"OK, I'm going to come at you now. Are you ready?"
Before she could respond, he quickly ducked down low and came up with a strike aimed straight at her chin. She wasn't afraid, of course, because she knew that he would never hurt her, but she was expected to react as if her assailant was really a dangerous opponent.
Quickly, Vanessa recognized the attack coming at her and grabbed his wrist firmly. She held on with all of her strength, for her father was still considerably stronger and more experienced than she, and could escape easily if she didn't. She was able to hold onto him for but a brief second before he was finally able to slip away from her.
As he attempted to strike at her feet with a low kick, she backed up a few steps, concentrating the energy that was bound within her legs. She then lunged forward and stretched out her leg as to hit him with a powerful blow, but instead retracted her attack in mid-strike and stumbled back a bit.
Vanessa then collapsed on the ground, her body coated in a layer of sweat from the rigorous training she had been performing for hours.
"Daddy…" she gasped, words coming between her breaths of air. "I'm… I'm really tired. Can we stop now?"
Lewis walked over, looked down at her, and smiled. "Sure, that's no problem, sweetie. I'm getting a little exhausted myself. Let's call it a day, OK?"
Vanessa smiled back, still panting heavily. "OK."
Lewis knelt down and slowly stood his teenage daughter back up. "You know, if you get so worn out, maybe we should cut back on this training a little," he said, looking visibly concerned. "I don't want my little girl to be sore all day."
She shook her head frantically. "No, no, no! I really like training with you, daddy. I learn a lot."
Lewis smiled at her again. "I knew you'd say that… you really seem to enjoy it, and I'm glad I can spend this time together with you." His fingers ran gently through strands of her silver locks, moist and matted together from her perspiration. "I'm very impressed with how you're doing, too. Most girls your age would never be able to accomplish the things that you can. I think you could probably even outdo some of the men on the squad…"
Vanessa was truly surprised by this comment. She knew the men her father worked with… Those guys had been perfecting combat skills on a professional level for years! She couldn't possibly be even close to their rank! "You really think so?"
"Yes, I mean it, Vanessa." His words were tinged with a sincerity she could sense by instinct. "You are naturally powerful."
A puzzled look came across her face. "What do you mean, though?" she asked. "You keep saying that."
"Hmm…"he mumbled, trying to think of what to say. "You know what the people who kept you locked up for all those years were doing with you, right?"
Deep dread began to well inside Vanessa upon hearing these words. She didn't want to bring to mind those experiences. The memories all seemed so dark, cold, and frightening… like the things nightmares were made of. No, she never wanted to dwell upon those again… "I don't really remember, daddy. You know that."
Lewis ran his finger along her collarbone, looking over her powerful figure. "Well… They wanted to make your body into a living weapon. They gave you your initial training, along with all sorts of experimental substances they were working on to strengthen their ranks…"
Lewis then set his palms upon her shoulders and massaged them gently. "You were quite strong to begin with, but because they forced those things upon you… your body has developed in special ways. It's surprised even me. And it'll continue to do so as you keep growing and training…" He took one of her hands in his and pulled it out towards him, extending her arm. His other hand rubbed her well-toned arm muscles tenderly. He then brought her hand up to his lips, where he kissed it.
Lewis looked proudly into the wide, shining green-hazel eyes of his beloved daughter. "You're going to become a strong woman, Vanessa. In fact… you already are."
------------------------------------
The first thing to greet Vanessa's eyes as she woke up that morning was soft rays of sunlight being filtered through the thin curtains of the room's window. She had a hunch that she had woken up later than usual, but she could forgive herself easily. That was the best rest she had gotten in a long time.
Climbing out of the bed, she took a few moments to stretch herself out a bit. It was routine for her to do so, as her occupation demanded for her to be in a constant state of physical readiness whenever possible. As she finished up, she headed back towards her suitcase and bug out some clothes for the day – a soft gray shirt and a pair of loose-fitting casual slacks, and of course the undergarments. Hastily throwing off her nightgown, she hopped into her outfit and then straight out the door into the hallways.
A pungent aroma of something cooking was wafting through the chamber. Vanessa quickly identified it as the unmistakable odor of pork being sizzled. Her curiosity and hunger aroused, she knew the kitchen wasn't far off now.
Sarah stood at the humongous stove, obviously preoccupied with preparing the morning's dish. Jacky stood across from her, leaning on the counter while reading a newspaper. As Vanessa entered the room, he looked up and smiled.
"Congratulations, Vanessa, you are going to the lucky recipient of the Sarah Bryant Homemade Breakfast Special. This isn't a too-common occurrence, you know."
"Wow, you wake up late, Vanessa," said Sarah, not even turning around, totally preoccupied with her cooking.
Vanessa blinked. "I do?"
Jacky pointed to the wall clock, which read 10:17 AM. "Eh, I don't think it's late. Sarah's just weird and wakes up early to watch TV. Plus she wanted to work on getting this ready for you this morning."
"It is a little late, for me. I suppose I was just really tired." Vanessa shrugged.
"Well, it means you probably slept well, at least. That's certainly not a bad thing."
"I did, actually. Thank you both very much for your extended hospitality." Vanessa nodded her head slightly in appreciation. "So…" she said, looking back in Sarah's direction, "What does the, um, 'Sarah Special' consist of?"
Sarah, still facing the counter, turned her head as far as she could in Vanessa's direction to respond. "It's a ham and cheese breakfast omelet. With my special touch."
Jacky snorted. "Special touch, she says."
"Quiet, you!"
"Eh, well at least it will be edible. Which is more than I could say if I made it."
As Jacky spoke, Vanessa walked over besides Sarah to see how their meal was coming along. Sarah took notice as she peered over her shoulder.
"You like cooking, Vanessa?"
Vanessa hadn't been expecting the question. "Um… no, not really. I've never been much of a cook."
"Oh, that's too bad. It's fun. I quite like it, but never have the opportunity to do it much." Sarah shook the frying pan back and forth a little. "We're almost done here. Why don't you sit down at the table?"
Vanessa blinked. "We're not eating in the dining room?"
"Nah, this is just a casual meal. That's for formalities."
"Hmm. I see."
"Sit down, please. Go ahead and make yourself at home, here."
Vanessa sat down across from where Jacky was reading his paper, taking a quick glance at the headlines as she did so. The usual political blather and crime shock reporting, it seemed. After a moment or two, he walked over and sat down across from her.
"So Sarah treated you well last night, then? I hear you got acquainted with the massage bath."
"Yes, I did. It was a very pleasant experience."
"Good, good. And your room?"
"It's very nice. I think it's almost a little too much."
