[Undisclosed Location, Central Florida (April 2023)]
The air in central Florida was quite different from the air back home in Charlotte. To Valerie, it felt thicker, warmer, and alive in a way that was completely different from what one would experience in the big city.
Valerie stood beside the passenger side of the black SUV she rode in on and inhaled deeply as dawn painted the horizon in brilliant streaks of orange and gold. The humidity clung to her skin immediately, but she barely noticed it. Mainly due to the excitement that had been burning through her nerves ever since she woke up this morning.
Today was the day.
Her first training session with Zharia Owens.
One of the greatest sorcerers in the country.
And one of the most dangerous women alive…
For as long as she could remember, even long before joining the DPA, Valerie had heard stories about Zharia Owens from agents and relatives from all across the country. The previous Thunder Goddess. The Lightning Fist. The woman who once went toe-to-toe with a whole horde of bat-cryptids during a hurricane without backup. And many more accomplishments to her name that most sorcerers couldn't help but be jealous of.
She was also the woman personally responsible for producing some of the DPA's strongest fighters in recent memory, the most famous of which being Jean-Jacques Mubele himself.
And Deputy Chief Mubele terrified everyone, which meant his teacher had to be something else entirely.
Valerie rolled her shoulders beneath her orange tank top before adjusting the black athletic leggings that covered her lower body. Her long blonde braid swaying against the middle of her back as she looked toward the thick tree line ahead of them.
"So this is the place, huh?" She asked the young man who had escorted her all the way out here to the middle of nowhere.
Victor Owens shut the SUV door with a lazy shove. "What? Were you expecting a volcano fortress or something?"
Valerie glanced at him. "I was kinda expecting something more…dramatic."
"You're training with my mother. Don't worry, the dramatic part comes later."
Victor Owens, Julian's younger brother and the youngest son of Zharia Owens, was irritatingly relaxed for someone escorting her to what was essentially the magical equivalent of a military boot camp at the ass crack of dawn.
Despite only being eighteen years old as of a few months ago, the young 'lightning magic' user was tall and lean, whereas Valerie was broad-shouldered and muscular. And his movements were loose and casual in a way that suggested a dangerous level of confidence hidden beneath the easygoing smile. He wore a dark gray compression shirt and black sweatpants tucked into a pair of combat boots. With a silver set of dog tags hanging around his neck.
And unlike Valerie, Victor looked painfully awake at six-thirty in the morning.
'He is pretty cute, though.' She thought. 'Seriously, what is with this family? Why is everybody in it so good-looking?'
"You good?" The young man asked as he ran a hand over his braided head.
"What?"
"You're staring at me like you're trying to decide if I'm annoying or not."
Valerie snorted. "I already decided."
"You sound like my brother." Victor nearly laughed. "Let me guess, you're not much of a morning person, are you?"
All Valerie could do was shrug before the two began walking toward their intended destination.
They started down a narrow path through dense mangrove growth and twisted palms. The deeper they walked, the quieter the world became. Birdsong faded. And the wind disappeared.
Then, halfway through their journey, Valerie felt it.
Mana.
Not the weak ambient traces of atmospheric mana floating through the air like it did in most cities, but something entirely different. This was concentrated power. Thick and heavy. The sensation crawled across her skin like static before a thunderstorm.
Valerie had never felt anything like it before. Nor had she ever experienced the way that her mana reacted almost instinctively to the sudden wave of pressure. A subtle warmth began spreading through her chest as if the energy around her was trying to wake something sleeping deep within her soul.
Her blue eyes narrowed at the young man walking a few feet ahead of her. "You feel that too, right?"
Victor looked over his shoulder. "This your first time experiencing what a strong magic region is like? Don't worry, you'll get used to it pretty quickly."
That only made Valerie walk faster.
The trail eventually ended at a limestone cliff face half-covered by hanging vines and winding tree branches. Without a word, Victor reached forward, pressed his palm against the rock, and blue sparks crackled briefly across his fingers.
The cliff practically trembled.
The stone all but groaned.
And right before the young 'fire magic' user's eyes, the vines parted ways, revealing a hidden opening at the base of the cliff.
Valerie's eyebrows lifted despite herself.
"Okay…" The tall blonde admitted. "That's dramatic."
Victor smirked. "Told you!"
The cave beyond the cliffside opening was enormous, enormous enough to swallow them whole.
Valerie stepped inside and immediately stopped walking.
'Holy shit…'
The cavern stretched so far overhead that darkness swallowed the ceiling entirely. Massive stone pillars rose from the blackened water below, and glowing blue crystals embedded in the walls cast shimmering reflections across the underground lake occupying most of the chamber.
Mana saturated the place so densely that Valerie could practically taste it on her tongue.
The lake itself radiated energy. A vast underground body of water that stretched across the chamber like black glass. Valerie could already tell that this was unlike anything she had ever seen before.
