I dont think I have anything more to bother you about today. . . . Happy Hunger Games Tuesday
Chapter 12
The kid lunged at her with a stream of water forced ahead of him. Korra bent it to one side. The wave became a whip at her touch.
The boy was already at her. He swiped at her with one hand, his fingers bent like claws. Korra stumbled back from the aggression of the attack.
Wei fell back against one wall. He forced a few chunks to throw at the boy. He struggled to dodge the chunks. The ceiling shook as it lost some of it's support.
"No don't," Korra told him, "You'll bring the whole place down. Besides. This is my fight." She spread her arms and smirked. She was daring him to hit her first. Would the capitalists watching like that?
He cried out when he charged for the grapple. His arms were small but dense. Maybe the game makers weren't far off when they made him so strong during her evaluation. She could feel the corded muscles she had never noticed before. Korra let herself roll back with his force. The tumble landed them by the bed. She pulled away enough to crack a punch at his gut.
Coughing he slid under the bed. It was unnatural the way he moved. "Quit hiding like a penguin kid," Korra taunted, "Where's that pride now?"
She felt it almost before she saw it. He had sprung from under the bed with enough force to fling the mattress her way. She hardly had enough time to realize it was moving, much less try to get out of its way. The dusty heap knocked her back, crashing her into the nightstand and mirror. Pain erupted where her back had struck the wood. Clouds of dust chocked her and stung her eyes.
She heard Wei call her name as she felt the added weight on the mattress. It pressed hard against her chest as she fought and finally forced it off her. Still coughing dust she fled the room.
"Where do you think you're going nine?" He said mocking her score.
"Getting away from your toy, four." She snapped back. Yes it had occurred to her that his score was the same as his district. She lunged for the grapple before he could. She was fast this time, her hits hard. With a grip on his wrists and a swing she threw him into the open area of the room.
Before he could stand she pulled water from the room to whip at him. She aimed for his face. He took hold of the whip when it was close enough. He twisted it around his body and threw the newly formed icicle at her. She could have stooped it. That would have slowed her down. Instead she dove to one side and let it sail past her. It shattered on impact against the wall. Korra rolled with her landing and sprang easily to her feet.
The boy followed her dodging movement to keep the two facing each other. Then he turned and ran. "Now who's running?" Korra laughed as he tucked into the tiny kitchen corner. He pulled a knife from one of the drawers. With one practiced motion the knife was sailing blade first towards her. It didn't hit straight on but it tore her shirt, drawing blood at her side. Even Korra couldn't hold back some kind of groan of pain.
It clattered on the floor and Korra turned for it. She scooped it up before leaping over the back of a couch. What was happening? Was she running from him? No, just making sure he couldn't use the knife again.
By the time she landed on the other side of the couch she turned. The boy was on her. He threw a spear of ice she blocked with a cushion of the couch. When she lowered her fluffy shield he was leaping over the back of the couch. He hit her with the force of a polar bear dog. His hands were a flurry of claws trying to tear at her in any way he could. One hand always reached for her knife.
The boy was mad at this point. His eyes were on fire. If it wasn't for his smaller size alone Korra wouldn't have been able to reverse the hold he had on her. She straddled him, one hand holding his throat to the ground. His nails clawed against her hand. Her muscles were hard and hot. Her blood burned. The fight was hers. He was hers. The kill. The kill was hers too. All she had to do was drop the knife. His heart was there. Open. Unprotected.
She closed her eyes and sucked one last breath. Metal struck flesh with a sickly sound. Korra's hand on his throat trembled. She could feel tears welling in the corners of her closed eyes. He was still under her. Relieved and exhausted she let go of the blade. It clattered on the stone floor, shaking off the droplets of korra's blood.
Her eyes opened and she looked down on the limp body of the boy. His eyes looked up at her, still raging, still afraid of her. She had not made the kill. The final blow had been to the side of his head. A hole had been made there and his life blood leaked through it pooling around him. Wei stood at the door to the bedroom. He nodded.
A cannon broke their silence.
"I never even learned his name."
veeery short chapter. I know. Love all of you. Keep doing that reviewing thing that you're doing. I love it.