The Divergence

The forest around Oakridge was darker than the streets behind them, but not completely unlit.

Sparse lamps marked the edge of the lighter woodland, their glow fading quickly beneath the canopy. 

Beyond them, trees crowded together in broad stretches, their trunks thick enough to break lines of sight without turning the area into the massive, tangled wilderness of the Diverged Lands.

Lavinia walked with the others beneath the trees, her boots pressing softly into damp soil and fallen leaves. 

Violetta remained a few steps ahead of everyone, moving at an easy pace while the scent of lilacs and rain drifted behind her.

Evelyn glanced around the forest before looking toward Violetta. "Are you sure you want to have an actual practical fight with everyone?"

Violetta stopped long enough to raise both arms and stretch. 

She flexed afterward, looking down at the almost nonexistent definition along her upper arms with faint amusement. 

"Absolutely. I didn't get to play with everyone the first time, and considering tonight, I think we could all benefit from venting a little frustration."

Evelyn smiled softly. "That's fair."

Violetta lowered her arms and continued walking. "Cordelia, Evangeline, and I weren't present when the rest of you did this before either, so I'd rather try it than continue wondering what I missed."

Lavinia immediately brightened. "And this is much better than a field."

"You made that argument seven times." Violetta glanced over her shoulder with a smile.

"It was a very good argument." Lavinia gestured broadly toward the trees. "A flat field would be boring. Here we can actually move around things."

Valerie walked beside her and laughed. "You mean you can hide behind trees when you're losing."

Lavinia looked offended. "Strategic repositioning."

"Running away."

"Strategic repositioning."

Rosaline chuckled from nearby. "She sounds prepared."

"I am prepared." Lavinia puffed out her chest as the group slowed, excitement already building in her expression. "I'm going to be victorious this time."

Valerie turned toward her with obvious amusement. "Didn't you think that last time too?"

Lavinia's smile faltered.

Valerie's grin widened. "How did that turn out?"

Lavinia clicked her tongue and looked away. "That was a different Lavinia."

Gwendolyn tilted her head. "It was only a few days ago."

"Ancient history." Lavinia waved dismissively. "I've mastered my senses now. I'm basically invincible."

Evangeline threw her head back and cackled. "I certainly hope that's true, because I intend to test it."

Lavinia slowly looked toward her. "Why did that sound targeted?"

"It was." Evangeline smiled brightly.

Cordelia stretched her arms over her head, long blue hair shifting in the breeze and carrying the scent of taffy and honeysuckle across the clearing. 

"I've never fought another vampire before, so I'm not entirely sure what to expect."

Gwendolyn laughed and bounced lightly on the balls of her feet. "It's fun. Don't think too much about it. Just go wild."

Cordelia lowered her arms and gave her a curious look. "That sounds like questionable advice."

"It worked last time."

"It resulted in a perfectly good field being ruined," Adelaide reminded her.

Gwendolyn smiled. "Exactly."

Violetta laughed softly before turning to face everyone. "We'll do two teams. It should be easier to keep track of than everyone attacking everyone."

That sounded simple enough.

It wasn't.

"I want Lavinia." Valerie immediately grabbed Lavinia's arm.

"You had Lavinia last time." Rosaline pointed toward Valerie. "I want Lavinia."

Lavinia blinked. "Why am I suddenly being drafted?"

Gwendolyn hooked one arm around Lavinia's other side. "She's with me."

Valerie stared at her. "You can't just claim her."

"You did."

"I claimed her first."

Cordelia looked between them with mild confusion. "Are we choosing teams or dividing ownership?"

"Both, apparently." Adelaide folded her arms.

Evangeline raised a hand. "I want Violetta."

Violetta looked amused. "Why?"

"Because you're a General."

"That has very little relevance here."

"It sounds useful."

Celestine smiled softly. "Can we perhaps choose based on balance?"

Rosaline pointed at herself. "I'm balanced."

"You just tried to take Lavinia because Valerie wanted her," Celestine replied.

"That's team strategy."

Evelyn stood quietly near the edge of the group, watching the argument unfold with growing amusement.

Several minutes passed before Violetta finally stepped in.

