So, I need to take down these four quickly and run back to the church so Elaine doesn't get any angrier than she likely already is.
They're unarmed, so they likely have powers. I doubt anyone would send unpowered people against me without weapons, unless Val is a moron.
Do I go all out here?...
No! I plan to fight the gang as Parker. I will fight these guys as Parker.
The frontmost man steps forward, and I react by throwing a kick from my left leg, targeting his head. He dodges back, and the stockier man to his left steps in.
I spot a thinner side alley within this already thin alleyway. I'm already outnumbered, so how about I get this fight in my favor?
I dart into the side alley, and the men give chase, filing in one after the other. This alley is far too thin to crowd around me; I get a fair one-on-one fight. The first one I initially kicked at is the first to approach. He swings down at me with his right, and I weave to the left, countering with a straight from my left arm. The blow connects, and I see him stagger back. I take the opportunity to deliver a back kick with my right straight to the solar plexus.
It's like a domino, him toppling over, causing the other two behind him to do the same. With three down, one of the remaining two steps into the alley to face me directly, rushing in to grab me.
I step back; however, he still grabs me and yanks me toward him, slamming his fist into my eye. I feel it well up as his fist slams into me again. I knee into his stomach, causing him to cough, but he doesn't let me go. I kneed him again, causing his grip to loosen slightly, and I take that opportunity to grab his hand to pry it off of me. But the moment I make contact with his hand, I feel a deep burning sensation, causing me to kick him to finally escape his grasp.
His hands are like stoves, got it. I was a little concerned that I was beating on unpowered and unweaponed people, but that's wrong, I suppose.
However, the first three went down far too easily. I don't like that.
Focusing on my opponent in front of me, I step forward, right before stepping backwards again and stilling.
I realize this is a perfect opportunity to train my ears. I feel as though this is rather low stakes. If I mess up, I'm sure Elaine is working on tracking me down, and I'd rather deal with her yelling at me than dying…
Closing my eyes, I tentatively step forward, really focusing on listening. I hear a few moments of nothing; maybe the man in front of me is shocked that his opponent would close his eyes mid-fight. But soon, I hear shuffling, closing in quickly. I step forward slightly, ducking to the left, but I feel a knee connect right to my face.
That didn't work out. But I shouldn't stop here.
I feel myself staggering back from the knee, then I feel a burning sensation touch my arm. I instinctively jump back, hearing rapid footsteps approaching before I land. When I hear them approximately five feet away, I start to throw a kick, trying to time it so it connects properly.
I do feel a connection, a solid hit. Whatever I hit felt… different, so I can only assume it was his jaw, as I heard him hit the ground as I did the same.
As I'm getting up, I hear footsteps farther away from me approaching. The last guy. Here's hoping this isn't too hard.
I hear him dart toward me; I attempt to step back and create a sense of distance. However, it's all in vain, as I feel a hand reach out and snatch my shirt, yanking me closer. I feel an elbow connect with my nose, the sensation forcing my eyes open.
Dazed, I instinctively kick forward, weakly connecting with the man's pelvis, causing him to drop me.
My vision growing clearer, I see the man below me gripping his crotch in a rather protective manner; he's groaning and staggering back.
I didn't think that weak little kick would do all of that, but I'm not complaining. I walk up to him and shove him over.
Honestly, those guys were pretty weak. Did the King of Hearts actually tell Val everything?...
He probably did.
That man doesn't strike me as the type to not take every opportunity to put me through the wringer.
Maybe Val didn't take him seriously and just sent grunts to attack me? Or maybe she wanted to test the waters to see at what level I can fight?
Breaking my train of thought, I hear rapid, hurrying footsteps, alongside a shout from Elaine, "Parker! You get your ass back in that church and apologize to Bonnie, now or else– Holy shit!" Elaine interrupts herself when she sees the splayed-out gang members on the ground.
"They attacked me," I tell her as I walk toward her.
"You're still going back in that church and apologizing."
"Why? All I did was accidentally bump into someone; maybe she shouldn't have used her power to invade my brain."
"She can't help it; it's involuntary when she touches someone and makes eye contact."
"So?" I huff.
"So? So?! Is that all you have to say, Parker?! Bonnie has been my bff since fourth grade; I am not going to tolerate you being a little jerk to her!" Elaine stomps toward me and starts dragging me back in the direction of the church.
I have never heard her use words like "bff" in my life. Since when did she talk like that? And why does it feel like every conversation starts and ends with her being mad at me? This is just feeling so repetitive.
As we arrive back at the church, I see that the service is ending, and Elizabeth is helping to clean up alongside some officials and Bonnie. Elaine shoots me a glare. "The first words out of your mouth better be 'I'm sorry,' or else."
Elaine drags me through the entrance doors and throws me right in front of a very startled Bonnie.
I stare up at her. "I'm not sorry. Don't peek in my head."
"Sorry." Bonnie looks down, averting my eyes as though in this moment she'd rather be anywhere else.
"No, don't apologize to him!" Elaine shouts, stomping over and picking me up by my collar. I feel her breath piercing my right ear as she leans in close. "Parker. Apologize now. Is this the hill you want to die on?"
"Elaine, put him down! You should be nicer to him." Bonnie interjects, rushing over and placing her hand on Elaine's shoulder. Elaine, grumbling, obeys, taking the request quite literally. The fall wasn't entirely pleasant, but it's not the worst pain I've ever felt.
"Elaine… May I speak to him alone?" Bonnie asks, helping me up. I notice that she's now wearing navy blue felt gloves. Does that limit her from peeking into my head? Why wasn't she wearing them earlier?
Elaine sighs and turns around. "Okay. But Parker, if you do anything bad… You'll be cleaning our bathroom with your toothbrush."
Oh no.
"That's disgusting!" I shout as Bonnie hurriedly drags me into a nearby isolated room.
"Ray?" She says, gently closing the door.
I feel my innards all tighten as my breath quickens, my thoughts spiral into an endless abyss until I feel a gentle touch on my shoulder. "I'm not telling anyone."
What? Why wouldn't she? I'm the criminal her "bff" should be… doing something bad to. "W–Why?" I sputter, the only words I can muster in this moment.
"Elaine would regret hurting you. You and I both know that." She states, her gaze gaining this spark of fire that I haven't seen before.
"You don't know a thing–" "I know you feel a lot of guilt. You're processing a lot. I won't ask you to start believing in god. But maybe come back next weekend, and we can chat again?" Bonnie then starts to let go of me and reaches to open the door.
"Elaine is going to make me anyway." I sigh as I start dragging my feet out of the room, returning to a rather calm Elizabeth and an Elaine who is tapping her foot and checking her nonexistent watch.
"Elaine, I don't like when you do that," Bonnie says as she gently pushes me back toward Elaine.
"He was taking forever. His mentor wants him back for some one-on-one training." Elaine scoffs, clearly nowhere near delighted at the idea of interacting with Mr. Eun-ji.
"Mr. Eun-ji?"
"Yes. He said something about this being your greatest lesson yet."
I do really like Mr. Eun-ji, but I am very unsure of what his definition of 'greatest lesson yet' entails. If it's blindfolding me and beating me around again, I probably won't enjoy it too much.
"Well, are you ready to go?" Elaine asks, already leading me out.
"Why ask? We're leaving already." I retort, following her anyway.
I'm sure spending time with Mr. Eun-ji will be far more pleasant than whatever this experience was.