Roxie caught herself on the pole holding up the airlock’s spiral staircase, pointing up at her rival. “You can run away from me, but you can’t outrun your shame!”

Leon attempted to do just that. Little did he know, Roxie had a special weapon up her sleeve: Lasers. She unleashed a torrent of them, climbing up the room like a helix.

The element of surprise was on her side, for Leon busied himself stopping at the door atop the stairs, unaware of the reckoning to come. By the time he glanced down, the lasers were at his feet. Roxie watched with ravenous glee as he jammed his finger against the door panel. His eyes darted around, searching for safety, but the door to freedom wouldn’t open for him. Not in a just world.

This world was unjust. Right as the lasers made it up to his leg, the door opened, and he flew up and through it out of their reach. Phooey!

Something occurred to her in that moment. In her quest for revenge, she lost sight of what was truly important: Glory! She allowed Leon to get one step closer to it by standing still as he made his escape.

Roxie soared up after him. Opening the door panel, she entered the meeting room. His back faced her. He was too busy taking a breather to notice she was there. This disappointed Roxie, as she desired to make as grand an entrance as possible. Then a sneaky little thought bubbled through her mind.

As Leon approached the door, Roxie hovered behind him like the ghost of his sins. He put his hand on the doorknob.

She tapped him on the shoulder. “Hi~”

“Oh, hi Rox--Ahhhh!!” Her victim cowered against the door.

“Eheeheeheehee~” Roxie pointed at his cute little face. “I got you! Meanie.”

“Meanie?”

She nodded, frowning. “You turned your back on your friends. And then when I got hit, and you laughed at meee! How cruel!”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Leon’s voice and expression showed sincere guilt. “Wow, I... guess I did bail on you guys. Things were moving so fast, I panicked. But you can count on me not to do it again! Or laugh at you. That was kinda mean.”

“Worry not. Your actions may have wounded me,” Roxie clutched her heart dramatically, “but I would’ve done the same.”

“Really?”

“No, I have honor. I just wanted to make you feel better.” She poked her cheeks to form a smile.

“Thanks! I think.”

“Laugh all you want, for I’ll be laughing the last laugh when I--”

Roxie reached for the doorknob, but Leon plastered himself against the door. They stared at each other in tense silence.

“Hoh! It seems we are at an impasse.” she noted.

“Yeah, we are kinda stuck here, aren’t we?” He repeated the sentiment. “We both know where to go.”

“Indeed.”

Silence continued.

Leon’s starry eyes lit up. “I know! We should have a battle.”

“The fruits of your thinking cap are very sweet.” Roxie stroked her chin thoughtfully.

He struggled to parse her words, then continued. “Whoever wins gets a head start.”

“And the loser’s soft little face will be pinched!” She rubbed her hands together at the thought.

Leon returned a look most unimpressed, the most unimpressed she’d ever seen him. He sighed. “You’re really sure you’re going to win this, aren’t you?”

“Confidence breeds victory, my friend.” Roxie patted him on the shoulder and dragged him to the middle of the room.

The two stood in a tiny, square room of teal, broken only by the orange line dividing them both. No boxes nor exercise equipment were present to hide behind. Their battle would be a test of true skill.

“Are you ready to be pinched mercilessly?”

Leon reached for his glasses. “I just need to change a setting real quick, then you can start.”

“Ho ho! You are mistaken.” Roxie waved her finger. “No, no, no. It is you who will be initiating the battle! That way you can’t run even if you wanted to.”

“Hm?” Suddenly, Leon smiled. “That means I get to show you my patterns! Alright, you’re on! Are you ready for defeat?”

“I won’t let victory slip through my hands!”

“And I won’t let myself get pinched.” With brimming confidence, he started the battle, pushing one hand forward and drawing the other back. “Prepare yourself for ‘Star Crossers!’”

A pair of stars crossed by Roxie. What a fitting name for the attack! Little did Leon know, Jun gifted her with the wisdom to handle this kind of pattern. She mostly stayed in one place, moving out of the way of the passing pairs.

Leon, forgetting he was her opponent, started clapping. “Wow, you’re doing grea--Ouch!!”

“Are you okay?” She stopped in place just as the attack changed to.

