punch. She'd begun to. . .feel something. Not the sweat running down her body or the exhaustion from the workout, she'd felt something deeper and stranger than any sensation she'd ever experienced. It felt as though she'd gotten a sixth sense.
She knew what this must've been. Ki.
It was the energy that had been dormant inside her since birth. Not anymore.
Everyone had it inside them, she wasn't special in that regard. But only fighters had awakened their ki. Adam had told her this, and she'd believed him. When they'd first met, and he'd fought her and her team of officers to buy Axel and his group time to flee the scene, Adam weaponised his ki. Bright green plumes of energy flying from his extremities with his strikes and kicks.
And now, she had the potential to do something similar.
Everyone had ki inside of them, but even after unlocking it, there was no guarantee that they would ever utilize it in combat. Hell, there was no guarantee that a fighter would ever utilize it for anything. Some were innately incapable of doing anything spectacular with their ki even after unlocking it. In those cases, it would be little more than something to indicate that they'd had the spirit of a fighter.
Estel had never given the possibility of ever utilizing ki herself so much as a second thought. She took her training seriously, as any real man or woman of the law would, but now that she'd awakened this part of herself, she knew it would be wise to utilize it. That meant nothing if she didn't actually know how to do that, and Estel didn't know the first place to start.
But Adam did.
Estel started off toward the locker room. She unlocked her locker, and grabbed her clothes, practically throwing them on before hurrying out through the gym's exit. Their shift was technically over, but Adam, being the hard worker he was, wanted to review some files one last time before officially calling it a day. He should've been leaving any minute now, but Estel marched her way over to the elevator with a brusque pace, eager to catch him before he left.
She jabbed the bottom arrow with her finger, tapping her foot as she waited for the elevator to open.
When they did open, she saw the person she was looking for: Adam Hunter.
"Adam!" Estel breathed, a bit stunned at the coincidence.
"Fancy meeting you here." Adam smiled like the charmer he was.
Estel hurried into the elevator, watching the doors close behind her.
"Glad I ran into you," Estel said. "I was wondering if you could help me with something."
"Sure," Adam said, hooking his shades into the breast pocket of his uniform. What is it?"
"It's. . ."
She hesitated. Should she really be bothering him with this?
"It's nothing. Forget it." Estel gave a defensive frown. "You've been working your ass off these past couple of days. I should do the same with this."
"Sooo. . ." Adam eyed her, innocently raising an eyebrow. "You don't want my help?"
"It'd be nice," Estel frowned. "It's just that. . .you have more important things to worry about."
Adam laughed. "Like what? A family to hurry home to?"
"Well. . .yeah." Estel muttered, almost struggling to keep eye contact.
"Cherry's normally out until ten during the summertime," Adam grinned. "She'll call if she needs anything."
Estel balked. According to him, Cherry and Floyd Iraia had become close friends during the fight against the Y-Syndicate. Adam had often joked with Estel that Cherry would try and drag Floyd away from his apprenticeship with Dr. Zan just to attend her college. Adam mentioned about his daughter on their shifts, and once told Estel that she hung out around the city on summer evenings.
That didn't even take into account that Cherry was anything but a pushover. Granted, Estel could tell that she hadn't had any real training, but Blaze herself had vouched that she pulled her weight during their fight for the city. Hell, one of the things that Adam disliked about his daughter's behavior was that she constantly wound up in utterly unnecessary fights with others. If anything, she was no stranger to the idea of getting in a spontaneous fight.
Adam had her there, and as such a close friend, she would have naturally known that. And she did.
Estel rolled her eyes. "Alright, maybe that wasn't the best excuse."
"No, it really wasn't," Adam quipped. "So what's up? What do you need?"
Estel tried not to give him the satisfaction of seeing her smirk, but failed. What a smartass.
"There's something I've got going on," Estel replied. "Thought you might be able to give me some advice."
Adam raised an eyebrow. "Advice on what? What's going on with you?"
"Nothing bad," Estel assured. "But it's something that I'd feel better discussing somewhere off the premises."
"Sooo. . ." Adam drawled, giving a slow nod. "My place or yours?"
"Mine," Estel replied. "You'll see why when you show up."