The young woman stared in awe at the wonder of nature surrounding her. "This place is incredible…"
"Yeah." Victor said quietly. "My great-grandfather found it not too long after the Great Awakening. And my family has owned the surrounding land ever since. This place is pretty special, but you'll find out why soon enough."
This wasn't the kind of place that could ever be considered something man-made.
It was not artificial, but completely natural.
Raw.
Deep.
Dangerous.
For a brief moment, Valerie forgot how to breathe, then she regained her focus when she saw the lone woman sitting atop a massive rock formation near the shoreline.
Zharia Owens.
'So that's her, huh?' Valerie said to herself as she took in the sight of one of her idols.
"It's about time you two showed up." The woman said in an obviously displeased tone. "I was starting to think you got lost or something."
Even seated, the woman carried the kind of presence that immediately dominated a room. It was the kind of unrivaled authority that Valerie had only ever felt from someone like her Deputy Chief.
Average height, muscular build, and honey-brown skin with a black pixie-cut hairstyle. She had vibrant brown eyes, sharp enough to pin a person in place. Along with a massive burn scar that stretched across the right side of her face and disappeared beneath the collar of her dark training jacket.
She looked less like a teacher and more like someone who had survived several wars through sheer refusal to die.
Lightning crackled faintly around the stone beneath her boots.
Valerie had seen pictures of her before, but they hadn't done the woman justice based on what she was seeing right now.
"Well…" Zharia said calmly. "You're taller than Jean-Jacques said you'd be."
Her voice echoed across the cavern.
Victor walked forward first. "Morning, Mom!"
"You're late."
"We're three minutes early." The young man shot back.
"Exactly."
Victor sighed dramatically and shrugged. "Yes, yes, good morning to you too."
Valerie stepped closer and straightened her posture instinctively. She wanted to make sure that she made a good first impression. "Agent Valerie McKenna, ma'am! It's nice to finally meet you!"
Zharia didn't respond immediately. Instead, she studied the lone 'fire magic' user of the group in cold silence. Not casually, but clinically. As if she were evaluating a weapon to determine how useful it would be.
Valerie resisted the urge to shift under the sudden scrutiny.
Finally, Zharia hopped down from the rock with a surprising amount of grace for someone in her fifties. Her boots landed softly against the stone shore. Her brown eyes locked onto Valerie immediately. And the young woman suddenly understood why even experienced agents became nervous around this woman.
"So…" Zharia said, circling Valerie slowly. "You're the little McKenna minion that Jean-Jacques and Robin were telling me about?"
Valerie nodded once, despite the fact that she didn't like being referred to as a "minion". "Yes, ma'am, I am! Thank you for agreeing to train me while I'm here. I greatly appreciate the opportunity!"
"Hm." That was all Zharia said at first. Up close, the older woman felt overwhelming. Not because she was loud or outright intimidating, but because everything about her was obviously controlled. The kind of control that only terrifyingly powerful people like her could possess.
She looked Valerie up and down to further inspect her.
Orange tank top.
Cheap leggings.
Good muscle definition.
Decent posture.
Attentive eyes.
Everything.
Then Zharia shrugged, as if she were dissatisfied with what she was looking at. "I'm…not impressed."
Valerie blinked. The words hit her like a slap in the face.
Victor winced quietly. "Come on, Mom. Don't you think-"
"I said what I said." Zharia interrupted. "And I meant it."
Her brown eyes then once again locked onto Valerie's.
"You've got size, and you're in decent physical condition from what I can see. Along with adequate mana reserves." Zharia tilted her head slightly. "But plenty of mediocre sorcerers can manage to look adequate while standing still."
Valerie felt irritation spark instantly in her chest.
The older woman noticed.
Of course, she noticed.
"Good." The older woman said with a slight smirk. "You've got a bit of pride too. I can work with that."
Valerie crossed her arms and hardened her expression. "With all due respect, ma'am, I didn't come here to stand still."
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Zharia's mouth. "Better answer."
Victor muttered and rolled his eyes. "Congratulations, Valerie. You survived the first test!"
Zharia ignored him.
"For the next month…" The older woman then said, before lifting her feet off the ground and hovering in the air. "I'm going to determine whether or not you're actually worth my time. I've trained plenty of 'fire magic' users before, and I want to see whether or not you'll burn bright or fizzle out like a cheap firecracker."
Valerie frowned slightly. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"'Fire magic' users are emotional by nature. Aggressive. Impulsive. And proud in some of the worst ways possible." Zharia folded her arms. "Most of them burn bright for a few years before self-destruction catches up. And I want to see whether or not that could happen to you."
Valerie said nothing. She'd seen something like that happen before.
"You work under Jean-Jacques and Robin." Zharia continued. "Which means somebody saw potential in you. That buys exactly one thing from me."
"And what would that be?"
"A chance."