Sarah walked over with a finished dish and set it in front of Vanessa. "Don't say that! We only want to be hospitable to a family friend." She set down silverware, a cup of coffee, and some cream as well. "If you want more, the coffeemaker is on the counter over there. Feel free to take as much as you want."
"Thank you." Vanessa began to sip at her drink as Sarah ran over to fetch her and Jacky's portion. She then started on her meal, which proved to be as tasty as the pastries she was given the night before.
Sarah sat down next to her brother and the two began their dining.
"So, Vanessa, you have any hobbies?" said Sarah, swallowing a mouthful of food.
"Hobbies?"
"Yeah, you know. You play sports? Watch movies? Listen to music? Something like that."
"Well, yes. But why do you ask?"
Jacky spoke up. "We'd love to do stuff with you while you're here with us. Sarah suggested doing 'something fun' as a trio last night, so we wanted to ask you what sort of things you wanted to do."
Vanessa shrugged and gulped down a bit more coffee. "I really don't know what's in this area, so… do you have someplace you like to go?"
"Actually, we usually spend part of the afternoon training on Thursdays," said Sarah, slowly stirring some cream into her drink.
Vanessa's ears perked at this. "Training?"
"Yeah, I told you about our martial arts last night," Jacky chimed in, still chewing a little bit. "We have our mutual Jeet Kune Do practice a couple times a week together."
"But, since you're here, we can skip today and spend it doing something you'd like instead." Sarah took another sip of coffee and smiled at Vanessa. "Do you have any general suggestions? It's about a half-hour drive into the city…"
"Well, actually… I don't think I would mind seeing your training at all. In fact, I'd rather like to, if you wouldn't mind."
"Oh?" Sarah's face showed her surprise. "Why's that? It's really not very interesting at all. You might get bored."
"I don't think I mentioned it to you last night, but hand-to-hand combat is one of my areas of expertise. I do a lot of training and practice myself."
"What? Really!" Sarah was intrigued now. "You too? That's so cool! So what do you practice?"
"Well…" Vanessa took another bite, cleared her throat, and then continued on. "My father was a commander in a Special Forces unit. All of the soldiers there were given extensive training in a combat style called Vale Tudo." She paused and took another small sip of coffee. "So, that's what I learned. He and I trained together a lot when I was a teenager. But now, I've been working on it mostly on my own."
"Vale Tudo, huh?" said Sarah, curious. "I think I've heard of it, but I don't know much about it."
"The name's Brazilian in origin, I know…" said Jacky, walking over to the coffee brewer to refill his cup. He wasn't in the least bit surprised that Vanessa had some sort of hand-to-hand combat ability. In fact, given her credentials, he had expected it. "Could you explain it a little?
"Um…it's a little bit difficult to describe. It's sort of a combination of a few things, and it's a bit more competitive than a lot of other fighting styles."
"Yeah, there's tournaments and stuff for it, right?"
Vanessa nodded in confirmation. "Most of the basics of what I learned originates from Brazilian Jiujutsu. My father and his friends instructed me in this form. I have done a little bit of competitive fighting, and picked up a few various bits and pieces from the others I sparred against and training. But that's just my individual style. Some people's Vale Tudo practice looks much different.
She continued on. "When I was very, very young, too… I learned a bit of Muay Thai. I used to be able to perform in that style quite well. But right now…" she paused very briefly, trying to think of a way to describe her situation. "I guess you would say that I am in a period of transition. I'm not really happy with Muay Thai for… various reasons. So, I've been working on developing a different style using some elements of Muay Thai, but making more use of the principles that my father taught me."
"Dang. You really ARE into this." Jacky set his mug down on the counter. "You've got me all intrigued about it now, Vanessa."
"Oh? Well, if you want to ask other questions, feel free…"
"Screw questions, I wanna SEE this." He walked back over to the table. "Would you mind giving us a demonstration, Vanessa?"
She hesitated for a second. "Well, sure, if you'd like. It's no problem." Well, this may be an interesting experience, she thought to herself. I've never exactly TRAINED with my clients before…
"In that case, coming to training with us is a great idea," said Sarah enthusiastically. "We can see your ability firsthand!"
Jacky smiled. His sister had stated what was on his mind without even knowing it. The desire within had begun to climb… he just HAD to see what Vanessa's hand-to-hand was like in action.
"Let's just hope my BROTHER here doesn't ruin it by acting like a doofus. He's prone to that," said Sarah, grinning.
"HEY!"
"It's true. It has been proven time and time again."
Jacky pointed at his sister. "You see what I have to put up with every day? Thank God you're around now, maybe I can finally socialize with someone in this house who isn't a total OWWW!"
Sarah had grabbed the collar of his T-shirt and was yanking it back towards her forcefully, giggling as she did so.
Vanessa could see the closeness of the duo in their familial roughhousing, but felt the need to interrupt them anyway. "So, um, what sort of training are we doing?"
Sarah's grip fell and her brother ceased his struggling. "Well, whatever you feel comfortable with," said Jacky, readjusting his shirt. "Sometimes me and Sarah just work out and discuss technique and form with each other, other times we go and practice skills we've been working on, and from time to time we've been known to spar with each other a little."
"Oh? Sparring…" Something jogged a bit in Vanessa's mind.
Jacky saw her gaze shift a little. "Yeah, sparring. What about it?"
Vanessa quickly snapped back into focus. "I rather like the idea of sparring. Do you think it might be a possibility?"
"Really? But you don't even know the sort of things we can do yet…"
She shook her head. "That's OK. I think that'll make it an even better experience, don't you think?"
"Hmmm, you're right," Jacky conceded. "Well then, that's how we'll train today, then. You and me, and then you and Sarah…"
"Actually, I'm not sure if I'm really up for sparring today," said Sarah, shifting in her seat a little. "I want to train, still, but…"
"Oh, I see." He leaned towards Vanessa and whispered intentionally loudly. "Looks like it's THAT TIME again."
Jacky's accusations were met with a quick thwap on his head with the back of a fork.
"Owwwwww!"
Jacky felt a strange anticipation as he headed towards the gymnasium that afternoon. He had changed out of his usual jeans-and-shirt ensemble into his workout clothing. He had spent the morning doing work while Sarah had been showing Vanessa their private training center. Work usually wasn't too much of a bother to him, but the hours had seemed to drag from knowing what was to come later in the day.
It was over now, though. It was time to see just what that woman was made of…
He drew in a heavy breath as he pushed open the door to the gym, looking for the two ladies. There was his sister towards the left, suited for practice in her typical stretchy, shiny blue spandex workout suit. But where was Vanessa? His gaze drifted across to the other side of the room. There, stretching out her legs, was a tan-skinned figure wearing a set of black, gold-embroidered shorts and a similarly dark sports bra…
Oh my god.
