"Did you miss me?" he asked as he appeared in front of her with a smirk on his face. His watch gleamed a nice bright 7.
"You are a level 7?"
"You didn't think our family was a bunch of losers, did you? We aren't like you. A topped-out girl at 5 and a boy who came from nowhere? I will punish you and take my time doing so. If you touch my brother again, it will be even worse."
He teleported again, reappearing with his hands around her throat.
The others froze. They feared if they moved, she'd be dead. In one blink of their eyes, Minx and the monster were both gone. The distinct sound of maniacal laughter was all that remained.
Deeper in the forest, Minx endured a sharp, intense pain as he pressed against the base of her neck. Then he simply let go and she stumbled, trying to find her footing on the uneven ground. "You like protecting people. Protect yourself."
He threw a kick straight into her stomach. She doubled over in pain, asking the trees to help her keep track of this teleporting maniac. He was faster than she expected as well. This guy had professional training in how to fight. As she struggled to fill her lungs with air, she desperately searched her mind for a way to counter this guy. While he had her doubled over, he interlaced his fingers and brought them down in a fist like a hammer on her shoulder blade. He'd heard about her vine attack and figured he'd disable her. Then maybe let Dan have a go at her.
Minx was thinking there were trees everywhere, but could she use them to her advantage?
"You are so weak! Forget fight me, you can't even defend yourself against me. How did my brother lose to you?"
Minx didn't know how she was still on her feet. He hit her then teleported away immediately after to prevent a counter-attack. The back of her shoulder was hurting really bad and she didn't think she could stand up fully, but she tried. She saw him come in for another punch and threw up her arm to block it. She felt it break.
He smirked then went to punch the other and she screamed but something strange happened. The punch went through her arm as it seemed to turn ghostly. She threw out a whip-vine, wrapping it around his throat. He laughed his reverberating, maniacal intimidation tactic and teleported away. It was then she realized she was wearing climbing rose armor, using a climbing rose whip and had a ghostly arm but she didn't have time to focus on that.
Minx screamed again in pain as she collapsed to the ground on her knees, hunched over, and spent adrenaline. Air was evading her desperate lungs as they pleaded for the sweet sensation of being filled. Her arm dangled limply like a useless appendage that chose to remain out of sheer obstinance. Gasping, Minx grew the plant she had just learned and focused through the pain.
Her combat was based on speed and flexibility but with the injuries she had sustained, it was impossible for her to gather either. She had no idea how far away they teleported. She was hoping Midas would find her, but she was going to heal herself in the meantime.
She closed her eyes and focused with every ounce of willpower she had. She had never broken a bone before. This was a level of pain she had never experienced. She took a slow deep breath. Then an exhale and lost her focus. It hurts so bad. Focus Minx. Breathe! She tried again, thinking of her meditation.
She could finally feel the bones knitting themselves back together. It was slow and agonizing. This was a skill she wanted to support her team. Never did she think the first time she'd use it would be on herself.
She heard footsteps pounding the forest floor heading in her direction, growing louder by the second. The trees, with soft caring voices, informed her it was her brother and her friends. Help had arrived. This time it was a little too late. She wanted to smile, be happy they finally found her, but the pain was too intense. She needed to stay focused on the task at hand.
Back by the tree Minx disappeared from, the team went into a panic. They heard screams of pain and fear. For the first time, Midas could feel pain that wasn't his. He started running toward the screams then dropped to his knee as an intense pain pierced his shoulder. The twin grit his teeth vowing vengeance against the monster that hurt his sister this way. He now understood what his sister felt. He vowed he would never allow this to happen again. He would do what he must to get stronger
Raven kicked herself. What was the point of having a beast if he was left inside the whole time? He needed more outside time anyway. She should have brought him with her. She would do that from now on, unless it was Beast Weapons Class. The pain Midas experienced finally dulled enough to move the rest of the way.
He found her on her knees, one arm dangling and the other was holding a plant he had never seen before to the motionless arm. There was blood on her, but what shocked him more was she was covered in roses, and he couldn't see her arm. He could see the hand, the shoulder, but the portion between was simply not there, it was ghostly instead. He ran to her side and dropped to his knees. She changed leaves of the plant, but her eyes were closed, as if lost in concentration.
"Minx, can you hear me?"
She nodded.
"What happened? Your arm?"
She hesitated. "It's broken. Shoulder and arm. I just learned the plant. Give me a few minutes." She didn't realize he was asking about the one that simply wasn't there.
She felt the arm finally heal but the shoulder still needed work. She withered the plant and grew a new one. Eventually, the bones were healed and the pain that remained was from the trauma to her body. She stood up. She still hurt all over.
He nodded with a frown. "We need a way to counter his ability. All of this because you didn't like being insulted and wanted to protect your family?"
She nodded. They decided they had enough fun for one day, despite it being the perfect day to spend outside. In her room, Minx lay on her bed. She withered her armor and finished her healing then took a very long hot shower. Dinner was in her room that night. Her arm was still ghostly.
[Logan, how do I remove myself from the directory?]
She sent him another text. She knew it was probably too late but needed to make the effort. She wasn't the only one in this room. She liked her schedule of bringing Logan sandwiches every Monday and Thursday. It seemed to fit her schedule with all she had going on. One time he had been asleep, his head on his desk, so she made sure to walk in quietly.
[Done.]
[Thank you!]
The guys followed their normal VR room schedule after dinner, still fuming. Midas thought she was safe now that she was in her room. Minx still ached but there was nothing more to heal and the shower helped clear her head. She wanted to treat herself for pain before bed, but answers were the priority, if they could be found.
As Minx got up from her bed, headed toward the door, her trap tree sent her a message via a closer bush. She planted one near her room to amplify the voices of the trees. She was surprised the school hadn't said or done anything about it. Her trap had sprung. Minx told Raven she'd be back in a bit, lying that she would be on the roof to get some air.
The military guards were still out in force. She pretended she was heading to the agricultural area hoping they wouldn't notice her arm until she got close to the second-year area. She looked around out of the corners of her eyes and checked with the tree to ensure there were no others before approaching. Quickly, she ran to the tree. It put her in the room as soon as she was in range to grab. It was small and cramped. This was not her other tree after all.
In the dark room she found a broken body. She didn't seek any additional lights. She didn't want him to see her face. She assumed this to be Mono if the tree had done its job, so she asked, "Mono, I presume?"
She heard him spit as a shadow twisted in her direction. It was a simple motion that brought a smirk to her face. "Who wants to know?"
"A friend of Vorden. Call me the Warden." She giggled like a child. She didn't feel uncomfortable or scared. She felt fully in control. After what happened earlier, she relished the feeling.
"That monster doesn't deserve friends. He's crazy! A psychopath! Do you even know what he's capable of?"
Minx bent forward and grabbed a handful of hair. Her fingers grazed parts of his body she could tell were broken. She relished his moans and screams of pain. "I know what he's capable of. He's a beautiful dove. If you truly did, you would have hid." She moved her mouth close to where she could discern his ear to be. Growling, "hands off my friends or you will come to your end." She roughly pushed something that looked like a broken bone and Mono screamed in pain.
The tree replayed for her the events leading to Mono's capture as it lovingly returned her to the ground. She touched the tree, "wither". Behind her, she heard the sound of Mono's body hitting the ground. It didn't move. He had passed out from the pain.