King Me

Heart of a mother, Eyes of a fire

Yancey, Aurelia, and Conner exited out of the vehicle. Auralia paused behind, directing a question to Mr. Sato, "Have you an estimate for your trip's total time?"

He flicked up the GPS hologram map, "With obstacles, my trip should take roughly an hour. I can make it in 45, I believe."

"Make haste, Ren Sato. Our next batch of foes appears in 30." And with the, Aurelia closed the door. Yancey watched as the car shot off, Adoltlin waving goodbye to them from his seat in the back. His wave was shortlived between the fact that Mr. Sato had the vehicle screaming away, and Adoltlin quickly bent over to wretch.

The three stepped towards the building, and Yancey noticed a few of the insect humanoids yet remained. The black, beady eyes upon their hard green exoskeleton followed them, watching from within the very building they headed towards. They looked haunted, lost, as if they were just ghosts left over from the battle that had crippled their city. "Stay vigilant of them," Conner growled, pulling his rifle from his back.

"They aren't allowed to mess with us," Yancey contradicted, but Conner was beginning to raise his weapon.

"Hey!" His bass voice hollered at them, reverberating through the ghosted city, "Clear out!"

They pitiful creatures remained in place, simply watching at they neared. Yancey reached a hand over towards the barrel of his gun, "Stop it!" Conner was focused on the supposed foes, entranced, even, unable to register Yancey's words. The tip of the rifle glowed red, releasing a ball of energy that blasted cement and metal into rubble from the front of the building before them.

Conner was picking up to a jog, heading towards the building's front door. It was placed between shattered glass walls, but it seemed Conner had lost all sense. Instead of heading straight through whichever gaping hole he might pick, he shot another blast into the door, obliterating it. He barked out one last warning as he entered, leveling the barrel with the nearest insect, "Roach, you deaf? I'll turn your head to jelly and never lose a wink off--"

He was cut off as Yancey reached up, ripping the barrel out of the insect's face, "Dammit, Conner, leave them alone!" Now she had his attention. Anger pulsed over his face for a moment, swinging a fist into her cheek. Yancey crashed back into a shelf, sending her and its contents spilling across the floor. Conner must not have realized it was her, because as her eyes cleared, he was hoving over her wide-eyed.

"Jesus, Yancey, I thought you were one of them!" He reached a hand down to her but she slapped it away, strewing the mess of plastic items from the shelf that had covered her off, and got to her feet.

"I'm sick of your shit, Conner!" Her shaking voice boomed, already feeling her cheek and eye swelling up, "You call everybody these derogatory names, walking around like some thug, and I'm sick of it!"

Conner jerked back, averting his eyes from Yancey. Aurelia took up the battle for him. Yancey hadn't even realized the tiny woman was even in front of her, just the top of her bright red hair, frizzled, dancing like a flame in her peripheral vision, "I assume you think humanity should be as blind and ignorant as you?!" Her feral little voice squeaked, and Yancey angled her eyes down to her.

There was no Mr. Sato or Adoltlin to act as peacekeeper now, and Yancey was ready to stand up for herself, "No, but I think we should all be decent! Just because you're both miserable people, doesn't mean you should try to bring everybody down with you!"

Aurelia's teeth bared, and before Yancey could process things, Aurelia shoved her back onto the ground. "You filthy little bitch! I've never let a General speak to me on field of battle in such a manner, I'll be cold and dead before I allow some pitiful little whore cast that tone upon me!"

Yancey snapped. She went roaring back to her feet, and, for the first time in her life, slammed a fist straight into the face of another human being. Aurelia took it quite well. She rocked backward for a moment, eyes widening. Aurelia's arms came up in front of her own head in a defensive fashion, and released an explosive war-cry, unlike anything Yancey would have ever expected she could possibly produce. The cry struck its intended mark, making Yancey feeze with surprise. Aurelia sent a fist plowing into her stomach, next kicking her in the side of the knee. Yancey's leg buckled, and her head came into perfect height for Aurelia's fists. Aurelia slammed knuckles into the side of her head, sending her back to the ground once more.

And the fiery redhead wasn't finished. She leaped onto Yancey's stomach, gripping one hand around her throat while the other bashed into the same cheek Conner had hit her. Yancey couldn't feel it, adrenaline had kicked in. She remembered one thing from her karate class for exactly a moment like this. When pinned to the ground with an assailant on your stomach, snapping the hips upward will send them flying off. And Yancey did just that. She propped her legs up behind Aurelia, bringing her stomach all the way to the ground. With one powerful motion, she catapulted the tiny woman off, sending Aurelia crashing down into the assortment of items.

This had been Yancey's war-cry. Aurelia froze with disbelief, and Yancey shot back to her feet. She was readying to bring a foot across Aurelia's face when Conner intervened, snatching Yancey around the stomach, "Alright, you've both had your go!" He had to spin Yancey around, pulling her away from Aurelia who'd gotten back to her feet and charged them. Fortunately, Conner had ample strength to restrain them both, holding Yancey off the ground with one arm, and reaching the other down to keep Aurelia back. "Damn, you two are worse than soldiers fighting over who gets first crack at a prostitute!"

Yancey took a breath and Conner released his grip, lowering his arm that barred the calming Aurelia. She had a nice shiner forming around her eye as well. She rubbed at it, smirking at Yancey. To Yancey's disbelief, the smirk didn't open to release more condescending words, "From the moment we met, I knew there to be embers in you. Took quite a bit of fanning, but it seems we've finally produced fire," and there she was, right back in Yancey's face, "I digress; the road to becoming a warrior yet stretches into the distance before you, but we are on field of war, where horizons come and pass before we know upon what we stand."

Yancey had never hit anybody before. It had lead to the first openly kind words Aurelia had ever given her, but as she stared down on the cold women, she felt nothing but self-loathing for the patch of darkness she'd placed on Aurelia's face. Her adrenaline was still running hot, her mind muddled, and she reached a hand up to Aurelia's face, brushing the red hair away from the mark, "Should get some ice on that,"

Aurelia's hand reached up, Yancey was sure she meant to slap her own away. But it faltered, resting atop Yancey's hand that tenderly stroked her bruised cheek. "Your motherly qualities have no standing with me, Yancey. I much prefer the savage burning with passion,"

Yancey was at a loss for words. The tiny temptress looked up at her, longingly, with that very same heat of passion in her eyes that she'd spoken of. Conner cleared his throat, "You two want to get a room?" His voice had a thick sense of comedy about it, but Yancey was certainly growing fond of the roman woman. 

Aurelia pulled away, "We must find a temporary location in which to make camp. The next wave descends upon us within the hour, and we are wanting of a strategy,"

Again, like the turning of a page, Yancey's concept of this tournament had shifted. I'm glad I'm here. And she followed behind Aurelia, further into the trashed shop, past the void eyes of the insects that continued to watch them.

An earpiercing screech sounded from behind them. Mr. Sato had returned already, and flung the vehicle door open. Adoltlin shoved the backseat door open, his hands hooked up under the armpits of Faust who he pulled out. Mr. Sato hurried to catch Faust's legs as Adoltlin hurriedly pulled him out, and the two began carrying him towards the building, "Help, he is in a terrible state!" Mr. Sato yelled to them, but Conner and Aurelia were already moving.