His jaw almost hit the floor. He walked ever closer to her, his attention transfixed.
The other times he had seen Vanessa, she was wearing either a uniform or the simple outfit she had put on earlier today, which had covered up most of her body. But now, her figure stood mostly exposed, and it was an impressive sight. Jacky had expected a strong woman, but never had he imagined anything like this….
A female body, designed almost purely for combat. Vanessa's arms were heavily built, their ligament very thinly visible through her darkened skin. Her shoulders and back were toned in a powerful physique, and layers of muscle rippled down her abdomen into her legs. And her legs… the energy they contained was obvious, with her thick hips and smooth, firm, curved calves standing tall, supporting the rest of the pillar of strength that stood before him.
Jacky's heart began to race as he looked over her impeccably athletic form, realizing fully now what he was going up against. He knew she was capable – nobody would be in an organization like the SP that wasn't – but this… this was something he had never anticipated…
"Wow," he mouthed, totally stunned, eyes still transfixed.
"Hmmm?" Sarah walked over to meet him.
Jacky snapped out of his trance. Shit, he must have spoken aloud without realizing it! "Um..." By now the two were staring at him, piqued curiosity visible in their combined gazes. "Er…" he scratched the back of his neck nervously, trying to think of what to say… "Well… what I mean is…" He looked up towards Vanessa. "Vanessa, you… you have an incredible body."
Vanessa's face widened in surprise, unsure how to take his comment, as his sister's eyes narrowed in irritation. "Excuse me, brother?" she inquired, anger pervading her voice.
Jacky realized the two had understood him the wrong way. "Ah, no, no, no! That's… that's not really what I meant…" He walked slowly over to Vanessa and set his hands upon her broad shoulders.
He slowly slid his hands down her arms, feeling the form of her thickened muscles, squeezing softly, trying to gauge the strength contained within. "You look so… so… what's the word…?"
Vanessa stood still, trying to hide her discomfort at Jacky's touch. She was more than used to people being impressed by her body – it had been this way since she was a teenager. But never had anyone been this DIRECT before… She resisted the urge to rudely throw his arms off her. He was her employer, after all, and it's not like he was trying to do anything funny…
Jacky suddenly felt the hard press of his sister's elbow into the side of his waist. "Jacky, you're EMBARASSING her!" she hissed loudly.
He looked up at Vanessa's face, and then quickly stepped back. "Oh god… I'm… I'm sorry, Vanessa, I didn't mean to…"
Wait, how did Sarah know? Vanessa thought to herself. She then realized the heat radiating from her face. That must have given it away…
Sarah returned to Vanessa's side. "See, what did I tell you?" she half-whispered, elbowing Vanessa gently in the side. "Is he dorky or what?"
Knowing that it was a rhetorical question, Vanessa looked back at Sarah for a brief second in response. Slightly unnerved, she faced Jacky again. "So, what are the terms of this?" she asked.
"Well," Jacky started, still attempting to regain his composure, "here's what I usually do in practice rounds. I'm not going to do anything that would really hurt you. I'll take some swings at you, but I'm not going to use the sort of force in them that I would in a real fight. I might put you into a few grabs and holds, but I'm not going to follow through all the way with them. I ask that you please do the same."
Vanessa nodded. "That sounds very reasonable."
"Keep in mind, even though this isn't a real battle, and I'm deliberately going to restrain some force, it will get rather rough. You probably will wind up with some scrapes and bruises. Is that OK? " Why am I even bothering to ask? he thought to himself. She looks like she could handle much more than a few blows…
"No, it's fine. I've done things like this many times in the past."
"You'll do the same?"
She nodded again.
"And I'll be referee!" chimed Sarah from the background.
Jacky turned back at her. "We need a referee for sparring?"
"Sure, why not?"
"We've never used one before. What would you do?"
"I yell GO to get you to start."
"That's all?"
"Well, in case you get your ass pounded, I'm the first to dial 911."
"Um, I don't think that's necessary."
"You never know," Sarah replied, grinning widely.
Jacky shook his head and smiled back. "Alrighty, you get to start the round. That OK with you, Vanessa?"
Vanessa nodded. "That's fine."
Sarah looked back and forth between the two. "So, you guys wanna start now, or do you want to warm up a little?"
"Gimme a sec." Jacky walked back and did several quick arm circles to stretch out a little. "That should be OK for now."
"That's all you're going to do?"
"I'm ALWAYS ready to go," he said, with a goofy smirk on his face.
Sarah responded with a puzzled glance before turning face. "And you, Vanessa?"
"We've been here for a while, Sarah. I think I'm pretty well prepared."
"Alright, then. Vanessa, please take your place here," said Sarah, walking over to a spot a few feet away from Jacky and tapping it with her foot. Vanessa followed and assumed position as Sarah backed away from the two. She stared intently at Jacky, whose facial expression had suddenly taken on seriousness and concentration. Focus yourself, she thought. It's best to leave a good impression.
"At my voice, you two begin. Understood?"
The pair nodded, still gazing intently at each other.
"OK then. Get ready…"
Vanessa immediately leapt into her fighting stance, hopping lightly on the tips of her toes. Jacky followed suit, swaying his body slightly back and forth.
"GO!"
At the sound of Sarah's voice, Jacky quickly lunged forward and stretched his arm to strike at Vanessa with a Beat Knuckle. Only a light swing… if he put too much force into it, he could leave her considerably injured. The arc of his swing was aimed precisely to hit at the side of her midsection, knocking her off her balance.
Her instincts quickly kicked in. Within a fraction of a second she had snatched Jacky's incoming strike, holding his wrist in a firm grip.
Jacky was absolutely stunned. She probably saw that attack coming, but how did she manage to react so quickly? He stood for a second or two flabbergasted by the whole situation. Then, a realization hit him hard: You have to get out of this, Jacky. If you ever stalled like this in a real fight, the opponent would take advantage of it.
He worked to struggle free of her hold, trying to wrench his wrist out of Vanessa's grip. Just as he felt himself begin to slip free, he was greeted by a blow from her leg to the side of his midsection.
"Oof!" It wasn't a very hard strike, he just hadn't been expecting it. He'd been too focused on trying to break away from her handhold. As he quickly regained his composure, he finally managed to free himself from her grasp with several fast, strong tugs of his arm.
Shit… now I know one thing I most definitely need to work on.