“Yeah.” He grimaced. “I just forgot to set my collision settings back to ‘Stun.’ Do you know how to pause?”

“No.” Roxie took note as Leon swirled his fingers. Two giant stars circled around her with light trailing behind them. “Mia knows. Do you want me to go ask her?”

“My patterns will probably run out by the time you go downstairs and back. I’ll have to tough it out either way.” resigned Leon. “Of course, if you lose, I won’t have to for long.”

“Hmph! Well you better hope I do!”

“Oh, I almost forgot my next attack name.” he noticed. “Let’s see if you can make it past this Shooting Star Serenade!”

The stars homed in on Roxie. She dodged out of the way. It was an easy enough pattern that she treated herself to a congratulatory chuckle.

She soon suffered a rude awakening. When the stars collided, they exploded into much smaller stars, spread out at random. She thought she had the hang of that, but as the small stars were starting to clear out, one of the bigger stars reappeared.

The other struck her from the side.

“Waaaaah!” The shame of being hit hurt more than the stun. If she hadn’t switched to offensive mode prior to fighting Leon, she would’ve lost right here. Thankfully, her hit points reset when she changed modes.

Roxie fled out of the way of the star that hit her, as it and its partner homed in on where she was. On the opposite corner of the room, she braced herself for the incoming star storm.

Leon stood in front of the door, just a few feet away. “How do you like it?” He asked as Roxie dodged his attack. “I’ve been working on my patterns all week. At first, I was just gonna have it be the two bigger stars, but I thought that might be too simple. Now, I’m not so sure if I could even do this one. You’re really in the zone right now!”

A star grazed Roxie’s side, barely missing her collision target. “Your every word is a test on my grip of the zone.”

“And you’re acing it. Except for that one time you got hit.” By his cheery response, Roxie could tell he didn’t quite get the message. But that’s okay. His chatter just adds an extra layer of challenge. “But that just means I won’t get shocked this time, so thanks for that! Anyway, I hope you’re ready for,” he shoved both arms forward, “Cosmic Drift!”

“You bet I am!” Roxie glided over to the middle of the room, sliding to a halt as she planted her feet. She had as much fun dodging his patterns as he did announcing them.

Stars of different shapes, sizes, and colors advanced toward her. A magical sight decorated the air.

“It’s so pretty…” She was so overcome by the beauty of the pattern that she almost failed to realize the smaller stars moved faster than the rest.

“Isn’t it??” asked Leon, the proud father of a lovely pattern. “I love looking at this pattern almost as much as I do looking at space.” He sighed dreamily at the thought of the cosmos.

Weaving through the starry battlefield came naturally to Roxie. In a way, it felt almost serene. A smirk crossed her face as she spotted Leon on the ground, stewing in thought while she had all the fun.

“I feel so graceful and free, one with the universe.” she gloated. “You call this a challenge? Truly, you are the fool to miss out on an opportunity like this.”

“Hmph!” Leon’s cheeks puffed up as he pouted. Soon they would be hers for the pinching. “Aww man, I lost my train of thought. Oh wait,” he regained it just as quickly, “now I remember what I meant to do.”

Leon lept over to a corner of the room and pushed his arms forward again. The stars shifted diagonally.

“H-Hey!” The change in direction sent a group of stars aimed straight at her abdomen. She drifted away from them, trying to search for an escape route. A lovely backdrop of stars became a disorienting web of danger in the flick of a hand.

“I thought you were having fun!”

“What are you talking about?” Roxie found herself against the back wall. “I may be scared and confused, but I’m having a great time!” She edged along it to get out of the oncoming projectiles.

“Great, so am I! If we weren’t fighting, I’d be rooting for you. I guess I still kinda am though. It’s so cool watching you dodge everything, I can’t really help it.” Leon smiled from ear to ear. “Plus, it makes me feel less bad about doing this.”

The stocky ranger hovered toward the left wall, then changed his mind and went toward the right. From there, he changed the course of the stars yet again.

Roxie learned to go with the flow as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the flow forsook her by forcing her into the corner where the back wall met the left. Everywhere Roxie looked, stars approached her.

Some moved faster than others. Using this to her advantage, Roxie kicked herself off of the back wall, sliding narrowly past one of the heavier stars, while its quicker counterparts slammed into the corner Roxie escaped. She then kicked off of the left wall toward a bigger star, using her air jets to safely swivel around it into a clearing where she could get her bearings.