"Enough." Violetta raised one hand, though she was smiling. "We're going to split evenly, and no one is allowed to argue for at least thirty seconds."

Valerie opened her mouth.

Violetta looked at her.

Valerie closed it again.

After several more attempts, adjustments, complaints, and one accusation from Rosaline that the entire process had been rigged against her personally, the teams finally settled.

Lavinia stood beside Gwendolyn, Valerie, Cordelia, and Celestine.

Across from them stood Evangeline, Violetta, Adelaide, Rosaline, and Evelyn.

Lavinia looked over her own side first.

Then the opposition.

Then back again.

"This seems unfair."

Valerie glanced at her. "To who?"

"I haven't decided."

Rosaline laughed from across the clearing. "Convenient."

Valerie turned toward Violetta. "Anything we should know before we start?"

Violetta shook her head, purple hair shifting around her shoulders. "Nothing particularly complicated. Just remember it's still early in the night, and we can't spend too long playing around."

Evangeline immediately looked disappointed. "How long is too long?"

"Long enough that we begin regretting it later."

"That's vague."

"It's intentionally vague."

Rosaline bounced lightly in place, a smirk forming as she looked across at the opposing five. "Can we start now?"

Lavinia flexed her fingers.

Her nails extended slightly.

A few centimeters.

Enough.

The others mirrored the motion in various ways, shoulders loosening, feet shifting, bodies settling into stances that none of them had ever formally learned but somehow felt natural.

Lavinia's grin widened.

"Go!"

The forest erupted.

Impacts rang out almost instantly.

Wind whistled between trees as ten vampires vanished from human perception and became streaks of motion through the clearing.

Lavinia barely had time to laugh before Evangeline appeared directly in front of her.

A hand shot toward her face.

Lavinia caught the wrist.

"Why did you immediately come for me?" Lavinia giggled as Evangeline tried to wrench her arm free.

"Because you said you were invincible!" Evangeline twisted sharply, trying to use the motion to break Lavinia's grip.

"That was confidence."

"That was an invitation."

Lavinia planted one foot and spun.

Evangeline's body lifted.

A moment later, Lavinia's boot drove into her side.

The impact sent Evangeline flying through the forest.

She struck a smaller tree hard enough to snap the trunk and continued through it as splinters exploded outward.

Lavinia winced slightly. "That was a little harder than I meant."

Evangeline rose from the debris almost instantly.

Her red hair was full of bark.

She grinned.

"Do it again."

Lavinia laughed. "You are insane."

"Probably!"

Evangeline lunged again.

To Lavinia's left, Rosaline and Celestine had already disappeared into their own fight.

The two blurred between trees, trading quick strikes and immediately changing direction whenever one gained even the slightest advantage.

Rosaline ducked beneath Celestine's swipe and drove a shoulder into her midsection.

Celestine twisted with the impact instead of resisting it, caught Rosaline's arm, and used the motion to throw her sideways.

Rosaline hit the ground, rolled once, and vanished before Celestine could follow.

A heartbeat later, she reappeared behind her.

Celestine ducked just before Rosaline's nails swept across where her neck had been.

"You almost had me." Celestine smiled as she shifted backward.

"I'll get you next time." Rosaline lunged again.

Lavinia barely caught the exchange before Evangeline's nails flashed toward her face.

She raised one forearm.

The claws sliced through the fabric and opened several thin lines across her skin.

The cuts began closing before Lavinia had even finished stepping backward.

"Oh, you're actually trying now." Lavinia smiled.

Evangeline's eyes gleamed. "Obviously."

Lavinia stepped inside her next swipe and drove an elbow toward Evangeline's chest.

Evangeline blocked.

The impact still pushed her several feet backward.

Lavinia followed immediately.

Farther away, Gwendolyn and Evelyn were moving considerably less wildly.

At least compared to everyone else.

They still flickered between positions too quickly for a human eye to track, but neither seemed interested in launching the other through trees.

Evelyn stabbed forward with one hand, her nails extended and aimed toward Gwendolyn's shoulder.

Gwendolyn shifted aside.

Evelyn adjusted.

The strike changed direction toward Gwendolyn's ribs.