There was no time to reflect, though. Not knowing what she would do next, he stepped forward and lunged out with his arm, hitting her lightly. He stood in this position for a brief moment, delaying his second strike to hit just as she regained composure from the previous blow.
Now it was Vanessa's turn to be hit by something she didn't expect. She had been preparing a small counterstrike, only to be knocked to the floor by a strong upwards kick. He was hitting a bit harder than she expected – nothing that would sting for too long, though. It didn't bother her one bit.
The two flashed a glare into each other's eyes for only a second, but it was enough to get the message – they both knew that this fight was going to be full of surprises.
Not wanting to have his punch caught again, he struck Vanessa with a light kick first, and then a quick back knuckle. Her guard of these attacks came too late to be of benefit to her, but she didn't seem particularly affected. She merely shifted back a little and lashed out with a sidekick, countering the next technique Jacky had begun to move into.
Jacky, expertly regaining his composure from the surprise hit, quickly spun around backwards, thrusting his arm forth so that the back of his fist would strike Vanessa. She easily braced herself for the blow. However, she failed to anticipate Jacky's next movement. Within a blink of an eye he had spun back around in the opposite direction, shifting his weight and his striking arm to aim at her lower body. His hit succeeded on knocking her down onto the floor. She braced herself for the fall and quickly rolled to the side, only to be met with another spin kick as she rose, taking her down again by complete surprise. Vanessa hit the ground with a very tiny thud. As she regathered herself and got up, she lashed her leg up towards Jacky, hoping to hit him as retaliation for her knockdown. Sensing her attack coming, he blocked it easily. Vanessa knew he was going to try something as soon as he guarded against her kick. The moment both of her feet touched the ground again, she shifted away to the side.
She moved just in time. The displaced air from a missed flipkick blew into her face as she barely dodged out of the way. Seeing a window of opportunity that would be dangerous to pass up, Vanessa rushed in as Jacky landed on the ground, and greeted him with three quick elbow strikes to his chest, knocking him to the floor.
That was stupid of me, Jacky thought, quickly working to get back up and face her again. As she attempted to swing a punch at him, he quickly hopped backwards to dodge, then lunged forward with a wide, high sword kick. Vanessa took the blow and was knocked back, but quickly worked to recover herself in time to block his elbow.
She attempted a counterstrike by aiming at Jacky's lower body. He guarded her low punch easily, but, expecting to counter another low assault, he was taken by surprise as Vanessa rose from her crouch with a sharp, cutting attack to his face. He stumbled onto his back, quickly working to get back on his feet as she speedily dashed over to him. Just as he regained his footing, Jacky was stunned by a quick, hard blow to his face. He hadn't been expecting something so sudden. Before he even knew it, his footing was knocked out from underneath him, sending him down to the ground. But something held him in his fall… As he had been recovering from the stun of her blow, she had stepped behind him and wrapped her muscular arms around his neck. He could feel their strength in full as their vicelike grip carefully tightened.
He knew what was intended to come next… in this position, a quick twist of Vanessa's arms and she would severely injure his neck - maybe even break it. A sudden rush of fright and adrenaline pumped through him. He was completely at her mercy! If for some reason she decided to break the honor code now… god alone knew how he could suffer…
His fear proved unfounded, as she quickly released her hold and backed off, dropping Jacky to the ground, backing away.
Stalling for a brief second on the ground, he quickly decided he didn't ever want to be on the receiving end of that in a real fight. Then, becoming aware of his heightened vulnerability, he quickly began to roll away.
This had become a bit rougher than he thought. But was that a bad thing…?
Seeing Jacky rise again, Vanessa decided to try something interesting. She took a large jump towards Jacky, whirling around with her leg outstretched as she did so, looking to hit his upper body and shatter his guard with the well-placed blow.
What she failed to anticipate, though, was Jacky ducking just below the reach of her spinkick.
It was too late to react. As Vanessa landed, she saw Jacky quickly dash behind her. She felt his blow upon the back of her neck, knocking her down to the ground. He had seen the opportunity, and seized it well. Lying on the ground for a few seconds, trying to catch her breath, she rolled onto her back, looking up at him, still breathing heavily.
"Well… you got me." She coughed a little. "You win this time, Jacky."
Without saying a word, he leaned over and extended his hand down to her. She grabbed ahold of it and used his extra leverage to push herself back onto her feet, the two of them still panting heavily. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and threw her hair back before turning to face Jacky again.
"Now," she said, with a smile breaking onto her lips, "THAT was fun."
Jacky smiled back and nodded. "So true…" he said, staring at her face. He hadn't seen an expression so warm and pleasant upon her before this…
She really is beautiful when she smiles, he thought.
"Hmmm, this didn't go as well as I wished it would have, though." Her smile began to dissipate. "I only got to try a few things that I've been working on, and even those I messed up…"
"Really?"
She nodded.
"I would have never guessed that until you said it. Honestly, Vanessa, you are an excellent fighter. The whole time we were sparring, you kept me on my toes. Not many people can do that."
"I… surprised you?"
"Yeah, in fact, you scared the living bejeezus out of me a couple times. Hell, when you had your arms clamped around my neck I felt like you could have KILED me. I'm not sure what exactly you didn't show us, but if it's anything like you did just now, I'm sure it's some incredible technique."
She turned away from him and shrugged. "I just need more practice, I guess."
"I hope you do keep practicing," Sarah suddenly chimed in from the background, walking towards them. "That was one of the most interesting bouts I've seen in a long time. Vanessa, you've really got something going there."
"Damn right she does," Jacky added. "We're definitely going to have to do this more in the future. It'll be good for the both of us, don't you think so, Vanessa?"
"HEY! What about me? Do I have no right to practice with our guest?" said Sarah, looking annoyed.
"Erm… I suppose if you really want to."
"Of COURSE I want to. You should know better."
Jacky sighed. "I guess I should," he said, with a small chuckle. "You really enjoy this sort of thing. Almost too much…"
Sarah went back over to Vanessa's side and put her hand on her shoulder, shaking it lightly. "Vanessa, we should do fun stuff together in the future! Like sparring, and… well… other stuff. You know."
Vanessa looked straight into Sarah's smiling face, and then back at Jacky, who nodded affirmatively at how well Sarah and Vanessa were already getting along.
"I think I will be able to learn quite a lot from both of you," she said, with another very faint smile…
--NOTES--
It's finally here, and I hope it's passable. It also marks the appearance of actual fighting! W00t! I tried to draw from actual in-game experience in writing – I wonder if that shows through or not. ^^;
Chapter 4 is up as well. It's a definite (though merely temporary) change in mood that might disturb some particularly sensitive souls. But I think it's for the best, as I wrote it for the intent of further character development. Input is much welcomed.
