Chapter 47 - Resolving Tensions

Tyler Riddle

"So are there any handicaps you want to place on the fight?" I ask.

"Why would I want handicaps?" Sinthea asks.

"Because last time I checked, you don't have super strength, super speed, or any other ability beyond your fighting skills. I'm not looking to destroy you."

"..." You're quite the stubborn one.

"No powers and I'll lower my abilities as best as I can. We'll compare moves and reactions."

"Should you two really be fighting? It's not that big of a deal." Rachael says from the side.

"I'm looking forward to seeing Tyler's skill against someone with experience," Laura says.

"Go Tyler!" Henry shouts before being hauled away by Rachael.

Sin gets into a stance and takes one of her six needles into her hand. They shouldn't damage me too much, but I guess I should avoid them for the sake of the fight. My stance lowers.

She makes a throwing motion. I roll left. A needle embeds itself in between my legs. I flip onto my feet.

She almost knicked the family jewels.

"That's pretty ruthless of you, Sin," I smirk.

"Whatever does the job." How cold of you.

I need to be less predictable. I put my stance slightly off balance. She readies two more needles.

I stumble forward to the right. I switch directions to the left, avoiding a needle. I rush forward then slide to the left, avoiding another needle. I close the distance before she can get another needle. Then I dive to the ground, avoiding a grapple maneuver. I put the ground to my back and wrap my legs around her thigh and waist, using my leverage to pull her face into the ground. I feel a sharp sensation in the back of my knee, sending a shock along my leg. Sin rolls out of my grasp.

I push myself up and try to maintain balance while one of my legs is weak and wobbly. My healing factor doesn't stop me from having my nerves stunned, noted. She faces off against me with two needles in her hands, blood flowing from her nose. Maybe I was a little strong with that slam.

I shift my stance onto my good leg. She throws a leg at my head and I drop below and into it, grabbing her leg to attempt to trip her. She jumps off her standing leg, locking it around my head. She attempts to go for my neck. I lock my arms over her stomach and jump forward, slamming her into the ground.

I push myself off of her and leave her wearing on the ground. She turns and throws two needles that I dodge with a turn of my body. While I'm in poor stance, she rolls towards me, throwing a needle at my bad leg which I pull out of the way. But my bad balance makes me fall to a knee. When she comes out of the roll, she throws a punch at my face. I move, pull her arm in front of me, and slam her head into the mat twice, a third time for good measure. While she's stunned, I take the last of her needles from her holster and throw it away.

"Just give up Sin," I tell her.

"I'm not losing to some boy who doesn't even know a fighting style." She wheezes.

I feel a tingling in my head and shove her away, barely avoiding a very thin needle to the kidney. She tools and throws the needle at my head. I duck and roll. She takes a similar needle from her boot into her hand and rushes at me. I stand up and block a swing at my head. She goes into a series of rapid hand combat moves that I struggle to block while maintaining my footing. Eventually, I can't keep up. I stumble. I get a kick to the head and barely stay standing. 

I feel the needle at my neck. She stands in front of me with a bloody nose that's gone all over her face. She grabs the back of my head and pulls her face towards mine.

"See? I won with decades of experience. No amount of weird movements will—" 

I push her hand and headbutt her. Sending her to the ground.

"No. You could have won. You have me best in technique, but you came into this fight with anger at the forefront of your mind. You lost before we even started."

"Bullshit. You have powers."

"Yeah, but I did my best to diminish what I could. Come on. Let's get you cleaned up." I reach my hand out to her.

She stares up at it.

"Come on, you wouldn't want to make me sad would you?" I smirk.

"You're an asshole." She says, taking my hand as I pull her up.

"Yeah." I make a damp cloth and smudge her face with it.

"Stop it." She tries to turn her head away.

"You lost, so you have no say." I finish wiping the blood off her freckled face. At least her nose is still intact. I think I was a little heavy-handed.

"That fight wasn't half bad. Maybe we can spar sometime. Tyler, you were...something. You were pretty wicked Sin, how many hidden needles do you have." Laura claps from the side. I forgot she was there.

"Just the two for fighting. I keep a tiny backup in my cleavage for locks and things. Want to see?" Sin's eyes dart to me with a grin bordering on malice.

"No, no. We're all good. But you can have this." I hold out an Uzi submachine gun. She uses it in the comics, and apparently, they’re a favorite for agile fighters. "I thought you might like one."

"Thank you?" She grabs the gun.

"Don't shoot it. The gun may be quiet, but the walls are paper thin everywhere except the bedrooms. You might hit somebody."

"What do you want from me?"

"I don't understand"

"You just beat me."

"Until I can say it's safe for you to go out and around, then I don't want anything from you except to stay inside and find some way to be happy. Henry is the only light in this sad sack of a place."

"Since you made her a gun, I assume you're ready to make that arsenal you promised my sister?" Laura asks with a cross of her arms.

"No. I'll need to make a range for you to use the guns. That will take hours and I'm not ready for that right now. Afterall, I do have training in a few short hours. But. What you can do is get a list of guns everyone wants. And if the stars align, I'll take care of it tomorrow."

"I'll get that list." 

"Great. Oh and Sin, make sure this training room is as nice as can be when I get back tomorrow." I tell her as I walk out.

"That skank started it!"

I leave the room and head over to Mellissa's room.

*KNOCK KNOCK*

"Mel?...Melissa, can I come In? I know you're in there."

"Come in." I hear through the door.

I walk in to find Mel on her bed as she bounces a white and pink ball against the wall. Her long white and pink hair flows across the bed while a gold Jewish star sits above the headrest.

"Hey, Mel. Everything all right?"

"No." She sighs. 

"Want to talk about it?"

"I...well first off, I want to say thank you for giving me a place to stay and everything. I know I'm not exactly doing anything to help you."

"It's no problem. I have the means to help people so I do."

"Today was my fault. My dad was pretty racist for being Jewish. A lot of our family tree was killed in World War Two, but that wasn't the only thing. And I inherited a lot of my father's ideas. I don't even remember what I said to Sinthea. One moment, I casually hear her singing in German, and then...and then I'm screaming at her like she personally slaughtered my family. I really struggle with this stuff."

"To tell you the truth, she was working within the powers of Nazi Germany. But she's moved past that life."

"That's ridiculous, it's been over seventy years and she doesn't look a day past twenty."

"More ridiculous than you fighting people with the sound of your voice? I understand how hard it can be to overcome the ideas you have as a child. I looked down on a lot of people as a kid, and that followed me into my early teens."

"I don't believe that."

"No, it's true. I'm still critical of people in general, but getting to know different individuals has helped me empathize with the masses. Maybe your next step can be forming a friendship with Sin."

"Like that will happen."

"Look, there's only so much distance you can create between you and her. I'm not letting either of you leave unless you have a positive motivator pulling you away."

"We'll see. I might just run away while you're gone." She smirks.

"And I'll convince you to come back. I'm not saying be happy. I'm saying try to. I ordered cheesecake that should get here in about an hour. I imagine you'll have to get some before it's all gone."

"I can't believe you're using food to get everyone to socialize." She sees through my plan.

"I have limited options. Get some rest, Mel. I'll see you tomorrow." I leave the room and close the door.

"Night." I hear her mutter.

What an event full night. Hopefully, I can keep the positive energy going.