“Wow!” Leon clapped. “Ow!”

The stars disappeared in a flash.

He hurried over to the light switch. “I hope you’re ready to arrive at the ‘Constellation Station!’”

Roxie looked at the name pattern. “It says ‘Super Star Crossers X.’”

“Huh? Oops, I guess I left that one in.” Leon drew his hand away from the light switch. Just as he did with ‘Star Crossers,’ he pushed one hand forward and one hand back. Not much changed, except two pairs of stars crossed this time.

This didn’t phase Roxie. Both were on either side of the room, far away from her.

Leon did the same motion again, but this time diagonally, which meant thrusting one of his hands directly into his chest.

Focusing on that left Roxie with barely enough time to dodge the two sets of stars crossing in the middle of the room. “Hoho! Clever technique. Distracting me with awkward movements so you can land the kill!”

“Oh no, I just didn’t think this one through.” Leon summoned more stars the normal way. “I was meaning to come back to it once I changed the name. Does it sound too anime?”

“It sounds more like a video game to me.” Roxie dodged another set of stars without much thought. “Why?”

“Sweet! I didn’t want to be known as an anime fanboy.”

“But you’d rather be known as a gamer? Are we not cut from the same cloth? Do we not share the same table in society’s dining hall?”

“Woah, woah, I never said I was a ‘gamer.’” He used air quotes between his next set of stars.

“Yet like roses by other names, we still reek the same stench!”

Leon sniffed at himself before realizing his jumpsuits blocked any scent he could emanate. “A-Anyway, it’s easier to pass myself off as someone who happens to play video games here and there. I’m not ashamed of the anime I like--most of it, anyway--it’s just that when people know you like anime, they lump you in with certain people.”

“People like me?” Roxie leaned toward Leon with a smile smug enough to put any anime girl reaction image to shame, before revealing her own technique: The ability to do anime meme dances!

“I-I never said--What are you--Is that Chokoladansen?”

“Maaaybe.” Roxie chokoladansen’d her way through the next sets of stars. Leon seemed to be doing them faster now. “Don’t act like you’re better than me.” She threw her hands behind her as she dashed past the next set. “We know we both did the Dashi dash in middle school.”

“No! How did you--Ahh!” Critical hit! Leon took a moment to sigh as the next pattern appeared. “Anyway. Now’s the time for ‘Constellation Station.’ Oooh, I should turn off the lights for this one.” He returned to his giddy self as he rushed over to the light switch. “You’re gonna love this!”

Light vanished from the room except for the glow of the oxygen panel. Leon rose both hands up, summoning a grid of blue pinpoints. He pushed forward, and they drifted slowly toward the back of the room.

Roxie joined them. She reached out, pretending to hold one in her hand. A faint line suddenly appeared between the dot in her hand and one nearby, followed by more lines connecting more points.

Leon floated to the top of the room. “Come up here! You can see it better.”

After maneuvering through the grid up to the ceiling, Roxie could see the lines connecting between seven points to form a familiar shape. “It’s the Big Dipper!”

“Actually, it’s the Little Dipper. The Big Dipper’s handle has a bump in it.”

“Oh no! I’ve been outed as a fake star-liker!” Roxie called herself out before Leon had the chance. In the dens of comic book stores and convention halls, she knew she’d be burnt at the stake for making such a rookie mistake. Her shame surpassed that of a known anime fan’s.

“It’s okay. You can like stars without being super knowledgeable. That’s the beauty of them.” Leon’s eyes never parted from the ‘Constellation Station.’ “As long as you’re willing to hear me ramble about them, that’s alright with me.” He laughed to himself. “You don’t even have to be willing. I’m pretty sure Aiden ignores me half the time, and I still keep going. I just like talking about things that make me happy.”

Roxie laughed with him. His gentle nature made the heat of battle cozy. Both watched as most of the Little Dipper submerged into the back wall. The lasers linking it together disappeared. New ones appeared, linking in the shape of a W.