Gwendolyn lifted her leg and kicked Evelyn's wrist away.

Evelyn spun with the motion rather than fighting it.

Her other hand swept toward Gwendolyn's face.

Gwendolyn raised an arm in time.

Four shallow lines opened across her forearm.

Gwendolyn's ears twitched.

She looked at the healing scratches, then at Evelyn.

"Oh."

Evelyn smiled softly. "Sorry."

Gwendolyn laughed. "Why are you apologizing?"

She lunged.

The two collided and tumbled across the soft forest floor.

Leaves and dirt scattered around them.

Gwendolyn tried to shift on top.

Evelyn planted one foot against the ground and twisted, forcing Gwendolyn sideways before driving a kick into her ribs.

Gwendolyn hit the ground.

Before she could rise, Evelyn followed.

Gwendolyn's hand shot upward and wrapped around Evelyn's neck.

Evelyn immediately abandoned her attack and caught Gwendolyn's wrist with both hands, preventing her from closing her grip further.

Gwendolyn grinned up at her. "Got you."

Evelyn's lips twitched. "Not yet."

Gwendolyn shifted her hips and rolled them both.

A second later, Evelyn lay beneath her with Gwendolyn sitting astride her waist.

Gwendolyn tightened her grip just enough to make the position clear. "Give up?"

Evelyn's blonde hair was smeared with dirt and bits of grass, but her empty red eyes remained bright.

She smiled.

Then she wrenched Gwendolyn's hand away from her throat.

Gwendolyn blinked.

Evelyn bucked her hips sharply to one side.

Gwendolyn lost balance and hit the ground beside her.

Before Gwendolyn could recover, Evelyn caught her hand and shoved.

Gwendolyn slid several feet through the leaves.

Evelyn was already pursuing.

Gwendolyn rolled onto her back just as Evelyn's boot came down toward her chest.

She caught the ankle with both hands.

Gwendolyn laughed. "I wouldn't believe you if you told me you weren't some secret assassin as a human."

Evelyn actually laughed aloud.

The sound was soft, but bright enough that Gwendolyn's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"My past wasn't really that interesting." Evelyn twisted her trapped leg and threw a punch with her free hand.

The fist struck Gwendolyn in the stomach.

Thud.

Gwendolyn folded slightly around the impact.

Evelyn's other hand swept across her midsection.

Her extended nails tore through the black fabric of Gwendolyn's dress and opened several bloody lines beneath it.

Gwendolyn looked down.

The wounds were already sealing.

The dress began closing almost as quickly.

"That was rude." Gwendolyn looked back up with a grin.

"I'm sorry." Evelyn smiled despite the apology.

"No you're not."

"Not really."

Evelyn surged forward.

She planted one foot directly on top of Gwendolyn's boot, trapping it in place long enough to drive her elbow upward.

The blow caught Gwendolyn beneath the chin.

Her head snapped backward.

For a fraction of a second, she staggered.

Evelyn didn't waste it.

Her fist struck Gwendolyn across the side.

The impact launched her backward.

Gwendolyn flew through the air and crashed against a tree hard enough to shake leaves from the branches.

She slid downward until her boots touched the ground.

Then she started laughing.

"I genuinely don't know what I'm supposed to do with you." Gwendolyn rubbed her jaw, still grinning.

Evelyn was already running toward her.

Her boot descended toward Gwendolyn's throat.

Gwendolyn caught it.

"Absolutely not."

She twisted and threw.

Evelyn sailed several meters sideways and slammed into another tree.

The trunk cracked but remained standing.

Gwendolyn pushed herself upright and tapped one finger thoughtfully against her chin. "If I were still human, I think my entire skull would've become soup from that elbow."

Evelyn slid down the trunk and immediately stood again.

A few strands of blonde hair had fallen across her face.

She brushed them aside with the back of one hand.

"Probably." Evelyn smiled softly.

Gwendolyn stared at her. "That's all you have to say?"

"I apologized earlier."

"You took it back!"

"I said I wasn't really sorry."

"Exactly!"

Evelyn laughed again and charged.

Gwendolyn's smile widened.

She launched herself forward to meet her.

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