Stepping into the attack, Felix blocked her inner forearm and drove forward with an elbow. Miu caught it easily with her free hand and shoved it to one side. Her doubled strength was enough to knock him off balance. Felix did his best to move with it, working to keep his footwork and balance in check.
Turning around he caught sight of a fist just before it caught him in the mouth. Stumbling backward under the force of the blow, Felix got his hands up.
Miu wasn’t the type to let up, and dropping your guard after a hit would only invite another.
Seeing him defensive, ready for her, she stopped.
“Good. Your reflexes are getting better,” Miu said.
He knew for a fact that she was incredibly talented in martial arts. Her powers made her gifted in everything and anything.
Lately she’d been training much more diligently as well. Her strength, speed, and agility were skyrocketing.
Felix sniffed, and rubbed the back of his wrist against his mouth. Looking at it he saw bright red blood.
“You hit like a freight train,” Felix said. Or tried to. His mouth was actually filling with blood rather quickly.
Poking around with his tongue, he found he’d split the inside of his lip open. Sucking on it for a second he spat out a mouthful of blood onto the mat.
Cleaning crews were assigned to clean up bloody messes just like that, Felix reasoned. He didn’t worry about it.
Miu’s fractured smile spread across her face. She looked from him to the blood, and then back.
“I hit much harder. I’ve been training. I’ll be your bloody blade, gladly,” she said.
Felix didn’t let his guard down. Instead, he started to slowly back up, trying to give himself a bit more space. Miu had a tendency to attack when he wasn’t expecting it.
He figured she was practicing her own techniques at the same time, but that didn’t mean he was going to make it easy.
“Speaking of being my bloody blade, I wanted to give you your orders,” Felix said.
Miu began to move as well, stalking him. Though she was moving much slower.
“I want you to go through the personal lives of some people. In particular, all of my opponents who have a similar disposition as I do, who might be going after the same voters. I need to clear the field of anyone with the same base as I do,” Felix said. “The goal is to do it with pressure if possible. Giving them an opportunity to drop out if we know the skeletons in their closet. After that, probably a subtle bribe from Lily. If that fails… you or a Fixer finishes it.”
“So… non-human supporters. Anyone who thinks the Heroes guild is too big for themselves. And anyone promoting better security and defenses,” Miu summarized.
“Kinda, yeah. I mean, everyone ascribes to some of that. But I want to make sure I’m the one pushing it the hardest. So anyone who’s running it as part of their main platform would be on the target list,” Felix said.
“I shall take care of this for you. Now…” Miu said, pausing.
She reached down and dragged her fingers through the blood on the mat.
The blood he’d spit up.
With shivering fingers she wiped it across the bridge of her nose and down her cheek. Then she licked her fingertips and quivered from head to toe.
Gasping, Miu closed her eyes and began sucking on her fingers. She pressed her left hand to her chest as if she couldn’t contain herself.
Slowly, only after she’d cleaned her fingers completely of blood, she opened her eyes. Opened them and locked them on him.
Or to be precise, locked on what felt like his bloody mouth.
The look that she gave him was a mixture of desire, revulsion, and need.
Exactly what he expected from her.
“Let’s see how you do, and what you’ve learned. Then we can go over what powers I need,” Miu said, and then sprinted at him.
Crazy and dangerous. Thank god she’s on our side.
Felix braced himself and was ready for her.
Stumbling out of the training room, he practically ran over Eva.
She was sitting next to the door, working on a tablet.
“Holy crap,” Eva said, looking at him.
Felix knew he looked as if he’d gone twelve rounds in a heavy-weight bout.
Partially because he had. Miu looked diminutive but had the strength of a champion boxer.
“Training,” Felix said.
“Eva said she needed to talk to you,” Andrea said, smiling. “I saw you had a note that you needed to have a meeting with her so I scheduled it for right now. We can go have lunch and put you in the tank after.”
Felix sighed but couldn’t disagree. It was a conversation he needed to have.
“Oh, and Kit sent over an email to you. She listed the contents as secure and your eyes only, so I didn’t read it.”
That’d be the answers she promised me.
“Right. Thank you,” Felix said. He was only mildly annoyed, but that was more about the situation than what Andrea did.
She was only doing exactly what she felt was right, he couldn’t blame her.
And it was right, he just didn’t like it.
“Come on, Eva. We’ll talk over lunch in the Andrea-net.”
“Andrea-net?” Eva asked. She got up, giving her bottom a brush off.
“Yeah. It’s where all the Andreas gather and do Andrea things,” Felix said. “I don’t think she lets anyone else in, so consider this the only chance you’re likely going to get to see it.”
Andrea smiled at them when they both looked at her. “We know Eva is important to you. We’d let her in if she asked.”
Felix wasn’t sure how to respond to that, and fell silent.
Eva and Andrea chatted back and forth and left him out of the conversation, for which he was thankful. He was using the time he had to try and figure out how he wanted to have this conversation with her. He hadn’t planned on it being so soon, but he knew this was as good a time as any.
Lost in his inner turmoil and thoughts, Felix didn’t break free until they stepped out of the elevator.
Two Andreas with SMGs gave him, Eva, and Prime a once over before they even cleared the doors.
“Thank you,” Felix said earnestly for their dedication to the job.
He smiled at the two Others as he followed Andrea out.
“Felix,” they said in unison.
Everywhere he looked were Andreas. Working at various desks, monitors, and tables.
At the sound of his voice, ears began swiveling around towards him. Slowly, every Andrea he could see, was looking his way.
Giving them a grin, he held up his hand and waved. “Afternoon, Andrea. Here for lunch. Anyone care to join me?”
“Nn!” came the chorused response. They began closing or putting away whatever they were all working on. Chattering with each other excitedly as they put their tasks on hold.
Being caught up in the flood of Andreas, Felix and Eva were escorted to what could only be a lunch room.
Chairs and tables were spread throughout the room haphazardly. Seats were being filled quickly as certain Andreas broke off into smaller groups to eat with others.
Prime caught him at the elbow and guided him to a seat at the center of the room. Seating him, she took the chair to his right and indicated the chair to Felix’s left.
“Sit right there, Eva. Food will be along shortly,” Prime said, smiling widely at them both. “It’s so exciting to have you here, Felix. You should eat with us more often.”
Felix couldn’t help but laugh and spread his hands out in front of himself. Andrea always managed to put him into a good mood somehow. “I just might do that. Especially if you can cook other foods as good as pancakes.”
“Yes! We’re good at all breakfast foods. Lunch… isn’t that bad, but not great. Dinner is better off as breakfast,” Prime said.
In other words, it’s sandwiches or breakfast food. I’m not surprised in the least.
“I suppose it’s a good thing breakfast is the best meal of the day then,” Felix said. Looking to Eva, he found she was trying hard not to stare at him.