“Ooh, this one’s Casseopeia.” Leon pointed to it. “I mostly put this one in ‘cause it was easy to make. It’s supposed to be a lady, but…”

“Not just any lady,” Roxie corrected, “but the lady who bragged that she and her daughter were more beautiful than the sea nymphs. Poseidon chained her daughter to a rock to get eaten by a giant sea monster.”

“Geez, that’s kinda messed up.”

“That’s life under the Greek pantheon.” She shook her head solemnly. “But worry not, the daughter, Andromeda, was saved.”

“Like the villain from Galaxy Gal? Or I guess like the Andromeda Galaxy, since that’s what she rules over.” Leon didn’t seem to mind talking anime with her. “Cool! I didn’t know that. We both learned something new today.”

“The exchange of knowledge gifts the finest of riches!” Roxie held her fist high.

As she hovered her way over to watch Casseopeia beside her friend, it disappeared. A new constellation formed around Roxie, a distorted trapezoid with a hook coming off one of its points.

“This is Leo!” Leon pointed out. “Or at least it’s supposed to be. I couldn’t really get all the stars to fit, but I figured I had to put it in since it’s the constellation I was born under, or something like that, I don’t know astrology.”

“It’s also your namesake, is it not?”

“Oh no, that’s just a funny coincidence.” His face showed sudden concern. “Uh, Roxie? Are you sure you’ll be able to clear this one?”

“Don’t worry your head. This lion is no match for The Great Roxaelia!” To be honest, she didn’t know what he was so worried about. She’d been able to breeze through this pattern with no thought at all. As long as she stayed between the points on the grid, she barely had to move. Being trapped in a trapezoid shouldn’t change much.

“Is The Great Roxaelia a name you call yourself or someone you made up?”

Roxie chuckled. “The Great Roxaelia can not be confined within the boundaries of real and fake. Her trials and triumphs transcend reality! And you, lucky viewer, get the chance to witness one in real time.”

“How exciting!” Leon clapped.

“Trapped in the belly of the celestial lion,” Roxie narrated, “our fearless warrior is surrounded not by organs nor fluids, but deadly energy fields.”

“Oh no!”

The bottom of Leo began to disappear into the wall. “It phases through its cage, bringing her closer, inch by inch, to her demise. Thinking fast,” Roxie moved toward the point with the hook, “she makes her way up to the creature’s throat, but the passage is too narrow to pass through.”

“How will she--”

“How will The Great Roxaelia escape this situation?” She wondered that for herself as her back pressed against the wall. “Is this the end of her adventures?” She should’ve pressed against the ceiling instead, but with the lasers less than a foot away, her chance had passed. “Find out next episode!” The lasers drew closer. Her heart thumped against her chest as if it wanted to leap out at them. “Uhhh, this is where we cut to commercial break!”

“Ow...”

The lasers and the entire grid disappeared. Roxie breathed a sigh of relief.

Leon turned on the lights. “I think I’m starting to get used to these shocks.”

“And what a shocking conclusion it was! For Roxaelia’s ally, uhhh,” Roxie needed more time to think of a name for Leon’s character, “Name Pending, used his… stun ray to disrupt the lion’s form. Good work!”

“Name Pending?” questioned Leon. “What? Am I related to Ranger Pending?”

“I’ll think of a name for you yet, Rookie.” Roxie pushed herself down from the top of the room. “Just you wait!”

“Okay. In the meantime, prepare yourself for my-- Oops, this isn’t the pattern I thought it was. I guess get ready for ‘Super Star Crossers X Deluxe!!’”

Leon folded his hands together, sending rows of stars at Roxie from each side of the room. There was no option to simply move out of the way of their paths. Instead, Roxie followed behind one row before pivoting to the next row when they crossed. Whether side to side, front to back, or diagonally, this remained a sound strategy.

“Ow! Nevermind, I’m not used to it!” Leon’s pain signaled the changing of patterns. “Well, now it’s time for you to see,” his voice deepened, “my final attack.”

Roxie commended his dramatic flair even though he was too soft and loveable for it to come off as menacing.

“You might wanna stand back for this one.”

Leon stepped toward the middle of the room, while Roxie drifted back as advised.

“I’m so excited for you to see this one!” His eyes crinkled with glee. “Okay, okay.” He cleared his throat. “Activate! ‘Double Neutron Supernova!’”

