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Chapter 31: Winter is Coming (3)

Beta-Reader: Ant0nius

The air in the school's gym was tense as a good part of the students had paused from their exercises to stare at what was currently unfolding within the small ring where Vixy had decided to challenge her boyfriend in a 'little' spar.

Tiggs knew that the Fox Prime had trained intensely under the strict teachings of her mother, and that Frankie had received lessons to develop his own fighting style but… that didn't mean she was entirely prepared for what she was watching. Quick noises, feet moving, punches and kicks hitting, backing away, dodging, blocking and pushing away hits. Everything happened so fast and the Tiger Prime could just stare at the situation with a degree of awe… but no envy. There was no way she could ever match up to that, not when she had so little experience in combat in general. These two… the only time Traci had seen fighters go at this speed, it was back when she first got a chance to look at tournament fights. Right where combatants from various groups would compete in one-on-one battles to determine the winner. This was pretty high in terms of potential, but it was nonetheless interesting for her to glance at. She remembered when Vixy herself had asked if she had wanted to come and see their spar. Since it was quite early in the morning, lessons were once again easing down due to Christmas break being around the corners, Tiggs accepted and thus was thrusted into quite the sight.

Vixy was more 'flexible' when it came to her style from a quick glance. Really nimble, but focusing a lot on the offensive side of things. Meanwhile the Human had a more 'punches first, kicks maybe' attitude, something he had explained was caused by the fact he had yet to get his brain out of the boxing mentality. Despite the sessions with their History teacher, he had yet to fight away that kind of issue. Still, it was somewhat effective, with both genuinely tiring each other out due to how intense their skirmish was. The two had already brawled before, she had seen them doing so during late hours because they didn't want any sort of attention but… today, as they were planning to do the same once more, they realized that both had some things to be doing at those late hours compared to usual, training for one and studying for the other. Thus they decided to spar now despite the presence of spectators. And the fight proved to be so intense that more people started to join, contacted by other visitors of the gym and also-

"They are going at it quite fast," Miles' comment was one of awe, the Cat Prime surprised that something like this was actually feasible.

"Well, I know Vixy's mom has a job really tied to fighting, so I could see her being a tough nut in these instances," Toby remarked with a fascinated tone. "Frankie? Not gonna lie, he is moving really swift now."

"Still… they are really being quite intense. Shouldn't they hold up a little or they might end up hurting later?"

Hope's concerns weren't outright wrong considering the pace and how strongly they were going at it, but the Tiger Prime could sense that her worry wasn't exactly equally distributed between the two, but she could attribute this to the fact that the fellow girl was just crushing really hard on the human. Nothing unusual, but actually good for Frankie's plans once they were done with hers. Tiggs could only pray that things went her way in that entire situation.

"They aren't hitting each other too hard. But I think we could have them stop early… is that even possible at this point?" Shin hummed with a mixture of interest and genuine worry, showing with his words that he could see through the blurry forms that were the two combatants.

"Considering how stubborn these two are? Vixy is probably trying to prove she is strong, and Frankie is doing the same except he knows he can't 'hold up and let her win', not when the 'fighting princess' might throw a fit at him for holding punches at her."

Angel's quiet comment wasn't wrong, but also partly incorrect in some way when it came to Vixy. Perhaps it tied up to the fact these two never had much of a good relationship to begin with, but the truth in this case was mostly tied to something she didn't know about the leader of the cheerleaders herself. Vixy wanted to prove her strength… while also showing how she wasn't a sore winner or something like that. She wanted to prove, in her own way, through her punches, that she wasn't her mother when it came to combat. That she could make things work out for herself about this aspect of her core personality. The girl wanted to be strong and ask him with this move, on a frequent basis, if he was aware of this and if he liked it. Much to her glee, and also Traci's own amusement, the way Frankie reacted to this could be said to be the answer the Fox Prime had craved for. And the two sparred to their hearts' content, with minimal attempts to hit dangerous blows for the sake of keeping this a friendly match. Nothing wrong with that, especially when their intense clashing was more than enough to make the entire thing sensational.

It wouldn't take long for a couple of teachers to come by and visit. Some were uneasy at the sight but they seemed to calm down a fair bit when they realized that they weren't attacking each other viciously, and that the reason why it all felt intense in that ring was because they were moving really fast. In a sense, it also got to a comical degree of 'interest' as a few of those started to bet about who was going to win. Of course, while also trying to keep things formal and well-hidden by others. Eventually the spar came to an end, it was Vixy that called it off. Tired, her legs were wobbly after moving so fast for too long and Frankie was nowhere better than she was. After a while, and some applause from the massive crowd that had formed to see the show, the two managed to get off the ring to get to their respective lockers rooms. Tiggs helped the drained Fox Prime to reach the showers, while she barely saw Miles and Shin helping their roommate away while Toby kept the crowd from drowning them and making their leave any more complicated. Truly a tiring display, but at least they could enjoy some peace in the showers.

