Ding. Ding. Ding.
Whir.
“Good morning, Miss Calista Medley. It is now 6:20 in the morning of October 27th, 2349 in the city of Washington D.C.”
Calista got up without even a small groan and immediately ordered her breakfast. “Two hard-boiled eggs with cinnamon apple oatmeal and a strawberry banana smoothie, please.” She changed into her personalized formal uniform; she’d toned down a couple of features, turning the vest back into the jacket and wearing the standard socks and shoes instead of leggings and red midcalf boots. But her style was still shown through the fashion.
Her room was once again colored in her favorite pink hues. She’d even added some decals of her favorite human music groups and beauty queens, including her mother. It was her room, after all. It was no one’s business how she decorated it.
She sped through the day, her focus solely on studying and nothing else. She tried not to pay attention to her enemies’ faces, or the younger students who shot insults at her in the halls. The words would sting fiercely, but she wouldn’t show it. She’d let her frustrations out during training, especially on her opponents.
Weaponry, Disciplines— change to Practicum uniform— Weapon Use, Break period in the gym— change back to Formal— Self-Control— change back to Practicum— Combat, Break period in the Studitorium…
She’d mastered the routine, not even needing the AIDA band to guide her around campus anymore. Almost a month ago, she wondered how she would survive without the teleporters to take her where she needed to go all the time.
Guild Training now started with a bit of theory, studying the intricacies of Lalaasa and other dance-fighting techniques that had lost popularity over the years. Afterwards, they’d get to practicing. Calista’s fighting was essentially dancing now, just with a little more kick.
She returned to her dorm after Cool-Down, tired, but satisfied with the day’s work. She dressed in her favorite pink pajamas, which were as soft as silk, and crashed onto her sleeping capsule with a loud sigh. Lindsay nestled herself into the Pet wall slot, where she would recharge and go through any updates she needed.
“AIDA, continue that dance-fighting recording I was watching last night,” Calista said. At her command, AIDA resumed a demonstrative recording of a technique called Capoeira, an ancient Earthian discipline that originated in Brazil.
After a few minutes, her thoughts intruded. She thought back on the academy Hub Rosalina had mentioned a couple days prior. Harrison had warned against checking it, but the curiosity gnawed at her gut.
Curiosity killed the code… but…
She paused the video. “AIDA, could you open the… Fistborn Academy Hub?”
The screen turned blue and a scanner passed over Calista’s face. “Student identified. Calista Medley, welcome to the Fistborn Academy Hub. You currently have 0 friends and 3 unanswered friend requests. There have been 2 articles mentioning your name and 3 broadcasts associated with your profile.”
“What the bugs…?” Disoriented, Calista browsed through the site. There were articles from the ‘Fistborn Report’, probably written by Journalism students, and social broadcasts. Fighters making broadcasts?
She found an article titled, ‘NEW VERSUS STUDENT SHOCKS FISTBORN ACADEMY’, and opened it. It started with a brief explanation of Juum Brutwasten’s expulsion and the race to replace him, followed by the students’ expectations of their new schoolmate, then the shocked reactions of when Calista’s name was announced. The things people had to say about her were… not nice, to say the least.
“What could this mean for the academy’s future? Has Fistborn become a slacker?” the writer said towards the end.
There was another piece that had released a week after Calista’s arrival, titled, ‘FISTBORN VS STUDENTS SPEAK OUT ABOUT THE NEW SOCIALIZER’, which quoted many students, including big names like Rosalina Wiasod and her SC, Reilly Campbell. All of them talked about how ‘ditzy’ Calista was and how they had low expectations for her, believing her undeserving of her position.
When did the Journalism students do this? Didn’t they have limits on what they could talk about? Why didn’t they ask for her point of view? Her experience?
She checked the ‘Students’ tab and found a few broadcasts, but not many. Mostly, they were tutorials on fighting disciplines and study tips. The newer ones were reactions to the expulsion and Calista’s subsequent admission. The most recent one was Geija’s broadcast of her cruel prank, followed by the recording of the dance game.
‘Medley fails basic game’. ‘Socializer actually has skills??’
She left the Hub, sighing to herself. She had half a mind to march down to the Journalism school and demand they let her say her piece. How could they be so one-sided? How were they allowed?
She found herself entering the Socializer Hub. She couldn’t believe she’d gone a month without checking it. Her account was bombarded with updates, including her lockout from the SociaLights channel account.
A weight settled in her stomach, her conscience screaming for her to shut off the screen and go to sleep. But despite the slow movements of her fingers, she continued browsing until she found the SociaLights’ most recent broadcast.