"Alrighty then," Adam happily shrugged. "Just let me get outta this uniform."
Estel gave a smirk as he turned to leave, crossing her arms.
"Guess I'll be seeing you!"
"Later!" Adam called back with a wave, not breaking stride.
Estel watched him continue on his way out, vanishing around the corner. She had no idea how Adam would get her to harness her ki, if she could harness it. But she'd known firsthand that Adam knew what to try,
She started back toward the lockers to collect her things. If Estel couldn't figure something out by herself, she appreciated being in capable hands. And Adam Hunter practically defined the term.
Estel sat with her arms crossed, glancing at the clock impatiently as she sat on her couch. She'd wasted no time changing into a workout top and matching shorts. She liked for her skin to breathe during heavy strenuous activities, and if she was right about what had been going on with herself, then the next thing she did would take just about everything she had.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!
Estel had practically jumped off the couch at the sound of the sound. Adam was here. Finally.
She opened the door, and there he was, dressed in his yellow shirt and suspended black jeans.
"Miss me?" Adam cheekily greeted, pushing his shades up onto his forehead.
"Thought you weren't coming." Estel tightly smiled at him.
Estel watched Adam come into the house and sit on the couch. She joined him.
"So what's up?" Adam asked casually, crossing his arms.
Estel decided to just spit it out.
"I think I unlocked my ki."
Adam's eyes widened.
"Really?" Adam smiled, curiously rubbing his chin.
"Training one minute and then suddenly feeling. . .something deep inside you that just wasn't there before?" Estel gave a small shrug. "You said that was how you knew you'd unlocked yours."
Adam beamed. "Well, shit! Look at you!"
"Is it normal to unlock it subconsciously?" Estel asked, her brow furrowing. "It's not like I was even trying."
"Sure is," Adam nodded. "You were trying to improve. That's all it takes."
Estel supposed that made sense. Especially with how hard she'd been pushing herself since the Y-Twins defeat.
"Well then, how about we hit the backyard?" Estel suggested, standing up.
Adam chuckled. "So that's why you wanted me to meet you here."
"Yep."
Adam smiled, getting to his feet. "Right behind you."
The two walked into Estel's kitchen and out through the back door. Estel walked up to a large piece of debris that hung from a cable tied to her roof. It was about as durable as the specialized training bag she used at the WOPD's gym. And the clump of metal had taken nearly just as much punishment from her, resulting in a multitude of dents all over it.
"What're you gonna do?" Adam asked, having gone to stand off to the side. "Couple of warm up hits first?"
"No need," Estel shook her head. I'm all warmed up from the gym. So how do I do this?"
"Try to make contact with your ki, for starters," Adam said. "That should be the easy part."
Estel took her stance. Adam had told her that ki manipulation wasn't physical, like flexing a muscle, but something spiritual.
Estel stood unmoving. She reached out, prodding for something within.
Estel gave a small, sharp gasp.
"Adam," Estel breathed heavily. "I feel something."
"Guess you've got your ki," Adam smiled. "Now punch. Keep a hold on your ki, and then cast it out."
Estel gave a quick nod, taking a breath as she felt her spirit's natural energy rush through her.
She drew her fist back, preparing to strike. . .
And then she did. Her fist flew toward the chunk of debris. The strike left a dent in it as it had always, but there had been no ki.
"Nothing. . ?" Estel muttered, her brow furrowing.
"Keep at it," Adam encouraged. "You know you've got it in you."
Estel shut her eyes. Feeling her ki, she struck out with her fist as hard as she could've. There was nothing.
"You're trying to put power behind your hit." Adam told her.
"Isn't that the point of manipulating ki?" Estel questioned with a frown. "Making our attacks stronger than they normally are?"
"That's the point, yeah," Adam conceded. "But trying to think like that won't help at your level. You've gotta manifest it for starters."
"So just. . .focus instead?"
"Bingo." Adam chuckled.
Estel loudly cracked her knuckles, getting back into stance. She eyed the hanging heap of metal. She measured—slowly. . .carefully. . .
And then sent her fist flying right at the center. . .
And nothing.