Traci joined too, feeling particularly sweaty after the bit of round up she shared with the duo before they went for that match, and she was surprised when she saw Vixy's tired eyes ogling at her form a bit more than the usual glancing. Quite odd, but not unwelcome in her eyes and mind. There was complete peace and the cool water kept things quite pleasant as they started to go through the usual cleaning up process. Sadly, the silence wasn't lasting but what would soon ensue added hope that the big girl didn't even think she could perceive out of such a simple conversation with her best friend and love interest.

"He's… amazing," Vixy hummed distractedly, carefully washing her hair. "I mean, I knew he was already cool, but he is definitely a keeper."

A blink, Tiggs processed a smile at this. "That's great to hear. I bet you're already thinking about the next steps, right?"

"Not really. I think we could just chill a moment to enjoy the new situation we have. Nothing really that serious but… I really want to grow comfortable with what we have now since it's so nice but still so new."

"No rush."

"Oh, I know that. I knew you would say that but I also know Frankie isn't planning to yank me off from my comfort zone."

"He sounds..." Hold it, Traci. It's alright. "Really caring. I guess he is the one."

"Who knows, I might be feeling happy now and… there is actually something I wanted to ask you. Nothing too big but I really want to know now."

Quite the odd turn of the situation, but the Tiger Prime shrugged. "Sure, what about?"

"Have you thought of doing it again with him?"

Surprise flared at that question, one that was driven up by mere curiosity at first listening, but could have easily held more than just that. A bit of dread loomed over her thoughts, but the big girl just held her stand the best she could and merely frowned.

"I mean, hypothetically? He was a gentleman-"

"He still is," Vixy interjected before allowing her taller friend to talk.

"And I guess it felt quite nice back then and… you two are together."

"I'm well aware of that, yes," The Fox Prime mirthfully agreed. "But I was asking about your opinion about it."

"I thought we already discussed this before."

They did, Tiggs could remember perfectly the 'torture' she went through in remembering a perfectly lovely night to her love interest of all people. It felt so incredibly embarrassing, but also somewhat intriguing from the way Vixy sponged all details so eagerly.

"Not if it was something between the three of us."

Traci would have pinched herself in that moment, but she remained merely shocked at the pure absurdity she was stuck with. Not a bad or a weird one, but an insane amount of pleasantness that left her baffled for a solid second.

"I-I don't think I heard you correctly."

"I was thinking about doing something special before Christmas. Or even during Christmas if I manage to pull on some strings."

"That sounds-"

"Too intense?"

Ah, as if! Despite that being quite shocking for many, Traci wasn't really one to say no to that kind of proposal, but she had some reservations about it, especially if this was about people really close to her. In a sense, it managed to hit the best reward possible by drawing on her love towards the Fox Prime, but also bringing her partner-in-crime to join her and help her in that. It was going to be crucial, important, to make things 'right' somehow. What she really needed now was to think of a way to convince the young man to take part in this, which was going to be simple since they had agreed to a circumstance like this eventually happening, and not 'steal her moment' from her. He doubted Frankie had any bad bone to try, but the worry remained and she would definitely be pissed if he tried to do something like that.

"I was going to say 'particularly spicy', but I'm listening," Tiggs replied flatly, pushing back her inner desire as much as she could. It really didn't help that Vixy had stopped showering for the occasion and had gotten quite close to her.

"I-It could work, I think." She hoped.

It would be tough to get the exact good moment to 'strike' and get this plan to work before Christmas break with how close it was, but she had a hunch that this was going to work. She wanted it to really work even if it happened after Christmas. The mere interest from Vixy was enough to wash away any worry about this entire situation and let her ambitions skyrocket once more with vibrant energy and extreme interest. She was not going to let go of this, not now that she had the opening to finally strike. And as Tiggs felt that fate was giving her hope, she received further confirmation when the Fox Prime actually went to ask her something tied to the showering itself.

"By the way, Traci… can you help me with my back? I can't reach it and-"

"I got it. Don't worry."

Her nostrils flared as she was presented with Vixy's behind, and her hands started to draw soap by the shoulders.

