"You've sustained only minor injuries, and it appears that Mr. Chase's final attack had no lasting repercussions. That being said, I'd like to keep you under observation for at least a few more hours. You should be able to go and see the finals later tonight," When he received no answer from his patient, Merciful sighed and glanced up at him. He knew that the teen had much bigger problems than a few scrapes and bruises. He'd seen that defeated look on many of his previous patients. Yet seeing it on someone so young was always much more jarring. He was very much tempted to try and talk to the boy, to push away his normally awful bedside manner and reassure him. Thankfully, he was interrupted before he could embarrass himself as the sound of fast-moving footsteps rang over the prevalent din of the infirmary.
"Alex!" The boy's sister cried, bursting through the curtain divider and rushing to her brother's side. She threw her arms around his neck and for a second Merciful was certain he would have to intervene when Alexander's face turned purple. Thankfully, Eris seemed to recognize her brother's inability to breathe and released him, but she didn't go far, sitting on the edge of his bed and talking at a mile a minute pace. 'Reminds me of a younger Leena,' he thought, with a nostalgic smile making its way towards his face, as he retreated out of the privacy of the curtains to go attend his next patient.
Just as soon as he was out of earshot, Eris' quieted down. Her expression turned apologetic, "Sorry I kinda made you lose the match. That wasn't one of my smarter ideas."
"Wasn't your dumbest either," Alexander replied snarkily. His sister began to pout and punched him in the arm.
"Hey!"
"But… for once, maybe, I was the idiot. Everything is just so damn confusing and I couldn't get my head straight," This time, when his sister hugged him he didn't hesitate to return the gesture.
"I get it, I really do, but just think: we don't have to see dad until summer break. The dorms stay open for Christmas and Easter and some of the girls have been talking about spending our spring break together. Then, during the summer we only have to spend every other week at home. The rest of the time we'll be on our internships and then we go right back to school. Our old lives are done. I know it's hard but we have to move on. He'll always have control over you if you don't stop thinking about him," Alexander sighed and released her, slumping back against the metal bed frame. At that moment, Eris could've sworn he aged ten years with how tired he looked.
"You're right."
"Wow, today's a day for firsts," She said, causing her brother to look at her in bemusement, "First, you admit to being an idiot, and then you tell me I'm right about something! You might not be a lost cause, after all, Alex."
"Get the hell out of my room," He growled, throwing his pillow at her head. Eris chuckled as she smacked his leg and stood up. Her back ached from the awkward position she'd been sitting in but she ignored it and dug around in her pocket, taking out Alexander's cellphone and tossing it towards him.
"Text me if you need anything or want me to jailbreak you. I'm gonna go watch Clara get her ass kicked!" She announced cheerily. Alexander rolled his eyes in response yet Eris could swear she saw the corner of his mouth twitch upwards.
Purpose of a Hero
The moment it was announced that Clara and Payton would be the next match, Melody's stomach sank at the implications. In order to get through to the finals, she would have to go through Damien, who was very easily the top contender this late in the tournament and not only because of his class ranking. Above all else, Damien had suffered very, very few injuries and nothing nearly as debilitating as Clara's myriad of wounds or even Payton's bumps and bruises (not to mention splinters) he'd inevitably received against Sirius. While Melody herself wasn't too beat up physically – her fractured finger, stiff ankle, and shoulder notwithstanding – the burning migraine was certainly becoming an urgent issue.
As far back as she could remember, even taking into account her father's harshest training days, she had never used her Quirk so much in such a short period of time. Despite all the progress she'd made concerning her power since she began training for school last spring, it was painfully obvious just how weak her Wraith form was. 'My max time is up to nearly six minutes when I use it sporadically, but this past week I've stretched it to its very limit. I almost wish I was in Clara's situation. Making it this far but losing because of my lack of control would be so embarrassing.'
"Oh god, why do you look like Brian whenever he loses at Hero Fighter?"
