Collide Gamer

Chapter 73 – The Accused

“Okay, where is that female dog?” Rave exclaimed, glaring at each of the leaving students as they passed them by. She and John waited at the gate. Inevitably, Moira would have to walk by them.

“I don’t think you should be throwing potential curses around just yet.” John tried to calm down his disguised girlfriend.

“In my head, she is guilty already!”

“Yes, but in your head Fairy Tail is also better than If The Emperor Had A Text-To-Speech Device.”

“That’s because that is so nerdy it transcends being nerdy and becomes just plain unattractive.” Rave jabbed right back at him, “I have already complied with your request to not barge into her classroom.”

“And I am very thankful for that.” John sighed. He did not want to step into the school proper, in case the Trap Barrier had been reused. Rave was hell-bent on seeing this through. ‘Oh well, the worst that can come of this is that the biggest organization in town puts us on their wanted list…that is not reassuring in the slightest, what the hell me?’

His thoughts were, thankfully, interrupted when he saw her. Moira stuck out from the masses with her red hair. She wore it open, framing her attractive face and bringing out her green eyes. He hadn’t seen much of her since he had made his choice, for reasons of mutual avoidance no doubt. Observe would help tell him where they stood at the moment.

And what he learned told him that she was a very unlikely suspect. Not that telling Rave that would have changed anything.

“Moi-Moi, would you come here for a second.” Raising her voice was all Rave needed to do to make the honour student adjust her course. From the moment he had spotted her, she had been staring back.

“Rave… no, I guess I should call you by your name Jane Hollmey,” Moira returned the greeting in a frosty tone. “What do you want?”

“You tried to kill us yesterday, didn’t you?” Rave returned a question, one that was as sudden as it was heavy.

While Moira was still busy blinking in confusion, John took a step in. “Okay, Jane, take things slow.” He wanted this situation to unfold as calmly as possible. If they were too aggressive about this, Moira would just storm off and he would be left with one extra-certain girlfriend and no answers.

Rave twisted her mouth into a displeased frown, but kept quiet for the moment. Taking the chance, John addressed Moira. “Would you mind if we took this somewhere less public?” A daring question surely but having a talk about the Abyss in broad daylight was awkward.

“…Sure,” Moira reluctantly agreed.

Ten minutes later, they sat on opposite benches inside a little park. The little breezes that would have kept them cool were gone, only the copied trees inside the Illusion Barrier made sure that they weren’t cooking in the summer sun. 

“This seems good enough,” John stated and then explained the situation to the redhead. “Here is the thing: Somebody tried to attack Collide, all of us, yesterday. I don’t want to go and throw accusations around but…”

“BUT I think you did it,” Rave interrupted him and crossed her arms with a daring expression.

“Just you?” Moira asked, “Are you telling me that those friends of yours kept a cool head unlike you?”

“They are all too busy looking into other people, just tell me did ya do it or not?”

“I didn’t.” Moira stared at the techno lover with intensity, “I have no reason to and neither does the Order. We are here to save people, not harm them, and starting a war with the Bloodfallen is outside our current interests. If we did, we wouldn’t do it by attacking you. You’re not important enough.” Which was exactly what John thought she would say.

Rave however still didn’t seem convinced. “Oh yeah? Are ya just going to deny that we have bad blood?”

“No. I don’t like you, Jane.” Moira said straight out, “But I am not out to kill you and I would never put a grudge over my mission.”

The two women stared at each other for a few moments then Rave said. “I still don’t believe you.”

Moira audibly clenched her teeth. “Why ask questions when you will not heed the answers given? Fine, let’s do this your way and duke it out. Talking to you gives me a headache.” Just like that negotiations had failed.

“Now you’re speaking my language.” Rave jumped up from the bench, while Moira rose in a bit more dignified manner. They both seemed ready to throw down, but neither of them moved.

John wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about how things were going but with Rave’s temperament maybe this had been the only way. “A second please, let’s lay down some rules first.” he stepped in. “So first we make this one on one, okay?” They both nodded.

“Like I need your help to punch Moi-Moi in the face.”

“At least one of you has dignity.”

John sighed, these two were polar opposites in most regards and that manifested in them being willing to tear each other’s heads off. “Okay, and just so Jane gets her wish you will tell us everything you know in case you lose?” he asked Moira.

“Sure.” She willingly accepted, “In case I win Jane will address me like a normal person in the future. No more of that Moi-Moi stuff.”

“So cute of you, but fine.”

“Okay, in that case, Moira get ready. You need your armour and weapons, right?”

“That is no problem.” Moira grabbed a small medallion hanging from her neck. It detached from the chain without issue. A flash of light later, the ever so radiant silver and gold shield was attached to her arm. The golden rose insignia faced John and Rave, while Moira did something behind the shield. A moment later, she produced a less radiant warhammer, holding it in one hand.

‘Neat’ he thought. ‘Is there an inventory in her shield or how does that work?’ The question was left unanswered. John took a few steps aside. “On my mark,” he told them, once he was at a safe distance. “Three – two – one – Fight!”

Rave leapt forwards immediately, engulfed in the blue aura that boosted her physical abilities even beyond their already impressive Stats.

