Sanctioned

by Ell Leigh Clarke

  Jack looked up at her from her bent over position, and then straightened up, clutching her side. “How often did you train, before…” she circled her gloved hand, still trying to catch her breath.

  Molly shrugged. “Every other day,” she replied. “Mostly.” Molly looked around looking for somewhere to perch while her sparring partner recovered. She noticed Joel watching her, while he monitored the other sparring matches going on.

  She tried to do a bit of small talk, like he had been instructing her before all this happened. “So,” she said, suddenly awkward around Jack. “Did you ever get teased for having a boy’s name?” she inquired, trying to find common ground.

  Suddenly Jack found her strength again. She punched her gloves together. “Yes. Let’s go,” she said taking up her fighting stance.

  Molly quickly shoved her glove back on, forgetting about her gumshield. They touched gloves; or rather, Jack punched Molly’s glove, and went for her, unleashing her frustration.

  Joel had wandered over to watch the whole thing unfold— part amused, part concerned for what was kicking off.

  Molly was still faster than Jack, though; even though her technique wasn’t as sharp. Jack lunged at Molly with her backhand, and tried to follow it up with a heavy roundhouse kick.

  Molly saw it coming miles away, and stepped out of the way of the punch, leaving Jack over-committed. The kick came up and around, and Molly let it pass, then shuffled in and tapped Jack on the side of the head with a simple jab.

  Jack went down with a slap on the mats. Grunting and panting, she tried to haul herself up.

  Joel came over, whistle in hand. “Stay down,” he told her gently. Then he squatted next to her. “Okay, what went wrong, there?”

  Jack wiped her face with the back of her hand. “Over-committed,” she said, still panting. “And she moves too damn fast.”

  Joel nodded, a look of concern on his face. “Yes. That’s true. But you over-committed - and you know better.”

  Jack looked depleted, but still fierce behind her eyes.

  Joel glanced around the gym. It was time Pieter had a rest; he wanted a go with Sean, himself. “Take a minute to get yourself together, and then swap in for Pieter for a minute. I’ll be right over to tag you out. Just see if you can wear Sean out a little for me.” He gave her a wink.

  Jack nodded, peeling herself from the mat, still scowling at Molly.

  Molly stood watching. Once Jack was out of earshot, Joel stood up and ambled over to Molly. “What did you say to her?” he asked.

  Molly shrugged. “Just asked her if she ever got teased for having a boy’s name…”

  Joel grinned and bobbed his head. “I see,” he said. “Well done for trying the small talk thing, though…”

  Molly frowned, confused. “Okay.” She didn’t have the will to try and understand what that was all about right now.

  Joel looked over at the other pairs of fighters training. Molly noticed the serious look on his face. “You think we’re going to be ready?” she asked. “The Etheric Empire mission is less than a week away…”

  Joel grimaced, and pulled in air through his teeth. “I really don’t know.” He glanced over at her. “We’ll be as ready as we can be… But we’ve still no idea what we’re up against.”

  Molly started taking off her gloves. “I’ll try and get some parameters out of ADAM later on. I have a few things to discuss with him.”

  Joel watched Jack and Sean going at it. “Yeah, that would be good. Any hint might give us an edge.”

  He looked down at Molly standing next to him. “You okay?” he asked.

  She nodded.

  “Okay,” he told her, handing his holo to her. “Come and referee a few rounds for me and Sean. I want to test something out.”

  Molly took his holo off him and set the time.

  This is going to be interesting, she thought.

  Oh, you have no idea.

  Why?

  You’ll see.

  Joel stalked across the mats and was just interrupting Jack and Sean dancing around each other.

  Molly approached and watched Joel put on gloves, and Sean walk to the other side of the mats, looking smug.

  He’s so going to get his ass handed to him!

  Who, Joel? I wouldn’t be too sure.

  Damn it, Oz, what do you know?

  Just watch…

  Joel signalled for Molly to step onto the mats to adjudicate.

  Sean grinned and looked at Molly, then back at Joel. “Need her here to make sure you stay safe, mate?” he asked.

  Joel smiled back. “No… I was thinking of your safety.”

  Molly rolled her eyes. “Okay, chaps. Let’s do this. On three. One, two, THREE!” She dropped her hand between them and stepped back, giving them a three-minute round.