"You're not supposed to be in here, y'know, considering you lost," Melody shot back, though there was no animosity in her voice. Taking the seat on the bench beside her, Nathan scowled and glared at her.
"Thanks for reminding me. I'm still gonna get you back for that. Where the hell did you even learn a triangle-choke? I know for a fact it wasn't from your old man."
"Narruk actually taught me during one of our sparring matches," Melody explained, causing Nathan to frown and look away. She'd have to talk to him about that after the tournament was over. She had a fairly good idea why he'd acted strangely whenever Narruk was brought up, but that was no excuse, "So, how's the back doing? I'm guessing you snuck out of the infirmary?"
"That doesn't sound like something I would do. It was never clearly stated I had to stay in the infirmary so–"
"Actually, it was. I was sitting right next to you when Mrs. Holl said it, moron," Nathan blanched at this but bounced back fairly quickly.
"Maybe so, but she never said how long I had to stay. Besides, I couldn't let my friend walk to her doom without giving her a rousing inspirational speech," He proclaimed, pumping one fist into the air in what he clearly saw as an 'inspiration-worthy' pose. To his credit, Melody did crack a smile before replying.
"'Walk to my doom', yeah? I'm glad you have so much confidence in me."
"Damien is no joke. Besides… you suck at mid to long-range and that's his bread and butter. The writing is on the wall really," Nathan said nonchalantly.
"Some inspirational speech."
"I'm getting to it, jeez. Anyway, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted. The writing is on the wall, Damien has your number. That means all the pressure is on him. Look, Mel, you've already gone above and beyond any expectation, anyone could have had for you coming into this. You, Sirius, and Oliver were all dark horses coming into the final round and look how it turned out for those two," Nathan made a sour face and waved his hand flippantly through the air towards the all but empty locker room. For her part, Melody sat with a neutral expression on her face, "All you really have to do is go out there and give Damien a run for his money. Win or lose, you turn heads all across the country. Scarlette Phantom: The Underdog!"
"You sound like dad whenever he gambles on football. 'Always play the underdog, Melly. The worse the odds, the better the reward'," Melody grumbled out, in a frighteningly good impression of her old man's voice.
"You didn't put any money on me to win, right?" She said accusingly, making Nathan roll his eyes and elbow her in the ribs. Melody laughed and, after a brief moment of pouting, her friend joined her. It soon quieted down enough between them that Melody spoke again, "Thank you, seriously. I needed that more than I thought."
"Anytime, and, for the record, I personally think you're gonna smoke that emo fuck," Nathan said with a grin, and, for once, Melody didn't feel like calling him out on his language. The two sat in comfortable silence, listening to the distant rumble of the crowd and at one point the recognizable screech of Clara. After a few minutes, Nathan chuckled and turned to face his childhood friend. "You remember that time in sixth grade when we got into a fight with those punks outside of Mrs. Forrest's record shop in Harlem?"
"You mean the time you got into a fight against four high schoolers and got the snot beaten out of you? How could I forget?"
"Uh, bullshit. I one hundred percent won that fight," Nathan shot back incredulously. Melody hummed thoughtfully and shook her head.
"No, no, I'm pretty sure you got beaten up and had to spend the whole night at my place getting patched up because you were afraid of what your mom would do if she found out you'd been fighting again. Then nearly cried when she came to pick you up the next day after my dad told her everything," Despite her harsh words, Melody relished in the nostalgia of the memory. It had been right around the end of their first year of middle school, a year that Melody was more inclined to forget.
"Your memory is clearly lacking. Anyway… dammit, you made me forget the point I was trying to bring up! Here I was going to give you a second motivational speech and you screwed it up," Nathan said, faking a pout and crossing his arms over his chest. Melody let out a laugh and patted her friend on the back in mock consolation.
"Maybe when I get to the finals you'll have remembered. I appreciate the effort, though," She replied in a much too sickly sweet tone. Nathan shrugged off her hand and swung his body one hundred and eighty degrees so that his back was facing her, "By the way, once this is all said and done you and I are having a real fight instead of a spar on Saturday. No more of this 'I have a bad back' excuse."
