27 A New Teammate (1/2)

”And so, everyone, this is Byrd.” Waze gestured to Byrd as if presenting a work of art. They stood in the entrance to the training room where all of the other teens waited inside.

”She's so...” Duke started to speak but then trailed off. Michelle finished for him.

”Cute! She's adorable!” Michelle ran over to squeeze Byrd, but Waze pulled her out of the way.

”You'll suffocate her.” Waze said, giving Michelle a matter of fact expression.

”Did she really pass your little test?” Marco gave Waze a doubtful look, which gave Waze an idea.

”Hey, how about the two of you spar right now? No abilities.” Waze beamed at the two, who both gave her equally shocked expressions.

”I-I-I couldn't... I don't think...” Byrd stuttered off before Waze pulled her to the side and whispered to her.

”Just put up a good fight and show them what you're made of. You gotta prove yourself to these guys too.” Upon hearing her words, Byrd's face grew hard with determination.

”Waze... I don't know about this...” Marco trailed off.

”It's alright. I mean, if it comes down to it you can just go easy on her right?” Marco sighed and the two approached the center of the room. Marco took a fighting stance and Byrd did her best to imitate it, failing miserably.

”H-hey Waze, you sure this is a good idea?” Duke looked at the small girl with concern.

”Just trust me.” Waze spoke up so the two people readying themselves to fight could hear. ”And... go!”

Immediately Marco lunged forward. It seemed as if he had no intentions of going easy and was planning on ending the fight quickly. He was quick, but Byrd was quicker. She quickly dodged to the side putting slight surprise on the faces of the other teammates.

”Not just anyone can dodge one of Marco's punches...” Michelle looked at the girl, analyzing her closely. But it was hard to look past her dainty atmosphere.

Byrd dodged around Marco for a while until they were both relatively out of breath.

”She's got some skills, huh?” Duke nodded in approval.

”That she does.” Waze smiled. This was nothing compared to what she had seen earlier. But, it seemed like Byrd could use a bit of encouragement.

”You can do it Byrd!” The girl looked in Waze's direction. Waze gave her her best smile. ”I believe in you!” That seemed to be the final trigger for Byrd. As Marco approached to hit her once more, Byrd swept in and swung her leg up in a high arc, slamming it into his face. Marco stumbled away. After all his training, one kick wasn't enough to bring him down, yet it still did quite some damage. The two flung at each other once more, this time in a flurry of hits. Waze and the others could barely keep up with the fight at the speed they were both going. Suddenly, Norris entered from the store where she had been helping the last customer.

”That's enough for now.” Everyone spun around, startled at the sound of the old woman's voice.