The cavern went quiet except for the soft movement of water against stone.
Then Zharia glanced toward her son. "Victor, I'll let you handle this one today."
The young man let out a soft sigh and immediately stepped forward. "Knew this was coming…."
Valerie looked between them. "So…what's the plan?"
"You're about to find out." Victor said cheerfully.
Zharia pointed toward an open stretch of shoreline near the lake. Speaking calmly, as if discussing the weather. "Your first test is simple. You'll be fighting my son."
Valerie's pulse quickened instantly. That was not what she was expecting to hear.
"I want to evaluate your combat instincts, spell efficiency, reaction time, mana output, pain tolerance, and emotional discipline under pressure. Those are the primary skills that I need to see in order to determine what happens next."
Victor started walking toward the shoreline after giving the tall blonde an apologetic grin. "Basically…she wants to see if you can survive."
The young man with the honey-brown skin and buzzcut then rolled his shoulders and stretched his neck casually, as if this was a normal morning activity for him. Then again, this might actually be the case, considering who his mother was.
Valerie stared at him. "Seriously?"
"You expected worksheets or something?" Victor asked.
"It looks like she expected some sort of cheesy meditation drill." Zharia said dryly.
"I did not."
"Sure you didn't."
Valerie tried not to smile. Tried and failed, to be exact.
This was exactly what she was hoping for. Not lectures, not boring paperwork. A fight. A real fight. The kind of fight that would allow her to strut her stuff and show the woman exactly what her future student was working with.
The irritation from earlier was still there, but underneath it now sat something hotter.
Excitement.
Zharia then walked toward the edge of the lake with her hands in her jacket pockets before sitting on one of the large stones placed near the edge of the shoreline.
"I want to see your instincts." She said without turning around. "Your control. Your reaction speed. Your decision-making under pressure. You already know how to fight; Jean-Jacques wouldn't have sent you here otherwise. My job is teaching you how not to die against enemies who are better than you."
"And if I lose?" Valerie asked.
Victor grinned. "Then Mom lectures you for three hours."
Zharia glanced back. "Four, if you cry."
"I don't cry."
"Robin said the same thing before her first day."
Victor moved closer toward the shoreline and stopped several yards away from Valerie.
The underground lake reflected pale blue light across both of them.
Valerie rolled her neck slowly and exhaled through her nose. She could feel the heat gathering beneath her skin already. 'Fire magic' always responded to emotion. And right now, she was very emotional. This woman was clearly looking down on her. And as a proud member of the McKenna family, she was not about to let that slide.
Victor raised one hand lazily. Red electricity began to crackle instantly around his fingers. Then it spread.
Sparks snapped across his arms and shoulders as arcs of lightning wrapped around his body in violent flashes. And the air itself began to buzz with electrical pressure.
Valerie's eyes narrowed.
Okay.
So he was strong.
Good.
A grin slowly spread across her face.
The tall blonde planted one foot behind the other and lowered into a fighting stance. Heat shimmered faintly around her forearms as she activated her body reinforcement. Although she wasn't expecting to get right to the good part so early in the day, Valerie wasn't one to back down from a good old-fashioned brawl whenever one came to her. And there was no way in Hell she was about to cower in front of one of the strongest women alive.
Across the cavern, Zharia watched silently.
Judging.
Measuring.
Waiting.
Victor smiled as he got ready to make his first move. Then, he vanished forward in an explosion of blue lightning.
Valerie surged ahead at the exact same moment, orange mana erupting around her fists as one thought burned through her mind:
'I cannot make a fool of myself here.'
-(o)-
Character Profile: Zharia
Name: Zharia Jane Owens
Alias: The Thunder Goddess (Former), The Lightning Fist
Gender: Female
Age: 51
Birthday: June 27th
Birthplace: New Orleans, Louisiana, United States of America
Height: 70in
Weight: 166lbs
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Race: Black
Magic: Lightning
Occupation: MMA Coach, Boxing Coach, Professional Boxer (Former), DPA Agent (Former), United States Secret Service Agent (Former)
Stat Chart: S(+)
-Physical Strength - 5
-Intelligence - 3
-Magic Amount - 5+
-Magical Control - 5+
-Magic Sensing - 5+
-Special - 5+
Fun Fact:
-Favorite food is shrimp gumbo.
-Previous holder of the "Thunder God" title (Lost it to Jean-Jacques Mubele).
-Has trained many notable sorcerers over the years, including Jean-Jacques Mubele, Robin Stillwater, Ethan MacNamara, Mary-Anne Owens-Conley, Michael Kazlouski, Jasper Chandler, and Aliyah McKenna.
-Former Female Super Middleweight Boxing Champion (WBO, WBA, WBC, IBF).
-Retired undefeated in her career (55-0, 51 by KO).
-Alma Mater: Georgia Institute of Technology (BS)
-National Rank: 9
-World Rank: 41