"Oi! You try fighting with a herniated disk! See how much of an excuse it is!" Nathan retorted loudly. Melody smiled placatingly and patted him consolingly on the shoulder.
"Yes, yes, you're so tough and brave," Melody said.
"That's it, this friendship is over! I hope you lose now."
Purpose of a Hero
In the early stages of their match, Clara had decided that Payton had earned a spot near the top of her shit list (right under her dad, Crybaby, and Pussy Wolf). Her throat was still raw, sending a burning jolt of pain through her nervous system whenever she breathed. Many of her long-range attacks were all but useless, leaving her with her, admittedly high level, martial arts. Though, those skills were of very little use if she couldn't get within ten feet of her opponent before being blown backward or having to avoid a wildly inaccurate bolt of lightning, all the while ignoring her aches and pains, as well as all the half-worried, half-pitying looks the boy was giving her. That pissed her off far more than any lightning bolt in a gust of wind.
"And another evasive move by Canadian Winter. Elisnore just can't seem to land a hit," Holl infuriatingly remarked. As if it weren't embarrassing enough, she could feel the baleful glare of her father burning a hole in the back of her head. For a brief moment, she felt her cheeks burn with shame. Then, with a violent shake of her head, she brushed aside the feeling and began taking short, quick inhales and holding the air inside her lungs. 'Don't let him get to you. Focus! My throat is already torn to shit. I won't have many opportunities. One hit, that's all I need,' she thought, feeling her chest burn at her overstretched lungs. One glance at her opponent and she could tell, irritatingly, that he took her hyperventilating as a bad sign. Finally reaching her limit, she reared her head back and roared.
Even at a quarter of her usual power, the scream tore up sections of the battlefield before reaching Payton, who was thrown into the arena wall. The boy recovered quite quickly and managed to lift himself into the air with a miniature twister to once again put himself out of Clara's range, which was somewhat unnecessary. Unlike her previous attempts, Clara had made no move to get closer after her attack connected. Instead, she was preoccupied with the glob of blood that fell to the ground with a splat after she coughed.
"You alright, Elisnore? Your injuries are pretty bad. No one would think any less of you if you dropped out now."
"Piss off, weather boy," She rasped back. Payton frowned and gestured with his arms, making the tornado carry him to a safe distance away, then slowly dissipate, lowering him softly back to earth.
"Gotta give it to you, you're as tough as they say. I don't think I'd even be crawling if I was in your condition," Clara ignored his remark, snarling when that look of pity crossed his face . Her breathing stabilized slightly, she stalked towards her prey, watching for even the slightest indication of an attack. After seeing what his lightning-based attacks had done to Sirius, she knew that all it would take is one hit to take her out. When he moved, raising his arm to the swirling black clouds above, so did her, rushing towards him as fast as her broken body could carry her.
When the bolt of lightning struck, she knew she only had seconds to react. The instant she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up, she dove forward, relying on the fact that Payton's attacks had been largely inaccurate throughout the early stages of their battle. Thunder boomed and the ground shook as the thunderbolt slammed into the ground not fifteen meters away. As soon as she hit the ground, she rolled and quickly got back to her feet, a piece of the arena floor (the result of an earlier attack breaking apart the earth) clutched tightly in her uninjured fist. With all the strength she could muster, Clara wound her arm back and threw the rock.
Purpose of a Hero
From the very start, Payton had been shocked (and slightly horrified) at just how much pain his adversary was willing to go through. When he'd gotten his first look at her as she was exiting the tunnel opposite him, he couldn't believe she was still standing on her own two feet. Then the battle began and it was unlike anything he'd experienced through the first few rounds of the tournament. No matter how many times he knocked her back she still came at him head-on. Whether it was adrenaline or just pure will that allowed her to get back up each and every time, it was quite intimidating. Although, despite all the evidence to the contrary, when the time came he had still dangerously underestimated his opponent.