‘Life without Loyalty’ was the title. Calista opened it, her blood running cold. She couldn’t understand her desire to go back to her past after spending so long suffering in it.
“Hey, Lights!” the three girls greeted, as always. “Welcome back to another SociaLights broadcast,” Danica continued. “We’ve been doing our usual thing lately, but a lot of you have been asking how we’ve gone our normal way without Calista around. Lots of you say stuff like, ‘do you miss her?’, ‘you think she’ll come back?’, ‘did she fail yet?’, stuff like that, so we’ll answer as many as we can so we can be completely honest with you.”
“Let’s go with Madison Eior’s question,” Rebecca said, pointing to the side as a question appeared: ‘Are you guys true to your signs? Because Calista’s sign was Loyalty and she’s obviously not a loyal person.’
“I’d like to say, yes, we’re very true to our signs. Unfortunately, you’re going to find masky people everywhere, that’s just how it is. Not everyone will stay true to what they’re committed to or what they claim to be. Calista was Loyalty, and she wasn’t loyal. It’s sad. But trust me when I say that we, as Love, Peace, and Freedom, will never abandon our purposes.”
Calista’s green eyes rolled to the back of her head. What a fake, buggy, masky…
“Next question; Dennis Martel. ‘Do you know if Calista has dropped out of Fistborn Academy?’” Danica’s smirk showed a hint of condescension. “No, Dennis, she’s still there. I’m honestly surprised she lasted this long. Poor thing’s probably desperate for a spa day. Can you imagine all the scars she must have on her face?”
“Who cares about scars? Imagine the ugly bulges all over her body now,” Rebecca snorted. “I wonder how long it’ll be before Harrison Smith drops her.”
“Oh, you know he liked her looks. She’s probably got, like, 20 boyfriends already.”
“Eh, lots of people don’t like her because she was one of us. Bet the girls are jealous at how much prettier we are.”
The questions continued and the harsh, hurtful words dug at Calista’s soul like butcher knives. They even talked about her ‘replacement’, offering fans a chance of becoming part of the SociaLights by making their best broadcast about how loyal they would be to them.
Basically, the girls needed a new slave, like Elizabeth was. Calista always felt drained around the three, but it was clear Elizabeth wasn’t really ‘in’ the group. She was as left out and mistreated, maybe even more than Calista was.
Calista changed to an earlier broadcast, which showed the girls’ reactions to the entrance exam. She’d seen this one before, but rewatching it felt different somehow.
“She’s, like, shaking,” Rebecca giggled. The girls were even eating popcorn as they watched.
“I like how she does fancy moves, like she’s gonna look good,” said Danica. “That color already ruined it.”
“I know, right? Orange? What is that?”
They laughed hysterically at the end of the fight, when Lílitha had smashed her head against Calista’s. “She’s crying! Rewind that.” Their laughter grew louder. “Her big mouth!” Elizabeth was laughing, but not as ridiculously as the other two. She stuffed her mouth with popcorn, probably to avoid talking during the broadcast.
Calista changed the broadcast to a later one, which was their reaction to Calista’s acceptance. She hadn’t watched it at all.
“A lot of you are curious about what we think now that Calista’s going to the fighting school,” Danica began. “You can imagine we’re embarrassed, sad, and just really outraged. The SociaLights does not support cheating or false accomplishments of any kind. And we definitely don’t support the Versus or anything related to it. Please don’t doubt us as your favorite Socializers. Calista isn’t part of us anymore, and she’s honestly never been the best Socializer. Obviously, she’s made up her mind about becoming a potential killer.”
“We know she’s cheated and lied to get to where she is, and we’re so sorry about the effect that’s had on you,” said Rebecca. “We know a lot of you looked up to her as the Loyalty girl. Honestly, we’ve never really liked her much, she’s always been sort of iffy when it comes to the fighting thing, and now she’s shown her true colors. She’s not a good person, and we’re making it clear to her that the SociaLights is not an option for her anymore.”
“If she fails out of that school— she probably will— and comes crawling back to us, we’ll kick her out again and again. She’s probably gonna be desperate after whatever she’ll go through there, but it goes to show… if you glitch with us, we’ll never forgive you. Period.”
The two’s dagger-like eyes shifted to Elizabeth, who sat quietly next to them. Her paper-white skin turned red as her hair. “Uh… I agree with everything you said. Um… she’s made her choice. It’s a shame, because she was really fun, but obviously, she’s just not… she should’ve made up her mind from the beginning instead of… stabbing us in the back.”
