Elemorts

Chapter XIV - Grudge Match

"I would like to try it first," Seluna declared obstinately.

"This is not a plaything," Mert replied, his voice reverberating through the room. The heavily built man towered over Seluna and had a square, clean-shaven face, an amiable smile, and neatly combed, wavy, brown hair.

"Which is why I want to try it before Ms. Ailoraw does," Seluna said.

"Has there been some misunderstanding?" Mert asked with a concerned air. "Do you suspect it might harm her?"

Two-faced jerk, Pinz thought, as she caressed Puff in her arms. She would have blurted outright at his face about Bastelle's death and what she had told her. But Seluna had advised her to play along with the act for now. It was all she could do to keep her lips pursed. I can still be an absolute jerk about it, though, Pinz thought.

Pinz shrugged. "I'm sure you would forgive me if I feel the need to be prepared for the effects, if any, so that I don't make a fool of myself in front of my fans."

She looked around at the camera lenses fixed into the metal walls of the testing area. She had been informed that the demonstration of the new fightsense technology would be screened at the foyer of Hotel Grande and several other places as part of the Galactic Battle Fighting Tournament promotion. That gave her much solace. Surely, they would not dare cause harm to her with so many people watching?

Behind Pinz was a large glass partition that separated the testing area from the monitoring area, where personnel sat behind screens and peered through the glass into the testing area. Before Pinz had crossed the partition, she had heard all sorts of digital noises, from text scrawling over screens to the beeping of the electronic gadgets, but now when she stood on the other side, not a single sound came from the monitoring area.

Mert nodded. "Very well. If you would please step up, Ms. Artis?" he said to Seluna.

Seluna descended a couple of short steps onto the metal floor below. Her footsteps echoed through the silence as she approached the center of the room. Two personnel got to fitting Seluna up with the fightsense gadget, which consisted of a black, fingerless gauntlet and a small earpiece.

Facing Seluna was another man who was already geared up. He had been introduced to Pinz as Utsu, from planet Digitex, a fellow fighter in the tournament. Lean, with spiky, black hair, he was the champion of the GB tournament held two years ago.

Puff gently slapped Pinz with her little paw to reclaim her attention and to show her displeasure at being confined within the walls with these strange people. Pinz stroked the cat's head and chin to ease her restlessness. Even she is uncomfortable, Pinz thought.

When they were done, the personnel climbed the steps to the raised edge of the area and crossed the glass partition back to the monitoring area.

Mert spoke into his headset, "Fire it up."

Pinz watched through the partition behind her as one of the personnel tapped away into a keyboard before him. She turned back to glance at Seluna. All at once, a layer of turquoise light flooded the floor and enveloped all four walls while a turquoise aura emanated from Seluna and Utsu. Seluna gasped in amazement and gawked at each of her arms one by one, turning and twisting her limbs.

Two holograms materialized overhead, one over Seluna, one over Utsu. They displayed health bars with the respective names, akin to the ones Pinz had seen in video games she had played as a kid.

"Behold the revolutionary fightsense technology that will but redefine... fighting," Mert announced triumphantly, his face awash in the turquoise glow.

"Which, apparently, lets you fight on a funky disco floor?" Pinz said, raising her eyebrows.