Her fist had struck true to her aim, but just as before, she produced no ki.
"Dammit!" Estel cried out.
"Try again." Adam remarked dryly.
"How?" Estel growled in frustration. "Why can't I do anything? I can feel it inside of me!"
"Because now you're putting too much energy into a controlled strike." Adam replied.
"I'm starting to think this is a waste," Estel rolled her eyes. "Maybe my ki just doesn't work this way."
"Maybe it does."
"And maybe this won't be anything I can use in a fight," Estel snapped, somewhat drained. "I'm not some hardcore martial arts expert like you and Axel. I'm just a cop that feels the need to do the right thing."
"It's just like I told you, that's all it takes."
"Forgive me if I'm not convinced." Estel shot back.
"Just humor me one last time." Adam urged.
Estel snarled. "Fine."
"Remember, focus your spirit, not your body." Adam reminded.
Estel gave a small, noncommittal grunt as she assumed her stance.
She tried not to think. She tried to feel. She dove deep as she could into her spirit, trying to grasp that new part of herself.
For a second, the feeling intensified. On pure fighting instinct, she threw a quick jab. This time, Estel caught wisps of red ki trailing from her fist, seeing a little splash of it when it made contact with its target. And even with her strength, she'd noticed that the cluster of junk had swayed back further than what would be considered natural for such a snappy hit.
She had also felt a strange feeling in her hand as it flew on its path. Encompassing, yet somehow gentle. It was incredibly similar to what she felt on the inside, before she'd brought her ki to the surface. Now she could almost make sense of what she'd felt.
The sensations were all completely gone just as soon as it arrived, but Estel didn't care. This time, she'd done it.
"Holy crap. . ." Estel gasped. "I actually did it. . !"
"There we go!" Adam congratulated, clapping as he walked over to her.
"So that was ki. . ." Estel mused, partly to herself.
"Damn straight it was," Adam smiled broadly. "Knew I couldn't let you give up!"
"It certainly was. . .something." Estel finally said.
"It's pretty intense," Adam warmly chuckled. "But once you really get in tune with your spirit, it practically becomes second nature."
Estel gave a gentle scoff. "To think that I'm actually capable of using it."
"First me and Blaze, and now you," Adam smiled. "Welcome to the club."
A smile tugged at Estel's lips, before she suddenly thought of something.
"What about Axel?" Estel asked. "You said he trains around the clock these days."
Adam smiled. "Axel can manipulate ki, just not the way we do."
Estel raised an eyebrow. "Huh? There are multiple ways to do this? What does he do?"
"He sends it through objects."
Estel's brow furrowed. "Objects?"
"Yep," Adam nodded. "Swords, knives, drainage pipes—you name it, and Axel will make it ten times deadlier than it used to be."
"So it's not just limited to our bodies, then?" Estel asked, impressed.
"Absolutely not," Adam chuckled, giving a shake of his head. "I've seen his sword swings send out waves of ki."
"And all the fire of his?" Estel asked.
"That isn't ki," Adam gave a shrug. "It's just. . .fire. Something Axel was just. . .born with and learned how to harness."
"Still, you'd think he of all people would be the strongest ki user out of all of us." Estel remarked.
"Well. . ." Adam sighed. "What he's after sounds bigger than ki."
Estel's eyes flashed with curiosity. "The. . .hidden meaning of fighting, or whatever he said?"
"Yeah." Adam gave a simple nod. "The really deep shit."
"Before you said that you didn't believe in it," Estel took a lazy step toward her friend. "Almost seems like you changed your mind."
"I'm. . .not really sure if I have," Adam replied. "But I feel like it's worth thinking about."
"And you're not just saying that to motivate me?" Estel questioned.
Adam shook his head. "Nope."
"How come, then?" Estel pried. "What made you change your tune?"
"Just. . ." Adam stalled. "The more I think of Axel training in those woods, more I think of his drive to get those answers."
"And how does that change your mind?" Estel wondered, raising an eyebrow.
"When I train, I think back to all of the times we fought it out." Adam gave a nostalgic smile. "I remember the way he gave his all every time, how determined he was to stay the city's best fighter."
Estel listened, not taking her eyes off of Adam.