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They stared the girl down for a few more seconds, but eventually turned away, satisfied. They continued with their demeaning remarks towards Calista, emphasizing how she wasn’t ‘loyal’ despite being ‘Loyalty’. Since when did they care about their signs so much?
Danica’s sign was ‘Love’, but she was the least loving person Calista had ever met. Rebecca was ‘Peace’, but she was the drama queen of the group. Elizabeth was ‘Freedom’… she was still trapped with those girls.
Calista was loyal. To herself. Within her, a strong desire burned like an everlasting flame, setting fire to her bones and her veins, anger spreading to her limbs, urging her to fight. To prove them wrong. To prove the academy wrong.
She was never meant to be a Socializer. She didn’t act like a typical fighter. She wasn’t either, perhaps.
She was… her.
===
“You’ve got to hit me, Calista. Come on.”
Calista ran forward, shooting a right hook at Harrison’s face. He easily dodged, grabbing her wrist and throwing her off-balance. She landed on her back with a groan. Opening her eyes, she squealed and shielded her face from Harrison’s foot, her eyes shutting tight.
He stopped, laughing. “You have to stop doing that!”
“Stop what?” She opened one eye.
He imitated her screaming and swatting her hands. She frowned and got back on her feet. “I don’t sound like that.”
“I’m just saying, stuff like that will get you kicked out of school.”
“Stop exaggerating.” She kicked at his stomach, turning and punching at his face. He blocked both blows and countered with a strange leg sweep that left her on the mat again, her feet entangled with his.
“What the glitch is- hey!” She was pulled up, kneeling down, and Harrison’s arm went around her neck. She was able to breathe, but she was trapped. She clawed and struggled, trying to get out.
“Find your way out, like I told you,” he said in her ear.
“I told you I’m not good at these!”
“Then improve. What’s your move?”
She continued struggling, but this only enabled Harrison to tighten his grip. He was careful not to choke her.
“What’s your move?” he repeated.
“I can’t move, you jerk-”
“Yes, you can. You just need to know how.”
“Then how?”
He sighed, letting her go. She collapsed on the mat and held up her hand. “Can I… take a break?”
“Yeah, sure.” He stood and arched his back. “I feel like you’re distracted today.”
“I’m just tired.” Calista sat up and looked down at her abdomen. It had changed over the past month, her muscles hardening, but there was a layer of flab around her waist that bothered her. She pinched it, as if wanting to pull it off.
“You’ve taken rest periods, right? You’re not studying all night?”
“No, I’ve rested,” she replied. “I guess… I don’t know. One day, I feel uber-motivated and excited to train, the next day, I just… don’t.”
“That’s natural. Also has to do with your energy.” Harrison helped her up. “What helps you stay focused?”
She shrugged. Lately, she’d been rewatching the SociaLights’ broadcasts every night to motivate herself. The desire to make them eat their words was strong. But she wouldn’t tell Harrison that.
“You used to train for the Junior Versus, right?” he then said.
“Yeah.”
“What motivated you back then?”
“I… God, it’s been so long. I was a kid, so I would play in the ImaginationStation for a bit, then train. Sometimes I listened to music.”
“What kind?”
“Now… stuff from Girlies 4ever, Sharpay Nightshade, Climax of an Atom.”
Harrison stared at her with unfamiliarity.
“Oh, co- there’s no way you haven’t heard of them. They’re singers! Real singers.”
He shrugged. “I listen to CrashChaos.”
“That’s not even a real person!”
“Says the girl who said her boyfriend is ‘Prince Rainer’.”
She blushed. “That’s different.”
“Sure it is.”
“I watch stuff with real people, too! Astrana’s also real people! Not actors, but actual people writing the story! So, yeah, it’s different!” She pouted, turning away childishly.
The Earthian man chuckled at her. “Alright. AIDA, put on… whatever Calista likes.”
“Put on Code Of Time by Sharpay. I feel like that’ll help you out,” Lindsay interjected. “And by the way, Harrison, I agree with Calista. Real singers are better.”
“That’s subjective,” a foreign voice said.
Calista looked around. “Who was that?”
Harrison’s Pet detached from his belt, colored in Kappa’s orange. “Real singers are better, in your opinion. Maybe to Harrison, they’re not,” he said.
“Enough, Jupiter.” Harrison grabbed the sphere and placed it back in its’ slot. “AIDA, play the song now.”
“Jupiter? What kind of common-code name is that?” Calista said.
“It’s better than Lindsay.”
