Liberty and Death, Chapter 52
Tania’s grip was harder to break than usual. Usually the girl’s fingers were as light as a ghost’s, at least before Tanya and insensate rage took over for an instant between sleep and waking.
When Cora tried to wriggle out of these, though, they clamped down like iron. It took her drowsy mind longer than she would have liked to realize that was because they weren’t Tania’s, but Kyra’s.
The girl grumbled into sleep, then purred sensuously pulling Cora a little tighter. “where are you running off to, Lin–”
“Kyra!” Cora barked, not entirely sure why. When she’d heard the girl about to say Linnea’s name, in that soft, tender voice… it had made her nauseous.
Almost more quickly than Cora’s eyes could follow, Kyra was off of her, eyes blazing, hissing at her like a pissed off cat from the side of the bed. The blazing cinders in the center of her head scanned the room wildly, getting her bearings after being ripped so rudely from sleep. She relaxed a bit when she realized there was no threat, but changed to looking a little hurt, and confused.
“Lin–, C—” her eyes went wide with realization as she put together the series of events, combined with whatever she’d been dreaming about, and her flawless tanned skin turned cherry red. “I’m sorry!” She squeaked, and was out of bed and into the bathroom quick as a blink, the sound of the shower indicating Cora should definitely not follow.
Cora really wished that hadn’t happened. And that Kyra wasn’t an completely objective 10. And that she wasn’t also cute, competent, and charismatic. She had blocked off all thoughts of romantic feelings for the girl this body had abused for years, but Kyra wasn’t making it easy by demonstrating things hadn’t been entirely one-sided.
Fuck you for even having that thought, Cora, Cora scolded herself. You know better than anyone that’s not how this fucking works.
She snarled, now furious at herself, and dressed for training. She was going to do a bit of the kind of endurance development that meant just letting herself get her ass beat for a while as penance.
“I don’t want to punch you, Cora,” Hawk protested.
“Yeah?” Cadey said, through Cora’s mouth. “Why the fuck not, pussy? Afraid you’ll break your fucking hand?”
Whoa, what the hell, Cora thought, as Hawk frowned, hurt instead of angry.
“What the fuck, Cora? No, I’ll spar with you, but… You know, what we talked about last night…”
Right, you fucking idiot, make the girl who’s only just beginning to regret being used as a human torture device beat you for no reason. Cool it, Cadey.
‘Bitch, I’m you.’
Fuck you.
“Right, yeah, of course, Hawk,” Cora said, voice hard, and she was shocked at the spike of anger and disdain she felt for the giantess.
I’m fucking sick, man.
ITS PRETTY CONCERNING, YEAH
Oh fuck you we haven’t talked in like a day, and now you pop up?
IT SEEMED LIKE YOU WERE HAVING A BIT OF A CRASHOUT
And you thought you could help with that?
WHOA, LASHING OUT AT THE ONES YOU LOVE AND EVERYTHING, DAMN
I don’t love you!
NO, BUT YOU LOVE HER
I want to fuck her, there’s a difference
NAH
“You good, Cora?” Hawk, gently, concernedly, asked the woman who was having a full on fight with two separate voices in her head if she was alright. Cora looked at her, lust and rage overwhelming the affection that tried to rise.
“Spar,” Cora croaked through a throat tight with emotion. She’d put a name to the emotion, but she suspected it was something of all of them.
Hawk’s lip curled, face changing like it always did, instantly, from concern to anger, as Cora’s antics finally got her fed up.
“Fine,” Hawk snarled, raising her fists and settling into her stance. And it really was hers. Having seen her fight a few times now, Cora would bet anything no one had ever taught her how to fight. She’d just beaten ass until she was the best at it, figuring out how to do it better with every fight she won, and quicker with every fight she lost.
Cora screamed as she charged her, a raw, guttural sound bursting out through that block in her throat that wasn’t really there.
She stopped short, snapping off a kick at Hawk’s knee, making the same mistake every rookie did when fighting someone like Hawk. Thinking they were slow.
Oh, the kick landed alright, but it landed exactly how Hawk wanted it. Cora’s shin slammed into Hawk’s, raised in defense, and the impact point shimmered red.