Twisting his whole body around, Leon held his arms out. Giant, glowing orbs decorated with stars burst from the walls, trailing unbreakable light. They spun a vortex, drawing closer to him.

“What??” Roxie marveled as she tried to remain in the vortex’s lanes. “That’s so cool!”

“Thanks! I modeled it off of real neutron stars!”

“Wow, based on a true story?” She couldn’t help but be jealous at how cool this pattern made him look. “I’m impressed.”

“And you haven’t seen the best part yet. Watch this!”

As the stars engulfed Leon and touched one another, an explosion of projectiles erupted from either side of the center, striking Roxie in the process.

The sudden impact shook her to the core, not that the stun setting helped. ‘What was that??”

“This is what happens when stars die.”

His words hit Roxie almost as hard as the explosion. She wanted to take in the moment with awe, but she was down to her last hit. Like clockwork, the spiral slowly wound tighter and tighter. It was to the point where she stood shoulder to shoulder with each ray of light. Any closer, and she’d be toast.

With hope dwindling, she glanced at her life counter where there were… two bars? Was she seeing double? She could’ve sworn she took two hits during the battle.

Another explosion happened right in front of her face. Upon instinct, she took a step back, dodging it before it could expand.

“That was close!”

Leon’s voice sounded much closer. It was then Roxie realized that the vortex didn’t tighten, she had just gotten pulled toward the center. A newfound hope overtook her. While she had less confidence in her math and her memory, she wouldn’t waste this chance!

Roxie wandered backward until she reached the walls. Another explosion occurred, but it didn’t throw any projectiles in her direction.

“How could something so terrible be so beautiful?”

“My pattern?” The stars enveloped Leon, causing another explosion.

“No!” Roxie scrambled forward to avoid it. “The death of a star.”

“Ohhhh. That’s just how stars are. Amazing, even in death.”

“Can a star’s life be cut short?” She wondered aloud.

Another explosion came from Leon’s direction. “Hmmm. If it’s too close to a bigger star, maybe, but that doesn’t happen often. Plus, old stars often become new stars, so they never really die.”

Not ideal, but she’d take it over being human. “I wish we could be stars.”

“Yeah…” Leon agreed, but probably not for the same reasons.

The stars embraced one more time, sending out an explosion before Roxie could react. Projectiles flew past, grazing her sides, but never coming into contact with her collision detector. For a moment, it felt exhilarating, terrifying, and unpredictable all at once. But that was life. And just like that, everything stopped.

“Ow! You won!”

It took Roxie a second to return to the moment. When she did, she struck a cute pose, poking herself in the cheek. “Hehe, byuuun~”

Leon stared, mildly bewildered. “Sometimes, I don’t understand how you exist.”

“Many have said that.” Though keeping lighthearted, Roxie waited tensely for Leon to point out which aspect of her made her existence unrealistic.

“You’re like someone tried to bring an anime character to life.”

What a novel response! She let down her guard, relieved. “I could say the same of you.”

“Really? Well, I guess that’s why we’re friends.” He held out a hand. “Anyway, congratulations! You really hung in there.”

Roxie scooped him up in a hug.

“I-- Oh, okay!” He returned it.

She let go, taking his hands instead. “Be proud, for you were a valiant opponent!”

“Aww, thanks Roxie, I’m really glad you enjoyed my patterns.” He smiled a warm, bucktoothed smile.

Roxie faced toward the door. “Well, I guess our struggle for glory draws to a close.” She stepped toward it, grabbing the knob. “I’ll see you on the other side.”

“Wait, you forgot--”

“I forgot what?”

Leon’s eyes shifted. “Youuu forgooot to tell me how long the head start lasts.”

Roxie thought about how long it would take for her to reach the captains’ quarters. “15 seconds should be fair enough. But only after I leave.”

“You got it!”

That couldn’t have been what she forgot, but whatever it was, it could wait. While life felt scary at times, it was beautiful, and she wanted to experience those parts as much as she could while she had the time. The desire to hug all of her friends overcame her. As she stepped into the observation deck, she wondered if maybe Emil would be the next to embrace.

Along with those feelings came a twinge of jealousy. Leon obviously had so much fun showing her his patterns. She yearned for the chance to show hers off. But it had to wait for another time.