The song played on the speakers, starting with a low tone that gradually escalated in pitch, followed by the singer’s voice. “You started out with numbers… numbers I don’t care about…”
“Let’s get back to the CDSim and run through some routines, then we’ll get back to combat,” Harrison instructed. “We’ve got about 10 minutes left.”
Calista sang along to the lyrics as she got into position. She found Harrison staring at her strangely. “What?”
“That’s your singing voice?” he asked.
“Yeah.”
“It’s cache,” Harrison’s Pet commented. He tapped the sphere to scold him.
“Hey!”
“Sorry, Cali… but I’m gonna have to agree,” said Lindsay. “It’s a bit off-key.”
“You sing, then.” She huffed and ignored them all, following the CDSim’s hologram. She muttered the lyrics under her breath instead. She matched the hologram almost perfectly, only wobbling every now and then. The rhythm of the music seemed to help her.
“Okay, so you’re good at following routines, like a choreography,” Harrison told her, watching her move. “Which is good; you need to build your muscle memory and you’ll be doing similar stuff later in the competition. But keep in mind that the first part of the tournament is Chaos Rounds. The prelims are all Chaos Rounds.”
“The prelims?” She grunted as she tried a high kick. Her leg stretched out all the way, but her balance was still a bit off.
“Preliminaries. On Earth?”
“Oh, yeah. I forgot about those.”
“Getting on the team is one thing, but passing the prelims is another. The 150 fighters that win get to go to the interplanetary competition. So you need to get used to unpredictability. Freestyle. Adapting to your environment when everything around you is going crazy.”
“That’s what the coaches tell us,” she said. She took a moment to breathe. “That’s if I get on the team.”
“When,” Harrison shook his head. “There’s no if.”
She nodded. “Yeah. When I get on the team.”
“Your reflexes need work,” Harrison told her. “When you learn a new dance on that game, how do you do it? Do you get confused a lot with the dance moves?”
“Uh, usually I sort of follow the dancer and try to get into a rhythm. Once I figure it out, I do pretty good.” She returned to practicing, shooting her fists out rhythmically, her lips whispering the song lyrics.
“But is it because the dancer’s repeating the moves over and over again?”
“Most of the time.”
“So if it didn’t repeat itself and just did random dance moves, would you be able to follow it?”
The girl paused. “Maybe not.”
“Then that’s another thing to work on. Routines don’t apply to everything.” Harrison suddenly dropped down and swept Calista’s legs out. She squealed loudly and landed on her back. She then rolled over onto her feet and raised her fists, glaring hard at him.
He nodded approvingly. “Good job. You’re learning.”
“Oh, I’m learning, alright.” She approached him, punching at his face, but missing. His annoying smirk grew as he dodged every strike. “You… are such… a jerk!” She launched herself at him.
Catching her arm, he spun her around and threw her to the mat. She let out a grunt of frustration and rose back up as the second chorus started.
“Take me back alive… through the code of time… through the number line… back when you were mine…”
Punch, punch, block, block, duck, punch to the gut, knee. Calista’s movements were rhythmic, flowing with the music. Her anger helped her strength and the song helped her coordination, but it was too predictable.
Harrison caught her leg and pulled her to the floor. Rolling her onto her stomach, he knelt on her back and kept her leg up, twisting it. He was careful to not hurt her, but the pain persisted.
“Ow-ow-ow-ow-”
“Maybe play the beat in your head,” he advised. “You’re telling your opponent your plan. And change rhythms every once in a while.”
“I got this,” Lindsay said. The song suddenly changed to a faster one, a combination of tango and retro techno styles.
Harrison snorted. “I can still hear it,” he sang teasingly. “Playing fast music isn’t gonna-” Calista’s free leg smacked him in the face. She rolled to the side, kicking him with her other foot, and got to her feet.
“Lindsay, could you play the music in my earrings instead?” she requested. The music transferred from the speakers to the silver studs in her ears.
Her hips swayed instinctively and she shook her shoulders, winking at Harrison. “Who’s predictable now?”
“Baby, I don’t think you wanna mess with me, my anger is more than a technicality, cariño, ten cuidado, I’m the eternal flame…”
Calista evaded Harrison’s attacks, all while swaying to the music. A flirtatious smile played with her lips as she spun around and let her ponytail smack his face. He spit out the stray hairs, taken by surprise.
“Boy, you should’ve been smarter, I’m not the same… as you!”
Harrison scooted backwards, his sapphires glancing up and down between Calista’s eyes and feet. After evading a couple of her attacks, he stepped into the rhythm and blocked, going on offense and kneeing her in the stomach. She narrowly evaded, but his kneecap grazed her side.