Immediately, Hawk’s fist, carrying that same incandescent glow, and moving faster than should have been possible, was streaking for Cora’s face.
Her Reactimax activated, but without Jane’s [Dex], Cora couldn’t move fast enough to avoid the extinction level event heading for her head.
Time sped up on impact, and Cora shot off like a home run, rolling straight through the wooden fence of the training ring.
Cora was absolutely certain she would be dead without Cadey’s [End], but it had also worked, that hit had cleared her head.
Unfortunately, her childish-ass temper tantrum had also worked, pissing off and confusing Hawk enough that Cora probably now had to actually win this fight, or die.
“YOU WANTED THE FUCKIN’ MONSTER, HUH!?” Hawk said, reaching Cora terrifyingly quickly, raising her boot high and slamming it down just an instant too late to crush Cora’s rolling body.
She flipped acrobatically out of that roll, finding her feet, only for Hawk to try and take them back out from under her, sweeping a kick at Cora’s ankles.
Cora jumped over it, but midair, there wasn’t anything she could do to dodge the haymaker Hawk threw at her chest. She got her arms crossed in front of herself, and prayed.
This hit was damn near as hard as the first, and sent her flying again. Even through Cadey’s [End], she tasted copper as the back of her head slammed into the stone wall of the courtyard, snapping her teeth shut.
Her vision was swimming, but even fuzzy, she could make out the hulking form of Hawk, sprinting towards her full tilt. With her head spinning like it was though, there just wasn’t anything she could do about it.
What she’d thought was the rush of blood in her ears resolved into a truly monstrous roar, bellowing from Hawk’s throat. Cora watched her begin to glow, cocking her arm back for a {Brutal Blow} that would probably end her.
I did want the monster.
That fist shot forward, and Cora’s vision went black.
But only because she’d closed her eyes.
Hawk’s fist must have buried itself a couple feet deep into the stone wall, because even with her arm outstretched, she was right up on Cora, breathing hard, rough and pained. Those pretty yellow eyes were wet. She growled like a beast at Cora, bringing her free arm up to close around Cora’s throat, dragging her up the wall until she was eye level with Hawk at the giantess’ standing height, feet dangling free off of the ground.
“The monster’s not foryou,” Hawk hissed, eyes burning into her. Then she kissed her heavy, hot, and hard, sharp teeth cutting Cora’s lip as her head ground back into the rough stone.
She pulled back, glaring into Cora’s eyes with an expression completely inscrutable, before she loosened her fingers, letting Cora drop in a heap to the ground.
Hawk turned on her heel, and walked back into Luxholme.
“Now walk me through exactly what ye were thinkin’ there lass,” Iain asked, eyes twinkling as Jocasta ran glowing green hands over Cora’s head. Given her symptoms, it looked like Hawk had hit her hard enough to give her a concussion, even through Cadey’s [End]. Exactly like she’d wanted. Like an idiot.
“Gahhhhh I don’t even fucking know!” Cora groaned as her head cleared. {Verdant Heart} really was amazing, though Cora fervently hoped it helped mitigate the long-term effects of concussions as well. She’d already had more than the recommended ‘limit’. Or had she? Did she have Linnea’s brain or her own?
“Just wanted te get yer fookin’ arse handed to ye, then?” Iain laughed, “safer ways, lass. The biggun’ might have a soft spot fer ye, but she ain’t no kind of paragon o’ self control.”
“No? I mean, she didn’t kill me. That last hit coulda splattered my whole nog, easy,” Cora said. She thanked Jocasta and rose to her feet.
“Aye, could’ve done at that. Still, keep yer head about ye lass, it's what kept ye alive thus far in Tyrinno,” Iain said, patting her on the shoulder and going back to managing his morning training.
[Big Sys] has kept me alive this far, Cora admonished herself, I’ve been doing everything I can to make it hard on him.
NOOOOOOOOOOO
YOU’RE DOING GREAT! IT'S BEEN LIKE AN ACTION MOVIE!
You did bring me here to change things, right?
Not just because you wanted to try your hand at Directing?
POR QUE NO LOS DOS?
That thought sent a shiver down Cora’s spine.