Before she could respond, he quickly ducked down low and came up with a strike aimed straight at her chin. She wasn't afraid, of course, because she knew that he would never hurt her, but she was expected to react as if her assailant was really a dangerous opponent.
Quickly, Vanessa recognized the attack coming at her and grabbed his wrist firmly. She held on with all of her strength, for her father was still considerably stronger and more experienced than she, and could escape easily if she didn't. She was able to hold onto him for but a brief second before he was finally able to slip away from her.
As he attempted to strike at her feet with a low kick, she backed up a few steps, concentrating the energy that was bound within her legs. She then lunged forward and stretched out her leg as to hit him with a powerful blow, but instead retracted her attack in mid-strike and stumbled back a bit.
Vanessa then collapsed on the ground, her body coated in a layer of sweat from the rigorous training she had been performing for hours.
"Daddy…" she gasped, words coming between her breaths of air. "I'm… I'm really tired. Can we stop now?"
Lewis walked over, looked down at her, and smiled. "Sure, that's no problem, sweetie. I'm getting a little exhausted myself. Let's call it a day, OK?"
Vanessa smiled back, still panting heavily. "OK."
Lewis knelt down and slowly stood his teenage daughter back up. "You know, if you get so worn out, maybe we should cut back on this training a little," he said, looking visibly concerned. "I don't want my little girl to be sore all day."
She shook her head frantically. "No, no, no! I really like training with you, daddy. I learn a lot."
Lewis smiled at her again. "I knew you'd say that… you really seem to enjoy it, and I'm glad I can spend this time together with you." His fingers ran gently through strands of her silver locks, moist and matted together from her perspiration. "I'm very impressed with how you're doing, too. Most girls your age would never be able to accomplish the things that you can. I think you could probably even outdo some of the men on the squad…"
Vanessa was truly surprised by this comment. She knew the men her father worked with… Those guys had been perfecting combat skills on a professional level for years! She couldn't possibly be even close to their rank! "You really think so?"
"Yes, I mean it, Vanessa." His words were tinged with a sincerity she could sense by instinct. "You are naturally powerful."
A puzzled look came across her face. "What do you mean, though?" she asked. "You keep saying that."
"Hmm…"he mumbled, trying to think of what to say. "You know what the people who kept you locked up for all those years were doing with you, right?"
Deep dread began to well inside Vanessa upon hearing these words. She didn't want to bring to mind those experiences. The memories all seemed so dark, cold, and frightening… like the things nightmares were made of. No, she never wanted to dwell upon those again… "I don't really remember, daddy. You know that."
Lewis ran his finger along her collarbone, looking over her powerful figure. "Well… They wanted to make your body into a living weapon. They gave you your initial training, along with all sorts of experimental substances they were working on to strengthen their ranks…"
Lewis then set his palms upon her shoulders and massaged them gently. "You were quite strong to begin with, but because they forced those things upon you… your body has developed in special ways. It's surprised even me. And it'll continue to do so as you keep growing and training…" He took one of her hands in his and pulled it out towards him, extending her arm. His other hand rubbed her well-toned arm muscles tenderly. He then brought her hand up to his lips, where he kissed it.
Lewis looked proudly into the wide, shining green-hazel eyes of his beloved daughter. "You're going to become a strong woman, Vanessa. In fact… you already are."
------------------------------------
The first thing to greet Vanessa's eyes as she woke up that morning was soft rays of sunlight being filtered through the thin curtains of the room's window. She had a hunch that she had woken up later than usual, but she could forgive herself easily. That was the best rest she had gotten in a long time.
Climbing out of the bed, she took a few moments to stretch herself out a bit. It was routine for her to do so, as her occupation demanded for her to be in a constant state of physical readiness whenever possible. As she finished up, she headed back towards her suitcase and bug out some clothes for the day – a soft gray shirt and a pair of loose-fitting casual slacks, and of course the undergarments. Hastily throwing off her nightgown, she hopped into her outfit and then straight out the door into the hallways.
A pungent aroma of something cooking was wafting through the chamber. Vanessa quickly identified it as the unmistakable odor of pork being sizzled. Her curiosity and hunger aroused, she knew the kitchen wasn't far off now.
Sarah stood at the humongous stove, obviously preoccupied with preparing the morning's dish. Jacky stood across from her, leaning on the counter while reading a newspaper. As Vanessa entered the room, he looked up and smiled.
"Congratulations, Vanessa, you are going to the lucky recipient of the Sarah Bryant Homemade Breakfast Special. This isn't a too-common occurrence, you know."
"Wow, you wake up late, Vanessa," said Sarah, not even turning around, totally preoccupied with her cooking.
Vanessa blinked. "I do?"
Jacky pointed to the wall clock, which read 10:17 AM. "Eh, I don't think it's late. Sarah's just weird and wakes up early to watch TV. Plus she wanted to work on getting this ready for you this morning."
"It is a little late, for me. I suppose I was just really tired." Vanessa shrugged.
"Well, it means you probably slept well, at least. That's certainly not a bad thing."
"I did, actually. Thank you both very much for your extended hospitality." Vanessa nodded her head slightly in appreciation. "So…" she said, looking back in Sarah's direction, "What does the, um, 'Sarah Special' consist of?"
Sarah, still facing the counter, turned her head as far as she could in Vanessa's direction to respond. "It's a ham and cheese breakfast omelet. With my special touch."
Jacky snorted. "Special touch, she says."
"Quiet, you!"
"Eh, well at least it will be edible. Which is more than I could say if I made it."
As Jacky spoke, Vanessa walked over besides Sarah to see how their meal was coming along. Sarah took notice as she peered over her shoulder.
"You like cooking, Vanessa?"
Vanessa hadn't been expecting the question. "Um… no, not really. I've never been much of a cook."
"Oh, that's too bad. It's fun. I quite like it, but never have the opportunity to do it much." Sarah shook the frying pan back and forth a little. "We're almost done here. Why don't you sit down at the table?"
Vanessa blinked. "We're not eating in the dining room?"
"Nah, this is just a casual meal. That's for formalities."
"Hmm. I see."
"Sit down, please. Go ahead and make yourself at home, here."
Vanessa sat down across from where Jacky was reading his paper, taking a quick glance at the headlines as she did so. The usual political blather and crime shock reporting, it seemed. After a moment or two, he walked over and sat down across from her.
"So Sarah treated you well last night, then? I hear you got acquainted with the massage bath."
"Yes, I did. It was a very pleasant experience."
"Good, good. And your room?"
"It's very nice. I think it's almost a little too much."