"I'd remember how Axel's always been born to fight," Adam continued. "Only figures that he sees something deeper in it than most other people."
"I. . .guess. . ." Estel conceded, somewhat awkwardly.
"Blaze still takes fighting at face value," Adam shrugged. "I did too, but I'm not sure about it anymore, y'know?"
"I get it," Estel nodded. "You're starting to wonder."
"Might not be the greatest friend for taking this long to see at first, though." Adam lamented, studying the ground.
"That's not true, Adam," Estel firmly argued, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You and Blaze always supported Axel, even when you couldn't see what he saw."
Adam nodded slowly. "We did. . ."
Estel continued, eyeing him squarely. "You said it yourself. Axel was a natural born fighter. Of course he'd grasp these things sooner than the rest of us."
"Yeah," Adam nodded, smiling gently.
"Maybe Stone's right about all this," Estel smiled back. "But we'll never know until he gets back."
Adam placed a hand on his hip, giving an overexaggerated sigh. "Guess I'll just be in suspense. . ."
"Something tells me you'll manage," Estel chuckled, giving him a friendly clap on the forearm. "Hope he finds something out there in the wild. Be a real waste for him to spend all that time just to find out that he was wrong."
"These things are always worth a look though," Adam eagerly insisted. "What Axel's looking for might just turn out to have something to do with ki for all we know! What he could come back with could revolutionize our understanding of it!"
"From what you've told me, I think ki goes deep enough as is." Estel smiled, shaking her head.
"You don't know the half of it 'till you've mastered it yourself," Adam grinned. "You wanna keep practicing?"
Excitement flashed across Estel's eyes. She'd never been one to back down from a challenge.
"How much longer can you be here for?"
Adam shrugged. "Another hour, give or take."
"That works," Estel nodded. "Figure it'd be good to get some more tips."
Adam happily crossed his arms. "Well let's see you try it again. I can get a better feel for what you should work on that way."
Just like a workout. Estel thought.
Estel nodded along in response, stretching her arms. If she really wanted to help keep the city safe, hand-to-hand training wouldn't be enough anymore. From now on, she was going to work towards becoming better at manipulating her ki.
Estel hadn't been a fan of change, but she'd never accounted for something like this.
If this could help her in her line of work, to be there for Wood Oak City, then it was one change she'd eagerly accept.
She took a stance, and began to focus.
Author's Notes: And that does it for this one!
At first, I wasn't too sure at first about Estel using what looked to be ki during certain attacks during the small bit of footage that was posted. When Estel was just a boss that you fought twice in the story, she showed no obvious superhuman traits. She was a fighter that was purely weapons-based, so seeing her use ki took me by surprise.
But then I gave it some thought and realized that it wasn't so strange of an idea Other members of the WOPD have shown some clearly superhuman feats. The Commissioner, for example, can dash with such speed and force that he creates a small explosion upon colliding with a wall. I figured that Estel's new abilities could make for a nice story element that I could weave into her character.
Estel, and Adam for that matter, needing to use extra tough punching bags is meant to reflect what the playable character can do in the game itself. Koobo is a robot, yet he's an enemy that Adam can fight, and one that he probably has fought offscreen during the events of the game. With Estel becoming playable, I figured that it was reasonable that given her strength, she'd be able to take on opponents such as Koobo.
There was also mention of Axel and his use of ki. I decided to mention his weapon special from the series' third entry in an attempt to better establish how I consider ki to work. I also decided to describe his weapon special to be effective with other weapons, apart from swords, as seen in that game. I figure that a fighter as skilled as Axel could manage transferring that wave of ki with any weapon he wanted. I decided to give this little exposition moment to Axel alone rather than include Blaze, because her weapon special in the third game just involves her propelling herself forward with her ki, rather than actually project something from the weapon. I wanted there to be a clear distinction between the two things—Blaze might use ki in her own way, but Axel can actually conduct it through other objects.
This one was something of an odd story to write. It's practically my headcanon on what Estel having powers means in the context of the game's actual story. This wasn't even planned that long before I started, I'd just seen the clip and came up with more and more for this idea the more I thought about it.
How did I do with this? Let me know!