《Lethal Combo (Weapon-Based Martial Arts Adventure)》Part 3: Chapter 13 - Numbers Don't Matter
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"Come on you two! What's taking you so long?" Selene whispered to no one in particular. Even though the lights of the construction site had dimmed, there was enough glare from the moonlight to give her a view of the area in front of the memorial. She leaned forward, protruding just beyond the edge of the vehicle she was hiding behind. The chatter of the Union overcame the more ambient sounds of the night.
Selene inched forward while remaining hidden behind her cover. Her eyes darted around the scene in front of her, unable to see anything with the lack of lighting. She swore to herself in her head, still keeping a lookout for her two partners.
A hand tapped her on the shoulder.
"Quang?" she said with shock. She turned around and saw three familiarly shaped silhouettes obscured the glow of the moon. "Y-you're not Quang. Or Vic," she said softly.
"Well, well, well. Look at what we have here!" the slender shadow said. Selene could almost distinguish a small smile forming on the person's face by the way shadows moved on it. "You don't look like someone who works for the Union."
Selene jumped up, raising both of her tonfas so that they guarded the front of her body. Her left hand led as she angled her body sideways to the other three. The angle she stood at made gave her more visibility of the people that had confronted her. They were Fátima's pupils. Each one held onto a wooden sword and all eyed Selene with contempt.
"You're still mad about what happened back at Dragon's Bite?" Selene asked soft yet confidently.
"Of course!" the shortest of the silhouettes asked. "That was humiliating what you did to us!"
"And what about what you did to Rodney's studio? You think that was justified?"
"Kinda," the roundest one replied. "Always sending his lackeys in to make a fuss over at Belanger's studio. That jealous geezer been had it coming."
"Rodney never sent us!" Selene snapped. "We went there looking for Vic! And that fight between me and Fátima only happened because she has my necklace!"
The leader of the group stepped closer to Selene, making himself visible. It was clear now that it was Spencer. He had a shinai resting on his shoulder, slowly bouncing it up and down as he tilted his head low to make eye contact with Selene. Despite his advancement, she remained steadfast and kept her stance. "Doesn't change the fact that you're friends with that Vic guy and the dude who twisted my arm. Not to mention what you did to poor Kiki over there!"
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"Looks like you three are looking for a fight then." Selene's eyes shifted between Spencer and the other two. "I can tell by your posture and mannerisms."
Spencer pointed one finger towards Selene's face. "You looking for Fátima or something?"
"That's not a concern of yours."
"We're not with the Union, so we don't really care why you're here. But..." Jake and Kiki moved in towards Selene, brandishing their weapons and enclosing in on her with a triangular shape. "That doesn't mean we still can't help out and take out some trash while we're out and about." With all three now close enough to surround her, she could see them smile, holding back their laughter and as they pointed wooden and bamboo weapons at her.
Selene felt her heart rate jump. She took one step back, grinding her foot against the dirt as she held onto her defensive pose. She could feel the rubber of the vehicle's tire rub against the back of her bare leg. "Three against one?" she asked with a hint of nervousness.
"You don't think that's fair?" Spencer asked. "It's not like you waited for us to be ready back at our scuffle in Dragon's Bite."
Selene gritted her teeth. She spread her arms forward, trying to position her tonfas in a way that could protect her from all potential angles. With her arms adjusted to deflect potential attacks from Jake and Kiki, her front was left exposed. Spencer flicked his shinai downwards onto Selene's shoulder. There was a loud snap as the bamboo smacked her body. Selene winced as the sting came a moment after the impact. All three laughed as they watched Selene try to stop herself from breaking her posture and bare through the pain.
Kiki went in for a similar attack. Selene noticed her starting up a slash and responded by attacking with a right jab, directing the butt of the tonfa at her enemy's gut. The strike hit true, making Kiki bend forward and groan. She backed away from the fight, leaving Spence and Jake to duke it out with their lone opponent. Both of Selene's tonfas matched the pair's attacks; she blocked both swords despite them coming in front opposing angles. The wooden weapons clacked against each other, making a small ruckus.