Sarah walked over with a finished dish and set it in front of Vanessa. "Don't say that! We only want to be hospitable to a family friend." She set down silverware, a cup of coffee, and some cream as well. "If you want more, the coffeemaker is on the counter over there. Feel free to take as much as you want."
"Thank you." Vanessa began to sip at her drink as Sarah ran over to fetch her and Jacky's portion. She then started on her meal, which proved to be as tasty as the pastries she was given the night before.
Sarah sat down next to her brother and the two began their dining.
"So, Vanessa, you have any hobbies?" said Sarah, swallowing a mouthful of food.
"Hobbies?"
"Yeah, you know. You play sports? Watch movies? Listen to music? Something like that."
"Well, yes. But why do you ask?"
Jacky spoke up. "We'd love to do stuff with you while you're here with us. Sarah suggested doing 'something fun' as a trio last night, so we wanted to ask you what sort of things you wanted to do."
Vanessa shrugged and gulped down a bit more coffee. "I really don't know what's in this area, so… do you have someplace you like to go?"
"Actually, we usually spend part of the afternoon training on Thursdays," said Sarah, slowly stirring some cream into her drink.
Vanessa's ears perked at this. "Training?"
"Yeah, I told you about our martial arts last night," Jacky chimed in, still chewing a little bit. "We have our mutual Jeet Kune Do practice a couple times a week together."
"But, since you're here, we can skip today and spend it doing something you'd like instead." Sarah took another sip of coffee and smiled at Vanessa. "Do you have any general suggestions? It's about a half-hour drive into the city…"
"Well, actually… I don't think I would mind seeing your training at all. In fact, I'd rather like to, if you wouldn't mind."
"Oh?" Sarah's face showed her surprise. "Why's that? It's really not very interesting at all. You might get bored."
"I don't think I mentioned it to you last night, but hand-to-hand combat is one of my areas of expertise. I do a lot of training and practice myself."
"What? Really!" Sarah was intrigued now. "You too? That's so cool! So what do you practice?"
"Well…" Vanessa took another bite, cleared her throat, and then continued on. "My father was a commander in a Special Forces unit. All of the soldiers there were given extensive training in a combat style called Vale Tudo." She paused and took another small sip of coffee. "So, that's what I learned. He and I trained together a lot when I was a teenager. But now, I've been working on it mostly on my own."
"Vale Tudo, huh?" said Sarah, curious. "I think I've heard of it, but I don't know much about it."
"The name's Brazilian in origin, I know…" said Jacky, walking over to the coffee brewer to refill his cup. He wasn't in the least bit surprised that Vanessa had some sort of hand-to-hand combat ability. In fact, given her credentials, he had expected it. "Could you explain it a little?
"Um…it's a little bit difficult to describe. It's sort of a combination of a few things, and it's a bit more competitive than a lot of other fighting styles."
"Yeah, there's tournaments and stuff for it, right?"
Vanessa nodded in confirmation. "Most of the basics of what I learned originates from Brazilian Jiujutsu. My father and his friends instructed me in this form. I have done a little bit of competitive fighting, and picked up a few various bits and pieces from the others I sparred against and training. But that's just my individual style. Some people's Vale Tudo practice looks much different.
She continued on. "When I was very, very young, too… I learned a bit of Muay Thai. I used to be able to perform in that style quite well. But right now…" she paused very briefly, trying to think of a way to describe her situation. "I guess you would say that I am in a period of transition. I'm not really happy with Muay Thai for… various reasons. So, I've been working on developing a different style using some elements of Muay Thai, but making more use of the principles that my father taught me."
"Dang. You really ARE into this." Jacky set his mug down on the counter. "You've got me all intrigued about it now, Vanessa."
"Oh? Well, if you want to ask other questions, feel free…"
"Screw questions, I wanna SEE this." He walked back over to the table. "Would you mind giving us a demonstration, Vanessa?"
She hesitated for a second. "Well, sure, if you'd like. It's no problem." Well, this may be an interesting experience, she thought to herself. I've never exactly TRAINED with my clients before…
"In that case, coming to training with us is a great idea," said Sarah enthusiastically. "We can see your ability firsthand!"
Jacky smiled. His sister had stated what was on his mind without even knowing it. The desire within had begun to climb… he just HAD to see what Vanessa's hand-to-hand was like in action.
"Let's just hope my BROTHER here doesn't ruin it by acting like a doofus. He's prone to that," said Sarah, grinning.
"HEY!"
"It's true. It has been proven time and time again."
Jacky pointed at his sister. "You see what I have to put up with every day? Thank God you're around now, maybe I can finally socialize with someone in this house who isn't a total OWWW!"
Sarah had grabbed the collar of his T-shirt and was yanking it back towards her forcefully, giggling as she did so.
Vanessa could see the closeness of the duo in their familial roughhousing, but felt the need to interrupt them anyway. "So, um, what sort of training are we doing?"
Sarah's grip fell and her brother ceased his struggling. "Well, whatever you feel comfortable with," said Jacky, readjusting his shirt. "Sometimes me and Sarah just work out and discuss technique and form with each other, other times we go and practice skills we've been working on, and from time to time we've been known to spar with each other a little."
"Oh? Sparring…" Something jogged a bit in Vanessa's mind.
Jacky saw her gaze shift a little. "Yeah, sparring. What about it?"
Vanessa quickly snapped back into focus. "I rather like the idea of sparring. Do you think it might be a possibility?"
"Really? But you don't even know the sort of things we can do yet…"
She shook her head. "That's OK. I think that'll make it an even better experience, don't you think?"
"Hmmm, you're right," Jacky conceded. "Well then, that's how we'll train today, then. You and me, and then you and Sarah…"
"Actually, I'm not sure if I'm really up for sparring today," said Sarah, shifting in her seat a little. "I want to train, still, but…"
"Oh, I see." He leaned towards Vanessa and whispered intentionally loudly. "Looks like it's THAT TIME again."
Jacky's accusations were met with a quick thwap on his head with the back of a fork.
"Owwwwww!"
Jacky felt a strange anticipation as he headed towards the gymnasium that afternoon. He had changed out of his usual jeans-and-shirt ensemble into his workout clothing. He had spent the morning doing work while Sarah had been showing Vanessa their private training center. Work usually wasn't too much of a bother to him, but the hours had seemed to drag from knowing what was to come later in the day.
It was over now, though. It was time to see just what that woman was made of…
He drew in a heavy breath as he pushed open the door to the gym, looking for the two ladies. There was his sister towards the left, suited for practice in her typical stretchy, shiny blue spandex workout suit. But where was Vanessa? His gaze drifted across to the other side of the room. There, stretching out her legs, was a tan-skinned figure wearing a set of black, gold-embroidered shorts and a similarly dark sports bra…
Oh my god.