As expected, his attack was far from the mark. At this point in the battle, with his suit still fried from his fight against Sirius, his lightning was more of a deterrent than anything. Something to knock Clara off balance for a short period of time, giving him a second to think and reevaluate the situation. When she dove to avoid it, he started preparing to blast her away with wind. Because of it, he hadn't been expecting the sharp, blinding pain in his right eye when the hunk of rock made contact. By the time he'd recovered, Clara was already grabbing his arm. If he'd been even a fraction more attentive, he could have easily saved himself when she flipped him over her shoulder. Instead, he felt the air leave his lungs as his back slammed into the dirt.
She didn't stop there. Seconds after she'd slammed him into the dirt, Clara loomed over Payton and raised her boot, preparing to stomp it down on his undefended chest. Just before she could bring it down, however, Payton summoned a massive, uncontrolled squall that sent both of them flying. The sudden blast sent Payton skidding across the ground, getting a mouthful of dirt for his troubles, while Clara was propelled twenty feet into the air before slamming back down on her front with a thud.
Shakily getting back to his feet, Payton glanced over at his opponent, hoping that she was down for the count, for both of their sakes. Unfortunately, it only took a few moments for Clara to stir and push herself up on her elbows. 'This girl is certifiably insane,' he thought as she tried to stand, only to fall back to her knees, "You know, there's such a thing as too stubborn. You're seriously gonna hurt yours–"
"Howl Missile!" While neither as forceful nor as loud as her previous screams, Payton once again found himself caught completely off guard. The soundwaves plowed into him and made his teeth shudder in his gums, but unlike earlier he managed to stand his ground. Across the field, Clara stood once again and glared at her foe, "Don't… fucking look at me… like that."
Blood dripped from the corner of her mouth as she stumbled forward, her dark red eyes locked on Payton's unmoving form. She took one shambling step after another, one of her arms wrapped tightly around her side, which appeared to be bleeding. Once she was a few steps closer, however, Payton's shoulders sank and he took a deep breath, a troubled look on his face, "I was gonna wait until the finals, but I'm starting to think it's the only thing that'll take you down. Alright, suit. Please work, please work, please work."
The dark clouds swirled above them as Payton raised one arm, while the other leveled itself at Clara. Her eyes narrowed with a flicker of recognition at the stance, but she made no indication of moving. As thunder cracked overhead, Payton repositioned his arm to aim at a spot on the ground about ten feet behind the girl. A direct hit, in her state, could be disastrous. Seconds before he was going to fire his attack, Clara coughed, dribbling blood down her front as her body swayed. The girl, plagued by numerous injuries, was out cold long before she hit the ground.
Purpose of a Hero
The wolf never lied.
As much as he hated to admit it, Narruk knew its instincts were never wrong, and it was one of the few things he begrudgingly came to appreciate about his other half. Whenever the full moon drew near, the wolf became restless, whenever someone entered a room he was in, the wolf became alert, and whenever there was a threat nearby, the wolf's fight for control intensified.
However, when Melody had first entered his room following her fight against Nathan and his instincts screamed at him 'Danger!' he knew there had to be a mistake. The wolf knew that his redheaded friend was trying to help him get it under control, so it saw her as a threat to its dominance. That was the only logical explanation in his eyes. He absolutely refused to believe that she was a threat when there was so much evidence to the contrary, so he pushed the feeling to the back of his mind. Yet it still lingered, exacerbating his already foul mood. When she finally left, demanding he play chess with Oliver for whatever reason, he thought Alpha would calm down.
He didn't.
Even hours later, the feeling of impending dread settled like a stone in his stomach. He barely noticed Alexander and Eris arriving in the infirmary and completely shut down when Mrs. Holl came around to check on him for the eighth time, he was far past caring that he'd have to deal with even more of her and Mel's ideas to fix him. Eventually, they'd realize he is a lost cause and leave him alone.