”In the name of the Lady!” Moira shouted and slammed her hammer into the ground. The swing resulted in a golden shockwave that threw Rave back. The techno lover tumbled through the air, then over the ground. Rapidly, she jumped to her feet. Still orienting herself, she was barely able to see the hammer coming for her shoulder. Twisting, the direct hit turned into a graze. Moira immediately followed up by kicking the feet away underneath her opponent.

Now on the ground, Rave rolled to the side before Moira was able to hit her with the edge of her shield. The technolover got on her feet again and rolled her left shoulder with a pained expression. “Not bad, princess,” she admitted and then threw a wave of blinding light at Moira.

The Warden was hit full-front by the attack. Rave tried to engage in melee combat again, but her opponent had other plans. Eyes narrowed, Moira raised her weapon to the sky, “Lady, lend me your light!” A wave of gentle, golden energy washed over the redhead’s body. Suddenly, she was able to see clearly again and her raised hammer came down on Rave mid swing.

Something odd happened. Rave’s body twisted near instantaneously, without her raising a single foot. The hammer flew by, leaving Moira’s side wide open. She tried to pull her hammer back up, but Rave was faster. Her shin slammed into Moira’s side.

For a moment, Rave seemed content with herself. The smile dropped a bit. Moira was not budging. With or without armour, the Warden was an immovable object. Not letting this mess with her flow, Rave backed off, escaping a retaliatory strike. Immediately she charged back in, shoving her hand in Moira’s face. “How about ya try my light?”

An explosion of brightness and heat seared itself into John’s retina and consumed Moira’s head for a flash. Hairs singed and certainly blinded, Moira stumbled back, incapable of dealing with the roundhouse kick that followed.

 Moira was sent flying this time and Rave gave chase, ready to consolidate her victory. “I ask you for your blessing,” the Warden’s mumble was inexplicably audible even where John stood. Her flight path corrected itself, the burning on her face healed over, and she fixed her eyes once more on Rave. “Lady, smite my foe!”

A torrent of golden light came down on Rave mid charge, slamming her into the ground. The attack kept descending, slowing Rave too much for her to move out of the way, until Moira rammed her shield first. Rave barely kept on her feet, then the warhammer slammed into her ribs.

Rave let out a pained wheezing sound and fell to the floor. Not giving her any breathing room, Moira followed with a kick that sent Rave onto her back. Then the Warden’s foot descended on Rave’s chest. Unable to roll away, Rave could only stare as the redhead brought the warhammer down one more time.

The attack stopped short of a protective layer of earth that arched over his girlfriend’s head. From the look of it, she would have stopped anyway and she did back off. Rave took in a pained breath, when the foot was off her. “I thought you trusted me?” Moira asked John, one eyebrow raised.

“Trust is a strong word… I just don’t believe you are the type to go around murdering people,” John clarified and had Gnome undo the protection.

“Do we have a winner?” Moira asked.

“Yeah… yeah,” Rave hissed, a hand on her, likely broken, rib. “Two to zero for you, Moira.” She physically cringed after saying the redhead’s actual name. “If ya wanted me dead, ya would’ve done it there.”

 “Combat is about the only thing that gets through that thick skull of yours, isn’t it?” Moira’s warhammer vanished inside her shield, which then shrunk down to the medallion again. “However, I will tell you what little I know despite winning. I dislike seeing ambushes of such nature.”

“Thank you.” John said in earnest, “What can you tell us?”

“As I said, very little. Travolta decided that you would hitch yourself to the Bloodfallen. Many guilds that made that mistake previously have dropped off the map. Those that didn’t inevitably turn fiercely loyal to the guild. Unnaturally loyal,” Moira clarified.

“That only happens ‘cause it's either you or them,” Rave commented.

“Then it should be dawning on you that you have made the wrong decision,” Moira stated, looking at John as she said that. “In the Abyss you have three choices. Follow justice, pay tribute to a tyrant, or become an individual of unparalleled might. You forsook justice and whatever you may become, you are not mighty now. Travolta will never be. He likely entered into this bond only for the elixir the Bloodfallen offer.”

“The Blood of Thana,” John mumbled.

Moira shrugged, “If you can put a name to it, you know more than I. They’re very secretive of it. The Order knows little about the Bloodfallen at this time. I cannot aid you further either. The Lord-Protector has decreed our interactions with them be minimal at this time.” She gave them a few moments for questions. “I will be on my way… if you ever see the wisdom of acting in the name of justice, seek me out again.”

The redhead was gone a moment later, leaving John to help his girlfriend up. “You fine?” he asked.

“Physically? Nothing Gaia won’t fix.” To prove that, the two of them left the barrier. Immediately she seemed a little chipper. “Gotta stay out of barriers for a day, that ought to let it heal,” she stated and rolled her shoulder. “Mentally, I’m beat. Pissed. Worst birthday ever.”

“I can belie- wait, it’s your birthday?!” John hadn’t heard of that. He hadn’t asked either, but he would have thought she would have dropped some hints at least.

“Yup, you’re now dating a gal in her twenties. Hope you don’t mind a cougar,” Rave joked.

“I don’t have any present,” he apologized.

“Good, I don’t celebrate anymore… too many annoying moms telling me about all the things I didn’t get done this year.” She shook her head to chase the annoying memories away. “But I guess I’m taking a gift today… there’s a way I can get stronger.”