CHAPTER 2
SIN OF COWARDICE, part 8

I’m still grappling with the mutated fencer, who continues to unleash blades of wind from above with his foil. I do my best to dodge them all using the boosted speed my powers have given me, but I can’t be certain that I can outlast him. Deck can’t assist me because I told him to focus on the invention, so it’s my job to end this by knocking my opponent out.

“Ce n’est pas ma faute! Quelqu’un doit payer: tu payeras!”

What a nuisance…

Not only do I have to hold him off, but I also have to put up with his complaints in French. I can’t even tell if he’s really mad at me or if he just wants to vent. He certainly hasn’t shown any friendly intentions.

I can’t keep running away. His blades of wind have basically deforested the place, so I can no longer hide behind a tree. Joking aside, I may be fast, but not faster than the wind. I need to think. I know my shield is strong enough that his blades of wind can’t destroy it, but if I advance now while wielding it, his gusts could disarm me and then slice me to pieces. On second thought, though, his powers don’t come from the weapon. They come from him.

The foil only serves to shape the wind, so if I get rid of the weapon, I’ll be free of the blades of wind.

My opponent halts his series of attacks. Maybe he’s tired, though not tired enough to come down to the ground. Meanwhile, I scan my surroundings and take cover behind the nearest remaining tree. Without it, I’d have no other protection from nature. But instead of seizing the opportunity to attack me, the fencer starts to speak.

“Ce n’est pas ma faute, je ne voulais pas tout ça, je voulais seulement être sélectionné pour les olympiades du 2012.”

I can faintly hear sobbing. He’s not crying, is he?

“Plus que les autres je me suis engagé pour la nomination, mais pendant les trials françaises un adversaire m’a frappé avec un coup de coude et aucun personne l’a remarqué, non plus l’idiot de l’arbitre l’a noté, si douloureux j’ai continué à combattre mais à la fin j’ai perdu. Compris tu pour quelle raison je suis fâché avec tout le monde? Ils doivent payer pour l’affront que j’ai subi, l’arbitre et l’escroc plus que les autres…”

“Cut it out! I don’t understand a single word you’re saying anyway. Whatever your problem is, I can’t do a thing to help you because I don’t understand you! Get the message, you wannabe swordsman?” I snap.

The fencer gets riled up and unleashes a series of wind blades at the base of the tree. As the tree falls, he hovers in the air and looks around to see where I’ve gone. He doesn’t expect me to be running along the trunk of the falling tree.

He’s only just noticed, but it no longer matters. With a leap boosted by my powers, I’ve cut the distance between us in half. He was ready to unleash a gust of wind, but unfortunately for him, I’m actually able to act faster. I materialize my shield and launch it like a frisbee, hitting the hand he’s using to hold the foil. His weapon falls into the water and, taking advantage of his confusion, I punch him square in the stomach with my black-aura-charged fist. The fencer crashes into the wall of the Temple of Sibyl while my fall is cushioned by the water in the lake.

The cool water restores my composure. My plan to irritate him into bringing down the tree, and then take advantage of the moment to catch him by surprise, worked as intended. I feel bad about having to hurt his feelings, but it was a necessary evil. Before I resurface, I catch a glimpse of his foil as it sinks toward the bottom. I wonder if, with the help of my powers, I could crush the hilt with a powerful squeeze.

Perfect. Now, even if he retrieves it, he won’t be able to use it again. Comforted by this thought, I resurface and swim to the shore.

Now that I’m back on my feet, I can… Wait, what?

“Péris!”

The enemy goes back on the attack, flying at full speed and wrapped in a whirlwind of wind. A clash between us is inevitable. He drags me along with such impetus that the terrain is lifted along with my body. I try to break free, but his grip is too strong. There’s nothing I can do but remain at the mercy of his rage.

He slams me into a pine tree, then hits me with a series of punches from my head to my stomach. The pain is staggering. He’s so fast that I can’t react in time. I materialize my shield to protect myself. He must have injured the knuckles on his right hand with his last punch because he’s rubbing his fist and can’t open it. I should take advantage of the moment, but I’m too battered.

The fencer soars into the air. From above, he can attack me from any angle, and I won’t be able to escape. The wind gathers around his left hand, and aiming it at me, he fires wind bullets. I protect myself with the shield, but I won’t be able to hold out much longer. I’m running out of strength. The shield is slowly dematerializing and already allowing some of the bullets to hit my face… My mask is strong, but it won’t hold. This is how things stand.

I knew I wouldn’t be able to do it. “Becoming a superhero”—who knows what I was thinking? I had to open a black hole to defeat the steel man, and if I don’t do it again, I’m finished. I’m too weak, yet simultaneously too dangerous, for a task like this. I’m going to be eliminated by a mutant in France. My family will be terrified at first, then devastated, when they find my remains in another country. Assuming they ever find out, that is.

I haven’t even told the girl of my dreams how I feel. It’s not fair at all. Should I have to pay for acting out of good intentions? No, it’s not fair.

I recognize that feeling. A sudden, violent jolt runs through my hands. It can mean only one thing.

“Oh no… You have to run!”

It’s too late to warn the flying fencer. I didn’t mean to, but I’ve summoned a black hole. But this one isn’t like the others I’ve made before. Its suction is more powerful.

“I didn’t mean… I didn’t mean for any of this!”

Magpies, ducks, geese, herons—almost all of the local birds are being sucked in. The fencer is trying in vain to fly away. He doesn’t realize it, but he’s staying in the same spot. Once he runs out of energy, it’ll be over for him.

What do I do? I’m panicking. No, I need to calm down now and think:

– The first black hole I created for the steel man closed because, by focusing on him, I must have somehow commanded it to shut once it had sucked in the target;

– I woke up inside the black hole this morning. As soon as I decided to go look for the steel man and rescue him, my powers must have sent me back to my room, conscious of my fear of him, and flagging my intention as a danger to my own safety;

– I couldn’t open a black hole at the Louvre because I was too afraid of the consequences. Once Deck had calmed me down, I was able to focus on the section of the museum I wanted to suck in. Once it was inside, the black hole closed back up, which confirms my first observation.

I finally know what I have to do. I need to calm down, reset my emotions, and order both the black hole and myself to make it disappear. Meanwhile, the fencer is losing strength, but I won’t let that throw me off. The only thing that matters is closing the black hole. It shrinks with every passing second. Just before it can swallow up the exhausted fencer, it closes completely. He plummets into the water, utterly drained.

He reemerges on the surface and, once back on solid ground, the first thing he does is remove his eye protection to get the water out. He coughs, expelling all the water he swallowed from the lake.

While he’s busy doing all that, I stand in front of him with my arms crossed, waiting. Just before he looks up, I kick him square in the face, and he passes out.

“Phew…”

…

…

… I just saved Paris.