With Kiki out of the way, Selene escaped to the and gave herself more room to maneuver. Jake took lead. He raised his shinai high above his head ready to bring it down. Watch the attack carefully, Selene twirled one of her tonfas so that the long side stuck out straight. With a wide arc, she intercepted Jake's downwards slash. Selene put all her force into her counterattack. The oak of her weapon shattered the bamboo of Jake's sword, making it snap and splinter towards the center with a loud, explosion-like sound.
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"What was that?" a voice rang out in the distance. "Think you could at least make yourself useful and go check it out?" It was Hudson and by how he barked the order, it was more than clear that he was not happy.
Despite the sound of Hudson's voice catching her attention, Selene made sure to keep her eyes on the two men in front of her. A crooked shinai didn't deter Jake from attacking once more. Next he went in for a baseball bat like swing, holding his weapon with both hands and slugging towards Selene's head. A prompt duck made the attack miss by a wide margin, giving her ample time to follow up with her series of strikes. A quick combo of jabs to the stomach made Jake lean forward, while a blunt back hand with the side of Selene's right tonfa was enough to send the man to the ground.
Only Spencer remained standing. He held onto his sword with both hands, but Selene could see fingers shake as the weapon wobbled from side to side. His legs were spread apart as he inched closer to Selene, trying to find an opening in her defense that he could capitalize on.
Selene, however, took control of the of the offense and extended the length of her left tonfa by rotating once more. She lowered her weapon and swung upwards, forcing Spencer to point his weapon downwards to block it. His entire body jumped back once the two weapons connected. Selene swung again, this time from the opposite direction and with an overhead lunge.
Unable to move his weapon fast enough, Selene's tonfa landed on his shoulder, making a thump as the wood collided with flesh. The man dropped his weapon as both hands tried to soothe where he had been hit. Spencer went down on his knees, buckling forward as he groaned in pain. "You... you..." he muttered under his breath as Selene stood over him. Even though her opponent were defeated she still stood in preparation for a fight.
"You going to finish that sentence?" a separate voice called out. Spencer turned around and looked up. He scrambled to be on his feet to address the woman. It was undeniably Fátima's silhouette. She stepped out of the darkness and into the moonlight, allowing Selene to see her face as well as the bandage that she had wrapped around her shoulder. Her eyes scanned the immediate area, looking at her downed pupils as they struggled to stand up and greet her. "You three couldn't stop Selene? Together?" she asked in disgust.
"It's... dark..." Spencer mumbled.
"She can't see either!"
"But..." Jake began, only to cut off his own words when he saw Fátima shake her head.
"What are you doing here?" Fátima asked Selene with her arms crossed against her chest.
"It shouldn't be hard to figure out!" Selene returned to her favorite fighting stance, her eyes narrowing towards Fátima. "After what you and the Union did to Rodney's studio. And how you still have my necklace. Not to mention Quang's family restaurant!"
"Here for some revenge, huh?" Fátima said quietly.
"I'll go tell Hudson and his men!" Kiki stated. Before she could take another step towards where the Union members were, Fátima grabbed her by the gi.
"Stop. Don't bother," she said.
"What? Why?" Kiki retorted.
"Do you want to stay with me or not?" Fátima exclaimed. The rest of her crew looked down in embarrassment. "I want to hear what Selene has to say! So no running off and snitching! I have half a mind to kick you three to the curb, so you better shut it and do what I say! Understood?"
"Yes Fátima," all three said in a quiet unison.
"Now," the kendoka said as she faced Selene. "Let's discuss things civilly." She pointed to the wrap on her shoulder. "As you can see, I'd prefer not to fight if I didn't have to. Let me know what's on your mind and maybe we can find some common ground."
Selene remained still; her defensive posture flawless as she stared at the kendoka. “It’s not like I’ve got a say in this, huh?”
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