Darkness Girl: Trickster God

Chapter Fifty-Two: Ice Machine

Sarafina looked up from the laptop as she heard a heavy impact. In the arena, Regan was stumbling backwards. Cesca advanced on her slowly, with dainty, delicate steps. Sarafina looked at the laptop screen again. 

'What does it mean?' she said. 'How could Regan preempt Kai's movements?' 

'Regan has a terrifying power for a fighter,' said a voice behind her. 

Sarafina turned and saw that Ashcroft had approached while she was watching the video. 

Bennet nodded. 'As I expected, you noticed already.' 

'You've been busy, Bennet. I see you took my offer of independent movement and ran with it.' 

Bennet made an irritated noise and looked at the arena. 'Nothing I've done was outside the scope of what you allowed me.' 

Ashcroft looked at Sarafina. 'I saw it when we were in my office. Have you noticed how Regan has a very direct way of looking at you?' 

Sarafina saw Forester touch the bruise under his eye from his training session with Regan. 'Yes,' he said. 'It's like being under a heat lamp.' 

'Regan isn't just staring at you. Watch the video again and look at the way she watches at Kai during their fight. Look at the way she mirrors the tiny movements he makes. She's reading him.' 

'Are you saying she's a psychic?' said Forester. 

Bennet gave a short, barking laugh. 'Idiot.' 

'Don't sulk, Bennet,' said Ashcroft. 'It's unseemly for a squadron commander.' 

Bennet uncrossed her arms and sighed. 'There are a number of different crafts that let their user feel other people's thoughts to a greater or lesser degree. What they all have in common is that they're slow. It takes time to interpret neural impulses into something coherent. Regan's craft is different. It seems to happen almost by instinct.' 

'She's not reading thoughts,' said Ashcroft. 'She's reading her opponent's killing intent.' 

Sarafina looked at the laptop screen where Regan was frozen I mid-step. 'So when Kai was getting angrier--' 

'It just made the idiot easer to read,' said Bennet. 

'That's why her craft is terrifying for other fighters,' said Ashcroft. 'The longer a fight goes on, the more time she has to read her opponent's unique patterns. With every attack directed at her, she becomes stronger.' 

Sarafina looked at Bennet. 'You worked all of this out on your own?' 

'I had some suspicions after I saw the video, but the results of Cesca's medical exam banished any doubts I had.' 

Ashcroft looked at the ground. 'You don't know what sort of person you've invited into your home, Sarafina. The craft on its own would be formidable, but Regan has honed it through years of killing, until it's given her that perfect timing and distance she displayed against Kai. Her skills were bought with other people's lives.' 

'So why is Cesca beating her?' said Forester quietly. 

Sarafina looked at Forester. His face was grave. In the arena, Regan looked like a dog that had encountered an unknown creature. There was a bruise on her cheekbone and she was breathing heavily. She kept her distance from Cesca, eyeing her warily. Her gaze was fierce, but she made no move to attack. 

Sarafina watched Regan shift her grip on her wooden sword. 'Cesca's skill level is much higher than Kai's, but it's more than that. Regan shouldn't be having this much trouble. Is it a craft?'