Power Thief's Revenge [BL]

Somner read the hero names out loud. "Ironcage and Snapshot!"

Victorina elbowed Vera, snickering. "Oh look. It's the Brainless Buddies. They have equal wins from their battles, right?"

Vera nodded. "Yeah, though I have a feeling Cam is going to win this one."

"Why? Fiero is pretty good too, based on his track record." The buff girl asked.

"Males become more aggressive in the presence of a new one. They'd want to show off, and he was the more hostile between the two despite being the 'calmer' one." The goth explained.

Hermes was already used to being the source of hostility, so he had no comment about that.

Victorina nudged him. "Who do you think will win, girly? Wanna make bets? I have 100 goldings in my wallet right now."

Hermes waved his hand. "I'm not really into gambling. And I've never seen them fight before, so…. I guess I'm just here to see how it goes."

Vera shook her head too at the offer. "Pass. I'm saving up for the Deadly Beatz concert."

Victorina snapped her fingers, but still remained joyful. "Aw, you lot are no fun at all! I'll go see if I can get Lord Somner and Lord Curacio to bet then!"

The ground shook a little as she leapt happily, holding her magic star wand. She's quite the giantess but was also very feminine and graceful. An interesting combination.

Hermes did find that the heroes of the Ninth Department— or the 'Cloud Nine Squad' — were quite a diverse and dynamic group compared to the people in the sixth department. There, everyone wears the same uniform and has the same competitive office worker personalities. 

These people really felt like superheroes, and perhaps their higher ranking has to do with that. 

They probably have to give themselves a unique branding so people will recognize them when they're in the field. It's really tough to compete with others for fame after all.

Fiero shook hands with Cam for the last time before getting into position. "Gimme all you got, bro!"

Cam smirked. "As you wish, then."

Somner placed his hand in the middle. "One…. two… three… Fight!"

Hermes leaned forward in his seat, eyes scanning the arena as the sparring match kicked off. He'd seen plenty of fights before... F-class brawls, practice duels, even street scraps... but this was something else. These two weren't just fighting. They were performing.

Cam made the first move. His thousand tiny cameras flicked up faster than Hermes could blink.

Click—FLASH!

The flash was blinding even from the sidelines. Hermes instinctively covered his eyes. A few gasps erupted from the onlookers, and when his vision returned, he could already see Cam repositioning behind one of the corners of the training field.

Fiero grunted as he staggered back. The flash had thrown off his footing, but not his instincts. He patted his utility belt and pulled out a collapsible birdcage—the kind Hermes had seen in antique shops—and tossed it at the ground. Mid-air, it shimmered.

CLANG!

The moment it hit the dirt, it transformed. The metal bars expanded, widened, and curved. In the blink of an eye, Fiero had a waist-high wall of iron between him and the sniper with the camera.

Hermes tilted his head. "Huh. Didn't expect him to use a birdcage like that. Smart."

Vera nodded. "He's always been good with improvising. The more enclosed and cage-like something is, the easier it is for him to manipulate it into metal."

Victorina had returned with snacks and a huge soda cup. "Did I miss anything, girls?"

"Cam tried to blind him. Didn't quite work," Hermes replied, eyes still following the battlefield.

Cam darted out from behind cover, aiming his lens again. This time, Fiero was ready. With a flick of his wrist, he hurled a box from his hip. It was just a standard lunchbox from the looks of it. Cute, with pink bunnies on it....

But as it flew through the air, it morphed.

Hermes grinned. "No way."

THUD! The bunny-box exploded into an iron crate the size of a refrigerator, forcing Cam to leap back with a grunt.

"Lunchbox attack?" Victorina laughed. "That's so Fiero."

Cam skid across the arena floor, landing in a low crouch. His fingers drummed against his camera. "Alright, buddy," he muttered, "two can play this game."

He lifted the lens and aimed—not at Fiero, but at one of the upper balconies.

Click—FLASH!

The flash illuminated a hanging metal sculpture overhead. And in that brief moment, Fiero instinctively flinched, expecting a direct attack.

Instead, Cam launched himself forward while Fiero's eyes tracked the wrong angle!

"Diversion." Hermes whispered. "Nice."

Cam closed the distance fast. Fiero barely had time to throw up another transformed object—this time, it was a folding laundry basket that became a cage-like dome shielding his upper body.

But Cam wasn't aiming for the top.

He skidded low and slammed his foot into the dirt, kicking a small travel kennel that had been lying around since the last exercise drill. Hermes didn't even see where Cam had tossed it from, but the kennel rolled straight into Fiero's leg.

SHHHK—CLANG!

When the kennel touched Fiero's foot with his Ironcage ability active, the kennel expanded into a long, iron snake trap....

Curling around Fiero's ankle and pinning it to the ground!

"Gotcha," Cam said.

He raised the camera one last time.

FLASH!

The direct hit disoriented Fiero long enough for Cam to slide in and press two fingers to the side of his neck. A mock knock-out gesture, non-lethal and permitted by training rules.

Somner raised a hand. "Match ends! Snapshot wins."

Victorina pouted. "Nooo! I owe Curacio 100 goldings now. This is why I shouldn't gamble on best friends!"

Fiero stood slowly, rubbing his eyes. "Damn. You got me with the ankle trap. Wasn't expecting you to go for the props."

Cam grinned and helped him up. "Always look beyond the flash, bro. I can see that your footing is your weakness. You must be skipping leg day, huh?"

Hermes was pretty amazed by their sportsmanship. "They really go all out, huh?"

Vera nodded. "It's how they keep their edge. If they don't push themselves here, they're not gonna survive out there."

"I wonder…" Hermes murmured, gazing at the arena,

'If I copied both of them, could I do the same combo? Blind flash, plus trap-and-cage improvisation…'

At the far end of the field, Somner watched the match wind down. His gaze lingered... not on Cam or Fiero, but on Hermes.

His eyes were unreadable, arms crossed tightly against his chest.

"You're watching Hermes quite thoroughly. Are you worried for him because he's an F-class?" Eirwyn said, coming to stand beside him.

Somner scoffed and looked away. "I'm watching everyone. I'm the department head. And you should do it too, since you're the medic, EIRWYN."

Eirwyn just smiled knowingly. "Mmhmm. If you say so, Mr. Somner."

Somner didn't respond. But his fingers tapped against his bicep in quiet rhythm, and when Hermes glanced his way, Somner looked away fast—cheeks just a little redder than before.

Back on the field, Cam and Fiero were still ribbing each other.

"You flashed me in the face twice, jerk."

"Hey, I needed to win. Better luck next time, it's 7 wins for me now and 6 for you."

"You're lucky I didn't throw the bunny-box at your head."

Hermes grinned. He was already thinking of a hundred new ways to use both of their powers. Snapshot's tactical flashes, Ironcage's creative enclosures... 

Maybe being part of the Cloud Nine Squad was going to be more exciting than he thought.