Yep, some things were never meant to change, especially this fond moment with her gorgeous romance-in-the-making.

Sem growled as he finished reading the documents that he received from his current apprentice.

Frankie had been as surprised when he read the content of the letter there, explaining how those weren't there up until a 'blank moment of a few hours' during a date with his girlfriend. It was refreshing as news as it meant he hadn't been approached while he was aware and could perceive his possible stalker, but it also opened a can of worms which the Death Crest hadn't planned to get involved in. He had heard that there had been a more 'violent' infiltration from another group of Narakhans, but he could easily tell from a glance that those weren't the same that had been moving silently around Prism for a while now. No, this was a different group- so dangerous that even those dormant cells that had been there for longer had decided to intervene and grant them assistance. Quite unusual, but not the first time he faced this kind of rivalry. He could see within the writing style that it was a group of Narakhans… mostly also from some of the grammar errors which could be explained by mostly illiterate members from the tribes.

Still, it didn't change the fact that there was a dangerous cell now operating within Prism and that the current presence of knights wasn't enough to provide proper safety in the city. It was quite infuriating that something like this was actually happening, but the letter provided them with places to check with enough firepower, and he knew of someone that had a few individuals that would be more than willing to take part in this. The issue was that approaching her wouldn't be easy, and that the only one that would be willing to listen was actually her husband. Sem had their phone numbers, so it was easy to get in contact with the best bet he got to gain more support in this situation. The waiting time was minimal and he was soon greeted by a tired growl.

"Sem, I hope nothing happened to my daughter-"

"I would have directly called Carmesi if that was the case," The Lion Prime interjected his old friend's 'greeting'. "Which is why I'm not calling for that. And hello to you too, Howl."

A sigh, the Dark Crest calmed down quickly before speaking up again at the confirmation that things were actually fine.

"Then why the sudden call?"

"Courtesy? But without joking too much about it, I wanted to ask if you could send some of your knights and some from the Fire Clan."

A brief pause ensued, just enough for the fellow Crest to think about it.

"What for?"

"A new cell of Narakhans has entered Prism. More vicious than the previous ones and even Ambar said things are fine, I just received a letter from the older cells in here that asked for assistance. I don't need to tell you what this means."

If an actual Narakhan cell now asked for help from Knight, it meant that they didn't believe this new group was trustworthy or 'capable of setting up a clever operation'. While they still had the same common goal, the ways to achieve it were different. In fact, there was a high chance that it was tied to the fact this group was more dangerous and thus less reliable as an ally and more of an antagonistic goal from the older group.

"It was something I would have agreed had it been given back during the war. Now it could be a trick."

"Doubtful. They put a lot of risk on this and I can tell there is a different pattern of action. The older cell is more passive in their attacks, while this one feels much more dangerous for the current knights dispatched."

"So you want some reinforcement behind Ambar's back? She will grill you if you're wrong about this."

"Better to be wrong than right at this point," The Death Crest firmly rebuked. "Which is why I hope I'm really wrong about this."

"I will do my best to find enough members to send but… Is there any particular reason why you feel so confident this is indeed going to be a problem?"

Of course Howl, the ever so perceiving former viking, would perceive that something was off with a degree of paranoia. Despite this question, Sem wasn't sure answering it wholeheartedly would deliver the same intensity as the short version of his motivations. Regardless of delivering the full extent or not, the truth was still as unpleasant.

"I believe this ties up to something we fought in the past. I doubt it's the Emperor but… we had failed for centuries to find out what happened to some of his old commanders and I wouldn't be surprised that they are still around and weaving things from the shadows."

"None of the important ones survived-"

"We never discovered what happened to Darcy," Sem pointed out. "And I think that she is important enough to be considered an 'important' one."

Howl remained quiet, and Sem knew he had pressed a rather sore button. It was one of the few things about the war that was sore to every Crest. Darcy had been a Chaos Sorceress, the best under the Emperor's rule. She was his most trusted advisor, and someone that had suddenly vanished when the final battle was over. The most common theory about her fate tied to the destruction of old Earth, but the many resurgences of Chaos through Neo-Earth suggested otherwise. Sem could feel it in his bones and his own Crest that the woman was still alive and spreading the seed of pure Chaos all over the planet. The issue was actually tracking her down if she was truly around and… dispatching a strong enough force to capture her. A look in the past reminded him that she was actually capable of overwhelming those Crests that hadn't much combat experience to begin with, Grace being the victim of this many times and urging other Crests and Kayin himself to intervene on multiple occasions.