  Joel went straight in for the attack, flying with a back fist. Sean ducked, but the punch still caught him on his shoulder. He swerved around, but was too close to use his legs. Instead, he tried to gain his balance and set Joel up with his jab.

  Joel was too fast, though. He ducked and wove through each jab, landing his own body blows and uppercuts in between. Before he knew it, Sean was on the defense, stepping backwards with each jab he landed. Joel paused and then went straight forward with a front kick into Sean’s much higher chest.

  Sean flew backwards across the gym.

  It was only then that Molly realized that everyone else who had been training had gathered at the edge of the mats to watch the two titans go at each other. Even Garet appeared at the doorway, presumably waiting for the session to finish.

  Shock illuminated Sean’s eyes. But Joel was still on the case, walking menacingly towards him and smiling a little. “Not quite as easy as you thought, eh? Mate!”

  Sean pulled himself up on his elbows, and then used his abnormally strong abs to pull himself to sitting, and then up on his feet in a single spring.

  Joel was in his fighting stance again.

  Oz, what is going on?

  The two men went for each other again. A second later, Joel’s arm was outstretched and Sean had been flipped on his back, he was now looking up at Joel towering above him.

  “You’ve been up to something, Mate,” Sean declared. “I’m onto you. Those reaction speeds aren’t natural!”

  Oz, what did you do? And don’t tell me ‘nothing,’ because this has Ozimandaus written all over it!

  I might have helped Joel enhance his speed.

  Molly shook her head.

  What about his strength, though? No way his weight could take Sean’s like that.

  I believe most of that is technique. Plus he assures me he’s been working out down here ‘like a motherfucker’. His words.

  Molly shook her head, unable to contain her smile.

  She looked down at the holo. “One minute!” she called out to the fighters.

  Sean rolled over several times and was back on his feet. They went at each other again and again, each time resulting in Sean being put in a compromising position.

  “Time!” Molly shouted.

  The team cheered and applauded. Sean looked disgruntled, but touched gloves with Joel and patted him on the back. “Well done, mate. Though you realize this means I’m going to have to really bring it next time.”

  Joel slapped him on the upper arm too. “I would expect nothing less.”

  As soon as Sean had stepped past him, though, and could no longer see his face, the realization of what he had started showed as concern.

  The rest of the team were jovial and entertained, congratulating and consoling their leaders as they recovered from their bout.

  Molly grinned, looking at them all. “Okay, folks. I guess that’s training over for today. Pizza orders to Paige, then hit the showers. Food will be here in less than forty five minutes.”

  There was a cheer and then a flurry of activity.

  At least some things stay the same, she mused. The promise of pizza always seems to get them moving�
�

  Gaitune-67, Safe House, Kitchen

  The team was starting to congregate in the kitchen. Crash was quietly laying the table with plates and napkins. Garet, Brock, and Pieter walked in carrying boxes of pizza.

  Molly stood next to the mocha machine, trying to decide whether she should have one or not.

  Just then, Paige followed the boys into the kitchen in her house clothes, clutching something in her hand. She approached Molly and took her by the arm while the boys bustled around the kitchen, distributing boxes of cheesy offerings.

  Molly looked at Paige quizzically. “What’s up?” she asked, noticing Paige’s closed hand between them.

  Paige smiled. “Give me your hand,” she instructed her.

  Molly held her hand out palm down. Paige took her hand and turned it palm up, and then placed something in it.

  Molly looked. It was a small metal talisman with inscriptions on it. It looked Estarian. Threaded through a little loop was a throng.

  Paige explained in a hushed voice. “It’s for grounding you. To stop you transitioning through those other realms when you don’t want to. You just wear it around your neck.”

  Molly’s eyes welled up. “How… how did you get this?”

  Paige smiled softly, and squeezed her arm. “It was my grandmother’s.” She lifted her eyes to the ceiling briefly. “She’s probably disappointed that I don’t need it, what with my absence of meditating and all… But I’m sure she’ll be thrilled to see you making good use of it.”

  Molly didn’t know what to say. She flung her arms around Paige and hugged her tightly. “Thank you,” she whispered, half choking on the emotion.

  Paige hugged her, rubbing her back gently. “Hey, you’re welcome.”