His jaw almost hit the floor. He walked ever closer to her, his attention transfixed.
The other times he had seen Vanessa, she was wearing either a uniform or the simple outfit she had put on earlier today, which had covered up most of her body. But now, her figure stood mostly exposed, and it was an impressive sight. Jacky had expected a strong woman, but never had he imagined anything like this….
A female body, designed almost purely for combat. Vanessa's arms were heavily built, their ligament very thinly visible through her darkened skin. Her shoulders and back were toned in a powerful physique, and layers of muscle rippled down her abdomen into her legs. And her legs… the energy they contained was obvious, with her thick hips and smooth, firm, curved calves standing tall, supporting the rest of the pillar of strength that stood before him.
Jacky's heart began to race as he looked over her impeccably athletic form, realizing fully now what he was going up against. He knew she was capable – nobody would be in an organization like the SP that wasn't – but this… this was something he had never anticipated…
"Wow," he mouthed, totally stunned, eyes still transfixed.
"Hmmm?" Sarah walked over to meet him.
Jacky snapped out of his trance. Shit, he must have spoken aloud without realizing it! "Um..." By now the two were staring at him, piqued curiosity visible in their combined gazes. "Er…" he scratched the back of his neck nervously, trying to think of what to say… "Well… what I mean is…" He looked up towards Vanessa. "Vanessa, you… you have an incredible body."
Vanessa's face widened in surprise, unsure how to take his comment, as his sister's eyes narrowed in irritation. "Excuse me, brother?" she inquired, anger pervading her voice.
Jacky realized the two had understood him the wrong way. "Ah, no, no, no! That's… that's not really what I meant…" He walked slowly over to Vanessa and set his hands upon her broad shoulders.
He slowly slid his hands down her arms, feeling the form of her thickened muscles, squeezing softly, trying to gauge the strength contained within. "You look so… so… what's the word…?"
Vanessa stood still, trying to hide her discomfort at Jacky's touch. She was more than used to people being impressed by her body – it had been this way since she was a teenager. But never had anyone been this DIRECT before… She resisted the urge to rudely throw his arms off her. He was her employer, after all, and it's not like he was trying to do anything funny…
Jacky suddenly felt the hard press of his sister's elbow into the side of his waist. "Jacky, you're EMBARASSING her!" she hissed loudly.
He looked up at Vanessa's face, and then quickly stepped back. "Oh god… I'm… I'm sorry, Vanessa, I didn't mean to…"
Wait, how did Sarah know? Vanessa thought to herself. She then realized the heat radiating from her face. That must have given it away…
Sarah returned to Vanessa's side. "See, what did I tell you?" she half-whispered, elbowing Vanessa gently in the side. "Is he dorky or what?"
Knowing that it was a rhetorical question, Vanessa looked back at Sarah for a brief second in response. Slightly unnerved, she faced Jacky again. "So, what are the terms of this?" she asked.
"Well," Jacky started, still attempting to regain his composure, "here's what I usually do in practice rounds. I'm not going to do anything that would really hurt you. I'll take some swings at you, but I'm not going to use the sort of force in them that I would in a real fight. I might put you into a few grabs and holds, but I'm not going to follow through all the way with them. I ask that you please do the same."
Vanessa nodded. "That sounds very reasonable."
"Keep in mind, even though this isn't a real battle, and I'm deliberately going to restrain some force, it will get rather rough. You probably will wind up with some scrapes and bruises. Is that OK? " Why am I even bothering to ask? he thought to himself. She looks like she could handle much more than a few blows…
"No, it's fine. I've done things like this many times in the past."
"You'll do the same?"
She nodded again.
"And I'll be referee!" chimed Sarah from the background.
Jacky turned back at her. "We need a referee for sparring?"
"Sure, why not?"
"We've never used one before. What would you do?"
"I yell GO to get you to start."
"That's all?"
"Well, in case you get your ass pounded, I'm the first to dial 911."
"Um, I don't think that's necessary."
"You never know," Sarah replied, grinning widely.
Jacky shook his head and smiled back. "Alrighty, you get to start the round. That OK with you, Vanessa?"
Vanessa nodded. "That's fine."
Sarah looked back and forth between the two. "So, you guys wanna start now, or do you want to warm up a little?"
"Gimme a sec." Jacky walked back and did several quick arm circles to stretch out a little. "That should be OK for now."
"That's all you're going to do?"
"I'm ALWAYS ready to go," he said, with a goofy smirk on his face.
Sarah responded with a puzzled glance before turning face. "And you, Vanessa?"
"We've been here for a while, Sarah. I think I'm pretty well prepared."
"Alright, then. Vanessa, please take your place here," said Sarah, walking over to a spot a few feet away from Jacky and tapping it with her foot. Vanessa followed and assumed position as Sarah backed away from the two. She stared intently at Jacky, whose facial expression had suddenly taken on seriousness and concentration. Focus yourself, she thought. It's best to leave a good impression.
"At my voice, you two begin. Understood?"
The pair nodded, still gazing intently at each other.
"OK then. Get ready…"
Vanessa immediately leapt into her fighting stance, hopping lightly on the tips of her toes. Jacky followed suit, swaying his body slightly back and forth.
"GO!"
At the sound of Sarah's voice, Jacky quickly lunged forward and stretched his arm to strike at Vanessa with a Beat Knuckle. Only a light swing… if he put too much force into it, he could leave her considerably injured. The arc of his swing was aimed precisely to hit at the side of her midsection, knocking her off her balance.
Her instincts quickly kicked in. Within a fraction of a second she had snatched Jacky's incoming strike, holding his wrist in a firm grip.
Jacky was absolutely stunned. She probably saw that attack coming, but how did she manage to react so quickly? He stood for a second or two flabbergasted by the whole situation. Then, a realization hit him hard: You have to get out of this, Jacky. If you ever stalled like this in a real fight, the opponent would take advantage of it.
He worked to struggle free of her hold, trying to wrench his wrist out of Vanessa's grip. Just as he felt himself begin to slip free, he was greeted by a blow from her leg to the side of his midsection.
"Oof!" It wasn't a very hard strike, he just hadn't been expecting it. He'd been too focused on trying to break away from her handhold. As he quickly regained his composure, he finally managed to free himself from her grasp with several fast, strong tugs of his arm.
Shit… now I know one thing I most definitely need to work on.
There was no time to reflect, though. Not knowing what she would do next, he stepped forward and lunged out with his arm, hitting her lightly. He stood in this position for a brief moment, delaying his second strike to hit just as she regained composure from the previous blow.