There was no screen in his private room, so he couldn't watch the battles that followed his own, but he could listen (another trait passed down from Alpha). He heard Holl announce the match. Scarlette Phantom versus Erebus. The feeling of dread intensified and he hoped that, for once, the wolf was wrong.
Purpose of a Hero
The atmosphere in the preparation tunnel was much tenser than it had been a few moments ago. The sound of pacing footsteps was amplified off the stone walls, which did nothing to soothe Melody's migraine. Why Nathan felt the need to act so nervous when he wasn't even the one fighting was beyond her, though his pacing, as well as the constant mumbling to himself, was starting to get on her nerves.
"You'll want to watch out for his shadow spears, they can change direction mid-air so you'll want to go Wraith for those."
"Can you stop, please?"
"And don't get too close. I know you're a close-range fighter but his shadow sutures can trap just about anyone and I don't know if you could phase through them."
"Nathan?"
"When he shadow steps, just keep an eye on his shadow. It doesn't disappear. Though, if it's overcast outside that could make it more difficult."
"It's been sunny all day."
"And wait to use your new move until later in the fight. Use it too early and he'll never let you get close again."
"Wasn't planning on opening with it," Melody said, rolling her eyes. Again, she was ignored and the pacing and mumbling continued. Her ten minute prep time already half spent, she sighed and stood, placing a hand on Nathan's shoulder, "You… need to chill. I'm more than ready for this. Where's all that confidence you had in me earlier, huh? I'll be fine Nathan. You're the one who always rushes into things without thinking."
"Oi, I resent that," He retorted immediately. For a moment, silence reigned over the two. Then, Nathan grinned and shook his head, "Alright, fine I'll stop. You'd think you'd be a bit more grateful, considering I technically broke the rules to come down here and give you my pep talk."
Melody chuckled at the teasing tone of his voice and unconsciously began rubbing at her right temple, "You never did tell me how you managed that. I thought Castor and Pollux were working security."
"They were, but if you're sneaking around the school as much as I am you tend to figure some things out. As it happens, our groundskeepers are big chocolate fans. They were too busy arguing over how to split it to notice me slipping by," Nathan said proudly.
"Clever."
"Well, they do call me a genius, you know," Nathan said, folding his arms behind his head.
"I still think you cheated on that I.Q. test. I don't think I ever saw you paying attention in class," Melody shot back.
"Says the girl who spent most of her time daydreaming about who knows what. You know, my mom came across some of the notes we passed during Mr. Kharlamov's class. She loved the drawing you made of a piano falling on my head," Nathan said, shaking his head in mock disappointment. He glanced at Melody right as the realization of what he'd just said dawned on him, watching the surprised expression on her face.
"You kept all those?"
"Ladies and gentlemen, it's now time for the last semifinal match between Scarlette Phantom and Erebus!" His slip up was, thankfully, forgotten when the metal bars groaned and began to slide open. Once the gate was completely open, Melody threw him one last smile and walked out of the dark tunnel.
"Give 'im hell, Mel!" He called after her, though whether or not she heard she showed no sign of it. Once the gate was securely closed once again, Nathan scowled and laid his head against the wall. 'Smooth, Nathan. Very smooth,' he thought before turning to face the battlefield. The crowd roared as Ms. Whittaker officially began the battle. "You've got this. Damien won't know what hit him."
Purpose of a Hero
So… been a while. A lot has happened since last time. I watched all of ATLA and LoK, I finally moved into my own apartment, and I went through a four week period of the worst writer's block I've ever experienced. Sorry that the longest wait for a chapter so far has resulted in the shortest chapter so far but at least we are nearing the end of this arc (just passed the 1-year mark for the Tournament).
Thanks to Hiatus and ThalioTP for beta-ing
Not much else to say, let's just hop right into the preview
Next Time on the Purpose of a Hero!
Chapter 45: The Veil