“Ow!” she said in both pain and annoyance. She spun gracefully and flipped backwards like a gymnast. In her ears, the music changed to one of the many covers of an old pop song.
“I met a guy in the summer, and I left him in the spring…” The singer spoke alone with no musical accompaniment, but there was still a palpable rhythm.
“He argued with me about everything.” Calista casually strutted forward and punched Harrison’s gut.
“Who did?” Harrison asked, his voice strained from the lack of air. He ducked under her left hook and retreated to reevaluate her movements.
“Maybe you,” Calista told him breathlessly, punching again. “You annoy me about everything. You’ve got an ego.”
He caught her wrist and twisted her around, holding her in a tango dance position, their arms stretched out. “I won’t deny the ego,” he told her. “But come on, Calista. I’m charming, not annoying.”
“Ahem.”
The music in Calista’s ears abruptly stopped. The two turned, finding a familiar, short woman of indigo blue skin standing in the doorway. She stared at them with a raised brow.
“Hey, Li.” Harrison stepped away from Calista.
“Are you training her to dance tango?”
He laughed. “No, it’s a long story. How’d you get in?”
“Guild Training ended 10 minutes ago. Cool-Down just finished. You didn’t hear the bell?”
“I guess not.”
“Hmm.” The woman’s blacked-out eyes glanced at Calista with suspicion. “Anyway. I was coming to ask about that Disciplines test you needed help studying for, and also to ask you for an update on your new trainee. Though, I see it’s going… well.”
“It is. She’s learning a lot.” Harrison smiled at Calista and went to shut down the program.
“Clearly.”
“Let’s go to the Studitorium. Cali, we can keep training tomorrow… unless you wanted to come with?”
“No, thank you,” the Earthian girl said quickly. “I’m good. I’ll just… go study in my dorm.”
“Alright. Invite’s open if you change your mind. Good job today.” He headed out.
“I’ll be right out, Harrison. I just wanted to ask your student some things.”
“Lílitha…” He gave her a look.
“I’m not going to beat her up or anything. I just want to talk to her. I haven’t properly met her, really.”
“Wh-what is it? What did I do?” Calista glanced nervously between them.
“If you’re going to get nervous so easily, human, how will you manage as a fighter?”
“Don’t mind her,” Harrison told her. “I’ll wait outside. She won’t do anything stupid… I hope.” In response, Lílitha stuck her tongue out at him.
Calista watched her Student Coach leave, her heart quickening with panic. What did she want with her? Why did she look so angry? Why was Harrison leaving? She always did her best to ignore Lílitha in class, so she couldn’t have annoyed her in any way, right?
“Listen, human, I’ll give you credit,” Lílitha began. “You’re not the clueless, lazy dimwit I envisioned you to be. You’re still clueless, but you’ve made efforts. I commend you.”
“Th-thanks?”
“I’m glad you are Harrison’s student. He never showed it, but I know he always wanted a Guild, and it always bothered him that no one came to him for training. Obviously, your progress is going well.”
“Y-yeah… he’s a great coach. He’s taught me-”
“However, what I saw just now… there are many girls in this school that are interested in Harrison. I suppose he is attractive to many— I wouldn’t know, my species is different. He has developed a connection with you. I am warning you now, human.” The little woman stepped forward. Calista quickly backed away, fearing a bruise from her small knuckles, or a painful bite from her fangs.
“I know you Socializers like to make your romantic conquests. If you so much as crack that kid’s heart, know that a bite out of your arm is the least you will get.”
Calista’s mouth flapped and she started rambling, a bit shocked. Was it the dancing thing? She wasn’t flirting, she was trying to smack him in the face. “I-I… I’m not… we’re not… I mean, yeah, he’s GP handsome, but I wouldn’t… I would never do that. I’m a very loyal person. You know, on my old channel, my sign was Loyalty!” She smiled and put her fist on her chest.
“Was it, now?” Lílitha fake-smiled, her brows lifting. “Then how come you left your friends after spending so many years antagonizing fighters on your ‘channel’?”
Calista’s voice stuck in her throat.
“I don’t care about your past, or your stupid attempts to get on the team. Fail, pass, not my problem. My only concern is that you straighten out and don’t hurt that boy. Understand?”
“H-he’s my friend. I wouldn’t. I swear. At least- not like that. I like to punch him a lot, but that’s just fighting, right?”
Lílitha rolled her eyes, seeming exhausted, and headed for the door. “You have my warning, human.”