Now it was Vanessa's turn to be hit by something she didn't expect. She had been preparing a small counterstrike, only to be knocked to the floor by a strong upwards kick. He was hitting a bit harder than she expected – nothing that would sting for too long, though. It didn't bother her one bit.
The two flashed a glare into each other's eyes for only a second, but it was enough to get the message – they both knew that this fight was going to be full of surprises.
Not wanting to have his punch caught again, he struck Vanessa with a light kick first, and then a quick back knuckle. Her guard of these attacks came too late to be of benefit to her, but she didn't seem particularly affected. She merely shifted back a little and lashed out with a sidekick, countering the next technique Jacky had begun to move into.
Jacky, expertly regaining his composure from the surprise hit, quickly spun around backwards, thrusting his arm forth so that the back of his fist would strike Vanessa. She easily braced herself for the blow. However, she failed to anticipate Jacky's next movement. Within a blink of an eye he had spun back around in the opposite direction, shifting his weight and his striking arm to aim at her lower body. His hit succeeded on knocking her down onto the floor. She braced herself for the fall and quickly rolled to the side, only to be met with another spin kick as she rose, taking her down again by complete surprise. Vanessa hit the ground with a very tiny thud. As she regathered herself and got up, she lashed her leg up towards Jacky, hoping to hit him as retaliation for her knockdown. Sensing her attack coming, he blocked it easily. Vanessa knew he was going to try something as soon as he guarded against her kick. The moment both of her feet touched the ground again, she shifted away to the side.
She moved just in time. The displaced air from a missed flipkick blew into her face as she barely dodged out of the way. Seeing a window of opportunity that would be dangerous to pass up, Vanessa rushed in as Jacky landed on the ground, and greeted him with three quick elbow strikes to his chest, knocking him to the floor.
That was stupid of me, Jacky thought, quickly working to get back up and face her again. As she attempted to swing a punch at him, he quickly hopped backwards to dodge, then lunged forward with a wide, high sword kick. Vanessa took the blow and was knocked back, but quickly worked to recover herself in time to block his elbow.
She attempted a counterstrike by aiming at Jacky's lower body. He guarded her low punch easily, but, expecting to counter another low assault, he was taken by surprise as Vanessa rose from her crouch with a sharp, cutting attack to his face. He stumbled onto his back, quickly working to get back on his feet as she speedily dashed over to him. Just as he regained his footing, Jacky was stunned by a quick, hard blow to his face. He hadn't been expecting something so sudden. Before he even knew it, his footing was knocked out from underneath him, sending him down to the ground. But something held him in his fall… As he had been recovering from the stun of her blow, she had stepped behind him and wrapped her muscular arms around his neck. He could feel their strength in full as their vicelike grip carefully tightened.
He knew what was intended to come next… in this position, a quick twist of Vanessa's arms and she would severely injure his neck - maybe even break it. A sudden rush of fright and adrenaline pumped through him. He was completely at her mercy! If for some reason she decided to break the honor code now… god alone knew how he could suffer…
His fear proved unfounded, as she quickly released her hold and backed off, dropping Jacky to the ground, backing away.
Stalling for a brief second on the ground, he quickly decided he didn't ever want to be on the receiving end of that in a real fight. Then, becoming aware of his heightened vulnerability, he quickly began to roll away.
This had become a bit rougher than he thought. But was that a bad thing…?
Seeing Jacky rise again, Vanessa decided to try something interesting. She took a large jump towards Jacky, whirling around with her leg outstretched as she did so, looking to hit his upper body and shatter his guard with the well-placed blow.
What she failed to anticipate, though, was Jacky ducking just below the reach of her spinkick.
It was too late to react. As Vanessa landed, she saw Jacky quickly dash behind her. She felt his blow upon the back of her neck, knocking her down to the ground. He had seen the opportunity, and seized it well. Lying on the ground for a few seconds, trying to catch her breath, she rolled onto her back, looking up at him, still breathing heavily.
"Well… you got me." She coughed a little. "You win this time, Jacky."
Without saying a word, he leaned over and extended his hand down to her. She grabbed ahold of it and used his extra leverage to push herself back onto her feet, the two of them still panting heavily. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and threw her hair back before turning to face Jacky again.
"Now," she said, with a smile breaking onto her lips, "THAT was fun."
Jacky smiled back and nodded. "So true…" he said, staring at her face. He hadn't seen an expression so warm and pleasant upon her before this…
She really is beautiful when she smiles, he thought.
"Hmmm, this didn't go as well as I wished it would have, though." Her smile began to dissipate. "I only got to try a few things that I've been working on, and even those I messed up…"
"Really?"
She nodded.
"I would have never guessed that until you said it. Honestly, Vanessa, you are an excellent fighter. The whole time we were sparring, you kept me on my toes. Not many people can do that."
"I… surprised you?"
"Yeah, in fact, you scared the living bejeezus out of me a couple times. Hell, when you had your arms clamped around my neck I felt like you could have KILED me. I'm not sure what exactly you didn't show us, but if it's anything like you did just now, I'm sure it's some incredible technique."
She turned away from him and shrugged. "I just need more practice, I guess."
"I hope you do keep practicing," Sarah suddenly chimed in from the background, walking towards them. "That was one of the most interesting bouts I've seen in a long time. Vanessa, you've really got something going there."
"Damn right she does," Jacky added. "We're definitely going to have to do this more in the future. It'll be good for the both of us, don't you think so, Vanessa?"
"HEY! What about me? Do I have no right to practice with our guest?" said Sarah, looking annoyed.
"Erm… I suppose if you really want to."
"Of COURSE I want to. You should know better."
Jacky sighed. "I guess I should," he said, with a small chuckle. "You really enjoy this sort of thing. Almost too much…"
Sarah went back over to Vanessa's side and put her hand on her shoulder, shaking it lightly. "Vanessa, we should do fun stuff together in the future! Like sparring, and… well… other stuff. You know."
Vanessa looked straight into Sarah's smiling face, and then back at Jacky, who nodded affirmatively at how well Sarah and Vanessa were already getting along.
"I think I will be able to learn quite a lot from both of you," she said, with another very faint smile…
--NOTES--
It's finally here, and I hope it's passable. It also marks the appearance of actual fighting! W00t! I tried to draw from actual in-game experience in writing – I wonder if that shows through or not. ^^;
Chapter 4 is up as well. It's a definite (though merely temporary) change in mood that might disturb some particularly sensitive souls. But I think it's for the best, as I wrote it for the intent of further character development. Input is much welcomed.