"Are you saying that this is somewhat tied to her?"

"Two days ago I felt a massive chaotic pattern. It was brief, and while it's not unusual for strange bursts from a group of Narakhans, I can easily tell this one originated by a single individual. So it's either Darcy or someone that has obtained her degree of control over chaos."

Or both in the most grim situation.

"I see… I will send you a group as soon as I get in contact with my wife. I assume that… things are fine with-"

"Your daughter is enjoying the fruits of love. I can't say if they have already branched into something more intimate, but I definitely noticed they have grown more confident in being one around the other."

"...You are being honest, right?"

"I don't see why lying to a concerned father. Even though I have to remind you that my student is someone I can vouch for. He is no dangerous element to Vixy."

…

"I will trust you. For now."

"You should do this more. After all, we are all siblings under Order."

Surprisingly enough, Howl didn't answer. To be fair, he always hated that denomination. Despite him being part of the Twelve Order Crests, he was still someone that didn't like to conform completely with an orderly society. He craved for his own spaces, for his own liberties, all without worrying about becoming a 'beacon' for others to follow and grow inspired in. He was the embodiment of Darkness, he was meant to be a perpetual shadow among other shadows. Which was why the Dark Clan wasn't as much sponsored like others… and in a sense, he drew inspiration from Kate's own reluctance to open up a big clan like the one Carmesi and Bengala are known to have nowadays. Not that he really could say much about it, not when his Clan was barely existing at this point after he decided to rarely teach to anyone catching his eyes. Frankie was a difference due to his bloodline but also because of how unique he was compared to others. He stood out, not the way many did as he was far from optimal, but he had something that interested him. Something that Ambar definitely picked up while testing him. His power wasn't just tied to Wisdom. It stemmed from it and it was born from it, but the way it formed and worked… it went beyond just that.

Something told Sem that this was a potential completely new and driven artificially from his current state of self. The unlock was sudden, abrupt, and sometimes this could cause some dangerous developments if not treated properly. But his conditions were fine and no dangerous symptoms had surfaced after weeks had gone from his 'awakening'. The only 'oddity' that came out of this was the fact that his current power… it developed a degree of Death magic. He didn't know it just yet, he can't exactly use it as easily as he could with Wisdom. He was still 'grasping' the concept and will definitely start to develop more of it subconsciously. There was indeed room for improvement in that regard but… if Sem's own estimations were correct, Frankie could easily become the key to some greater issues. The Emperor, despite his defeat, still lived. It was unknown how he survived or what happened to him since he was no longer in this plane of existence. The Lion Prime couldn't feel him in the realm of the dead, so that meant he somehow survived, yet not as a proper living entity. If that had been the case, Geecku would have perceived him. And that didn't make much sense.

Still… Frankie had to be trained. He had the key to it all and perhaps he himself was what was needed to finish this nightmare for good. But while Sem stared outside of the window of his office, his body tensed up. Something flared from within as he perceived a massive 'chaotic explosion' originating from a nearby park. His eyes widened when after a while, the explosion was matched with another one, this time densely filled with…

Life Magic.

Rotting silence filled his ears as he finished the last of the many opponents he faced. A disappointed scowl tainted his face, the pale-skinned human fixing his blond hair while his dark eyes looked around once more to confirm all threatening foes had been dealt with. His outfit, a simple violet jacket, a red shirt underneath and navy-blue pants, stood out as a dark soreness among the vivid red color that stained the floor all around him. Blood, liters of it, flowing and filling the small crevices spread all over the muddy road he was standing on. Some droplets had fallen on his shirt, something that really left him frustrated and particularly annoyed at his lack of 'flawlessness'. The park had suddenly gone quiet once the opponents had arrived, and yet now the silence was… more dead than it had been before that. Numerous corpses, many knights had tried to stop him but the assault had been sudden, vicious, and capable of overwhelming those weaklings with ease.

They had put a somewhat decent resistance compared to what he would have expected from the ranks of many. Truly impressive, but still far from holding against someone like him. Someone like the power he was granted by submitting his will to a greater entity to all kinds of deities that existed in this wild and surreal world. He could tell he too was an odd element within Neo-Earth, but he was just more chaotic than the rest. A human with a need to prove his true worth through natural selection. Through pure and brutal combat. He was victorious, just as he had predicted, and yet that victory didn't make him feel any better. It was just… bland. Disappointing even.

"This is the best they can offer?"