  The girls parted and looked at each other. “Can’t have you just drifting off, and leaving us behind!” Paige exclaimed. They giggled a little, and Molly wiped the tear that had escaped her face.

  Adjusting to dying was more of a thing than she had expected.

  Joel arrived in the kitchen, closely followed by Sean and Jack. Maya arrived a minute later, her hair still damp from the shower.

  The hub of chatter and banter grew until everyone was sitting down and eating.

  At that point, the kitchen was hushed in silence.

  Molly had been trying to find the right moment to say something to the team, but it hadn’t come. Now, though, with everyone chomping on cheese and pepperoni, she saw her chance.

  She pushed out her chair and stood up. Immediately, she had everyone’s attention. Some of them even stopped eating.

  “Guys, I… I just wanted to say a few words, if you don’t mind me interrupting your cheese ritual.”

  There were chuckles. Paige encouraged her with a supportive look; similar to the way Molly’s mom had looked at her as a kid, at her piano recital.

  Molly locked her fingers together and played with her hands as she spoke. “As you know, I died.”

  Sean chuffed. “Just like Molly, getting straight to the point!” The team chuckled.

  Molly smiled. “Yeah, and I was very lucky. But what I haven’t said yet, is how grateful I am to all of you for your support.”

  She looked over at Crash.

  “Crash, I didn’t know what you had done for me until I got back here and Maya told me. And it’s been so strange, processing everything; I didn’t quite know what to say. But now I do.” Emotion was welling up in her chest, and her eyes filled with tears.

  “I wanted to say…”

  Her voice cracked as she tried to speak. She tried again.

  “I wanted to say, thank you for not giving up on me.” She couldn’t keep the tears and sobs from coming out. She felt self-conscious in front of her team, her friends, who were just trying to eat their pizza.

  Until Crash welled up, too.

  Then there was silence in the kitchen. Crash scraped his chair back, put his napkin down on the table, and walked around to where Molly was standing. Without saying a word, he wrapped his arms around her; the two sobbed while the girls “awwww”ed.

  Even Pieter was welling up as he started clapping. The others clapped their support, and Molly felt Paige’s hand on her back, comforting her, even as Crash hugged her.

  She peeled herself away to talk to him quietly, while the hub continued around them.

  “I was dead, and you refused to give up on me. And I can’t imagine what that must have been like for you…”

  Crash just welled up again, and stroked her face. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

  Molly nodded, awkwardly, not really knowing what else there was to say. There was no standard procedure for what to do in this circumstance.

  Crash squeezed her arm, and then stepped back a little before retreating to his seat.

  Molly turned to address the group again. “I also want to say thank you to Sean for his quick thinking, and acting against the odds. Sean, you pulled off a miracle. I owe you my life.”

  The group applauded and cheered. Pieter slapped Sean on the back just as he got up. Sean punched him in the shoulder gently as he made his way around the table to hug Molly.

  They hugged, and he whispered in her ear. “Don’t think you can get out of the big mission just by dying, lady!”

  She laughed a little as he released her, and headed back to his seat. Joel noticed the slight telltale signs that Sean was choking up. He stood up as he came back to his seat and shook his hand. “Hey,” Joel told him, “I know you didn’t do it for me, but I will forever be grateful for you saving her.”

  Sean nodded and hugged Joel too before sitting back down.

  Molly had stopped crying and found her voice again.

  Composing herself, she addressed the group a little more brightly. “In other news,” she announced, “Garet is heading back to Estaria tomorrow.” Molly smiled, raising her mocha cup to him. “I’d like to say thank you for your service to the good people of Estaria.”

  She paused, and then added: “And for not fucking us over at the last minute!”

  The room erupted in laughter and guffaws. Pieter was sitting next to Garet around the corner of the table and leaned forward, punching him on his arm.

  Garet sat quietly, trying not to laugh, but going bright red in embarrassment. He kept his eyes on the table in front of him, allowing the team to have their dig.

  The others raised their cups and glasses.

  Brock chirped up. “To Garet!”

  Everyone responded, “To Garet!”

  Molly waited for the activity to settle down; still standing, her mocha mug placed back on the table. Her expression was somber. “There’s just one more thing I want to share with you,” she said seriously.