It was a rhetorical question, and yet… This felt like it was far from over. Something was wrong about this silence, too quiet, too artificial. His intuition proved to be right as soon as he felt it, something shifting in the bushes, moving fast and… throwing brown pellets at him. He didn't need to dodge, his shadow reaching around him and having those bounce off before they could strike him. They weren't strong enough to actually damage him, but there was no chance he was allowing any tricks to get through his defense. His gaze was back at the origin of this new hassle.

A figure, she moved fast and he was forced to move quickly to dodge her wild throws. Really swift, but not enough to truly worry about. Of course, his expectations were crushed as soon as he realized that he had made a mistake by underestimating the 'brown pellets'. Before he knew it, the young man suddenly coughed blood, numerous vines forming on the ground and rushing their sharp tips through his body. To a normal human, those many new and deadly wounds would have been deadly, but the only thing that changed within the situation for the previously blank-faced blond was… amusement now stirred a smile on his face. That attack made him realize that what he was facing wasn't a simple knight. His goal today was rewarded for good as he managed to draw one of 'them' out. And he just knew which one it was from that trap.

Finally the blur stopped, and he was rewarded with truly a glorious sight. She landed in front of him, the Life Crest was wearing a form of battle outfit, with primal elements of life displayed upon her frame as she unleashed her terrifying battle-axe. It took him a moment to push back his awe at the display, his excitement flaring together with his Chaos magic. The grin was met with anger, the joy with displeasure. Geecku's own magical power rising up to the challenge and easily shadowing his full potential as of yet. Truly impressive, like he had been told. He couldn't help but rejoice as the vines turned black and were broken thanks to his shadow, his wounds quickly healing up and showing how that much damage just wasn't enough to put him down. No, his current foe would have to do much more than just that.

"Oh my, oh my! This is truly a legendary situation!" The blond rejoiced, ignoring the fact that the entity before him was no joke to ignore.

Something that anyone that had faced Geecku should know about… or did he? His eagerness wasn't driven by the mere meeting, but also by the chance to test out his worth against a valiant opponent that was third strongest compared to beings like Ambar and Kate, Wisdom and Light. No words were exchanged, and, at first, the blonde mistakenly thought it was tied to his presentation. Lacking to say the least now that he looked back at it, his shame grew as much as his interest to draw words out of his opponent. It was almost embarrassing to outright ask so… he went for a simple introduction.

"Apologies, Life," The blond muttered brightly, his grin widening exponentially. "I didn't expect to be greeted by such a majestic adversary. My name is Edwin Somnes and I shall be your opponent~!"

Geecku sported the most vivid look ever, unwilling to return any favors with the abomination in front of her. A snarl, growling like a ferocious predator being spurned by the most foolish of prey. Of course, her first slight wasn't ignored, with the blue-haired Prime noticing an issue as soon as she saw Edwin's shadow spreading suddenly all over the terrain beneath her. She jumped just in time to avoid numerous spikes emerging from the shadow itself and aiming to hit her. She landed on one of the trees nearby, her new position swiftly overran but still failed to catch her as she rapidly moved through the trees until she was in range to strike. The Life Crest leaped into action, jumping over the head of her opponent and dove towards him. He erected a Chaos-made wall, but it faltered at the strength of the powerful warrior as too weak. Edwin's eyes widened in panic, but he was relieved when he could dodge that strike well enough to minimize the damage. The axe swung, and it claimed blood from him by cutting a small injury on his shoulder.

"T-Truly brilliant! This is why she told me to be careful. You- You and your ilk- you are all amazing!" He exclaimed with a growing hint of insanity. "You- You are just going to be enough to satisfy my needs~!"

The shadow exploded and flooded all around, forcing Geecku to be on the move once more to dodge the dangerous substance rushing and slithering its way to her through the ground. A deadly battle had just begun, she realized while gritting her teeth. And this chaos sorcerer, this human… he was not going to be an easy target to beat. The shadow tracked her pattern, limiting her chances of finding an opening to the extremely lacking 'defense' that her opponent had. Truly a frustrating situation for someone with little patience as Geecku. One more minute of this, and she was already planning to have the entire park 'devour' this little fiend altogether. But she knew she couldn't play this harshly, not when the destruction of this location could actually kill anyone that could be there, may those be humans, Primes, or even the native animals of this place. Truly a limiting process but… quite far from what she would soon have to face the moment a new factor entered that upsetting battlefield.

And as Geecku struggled against this new foe, another but more familiar human was unwittingly making his way to their location as… something within his core called for him to check and do something. Something important.

AN

New Villain! And this one is particularly serious compared to Ifera.